Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Itoman City

　　Itoman City is located in the south of Okinawa Island. It is well-known as the place of fierce fighting between the Allied forces and Japan during the Greater East Asian War. There are no high mountains and no lakes in the city and its undulating ground is very unique. The most typical characteristic of the city is that there are numerous monuments set up across the city.
　　Generally speaking, it's the lowest class of soldiers who have the highest possibility of being killed in combat. Then, could you tell me who was the highest class of soldier in the U.S. ever killed in military combat? He is Lieutenant General Buckner so far, who was killed at the top of a hill in Itoman City. I visited his place of death too. The first picture shows the place where he was shot and killed. I'll also upload the picture of the roadsign for the memorial point. His former monument was built by Itomanees, but now it has been transferred into the U.S. camp.
　　If it were not for the combats here, lots of lives would have been saved. Irrespective of the nationalities, the departed due to the war are here in Itoman City even now commemorated.
　　Okinawa Island is formed on coral reefs and so it has lots of natural caves underground, which were used as bomb shelters during the war. I visited some of those shelters. I'll write about them in the next article.

(Vocabulary)
Lieutenant General 中将
undulating　《[名]の前でのみ》(フォーマル)  波打つ, (波のように) うねっている

On The Way To Okinawa 2

The Bay of Mitsukue:
I'll write about a Japanese historical fact which is not well-known even to Japanese people. You see the Bay of Mitsukue in the picture. Several months before the attack on Pearl Harbor by the Imperial Japanese Navy, a training camp started at this bay. 10 young men were chosen and trained here on how to handle the special purpose submarine to invade Pearl Harbor from the sea. This bay is near the military port, Kure, and away from view at the same time. 9 of 10 were killed in the attack, and now a memorial service is conducted every December 8th, the day of the attack on Pearl Harbour.

Ibusuki City:
My plane flew over Ibusuki City in southern Kyushu, which is famous for its characteristic hot spa and one of the popular destinations of hot spa enthusiasts. One more hour's flight will take me to Okinawa. Here occurred an idea about Kamikaze, special attack corps in the Greater East Asian War. The display in front of me showed that my aircraft's velocity was 800km/h, which was twice as fast as the Zero fighter. That is, the Zero fighters took 2 hours from Kyushu to the battlefield around Okinawa. They soared near here with one-way fuel and an enormous bomb to kill enemies along with themselves. What did they think for TWO hours viewing the scenery which they would never see again.

　

(Vocabulary)
special purpose submarine 特殊潜航艇
away from view 目に付かない

An Acquaintance From Germany

　　When I traveled to Freiburg in Germany and Italy with my second daughter last year as one of the members of the friendship tour organized by Matsuyama City, I met a young guy who worked in the DB, the German railway company, at the reception party held by the Freiburg-Matsuyama Association. He was going to visit Matsuyama in a year at that time and actually came to my hometown on 0ctober 2nd. It appeared that he had begun learning Japanese with a Japanese just after the party.
　　His travel plan was to stay in Matsuyama City all the time for two weeks and make day trips around there. I offered some sightseeing plans to him, like a karst landscape, Spa resorts, a huge active volcano and small islands in the Seto Inland Sea. He chose the islands without a second thought so I took him on a day trip to go around the inland sea utilizing a ferry service and more than ten bridges. On the last night of his stay in Matsuyama I took him to a small restaurant which serves traditional cuisine of Japan, specifically in Kyoto, but it might have been a wrong choice. He was twenty some years old and must prefer meat to vegetables. Kyoto-style traditional cuisine hardly uses meat except fish. Anyway, he looked to have enjoyed his stay. Nothing beat it.

Urlaub in Hokkaido

　　Ich habe Urlaub in Hokkaido gemacht. Ich habe mein Motorrad nach Hokkaido mit dem Flugzeug transportieren lassen. Ich bin zu Osaka Flughafen mit dem Motorrad gefahren und habe dort mein Motorrad abgegeben.
　　Mein Plan war, Hokkaido zu überqueren. Ich bin zum Ende von der Schiretoko Halbinsel, die in Osten Hokkaidos liegt, gereist. Der Eintritt im Ende von Schiretoko Halbinsel ist zum Schutz der Natur und den vielen Braunbären verboten, also habe ich ein Rundfahrtsschiff benutzt. In der Nähe habe Ich Kunaschiri Insel, die durch Russland besetzt wurde, gesehen. Das ist schade.
　　Es gibt viele heiße Quellen und Speisen in Hokkaido und das Motorradfahren in dieser Jahreszeit ist sehr angenehm, aber in diesem Sommer hat es viel geregnet. Das war auch schade.
　　Ich will einige Jahren später wurde eine Motorradreise in Hokkaido planen.

