'The Tale of the Heike' delivers a path for salvation
Some wars spawn myths. Some spawn epics. Some spawn both; others, neither. The 13th-century Mongol invasions of Japan spawned a myth — the "divine wind" that repulsed the invading fleet — but no epic. The 12th-century Genpei War spawned an epic — the "Heike Monogatari" ("The Tale of the Heike") ...
Examining Japan's first foray into global warfare
On the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, we examine the country's role in the conflict.
Japan Times 1918: Tokyo celebrates the Allies' victory in World War I
100 YEARS AGO Thursday, Nov. 21 1918 Tokyo celebrates the Allies' victory in WWI THE JAPAN TIMES Today the citizens of the capital ...
Historical jury still out on Japan's Meiji Restoration
On July 27, 1853, the Tokugawa shogunate was in crisis. Shogun Tokugawa Ieyoshi passed away from what today is believed to be heat exhaustion at Edo Castle in the heart of Edo, present-day Tokyo. Abe Masahiro, the top samurai bureaucrat under the shogun, had an ...
Life lessons from the master of noh Zeami
Stately, stylized noh arose from primitive, rollicking ancestors — sarugaku (monkey music) and dengaku (rural music). Two qualities in particular define it: yūgen (mystery) and monomane (imitation).
First joint survey planned for Daisen Kofun, Japan's largest ancient tomb
The Imperial Household Agency said Monday it will jointly excavate Japan's largest ancient mounded tomb, together with a local government, for the first time. The agency had restricted surveys of Daisen Kofun, which was first built in the fifth century and is officially designated as ...
Japan Times 1943: New substitute for soy sauce discovered
100 YEARS AGO Saturday, Oct. 5 1918 Cabinet ministers to give up bodyguards The open-door policy is now to be realized by all government offices since the Hara Ministry came to existence. Formerly, especially in times of bureaucratic government, the offices of ministers, vice-ministers and other high ...
Memorial for victims of Japanese vessel sunk during World War I unveiled in Wales
A memorial dedicated to the victims of a Japanese merchant ship sunk by the German navy in the final days of World War I was unveiled Thursday in Wales. The churchyard ceremony, which took place exactly 100 years after the sinking, was attended by descendants ...
Tokyo's famed Tsukiji fish market, opened in the wake of Kanto quake, reaches an end
Old-fashioned and full of nostalgia, the renowned Tsukiji fish market is at its busiest before dawn. Hand-written signs by small-fish wholesalers are lit with white lamps in the otherwise dark corridors of the market as workers prepare for the morning's main event: the tuna auction. Hundreds ...
Fate uncertain for World War II air raid shelter at closing Thai zoo
With the Sunday closure of Thailand's oldest zoo, the future of its historical World War II air raid shelter remains unclear. Dusit Zoo closed its doors to the public after running for eight decades. The zoo announced in early August that it would move from ...
Japanese-Canadians weigh a harsh WWII experience — one that surpassed their U.S. cousins
Thirty years after the Canadian government formally apologized over the internment and expulsion of citizens of Japanese ancestry following the outbreak of World War II, those affected still carry painful memories of discrimination and hardship. Over the years, many have questioned their identity and tried ...
Defining the Heisei Era: When Japanese games went global
The Japan Times presents the fifth installment of a monthly 12-part series that looks back at the leading issues of the past three decades.
Monument to chief of WWI POW camp, known for humanitarian treatment of POWs, unveiled in Fukushima
A monument commemorating the Japanese head of a World War I camp who was known for his humanitarian treatment of German prisoners of war was unveiled in his hometown of Aizuwakamatsu, Fukushima Prefecture, on Saturday. During his tenure as head of the Bando Furyo Shuyojo ...
Japanese research team turns to dugout canoe to trace how archipelago's first humans arrived
A Japanese team pursuing a multiyear project to learn how humans came to the Japanese archipelago 30,000 years ago is planning another experiment next summer, this time with a new approach: a dugout canoe. As part of the project, which started in 2016, the team ...
