Semitic origin of the Japanese. National character traits of the Japanese

The questions of the ethnogenesis of the Japanese still cause controversy, giving rise to the most controversial hypotheses and theories, none of which is able to explain the totality of the facts accumulated by science.

In Soviet Japanese studies, it is believed that the most ancient basis of the population of Japan was the Ainu. Their economy was based on hunting, fishing, forest and coastal gathering. In Hokkaido, the Ainu were mixed with immigrants from the east coast of the Asian mainland who migrated there. On the islands of Kyushu and Shikoku and in the south of Honshu, the Ainu population mixed and assimilated with the Austronesian tribes.

In the middle of the first millennium BC, Japanese islands the so-called proto-Japanese tribes penetrate the Korean Strait from the south of the Korean Peninsula. With their arrival, domestic animals appeared on the islands - a horse, a cow, a sheep, and the emergence of a culture of irrigated rice also belongs to this period. The process of cultural development of newcomer tribes, their interaction with the local Austronesian-Ainu population took place until the 5th century BC. Rice cultivation has finally become the main direction of the economy on the Japanese islands.

By the VI-VII centuries. the island population adopted from Korea, as well as from China, elements of Chinese and Korean culture. In the 8th century the assimilation of the remnants of the Austronesian population in southern Kyushu was completed. At the same time, the process of settling the wooded north of the island of Honshu began. The local Ainu population of this island partly mixed with the newcomers, partly was pushed to the north.

Japan is currently one of the most homogeneous ethnic composition countries of the world, the basis of the nation (more than 99% of the population) are Japanese. The Ainu are now preserved only in Hokkaido, their number does not exceed 30 thousand. About 600 thousand Koreans live in Japan, who mainly moved there during the Second World War, and up to 40 thousand Chinese. Europeans and Americans among the permanent residents of the country are negligible.

Japanese social history

The first information about the Japanese is contained in Chinese sources dating back to the 1st century BC. BC e.- V in. n. e. In the 8th century Japanese chronicles appear, which are collections of myths and historical traditions. These are "Kojiki" ("Notes of Antiquity" - 712) and "Nihon seki", or "Nihongi" ("Annals of Japan" - 720).

According to the Japanese system of beliefs - Shintoism, the Japanese nation originates from the goddess of the sun Amaterasu, whose direct descendant was the legendary Emperor of Japan Jimmu (Jimmu-Tenno), who ascended the throne of the "State of Yamato" in 660 BC. e. and marked the beginning of a continuous dynasty of Japanese emperors. In Japan, it is customary to divide the history of the country into eras of the reign of one or another emperor. At present (since 1926) the Japanese live in the era of Emperor Hirohito. The personality of the emperor, the very idea of imperial power has always acted as the most important cementing factor in the national identity of the Japanese.

Buddhism entered Japan from India through Korea and China in the 6th century. Buddhist preachers immediately appreciated all the benefits of an alliance with Shinto, wherever possible, they tried to use Shinto beliefs to promote the ideas of Buddhism. Thus, one of the most famous Buddhist figures, Kobo Daishi (774-835), argued that Shintoism and Buddhism are closely related, that the radiant goddess Amateraeu is the incarnation of Buddha. As a result, having successfully established itself in Japan, Buddhism underwent a significant transformation here and began to differ from both Indian and Chinese prototypes. The Japanese bonza was not always a clergyman, he was (and remains) anyone: a teacher, a businessman, a politician, a soldier. Therefore, the influence of Buddhism in Japan is so pervasive: literally all spheres of public life have experienced its impact. Perhaps a significant imprint on the psychology of the Japanese was also left by Confucianism, which came to Japan first through Korea - in the 4th-5th centuries. and then directly from China - in the VI century. It was then that the Chinese language became the language of educated Japanese, official correspondence was conducted in it, and literature was created. If the penetration of Confucianism led to the spread of the Chinese language, then the Chinese language, which took root in the highest spheres of the country, largely served the purposes of propagating Confucian influence. It is not surprising that the Confucian doctrine of the deification of ancestors, veneration of parents, unquestioning subordination of the lower to the higher, the most detailed regulation of the behavior of any member of society firmly cut into all spheres of human psychology. Confucian ideas are well expressed in the following dictum: "The relationship between higher and lower is like the relationship between wind and grass: the grass must bend if the wind blows." The social norms of behavior of modern Japanese are largely shaped by similar Confucian dogmas.

Buddhism and Confucianism began to play the role of a kind of ideological and moral superstructure in Japan. Confucianism, for example, gradually became the dominant ideology of the ruling military-feudal class that eventually developed in Japan.

During the period of the Kamakura shogunate ( Shogunate - a form of government in which all power in the country was concentrated in the hands of the feudal commander (shogun). During the reign of the shoguns, the emperor did not actually have power, although he was worshiped and his “divinity” was not disputed.) (1192-1333), the military-service nobility stood out, the samurai class appeared, recognizing "military prowess" as the basis of society. At first, the samurai owned land plots, but later, by decree of the shogun Ietsun (1641-1680), the lands were taken away from them, and the samurai warriors were transferred to a salary. It is in the midst of these landless ronin warriors ( Ronin is a samurai who does not have a patron overlord.), who were forced to roam the country in search of the application of their military prowess, and a kind of moral code "Bushido" (literally, "the way of the warrior") took shape, which gradually became an unwritten moral ideal for their society.

The formal elimination of the samurai class with the fall of the Tokugawa shogunate (1867) by no means led to the eradication of the ethical norms of bushido from the psychology of the Japanese. Boundless devotion to the overlord, vassal willingness to follow his master even to the grave, the codified procedure for suicide - hara-kiri - all this did not disappear without a trace. "Samurai prowess" was perceived and cultivated by the Japanese of all social strata with great readiness, largely because they exuded truly their own, Japanese spirit. These qualities helped the Japanese to resist foreign influence, they to some extent supported in the minds of the Japanese the idea of self-isolation, which arose at the beginning of the 17th century.

In 1611-1614. shogun Ieyasu issued a series of decrees on the prohibition of the Christian religion, which the missionaries persistently introduced in the Japanese islands; Jesuits and monks of other Catholic orders were expelled from Japan. In subsequent years, persecution and even executions of Christians intensified. In 1624, the entry and residence of the Spaniards in Japan was prohibited, and in 1639 the Portuguese were expelled. In 1633-1636. decrees appeared that imposed a ban on the departure of the Japanese from the country; at the same time to those who lived outside it, under fear death penalty banned from returning to Japan. In 1636, all foreigners were resettled on the island of Deshima (in the Nagasaki region). In 1639 the confession of Christianity was finally forbidden. Portuguese ships, since they were delivering Christian missionaries, were forbidden to even approach Japanese shores. Thus ended Japan's self-isolation.

