View From the 68th Floor:

So now that my favorite month has ended, I thought I would reflect on the last day of the month of November. This was also the last day for the special cuisine offered for lunch today; the most expensive lunch I ever paid for.

This afternoon atop the Royal Park Hotel, on the 68th floor, I attended a special Autumn luncheon at the Shiki-Tei restaurant, which by the way is world renowned for its exquisite meals, especially seasonal ones. This day, the last day of the month I spared no expense for this gorgeous fair with my lovely Jukujo. I can’t believe she still wipes my mouth and feeds me in public, especially in front of the leering eyes of ripe and aged women.

The theme was Autumn and the fall fair consisted of about 6 or 7 seven different dishes, all from Kanagawa, and all of them with some Autumnal flare added to them. I was in heaven. These are just a few of the pictures of what we ate today.

This is the view from where we sat.

This first dish was this nice yellow tail.

One neat thing was that the chopsticks were both wet. The server told us that it was customary to wet the chopsticks in order to help bring out the flavor and aroma of the cuisine. The chopsticks were made of cedar or white birch and were not your usual run-of-the-mill type.

I ordered two serves of this sake called Ginkara Ginjo from Koyama Brewery. This sake was at the top of their list of recommended sake to drink. We enjoyed it thoroughly and it went very well with our cuisine.

Soup

Autumn leaf garnish

Shrimp tempura, spinach topped with fresh crab, baked chestnuts.

The top right is squid guts/innards marinated in some kind of fruit sauce. The sake really help bring out more unique flavors here. I almost never eat this stuff, today was an exception. It was actually very very good. The chestnut and tofu coated in yellow fish eggs was also very delicious.

Boiled radish with sweet yellow miso draped over it with a marron on top.

Steamed rice with mushrooms and chestnuts, red miso soup and pickled vegetables.

This dish resembles the chrysanthemum of the Emperor of Japan. The dessert was finely cut persimmon fruit next to pear jello.

We finished up with a nice warm bowl of matcha, or traditional thick green tea. It was a real treat.

Here in Japan not only can you thoroughly enjoy the aesthetic appeal of autumn on a visual level, but also on a culinary level as well. Japan is the land of the Goddesses, and then there’s me. Only me!

Autumn, I bid thee farewell.

Japan Country

( B/W film, 125, 400, red filter, Olympus IZ-20)
This shot of an old wooden storage shack was taken somewhere along the West Coast of Japan, the Pacific Ocean side.

From where this wooden shack stands, tucked away in a grassy meadow, there are numerous small residences spread far apart from each other, many of which have only one occupant; perhaps an elderly person or two. They all own huge plots of land according to Japanese standards.

Even in this slow paced environment people still wake up at the crack of dawn to toil away in the fields. Most people out here get out of bed at 4:30a.m. sharp everyday. They eat a nice Japanese style breakfast, read a newspaper then head out to the garden and work until lunch. After lunch they head back out until dinner and then they call it a day at around 10p.m.


I recall one day while I was relaxing in an onsen in Nagano during this time of year, Autumn. Two older Japanese gentlemen entered in and greeted me. One of them asked me what I had thought about the place. I said that I was in love with it, the nature and the natural raw rugged beauty of the Nagano Alps.


 A burst of laughter came out of both of them over my ridiculous comment. They told me that I should come and live with them for six months during winter, that way I could shovel snow for them at 4:30a.m. every single day until early spring. I guess I must’ve been looking at things through rose colored glasses….



It’s amazing how Tokyoites and working holiday travelers have the same opinions about foreign countries and city life.    Most kids get bored living in the country, so they move to the big city and the only thing that has changed is their attitude and the way they dress everyday.  They work just as hard, make more money but are more stressed out and less happy, and most of all, less sexual and more ignorant of the sublime beauty of life at home, even with its ups and downs and 4:30am wake up calls.


The working holiday traveler( Japanese female) has more opportunities abroad than here at home. She has a lot of reasons for leaving Japan, one reason being is that there are few men left in her native homeland. Most of the Japanese men here have all evolved into herbivore types ( new term to mean fag, queer, or homo – let nobody tell you any different term for this).  Many lack any sense of moral responsibility for the country, and have no sense of patriotism, nor accountability for the future of the nation. It’s not hard to understand why a Japanese woman would be desperate for a real man in another country – they’re just thirsting for testosterone!



