Glimpses of Japan

Monday, March 30, 2026

Hiraizumi and WW2: A Lucky Miss?

Hiraizumi, Iwate, is home to Chusonji, a 900-year-old temple of the Jodo Shinshu Sect. Tucked away in Hir

aizumi Station, Hiraizumi, Iwate, is a small exhibit that shows what else the US Air Force was up to in early August, 1995. Specifically, what was falling out of Japanese skies, where, and on whom, even as Hiroshima and Nagasaki were being obliterated. Couldn't help the glare, alas. The temple was lucky, or the crews were instructed to spare the site? Anyhow, extensive damage resulted, and many lives were lost.

Sunday, March 29, 2026

Sado Roadside Shrines, 辻堂

Sado

abounds in 辻堂、of which a few: Invariably a figure or figures of Jizo-sama, sometimes minus one or more bits; flowers not unusual and occasionally fresh; 折り鶴 are uncommon in my experience.

Morioka: 烏帽子

The 烏帽子 is a type of headgear, lacquered for stiffness, worn from the Heian Era onwards. Donning an eboshi was not a privilege, inasmuch as male commoners of age did so on occasion (merchants and artisans, that is, not peasants). The massive boulder (interesting legend on the marker) bears an uncanny resemblance to an 'eboshi'.

Morioka, Iwate: Miyazawa Kenji and Ishikawa Takuboku

First visit to Morioka, Iwate. The overriding purpose of the trip was to visit the Miyazawa- Ishikawa Museum downtown and locations nearby associated with the two authors, both born in the Meiji Era (though I'm mainly interested in Ishikawa). Miyazawa is perhaps best known for "銀河鉄道の夜", while Ishikawa is known as an poet and novelist; my favorite is "ザルと人と森", which I have translated in these pages. It's truly remarkable.