Separation from the rest of the world created favorable conditions for the cultivation of the principles of feudal house building and the strict regulation of social norms of behavior. In particular, the so-called principle of loyalty, which was the basis of junshi, became widespread - the custom according to which the vassal, in the event of the death of the overlord, followed him to the grave. The same principle dictated the custom of blood feud (katakiuti), when the samurai had to avenge violent death his master or senior family member. In Japanese literature, for example, numerous works are widely known that glorified the “feat of 47 ronin” (1702), who, having avenged the death of their overlord, made themselves hara-kiri.

Although Japan's long-term "closedness" had a detrimental effect on economic development country, it at the same time contributed to the emergence of the phenomenon of Japanese national psychology. And when in the middle of the XIX century. Japan came face to face with foreign powers, Japanese traditional culture, mothballed in the Tokugawa era, was able to successfully resist the influence of foreign (Western) culture, while assimilating its most rational elements relatively painlessly.

Even when the unfinished bourgeois revolution of 1867-1869, known as "Meiji Isin" - "Meiji Restoration" (after the posthumous name of the Japanese Emperor Mutsuhito, who ruled from 1868 to 1911), led to fundamental changes in the field of economics, politics, culture, followed by significant changes in the system of social relations, the national psychology of the Japanese has changed very little. As before, the character of the Japanese was dominated by traits that developed during the era of Japan's isolation, in the conditions of a closed, strictly ritualized class society: diligence, organization, readiness for unconditional submission, perseverance, endurance, undemanding in relation to living conditions, etc.

Although not all of these traits have the same degree of essential persistence, they are clearly visible in both the feudal and capitalist periods of Japan. Of course, the continuity of psychology is due to the continuity of social institutions.

In particular, the American researcher Douglas Haring sees the reason for the constant rigidity of the Japanese to unquestioning obedience in more than three hundred years of domination and the country of a totalitarian system of oppression based on all-pervading espionage and police arbitrariness. What was created under the Tokugawa, according to Haring, was only modified and continued in post-Meiji imperial Japan.

In turn, national psychology contributed to the development of a centralized state. Japan quickly reorganized industry, introduced improvements in agriculture, and reformed the social structure. The samurai warrior spirit encouraged the masses to fight for the "valor of the nation." In just three or four decades, Japan has stepped forward. If this nation did not have the corresponding psychological qualities, bourgeois relations would not have received such intensive progress as happened after Japan entered the capitalist path of development.

In August 1945, when Japan was defeated in the war and the Japanese emperor announced unconditional surrender, many Japanese perceived this event as the greatest disaster. But although the Japanese public consciousness was forced to sharply reorient itself towards new ideological values, it retained in its depths an orientation towards inherited ethical and moral norms. This is clearly evidenced by the materials of the Japanese Institute of Mathematical Statistics, which since 1953 regularly, every five years, has been conducting research on the Japanese national character.

Judging by the published data, the Japanese are not inclined to abandon even what they themselves consider obsolete. This applies, in particular, to the principles of house building, traditions, etiquette, etc. So, to the question: “Do you think a married woman should only do household chores or still work in production?” - Men and women answered that it is better for her to stay at home. To the question: "Is there an innate difference in the mental abilities of a man and a woman?" - 62% of men in 63% of women gave an affirmative answer (in both cases, 700 people were interviewed). To the question: “Should the Japanese do without the usual turns of polite speech, in particular, without the various forms of “I”, “you”, “you”? - 60% of respondents answered that this should not be done, and only 28% called the existing practice of communication outdated. No less indicative are the answers of the Japanese to questions about suicide, about the code of conduct, etc.

Japanese

Japanese is spoken today by 119 million inhabitants of Japan. Separate groups of the population who understand Japanese live in Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Hawaii, Guam and in some parts of Brazil.

Although the Japanese language is built on the same hieroglyphic basis as Chinese, the commonality of the two languages is limited to writing. The Japanese language itself, its grammar and vocabulary are not analytical languages, like Chinese, but an agglutinative system. Yes, they are genetically different. The Japanese did not have native Japanese writing and wrote down their ancient chronicles in Chinese writing. Chinese characters were not adapted to the phonetic structure of the Japanese language, which introduced great difficulties not only in the system of writing and reading, but also in understanding the Japanese text. Chinese characters in the Japanese text were read in the Japanese way and often denoted completely different realities than in the Chinese text. This prompted the Japanese to turn to the syllabary, two phonetic varieties of which - hiragana and katakana - are combined under common name cana. With the help of kan, the Japanese began to write down words for which there were no Chinese semantic hieroglyphs. In addition, kana proved to be convenient for denoting service verbs, endings of significant verbs, and grammatical particles. A unique combination of two writing systems was created - hieroglyphic and phonetic.

If you take at random any page of a modern Japanese magazine, then it will contain one and a half to two times more kana than hieroglyphs. This ratio varies depending on the nature of the text. Usually, hieroglyphs in Japanese literature are written words denoting objects, actions, states, signs, etc. So, if you translate the sentence “a person came from the city” into Japanese, you need root morphemes “person”, “city” and “ex” in the word "ride" denote with hieroglyphs, and the postposition "kara", corresponding to the Russian preposition "from", - with kana signs.

Before World War II, well-known Tokyo newspapers used between 7,500 and 8,000 characters. The first attempt to reduce their number dates back to 1872, when it was proposed to bring the number of used characters to 3167. In 1946, the Ministry of Education recommended reducing this list of hieroglyphs to 1850. A simplified and abbreviated form of writing about 740 hieroglyphs was also adopted. Despite these reforms, at present the number of characters used in the Japanese press reaches 4-5 thousand, and in specialized literature - up to 8-10 thousand. The hieroglyphs connect the national culture of Japan with the culture of the Far East region, which was all formed on the basis of the unity of the hieroglyphics, and the kana brings originality to the Japanese writing system, allows you to feel precisely its national identity. Japanese specific speech sets off this feeling even more clearly (see chapter IV).

Japan is the youngest of the Eastern civilizations. It is located in an archipelago of 4 major islands: Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu and Shikoku. In addition, there are more than 3,000 islands in Japan. Modern population Japan is approximately 12 million people, of which 99% are ethnic Japanese. The Japanese ethnic group took shape as a result of long migration processes associated with the movement of ethnic groups from Siberia, Korea and the islands Pacific Ocean. The core of the nationalities had developed by the beginning of our time in the 3rd-6th centuries, when the first state of Yamato was formed in the center of the island of Honshu.

insular position Japan saved her from military conquest and created the conditions for the cultural isolation of the country. Proximity to east coast Asia predetermined the influence of China and Korea on the formation of the culture of Japan.

The most ancient tribes that inhabited the Japanese islands were engaged in hunting, fishing, forest coastal gathering. They revered the Sun, whose culture is evidenced by altars in the form of rings made of stones with a vertical stone rising in the center. The largest structure of this kind was excavated in the town of Oyu. The diameter of the outer ring is 46.5 meters, and the inner one is 14.57 meters. Small clay figurines depicting a female deity have been found. Pottery made without a potter's wheel and covered with a "rope knot" (Jemon style) has been preserved. Some items are up to a meter in size. Lush, fantastic forms of vessels demonstrate the indomitable power of magic.

