The Magic of Japan

Author: Hector Garcia
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
ISBN: 1462922368
Category : Travel
Languages : en
Pages : 200

Book Description
A charming collection of quirky insights into Japanese culture. The Magic of Japan is writer Hector Garcia's intensely personal account of his fifteen years in Japan. A self-professed "otaku" or Japanese anime geek since childhood, Garcia has worked for a Japanese software company, mastered the language, and become one of Japan's most popular bloggers. This book is the culmination of his experiences and showcases Garcia's unique ability to delve beneath the surface of Japanese culture to describe its quirky and deep spiritual underpinnings. This collection of essays and beautiful photographs will appeal to his worldwide fan base--including those who devoured his previous bestsellers, A Geek in Japan and Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life--Japanophiles, armchair travelers and anyone with an interest in cultural and travel memoirs. The Magic of Japan features Garcia's keen observations on a wide variety of cultural topics: Japanese behavioral traits, including non-verbal communication, hansei (self-reflection), heijoshin (a calm mind) and shoshin (childlike openness) How Japan's geography and history have shaped its culture--its natural disasters, scarce resources, centuries of isolation and its feudal past Japanese idiosyncrasies, ranging from food traditions and absurd jobs to a love of queues The Japanese spirit, as evidenced in traditional art, manga and attitudes to women Shintoism and Buddhism, looking at temples, festivals, rituals and how religious beliefs pervade popular culture, as seen for example in Studio Ghibli's movie Spirited Away Japan's dark side, including crime, the yakuza, adultery, bullying and suicide The book ends with a gloriously random selection of all things Garcia considers especially magical about Japan--from izakaya to shiitake mushrooms, summer fireworks and green tea!

Tales of Japan

Author: Chronicle Books
Publisher: Chronicle Books
ISBN: 1452174539
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 173

Book Description
A goblin with no body and a monster with no face. A resourceful samurai and a faithful daughter. A spirit of the moon and a dragon king. This collection of 15 traditional Japanese folktales transports readers to a time of adventure and enchantment. Drawn from the works of folklorists Lafcadio Hearn and Yei Theodora Ozaki, these tales are by turns terrifying, exhilarating, and poetic. • Striking illustrations by contemporary Japanese artist Kotaro Chiba • Special gift edition features an embossed, textured case with metallic gold ink, and a satin ribbon page marker • Part of the popular Tales series, featuring Nordic Tales, Celtic Tales, Tales of India, and Tales of East Africa Fans of Ghostly Tales, and Japanese Notebooks will love this book. This book is ideal for: • Fans of fairytales, folklore, ghost stories, Greek mythology, roman mythology, Chinese mythology, and Celtic mythology • Anyone interested in Japan's history books and culture studies • People of Japanese heritage • Collectors of illustrated classics

Dojo

Author: Winston Davis
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 9780804711319
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 356

Book Description
A Stanford University Press classic.

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

Author: Marie Kondo
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
ISBN: 1607747316
Category : House & Home
Languages : en
Pages : 226

Book Description
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The book that sparked a revolution and inspired the hit Netflix series Tidying Up with Marie Kondo: the original guide to decluttering your home once and for all. ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL BOOKS OF THE DECADE—CNN Despite constant efforts to declutter your home, do papers still accumulate like snowdrifts and clothes pile up like a tangled mess of noodles? Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes tidying to a whole new level, promising that if you properly simplify and organize your home once, you’ll never have to do it again. Most methods advocate a room-by-room or little-by-little approach, which doom you to pick away at your piles of stuff forever. The KonMari Method, with its revolutionary category-by-category system, leads to lasting results. In fact, none of Kondo’s clients have lapsed (and she still has a three-month waiting list). With detailed guidance for determining which items in your house “spark joy” (and which don’t), this international bestseller will help you clear your clutter and enjoy the unique magic of a tidy home—and the calm, motivated mindset it can inspire.

Conjuring Asia

Author: Chris Goto-Jones
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107076595
Category : Games & Activities
Languages : en
Pages : 339

Book Description
This book charts the history of modern magic across India, China and Japan, analyzing representations in the cultural imagination of the West.

