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Tomioka Hachiman Shrine
is the largest Hachiman shrine in Tokyo. History The shrine was established in Fukagawa in with reclamation of a shoal. Hachiman, whom the shrine reveres, was also a local kami of the Minamoto clan, thus the shrine received cordial protection by the Tokugawa shogunate. On the other hand, the shrine was revered from the people of shitamachi, and familiar as "Hachiman of Fukagawa". During the Meiji period, the shrine lost the cordial protection it had enjoyed during the Edo period. It was, however, chosen as by the Meiji government, despite being considered of inferior status relative to Hikawa Shrine and other major shrines which the government had provided. On , the shrine was burned down during the bombing of Tokyo. On 18 March 1945, Emperor Shōwa, who was inspecting the burned area, visited here and received the explanation about the damage in precincts. Upon returning to his palace, the emperor described his impression to Hisanori Fujita, his Grand Chamberlains, compari ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shinto
Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintoists'', although adherents rarely use that term themselves. There is no central authority in control of Shinto, with much diversity of belief and practice evident among practitioners. A polytheistic and animistic religion, Shinto revolves around supernatural entities called the . The are believed to inhabit all things, including forces of nature and prominent landscape locations. The are worshiped at household shrines, family shrines, and ''jinja'' public shrines. The latter are staffed by priests, known as , who oversee offerings of food and drink to the specific enshrined at that location. This is done to cultivate harmony between humans and and to solicit the latter's blessing. Other common rituals include the dances, rites of pass ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meiji Period
The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization by Western powers to the new paradigm of a modern, industrialized nation state and emergent great power, influenced by Western scientific, technological, philosophical, political, legal, and aesthetic ideas. As a result of such wholesale adoption of radically different ideas, the changes to Japan were profound, and affected its social structure, internal politics, economy, military, and foreign relations. The period corresponded to the reign of Emperor Meiji. It was preceded by the Keiō era and was succeeded by the Taishō era, upon the accession of Emperor Taishō. The rapid modernization during the Meiji era was not without its opponents, as the rapid changes to society caused many disaffected traditionalists from the former samurai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Banzuke
A , officially called is a document listing the rankings of professional sumo wrestlers published before each official tournament (''honbasho''). The term can also refer to the rankings themselves. The document is normally released about two weeks before the tournament begins. On the ''banzuke'', wrestlers are divided into East, which is printed on the right, and West, which is printed on the left. Each wrestler's full ''shikona'' (ring name), hometown and rank is also listed. The top of the page starts with the highest ranked ''makuuchi'' wrestlers printed in the largest characters, down to the wrestlers in the lowest divisions which are written in much smaller characters. The names of ''gyōji'' (sumo referees), ''yobidashi'' (ushers/handymen), '' shimpan'' (judges), ''oyakata'' (elders of the Japan Sumo Association), and occasionally ''tokoyama'' (hairdressers) are also listed. While not as old as sumo itself, the form and production of this document can be traced as fa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Honbasho
A is an official professional sumo tournament. The number of ''honbasho'' every year has varied along the years; since 1958 there are six tournaments every year. Only ''honbasho'' results matter in determining promotion and relegation for ''rikishi'' (sumo wrestlers) in the ''banzuke'' ranking. Since 1926 the ''honbasho'' are organized by the Japan Sumo Association, after the merger of the Tokyo and Osaka sumo associations. The term ''honbasho'' means "main (or real) tournament", and is used to distinguish these tournaments from unofficial tournaments which are held as part of sumo tours, between the six major tournaments. Such display tournaments may have prize money attached but a wrestler's performance has no effect on his ranking. This type of sumo is often called ''hana-sumo'' ( flower-sumo) as it is not taken as seriously by the wrestlers. ''Honbasho'' last for 15 days. Sumo wrestlers ranked in the top two divisions (''makuuchi'' and ''jūryō'') wrestle once each day ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sumo
is a form of competitive full-contact wrestling where a ''rikishi'' (wrestler) attempts to force his opponent out of a circular ring (''dohyō'') or into touching the ground with any body part other than the soles of his feet (usually by throwing, shoving or pushing him down). Sumo originated in Japan, the only country where it is practiced professionally and where it is considered the national sport. It is considered a ''gendai budō'', which refers to modern Japanese martial arts, but the sport has a history spanning many centuries. Many ancient traditions have been preserved in sumo, and even today the sport includes many ritual elements, such as the use of salt purification, from Shinto. Life as a wrestler is highly regimented, with rules regulated by the Japan Sumo Association. Most sumo wrestlers are required to live in communal sumo training stables, known in Japanese as ''heya'', where all aspects of their daily lives—from meals to their manner of dress—are dic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yokozuna Stone Tomioka Hachiman 2010 September
, or , is the top division of the six divisions of professional sumo. Its size is fixed at 42 wrestlers (''rikishi''), ordered into five ranks according to their ability as defined by their performance in previous tournaments. This is the only division that is featured on NHK's standard live coverage of sumo tournaments. The lower divisions are shown on their satellite coverage, with only the ''makuuchi'' broadcast having bilingual English commentary. ''Makuuchi'' literally means "inside the curtain", a reference to the early period of professional sumo, when there was a curtained-off area reserved for the top ranked wrestlers, to sit before appearing for their bouts. Wrestlers are considered for promotion or demotion in rank before each grand tournament according to their performance in the one previous. Generally, a greater number of wins than losses (''kachi-koshi'') results in a promotion, and the reverse (''make-koshi'') results in demotion. There are stricter criteria ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kannushi
