Culture
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Sacred deer and Great Torii Gate: Itsukushima, Japan
Behind me you can see the gate that people would sail in and one of the sacred #deer below. You’re not allowed to feed the deer food and they will try to steal it and they will try to steal your souvenirs or eat them. And they are wild deer though. They are not domesticated.…
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Atom Bomb Ground Zero in Hiroshima, Japan
We’re here at ground zero in Hiroshima, by the Atomic Bomb Dome. The atomic bomb exploded about 600 meters above this area. Around 70,000 people were killed instantly, and by the end of 1945 the death toll had roughly doubled. This building was completed in 1915, about 30 years before the bombing, and was designed…
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1200 years of samādhi at Okunoin Cemetery, Mount Koya
Good afternoon from Japan’s largest cemetery, where over 200,000 souls repose. Also here is Kūkai who is believed to have been in a state of deep meditation called #samadhi since the year 835. That’s 1,200 years ago. #Okunoin #Japan
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Dhritarashtra at the Chumon Gate in Koyasan, Japan
The Chumon Gate in Koyasan, Japan is a very sacred place that was founded in ~815. They just rebuilt this gate 10 years ago for the 1200th anniversary of this place. So this place is older than Poland. Behind me, I think, is Dhṛtarāṣṭra, the Buddhist guardian king of the East. His name is interesting.…
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Sacred deer at Great Buddha Hall in Nara, Japan
The sacred deer in Nara at Great Buddha Hall: It used to be the death penalty if you killed one of these deer. And now they kind of roam freely among the people.
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Great Buddha Hall in Nara, Japan
Good afternoon from the Great Buddha Hall in #Nara, #Japan. This used to be the capital of the country about 1300 years ago. Inside is a 15 meter tall #Buddha from about the year 700. This used to be the largest wooden building in the world and it’s still one of them. It’s burned down…
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Kyoto, Japan: Temple of the Buddha’s Light (Bukkō-ji)
Bukkō-ji, the Temple of the Buddha’s Light, is a quiet, secluded temple right in the middle of busy #Kyoto. Its roots go back more than 800 years. In this video I’m wearing a men’s kimono – traditional formal wear here, similar in role to a suit and tie. Men’s #kimono are usually dark and understated,…
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Kyoto, Japan: Catching Ninjas at Nijo Castle
We are here in Kyoto, which is the old capital of Japan. The samurai used to rule from here with the Shogun government until they handed power over in 1867. This place is about 400 years old and something really cool about it is the singing floors. They used to catch ninjas by making the…
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Chūreitō pagoda (Mount Fuji lookout point)
Chūreitō is a pagoda built in 1963 as a peace monument honoring Fujiyoshida’s war dead. You’ve got to walk up 400 steps to get here as a reminder that perspective isn’t free. You may see Mount Fuji if it is not covered by clouds.
