Examines various current events along with historical facts
Examines various current events along with historical facts
Sumo is a sport in which two rikishi (力士, sumo wrestlers) wearing mawashi-belt (loincloth) compete in a circular ring called dohyo (土俵), and the winner is decided by pushing the opponent out of the dohyo or by forcing any part of…
Zatoichi is a kyōkaku (侠客, a wanderer with a chivalrous spirit) from the Edo period, and tells the story of a blind masseur (座頭, zato) named Ichi (市, the blind man’s common name) who travels around the country, meeting and…
The Meyasubako (目安箱, suggestion box) was installed in front of the Tokugawa Shogunate’s Council of Ministers (評定所) in 1721. The Meyasubako, which was set up by the eighth shogun, Yoshimune (吉宗, 1716-1745), as one of the Kyoho Reforms (享保の改革), allowed anyone, except…
In period dramas set in the Edo period (1603-1868), the standard job of ronin (浪人 or 牢人, masterless samurai) is, above all, reupholstering umbrellas. Many people have probably seen the scene where a ronin brushes glue onto a bamboo frame and…