Today there is only one artist left in the world who still produces handcrafted karakuri. His name is Shobei Tamaya IX,

a gift must be no more nor less valuable than the relationship between the two people.

Other bushido values are sincerity, compassion, courtesy, and honesty.

Ukiyo-e Museum, located next to Harajuku Station in Tokyo (see the Harajuku map in chapter 11).

read the novel Memoirs of a Geisha –the Ichiriki ochaya is one of the places where much of the action is set.

This is what you find in any work by mangaka Jiro Taniguchi, any book by Haruki Murakami, and in movies by Akira Kurosawa. Sand and rock gardens are an example of wabi-sabi.

Zen aims to achieve enlightenment through the liberation of the mind, by seeking the union of body and spirit, the state of spiritual peace that leaves your mind blank.

KARESANSUI DRY GARDENS Dry gardens (Japanese rock gardens)— karesansui in Japanese—are characteristic of Zen Buddhism. Their simplicity and harmony make them ideal for meditation.

The thief doesn’t care about his society’s reputation; what matters to him is getting a bit of money for his own benefit.