Author Archives: Carl Rustad

As expected, I had a great time in Kyoto. Each of the events scheduled was memorable and enjoyable. Visiting the artisans made me think more deeply about the trade offs of modernization. As for the artisans, Miyamoto-san impressed me with … Continue reading →

Kiyomizu-dera was stunning but also underscored some trade offs being made to preserve history. The most entertaining example of this was definitely the Otowa waterfall, which passes beneath the temple. Its pristine water is the source of the name Kiyomizu … Continue reading →

Our day began at Tatsumura Textiles. It was obvious that the textiles being produced there were highly unusual. Perhaps the most distinguishing feature was how dense and three-dimensional the weaving was. The fabrics were thick and weighty; many were displayed … Continue reading →

This morning Louisa, Ayami and I went to Kitano Tenmangu to get amulets for studying. We didn’t spend a lot of time there but got a number of great pictures. At about 10:00 we realized that we were extremely close … Continue reading →

The main feature of today was a tea ceremony with Dairik. We started the tea ceremony by picking up the water and sweets we would be using. He emphasized that tea ceremonies were the product of several different disciplines coming … Continue reading →

The day began with a lecture on Noh from Professor Pellecchia. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the small Noh videos he showed. Specifically, I found the musicians’ combination shouts and playing to be strangely entrancing.  I’m … Continue reading →

On our free day, Kyrien, Louisa, Ayami and I decided to visit Fushimi Inari and Ginkaku-ji. We began at Fushimi Inari, a temple famous for its thousands of red gates. Feeling sporty (and admittedly having a poor understanding of the … Continue reading →

Today we toured Miyamoto-san’s workshop in Arashiyama. He creates and repairs wooden Buddhist statuary. While his craft is defined by many hundreds of years of technique and protocol, Miyamoto-san strives to innovate. He explained his desire to reach an ever-larger … Continue reading →

Today we visited Daitoku-ji, a temple compound dating back to the 1300s. As we entered, I was impressed by the extreme attention to detail in the gardens. Though I did expect them to be well-maintained, actually seeing people picking up … Continue reading →