The bronze culture originates in Japan at the beginning of our era under the influence of immigrants from Korea. The Japanese learned how to cast bronze bells, make swords and other weapons. At the end of the 3rd century, mass emigration of the Chinese began, who brought iron technology to Japan.

"Living life" moved from the capital with the emperor (the rulers of Yamato eventually adopted the title of tenno - emperor) and his regents in the provinces. The owners of the seen, fearing each other, and in order to protect their possessions, created detachments of warriors from their peasants, small landowners or fugitives. So, in Japan, a class of professional samurai warriors, vassals of strong houses and the emperor appeared.

The samurai differed from other variants of the service class in the East in that it was in the service not of the state, but of noble houses, for which at first it received fiefs (from the 14th century it gradually switched to natural rations). Samurai. The pinnacle of self-improvement and development of the human spirit. An organic compound of the eternal confrontation between creation and destruction. The ideal machine of "death" or a rude, aggressive, ignorant killer? There are no identical people and there are no ideal people. Each of us is created by time and place. Centuries of natural and social cataclysms in a small island Japan cut off from the whole world have created a special psychological type resistant to extreme situations.

The most characteristic representative of this type was the military, and later the state elite of the country. rising sun- the samurai class, which lived according to certain rules called the “Samurai Code”: “A samurai must, first of all, constantly remember - remember day and night, from that morning when he picks up chopsticks to taste the New Year's meal, until the last night of the old year when he pays his debts - that he must die. Here is his main business. If he always remembers this, he will be able to live his life in accordance with fidelity and filial piety, avoid a myriad of evils and misfortunes, save himself from illness and trouble, and enjoy a long life. He will be an exceptional personality endowed with excellent qualities. For life is fleeting, like a drop of evening dew and morning frost, and even more so is the life of a warrior. And if he thinks that he can console himself with the thought of eternal service to his master or of endless devotion to relatives, something will happen that will make him neglect his duty to his master and forget about loyalty to the family. But if he lives only for today and does not think about tomorrow, so that, standing before his master and waiting for his orders, he thinks of this as his last moment, and looking into the faces of his relatives, he feels that he will never see them again. Then his feelings of duty and admiration will be sincere, and his heart will be filled with fidelity and filial piety.

Geisha are given special attention in the culture of Japan. There are two versions of the appearance of geisha in Japan. Adherents of the first version believe that the progenitors of the geishas were two enterprising persons who decided in the eleventh century to earn money and fame with an unusual performance for sacred warriors. Having dressed up in the ceremonial clothes of their spectators - white long dresses, high hats, and, attaching swords to their belts, they started dancing ...

The guests were so stunned that, a few days later, the young ladies became the most striking characters at all social receptions. Over the years, white clothes have changed a bit - skirts have turned red, and swords have gone out of fashion.

The second version says that initially only representatives of the stronger sex were allowed in the geisha, and they did not entertain at all. high society. Geisha men were part of the so-called " water world”, which, in fact, was an analogue of the Parisian “court of miracles”. Gradually, men were left out of their lot, as the audience was more impressed by the smooth dances of snow-white moths performed by women. As soon as this revolution of the sexes took place, the geisha immediately acquired a more than worthy reputation - beauties began to be invited to tea ceremonies. The areas in which the geisha communities were located were called "flower streets" (hanamachi). The geishas were led by the "mother" - Oka-san. Geisha apprentices were called maiko. The transition from maiko to geisha was usually accompanied by the loss of virginity, which was sold to the most significant clients of hanamachi for a huge amount of money. The more a man paid to "pick the flower of innocence," the higher the maiko's chances of becoming a sought-after and highly paid geisha. The popularity and beauty of a geisha began to be measured by the status of the tea house inviting her.

Although geisha were the elite of sense gratification, they were by no means prostitutes. It is important that since the advent of the geisha profession, they have been legally prohibited from providing sexual services for money. The golden age of geisha lasted from the 60s of the 19th century until the beginning of the 20th century. It was during this period that a complex and sophisticated geisha education system was developed, which included literature, drawing, music and the art of being irresistible - Kokono-tokoro (nine recipes for beauty), which allowed flower women to look perfect.

Foreign scientists identify the main stages in the development of culture:

The culture of ancient times up to the 6th century. ad;

Buddhist culture from the 6th c. until the end of the 8th century;

Formation national culture from the 8th-12th centuries;

The development of culture in the Middle Ages in the 13th-15th centuries;

Culture of the premodern era of the 15th-17th centuries.

Modernization stage cultural life 19th-20th centuries

Thus, the civilization and culture of Japan before the global clash of Western and Eastern civilizations had many bright unique features, some of which have been preserved in modern times. One of the essential ones is the absence of a chronologically clear transition from antiquity to the Middle Ages, associated with the formation of feudalism as a socio-economic and political structure.

The era of the 16th - early 17th century saw the dawn of Japanese architecture and the art of the Japanese garden.

As well as the "Tea Ceremony", which came to Japan from the mainland in the middle of the 15th century, and since the 16th century has become a national form of spiritual communication between the nobility, samurai and townspeople.

This is a specific ritualized form of joint tea drinking, created in the Middle Ages in Japan and is still cultivated in this country. Appearing initially as one of the forms of meditation practice of Buddhist monks, it has become an integral element Japanese culture, is closely related to many other cultural phenomena.

There are many varieties of tea ceremony, of which six traditional ones stand out: night, sunrise, morning, afternoon, evening, special.

Night ceremony. Usually held under the moon. The gathering of guests takes place shortly before midnight, the ceremony ends no later than four in the morning. A feature of the night ceremony is that powdered tea is prepared directly during the ceremony, grinding tea leaves in a mortar, and brewing very strong.

At sunrise. The ceremony begins at three or four in the morning and continues until six in the morning.

morning. It is usually held in hot weather (when the morning is the coolest time), it starts around six in the morning.

Afternoon. It starts around one o'clock in the afternoon, only cakes are served from food.

Evening. Starts around six o'clock in the afternoon.

Special (Rinjitian) the ceremony is held on special occasions: a holiday, a specially organized meeting of friends, the celebration of an event. The tea ceremony could also be held in preparation for the most important events, for example, for a battle or for ritual suicide. Here the "master of tea" played a special role. He must have had great inner qualities. He had to strengthen his guest or guests before a responsible step.

The culture of this period reflects political and economic processes. Old forms were destroyed, people developed new relationships and created a different perception of the world, which gave rise to fresh cultural creations. The military dictatorship of the early 16th century gradually developed into a policy of enlightened rule. The architecture of the 16th-19th centuries shows a clear stylistic duality. On the one hand, a craving for ostentatious splendor and decorative saturation was clearly manifested. On the other hand, the trend towards the expressiveness of pure construction continued to develop, primarily manifested in unique architecture tea houses.

