JAPAN

Introduction to sociology

SOCIAL STRATIFICATION

SOCIAL STRATIFICATION
Emperor is the head of the constitutional monarchy
and is the ceremonial head of state of Japan. He was
on the top of Japanese society but had less power.
Shogun was a hereditary military governor in
Japan during the shogunate period from 1192 to
1867. In this period, the shoguns were the de facto
rulers of the country, though officially they were
appointed by the Emperor.[1]

Daimyo- were the powerful feudal lords in

pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country
from their vast, hereditary land holdings. In the
term, "dai" ( ) literally means "large", and "my "
stands for myden ( ), meaning private land.
Samurais were the military nobility of medieval
and early-modern Japan.

KYOTO
Formerly known as Meaco
Located in the central part of the island of
Honshu, Japan

Kyoto is Japans fifth largest city

Has a population close to 1.5 million.
Formerly the imperial capital of Japan for more
than one thousand years, it is now the capital
city of Kyoto Prefecture located in the
Kansai region, as well as a major part of the
Kyoto-Osaka-Kobe metropolitan area.

One historical nickname for the city is the City of

Ten Thousand Shrines.

DIFFERENTIATION OF SPACE AND

CULTURE

Some houses In Kyoto are old traditional houses

Slim plastic wooden faades and dancing rectilinear

patterns
Sliding paper doors
Window slats in clay walls
Latices,trellises,benches and hanging blinds of reeds and
bamboos
The inuyarai , or curved bamboo fences , that protruded
from the houses to protect against street traffic and dogs
With its 2000 religious places- 1600 Buddhist temples and
400 Shinto shrines, as well as palaces, gardens and
architecture intact, it is one of the best preserved cities in
Japan.

A traditional Japanese house today is made of wood and hastatamimat floors (floor
coverings made of two-inch thick pressed straw, covered panels of tightly woven reeds),
sliding shoji doors, wooden walls, lacquer doors, clay walls, coffered ceiling, sliding doors, a
tile roof, lath-and-plaster walls, wood or metal rain shudders, andtokonama(display
alcoves).
The Japanese invented sliding doors and sliding walls. Traditional houses have heavy
paper sliding partitions that separate one room from another and can be pushed wide open
or removed to create a single large room. Some homes have thick winter walls are can be
replaced with thin summer ones. Windows facing the outside are often glazed and have
grills and curtains so people can't see in
Thetokonomais an alcove in a traditional Japanese home intended for displaying a
flower arrangement, a work of Zen-style art or a calligraphy scroll. Many modern homes
are built without a tokonoma. Thegenkanis the traditional threshold, entrance area,
where people leave their shoes.
Many homes have small Shinto and Buddhists altars. On visiting a Japanese home, one of
the first things a host or hostess often does is show their guests pictures of living family
members and dead ancestors on the Buddhist altar that is often in or near the tokonama.
The Japanese traditionally would speak to guests in the entrance hall or else show them
to a reception hall or living-room-dining-room area. It very unusual for a visitor to come in
the kitchen or the bedrooms and have a look around the house.
Many traditional Japanese homes haveshoji(sliding paper screens) instead of walls. One
Japanese artist told National Geographic that shoji creates a "good feeling" because
"behind the shoji screen we cannot really see you, but we can know your actions, whether
or not your are lively." Shoji windows infuse traditional homes with a soft natural light.
"The best condition of paper is between eye and light," one papermaker said. "I can feel the
life of the fiber. I can hear it. Perhaps we respond because of our own veins and arteries.

VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
Nishi Hongan-ji
Was established by Toyotomi
Hideyoshi(1536-98)
Hondo or main hall was rebuilt in 1760
after fire destroyed it
The founders hall- daishido contains
a self-carved effigy of the sects founder
Cremated after his death , his ashes
were mixed with lacquer and then
applied to the effigy .
The study hall(shoin) contains a
number of rooms named for their
decorations:
1. Wild Gesse Chamber
2. Sparrow Chamber
3. Chrysanthemum Chamber

Higashi hongan-ji
Was established in 1603 by Tokugawa
Shogun, power at near by Nishi Honganji , attempted to thwart their influence by
establishing an offshoot of the sect.
Only the main hall and founders hall
are open to the public
The present building were erected in
1895 after fire destroyed it

Shosei-en Garden is on of the more

historic in the city.
The Shosei-en Garden is also known as
the Kikoku-tei, or "Orange Grove" garden
for its many ornamental orange trees.
It is a garden sanctuary of water,rocks
and moss

 The Kyoto Gosho otherwise known as the Kyoto Imperial Palace was first built
during the Heian period, 794, and was completed by 804.
It was the home of the Imperial family of Japan until they moved to Tokyo
during the Meiji Period.
This structure, said to be the only major palace constructed entirely of wood, is
extremely flammable and has been burnt and rebuilt numerous times.
The original structure measured 1266 yards from east to west and 1533 form
north to south.
It once contained approximately 50 buildings, some were government offices and
residences for the Imperial family, but nothing remains of the original structure.
The structures seen today are only reconstructions according to the original
plans.
The current one built in 1855, is an exact production of some buildings of the
original Heian Kyoto Gosho, not all.
The main buildings of the Kyoto Gosho include:
Shishinden (Hall of State)
Seiryoden (Private Residence of the Emperor)
Kogosho (Small Imperial Palace)
Ogakumonjo (Study Hall)
Since the Imperial family moved to Tokyo, the Kyoto Gosho has been well
maintained and is still used for coronation of emperors.

Nijo-jo ,a castle begun in 1569 by the

warlord Oda Nobunaga and finished by
Tokugawa Leyasu, ally to the Oda
Nobunaga ,to demonstrate the military
dominance of the city
in 1867,it served as the seat of the
government from where Emperor Meiji
abolished the shogunate.
Rectangular in shape , the castles
magnificent stone walls and gorgeous goldleafed audience halls reflect the power of
Edo-Period shoguns
The linking corridors of the castles
Ninomaru palace feature nightingale
(creaking) floor to warn of intruders
The garden is a grand example of a lords
strolling garden
South of the castle is Nijo jinya , originally
the home of a wealthy merchant and later
used as an inn by visiting daimyo.
The old manor houses is fully of trap
doors ,secret passageways and hidden
rooms.

Up the Kiyomizu-zaka ,a slope on the east side of Higashioji-dori ,

is Kiyomizu-dera
The temples main hall (hondo) sits perched out over the
mountainside on massive wooden pilings
The verandah , or butai (dancing stage),juts out over the valley
floor overlooking the city below
Founded in 788,Kiyomizu-dera predates Kyoto and is dedicated to
the 11-faced Kannon
The two 3.6 meter tall deva kings (nio) guarding the front gate
speak the whole of Buddhist wisdom
Behind the main hall with its dancing stage is Jishu, one of the
most popular Shinto shrines in the country, and where the god of
love and good marrige resides
Steps lead down from Kiyomizus main hall to Otokawa no
taki , a waterfall where visitors sip water from a spring said to
have many health benefits
A short walk leads up the other side of the valley to a small pagoda
with a view encompasses the entire hillside.
From Kiyomizu , return down the slope and follow a flight of stone
steps down to Sannen-zaka,a street meaning three year slop

Initial construction on the Shrine began in 656. The

Shrine became the object of Imperial patronage during
the early Heian period.