School Festival

　　I live in the same district as my high school. It was founded by the Dominican Order 63 years ago and most students continue to universities. My residence is located on the commuting route of the students and I heard of the school festival from a student who was passing by and I visited my high school today after a long interval.
　　The activities of students reminded me of my high school days. When I happened to walk in the entrance hall, the statue of Thomas Aquinas stood still just like 40 years ago. A funny legend came down in connection with the statue, which is, who rubs its nose before leaving the school will be sure to pass the entrance examination. That's why its nose is blackish.

Ozu City and Amazing Encounter

　　One of my staff members will get married to a guy living in another city next month, so she will quit her job in my office. She is so efficient at the office job that I'm sorry to let her go, but she is naturally happy. We planned a small party for her near her home, in the heart of Ozu City.
　　The district in which my office is located belongs to Ozu City, but I live in Matsuyama City and I am not familiar with Ozu City, so I took a walk around the party location to get to know the city for some time. Several pictures I took in Ozu City will be shown below.
　　Ozu City is a castle town and I wondered how many old streets and houses have remained unchanged since my childhood. I felt as if I had stepped into the times of my childhood. I felt something nostalgic about the atmosphere of the alleys.
　　I happened to find a small cheap information board in front of a shabby parking lot. Summing it up, the board reads about two brothers, who had been born in Ozu City about 200 years ago, along with their achievements. What surprised me was that I had written about the younger one long ago and had admired him in my entry (link). However, I didn't know his name and I knew him only by his achievement. I learned his name and his birthplace for the first time then.

(Vocabulary)
alley (alleyway とも) 路地, 裏通り

http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2010/04/neufbrisach-.html

Lost Village Kounomai 4 鴻之舞探訪４

　　Looking around the lots of remains of the lost village, I recalled Besshi Copper Mine, which had been run by Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. and had contributed to the modern development of Japan along with Kounomai Gold Mine. Both mines were already closed. The fact that the guardian deity of Kounomai was derived from Ehime Prefecture, in which Besshi Copper Mine was located, would imply the connection of the two mines. I found a monument of the shrine. It stood on the roadside in obscurity. It appeared that the fabric of the shrine had fallen down and only the stone stairs remained.
　　However, the present status of both mines are completely different. Besshi Copper Mine was shaped into a mine theme park and now it is one of the main tourist spots in Ehime. I took a walk in the park last year and wrote about it.
　　Several former residents in Kounomai, including our guide, were struggling to preserve their native land as a historic heritage site. Our guide told us stories about his childhood with a faraway eye.
　　The paths around the remains were accessible with the grass tidily mowed. It seemed a considerably hard work for the aged to keep the grass mowed and I asked him about it. He replied that the mine company would do that regularly without any charge. I admired the company's spirit! Anyway it's really regrettable to leave those remains buried deep in the forest.

(Vocabulary)
Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. 住友金属鉱山株式会社
in obscurity  世に知られずに, 世に埋もれて
with［through］（one's）faraway［distant］eyes 遠くを見るような目で

　失われた町の遺物を巡りながら、愛媛県の別子銅山を思い出した。鴻之舞鉱山と同様に近代日本の発展に貢献し、また同じく住友金属鉱山によって経営されていた鉱山である。現在では閉山してしまった点も又同様である。鴻之舞鉱山の守り神として愛媛の大山祇神社が鎮座していたこと、決して無縁ではあるまい。県道沿いに大山祇神社の跡を示す石碑が立っていた。立ち入り禁止であったがこの奧に跡地があるのだろう。神社の建物は朽ちてしまい、石造りの階段が残っているだけだという。

　しかし、現在の様子は全く違っている。別子銅山はその跡地が観光地化され、テーマパークになっている。去年、その跡地を歩き、記事にしたのでリンクさせておく。

　鴻之舞は元の住民による保存活動がなされており、案内をしてくれたスタッフも鴻之舞出身で、小さい頃にはこの町で過ごしたという。遠くを眺めるような、印象的な目で失われた町を案内してくれた。観光客に歩いてもらうために脇道の草刈りは欠かせないが、人力では大変な作業だ。住友金属鉱山が無償で協力してくれて重機により道路を維持しているという。同社の心意気も見上げたものである。このまま埋もれさせてしまうのはなんとも惜しい歴史遺産である。

Lost Village Kounomai 3 鴻之舞探訪３

　　A diorama of Kounomai village, which had existed there before, was displayed in the historic house which used to be utilized as an Ekitei, which I wrote about in the previous but one entry. Seeing it, the village was fairly big and seemed to be prosperous, but their ruins were apparently disappearing. Other old stuff was also on display and a comic magazine caught my eye, in which a character from Kounomai village showed up.
　　After the tour of Ekitei, as we were about to leave for the present Kounomai village, we wanted someone to guide us around the lost village. It didn't hurt to ask for a guide, though I had no reservation. Then, one of the staff members spoke to us, "Shall I show you to the ruins?" He gave us an elaborate tour of the lost village, and it was very fortunate. If we had gone on alone, we wouldn't have been able to find the ruins. They were so deeply buried in the forest. Most buildings were made of wood and those moldered away. Without advance knowledge, we would be astonished to see them just like the discoverer of Machu Picchu.
　　I saw the entrance of the mine pit, a folk house, the ruins of the school and a decent swimming pool, and other things. I'll post pictures of them.

