Calligraphy Artistic writing of the Japanese language. Japanese calligraphy shares its roots with Chinese calligraphy and many of its principles and techniques

are very similar and recognize the same basic writing styles

Traditional tools to create calligraphy: An inkstick. The older the inkstick is, the better it is. The best inksticks are between 50 and 100 years

old Mulberry paper An inkstone, to grind the inkstick against, mixed with water. A paper weight to hold the paper in place A cloth to place under the paper (often newsprint is used as well) to prevent ink from bleeding

through. A brush A seal. The art of engraving a seal is called "tenkoku." The student is encouraged to engrave his own

seal. The position of the seal or the seals is based on aesthetic views. One is not allowed to put a seal on a sutra's calligraphy.

Sculpture: Most of the Japanese sculptures derived from the idol worship in Buddhism or animistic rites

of Shinto deity. In particular, sculpture among all the arts came to be most firmly centered around Buddhism. Materials traditionally used were metal—especially bronze—and, more commonly, wood, often lacquered, gilded or brightly painted. By the end of the Tokugawa period or Edo (between 1603 and 1868), such traditional sculpture - except for miniaturized works - had largely disappeared because of the fewer number of people visiting Buddhist temples. Despite this, some reconstruction of Buddhist temples ruined in civil war required some sculptures. The new sculptures were mostly conservative carved from wood and gilt or polychrome. They mostly lack artistic power. However, some Buddhist monk sculptors produced unpainted, roughly hewn images of wood.

Buddha, Japanese cypress Wood, height 80cm,sculptured by Enkū (ACE1632–1695), stored in Tokyo National Museum

Agyō, the west guardian king, guardian of the daylight hours of Horyuji a Buddhist temple in Nara Prefecture. The figure was originally sculpted in the 7th century, but it has been extensively restored, so it bears little resemblance to its original design.

Ikebana "Ikebana" is from the Japanese ikeru meaning to "keep alive, arrange flowers, living" and hana,

"flower.” Possible translations include "giving life to flowers" and "arranging flowers." More than simply putting flowers in a container, ikebana is a disciplined art form in which nature and humanity are brought together. Contrary to the idea of floral arrangement as a collection of parti-colored or multicolored arrangement of blooms, ikebana often emphasizes other areas of the plant, such as its stems and leaves, and draws emphasis toward shape, line, form. Though ikebana is a creative expression, it has certain rules governing its form. The artist's intention behind each arrangement is shown through a piece's color combinations, natural shapes, graceful lines, and the usually implied meaning of the arrangement. Another aspect present in ikebana is its employment of minimalism. That is, an arrangement may consist of only a minimal number of blooms interspersed among stalks and leaves.

The spiritual aspect of ikebana is considered very important to its practitioners. Silence is a must during practices of ikebana. It is a time to appreciate things in nature that people often overlook because of their busy lives. One becomes more patient and tolerant of differences, not only in nature, but also in general. Ikebana can inspire one to identify with beauty in all art forms. This is also the time when one feels closeness to nature, which provides relaxation for the mind, body, and soul.

Gardens Garden architecture is as important as building architecture and very much influenced by the

same historical and religious background. The earliest recorded Japanese gardens were the pleasure gardens of the Japanese Emperors

and nobles. They are mentioned in several brief passages of Nihon Shoki, the first chronicle of Japanese history, published in 720 A.D. In the spring of the year 74 AD, the chronicle recorded:

"The Emperor Keikō put a few carp into a pond, and rejoiced to see them morning and evening". The following year, "The Emperor launched a double-hulled boat in the pond of Ijishi at Ihare, and went aboard with his imperial concubine, and they feasted sumptuously together". And in 486, "The Emperor Kenzō went into the garden and feasted at the edge of a winding stream."

Japanese garden styles include karesansui, Japanese rock gardens or zen gardens, which are meditation gardens where white sand replaces water; roji, simple, rustic gardens with teahouses where the Japanese tea ceremony is conducted; kaiyū-shiki-teien, promenade or stroll gardens, where the visitor follows a path around the garden to see carefully composed landscapes; and tsubo-niwa, small courtyard gardens.

Pureland Japanese Garden and Meditation Centre

Japanese popular culture: Anime Anime is a movie or episode of sorts that utilizes an animated cartoon art style to convey a

story. Unlike Western cartoons, anime frequently tends to have more detailed character design. This can be used to allow for a better connection between the viewer and the character. Anime is based most of the time on animated comics or manga, manga is an ancient form of comic writing which dates all the way to the 12th century.

The world of animated films in Japanese popular culture has been a growing trend since the 1920s. Influenced by Walt Disney and his animated characters, Osamu Tezuka (1925–1989), also known as "manga no kamisama" (which means, "God of Comics") would begin his forty year evolution of animation, or anime, that would change the content of Japanese comic books. With the creation of his first animated character Astroboy that was unlike any other animated character; he found the hearts of the Japanese public with a robotic boy who has spiky hair, eyes as big as fists, with rockets on his feet.

Poetry Haiku: a very short form of Japanese poetry typically characterized by three qualities:

The essence of haiku is "cutting" (kiru).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_neededThis is often represented by the juxtaposition of two images or ideas and a kireji ("cutting word") between them, a kind of verbal punctuation mark which signals the moment of separation and colors the manner in which the juxtaposed elements are related.

Traditional haiku consist of 17 on (also known as morae), in three phrases of 5, 7 and 5 on respectively. Any one of the three phrases may end with the kireji. Although haiku are often stated to have 17 syllables, this is inaccurate as syllables and on are not the same thing.

A kigo (seasonal reference), usually drawn from a saijiki, an extensive but defined list of such words relating to the seasons.

In Japanese, haiku are traditionally printed in a single vertical line while haiku in English often appear in three lines to parallel the three phrases of Japanese haiku.

furuike ya kawazu tobikomu mizu no oto

This separates into on as:fu-ru-i-ke ya (5)ka-wa-zu to-bi-ko-mu (7)mi-zu no o-to (5)

Translated:[14]

old pond . . .a frog leaps inwater’s sound

fuji no kaze ya ōgi ni nosete Edo miyage

This separates into "on" as:fu-ji no ka-ze ya (6)o-o-gi ni no-se-te (7)e-do mi-ya-ge (5)

Translated:the wind of Mt. FujiI've brought on my fan!a gift from Edo

Zen Buddhism's emphasis on simplicity and the importance of the natural world generated a distinctive aesthetic, which is expressed by the terms wabi and sabi. These two amorphous concepts are used to express a sense of rusticity, melancholy, loneliness, naturalness, and age, so that a misshapen, worn peasant's jar is considered more beautiful than a pristine, carefully crafted dish. While the latter pleases the senses, the former stimulates the mind and emotions to contemplate the essence of reality. This artistic sensibility has had an enormous impact on Japanese culture up to modern times. The essential element of Zen Buddhism is found in its name, for Zen means "meditation." Zen teaches that enlightenment is achieved through the profound realization that one is already an enlightened being. This awakening can happen gradually or in a flash of insight (as emphasized by the Soto and Rinzai schools, respectively). But in either case, it is the result of one's own efforts.

Zen Buddhism

Zen Buddhist Temple