What's new

Post Japanese-related YouTube links here

A key part of Japanese culture is the samurai and Bushido (the samurai 'code of conduct'). Here is a video by Japanese swordsman Shodo that is highly critical of Bushido culture in present-day Japan.


This video is extremely well presented and it's heartening to see such a self-aware Japanese person discussing the problems of the country from a historical perspective.
 
For those of you with a Netflix subscription, there is a "dorama" ('soap opera' TV series) on Netflix set in Shinjuku, Tokyo called Midnight Diner.


Here is a promotional 'trailer' on YouTube.




There is a Chinese version with the same name on YouTube with Chinese and English subtitles. Here is the first episode. (It says it is set in Shinjuku, Tokyo, but the outside shots look very much like they were shot in a Chinese city.)




It is based on a Japanese manga called Shinya Shokudo ("Midnight Diner").

 
Last edited:
According to sword-practitioner Shogo, there were three more foreigners who became Japanese samurai;

Yasuke, who was a slave brought from Africa by Jesuits. Yasuke was made a samurai by none other than Oda Nobunaga, one of the best-known samurai in Japanese history. Yasuke is the one who ran to save his head samurai (an important scene in the movie Last Samurai).

Miura Anjin (William Adams) was born in England and came to Japan in 1587 (so there really was a foreigner samurai named 'Anjin-san" as in the movie Last Samurai) But then Japan's isolation from the outside world began, people were afraid Anjin-san would rebel against this, so his status deteriorated. He worked as a translator and teacher or the Shogun (as in the movie Last Samurai).

Eugene Collache was a Frenchman who lived in Hokaido in the 1800's, wore kimono and carried samurai swords. He wrote a book about his life in Japan that we can read today. He joined the samurai uprising in Hokkaido and fought on the side of the Shogunate Army and was defeated by the Imperial Army (as in the movie Last Samurai).

So, if you are a fan of the movie Last Samurai (as I am) you can see how bits and pieces from various foreign samurai were woven together to make the movie Last Samurai.

 
According to sword-practitioner Shogo, there were three more foreigners who became Japanese samurai;

Yasuke, who was a slave brought from Africa by Jesuits. Yasuke was made a samurai by none other than Oda Nobunaga, one of the best-known samurai in Japanese history. Yasuke is the one who ran to save his head samurai (an important scene in the movie Last Samurai).

Miura Anjin (William Adams) was born in England and came to Japan in 1587 (so there really was a foreigner samurai named 'Anjin-san" as in the movie Last Samurai) But then Japan's isolation from the outside world began, people were afraid Anjin-san would rebel against this, so his status deteriorated. He worked as a translator and teacher or the Shogun (as in the movie Last Samurai).

Eugene Collache was a Frenchman who lived in Hokaido in the 1800's, wore kimono and carried samurai swords. He wrote a book about his life in Japan that we can read today. He joined the samurai uprising in Hokkaido and fought on the side of the Shogunate Army and was defeated by the Imperial Army (as in the movie Last Samurai).

So, if you are a fan of the movie Last Samurai (as I am) you can see how bits and pieces from various foreign samurai were woven together to make the movie Last Samurai.


Interesting. I didn't know the movie had any basis in fact whatsoever.
 
It is recorded that a Persian became a Japanese government official for 765 years.

It is recorded that a Persian became a Japanese government official in 765. "For 765 years" would be translated at 765年間 (765 ねんかん).

Interesting. I didn't know the movie had any basis in fact whatsoever.