(Vocabulary)
diorama  /dàɪərǽmə, -rmə [C] ジオラマ (歴史・物語の一場面などを表す立体模型)
It doesn't hurt to ask.  聞くだけ聞いてみたら？
molder （徐々に）ぼろぼろになる, 朽ちる, 腐る

　駅逓跡の建物内にはジオラマがあった。それをみると、かなり大きな町だったはずだが、聞けばもう消えかかっているという。当時使っていた様々な日用品や、鴻之舞のことが書かれている日本では有名な漫画も展示してあった。駅逓跡を出て、鴻之舞方面へ向かおうとしたら、職員が案内してくれるという。後で気がついたことだが、ガイドがいなければ町の痕跡をほとんど何も発見できなかっただろう。ガイドを得たのはとても幸運なことであった。

　さて、鴻之舞であるが、道路から見える構造物は少なく、道道を漫然と走っていたのではここに町があったなどとは気がつかない。多くの建物が木造であったため、大部分は朽ちてしまい、石造りの部分だけが残っているのだという。道路脇の森林の中には人々の暮らしていた跡が次々と出現した。予備知識なくここを歩いていたら腰を抜かすだろう。まるでマチュピチュ遺跡を初めて見つけた探検家のように。

　炭鉱坑道入り口、住居跡、学校やプールの跡(最後の写真)まであった。いくつか写真をＵｐする。

Lost Village Kounomai 1 鴻之舞探訪１

　　One day in June the word "Ekitei" caught my eye when I was surfing on Facebook. I saw it several years ago at the Historical Village of Hokkaido, but it was transferred from its original site and rebuilt in the open museum. However, the one which I found on the net was original and I became eager to visit it then. I made a suggestion of visiting it to my friends and they were open to my suggestion.
　　It appeared that there used to have been a fairly prosperous town, called Kounomai, half a century ago in the mountainous region near Monbetsu City. The Ekitei, which I wrote about in the previous entry, was essential for people who had lived there and I knew that several people were struggling to preserve this historic facility.
　　In the early 20th century, several gold deposits were found on the east coast of Hokkaido and a so-called gold rush occurred. The town of Kounomai was formed in that way. The mine had been owned by Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. and a total of 13,000 had lived at its peak in the town.
　　Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. also had a copper mine near my hometown. Additionally, the guardian deity of the town was derived from Ooyamazumi Shrine in my prefecture. It was my surprise. Kounomai and Ehime Prefecture had two connections with each other.

(Vocabulary)
make a suggestion 提案する
open to suggestions  提案を喜んで受け入れる
deposit 鉱床
Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. 住友金属鉱山株式会社




　６月のある日、フェイスブックを眺めていたら駅逓という言葉が目にとまった。以前、札幌のテーマパークで初めて聞いて覚えていた言葉である。テーマパークでは再建された建物やその構造を見ることができたが実物を見たことは無かった。それで写真で見た上藻別駅逓をネットで調べてみたのである。それは紋別市から山の中に入ったところにあった。そして、その駅逓跡の建物を保存しようとする団体が存在することを知り、友人たちと相談してここに立ち寄ってみることにした。保存会の資料を見ると、ここには半世紀前、かなり繁栄した町「鴻之舞」があったという。
　２０世紀初頭に金の鉱床が発見された北海道オホーツク沿岸ではいわゆるゴールドラッシュが起こり、鴻之舞という集落が形成され住友金属鉱山の所有する鉱山町として栄えた。かつては１３０００人が住んでいたが今は廃村となっている。
　住友金属鉱山は愛媛県にも別子銅山を持ち、鴻之舞にある神社は大山祇神社、つまり愛媛県大三島にある有名な神社から分祀されたものだった。驚いた。これら二つの共通点があれば訪れないわけにはいかない。
　写真は上藻別駅逓保存会の皆さん。左のスタッフに駅逓を、中央の方に鴻之舞を案内していただいた。(続く)

Kamimobetsu Ekitei 上藻別駅逓

　　I had heard of "Kamimobetsu Ekitei" from my friend who lives in Monbetsu City a few weeks before this trip. "Kamimobetsu" is the name of a place and I had wrote about "Ekitei" before (link). Ekitei had contributed to the development of the fabric of society in the 19th and early 20th century of Hokkaido by conducting the transportation of burdens and mail, offering accommodations, and serving meals not only for humans but for horses. During my investigation of the Ekitei, I knew of Kounomai Village, in which Kamimobetsu Ekitei was located and which had all but evaporated at present. I wanted to see how the village looked.