In 965, Emperor Murakami ordered that Imperial

messengers be sent to report important events to the
guardian kami of Japan.
These heihaku were initially presented to 16 shrines;
and in 991, Emperor Ichij added three more shrines to
Murakami's list.
Three years later in 994, Ichij refined the scope of that
composite list by adding Umenomiya Shrine and Gion
Shrine.
From 1871 through 1946, Yasaka Shrine was officially
designated one of the Kanpei-taisha ( ), meaning
that it stood in the first rank of government supported
shrines
One of the tallest granite torii in Japan at 9 meters in
height marks the portal to the shrine
From the shrine s back ,one enters adjoining Maruyama
koen
The park is known for its beautiful garden and
magnificent cherry blossoms in early April
Two interesting temples sit just beyond:
1.
Chion-in
2.
Shoren in

An arching 24meter high torii leads from Okazaki-koen to

vermilion colored gate of Heian-jingu , more of an
architectural study than a shinto center
The shrine , dedicate to Kyotos first and the last emperors, is
a replica of the original Imperial Palace built Daigoku-den, or
'Palace of the State Hall' which was built south of Kyoto, in
Kaide-cho Muko City, by Emperor Kanmu (737 to 806) in 794
AD and last destroyed by fire in 1227
The shrine was erected in 1895 to commemorate Kyotos
1,100th anniversary and displays architecture of the Heian
Period , when Chinese influence was at its zenith
Shinto shrines took on Buddhist temple features during this
period , when the plain wooden structures were first pinted
But in the late 1800s Emperor Komei-tenno (1831 to 1867)
constructed this 2/3 scale reproduction of Daigoku-den
The expensive , white pebble courtyard leads the eye to the
Daigaku den , or main hall ,where government business was
conducted
The Blue Dragon and White Tiger pagodas dominate the
view to the west to the east and west
To the left of the main hall is the entrance to the garden
,designed in the spirit of Heian Period for the pleasures of
walking and boating
Mirrors ponds, dragon stepping stones, and a Chinese-style
bridge are some of the beguiling features

From Heian-jingu walk southeast to Murian an , a 19th

century landscaped villa designed by the celebrated
gardener Ogawa Jihei.
The grass-covered sounds of this secluded garden, with
its azalea-lined stream , incorporate an unsploit view of
the Higashiyama
From the garden it is a short walk east to Nanzen-ji,
which was originally the residence of 26-year-old Emperor
Kameyama(1240-1305) after his abdication in 1274
Nanzen-ji sits nestled in a pine grove at the foot of
Daimonji-yama and its part of the Rinzai school of Zen
Buddhism, Zen s largest and best known school
Its also one of the Kyotos most important Zen temples
The complex consists of the main temple and 12 subtemples, of which only four are regularly open to the
public
The pine grove influences the architecture, art influences
the garden
The temple reflects the Chinese style (kara yo) that
arrived in japan along with Zen .
This style ,evolving through the Ashikage Period(13381573) , achieved a near perfect balance between the
lordly Chinese style and the lightness of the native
Japanese style
Exploring the two buildings of the abbots quartersDaiho-jo and Shoho-jo reveals how garden architecture
and landscape painting interrelate

Some

of the most famous monuments and gardens of Japanese architecture we produced under the
Muromachi period (1336-1573): the Golden Pavilion (Kinkakuji) , the Silver Pavilion (Ginkaku-ji) and
the Rock Garden of Ryoan ji .
Despite (or perhaps as a result) of the devastating violence and wars that characterized this period,
these gardens offer peace to the spirit and a truly moving beauty.
While

