Joy o' Kanji Thematic Bundles

Welcome to Thematic Bundles!
Just as a strong bond between two people produces a whole that's greater than the sum of its parts, the same applies to thoughtfully grouped kanji essays. In this section you'll find bundles of four essays that have something essential in common. Considering thematically related essays in one fell swoop enables you to make connections that you might otherwise miss. It also illuminates the real differences between kanji that seem quite similar on the surface. Moreover, having these groupings creates a structure for your kanji studies. Rather than casting about aimlessly for your next interesting read, you can now proceed systematically. If you read one essay a week, then each bundle will provide a "flavor of the month."
Image credit: many thanks to graphic artist Keith Ikeda-Barry ⇗ for the vibrant images that jump off the page!
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Fabulous Fabrics
絞 wring (out)
麻 flax; flux
巾 turban; cloth
藍 indigo
54
These essays illuminate how people produce fabulous fabrics using Japanese methods and materials. Two essays delve into techniques such as shibori (Japanese tie-dye), including the unexpected reason commoners came to wear cotton clothes dyed with indigo. Another essay touches on fabric types, such as hemp cloth, as well as the hemp leaf pattern that often adorns clothes for babies. (People associate hemp with healthy and quick growth.) Rich illustrations in all four essays show what people make with these fab fabrics, including tenugui (fancy towels), traditional pouches, and stunning wall pieces. Crafts aficionados are in for a visual treat!
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Casual Kimonos
紺 navy blue
丈 stature
雰 atmosphere
桁 column
53
You may picture kimonos as formal outfits worn on special occasions. With tight sashes and many layers, they take considerable effort to put on and look uncomfortable. But there are also much more casual kimonos for daily wear by working people, such as farmers. These are often made with blurred "kasuri" fabrics featuring a repeating grid or lattice shape. Whereas three essays in this bundle showcase such fabrics in gorgeous blues, the 丈 essay introduces a distinctive yellow silk cloth with striped or checkered patterns. These woven and dyed fabrics became so famous that Hachijo Island was named after them!
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Relentless Improvement
鍛 to temper
鋳 cast (metal)
錬 temper (metal)
冶 melt
52
Metalworking may not seem relevant to daily life, but these kanji are. Two combine in 鍛錬, enabling people to express desires for toned bodies, sharper minds, and self-discipline. After all, the Japanese relentlessly push to improve themselves and others—hence the exactitude of sushi chefs who rigorously train employees. The bundled characters also shed light on history, from the ancient need for metal (including in mirrors for sacred Shinto rites) to the 1941 mandate to melt down metals, even temple bells. These kanji have even inspired figurative language, as with a term for "forcing into a mold."
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Long-Lived
寿 longevity
松 pine tree
亀 turtle
鶴 crane
51
Though the Japanese live longer than anyone, they pray for even more longevity—for humans and deities alike. These four auspicious kanji are associated with longevity, which is a natural fit for 亀 and 鶴; as one proverb has it, turtles and cranes live thousands of years. Meanwhile, 寿 means "lifespan" and "longevity" in words for those concepts and appears in many terms for milestone birthdays. Finally, because the pine represents long life, thanks to its evergreen needles, images of that tree abound at weddings and on New Year's cards. Similarly, twin pines symbolize a long, happy marriage.
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Drunk as a Skunk
蛇 snake
酔 drunk
没 sink
虎 tiger
50
This bundle presents not only inebriated people but also drunk "animals." The Japanese associate heavy drinkers with 蛇 (because of wordplay and because a giant snake can swallow a lot at once) and with 虎 (given that excessive alcohol makes folks as wild as fierce tigers). But drunks classified as 蛇 versus 虎 behave differently; one is far more annoying. Regarding bad behavior while drunk, the 酔 essay paints a full picture, from driving while sloshed to annoying God! And the 没 essay touches on passing out from drinking ("falling into a sea of drunkenness") and liquor as one's downfall.