The maturation of feudal society and the development of urban trade provided grounds for the growth of a rich creative culture. Establishing their possession, the feudal lords built long-term castles in its center, placing them on flat terrain, which made it more convenient transport connection and building cities around castles. The castle was a real military structure, since with the beginning of the use of firearms, the feudal lords turned castles into complex, militarily and significant structures. The castle - the palace can be considered an expression of aesthetic ideals, the top of the new feudal nobility. The main building has always been a tower - "tenshu", which embodied the strength and power of the owner of the castle. If the enemy penetrated the tower, its owner had only one thing left - to commit ritual suicide - "seppuka" in order to avoid the shame of defeat.

The first castle in the history of Japan, surrounded by stone walls, was Azuchi, located on the shores of Lake Biwa. But in the same 16th c. it was burned and destroyed. Only strong foundations remain. The influence of this castle on the architectural tradition of Japan was so great that Azuchi became a kind of model for all castles built in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Currently, only 12 original castle towers from this period have been preserved.

Traditional theatrical genres occupied great place in the system of medieval culture in Japan. They not only embodied the main aesthetic ideas of the time, but had a significant impact on the fine and decorative arts, in turn, perceiving and mastering their discoveries. Outside of contact with the theater, many phenomena of social life and features of Japanese culture will remain incomprehensible. artistic culture generally. Special place in the theatrical culture of Japan, the drama schools of No, Kabuki and Jeruri occupy.

Theater No - symbolic. Each gesture and movement is a conventional sign that conveys one or another state of mind of the hero. Stage movement is devoid of any improvisation, it consists of 250 canonical postures - kata. They can be purely dance or symbolize emotions. The fan plays the most important role in all the actions of the actor. With a fan, all the dances of the shite and all kinds of characteristics of the hero are performed. Masks also play an equally important role (4 main types of masks are used in performances: elders and deities, warriors, women, demons) and costumes that have their own symbolic meanings.

The development of the dramatic art of Japan was determined by Kabuki (actor theater) and Jeruri (puppet theater). Kabuki theater originated in the early 17th century. in Kyoto and became a favorite pastime of the townspeople. The prototype of Kabuki was a type of dance in which women appeared in unusual costumes. Originating in Kyoto at the beginning of the Edo period, this dance was called Kabuki Odori and was worthy of being noticed because of its free style, novelty and freedom of character. These early dances and parodies developed into plays with a certain dramatic structure. Women were eventually sidelined from the scene by the threat of civil unrest posed by men who were competing in their favor, and the older men developed into serious actors of what turned out to be known as Kabuki. The dominant position was occupied by plays related to history, legends and modern life, and themes of humanity, loyalty and love. By the middle of the Edo period, a number of good playwrights emerged, through whose efforts Kabuki became the traditional drama of Japan. Priority in Kabuki acting over everything else led to the fact that great importance was attached to the continuity of the family name and acting tradition. All theatrical genres are a bright original phenomenon of the artistic culture of Japan. Throughout the medieval period, the theater was an important part of spiritual life. Japanese people expressing the ethical and aesthetic ideals of the time.

Art lovers are well aware of NETSUKE - small different figurines made of bone or wood by Japanese and Chinese masters. A strange, incomprehensible world lurks behind miniature images of deities, benevolent symbols, people, animals, birds, fish. At first, these works captivate only with the virtuosity of their performance. Not a single detail is missing in the sculpture, three to four centimeters high. Everything is conveyed accurately and expressively, with inimitable liveliness, immediacy in the interpretation of nature, often with humor and fantasy. From an artistic point of view, netsuke is an art that, on the basis of all the previous development of Japanese culture, has developed a kind of plastic language. From the point of view of the history of culture, netsuke plots act as an inexhaustible source for the study of customs, religious and moral ideas - in a word, the life of Japan in the 17th-19th centuries. Being utilitarian, household items by their purpose, netsuke eventually turned into a true art.

Who among us has not seen mysterious short verses that look like a picture-hieroglyph? A few strokes of the brush - and before you is a complete thought, image, philosophy.

Haiku, tanka, haiku. What is it, how and when did such verses appear and how do they differ?

They appeared in the Middle Ages. No one knows when it all began, it is known for sure that all these forms of Japanese versification were born from folk songs and ... syllabic alphabet.

Japanese poetry is based on the alternation of a certain number of syllables. There is no rhyme, but much attention is paid to the sound and rhythmic organization of the poem. Haiku, or haiku (initial verses), is a genre of Japanese poetry: an unrhymed three-line verse of 17 syllables (5 + 7 + 5). The art of writing haiku is, above all, the ability to say a lot in a few words. This genre is genetically related to tanka.

Tanka (short song) is the oldest genre of Japanese poetry (first records - 8th century). Non-rhyming five lines of 31 syllables (5+7+5+7+7). It expresses a fleeting mood, full of understatement, distinguished by poetic elegance, often by complex associativity, verbal play.

Over time, the tanka (five lines) began to be clearly divided into two stanzas: a three line and a couplet. It happened that one poet composed the first stanza, the second - the next. In the twelfth century, chain verses appeared, consisting of alternating three-line and couplet lines. This form was called "renga" ("strung stanzas"); the first three-verse was called the "initial stanza", in Japanese "haiku".

The renga poem did not have a thematic unity, but its motives and images were most often associated with a description of nature, and with an obligatory indication of the season. The opening stanza (haiku) was often the best stanza in a rengi. So separate collections of exemplary haiku began to appear. The three-verse was firmly established in Japanese poetry in the second half of the seventeenth century. Hokku has a stable meter.

Our life is a dewdrop

Let only a drop of dew

Our life is still...

Sakura is a well-known symbol of Japan and Japanese culture - a plant revered by the Japanese for a long time. Hanami - Japanese national tradition admiring the flowers, the most famous of which is the cherry blossoms.

There are many cultures of sakura, in particular - Somei Yoshino Sakura (ѓ\ѓЃѓCѓ€ѓVѓm), first cultivated in the Edo era and widely spread throughout Japan since the Meiji period.

In the old days, the dominant cultural position was occupied by Yamazakura (ЋRЌch - “mountain cherry”), Yaezakura (”ЄЏdЌch” - “double-petaled cherry”) and the famous Yoshino sakura - a derivative of Yamazakura. Since the Meiji period, the image of sakura has been on the headdresses of students and the military, as an indicator of rank. Currently used on police emblems and armed forces Japan. In addition, sakura is a traditional symbol of female youth and beauty. In Japan, there is a 100 yen coin with an image of sakura in use.

March 27, starting from the 4th year of Heisei (1992), the public organization "Society Japanese sakura» The Cherry Blossom Festival has been introduced. This festival takes place in all regions of Japan, the time of the event depends on the time of cherry blossom.

Japanese culture is very diverse....

Japanese food is almost main reason visit Japan and the most capricious eater will be delighted to know that the menu in this country is not limited to the dishes of sushi, tempura and sukiyaki, which are the most famous in other countries. With the exception of shokudo (canteens) and izakaya (the pub equivalent), most Japanese restaurants specializes in one direction cuisine. In most restaurants, the diners choose their own composition of the dish, mainly a mixture of meat, seafood and vegetables, which are baked in cabbage. There are also restaurants specializing in charcoal grills.