It did, but it is a mixture of events that happened to several people. For example, William Adams (Anjin-san) lived 1564-1620,
so he could not have participated in battles between Shogunate forces and Imperial forces in Hokkaido in 1868.

~~~

Next is another video by the sword-practioner Shogo about a group of samurai called the shinsengumi (しんせんぐみ) (新選組). (I had never heard of them,
and I did not know they are 'well-known to every Japanese person'.)

 
Last edited:
Ise Shrine is the most important Shinto shrine in Japan, encompassing 5,500 hectares (21 square miles), 125 individual shrine buildings, and getting more than 10 million visitors a year.







 
Next is another video by the sword-practioner Shogo about a group of samurai called the shinsengumi (しんせんぐみ) (新選組). (I had never heard of them,
and I did not know they are 'well-known to every Japanese person'.)


Depending on who you ask, they were either seen as Tokugawa thugs or the last samurai unit of the shogunate. There's no way around the Shinsengumi when you read about the bakumatsu period and the Boshin War. Years ago, there was a taiga drama series dedicated to them.
 
For those of you with a Netflix subscription, there is a "dorama" ('soap opera' TV series) on Netflix set in Shinjuku, Tokyo called Midnight Diner.


Here is a promotional 'trailer' on YouTube.




There is a Chinese version with the same name on YouTube with Chinese and English subtitles. Here is the first episode. (It says it is set in Shinjuku, Tokyo, but the outside shots look very much like they were shot in a Chinese city.)




It is based on a Japanese manga called Shinya Shokudo ("Midnight Diner").


Thanks a lot! Wish there were some more J Dramas in these platforms
 
日本語 Class,

There are tons of videos on YouTube on how to prepare Japanese dishes. Is there a particular dish you want to learn how to make?

~~~

Here is a video of a westerner learning rituals to use at a Shinto shrine.

 
Bodhidharma, an Indian Buddhist saint who lived in the fifth or sixth century AD, was the founder of Zen Buddhism. According to Wikipedia, he studied at the Shaolin Temple (しょりんじ) (小林寺) and helped to create Shaolin Kungfu.


 
Whoa this is so good to be true, do you know if this channel has only this video with English subs or not? If there are others Ill sure follow, the channel seems very good anyways
English subs are usually "hit or miss" on YouTube, including the quality of the translations, and depends on the creator and video.
 
It is said Bodhidharma helped to create Shaolin Kungfu. Here is a video of the modern-day examination a monk must go through to become a Shaolin kungfu master.

Check out the difficult maneuver called Going Up the Monkey Tree at 2:40.

 
The second half of the name "Bodhidharma" is "Dharma" (Daruma) (だるま) ( 達磨) . Today it is quite common to see Daruma Dolls in Japan (named after Bodhidharma). Politicians especially like to fill in the second eye with black paint (symbolizing victory) when they win an election.





Here is a video on the making of Daruma dolls (in Japanese, no English subtitles).

 
Hey there! Have a few videos today!

First is the competition results if you entered!



Next up is a new series walking around Japan while studying ;)



Next one explains how to use "dekai"


And last one explains the meaning of "bottakuri"



Enjoy! :)
 
There is one religious festival that is quite unique. During the Gozan no Okuribi (五山送り火), more commonly known as Daimonji (大文字), bonfires are lit on a mountain, and the fires are in the shape for the kanji for "large" (おおきい) (大きい). The site of the fires burning on the mountain side and making the 大 kanji are spectacular. (Other kanji are lit on other mountains.)


Kyoto "Daimonji" Gozan no Okuribi (In Japanese, no English subtitles)

 
Last edited:
Hina Matsuri (Doll's Festival, also known as Girl's Day) is celebrated on March third. It is aday to celebrate the daughter of the family, to honor her and pray she will have a long, happy, and healthy life.

Here is the Hina Matsuri page on Wikipedia.


Here is a YouTube video on Hina Matsuri.

 
Here is a fascinating video on the meticulous process of setting Up Hina Dolls. (The location is the Japan House at the University of Illinois.)

 
I did not know it, but there is a Hinamatsuri song. Here is the song and lyrics in Japanese and English subtitles.

(For some reason, the subtitles do not appearfor me when I play the video in this jref.com window, but they appear when I watch it on the YouTube webpage, so you may have to go to the YouTube webpage to view the subtitles.)

 
Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan, has some amazing temples. One of them is Ginkakuji Temple.

(Once again, subtitles do not appear for me in jref.com but they appear in the YouTube webpage.)

 
Wabi-sabi is an important concept in Japanese culture. Unfortunately, it is hard to define. This video about Ginkakuji gives a definition of wabi-sabi.

(It seems to me the idea of wabi-sabi is similar to the idea of "shibui" (しぶい) (渋い). Does anyone have any thoughts on this?)

 
Last edited:
Back
Top Bottom