Culture
History
May 16, 1700 was a historical day in Saga Prefecture. Not only was it the fateful day that the revered Nabeshima Mitsushige, third daimyo (feudal lord) of Saga Prefecture died at the age of sixty-nine, but it was also the last event that caused one of his closest retainers to retire into Buddhist priesthood, reflecting on his master and the ways of samurai warriors. In the early 1600s when the Tokugawa Shogunate had ended sengoku (the Warring States period), a new peace and prosperity accompanied the growth of Japan, it’s merchant class and expanded castle towns such as Saga. It was during this time that Nabeshima Mitshushege was born and later took reign of the clan in 1657 at the age of 25. Without the previously constant warfare, samurai warriors began to feel a redundancy towards their duty. As the feudal lords became more in need of an educated administration, Mitsushige advocated that the ideal “complete man” was both a warrior and a scholar — an ideal that shaped the samurai class until it’s dissolution with the Edo period in 1867.
Yamamoto Tsunemoto, whose father served as a retainer for the previous two lords, was born two years after Mitsushige to reign. As the father was old (71) and a little eccentric, Mitsushige took the boy and raised him with his own family and by the time he was nine, the boy had a deep interest in literature and was employed as Mitsushige’s page.
Tsunemoto led a colorful life of dismissals, training in Zen Buddhism, was influenced by the Confucian scholar Ishida Ittei in Saga and was also summoned to the Imperial capital of Kyoto to work as a scribe. News of Mitsushige’s sickness finally brought Tsunemoto back to Saga, where he presented a book dedicated to Mitsushige only weeks before he passed away.
At the age of forty-two, Tsunemoto contemplated junshi, the ritual suicide by disembowelment to accompany one’s master in death. Mitsushige, however, had prohibited this act in 1661, and as Tsunemoto was disappointed by the feudal successor, he sought instead to retire and loyally follow his master’s dictum.
Tsunemoto moved into semi-seclusion, living in a small hermitage about 12 km north of Saga Castle called Kurotsuchibaru. Ten years later, a young scribe began to visit him and their conversations were recorded over seven years.
On September 10, 1716, a book had been arranged by the scribe Tashiro Tsuramoto and given the title of Hagakure, meaning to “be hidden by the leaves.” Three years later Yamamoto Tsunemoto passed away at the age of 61, and in his legacy, the notes made from his reflections and some 1300 anecdotes about bushido (the way of the samurai) remained.
While the Hagakure once served as a handbook for young warriors of the Hizen domain (now Saga), this manual has now become a classic piece of Japanese literature and a chief source of history pertaining to the understanding of the Japanese samurai. In 1979, an American scholar named William Scott Wilson translated these notes into a book.
Famous Foods
Ogi Yokan (Sweet Bean Paste)
This is one of the traditional sweets that represent Japan. Within Japanese yokan (bean jelly), Saga’s Ogi Yokan is historically old and very highly regarded as a popular brand. It is said that when Toyotomi Hideyoshi made a stop over in Ogi in 1592 while on his way to his main military camp in Nagaya, Chinzei Township, he was offered yokan from Ogi. Another legend has it that during the Sino-Japanese War in the Meiji Era (late 19th century), food rations sent to the battlefield began to rot one after the other - with the exception of Ogi Yokan, which maintained its flavor. It was after this story that Ogi Yokan came to be known throughout Japan. As for the ingredients, red beans, sugar, vegetable gelatin and powdered quality tea are used. After dissolving vegetable gelatin in water and adding sugar, the bean paste is applied. Yokan is created by first boiling the mixture and then cooling it. Just the right amount of sweetness and the nostalgic taste from the past has been maintained to make Ogi Yokan a popular brand of yokan. There is a yokan museum by the clear stream of Ogi and the Gion River. The building is constructed of brick, which gives it an air of history. Having been built in the beginning of the Showa Era, it was formerly used as a sugar warehouse. Under the exhibits within the museum are utensils that were used for making yokan during the Meiji Era including ovens, copper pots, wooden buckets and scales for weighing bean paste and sugar. The first floor is made into a rest area. Please take a look at the history of yokan while enjoying yokan, provided to you free of charge. The sweet has been the one omiyage that has been a successful gift for that person that has everything.