Drinking culture is the glue that holds Japanese society together. Everyone drinks alcohol here, almost every adult, be it a man or a woman, and most teenagers. Beer is a favorite in these parts, the Japanese drink it everywhere, buying it from vending machines even on the territory of temples. Sake (rice wine) is consumed warm or cold, but with a warm snack. Hangovers after sake are unforgettable, so drink in moderation. Japan is also famous for its green tea, which contains a lot of vitamin C and caffeine. It is very refreshing and invigorating, and as it has recently become known, it also prevents cancer.

Japan- an amazing country. Everything is unique here - cities, language, culture. Everyone who has ever visited Japan claims that they have not seen anything like it in any other country in the world.

cultural japan samurai tea haiku

A teardrop of stars on a peony petal,

A timid look - an embarrassed silence ...

The brook murmurs, running down the slope...

Watercolor is so easy ... charm ...

And a thin path, with a thread of silk,

Leads higher, with the sky on a date ...

A bee perched on a lotus flower,

Admiring so pearly reflection...

Let the thick bangs rustle the reeds ...

The sunrise will give inspiration

Coloring the sky with the caress of iris dreams,

Giving birth to the first ray - the fate of a moment ...

Yes, the noise of green branches, cypress,

With an eye on the flexible bamboo mill,

Absorbs the solar rainbow of the narcissus...

There the science of ancient wisdom is born...

Halftones subtlest meaning deep...

And the beat of the heart is a mystery of feelings and sound...

Such a vast world... so far away...

In the gardens of the universe with cherry petals...

Have you been there... tell me... is he lonely?..

May 2004

It is generally accepted that Japan is one of the most homogeneous countries in the world in terms of population: the main nation - the Japanese - makes up more than 99 percent of the inhabitants. The overwhelming majority of the Japanese consider their racial homogeneity, the "purity" of the nation, to be their main asset. Many phrases begin with the words: "We, the Japanese ...". The insular position, which for a long time served as a natural geographical isolation, formed the basis of a complex of national-psychological features that were called Japanese ethnocentrism. One of the fundamental elements of this concept is the ideological school " kogaku ", which provided big influence on the worldviews and value orientations of the Japanese. All this laid the foundation for the belief in the superiority of the Japanese nation over others (regardless of whether their representatives live in Japan itself or outside it). As a result, Japanese society has developed an idea of foreigners as an alien element, unable to understand its culture and characteristics.

Japanese ethnocentrism is most clearly represented in terms of "ýchi" (one's own) and "sōto" (alien). At the behavioral level, psychological attitudes are manifested in a condescending and disdainful attitude towards foreigners, with whom a Japanese can behave in a way that he would never do with "ýchi" - that is, with his own. At present, Japan is home to one and a half million foreigners who do not have Japanese citizenship. These include the two largest ethnic communities - Koreans and Chinese, for the most part transported to the country as laborers during the Second World War, as well as immigrants from the Asia-Pacific countries who arrived during the economic boom: Filipinos, Vietnamese, Thais, Burmese. A significant part of Japanese non-citizens are also descendants of the Japanese who returned to their historical homeland after emigrating to the countries Latin America. The reason was the overpopulation crisis in Japan in the first half of the twentieth century.

Despite outright discrimination against persons who do not have Japanese citizenship, who are usually employed in the "three K" jobs (kitsui - heavy, kitanai - dirty, kiken - dangerous), their status is determined by permanent or temporary stay in the country. More than 40 periodicals in 11 languages are published for them, there are special radio and television programs.

Article 14 of the Japanese constitution states that "all persons are equal before the law and shall not be discriminated against politically, economically, or socially on the grounds of race, religion, sex, social status, or descent." At the same time, other legislative acts fix their position at the level of "second-class people", in fact, contrary to the Constitution. In accordance with the Resident Status Law, ethnic Koreans, Chinese, and other minorities permanently residing in Japan, even those who were brought into the country for forced labor during World War II, do not have Japanese citizenship and are forced to undergo annual re-registration by place of residence in the so-called list of residents. Until now, neither they nor their children have taken part in the elections, despite the fact that they pay taxes along with the citizens of Japan.

The official policy of the Japanese leadership is marked by a traditional desire to limit immigration. One of the reasons for this limitation is the difficulty of maintaining public order in the country.

means mass media the idea is artificially propagated that "gaijin" (foreigners) are aggressive in nature and therefore prone to commit crimes. This theory is supported by official statistics, and the information is deliberately distorted not in favor of foreign migrants. Thus, according to the White Paper of the General Police Department of Japan, over the past 10 years, crime among foreigners who came to Japan to work has increased 7 times. Often, crimes committed by foreigners are reduced to violation of the rules visa regime. So, despite the statements of some Japanese officials about the threat of Chinese organized crime, studies give different results: of the total number of Chinese immigrants, 77 thousand are students and 2 thousand are professors and representatives of the scientific intelligentsia. It is also significant that judges tend to give harsher sentences to non-Japanese.

The provisions of the family code also infringe on the rights of non-Japanese. Thus, ethnic Koreans and Chinese are not allowed to register under their own (non-Japanese) surname, wives are required to take their husband's surname, although this does not correspond to the Korean national cultural tradition. Even marriage to a Japanese does not change the status of a resident.

In Japan, all family members are entered on the resident registration form, where the names of non-Japanese spouses and their children are not indicated. Under Japanese law, foreigners are required to register individually. They receive documents that serve as official identification with registration of residence. They contain a mention of marriage to a Japanese citizen, but there is no reference to the composition of the family. Recently, the Ministry of Public Administration, Interior, Posts and Telecommunications of Japan issued a circular in which local authorities it is recommended, at the request of the interested party, to include the name of the foreign spouse in the additions section of the registration form. However, the leadership of many prefectures refuses to follow the recommendations of this ministry, preferring to use the additions section at their own discretion.

Japan does not have a system whereby a foreigner acquires resident status automatically after a certain period of time, regardless of family status. Under current law, litigation can be avoided if a foreigner applies for the right permanent residence in Japan before the divorce. Thus, non-Japanese who have lived in the country for more than 10 years or have been married to a Japanese for more than 3 years are eligible for permanent resident status, provided that they have not committed crimes and can support a family. However, in reality, applications of this kind by many people from Asian countries are rejected.

Severe legal restrictions also apply to the system social security non-Japanese. Foreigners do not have the right to defend their interests in the social security and human rights authorities. To get a nationwide medical insurance, a foreigner must reside in Japan for at least 1 year, which does not apply to illegal immigrants. Foreigners with an expired visa and no means of subsistence cannot receive social benefits in case of illness.

The rejection by the Japanese of citizens of other countries is also manifested at the level of interpersonal communication. Indigenous Japanese consider international marriages illegal and children illegitimate.