the Golden Pavilion , built by Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, represented the pinnacle of this era, the
Silver Pavilion (1474), built by his grandson Ashikaga Yoshimasa marked the decline of the clan.
Located at the foot of the Higashiyama mountains, northeast of Kyoto, occupying an area 30 times
larger than where now stands, at the end of what is now the Philosophy Path, the Ginkaku-ji was
built as a resting place for Yoshimasa.
It is ironic that on the eve of the outbreak of the war, the shogun Yoshimasa give his back to the
capital and moved to this lavishing palace complex, and that while the population suffered from
famine, destruction and death, he was enjoying watching the garden, enjoying tea, incense and other
esoteric pleasures.
The palace complex would become a temple after Yoshimasa's death and it was called Jisho-ji (
) or Temple of the Shining Mercy. However, it became known as Ginkaku-ji, or Temple of the Silver
Pavilion ().
Silver Pavilion and pond panorama. C. Zeballos
Ginkaku or Kannon Hall.:Despite its name, there is not any silver in the pavilion, since that the
intention of Yoshimasa of covering it with this metal was never fulfilled, since the outbreak of war
prevented it.
Hypothetical reconstruction of the Ginkakuji if it had been covered with a sheet of silver.
It is noteworthy that many Japanese prefer the current Silver Pavilion than the Golden one, as it
represents the typical simplicity of Japanese architecture.
This is a very simple building, arranged in two levels, with curved roofs and topped by a phoenix
made of brass.
Roof top:Its lower level, called Shinkunda (Chamber of the empty heart) measures 6.7 m x 5.4 m and
it is divided by movable panels that give flexibility to the interior space. The wooden sliding doors
allow us to see a simple room of flat ceiling. Inside, they venerate the image of Jizo, the protector of
children
First level:The room is surrounded by a railing and the walls have bell-shaped windows (3 in front of
the pond and in the back and two on each side).

THE

SHOIN STYLE : One of the main contributions of the Muromachi period to the Japanese residential
architecture is the Shoin style. "Shoin" means "writing room" and has its origins in the rooms of the humble rooms of
the monasteries, more modest than the structures of the Heian and Kamakura periods.
Hence, these rooms included furniture for writing .
The four characteristic elements of Shoin style are: recessed niches ( tokonoma ), staggered shelves, built -in desk and
decorated doors.
The Tgud room of Ginkaku-ji, a modest one-level structure with a roof of cypress bark, contains the oldest Shoin
style of Japan.
THE GARDEN : It is impossible to understand the Silver Pavilion without also considering the surrounding
mountains, nor without underscore the role that has the moon in its conception. The moon is a crucial element in the
Japanese mentality, present in the visual arts and literature. Spiritual enlightenment in Zen Buddhism is often
portrayed as a reflection of the moon on the water: the moon makes the surface visible and vice versa.
Higashiyama area, where the Ginkakuji stands, was reknown as a point for the contemplation of the moon even from
the Heian period.
Facing the Ginkaku-ji, there is a pond where people use to contemplate the moon. Behind him is Tsukimachiyama
Mountain (Mountain to wait for the moon).
For the first time in the history of Japanese landscaping sand is used only to represent elements such as water or
mountains. The esplanade of sand that lies on the side of the pond, a plateau of 60 cm in height , is called Ginshaden,
and that means Silver Sand Sea, whose form is said to be modeled based on the shape of the West Lake in China. In
fact, when the moon rises in the eastern mountains of Tsukimachi, the sea of sand seems to generate waves in the
moonlight.
In this area there is also a huge cone of sand of 1.80 m, which symbolizes the Mount Fuji, called Kougetsu dai
(Platform facing the moon), designed to accentuate the reflection of the moon in the sea of sand. It is said that, as seen
from the second floor of the Ginkakuji, the cone resembles a full moon reflected on a silver sea.
Dai Kougetsu sand cone, also during maintenance.
But the most interesting aspect of the garden is the way it interacts and makes use of the mountain in its design,
offering a view of the pavilion from above, together with all buildings, allowing nice views of the city of Kyoto.
Japanese architecture, supported only by slender wooden columns and sliding wood panels.
Secondly, the interesting technology for the construction of roofs, made with a wooden structure that gives its
characteristic curvature.
Overlapping wooden slats lay over the structure, fixed with pins of bamboo, made of Japanese cypress about 30 cm
long, although only 3 cm are exposed at the bottom. As shown in the photos, every few rows the is a sheet of copper for
reinforcement.

