Japan
Video of my trip to Japan in 2014, through various cities of the country, Akita, Aomori, Hirosaki, Ishinomaki, Matsushima, Tokyo, Ise, Osaka, Kyoto.
Video: Marco Stoppazzini
Music: Meitei soundcloud.com/meitei106 Time Travel
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Watch on Vimeo for better quality:
PLACES VISITED
Akita
Aomori
Hirosaki
Ishinomaki
Matsushima
Tokyo
Ise
Hiraizumi
Osaka
Kyoto
DETAILS
Cameras: Canon EOS 6D and EOS M, shot at 24p.
Lenses: EF 24-105mm f/4.0L IS USM, EF 50mm f/1.8 mk1, EF-M 11-22mm f/4-5.6 IS STM, EF-M 22mm f/2 STM.
Edited on: Apple Final Cut Pro X
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Sugawara no Michizane
Sugawara no Michizane was born August 1, 845 c.e. into a prominent Japanese family. After schooling, he moved up quickly in rank in the court achieving a prestigious postion in the Ministry of Popular affairs in just four years. He was also quickly promoted with a Doctorate of Literature, a high fete for a scholar while simultaneously taking on the administative duties at the school his father had founded. In 886 c.e. he was appointed as governer of Sankuri Province. At the time it was a necessary step for those who lacked clout to serve in remote areas as a prerequisite for further career advancement. During the time he served as governor, he wrote a good portion of his poetry. Also during the time he served as govenor a political conflict devoloped between the Emperer and a rival. Sugarwara no Michizane sided with the Emperer which proved an ill fated move for him after the Empror's death. Michizane (Suagawara is the family name) was exiled. It was.during his exile he wrote the.poem I read.
Michizane died in 903 c.e. after being exiled in 901.
A period of adverse weather after his death promted the imperial court to posthumously restore his title and dedicate shrines to him fearing the angry spirit of Sugawara no Michizane was causing the discord.
600 Magic Mirrors in the Sacred Pond
This is the The sacred pond beneath the mountain shrine of Haguro-san in the north of Japan. At the beginning of the twentieth century this pond was drained, in order to build a bridge for pilgrims. To the astonishment of the engineers, they found, deep in the mud at the bottom of the pond, around 600 mirrors, which over the centuries had been consigned to the water.
Thesee were placed there during pilgrimages to the mountain as an offerings to the gods in this mountain. They did consider the landscape quite holy and spiritual; for example, looking at the white snow that stays for a long time, they thought it something mysterious and quite spiritual. To the Shinto the pond is a god.
There was a belief among the Japanese people rebirth depends on how much good they have done in their life.
The mirror in Japanese culture does have several meanings, and some of them may seem contradictory. One is that it's an object to ward off evil spirits. On the other hand it can also attract them, which is why, if you go into a rather traditional household in Japan even today, people often cover up their mirror when they don't use it. They have a cloth that they hang in front of it, because it might attract evil spirits. At the same time, it's a sacred object. In the holiest shrine in Japan, in Ise, the holiest of holy parts inside the shrine, that nobody ever gets to see, has one of the three great national treasures, which is indeed a mirror.
In fact, it's the mirror of the great Japanese sun goddess, Amaterasu. By ancient tradition, Amaterasu at the dawn of time ordered her grandson to descend from heaven to rule over Japan, and to help him in this imperial task she gave him a sacred mirror, which would give him and his successors perpetual access to the divine sun. To this day the sacred mirror of Amaterasu is used in the enthronement ceremonies of the Japanese emperor.
And it's this particular ability of Japanese mirrors to allow humans to speak to gods that has ensured the survival of the sacred objects mirror. . All of these mirrors are made of bronze, and all have the same distinctive matt surface.