The deportation decision is contrary to a constitutional provision that prohibits the separation of family members. However, the Japanese system is such that spouses are equal in marriage, but not after divorce, which effectively serves as an obstacle to entering into an international marriage. There are precedents when foreign women who were married to Japanese, in respect of whom the immigration authorities initially decided on deportation, applied to the court.

Of particular interest is the social and legal status of the indigenous people of the Japanese islands - the áin. Despite the fact that the Ainu legally reside in their historical homeland, this small nation has actually lost its language and culture, much more ancient than the Japanese proper.

Objects of material culture give grounds to assume that ancient population The Japanese archipelago was mostly Ainu. Their economy was based on hunting, fishing, forest and coastal gathering. On the island of Hokkaido, immigrants from the east coast of the Asian mainland mixed with the Ainu. The ancestors of modern Japanese entered the Japanese islands through the Korea Strait from the south of the Korean Peninsula.

The displacement of the Ainu to the north of the archipelago took place over many centuries. By the 7th century, a certain boundary had developed between the peoples, which guaranteed the balance of the two civilizations. In the future, as the power grows Japanese state the development of new territories and the conquest of the natives became increasingly important, and by the 16th century the Ainu were forced out to the island of Hokkaido, where the Japanese began to penetrate over time. In 1604, the principality of Matsumáe was formed in the south of this island, and some time later a decree was issued on the policy towards local population. Aborigines should have been taught the Japanese language, introduced to Japanese customs. Those who worked well were allowed to take Japanese surnames and live in Japanese-style houses, and were encouraged to engage in agriculture. In the second half of the 19th century, a number of bans were placed on traditional Ainu customs. Men were not allowed to wear earrings, and women were not allowed to tattoo their faces.

Currently, the Ainu live mainly in the southeast of Hokkaido, engaged in fishing and logging. According to the way of life and customs, this nationality resembles the Nanai, Ulchi and other natives of the mainland. There is virtually no information about their actual number. According to some reports, there are no more than 20 thousand Ainu. They differ from the Japanese, including externally. Back in the 19th - early 20th centuries, Russian and European travelers paid travel notes Special attention developed Ainu hairline, long thick beards and mustaches, not typical for the Japanese. Disputes about the origin of the Ainu are still ongoing by ethnographers.

As a result of the displacement of the Ainu from the best lands inhabited by Japanese colonists, and the forced transition to a new unfamiliar type of economy, the Ainu culture began to lose its originality. Even in ancient times, the Ainu were familiar with pottery, knew how to mummify the dead and invented a recipe for a deadly plant poison that could instantly kill a bear, but was completely safe when eating meat. Ainu mythology was transmitted orally, since the Ainu did not have their own written language. Oral retellings of Ainu myths were first recorded by European missionaries in the late 19th and 20th centuries. At the same time and later, the folklore of the Ainu was recorded and its classification was carried out. However, to date, neither stories nor teachings have been published.

There is a hypothesis that Japanese Shinto originates in the Ainu beliefs, which imply a large number of deities living in all objects and phenomena of the world. Japanese ethnography denies such a theory, as well as ignores the distinctive ethnocultural features of the Ainu.

The planting of the Japanese language in the past led to the fact that only the older generation retains the Ainu language and some specific utensils in their home life. The absence of their own writing served as a pretext for refusing to create national Ainu schools, despite the compact residence of this ethnic group. The assignment of Japanese surnames to the Ainu, which began in the 17th century, led to the partial loss of the Ainu national identity, which was largely facilitated by familiarization with Japanese rituals and traditions. For part of the Ainu living in cities or near cities, a demonstration of ancient rituals, national costumes, utensils, the sale of handicrafts to tourists have become one of the important income items.

Last April, Japan's Japan Times published an article about a Tokyo-based independent television producer who managed to launch a book and CD of Ainu tales. The illustrated edition contains 5 teaching stories in the Ainu language (using the Latin alphabet) and their translation into Japanese and English languages, as well as an extensive afterword and grammatical commentary. It also touches upon such social problems as discrimination against the Ainu and infringement of their national rights. The stories testify to bullying of Ainu children in Japanese schools, to the ban on salmon fishing by Ainu fishermen, for whom fish is the main food product. The book contains many facts about the oppression of the Ainu, the arrogant attitude towards them on the part of the Japanese.

It should be noted that Japan's national policy towards ethnic groups living in the country has always been openly discriminatory. This manifested itself and continues to manifest itself not only in the issue of providing them civil rights but also at the level of everyday life communication. One of the most persistent stereotypes of the Japanese mass consciousness is the idea of the need to preserve the purity of the nation. It was formulated most accurately by Japanese Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone, who pointed out that " intellectual level The Americas are lower than the Japanese because they love blacks, Mexicans and Puerto Ricans. One of the psychological foundations of the Japanese disparaging attitude towards non-Japanese is the assertion that a foreigner can never understand the Japanese, but the Japanese are able to learn foreigners - you just need to work hard. To a large extent, the formation of this stereotype was facilitated by the successful borrowing by Japan of advanced Western technologies under the motto: "Japanese spirit - Western technologies."

Now Japan is increasingly talking about the need to consolidate society. However, the removal of discriminatory restrictions against ethnic minorities could lead to the growth of their national self-consciousness, which will inevitably cause a surge of interethnic contradictions. One of the reasons for the preservation of the current situation with regard to national groups living in Japan is the desire of the political elite to use the assertion about the "special purity of the Japanese nation." This, according to the Japanese authorities, is extremely important in the context of the current economic depression and the negative social phenomena that accompany it (unemployment, apathy, a crisis of confidence in the authorities). Using the idea of the homogeneity of the Japanese nation, politicians hope to avoid such extreme forms of social instability as inter-ethnic conflicts, anti-government actions of the poor, uncontrolled nationalist actions aimed at expelling cheaper foreign labor from the country.

The removal of discriminatory restrictions against the Ainu, the restoration of their language and culture, the opening of national schools would contribute to the growth of their national identity. However, in this case, this could lead to the creation of national autonomy in the places of compact residence of this ethnic group on the island of Hokkaido, the need for Ainu representation in legislative and executive authorities, etc. The political elite of Japan is extremely uninterested in such a development of events, since this would mean abandoning the thesis about the national identity of the Japanese and the homogeneity of Japanese society.

It is also worth noting that the widespread penetration of Western mass culture samples into Japanese society, primarily through the mass media, inevitably served to erode the traditional culture of Japan. The change in many aspects of life on the basis of experience borrowed from outside gave rise to some disharmony in the socio-psychological sphere. Elements of the current socio-cultural crisis in Japan have inevitably caused a negative reaction from society, which has led to the growth of nationalism, which is becoming more widespread among young people. This, in turn, is accompanied by a growing confidence in the superiority of Japanese society and a certain contempt for other ethnic groups.

All these arguments give reason to believe that the status of a highly developed and cultural power does not guarantee the absence or elimination of existing discrimination against national minorities. At present, in Japan, the problem of establishing interethnic relations is being postponed for the long term.

