Mountain Temples

Japan has many temples usually facing the mountain or located up in the mountains.  Both the Shinto and Buddhist religions have a similar style of temple, each using torii gates running from north to south, a series of corridors running east to west, gardens, spaces for prayer, gardens, etc. (I like gardens).  The construction of all Japanese temples are the same; consisting of wood posts and beams, tatami straw mat floors and bark roofs (usually made from cypress).  Recent roof replacements use other materials other than bark.

The temples are not only a place of worship, but also a place of safekeeping of sacred objects and a specialization in certain rites.   We visited many temples while in Japan, and one specific temple, Shinto shrine Fushimi Inari Taisha, is the protectorate of rice and rice wine.  Rice is the most important food of Asia, especially Japan.  I have an appreciation for the protection of all wines, including sake.  So this temple was a must see. 

The fox is considered a messenger of the gods to the Japanese and Fushimi Inari Taisha is protected by foxes.  The fox is prevalent throughout the temple grounds, including the picture below where the fox is holding rice in its mouth.  Quail eat rice, therefore killing and eating this bird helps preserve the sacred rice crop.  The small town below the mountain where the temple is located has many street vendors serving quail.  Since I find quail delicious and I want to help protect the rice wine, I am very much in favor of eating quail.

A trail of more than 10,000 torii gates leads up the mountain passing various mini-shrines along the way.  People donate money for the construction of a torii gate to bring good luck.  You can stop and pray for the things you need in life.  People will often write their wishes on a piece of paper and attach it to a tree branch near one of the shrines.  Praying for prosperity and good health is common, but also finding a suitable person to marry is an important reason to take the trip up the mountain.  

Asians are very superstitious.  The temple lists the age of people that need special protection (see list of unlucky ages below).  If your age is listed, then buying special protection is a good hedge against bad luck, which I recommend.  On one street in the town below the mountain, falling down the stairs of this street is considered very bad luck and you will certainly die within 3 years.  However, if you fall on this street, you can buy special protection to prevent your premature death.  I recommend this hedge as well.  The Mafia sells special protection to protect against physical harm.  If Italians were more superstitious, they would have an easier time selling protection and nobody would need their arm broken.

We enjoyed visiting all of the temples and learning what each meant to the people. 

Kyoto

We are currently in Kyoto Japan.  Kyoto was the capital of Japan for more than 1,000 years before moving to Tokyo.  The shogun period of Japan largely took place in Kyoto.  The city has numerous temples, shrines and gardens.  The homes and stores of the ancient city are very well maintained and look much like they probably did hundreds of years ago.  While the buses and subway system is very good and efficient, Kyoto is also a wonderful walking city.  We walked a scenic trail called the Philosophers’ Path, which begins in the mountains with a temple and ends near the city center at a temple.  The path followed a mountain stream and was very scenic.

The temples typically have traditional Japanese gardens.  The gardens often have a sand and stone feature, as well as the water, rock and bridges we typically associate with Japanese gardens.  The city has numerous mountain springs that are available for drinking water.

We ate at an old style traditional sushi restaurant.  The master sushi chef wears the traditional high heeled wooden sandals and produces sushi and places it on the red bar.  A water stream runs between the sushi serving bar and the bar where we eat. We had the sushi chef captive to us and the meal feature about 15 courses.

The old Kyoto district features theaters, ancient arts and the Geisha are still an important part of the old city.  The Geisha emerge in the early evening for their appointments.

We are enjoying Japan very much and I will post some additional pictures this weekend.

Workbench

My Grandfather was a carpenter (actually both of my Grandfathers were carpenters).   More than 70 years ago my Father’s Father built a workbench for his two boys.  He believed that the men in our family should be able to use their hands and work with tools.  The workbench was sized for children and had a nice working vise.

My Grandfather made sure the bench was handed down to his grandsons and I used this bench along with my four brothers.  I built pinewood derby cars for scouts, used the vise to hold axes while sharpening them, built electronics and practiced taxidermy using this bench.

My brothers and I were tough on the bench.  It was originally delivered by my Grandfather freshly painted and the vise in good working condition.  My Father brought the bench to my house after I became a father, and it displayed the marks of my previous use and the vise hardware was missing.  I did not do a good job promoting the use of this bench with my Son, but it was important to me that I encouraged my Son and Grandson to use it.

I refurbished the bench by installing vise hardware, nailing the legs and backstop to make it sturdy, and then sanded and painting it in the original colors-brown and silver.  To obtain the vise hardware, I had to cut a vise apart through the cast iron to remove the screw.  I installed a threaded insert into the receiving end of the screw on the bench.   I retained all the saw and hammer marks made by me and my brothers.

I gave my Grandson the bench and a copy of the story about the workbench.  It is my hope that my Grandson will appreciate what his Great-Great-Grandfather start many years ago and prove that he was right in his belief that the men in our family should be able to work with their hands and tools.