Unfortunately, most Japanese women think that somehow by learning and mastering English their lives will improve drastically. This most often is not true, and is what also fuels their drive to learn more English. Some of the most unhappy and confused Japanese men(?) and women are the ones who have acquired near fluency in Western languages. They spend years trying to make sense out of being Japanese and Western all the time. Common sense should tell them that it’s impossible to truly merge both mind sets into one whole.



The Iron Laws of history repeat itself time and time again.   Eastern and Western thought cannot merge. They can agree on a set of terms, but never be merged completely into one whole consciousness. Stubbornness prevails more often than not in Japan I guess.

(“The house is burning.   Girl says, “ I don’t believe you.” )


In the end, you work hard your whole life no matter where you choose to live. The city life destroys the soul, the rigors of country life destroys the imagination.  I have succeeded in merging both my soul and imagination into one whole beauty, one whole concept.  These two elements merged will serve you better.   My whole heart and mind is in Japan, not split between two countries and two different sets of ideologies.

Micro-Urban Areas

Yokohama is the capital city of Kanagawa with a population of about 3.6 million, which makes it the largest incorporated city in Japan.

 

Within Yokohama there are 18 wards, or micro-urbanized areas that have their own local governments.  I have lived in three of these wards; Naka-Ku, Isogo-Ku, and Minami-Ku.  Of the three wards that I like the most Naka-Ku would be regarded as the best.  If you live in Naka-Ku, no matter where in this ward, you should be no more than a 15 or 20 minute walk to Chinatown in Motomachi , Chukagai.

 

I clearly recall nice pleasant afternoon strolls when I would walk out of my old apartment, head down the inclined slope, right down into Chinatown.  From door to door it would take me no less than 15 minutes and I would literally be standing in the middle of ChiTown.  Eat a quick power lunch ( buffet ) and then walk home and sleep it off. 

 

Isogo-ku (“ku” means ward), was also a very nice area for me.  Between Negishi Station and Isogo Station you have buses and trains that run frequently through out the day.  I especially enjoyed the conveniences of living near a Fuji Supermarket, a post office and Yamada Denki( electronics store), all stay open late at night.  I think Isogo has a lot more to offer also in terms of recreational facilities than Naka-ku.  There’s a public gym – no I refuse go! And a bunch of parks and things like that.

 

Another neat thing about Isogo is its government office building.  It’s very large, clean, and well organized all the way from the parking lot to the library floor and front desk.  Easy access as well.  Just the other day while on my way to the Jukujo Club in Konondai, I came across an old girlfriend while I was standing over by the bus stop at Isogo Station.    I knew it was her, but kept my face looking down at my iphone ignoring her.  I try not to make an already unpleasant situation worse.  The smoking and the tattoo killed all interest I had in her, plus she doesn’t drink nihonshu and she’s into nigga peoples music too much.  If she were more interested in black peoples music then no problem.  

 

(She was another “bus stop honey” I met a few months ago, but didn’t have the gumption to go all the way with her.   The tattoo she had was too hard on my eyes.  If she had a tattoo of the Hinomaru then no problem).

 

And there’s Minam-Ku, which is literally like stepping into the twilight zone.  The people in this area are virtually untouched by the modern face paced environment that you get from the city centers of Yokohama.  It’s almost as if people here care nothing about  anything.   Most of the houses and apartments here are very old and dilapidated.  The people smile less and greet less frequently.  Here, a person is very comfortable with living in an old beat up shack – a very clean and tidy beat up shack.  Minami-Ku is like stepping back into the early eighties starting with Inageya, a very old supermarket chain.

(400 B/W Film)

 

(film B/W)

Somebody lives in this shack!  Where the canoe is located is the site where people dumb their trash on trash day.

There’s a camera attached to this machine.  I love having access to this vending machine and at any time.  You show your I.D. card then look into the camera, place your money and out comes your beer.

Someone lives here.  I would love to go inside.

This house has a little more appeal.  I like how it’s concealed from the outside with bushes and trees.

So while Minami-ku has very old structures it still maintains certain conveniences that make life a little more easier, especially for the elderly. 

Minami-ku is a geriatrics community.  So many elderly live here and everybody notices me.  It’s actually quite scary, yet pleasant because local merchants here have to keep their prices cheap in order to  stay competitive with the two 100 yen Lawson’s that are  500 meters apart from each other.  The fussy obaasan makes certain food prices remain cheap and fresh.