SOCIO CULTURAL
TRANSFORMATION AND THEIR
IMPACT ON ENVIRONMENT

1) FOOD
In the Heian Period, people seem to have hadv two meals a day: one
around ten in the morning and one around four in the afternoon.
They ate two kinds of rice as a staple food; kowaii steamed in a pottery
vessel with tiny holes in it similar to present okowa, and himemeshi
similar to present gohan.
As for side dishes, they had vegetables, seaweeed, fish, shelllfish, meat
and so forth and cooked them in various ways: atsumono-boiled vegetables
and fish meat, yakimono-grilled fish, irimono-roasted beans, himono-dried
fish, tsukemono-pickled vegetables, and sushi-fish and seashells preserved
in salt and fermented.
The dishes were not seasoned, so people seasoned them when they ate.
They used seasonings such as salt, vinegar, miso, sesame oil and hishiosoy sauce brewed from soy beans with wheat malt and salted fresh water.
They also used honey, candy and amadzura-kudzu vine for sweetening.
It is recorded that they ate fruit and so, a kind of dairy product.
The dietary lives in the Heian Period were varied. On the occasion of
ceremonies, they had luxurious dishes, but in daily life they ate simple
meals like rice-porridge and rice with hot water.

2) CLOTHES
In general, the noble class and officials wore silk
fabrics, and common people wore hemp fabrics.
However, the textile technique began to improve
from this period onward. Fabrics of high-quality
such as nishiki, ra and aya came to be woven.
But now in Kyoto hand crafted clothes are
popular and they are worn by nobles and common
people
Hand crafted kimonos , shirts , dresses these
days are in fashion

3) PEOPLE
When Higashi Hongan-ji structures were being
built , female devotees cut and donated their hair
, which was woven into 50 ropes used during
construction
Earlier in Kyoto people were used to give taxes in
form of rice to the emperors or landlords.

IMPACT ON ENVIRONMENT
Kyoto is Japans fifth largest city , with a
population of 1 million
Kyoto is a large metropolis, crowded and noisy and,like
most other japanese cities , lacking aesthetic appeal in its
modern contours
Even temples can feel claustrophobic with busloads of
tourists and students doing rounds

HOUSE FORM AND CULTURE

The distinctive feature of a
traditional Japanese
building is the way in
which the house is open to
nature.
The main materials used
are wood, earth, and paper,
and the construction
spreads out sideways
rather than upwards.

Modern housing
With the steady flow of population into the cities,
the price of land wentup rapidly, and Japanesestyle houses with gardens became prohibitively
expensive for most people. This led to a great
increase in the number of apartment houses and
duplexes.

One of the features of Japanese houses is

the tremendous variety of roof styles,
depending on the locality and the
occupation of the owner. These styles
can, however, be classified roughly into
three styles
calledYosemun,KirizumaandIrimoya.

Various materials are used in the

construction of roofs, includingKaya(a
kind of read), wheat straw, bamboo, tiles,
stone, galvanized iron, and aluminium .

Recently, Japanese
cities have come to
look like those of
Europe because of
the increase in the
number of
prefabricated and
ferroconcrete
buildings. However,
the style of building
that is best suited to
the Japanese climate
and natural
conditions is
probably still the
traditional wooden
house, and it is
certainly nicer to
look at.

This is the layout of

a so-called 2LDK
apartment (this
means an
apartment with two
rooms also used as
bedrooms, a living
room, a diningroom and a kitchen,
the last two usually
being combined
into one). This
would be for a
family of three:
mother, father, and
one child.

Architecture in Japan has also been influenced

by the climate. Summers in most of Japan are
long, hot, and humid, a fact that is clearly
reflected in the way homes are built. The
traditional house is raised somewhat so that the
air can move around and beneath it. Wood was
the material of choice because it is cool in
summer, warm in winter, and more flexible when
subjected to earthquakes.