駅逓とは、明治から昭和初期まで北海道辺地の交通補助機関として、宿泊、人馬継立、郵便などの業務を行った制度。その運営者は、駅逓取扱人（半官半民）。上藻別駅逓はこの地域に住む人々の生活を守ってきた。制度は昭和２１年に廃止された。紋別に住むフェイスブック繋がりの知人の情報でこの場所を知り訪れた。このあと、ものすごい発見が続く。

 

Folk Dance of Ainu Descendant

　　After a nice dinner, we went out for a walk in the used-to-be-busy street of the Kawayu Onsen Spa. I had been there 17 years ago and the center of the town was swarming with tourists at that time, but today the number of people on the street even in such a high season was a half or a quarter of former times. I was sad to see how the town was. Several Ainu descendants were performing their traditional dance and musical instruments on the makeshift stage. We enjoyed them for a while.
　　Ainu people had once lived in Hokkaido and the northern part of Honshu, the largest island of Japan, and now have been completely absorbed in Japanese people. When two peoples lived closely, one of which had their own letters and the other didn't, the latter would become a part of the former. It's the inevitable rule of history. Several Japanese researchers of linguistics left a series of achievements written in Japanese about the language of Ainu. However, their accurate pronunciation had already evaporated in years. Today, their words are retained only in the names of lots of places, lakes, mountains, rivers and so on in Hokkaido.
　　I had visited an Ainu cuisine restaurant in Tokyo once. They surely used ingredients which I could imagine that Ainu people would have used, but all the cuisine was seasoned by soy sauce, oily dressing materials or flavouring, even mayonnaise, which didn't exist in the world of Ainu. Their culture is rapidly disappearing.

(Vocabulary from comments)
resurrect〈昔のことなど〉 を復活させる;《通例受け身形で》 〈死者〉 をよみがえらせる
He has been trying to resurrect his political career. 彼は政治家としてもう一度花を咲かせようとしている．

　ホテルで夕食後、川湯温泉の中心温泉街を散策。寂れように驚く。１７年前はかなり賑やかだったのに。広場ではアイヌ民族の血を引く人たちが伝統芸能を披露していた。北海道、東北のアイヌは日本人と同化し、樺太や沿海州のアイヌたちはロシアなどに同化した。文字を持たない民族と持つ民族が国境を接した場合、文字を持たない民族が消えるのは歴史の必然。とはいえ、この文化がなくなるのは惜しい。最後の写真は前の日に余市のニッカ蒸留所で買い求めたウィスキーとつまみ。愛媛からはるばるやってきた弟子屈町で旅情に浸る。

Nikka Whisky Yoichi Distillery

　　Yoichi town is a small town in the west of Otaru City, but it's famous for being the hometown of Mr. Mamoru Mouri, the first Japan-native astronaut, and also for the home of Nikka Whisky Co., Ltd. The company opens part of its distillery up to the public. I really wanted to see inside of the distillery.
　　The founder, Mr. Taketsuru, spent years in Scotland to learn how to make whisky. After mastering the art of producing distilled alcoholic beverages, he came back to Japan and started his career at the predecessor of Suntory Co., Ltd. Several years later, he established his own company in Yoichi at 40 years old, whose climate was just like that of Scotland and it was the reason why he had chosen Yoichi as the home of his factory.
　　I learned the procedure of making whisky walking along the tour route in the exhibition hall. I was able to try all kinds of their products, but I had to ride my motorcycle later. It was very regrettable not to be able to taste the fresh whiskies and/or brandies straight from the distillery.
　　By the way, another motorcycle freak would join us today in Obihiro City. We had to leave for the designated hotel right now. There was historic Otaru City near there, but we had just passed through the city.