Nipples in the Park

I shot this with a film camera, X-Pan B/W with a slight warm tone. 

 

Where I’m living now there’s an abundance of ripe middle aged Japanese mothers, my favorite, pushing their children around in strollers.  It’s nice sometimes to just go and sit down on my favorite bench which is situated right under a white birch.  Its leaves are too yellow and heavy for her delicate branches, so one falls on my head and then  a gentle breeze comes along and removes the leaf and down it falls to my lap and then down to the ground and finally resting near my foot.  I look up….

And two babies are being pushed along by a day care worker.   This is one of the cutest things I have seen in a long time. 

 

One of the nicest features about Japan is how much time and energy is invested in child development.  Children are all raised in a very nurturing and safe environment from day one.  They wear uniforms and  are taught do things in a group at a very early age.   Their whole world is exposed to beauty and love, it seems.

 

I remember at this age I was being drug out of bed at 5 a.m. on a bitter ice cold Detroit morning and shoved into a cold, rancid, and dilapidated school building  which doubled as a church on Sunday.   The teachers were all big and ugly to me and nobody smiled.  They just looked down at me like a drill sergeant – eyes bulging from their heads.  There were no murals on the walls, no flowers, just these big and cold wooden desks and teachers who were shouting at the top of their lungs who were all unkempt in every way imaginable.  

 

I do remember seeing a portrait of a pasty faced white Jesus on the wall.  Ignorant negro teachers are the worst, especially negro women who love to enforce and reinforce their white worship of the white male penis by instilling a pasty faced white Jesus on the wall of every church and every school.   Why did I have to see that shit in the morning!?  Why couldn’t there have been a picture of a beautiful Japanese Jukujo as my savior on the wall??  I do recall seeing an Asian teacher in my primary school days – always very beautiful. 

 

When it came time for playing or doing group activities I could never quite get into the groove of things.  Sharing was never taught, we had to fight over the toys and I was never good at fighting over toys.  I couldn’t function well with other kids in the group so I sat and played by myself. 

 

Detroit parks all had run down jungle gyms that were full of rust.  I remember getting my hand caught in between the chains on the swings because the links were too big for my small hands.   Oh…I finally remember the name of my kindergarten.  It was called Rainbow Elementary school.   Believe me, there were no rainbows, just thunderstorms and gale winds.

 

Sometimes I can’t blame the younger Japanese generation of today for how they’ve become – spoiled!   And can also see how their own sense of reality can at times be distorted, and even unclear.  Many just want to break away and leave Japan.  They want to be exposed to some element of danger and uncertainty in their boring lives.  They almost yearn to be exposed to some element of darkness.  They want to break out of the mold that society has forced upon them.  

 

I remember one lady telling me that Japan was a dirty country, and that the people are all cold and mean.  Of course, she may be absolutely correct from her own small and myopic mind.   Japan is all she sees everyday, but let her go to a run down major American city for a year and see what the real world is like and I’m almost certain she will be running back to Japan.

“Yoemon” Kawamura Brewery

It’s pronounced like this ( Yo-E-mon), and it’s from Iwate prefecture. I did a piece on this prefecture and another sake here


The brewery, like most sake breweries, has been around for centuries. The unique feature about this sake is the rice.    It’s called “Awa Yamadanishi” from Tokushima prefecture, which is located on the island of Shikoku. The capital of this island is called Tokushima, home of the famous festival called Awa-Odori.



For those of you not familiar with sake rice, Yamadanishiki rice is one of the highest grade rice grains you can use for brewing sake. Yamadanishiki rice is grown in many parts of Japan. The milling rate for the sake I am drinking now, Yoemon, is at 70%, which makes it a Junmai.  Table rice, the stuff you eat at home, is milled away at 10%, so minus all the vitamins and fiber, which are actually quite bad for a sake.



Iwate Prefecture is located way up in the northern part of Japan, on the main island of Honshu where the winter’s are extremely cold, and is where this sake was finally made. Colder climates tend to help when producing sake with lighter flavor characteristics.   Another neat thing about this sake is that it’s an unfiltered type, or not charcoal filtered at the end of the brewing process ( muroka).  It’s a nama or draft style sake which means the flavor profiles will be well defined and a bit strong.   For those who like sake that has a lot of character and taste then this one could be a good choice, or at least worth a taste.