The word "Japanese" can be used as a neutral term for all residents Japanese archipelago or as an ethnonym that will designate a cultural community - "Japanese ethnos" (without the Ryukyus and Ainu) or a political one - "Japanese nation" (together with the Ryukyus and Ainu).

1. The origin of the Japanese

The problem of the origin of the Japanese can be considered from three positions: racegenesis, ethnogenesis and nationogenesis.

Most Western scholars note the inappropriateness of defining the Japanese as a race or a gay group. However, Japanese scientists note the existence of " Japanese race"as a separate biological taxon. They also associate the formation of the Japanese ethnos and nation with it. Today, the concept of K. Hanihara, officially published by him in 1990, is generally recognized. According to it modern Japanese are the descendants of the proto-Mongoloid community of the Jomon period, close to which there are bastard peoples South-East Asia. Starting from the 3rd century BC. and ending in the 7th century, these proto-Mongoloids mixed with new-Mongoloid migrants from the territory of Manchuria, Korea and China. As a result of mixing, a Japanese racial type arose, which became the basis for the formation of the Japanese ethnic group. Despite a large number of flaws in the theory of K. Hanihara, her position can be found both in scientific works and school textbooks.

If specialists are ready to give a certain set of concepts-answers to the question of racial genesis, then the problem of the ethnogenesis of the Japanese looks much more complicated for them. Most scientists believe that the Japanese as an ethnic group arose on the basis of the Yamato and ethno-social group in the 6th-7th centuries, the basis of which was the state of Yamato in the Kinki region. However, a number of scholars argue that it is impossible to call the Yamatosiv Japanese, since they were only part of the ethnic map of Japan. For these scholars, "Japanese" is a political term that united the various ethnic groups of the Japanese archipelago at the end of the Edo period in the 19th century.

From the point of view of nation genesis, the Japanese emerged as a nation with the emergence of the nation state of Japan, in response to aggressive actions nation states Western Europe and USA. The cultural communities of the Japanese islands, including the Ainu and the Ryukyuans, were united into a single political and social organism.

Difficulties encountered in finding the origin of the Japanese are due to the lack of a consistent and clear terminology for "race", "ethnicity" or "nation". Among scientists there is also no consensus on which of these terms to designate the Japanese. However, today the word "Japanese" is used mostly in a neutral sense, to refer to the inhabitants of Japan, or as a synonym for the phrase "Japanese citizens".

2. Language

Japanese is the native language of the vast majority of the world's Japanese and official language in Japan . The graphic system of the language contains two alphabets (hiragana and katakana), as well as about 4 thousand borrowed Chinese characters. According to statistics from the Japanese Ministry of Education, 99% of the country's population is able to read and write Japanese.

The origin and classification of the language is still unclear. By the middle of the 20th century, it was believed that the Japanese language belongs to the group of Tungus-Altaic languages \u200b\u200band is related, in particular, to Korean. However modern researchers indicate the similarity of the main Japanese vocabulary with the vocabulary of the languages of Southeast Asia. Generality of grammar with the languages of the north and proximity basic vocabulary Japanese from the south of the Asian continent complicates the classification procedure. Therefore, it is customary to single out the Japanese language as an isolated one.

In addition to the Japanese language proper, there are Ainu and Ryukyu languages in Japan. These languages are considered by Japanese researchers as special ancient dialects of Japanese, but a number of Western researchers define them as separate languages.

3. Culture and religion

It is believed that the basis of modern Japanese culture is the culture of the natives of the Japanese archipelago.

Japan is the youngest of the Eastern civilizations. It is located on an archipelago of 4 major islands: Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu and Shikoku. In addition, there are more than 3,000 islands in Japan. The modern population of Japan is approximately 12 million people, of which 99% are ethnic Japanese. The Japanese ethnos took shape as a result of long-term migration processes associated with the movement of ethnic groups from Siberia, Korea and the Pacific Islands. The core of the nationalities had developed by the beginning of our time in the 3rd-6th centuries, when the first state of Yamato was formed in the center of the island of Honshu.

The insular position of Japan saved her from military conquests and created the conditions for the country's cultural isolation. Proximity to the east coast of Asia predetermined the influence of China and Korea on the formation of the culture of Japan.

The most characteristic representative of this type was the military, and later the state elite of the Land of the Rising Sun - the samurai class, which lived according to certain rules called the “Samurai Code”: “A samurai must, first of all, constantly remember - remember day and night, from that morning, when he picks up chopsticks to taste the New Year's meal, until the last night of the old year, when he pays his debts - that he must die. Here is his main business. If he always remembers this, he will be able to live his life in accordance with fidelity and filial piety, avoid a myriad of evils and misfortunes, save himself from illness and trouble, and enjoy a long life. He will be an exceptional personality endowed with excellent qualities. For life is fleeting, like a drop of evening dew and morning frost, and even more so is the life of a warrior. And if he thinks that he can console himself with the thought of eternal service to his master or of endless devotion to relatives, something will happen that will make him neglect his duty to his master and forget about loyalty to the family. But if he lives only for today and does not think about tomorrow, so that, standing before his master and waiting for his orders, he thinks of this as his last moment, and looking into the faces of his relatives, he feels that he will never see them again. Then his feelings of duty and admiration will be sincere, and his heart will be filled with fidelity and filial piety.

The second version says that initially only representatives of the stronger sex were allowed in the geisha, and they entertained by no means high society. Geisha men were part of the so-called "water world", which, in fact, was an analogue of the Parisian "court of miracles". Gradually, men were left out of their lot, as the audience was more impressed by the smooth dances of snow-white moths performed by women. As soon as this revolution of the sexes took place, the geisha immediately acquired a more than worthy reputation - beauties began to be invited to tea ceremonies. The areas in which the geisha communities were located were called "flower streets" (hanamachi). The geishas were led by the "mother" - Oka-san. Geisha apprentices were called maiko. The transition from maiko to geisha was usually accompanied by the loss of virginity, which was sold to the most significant clients of hanamachi for a huge amount of money. The more a man paid to "pick the flower of innocence," the higher the maiko's chances of becoming a sought-after and highly paid geisha. The popularity and beauty of a geisha began to be measured by the status of the tea house inviting her.

Foreign scientists identify the main stages in the development of culture:

culture of ancient times up to the 6th century. ad;

Buddhist culture from the 6th c. until the end of the 8th century;

the formation of national culture from the 8th-12th centuries;

the development of culture in the Middle Ages in the 13th-15th centuries;

culture of the pre-modern era of the 15th-17th centuries.

stage of modernization of cultural life in the 19th-20th centuries.

Thus, the civilization and culture of Japan before the global clash of Western and Eastern civilizations had many striking unique features, some of which have survived into modern times. One of the essential ones is the absence of a chronologically clear transition from antiquity to the Middle Ages, associated with the formation of feudalism as a socio-economic and political structure.