(Vocabulary)
art 《常に単数形で》技術, 熟練
the art of (doing) sth ＜…＞（すること）の技術
Television is ruining the art of conversation. テレビのせいで会話が乱れている．
be quite an art  高度な技術を必要とする
Writing advertisements is quite an art. 広告を書くのは高度な技術を要する．
predecessor prédəsèsə(r) || prí-/  前任者; 前身, 前作, 旧型 [反意]  successor
sth's predecessor ＜…＞の旧型
The new model has a more powerful engine than its predecessor. 新型モデルには旧型より強力なエンジンが搭載されている．

http://www.nikka.com/eng/distilleries/

　余市にあるニッカウヰスキー余市蒸留酒製造所へ寄った。以前から一度は来て見たかった場所だ。創業者の竹鶴氏はスコットランドに学び、ここで蒸留酒造りを始めた。余市の気候がスコットランドに似ていたため、ここで創業したという。製造工程の説明、蒸留所の歴史、創始者にまつわる歴史、、、多くの知識を得た。試飲コーナーが充実していたが、運転があるため飲めず残念だった。

Counterfeit Virtue of Obama

　　These hot days have reminded me of August 15th, the memorial day of the declaration of the surrender, which is just around the corner. Every August, Yasukuni Shrine, which is the national memorial of Japan, becomes one of the major topics in the media. NHK, which is the leader of anti-Japanese movement if you ask me, makes war related programs ad nauseam and reiterates its claims that the Japanese committed so many crimes during the Second World War.
　　Japan's Prime Minister Abe visited the shrine at the end of the last year and Obama's response to it surprised me. He expressed "disappointment" at the visit. There was a dash of controversy in Japan about how to translate "disappointment" into Japanese, that is, was Obama serious or was he forced to say so by someone? Anyway, it's clear that he didn't hold a good opinion of the visit. Those who had fought the United Nations in the war are also honored in the shrine, which would be the major reason of his disappointment.
　　By the way, do you know anything about Washington National Cathedral, which honors Robert Edward Lee and Stonewall Jackson who fought for the U.S. to continue slavery and were named war criminals after the war? Naturally, the facility is also for people who had died for the sake of the country. I think this mourning place is just the counterpart of Japan's Yasukuni Shrine!
　　Obama's standard of value is obviously conflicting between his country and Japan. The Cathedral towering over the heart of the city has been the place for mourning and prayer. State funerals of lots of the U.S. Presidents and memorial events for historic figures have been held and numerous U.S. citizens have visited the Cathedral. People haven't minded that two above-mentioned generals were honored in the same place. This fact didn't come to an issue so often, but when the memorial ceremony of late Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was held there, the fact was a magnet for controversy.
　　A columnist of the Washington Post, John Kerry, threw doubt on the fact: Why are Lee and Johnson, who fought to block racial equality, honored at this place where Mr. Mandela, who lived for non-violent struggle for racial equality, is honored? Professor Evie Terrono at Randolph-Macon College explained that it was inconsistent to honor people who had tried to destroy the capital in the Cathedral which lies in the capital.
　　The spokesman of the Cathedral said that history has both aspects of good and bad. The spirit of the dead should never be blamed with respect to what they had done in life. That's apparently why Obama and his colleagues visit the Cathedral, but he and his Administration have bruited misleading impressions about Yasukuni Shrine.
　　The former Bush Administration admitted to then prime minister Koizumi that he formally visited the shrine. It additionally advised him not to cave in to China's pressure. What Obama is doing now is quite contrary to the Bush era.
　　Kevin M Doak, who works at Georgetown University, insists that Japan's prime minister should visit Yasukuni Shrine often and the attitude of Obama Administration toward the shrine is clearly hypocritical, judging from their attitude to the Cathedral. I really think so.

(Vocabulary)
counterfeit virtue 偽善
Washington National Cathedral ワシントン国立大聖堂
bruit sth about (フォーマル) ＜…＞を言い触らす, 広める
mislead〈人〉に誤解を与える, を惑わせる
misleading 誤解を招きかねない
a misleading impression 誤解を招きかねない印象

Malaysian Airlines Jet Crashes in Ukraine

　　The crash of MH17, Malaysian Airline Boeing 777, was really shocking and now it is said to be shot down by a surface-to-air missile. I held a short silence to the passengers and crew here in my rural hospital. The conflict in Ukraine has cost hundreds of lives who have nothing to do with it.
　　I sometimes wonder what was wrong with Ukraine. It has been known as 'the breadbasket of the USSR' and also a strategically important region. I recalled that Ukraine had nuclear weapons when it was a member of the USSR. Didn't Putin fear the Ukrainian nuclear weapons on depriving it of Crimea? This inquiry has long been in my mind and recently was solved.
　　After the collapse of the USSR, Ukraine had a deal with three countries; the U.S., Russia, and Britain in 1994. In return for abandoning its nuclear weapons, Ukraine could have been supported, when it was invaded. Ukraine's President Leonid Kuchma firmly shook hands with Clinton, Yeltsin, and Major in Bucharest. Naturally, this pact is still valid at the present.
　　However, no country dispatched forces for the rescue of Ukraine. Even the UN couldn't take any measures due to the veto of Russia. East Timor, Kosovo, South Ossetia, South Sudan, Crimea,,,. International laws are flexibly and self-righteously in other words utilized by western superpowers every time. I'd like to show doubt to the UN's significance of existence.