The classification is called a Junmai, so the full name should read “ Junmai Muroka Nama.” The SMV is plus 5.5 and the acid is 1.6. The alc. is 17%.


Two people will be drinking this sake: Me and my special mom, if you know what I mean.
Me: Faint smell of some distant and lovely flower. I   can catch faint notes of grapefruit.  The taste is a bit gassy.  Muroka type sake will sometimes produce bubbles since it’s usually taken straight from the tank and not transferred. This is not a production flaw, but by design.   A beautiful design I might add.   In time the bubbles/carbon will subside.   The consistency is similar to soda water at first, but then the flavors come bursting through it and giving it a fruity soft texture. It’s a bit dry, which I like and has a clean after-taste.


Special Mom:
She) rice smell and the taste is like yeast with a bit of sourness at the beginning, like a bit of fermented rice. She also said that it had a deeper and more mature flavor than a lot of sake she’s drank this year.
Iwate born Jukujo named Saya.

The silver locket around her neck and black sweater do it for me.   A true woman of the north.

Followed by Chirashi Zushi, a type of seafood on vinegar rice. This was a perfect combination with this sake. I made everything from scratch and it only took me five minutes to whip it up. The key is to make the rice very hot first and then place the fish.

This is the Soul of Japan.

Mishima!

Mishima Yukio

His speaks in English

I have a great respect for Mishima. I have a great respect for any man who dies for what he believes in. November 25th 1970 marks the day Mishima did what no other Japanese man was capable of doing then and now, and that is to die for something pure and righteous – a conviction. Not like today’s Japanese men who would rather jump in front of speeding trains and inconvenience the commute of thousands of commuters and students. Or inhale poisonous gas fumes or go on a killing spree injuring innocent passersby because nobody didn’t love him.

There used to be a principle, or a way in which a man could take his own life with dignity here in Japan. Japanese men of today have no such dignity and honor, yet they laugh at Mishima as if he lived in a fantasy world.

In my country we have our heroes, like Nat Turner and Malcolm X, ,so I’m no stranger when it comes to hearing stories of valor and honor.

Mishima embodied the whole duty of Japanese men and the nation on this day. A sense of honor; the martial spirit were all exemplified by the incision he made in his belly for all the world to see. This is no laughing matter. He made his point very clear on this day and let no fool besmirch it.

In an earlier essay, here, I wrote briefly about the man in discussion highlights some specific key ideas about this man. Another piece I wrote here

My Neighborhood

I have a love hate relationship with Yokohama. For one, there isn’t much Soul here. You know, the old Japan feeling where neighbor greets neighbor….Here in Yokohama you’ll be lucky to get a greeting in the morning. People here tend to be a little cold and indifferent, unlike the other prefectures I’ve been to where most people are very warm, tolerant and hospitable. Yokohama has no identity and not very many Japanese people here have a sense of prefectural pride, not even Kanagawa pride for that matter.

I also love Yokohama, too. I love its close proximity to other cities. Its vast mass transit network. It’s overall safety and convenience. The city also has a fairly diverse foreign population. The government also supports a large array of programs for the foreign community.

So, in this blog post I decided to take some time out from my travels and appreciate my OWN city, where I live. Even with this love hate relationship I have with it. Why I like this city is exactly the reason why I don’t like it. Here in Yokohama nobody cares about what I’m doing, as long as I’m obeying the law or not infringing on someone else’s rights, most people could care less about what I’m doing, so it seems.

Nobody strikes up an off the wall conversation with me, I like this. However, I tend to try to strike up a conversation with a random Jukujo from time to time. I like to speak to a certain group of people only, but don’t like being talked to, so while though I love the relative non-existence I have in the general public’s eye, I also love to strike up a conversation with random persons. Love to speak, hate being spoken to, in other words.

Today, on my way to the local shrine in my area, I was pulled over by the police. The officer was wondering why I was walking around snapping up photos at this time of day – early afternoon. Especially when most men are at work this time of day and not walking around going “gaga-gogo” at old houses. I had explained that this was a hobby of mine and that I was on my way to the shrine up the street to shoot some autumn foliage. The officer’s demeanor was very pleasant. He didn’t come off brash and insensitive. He asked for some I.D., so I gave him my driver’s license. I never surrender my gaijin card, not even when requested. My license sufficed.

