The Asian American religious site I visited was the Nichiren Buddhish Church of America, located three blocks from Japantown at 2016 Pine Street San Francisco, CA 94115. I attended their Asian American religious event of Japanese tea Ceremony which are held on Fridays and Saturdays. From the outside, the church blended in with the other residential houses. Upon entering, I was shocked at how different the interior design was compared to its outer appearance. The interior architecture resembles a traditional Japanese home with shoji (sliding panel door), tatami floors (mats), tokonoma (vertical scroll of calligraphy/art), ikebana (traditional flowers) and many other aspects that contributed to the vibe. Although the ceremony didn’t require quests to don on a certain attire, all the hosts/hostesses wore beautiful traditional kimono, which made their every movement give off a sense of graceful and elegant etiquette. They then gave a brief lessons of the meaning of Japanese tea ceremony, also known as Chanoyu, Sado or simply Ocha in Japanese. The Japanese tea ceremony has numerous essential implications, and it is connected to Buddhist philosophy. The primary motive behind the tea ceremony is to create a peaceful moment that focuses on the tea and to respect the relationship between hosts and guests. It …show more content…
This position is called Seiza, which means the proper way of sitting. This is the stance used on formal events in customary Japanese culture. In this stance, “the knees are bent in a 180 degrees with the calves tucked under the thighs so that you sit on your heels, toes pointed.” In the tea ceremony, the Seiza position shows courtesy and sincerity and it also related to the one's eyes vison level. Every participants are required to sit Seiza style because of the theory where everybody has equal status by making everyone observes at the same
In the story, “Growing Up Asian in America” by Kesaya E. Noda, she talks about different experiences she had encountered to become the woman she is today. She struggled with figuring out who she was, because she had three different cultures that needed to be one. For example, Noda had trouble learning and understanding her Japanese background, Noda gives us an example in lines (35-39) about how in the eyes of Americans she will always be considered a Japanese American and never American. Different Americans believe that Japanese did not and could not belong here. Through her writing, the audience understands that is not true. Being Japanese is just a part of her and that there is more than just that. This lesson was important because she accepted
The Asian American history is the history of the ethnic and racial groups in the United States who are of Asian descent. Spickard (2007) shows that the "'Asian American' was an idea created in the 1960s to bring together the Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino Americans for a strategic and political purposes.
For 20 years, Asian Americans have been portrayed by the press and the media as a successful minority. Asian Americans are believed to benefit from astounding achievements in education, rising occupational statuses, increasing income, and are problem-fee in mental health and crime. The idea of Asian Americans as a model minority has become the central theme in media portrayal of Asian Americans since the middle 1960s. The term model minority is given to a minority group that exhibits middle class characteristics, and attains some measure of success on its own without special programs or welfare. Asian Americans are seen as a model minority because even though they have faced prejudice and discrimination by other racial groups, they have succeeded socially, economically, and educationally without resorting to political or violent disagreements with the majority race. The “success” of the minority is offered as proof that the American dream of equal opportunity is capable to those who conform and who are willing to work hard. Therefore, the term ...
There are various objects needed to conduct a tea ceremony. Most important among them are ceramics: the tea-caddy, the tea bowl, the flower vase, the incense burner, the incense container, the water jar, the ladle rest, the rest for the cover of the jar, the ash container, the cake bowl, the plate to place charcoal brazier, and candle-holders and other paraphernalia for decoration and atmosphere. Furthermore, such utensils used in the light dinner served before the tea rite called the kaiseki, food dishes and bowls, wine bottles and wine cups are to be numbered, the majority of implements for use in the tea-ceremony are pieces of ceramics.
There are close to eighteen million Asian Americans living in United States; they make up six percent of the population. Many Asian Americans here are doctors, lawyers, engineers and CEOs. Despite this, Asian Americans are portrayed as geeks, gangsters, or geishas in Hollywood movies. When it comes to lead roles they rarely get the roles that they deserve and they are often represented as stereotypes.
Not only is dinner etiquettes important in Afghanistan but so is the food. Tea is important in Afghanistan Culture. It is a common gesture of hospitali...
...ate the tea culture in Korea. Buddhist ceremonial tea was first brought to Korea by the monks who had come back from China to bring Buddhist culture to Korea. Although it was already used in ancestral ceremonies, it then became widely used in Buddhist ceremonies. It remained this way until Confucianism took over in the 14th century and tea became prohibited (Overview).
During my visit at the “West End Buddhist Temple and Meditation Centre”, what stood out to me were their use of statues and room design as well as the structure of the meditation center. I noticed that everyone in the room was facing towards the front and center where the statue of the Buddha stood, and everyone need to be barefoot. I noticed that there was a red carpet that ran across the room and to a podium for the Monks to walk on. Once the monk sat above everyone on the podium, they began saying a prayer. The Monk was a male, and during their prayer, they would say parts of a religious text, and the people sitting on the floor, repeated the same chant the Monk had said. After each verse of their prayer, the Monk would chant “saddoo, saddoo,
Comparison of American and Chinese Cultures Cultural differences are apparent from one group of people to another. Culture is based on many things that are passed on from one generation to the next. Most of the time, people take for granted their language, beliefs, and values. When it comes to the cultural differences of people, there is no right or wrong. People should be aware of others culture and respect the differences that exist between them.
Japan is a very homogenous society made up of about 98% ethnic Japanese. They tend to put a lot of emphasis on family and communities, and value the group more than the individual (Aliasis, 2013). The social hierarchy important and members of the society are expected to conform. One way is showing respect for one’s elders, for example the oldest member of a group is served first and their drinks are poured for them (AngloINFO, 2014). This mentality is common in the business world as well. Promotions are usually based on seniority and people often work at one company their entire lives. This way of life brings satisfaction and pride to the people (Aliasis, 2013). When greeting others it is customary to bow, although the Japanese are familiar with our ways and would expect us to want to shake hands rather than bow (Bazzel, 2013; Angloinfo, 2014). Also, being too direct about what one is really thinking is not socially acceptable. The Japanese use subtle language and rely heavily on non-verbal forms of communication (Aliasis, 2013).
Centuries back, in one of Kyoto’s majestic gardens, a tea master asked his disciple to prepare for a traditional tea ceremony. The young man tidied everything in the garden. It looked immaculate not a blade of grass out of line. The
This philosophy is easy. You layout a quilt and build your tea-party. The teapot is really a spinner and each participant has a convert. The choices the arrow may land on are teacup, plate, tools, meal, fruit, treat, and milk. The primary person to accomplish their environment benefits. The only strategy is you can not claim the food until you’ve compiled a dish. There’s also a drop a convert selection to the spinner to keep consitently the game fascinating. The well made pieces could tolerate little fingertips, and females ages 3-7 will love acting with pieces even if you are not playing the game.
It is very rare that you are invited to a meal at a Japanese house, but if you are, makes sure you take your shoes off and wear the slippers that are left at the doorway. According to the website Kwintessential you have to be very careful with your table manners as there is a protocol that has to be followed after you wait to be seated.
At Tea Ceremonies single women and female children wear furisode or colorful kimonos that have long sleeves and are tied with bright obis or sashes.
The Shinto faith has many ceremonies including some that might seem strange to Westerners. As mentioned earlier, cleanliness is particularly important to Shinto worshippers and great washing ceremonies take place before any holiday. Pollution or uncleanliness is offensive to the kami. Western civilization finds it hard to understand some Japanese festivals because the Japanese have an intense appreciation of nature which the majority of Westerners care very little about.