A , also called , is a person responsible for the maintenance of a as well as for leading worship of a given .* ''Kannushi'' (in Japanese), Iwanami Japanese dictionary, 6th Edition (2008), DVD version The characters for are sometimes also read as with the same meaning. History Originally, the were intermediaries between and people and could transmit their will to common humans. A was a man capable of miracles or a holy man who, because of his practice of purificatory rites, was able to work as a medium for a . Later the term evolved to being synonymous with - a man who works at a shrine and holds religious ceremonies there. In ancient times, because of the overlap of political and religious power within a clan, it was the head of the clan who led the clansmen during religious functions, or else it could be another official. Later, the role evolved into a separate and more specialized form. The term appears in both the (680 AD) and (720 AD), where the Empress Jing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Association Of Shinto Shrines
The is a religious administrative organisation that oversees about 80,000 Shinto shrines in Japan. These shrines take the Ise Grand Shrine as the foundation of their belief. It is the largest Shrine Shinto organization in existence. Description The association has five major activities, in addition to numerous others: *Publication and dissemination of information on Shrine Shinto *The performance of rituals; *Education of adherents to Shinto; *Reverence of Ise Grand Shrine and the distribution of its amulets called ''Jingū taima'' ( 神宮大麻); and *Preparation and training of individuals for the Shinto priesthood. It currently has an administrative structure including a main office and branches. Its headquarters in Yoyogi, Shibuya, Tokyo, adjacent to Meiji Shrine. Its leadership includes the , the head priestess of the Ise Shrine, presently Sayako Kuroda. The is Kuniaki Kuni, and the post of or Secretary-General is currently held by Masami Yatabe, the chief priest of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1923 Great Kantō Earthquake
The struck the Kantō Plain on the main Japanese island of Honshū at 11:58:44 JST (02:58:44 UTC) on Saturday, September 1, 1923. Varied accounts indicate the duration of the earthquake was between four and ten minutes. Extensive firestorms and even a fire whirl added to the death toll. Civil unrest after the disaster (i.e., the Kantō Massacre) has been documented. The earthquake had a magnitude of 7.9 on the moment magnitude scale (), with its focus deep beneath Izu Ōshima Island in Sagami Bay. The cause was a rupture of part of the convergent boundary where the Philippine Sea Plate is subducting beneath the Okhotsk Plate along the line of the Sagami Trough. Since 1960, September 1 has been designated by the Japanese government as , or a day in remembrance of and to prepare for major natural disasters including tsunami and typhoons. Drills, as well as knowledge promotion events, are centered around that date as well as awards ceremonies for people of merit. Earthquake T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chamberlain Of Japan
The is a department of the Imperial Household Agency of Japan. History According to Taihō Code around the 8th century, it was presupposed that a chamberlain belonged to the Ministry of the Center. When the was installed during the Heian era, the chamberlain's role was quickly reduced, limited to matters of courtesy. In 1869, the chamberlain was brought within the Imperial Household Ministry. The position of Grand Chamberlain was placed within the merit system in 1871, and three people—Tokudaiji Sanetsune, Masataka Kawase, and Higashikuze Michitomi—were appointed. According to the Imperial Household Ministry regulations, the Grand Chamberlain supervises chamberlains who closely attend the appointed person, reports to that person and announces their orders. After World War II, the chamberlains were organized into the Board of the Chamberlains, within the Imperial Household Agency, through the temporary . After passage of the National Public Service Law (Shōwa 22 Law No. 12 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Emperor Shōwa
Emperor , commonly known in English-speaking countries by his personal name , was the 124th emperor of Japan, ruling from 25 December 1926 until his death in 1989. Hirohito and his wife, Empress Kōjun, had two sons and five daughters; he was succeeded by his fifth child and eldest son, Akihito. By 1979, Hirohito was the only monarch in the world with the title "emperor". He was the longest-reigning historical Japanese emperor and one of the longest-reigning monarchs in the world. Hirohito was the head of state under the Meiji Constitution during Japan's imperial expansion, militarization, and involvement in World War II. Japan waged a war across Asia in the 1930s and 40s in the name of Hirohito, who was revered as a god. After Japan's surrender, he was not prosecuted for war crimes, as General Douglas MacArthur thought that an ostensibly cooperative emperor would help establish a peaceful Allied occupation, and help the U.S. achieve their postwar objectives. His role durin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bombing Of Tokyo (10 March 1945)
On the night of 9/10 March 1945, the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) conducted a devastating firebombing raid on Tokyo, the Japanese capital city. This attack was code-named Operation Meetinghouse by the USAAF and is known as the Great Tokyo Air Raid in Japan. Bombs dropped from 279 Boeing B-29 Superfortress heavy bombers burned out much of eastern Tokyo. More than 90,000 and possibly over 100,000 Japanese people were killed, mostly civilians, and one million were left homeless, making it the most destructive single air attack in human history. The Japanese air and civil defenses proved largely inadequate; 14 American aircraft and 96 airmen were lost. The attack on Tokyo was an intensification of the air raids on Japan which had begun in June 1944. Prior to this operation, the USAAF had focused on a precision bombing campaign against Japanese industrial facilities. These attacks were generally unsuccessful, which contributed to the decision to shift to firebombing. The ope ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