(Vocabulary)
breadbasket 穀倉地帯

Comment from Shiroi_Tora:

I agree with you, partially.  The UN has never had significance.  If we are to remain sovereign nations in control of our future...we must ensure it never does.  Promises are only for the mollification of fools.  What matters is what the balance is for potential gain, and for whom, at the moment of conflict.  It is not right...it is historical fact.  It is also not merely the Western World.  If times are not so bad, and if the cost is not so high, promises are kept to keep up the illusion of solidarity in hopes of future gains.  In times of great high prices to be paid...alliances polarize in line with projected needs.  Alliances dissolve as needs switch polarity.

Promises are what kept Russia out of Germany's way while it trounced, what is now, Eastern Europe...until Germany thought it could turn on Russia.  Promises are what kept England from responding to Hitler when he took Czechoslovakia and then Poland.  Promises are what kept the Jewish people mollified, even as they were being marked for death.  Promises are the tools of con men.  Their marks are the fools who put credence in promises.

The greatest indicator of a person's future actions is his past actions and inactions.  Even these are not sure.  Everyone has a price for which he will promise something.  Everyone has a price he is unwilling to pay to keep his promise.  This is human nature.  How can it be different for nations?

I do not condone this...however, it is reality.  It has always been reality, in all nations, Western or Eastern.  Promises are only kept when the price is not too high.  There have been exceptions to this if you don't look too closely.  However, there is always a more pressing need to keep an alliance in the face of seeming altruism...a larger picture of the future which takes precedence.  Just as former enemies become allies easily, especially in the face of a common enemy, they can just as easily become enemies again if their needs become polarized.

It is basic tribalism.  The only bond which seems to hold is if separate tribes become one in thought...in heart and mind.  When this happens, they become, essentially, one tribe.  When they intermingle freely, trade freely, become interdependent...reliant upon one another, not just militarily, but socially...when they think of each other as part of the same tribe or family...that is when they operate as one...and so, when promises are not needed.  It is when actions prior to any need are foreseen and prepared for.  Especially when their economies are interlinked, that is more of a guarantee than any promise.  When one falls, the other is also endangered.  Just out of survival, the other nation must respond.  This is an implied promise in action...and the only one which can stand against future needs polarizing since they will have the same needs at the same time.  That is why in business, there are escrow accounts.  That is a guarantee against default.  People shouldn't have to rely on trust.  Smart people don't depend on it.  They find a way to guarantee it.

-----------------
Prices for keeping promises, toribalism in the face of a common enemy, I understood.  Smart people....  Exactly! I picked several words up for my vocabulary, as usual. thanks a lot!


(Vocabulary from comments)
mollify〈人〉をなだめる, 慰める = placate = pacify
mollification  なだめる［慰める］こと
solidarity  団結, 結束, 連帯
polarity [C,U](フォーマル) (意見・思想などの) 正反対, 両極端
polarized [他] …を両極に分ける, 二極化させる; [自] 正反対に分かれる, 二極化する
polarization 二極化, 二分化
trounce〈競争相手・相手チームなど〉に大勝する, を大差で破る
credence 信用, 信頼
lend/add credence to sth ＜話・理論など＞に信用［信頼］を与える, の信憑性を高める
give credence to sth ＜話・理論など＞を信じる, 受け入れる
gain credence 信用を得る, 受け入れられる
condone …を大目に見る, 許す, 容赦する
tribalism 部族主義;(共通の仕事・宗教などに基づく) 集団意識, 同族意識
intermingle [自] 混ざる, 混ざり合う
foresee …を予見する, 予想する
I don't foresee any problems. この先問題があるとは思えない．
foresee that  …と予見する
interlink [自] 密接に関連し合う, 結びついている
in escrow〈金・財産が〉第三者に預託されて

Die Integration der Literaturgeschichte und Literaturwissenschaft und der Archäologie

　　Letzten Sonntag habe ich Izumotaischa Schrein besucht. In Japan gibt es ungefähr 80,000 Schreine und Izumotaisha ist einer davon. Er hat eine lange Geschichte über 2000 Jahre.
　　Eine Sage über ihn wird für mehr als 1000 Jahre berichtet. Aber es ist fragwürdig, ob die Sage verlässlich ist. Die Sage ist, dass das größte Gebäude Japans Izumotaisha war, das zweite war Todaiji Tempel in Nara, und das dritte war Kyoto Palast. War es wirklich, dass Izumotaisha größer war als Todaiji Tempel?
　　Übrigens, eine Gruppe von Archäologen hat vor einigen Jahren eine große Stütze von Izumotaisha gefunden, die aus drei Baumstämmen gemacht war. Diese Entdeckung hat die Wahrheit der Sage gezeigt. Als ich die Stütze gesehen habe, kam es mir vor, als ob ich die Menschen aus der Zeit gesehen habe.
　　Der Schrein wird jetzt von vielen Touristen besucht.