JAPANESE ARCHITECTURE, WOOD,

EARTHQUAKES AND FIRE
It had traditionally been thought that one of the main reasons
why wood was more dominant in Japanese architecture than
stone is that wood structures were less vulnerable to
earthquakes that stone buildings, which topple over easier.
But this is not always the case. Wooden structures are often
destroyed by earthquakes, plus they are generally more
vulnerable to fire and typhoons than stone buildings.
The stone castles built on Osaka Nagoya and other places to
fend off the threat of European firearms, often survived
earthquakes better than wood temples and shrines.
Ex. The Yasaka Pagoda in Kyoto has survived more than five
centuries of earthquakes. During a tremor the entire building
sways as each story moves independent around a central
anchoring pillar. Scientists are now studying the pagoda for
clues on making modern buildings more earthquake-resistant.

JAPANESE ARCHITECTURE AND

WEATHER
Traditional houses were built to deal with summer heat more than
winter cold under the understanding that residents could put on
layers of clothing in the winter.
They were built of light materials---wood, bamboo, straw and paper--which provide terrible insulation but allow breezes to enter, air to
circulate and heat to escape.
In the old days some houses were so cold in winter that children
went outside to play to get warm.
a roof made up of triangular timbers that expand during wet
weather to protect the interior from rain and shrink during hot, dry
weather to allow ventilation.
Houses and deep projecting roofs to offer protection in heavy
monsoon rains.
During the hot and humid Japanese summer, the Japanese like to
keep cool by creating the illusion of coolness with the sound of
running water and wind chimes that sound during the slightest
breeze.

SOCIO-ECONOMIC PARAMETERS OF
COMMUNITY PLANNING
What are Machiya?
Machiya are traditional Japanese buildings which were designed to house the residences and
workplaces of merchants and artisans.
These wooden townhouses, with their latticed windows and entryways, first appeared
centuries ago, even before the Edo period (1603-1867).
There used be many machiya around Japan, but during World War II many of them were
burned or broken.
Fortunately, Kyoto escaped such damage during the war, so there were still many distinctive
machiya buildings in the city.
People called them Kyo-machiya and as time passed, they came to be regarded as one of the
traditional buildings which characterize the ancient city of Kyoto.
However, owing to the development of the city, the number of machiya decreased in Kyoto. It
is said that about 50,000 wooden structures including many Kyo-Machiya, were taken down
during the single decade from 1978~1988.
In response, several local NGOs and the Kyoto City Government have been working on a
campaign for saving machiya.
Today, there are about 28,000 Machiya buildings in Kyoto, but some of them are not used
and about 500 are destroyed annually.
Nonetheless, a citizens movement to revitalize machiya is occurring.
Now, the number of renovated machiya is about 800 and steadily rising, about 70 percent of
which have become a restaurant or caf. The city even offers subsidies for renovations.

The design of a machiya is quite unique.

They were always designed to face the street since the front of the building was where
the store or work space was located.
Back in the heyday of machiyas, walking along a street in Kyoto may have been similar to
walking along a shopping mall today.
The narrow design of the machiya meant that more shops could be built along the street.
In olden times, people must have had a hard time choosing which shop to enter while
walking along and gazing at the store fronts.
Once you enter a machiya, you will notice that it feels a lot bigger than what it looks like
on the outside.
The long and narrow design of the machiya is where it derives the nickname of an eels
bed.
Although machiyas will vary from house to house, generally speaking, the rooms that
are farthest away from the entrance are used as living quarters or for greeting and
entertaining guests.
If you stay at a Machiya Residence Inn machiya, you will notice firsthand how the living
room, where you can eat or watch television, is on the first floor and is the farthest
Japanese style room.
The Machiya Residence Inn prides itself on designing machiyas that will accommodate
modern living arrangements, while at the same time preserve the traditional lifestyle
that has been passed down.
Building the living quarters in the back, away from the street, allowed people to have a
place where they could enjoy some peace and quiet with their family. Residents were able
to leave their busy day-to-day life for some tranquility and rest.