"Since the inception of the noh drama six centuries ago, actors have resisted the notion that noh rests on natural talent alone. Correct performance, they claim, demands adherence to traditions. Yet what constitutes noh’s traditions and who can claim authority over them have been in dispute throughout its history. This book traces how definitions of noh, both as an art and as a profession, have changed over time. The author seeks to show that the definition of noh as an art is inseparable from its definition as a profession.The aim of this book is to describe how memories of the past become traditions, as well as the role of these traditions in the institutional development of the noh theater from its beginnings in the fourteenth century through the late twentieth century. It focuses on the development of the key traditions that constitute the ""ethos of noh,"" the ideology that empowered certain groups of actors at the expense of others, and how this ethos fostered noh’s professionalization--its growth from a loose occupation into a closed, regulated vocation. The author argues that the traditions that form the ethos of noh, such as those surrounding masks and manuscripts, are the key traits that define it as an art. "

The oldest and most respected martial arts title in the industry, this popular monthly magazine addresses the needs of martial artists of all levels by providing them with information about every style of self-defense in the world - including techniques and strategies. In addition, Black Belt produces and markets over 75 martial arts-oriented books and videos including many about the works of Bruce Lee, the best-known marital arts figure in the world.

Kado is a concept that emphasises the philosophical aspect of ikebana, or traditional Japanese flower arranging culture. Ka means “flowers,” and do means “way.” Thus, kado means “the way of flowers” or “the way through flowers.” This way leads to the truth, and consequently, the way itself is the truth. In kado, it is the practitioner’s goal to find this way through arranging flowers as the symbol of nature. We might therefore call it “dynamic Zen.” Of course, the artistic aspect of flower arranging culture, namely ikebana, should not be denied, and should be valued as a part of traditional flower arranging culture. However, it is just a part and not the whole picture of this culture. This book aims to emphasise the other part, kado, and redress the balance of interpretation of this traditional culture. Our standpoint is to regard this culture as a philosophical or religious way, not as so-called art. The structure of this book is as follows. The first chapter is an overview of the history of kado, the second chapter explains its traditional regulations. Finally, the third chapter, considers the thought which has been the basis of the concept of kado.

Presents a translation of Fushikaden', the fifteenth-century classic text by Zeami, founder of the No theatre. After describing the art of the theatre, this book provides teachings on the aesthetics and spiritual culture of Japan. It is accompanied by an introduction and a translation of one of Zeami's most celebrated No plays, 'Atsumori'. This is a new translation of 'Fushikaden', the fifteenth-century classic text by Zeami, founder of the No theatre. In addition to describing the art of the theatre, it provides valuable teachings on the aesthetics and spiritual'

Exploring the Japanese tradition of hidden (or the secret transmission of) knowledge within a closed and often hereditary group, the author investigates how esoteric practices function, how people make meaning of their practices, and how this form of esotericism survived into the modern age. These questions are examined through the use of esoteric texts from the 15th to 18th centuries and theatrical treatises from the late 19th century onwards.

This is a translation of an important classic on Zen swordfighting. Yagyu's Buddhist spirituality is reflected in his central idea of the life-giving sword' - the notion of controlling an opponent by the spiritual readiness to fight, rather than during the fight. This is a translation of an important classic on Zen swordfighting. Yagyu Munenori was so widely renowned that he was appointed official sword instructor to two Tokugawa shoguns. (The position was always coveted by Miyamoto Musashi, but he never succeeded in gaining the post). Yagyu's'

This invaluable martial arts philosophy handbook presents ancient wisdom for contemporary readers. Secrete Tactics contains brilliant new interpretations of fundamental works of strategy and martial arts tactics by Miyamoto Musashi, Gichin Funakoshi, Yamamoto Tsunetomo, and various martial arts tomes. It distills the important teachings on leadership, character and values found in those books. Readers will unlock the secrets of their art and of themselves. These and a dozen other essays on strategy, combat tactics, psychology, leadership, good character, and the exercise of power, make Secret Tactics an indispensable resource for students of Asian culture, martial artists, and corporate executives.

Using theoretical concepts of self, perspective, and voice as an interpretive guide, and based on the Place of Negotiation theory, this volume explores the phenomenon of linguistic creativity in Japanese discourse, i.e., the use of language in specific ways for foregrounding personalized expressive meanings. Personalized expressive meanings include psychological, emotive, interpersonal, and rhetorical aspects of communication, encompassing broad meanings such as feelings of intimacy or distance, emotion, empathy, humor, playfulness, persona, sense of self, identity, rhetorical effects, and so on. Nine analysis chapters explore the meanings, functions, and effects observable in the indices of linguistic creativity, focusing on discourse creativity (style mixture, borrowing others' styles, genre mixture), rhetorical creativity (puns, metaphors, metaphors in multimodal discourse), and grammatical creativity (negatives, demonstratives, first-person references). Based on the analysis of verbal and visual data drawn from multiple genres of contemporary cultural discourse, this work reveals that by creatively expressing in language we share our worlds from multiple perspectives, we speak in self's and others' many voices, and we endlessly create personalized expressive meanings as testimony to our own sense of being.

In Meeting of Minds, eleven prominent scholars explore intellectual and religious interactions among diverse traditions of the East Asian world. The authors consider central issues including concepts of religious authority, perceptions of the relation between knowledge and action, the sense of "the sacred" within the realm of ordinary human existence, and the concern with historical experience and practicality as criteria for evaluating ideas and beliefs.