The era of the 16th - early 17th century saw the dawn of Japanese architecture and the art of the Japanese garden.

This is a specific ritualized form of joint tea drinking, created in the Middle Ages in Japan and is still cultivated in this country. Appearing initially as one of the forms of meditation practice of Buddhist monks, it has become an integral element of Japanese culture, closely related to many other cultural phenomena.

There are many varieties of tea ceremony, of which six traditional ones stand out: night, sunrise, morning, afternoon, evening, special.

Night ceremony.Usually held under the moon. The gathering of guests takes place shortly before midnight, the ceremony ends no later than four in the morning. A feature of the night ceremony is that powdered tea is prepared directly during the ceremony, grinding tea leaves in a mortar, and brewing very strong.

At sunrise.The ceremony begins at three or four in the morning and continues until six in the morning.

morning. It is usually held in hot weather (when the morning is the coolest time), it starts around six in the morning.

Afternoon.It starts around one o'clock in the afternoon, only cakes are served from food.

Evening.Starts around six o'clock in the afternoon.

Special (Rinjitian)the ceremony is held on special occasions: a holiday, a specially organized meeting of friends, the celebration of an event. The tea ceremony could also be held in preparation for the most important events, for example, for a battle or for ritual suicide. Here the "master of tea" played a special role. He must have had great inner qualities. He had to strengthen his guest or guests before a responsible step.

The culture of this period reflects political and economic processes. Old forms were destroyed, people developed new relationships and created a different perception of the world, which gave rise to fresh cultural creations. The military dictatorship of the early 16th century gradually developed into a policy of enlightened rule. The architecture of the 16th-19th centuries shows a clear stylistic duality. On the one hand, a craving for ostentatious splendor and decorative saturation was clearly manifested. On the other hand, the trend towards the expressiveness of clean construction continued to develop, especially in the unique architecture of the tea houses.

The maturation of feudal society and the development of urban trade provided grounds for the growth of a rich creative culture. Establishing their possession, the feudal lords built long-term castles in its center, placing them on flat terrain, which made transport links and the construction of cities around the castles more convenient. The castle was a real military structure, since with the beginning of the use of firearms, the feudal lords turned castles into complex, militarily and significant structures. The castle - the palace can be considered an expression of aesthetic ideals, the top of the new feudal nobility. The main building has always been a tower - "tenshu", which embodied the strength and power of the owner of the castle. If the enemy penetrated the tower, its owner had only one thing left - to commit ritual suicide - "seppuka" in order to avoid the shame of defeat.

Traditional theatrical genres occupied a large place in the system of medieval culture in Japan. They not only embodied the main aesthetic ideas of the time, but had a significant impact on the fine and decorative arts, in turn, perceiving and mastering their discoveries. Outside of contact with the theater, many phenomena of social life and features of Japanese artistic culture as a whole will remain incomprehensible. A special place in the theatrical culture of Japan is occupied by the drama schools of No, Kabuki and Jeruri.

The development of the dramatic art of Japan was determined by Kabuki (actor theater) and Jeruri (puppet theater). Kabuki theater originated in the early 17th century. in Kyoto and became a favorite pastime of the townspeople. The prototype of Kabuki was a type of dance in which women appeared in unusual costumes. Originating in Kyoto at the beginning of the Edo period, this dance was called Kabuki Odori and was worthy of being noticed because of its free style, novelty and freedom of character. These early dances and parodies developed into plays with a certain dramatic structure. Women were eventually sidelined from the scene by the threat of civil unrest posed by men who were competing in their favor, and the older men developed into serious actors of what turned out to be known as Kabuki. The dominant position was occupied by plays related to history, legends and modern life, and themes of humanity, loyalty and love. By the middle of the Edo period, a number of good playwrights emerged, through whose efforts Kabuki became the traditional drama of Japan. Priority in Kabuki acting over everything else led to the fact that great importance was attached to the continuity of the family name and acting tradition. All theatrical genres are a bright original phenomenon of the artistic culture of Japan. Throughout the medieval period, the theater was an important part of the spiritual life of the Japanese people, expressing the ethical and aesthetic ideals of the time.

Who among us has not seen mysterious short verses that look like a picture-hieroglyph? A few strokes of the brush - and before you is a complete thought, image, philosophy.

Haiku, tanka, haiku. What is it, how and when did such verses appear and how do they differ?

They appeared in the Middle Ages. No one knows when it all began, it is known for sure that all these forms of Japanese versification were born from folk songs and ... syllabic alphabet.

Our life is a dewdrop

Let only a drop of dew

Our life is still...

Sakura is a well-known symbol of Japan and Japanese culture - a plant revered by the Japanese for a long time. Hanami is a Japanese national tradition of viewing flowers, the most famous of which is cherry blossoms.

There are many cultures of sakura, in particular - Somei Yoshino Sakura ( ソメイヨシノ ), first cultivated in the Edo period and widely spread throughout Japan since the Meiji period.

In the old days, the dominant cultural position was occupied by the Yamazakura ( 山桜 - "mountain cherry"), Yaezakura ( 八重桜- "cherry with double petals") and the famous Yoshino sakura - a derivative of Yamazakura. Since the Meiji period, the image of sakura has been on the headdresses of students and the military, as an indicator of rank. Currently used on the coats of arms of the police and the armed forces of Japan. In addition, sakura is a traditional symbol of female youth and beauty. In Japan, there is a 100 yen coin with an image of sakura in use.

March, starting from the 4th year of Heisei (1992), the Japanese Sakura Society introduced the Cherry Blossom Festival. This festival takes place in all regions of Japan, the time of the event depends on the time of cherry blossom.

Japanese culture is very diverse....

Japanese food is almost the main reason to visit Japan and the most capricious eater will be delighted to know that the menu in this country is not limited to sushi, tempura and sukiyaki, which are the most famous in other countries. With the exception of shokudo (canteens) and izakaya (the pub equivalent), most Japanese restaurants specialize in one type of cuisine. In most restaurants, the diners choose their own composition of the dish, mainly a mixture of meat, seafood and vegetables, which are baked in cabbage. There are also restaurants specializing in charcoal grills.

cultural japan samurai tea haiku

A teardrop of stars on a peony petal,

A timid look - an embarrassed silence ...

The brook murmurs, running down the slope...

Watercolor is so easy ... charm ...

And a thin path, with a thread of silk,

Leads higher, with the sky on a date ...

A bee perched on a lotus flower,

Let the thick bangs rustle the reeds ...

The sunrise will give inspiration

Coloring the sky with the caress of iris dreams,

Giving birth to the first ray - the fate of a moment ...

Yes, the noise of green branches, cypress,

With an eye on the flexible bamboo mill,

Absorbs the solar rainbow of the narcissus...

There the science of ancient wisdom is born...

Halftones subtlest meaning deep...

And the beat of the heart is a mystery of feelings and sound...

Such a vast world... so far away...

In the gardens of the universe with cherry petals...

Have you been there... tell me... is he lonely?..