Geek in Japan

Author: Hector Garcia
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
ISBN: 1462920020
Category : Travel
Languages : en
Pages : 197

Book Description
Created specifically for fans of Japanese "cool culture," A Geek in Japan is one of the most iconic, hip, and concise cultural guides available. This new edition has been thoroughly revised and expanded with new chapters on Japanese video games, architecture, and a special section on visiting Kyoto. Reinvented for the internet age, it's packed with personal essays and hundreds of photographs, presenting all the touchstones of both traditional and contemporary culture in an entirely new way. The expansive range of topics include: Bushido, Geisha, Samurai, Shintoism, and Buddhism Traditional arts and disciplines like Ukiyo-e, Ikebana, Zen meditation, calligraphy, martial arts, and the tea ceremony Insightful essays on code words and social mores; dating and drinking rituals; working and living conditions and symbols and practices that are peculiarly Japanese Japanese pop culture genres and their subcultures, like otaku, gals, visual kei, and cosplay For visitors, the author includes a mini guide to his favorite neighborhoods in Tokyo as well as tips on special places of interest in other parts of Japan. Garcia has written an irreverent, insightful, and highly informative guide for the growing ranks of Japanophiles around the world.

The Magic Peach

Author:
Publisher: Troll Communications
ISBN: 9780816739967
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 36

Book Description
An extraordinary Japanese boy sets out to destroy the ogres who have terrorized his village for years.

The Spirit of Japan

Author: Sean Michael Wilson
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781912634309
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 120

Book Description
The Spirit of Japan is an accessible introduction to Japanese spiritual practice, perfect for those who are curious about spirituality or Japanese culture and would like to know more. Japan is sometimes called a 'non-religious' country, but this is only half-true. If we look closer, we find that 'magic' is very much a part of life in Japan! Japan is alive with magical festivals, practices and rituals - from marking the liminal time of new year with the burning of last year's objects... to smiling at the rebirth of the sun and nature in spring festivals of admiring new blossoms... to respecting the dead ancestors via giving them offerings while chasing away demons. Many of these cultural practices are seen as mundane or normal, but they each express something sublime and numinous. Japanese rituals perform a powerful role in helping people deal with nature, time, seasons, aging and death - bringing a bit of everyday magic into everyday lives.

Ikigai

Author: Héctor García
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0143130722
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 209

Book Description
INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • 2 MILLION+ COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE “Workers looking for more fulfilling positions should start by identifying their ikigai.” ―Business Insider “One of the unintended—yet positive—consequences of the [pandemic] is that it is forcing people to reevaluate their jobs, careers, and lives. Use this time wisely, find your personal ikigai, and live your best life.” ―Forbes Find your ikigai (pronounced ee-key-guy) to live longer and bring more meaning and joy to all your days. “Only staying active will make you want to live a hundred years.” —Japanese proverb According to the Japanese, everyone has an ikigai—a reason for living. And according to the residents of the Japanese village with the world’s longest-living people, finding it is the key to a happier and longer life. Having a strong sense of ikigai—where what you love, what you’re good at, what you can get paid for, and what the world needs all overlap—means that each day is infused with meaning. It’s the reason we get up in the morning. It’s also the reason many Japanese never really retire (in fact there’s no word in Japanese that means retire in the sense it does in English): They remain active and work at what they enjoy, because they’ve found a real purpose in life—the happiness of always being busy. In researching this book, the authors interviewed the residents of the Japanese village with the highest percentage of 100-year-olds—one of the world’s Blue Zones. Ikigai reveals the secrets to their longevity and happiness: how they eat, how they move, how they work, how they foster collaboration and community, and—their best-kept secret—how they find the ikigai that brings satisfaction to their lives. And it provides practical tools to help you discover your own ikigai. Because who doesn’t want to find happiness in every day?

Japanese Fairy Tales

Author: Lafcadio Hearn
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Fairy tales
Languages : en
Pages : 166

Book Description
A collection of 20 fairy tales from Japan including "Chin-Chin Kobakama," "The Serpent with Eight Heads," and "The Tea-Kettle."