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Articles by "Japanese Culture Basics"

Articles introducing the fundamentals and broad overview of Japanese culture — etiquette, seasonal awareness, and the everyday details that shape life in Japan. Sources include official tourism associations and the Agency for Cultural Affairs.

a couple of white bowls sitting on top of a table
A Warlord’s Tea Bowl and a Poet’s Brushstroke: Small Moments That Shaped Japanese History
A common assumption about Japanese history is that the big events — battles, political reforms, the…
  • Japanese Culture Basics
  • Japanese History
  • Noh & Kabuki
pathway of red torii gates near trees
How to Visit a Japanese Shrine: Ritual, Meaning, and What Most Visitors Miss
The gate is easy to find. The ritual is not. Most first-time visitors to a Japanese shrine walk thr…
  • How-To
  • Japanese Culture Basics
  • Shrines & Temples
orange and black wooden temple during day
How to Visit a Japanese Shrine: Etiquette, History, and What the Rituals Actually Mean
Most visitors to a Japanese shrine walk through the torii gate, look around, take a few photos, and…
  • How-To
  • Japanese Culture Basics
  • Shrines & Temples
a person cooking in a kitchen
Japanese Traditional Crafts: What Ceramics and Lacquerware Can Teach You About Slowness
Most people encounter Japanese traditional crafts as souvenirs. A lacquered chopstick box at an air…
  • Ceramics & Pottery
  • Japanese Culture Basics
  • Traditional Crafts
Industrial stainless steel tanks in a long hallway.
From Sake Brewery to Tea Room: Understanding Japan’s Two Worlds of Refinement
The morning I first visited a sake brewery in Niigata, the wooden gates were still slick with dew. …
  • Japanese Culture Basics
  • Sake & Breweries
  • Tea Ceremony
Traditional japanese temple gate under a clear blue sky.
Learning the Proper Way to Visit a Shrine — From the Two Bows, Two Claps, One Bow to Passing Through the Torii Gate
神社を訪れるとき、多くの人が「なんとなく」参拝しているのではないでしょうか。鳥居をくぐり、手水舎で…
  • How-To
  • Japanese Culture Basics
  • Shrines & Temples
person doing clay containers
Discovering Japanese Traditional Crafts: Learning Materials and Techniques in Ceramics, Lacquerware, and Textiles
日本の伝統工芸を前にすると、多くの人が感じるのは「美しい」という単純な感動と同時に、「これはどうや…
  • Art
  • How-To
  • Japanese Culture Basics
Red lanterns line the stone steps.
Walking the Historic Roads of Kyoto, Nara, and Kamakura — What Post Towns Reveal About Japanese Travel Culture
日本の古都を訪れるとき、多くの人は駅から直接観光地へ向かう。しかし江戸時代以前、旅人たちは街道を歩…
  • Japanese Culture Basics
  • Japanese History
  • Travel & Getting Around Japan
Wooden torii gate in a dark forest setting.
The Etiquette of Shrine Worship: Meaning and Practice of Two Bows, Two Claps, One Bow
神社を訪れた際に「どう参拝すればいいのか分からない」という悩みは多いものです。参拝客の多くは周囲の…
  • How-To
  • Japanese Culture Basics
  • Shrines & Temples
Elegant room with a long wooden table and chairs.
Why Sengoku Tea Master Sen no Rikyū Became Beloved by Those in Power Through Chanoyu
茶の湯は、単なる茶を点てる作法ではありません。戦国時代から江戸時代にかけて、織田信長・豊臣秀吉・徳…
  • Japanese Culture Basics
  • Japanese History
  • Shrines & Temples