die Archäologie  考古学            der Archäologe -n/-n 考古学者
die Literatur　文学、文献        der Palast　宮殿
die Geschichtewissenschaft　史学    der Schrein　神社
die Sage　(伝承による)逸話、伝説        berichten　報告する、伝える
die Glaubhaftigkeit　信憑性        die Glaubwürdigkeit　信憑性
fragwürdig　疑わしい            verlässlich　信頼できる、確かな
das Gebäude　建物    der Tempel　(キリスト教以外の宗教の)神殿、寺院
übrigens　(話題を少し変えて)ところで    einige　いくらかの、二三の
entdecken　発見する            die Entdeckung　発見
die Ruine　遺跡                das Geschirr　食器
der Knochen　骨                das Brett　板
die Stütze　支え、支柱            das Ausmaß　範囲、規模
die Wahrheit　真実、事実

　

Fusion of Literature-based History and Archeology

　　I told you in the last entry that the height of the main hall of Izumo Taisha shrine, a part of the roof of which you can see behind the entrance hall in the first picture, was 24 meters. There had been an interesting tradition about the magnitude of the shrine since over 1000 years ago and I'll write about it in this entry.
　　"雲太和二京三" is it! It means that the biggest structure in Japan is Isumo Taisha shrine, the second is the Colossal Hall of the Great Buddha in Nara City and the third is the Former Imperial Palace in Kyoto. For your information, the Imperial Palace used to be located in Kyoto before the Meiji Restoration and it was moved to Tokyo after the Restoration. "雲太和二京三" had been passed down as an oral tradition.
　　The hall of the Great Buddha is 49.1 meters high, which was built in the 8th century and this phrase had been saying that Izumo Taisha is bigger than the hall of the Great Buddha. Is it possible? There had been no evidence to prove the correctness of the oral tradition until 2000. "雲太和二京三" was thought to be false for a long time. Though the draft of the ancient shrine was found, it was not accepted as a real one.
　　The above is the literature-based historical deliberation on the magnitude of Izumo Taisha.

　　In the meantime, a massive excavation was conducted in the grounds of Izumo Taisha shrine in the year 2000 and 2001. The third picture, which is cited from the official website of Izumo Taisha shrine, shows the basal part of the post found at the excavation site, which was thought to have supported the main hall in ancient times. Finally, three posts were found in the ruins in the grounds. Each post consisted of three big Japanese cedar trees and the diameter of each tree was about 3 meters. They were marvelously preserved by abundant groundwater. They are now preserved in the museum of the shrine and I took a picture of it. A group of architects and historians finally made the big historical issue clear and they put together the model of the ancient Izumo Taisha shrine, which you can see in the 5th picture. Imagine its scale compared with a man on the slope. The archeology attested to the credibility of the oral tradition.
　　In the ancient days, without any heavy machinery, how did our ancestors construct such a magnificent structure? I'm proud of them.

　　Remains dug up from Japan's soil were absolutely made by our Japanese ancestors. A particular people has lived in a specific area since recorded history. I wondered what countries have such a history. The Greeks who hold the lighting ceremony of the Olympic flame have nothing to do with the ancient Greeks who started the original form of the Olympics. I don't know exactly, but Portugal and Denmark might be such countries in Europe.

(Vocabulary)
Literature-based History 文献史学
Archeology 考古学
tradition (宗教的・文化的な) 伝承, 伝承を受け継ぐ人たち
a belief, custom, or way of doing something that has existed for a long time, or these beliefs, customs etc in general
colossal (程度・数量などが) 膨大な, ばく大な, 途方もない, けたはずれの

Izumo Taisha Shrine

　　"Minshuku Tanabe", which I wrote about in the last entry, is located in the Izumo region in Shimane Prefecture. The Izumo region features in Japanese mythology and is home to Izumo Taisha, a shrine with a remarkably long history. The main hall is 24 meters high. It's the largest shrine building in Japan. As for the magnitude of the shrine, important and wonderful evidence was excavated recently. I'll write about the great excavation of the century later or in the following entry.
　　The shrine was one of our main destinations on this trip. The first picture shows us at the entrance of the shrine. The next two pictures were shot on the approach to the main building.
　　Izumo Taisha is dedicated to Okuninushi no Mikoto, the deity believed to have created Japan. Japanese mythology says that he gave the country of his making to the imperial ancestor deity, Amaterasu Omikami. The statue, showing this mythological scene, was set along the approach.
　　Additionally, Okuninushi is known as a god of love. He has been worshipped over the centuries because he's believed to possess special powers to help people pair up romantically. According to legend, all of Japan's gods gather in Izumo every October to hold discussions and make all kinds of arrangements for worldly matters: not just who will marry whom, but also who will get what job and so on.
　　Even today, a ritual is held at the shrine to welcome the gods from all around the country.