At any rate, I guess he had received a tip from some anonymous caller about a foreigner walking down the street with a big camera who was snapping up photos of people and property. He responded by stopping me and asking me to see my pics. I showed him and he told me to be careful about taking pictures of people. I complied and he kindly bid me farewell. I felt a little awkward about what had transpired. I mean, I have walked those same streets late at night in the same neighborhood almost a dozen times and have never been stopped, not even once. Dozens of patrol cars have passed by me on their way to somewhere and have never taken notice of me, until today, at lunch time. Yokohama can be one of the most backwards cities in all of Japan. The Kanagawa Police will pull people over and cite them for some of the most trivial and inane things. Like they don’t have bigger fish to fry then to stop some guy who’s walking around in the middle of the afternoon with a camera. Before he left I had asked him for his picture! He kindly declined my request. I continued my walk.

I have a thing for old houses.

It’s amazing how long these houses have lasted over the years. And people can live in them and maintain them without caring much about how they look on the outside. Goes to show you can make anywhere your home, even when exterior beauty has very little importance to you.

It’s nice having a 24 hrs. Yoshinoya and a convenience store less than a 50 second walk from my front door! And then there’s the Negishi River and the boats that line it.

Sometimes I wonder how spoiled I really am. I can pay for anything at the local convenience store(…e.g. all utilities, tickets, parcels, and much much more), and all of these services are available 24-7, even on national holidays.

If I get the munchies at 2a.m. I can run over to Yoshinoya and grab a nice steaming hot beef bowl and enjoy it in a very nice, clean and quiet atmosphere. In the States you have to worry about your safety when eating at establishments like this late at night. Here in Japan there is never any public disturbances, not even any loiterers around to cast suspicions on. Just come, eat, and leave.

The first picture is the first floor and the second picture is their veranda with some kind of rigging put in place to support a make-shift satellite dish. I love how the old struggles to infuse itself with the new. This set up looks horribly out of place and totally unnatural and imposing on the house.

This picture wasn’t imposing at all. In fact, it was nice to see mother and daughter on their way home from shopping. I continued my walk the opposite direction.

And then, I saw this thing. They just don’t make them any smaller than this motor bike. I would love to own one of these just for the sake of having one. I think it’s like a 50cc or less. Way too small for me. The price tag for a bike this size is about 200,000 yen, or about $2,500.00 U.S.

Finally arriving at my destination, the local shrine.

Autumn is steadily catching hold here in Yokohama. It should be another week and all of these leaves will be fully yellowed.

I often enjoy the timeless beauty of a shrine. No matter when you go it’s always very beautiful.

The writing on the stone says “ May Peace Prevail.”

It was nice seeing a local make his way down here.

Japanese people who still retain their traditional beliefs in their own gods tend to be more at peace and natural with themselves and with others, whereas those that shun their own gods in turn for Western gods tend to be Crazy and out of their wits.

The Koma Ainu, or shrine dogs( half lion half dog) serve to protect the shrine from evil spirits. You can find them in varying sizes and shapes all over Japan.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I can’t quite make the face out on this one. Don’t know whether it’s faceless by design or severe weathering.

Can’t believe I ate one of these. In France there’s a delicacy called squab, or young unfledged pigeon. I rather enjoyed it. Yet, to stand over this one and take its picture makes me appreciate it all the more.

This is a black and white of the high relief at the top of the shrine, which has a lot of history in itself; family crest and design style.

My favorite kind of eye candy in the black.

All-In-all, except for the pull over by the police, which wasn’t really anything, I had a nice afternoon stroll through my neighborhood.

Loving It

The smell of lemon grass and jasmine; sitting on the porch in his favorite chair and strumming along on his guitar some ancient tune; man’s best friend near his feet.  Looking from his porch he can see the vast expanse of green rolling hills and hamlets of Kentucky.   Wife’s in the kitchen  frying up something with a familiar smell; on his third can of ice cold beer.  He is buzzing. 

 

The Mexican guy somewhere in L.A. just smoked a huge joint.  His eyes are glazed over and he’s suddenly hungry.  His mother just cooked up some tostadas.  He eats until his hearts content.  Goes back to smokin’  then breaks out a bottle of Tequila and calls his homeys over to talk shit.

