Trip to Japan - Part five Old and New
Japan is a wonderful contrast between the old and the brand spanking new. They value their history and culture and so ancient buildings are preserved where possible.
Temples and shrines fall into the old category.
The main two religions in Japan are Shinto and Buddhism. They have a saying that you are born Shinto and die Buddhist. This is because the Shinto religion deals very pragmatically with life but not very well with death. The Buddhist idea of returning lifetimes as lessons on the way to achieving enlightenment is a much nicer prospect and so most religious Japanese combine the two religions. And they co-exist very happily together.
Once a month the Buddhist temple at Toji has a flea market. It was heady with the scents of incense as well as dried fish and strange cooking smells. And also reminiscent of many of the markets that I used to trade at myself. Some things are universal.
It is here that BillyChristina and her friends go to look for second hand kimono's. A new…
Temples and shrines fall into the old category.
The main two religions in Japan are Shinto and Buddhism. They have a saying that you are born Shinto and die Buddhist. This is because the Shinto religion deals very pragmatically with life but not very well with death. The Buddhist idea of returning lifetimes as lessons on the way to achieving enlightenment is a much nicer prospect and so most religious Japanese combine the two religions. And they co-exist very happily together.
Once a month the Buddhist temple at Toji has a flea market. It was heady with the scents of incense as well as dried fish and strange cooking smells. And also reminiscent of many of the markets that I used to trade at myself. Some things are universal.
It is here that BillyChristina and her friends go to look for second hand kimono's. A new…