Just like the tradition to enjoy cherry blossoms in spring, it is a Japanese’ favourite seasonal outing to view and celebrate koyo 'rouge foliage' and momiji-gari ‘red leaf hunting’ with observing a fleeting nature of life. Join this calligraphy session to enjoy the autumn season and ink drawing.
In this session, Azumi Uchitani will focus on character Toki, the transient moment which has a huge cultural significance.Understanding how we consume every moment of our lives, how we engage with our surroundings, how much attention and awareness we bring into the present moment become central to this Calligraphy session.
The autumn moon has been regarded as the most beautiful by the Japanese, and as September arrives, celebrations are held all over the nation to show appreciation for a successful harvest. Join the next Japanese Calligraphy class with Azumi Uchitani to enjoy a meditation session and practice creating character Tsuki.
This talk will bring you a small selection of words expressing human feelings in a very Japanese way. Get ready to connect to an intimate part of your own feelings. Words like yūgen, natsukashii, omotenashi, giri, akogare or wabi-sabi have subtle shades of meaning. We invite you to see what makes us human and to experience delicate states of mind.
There is a belief that a true democracy is not possible without equality and equality assumes absence of hierarchy. And at the same time, Japan offers us a different example of a working system which values subordination, democracy, duties and roles. This talk is designed to explore a possibility to see structure and constraints as a critical part for understanding freedom.
In this talk, Azumi will take you on a journey and discuss a concept of Ma (time and space in-between, a Confucius concept of the space between the edges, between the beginning and the end, the space and time in which we experience life), a perception of space in Japanese households and what arts mean to Japanese society. We will explore ideas of beauty as intellectual endeavors through mastery of Geisha and see how Japanese aesthetics and consumption of arts relate to everyday life.
Japanese philosophy Yasuragi teaches us to take a moment and be present, to notice wonders we are surrounded with. Contemplating nature or experiencing a cup of tea - every moment can bring peace to our minds. Haiku poems do exactly that: they are odes to mundane, a moment of gratitude to the transient present. Join our talk on Japanese philosophy Yasuragi and explore Haiku poems as a way to find harmony and peace.
Yasuragi is a concept or feeling of inner peace. However, it is also an attitude, a relation which a person can build with the outside world. Join the next Japanese calligraphy session with Azumi Uchitani to enjoy creating this beautiful kanji and find out more about the Yasuragi way of living.
Martial Arts and philosophy are extremely interlinked. Martial Arts make an organised system of combat practiced for physical, mental, spiritual development, and self-defence. In this talk you will be introduced to one of the principles, SHU HA RI, the three stages of developing and mastering any techniques and transforming the mind, body and spirit to bring unlimited potential.
Approaching Shunbun no Hi, the Japanese holiday during the vernal equinox, we would like to invite you to celebrate the arrival of spring, a symbol of new life and explore the Japanese approach to a long life and vitality.