 

The black guy in the ghetto has a day off and it’s his payday.  He heads over to the store, buys a 40 ounce bottle of malt liquor beer.   He chugs it down back at his crib(house).  He can’t decide whether to play the Delfonics or NWA, so he plays both and gets lost in the nostalgia of old high school memories and glory days.  He can hardly wait until dinner.  Mom’s cooking up some southern fried chicken.

 

The white guy in Cincinnati, Ohio decides to pick up a phone and call his old college buddy’s over for dinner.  He fries up some oysters in a light unfermented Italian butter with a splashing of wine; they sit on a balcony and enjoy their oysters over a bottle of Chilean wine.  The weather is gorgeous and the temperature of the weather is perfect. 

 

In Japan, in the middle of winter, in some distant valley surrounded by huge pristine pine trees and rugged mountains there’s a natural hot spring situated next to a rustic hotel with plumes of smoke coming  up from its chimney.   In the water beside me there’s a beautiful Japanese woman.  Her  flowing wet black hair draped across her shoulders. 

 

We are sitting in an onsen together in each others warm embrace,  mother naked and untouched by winter’s ice cold bitter kiss!  Incubated and warmed by mother nature’s warm thermo grip, lost in passion’s luscious kiss.   Sake scented whispers, excitement building, climax reaching.

 

Like the sweet long shy legs of a fine young wine making its way down the inner curve of the wine glass, and analyzing its character.  You smell its bouquet.  You revel in its mystery and its quixotic history of brothers in arms who toasted in the kings honor and  fought honorably in his name.

 

The Kamikaze pilots who honored their living god with one last sip and then climbing into their cockpits and flying off into the blue yonder never to return again – happily. 

The simple pleasures are the most endearing and the most memorable.  Lest we forget we only have one life to live.

Murky Waters of Thought

( Depth of Knowledge Strength of Knowledge and the Pillars of Truth )

Philosophy is the science of wisdom, if you can classify it as such. Actually, the literal meaning of philosophy is love of wisdom, love meaning “philo” wisdom “sophy.” But why I chose philosophy as a precursor for this discussion is because modern day academia regards philosophy as a western convention only!

Eastern philosophy has never been recognized as a true philosophy by Western academics, which could be taken to mean that people in Greater East Asia have either a different type of interpretation of wisdom or a lack thereof …. It is because of this assumption by western academia that I believe the spread of Western fundamentalist thought has done more harm than good in the evolution of thought through-out Asia and Asia minor.

Had the West been more flexible in its interpretation of philosophical dogma and how it related to reality for Asians centuries ago, the way present day Asian thinkers interpret thought today, the Western world would be far more refined in terms of depth & scope and less imposing on others. Had Westerners paid more attention to the likes of Shundai Zatsuwa of Kyuso Muro, a Japanese philosopher who fused the thoughts and ideals of Confucianism into a palatable Japanese aesthetic we could see just a small measure of refinement.

For example: Chinese philosophers --again,most Western academics do not recognize Eastern philosophy as real philosophy-- tended towards humanism rather than spiritualism; rationalism rather than mysticism; and syncretism rather than sectarianism! Western philosophy ,however, ultimately sought to define the ‘ absolute’ and to make sense of our world and how it related to Judeo Christian values rather than practical and ethical ideals.

Around 1897, Western philosophy had appeared in China through translations, and in the next decade many Western philosophical ideals were brought to China by students returning from North America and Europe. Western philosophy was most influential in 20th-century China, that being “pragmatism” and “materialism” which is the anti-thesis of idealism.

One such Western Philosopher that appeared in Chinese print was John Dewey who was a thought reformist whose teachings emphasized the individual, not the government. Remember, the teachings of Confucius was based off of these virtues: kindness, uprightness, decorum, wisdom, and faithfulness which constitute the whole of human duty. Reverence for parents, living and dead and a paternalistic government. He also admonished individuals to observe carefully their duties toward the state whereas western teachings corrupted the State and the family nucleus by putting the individual before government. These were the seeds of Western imperialism which ushered in an era of destruction for the Chinese.

The fact that Western philosophy is so fundamentally ingrained in today’s thinking, even to the point where most people aren’t even aware of its unnoticeable affects of our perceptions is a bit scary. The notion that the self is more important than the society is equally as scary.