Yaegaki Shrine

　　We visited Yaegaki Shrine next. It seemed that this shrine had appeared in a TV program and had become well known to people for its distinctive way of fortune-telling. I didn't know about this shrine and I learned its long and distinguished history from a staff member of the shrine, Miko, a female attendant.
　　I bought a sheet of paper at the shrine, on which nothing was written, and went to a pond deep in the forest. It is said that a young girl, who would get hitched to a man later who would kill the legendary monster, Yamata no Orochi, had hidden from Yamata no Orochi in this pond. People float this sheet of paper on the surface of the pond and put a coin on it. The faster it sinks, the faster the words come true written on the paper.
　　One single coin is supposed to be put on the paper. Some put a coin of 100yen or 500yen, because they are heavier than 10yen or 1yen, but I put 10 yen on it as you see in the picture. The words appeared just after it was placed on the pond. My paper says that my daughters will meet nice guys and they are from the direction of the west and the south. I don't adhere to such fortune-telling, but the words given to me made me happy. The last picture shows some of my friends, who were so eager for the fortune-telling. Are women like that in other countries?
　　We headed for the mountainous region where our inn was located. It was ground zero of the Yamata no Orochi legend.

Yaegaki Shrine

Miko

Miko, pictures

Trip to the World of Japanese Mythology

　　Japan is an unbelievable nation. Imagine that direct descendant of Romulus and Remus, who are said to have been raised by wolves and founded Rome in Roman mythology, and a lineal one of Zeus, who appears in Greek mythology, are the present emperors of Italy and Greece respectively. Isn't it incredible? Japan's Ten-noh is such a being, the genuine descendant of the founder of Japan, Jinmu Ten-noh. The lineage has been linked without any interval. For your information, the foundation of Rome, Greece and Japan was roughly in the same period, 7th century BC. The other day, an attractive trip plan was put together by my friend, traveling to the places that appear in Japanese mythology. We set out for an isolated mountainous area in Shimane Prefecture which has the legend of the monster, "Yamata no Orochi". The detail of the story is written here(link).
　　Naturally, we dropped in at several tourist spots on the way. One of the group members was familiar with Shimane and the adjacent Tottori Prefectures and lead us to nice places. I think you can enjoy my pictures in this and following entries.
　　In recent years there is a funny move of local airports in Japan. Several small airports, which are suffering from the decrease of passengers, have tended to name themselves after their local characteristics for promotional measures. Tottori Prefecture is the birthplace of a noted manga artist, who created dozens of yokai, which are like a goblin, fairy, spirit or something like that, and named its airport as Yonago Kitaro Airport. Kitaro is the main character of yokai's stories and Kitaro is mounting the plane in the pictures.

(Vocabulary)
promotional measures 振興策

Potsdam, Auschwitz and Yalta

　　I've been planning a trip with my second daughter to Europe this fall. She will graduate from a grad school next spring and this fall would be the last opportunity to make a trip with her. All in all in Japan, after getting a job, it will not be easy for newcomers to take a vacation as long as and anytime they like.
　　I've been to southern Germany three times, a total of three weeks and I'd like to visit the northern part of Germany next time. I have many places I want to visit, and I chose the Second World War related places this time, like Potsdam, the ruins of the Berlin Wall, Auschwitz in Poland and Yalta in Ukraine. The moving distance in the EU would be longer than before and the cost of the trip would be also high. I have to minimize the cost of hotels and meals. My second daughter can speak German. She is handy and essential on the trip. Naturally, I know about the political upset in Ukraine. I really hope that their issues will be settled in the best way. If not, I'll visit the Polish historic city of Cracow not Yalta, which I think is like Kyoto in Japan, and learn about Polish history in one of the World Cultural Heritage Sites.
　　The last issue is to save money and take a vacation from my boss because my hospital hasn't enough human resources.

(Vocabulary)
the Potsdam Declaration ポツダム宣言《1945》
Auschwitz アウシュビッツ《ポーランド南西部の工業都市；同市郊外にはナチスのユダヤ人強制収容所があった》
the Yalta Conference ヤルタ会談
Cracow  クラクフ 〔ポーランド南部のビスワ川沿いにある古都。１１世紀から１６世紀まではポーランド王国の首都だった。旧市街は世界遺産に指定されている。〕