Acedia

Acedia is defined as laziness, slothfulness, religious apathy, and inactivity in the practice of virtue. This word is great because it can provide me with multiple topics that I can speak about, but... I suppose just focusing on one will be adequate.

When speaking about Japan, and either religion or virtue are brought up, some Americans can be quite judgmental and ethno-centric when it comes to various aspects of Japanese culture, such as the general view on sexuality, or even the presumable lack of good manners in Japan.

I'm only going to touch on religion though, since a touch is all I know, but in Japan, Christians number less than 1% of the population. I'm assuming that the statistic is similar for Muslims or Jewish as well. For the most part, Japan's major religions are Shintoism and Buddhism. With small shrines and temples scattered throughout Japan, these are major tourist areas for not only foreigners, but native Japanese as well.

People will go to these shrines to pray for good luck and fortune in whatever field they may be seeking or pursuing, such as love, entrance exams, or jobs. They also sell fortunes, like a horoscope, and charms for various things, such as protection from harm or providing good luck. For me, all of this just seems to be fun stuff to do since it's not something that I'm familiar with or that I've been indoctrinated with, but for some, or rather most, people, they take it very seriously. This can mean maintaining a shrine to ancestors in their home, with the ancestors usually being parents or grandparents, and going to these various shrines to pray for good fortune for not only oneself, but also one's family, friends, company, school, city, prefecture, country, or world. The usual stuff.

Although religion does not seem to be discussed much, it most definitely runs throughout all sectors of Japanese culture, as can be expected. Most contrastingly, some people would consider the Japanese to be immoral or an Atheist nation simply based upon the openness of sex in its various forms, but the Japanese view of sex is based upon aspects of their religion in which sex and fertility are promoted. Actually, from anecdotes that I've read, there were penis festivals throughout Japan up to around the period between the 1950's and 1980's. These festivals were meant to promote fertility, and many couples, or women, who wanted children would go to these festivals to touch or receive wooden penises... replicas people, replicas!... for the most part, I assume. The way giant penis monuments and giant log penises are described in these anecdotal experiences makes it seem like it would've been a very... fun or interesting festival to take part in. Sadly, since Japan has become more Westernized, these festivals have declined in number. Hopefully I'll be able to find an active festival of this type some day... it seems like it would be quite the unique experience. :)


Here are some pics showing off various shrines and different aspects of them:


This type of fountain is usually found in front of shrines and temples. People can wash their hands with it and rinse their mouth out, or drink it. Although it's not recommended that you drink it, it does seem to be potable water since I drank some before I was advised that I probably shouldn't drink it. Anyway, it's meant to cleanse the person before they enter the shrine or temple.
This is a famous giant Buddha statue found in the town of Kamakura. It's a rather traditional town that draws in many tourists who come to see this statue among various other sights in the town.

Purfle

Purfle, in short, is an ornamental border. Most Japanese borders that I've observed and recall are not ornamented. The borders are usually clear and easily discernible, while the mass on the inside is what is drawing the attention in towards the more decorative object(s) of interest. This can be best seen, and most often seen, in the arrangement of dishes, such as sashimi- raw fillets of fish.


I apologize if you haven't eaten yet and you're currently craving raw seafood, because this is going to be an especially tasty entry.

As can be seen from the pic above, the layout of the dish itself is quite the work of art. Not only is it a feast for the stomach, but also a feast for the eyes. While eating in Japan, I would always find myself gazing at displays of food and taking in not only the type of ingredients that make up the dish, but also the way it's laid out. The artistic design may not mean much when one is dealing with stomach pangs, but upon retrospect, it may have been those artfully delicious designs that added even more to the hunger within oneself. Seeing how carefully and deliberately each piece is laid out and the shape(s) that they form can cause one to imagine how it will be like to take a piece of the final dish and savor the imaginary juices as they finally touch upon the tongue to be masticated and sent along ones throat to reach that piece of meat's end, in its current form, in the stomach; whereupon its bath of acid cleanses its body and prepares it for its travel through the small intestine whereupon each and every protein and other nutrient shall be taken through those walls and sent upon its own private journey until it reaches the cell that is to be its final destination as it serves its purpose to fuel that cell as a bundle of wood would fuel a warm and hearty hearth within ones home.

The sight of a sashimi dish and the artistic expanse to which such a sight can inspire... You may be currently be thinking, "Surely, Mr. Farte, sir, you jest. For how can the mere sight of a dish cause one's artistic sensibilities to go so far as to consider each protein as a newborn babe being delivered to each and every home, and thereupon invigorating it with its warm smile, within the body of a country?" As you may be thinking that, I may be replying, "But friend, is it too much to ask that of a dish? Can it be not both invigorating to the body and the mind, not as just the physical sustenance it provides to both, but also as a mental inspiration at each and every meal? Is it too much to ask for the chef to make not just a delectable dish, but also one that draws forth from the artistic depths of the chef's mind?"

Well, the experience may be different for each of us, but for me, just seeing a well-purfled dish makes not only my mouth water, but engages the mind just as surely as seeing an exquisite work of art within a museum. Although, I must say, being able to "partake" of that exquisite work of art would certainly make a trip and time spent there more worthwhile for more than just the eyes.