One such man is Martin Heidegger, regarded as the most original and influential thinker of the 20th century and imminent philosopher of our time, was a supporter of Hitler and the pro Nazi movement. Can you believe that? He was the definitive genius of our time. Gees, how fundamentally Western can you be? And we esteem this man in the highest regard as an original thinker, a man who supported one of the most evil tyrants of our time, a man who murdered six million Jews and millions more Slavs and Gypsies!

Aristotle, another god of academia, justified slavery, was he even better? Yes, but you get my point. Subsequently, Western philosophical thoughts have been the defining element in how people have been defining the world we live in even today, but does that mean it is the right philosophy of today?

All of Man has been searching for the absolute for centuries, some may call that just what it is, the absolute, others, claim that some strange force working behind the scenes is the cause of our reality. Why are we here? Who are we? What makes us a person? These were questions posed by the father of modern philosophy himself, Descartes. And, though he was bestowed this title many of his ideas have been disproven. The only thing was able to prove was his own existence.

What I hope to clear up in this essay is the enormous gap between those who speak for the world, in terms of what true thought and knowledge is and how that thought is interpreted vs. those that seek the ultimate truth or the greater good for all man through one form of ideology. The Existentialist were, for example, the anti-philosophers and the philosophers were always anti-existentialist who were constantly arguing amongst themselves. For instance, Pascal was anti-Dakar; Kierkegaard was anti-Hegel; Nietzsche was anti-Socrates; Albert Camus was merely a Pagan and was perhaps the most enlightened of them all for he sought neither to unify god nor man, but rather to discard all forms of Judeo Christian thought completely. I’d go even further than that, why don’t we discard all modern forms of Western religion and philosophy all together.

This is the crux of my argument and this is where I feel Camus was on to something – get rid of the middle man. Sure, the West Asians had Allah and Europe had Jesus Christ, but Christianity only gave man spiritual equality whereas Islam gave man universal brotherhood regardless of color or ethnicity. Sounds good, right? Just another crutch for the mind to believe in. I think believing in a set of Principles would serve man better than if he were to merge the absolute into his own existence.

Many great thinkers and philosophers have come out of West Asia and one such great teacher was a man by the name of Mevlani, a Muslim scholar who was a 13th century mystical philosopher, who proved that the earth rotated on its axis in the 14th century through the first construction of a globe. So even the West Asians, though religious, entertain the notion of science and reasoning.

Unfortunately for Europe, though, during this time many of Europe’s greatest thinkers were being persecuted for going against Western philosophical thought and religion and for their beliefs in science which to me sounds a bit odd since Europe is/was regarded as the cradle of modern day civilization by many present day academics when in fact they were more backward thinking than any other civilization in history, but yet they produced some of the finest thinkers in history ??? That doesn’t make any sense whatsoever considering the disparity between the real scientist and the religious zealots who dictated how the world was supposed to be understood. Who am I to argue.

China, before Mao, was a marvelous civilization with advanced technology even more so than the Roman Empire. Even Genghis Khan, ruler of the Mongols, was advanced in so many ways and partly why is because he practices tolerance whereby allowing Chinese engineers ( who he conquered) serve in his armies. These men were responsible for building Khan’s catapults and flame throwers and refining the Mongols attack capabilities. In addition to that, the Mongols had no written language, no libraries, no organized religions, no sciences, no philosophy, but yet they came to rule more land and territory than the Roman Empire! Traditionally Genghis Khan would’ve killed all of his enemies, but he became more civilized.

In the case of the United States, which has been a traditionally Christian nation, slave and master served the same god. When African Americans were getting beaten and lynched they were praying to their masters(slave owners) god for mercy. White slave owners worshipped and served the Judeo Christian god on Sunday and then Monday through Saturday they enslaved and sold human beings like chattel and live stock. No other idiocy existed to that degree in history, not even in Creaser's day! How can a slave and a master serve the same god? How can a slave love his master and his master’s god even to his last breath ?

(“ Maybe god loves some and hates the other”).