Kaiseki ryouri (Traditional Japanese Cuisine)
You come to Japan for the first time. You have been really looking forward to some of the local cuisine. You go to a restaurant and your order comes out. Shock! This is only enough to last me half an hour you think.
Some might say that the amount of food that one receives in a restaurant can be small in Japan. That may be the case, but Japanese food includes a large variety of dishes using many different kinds of interesting food, with the emphasis usually on quality of presentation and taste rather than quantity. We would like to introduce kaiseki ryouri as an important influence on the style of contemporary Japanese cuisine. You may have attended a formal function that featured this kind of food. Kaiseki ryouri, one of the three basic styles of Japanese cooking, has its roots in the simple seasonal vegetarian cuisine served in the Zen temple. It is also served during the Japanese tea ceremony. It became popular among the general public as a type of cuisine served by top restaurants from the early 1900s. A meal today in a top Tokyo kaiseki restaurant will cost around 20,000 yen per person.
The word “kaiseki” is composed of two characters. The first character, kai (懐), means “to long for; recollect”. The second character, seki (石), means stone. It is believed that Zen priests of earlier times wrapped a hot stone in a towel and put it in their pocket to ward off the hunger during the long period between morning and evening meals. The original idea of kaiseki ryouri was to only serve the amount of food needed to sustain a person for one day. It uses fresh seasonal ingredients and simple seasonings and cooking styles to create food that is beautiful to look at, appeasing to the palate and in tune with the season. Food is selected according to the changing seasons and is presented through a series of small dishes with artful simplicity that are designed to bring out the unique taste and texture of the local delicacies. The popular kaiseki restaurants and hotels today are characterized by many small dishes of different flavours. Sake can be enjoyed with the meal, however, because Japanese people do not traditionally drink sake when eating rice, rice is served at the end of the meal. So when you get your next small portion of food delicately wrapped and presented, you could pretend that you are a monk! Or, more seriously, enjoy the moment of beautiful tranquility.
National Holidays
Kodomo no hi
Kododmo no hi falls on May 5, and is one of the most celebrated national holidays. It is also a seasonal festival called Tango no sekku (Iris Festival), because the fifth of May marks the beginning of summer on the old lunar calendar. Though called Kodomo no hi (Children’s Day), it is actually a boys festival. Celebrated by most families with boys, the idea is to drive away bad spirits and celebrate and pray for the future of their sons. Families hoist koinoburi (carp streamers) from balconies and flagpoles and display elaborate gogatsu-ningyo (samurai dolls and their ornaments) on ledges inside their homes. Children take syobuyu (a bath with a bunch floating iris leaves), and eat kashiwa mochi (a rice cake wrapped in an oak leaf) and chimake (a dumpling wrapped in bamboo leaves). Carp, samurai, irises, oak trees and bamboo all symbolize strength.
Porcelain
Arita
Arita is part of the Saga Ceramic Valley, and has a 400-year history of manufacturing porcelain. In the beginning of the Edo period (1600-1868), a Korean potter named Ri Sampei came to Arita and discovered kaolin (one of the main materials needed to make porcelain) at Mt. Kurokami. Today, the Izumiyama quarry is still located there. Some of the most famous names in Japanese pottery live in Arita, as one might expect. Inoue Manji holds the title of “living national treasure,” and the Kakiemon family has been based in Arita since the production of porcelain began in the early 17th century. The Kakiemon clan is famous for the opaque white porcelain (nigoshide) and their special technique of overglazing. Nowadays, the name Kakiemon has become a title and the bearer is regarded as an “important intangible cultural property.” There are three main styles of porcelain produced in Arita. The fist pottery to be produced in large numbers in Arita became known as “Imari-yaki” or “Ko-imari,” as this was its port of embarkation for parts foreign. This porcelain is characterized by its abundant use of red and gold overglaze design. Kakiemon style porcelain is famous for its milky white background and its delicately tinted red patterns. Finally, “Iro Nabeshima” pottery is a tribute to the family which controlled the area around Arita in feudal times.