Western religion, philosophy, and history mixed together can be a volatile and reckless combination of scholarly aggrandizing that has arguably done more harm than good. Moreover, western countries have been the only civilizations on earth to ever merge all three of these concepts into one things: Western Fundamentalism. I think, though, that this is changing. The world has been waking up to more humanistic ideals , and a lot of what that really means is that nations are becoming more empathetic towards other nations and nationalities. It’s the U.S. unilateral foreign policy that’s exclusionary and terror oriented and illogical bringing instability to the world that we all live in and share with one another, thus a flagrant and ugly display of Western fundamentalism through religious dogma, distortions of history and philosophy – from a western point of view from as far back as antiquity. This West is Right mentality has poisoned the minds of over half the world.

Finally, when thinking about my own convictions I am left with the realization that the only things in life that really matter for me are the Jukujo, onsen, and delicious sake and Japanese cuisine, and Shrines. Very little thought is required and very little soul searching. Too many people invest too much energy in the unknown and the improvable waters of knowledge, which leads me to another point I want to make.

There is clearly a difference between the provable truth and the unprovable truth. What goes up must come down. This scientific principle no matter how smart or dumb you are can never be argued or disproved. However, the unprovable truth where people choose to believe a lie so much to the point where they throw away all forms of logical and rational thought is the all too prevailing trend of today’s societies. A mother could send her son off to go and fight in Afghanistan and Iraq because she firmly believes that if he doesn’t go and fight, the “enemy” will some how attack America in full force and take away our freedom. This is the truth in so much as it is a lie. It’s has never been proven and never will. 911 is a completely separate incident.

The month of November is the month that Mr. Mishima Yukio took his own life for the sake of principle through sacrifice. His own living god was not some fictitious white man in the sky who benevolently looks down on us peoples, and then decides who he loves or chooses more than the other. Mishima’s god was real. And through ritual disembowelment he proved his love and dedication not only to him but to his country as well. He showed his own countrymen that principle and sacrifice and dedication to the martial spirit trumps Western materialism & Ideology. These are the merits of a respectable Japanese man, not like today.

Yamagata Masamune

This week’s nihonshu hails from Yamagata, a prefecture in northern Japan  known for its good sake, an excellent rice grain called Hainuki, and gorgeous onsen, especially during winter.

 

Other things worthy of mention would be  my favorite Top Stops in Yamagata post which gives a little more detail about this part of Japan.  So without further ado I would like to introduce this week’s sake.

 

The brewery is called Mitobe Sake Brewery in Tendou city, an area known for having blisteringly cold winters and excellent soba noodles.  Some of the best tasting  soba come from this part of Japan, a place that prides itself off of using its own homegrown wheat to make the soba.   The same can’t be said from other regions, especially in West Japan where most wheat is imported from Australia.  Tendou is famous for making true Edo style soba using the time honored tradition of hand rolling and making the soba from scratch.

Anyway,  the sake this week is called, as the title says, Yamagata Masamune.  There really isn’t much of a story behind the name, but the taste, wow, I loved it.

The sake meter value reads at plus 2 at 1.6 acidity.  This is a Junmai Ginjo Nama.

 

The flavor characteristics were surprisingly dry and fruity; full range of flavors and aromas here.  Lovely and elegant are the two best words I could come up with, which is something along the lines that other drinkers have said about this sake, too.  The nose is very complex though, can’t quit pick out a nose on this one, but very pleasant though.  The initial taste is very nice, but requires more drinking and smelling.  Overall I am madly in love with this sake because it hides it’s true character at the first sip, and then begins to open later on.  It makes you want to drink it more and it’s very hard to put down.  I tried switching to another sake, but quickly found myself returning back to her.

 

The tail on this sake whips the back of the throat, in other words you feel it at the back of the throat when it goes down. 

 

Immediately, thoughts of Ms. Ishikawa, a native of Yamagata, came to my mind: A Jukujo Class Japanese woman.   Blue looks good on her, plus it matches the bottle.   Her overall modest and down to earth character lend a sense of charm and allure to her that’s unmatched by most of your modern Japanese women of today.  She wears almost no make-up and her smile is healing.  The music I’m listening to right now is called “Obsessed”  by Mariah Carey. Can you tell?

On a scale of one to five I rate this one a full five.  Why?  Because it’s complexity makes it unique and places it in a class all of its own.  Some sake that have distinguishable flavor profiles tend to get old quickly, or loose something the more you drink it….case by case.  

 

Yamagata Masamune is definitely a good sake to recommend, or should at least be tried once.  If you attend any sake tasting event then make sure to note this brewery and try all of their sake.  You won’t be disappointed.