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Sweet and Spicy
甘 sweet
辛 spicy
蜜 honey
辣 bitter
49
It's logical that 甘 and 蜜 represent sweetness in food, whereas 辛 and 辣 set the mouth on fire in relation to spicy dishes. But all four kanji also have figurative applications; 甘 and 蜜 appear in terms for "honeyed words" meant to "sweet-talk" people, whereas 辛 and 辣 combine in 辛辣 (bitter (criticism)). Moreover, 甘 and 辛 unexpectedly act as antonyms in words for "lenient" versus "harsh" and in terms about preferences for sweets versus alcohol. The two kanji (both radicals, incidentally!) even team up in an expression for "tasting the sweetness and bitterness of life."
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Humble Pie
謙 self-effacing
拙 bungling
弊 abuse
遜 humble
48
Here one finds all aspects of humble language: a detailed exploration of that linguistic concept (in the 謙 essay), self-deprecating pronouns, humble prefixes, and ways of putting down one's work or one's company. Two of the four kanji join forces in a noun for "modesty; humility" and constitute alternate renderings of へりくだる (to deprecate oneself and praise the listener). Although 遜 means "humble, inferior," aligning with the other three kanji, the Japanese typically negate that humility with 不, ending up with arrogance, which takes this bundle in an unexpected direction.
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Vicissitudes
朽 decay
枯 wither
衰 grow weak
萎 lose strength
47
This collection may seem bleak. The essays spotlight withering plants, rotting trees, and entire nations in decline. The bundle focuses on losing physical abilities and dying of old age. And the 萎 essay touches on dampened hopes and sagging spirits. But the most-common 朽 word characterizes artworks as enduring. And 枯 can mean "to mature," applying to both people and technology. As that essay shows, the Japanese have an odd affection for dead trees, also using 枯 in fun proverbs. Finally, the study of 衰 reflects that yes, decline occurs, but so does prosperity; vicissitudes are inevitable parts of life.
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Working with Wood
杉 cedar
桑 mulberry
柳 willow
柿 persimmon
46
Japanese craftsmanship is legendary, and the artisans know well how types of wood will behave, whether in chopsticks, barrels for soy sauce and saké, or traditional paper. One kind of tree grows so fast that it greatly aided postwar reconstruction. Another type is suitable for alcove posts and chests of drawers, being hard and shiny with a distinctive woodgrain pattern. A third sort is hard but easily cracks, making it ideal for paneling in traditional furniture and Japanese umbrellas. The last type is pliable and can become everything from wicker to toothpicks, also having medicinal properties. See which is which!
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Emblematic Trees
桜 cherry tree
松 pine tree
杉 cedar
柳 willow
45
These essays showcase four types of trees that afford great pleasure. The Japanese love seeing rows of them along rivers, the seashore, and avenues (especially on the world's longest tree-lined road), and people famously picnic under cherry blossoms. To the Japanese, the pine, cedar, willow, and cherry also symbolize key qualities: transience and mortality (the cherry); longevity, vitality, and sincerity (the cedar); emotional flexibility, weakness, sadness, and thinness (the willow); and superior rankings (the pine). Moreover, these trees play key roles in the arts, such as haiku, woodblock prints, ink paintings, lyrics, Noh theater, and ghost stories.
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Omnipresent Animals
猿 monkey
猫 cat
熊 bear
鹿 deer
44
Being in Japan means being aware of certain omnipresent animals: the deer who bow to visitors in Nara; the monkeys who bathe in onsens and who fill Monkey Park on Shodoshima; the household cats who have inspired countless sayings, including one meaning "every Tom, Dick, and Harry" because cats are everywhere in Japan; and the fearsome bears who have necessitated bear bells on trails. This bundle shows how the Japanese relate to these species in visual art, in literature from folktales to famous novels, in maneki-neko figurines, in carvings of the three wise monkeys, and more.
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Strongly Symbolic Animals
竜 dragon
亀 turtle
虎 tiger
鶴 crane
43
English speakers see cats and dogs as enemies, but the Japanese and Chinese perceive the dragon and tiger as well-matched rivals. The dragon symbolizes everything from imperial power and water to China itself, whereas the tiger represents earthly matter and India, also inspiring scads of expressions about risks. Meanwhile, both cranes and turtles are emblems of longevity and good fortune. Moreover, the crane appears in proverbs, paintings, origami, ceramics, fabrics, poems, Noh dramas, songs, folktales, and even math problems, as well as figurative expressions, whereas the turtle symbolizes slowness, wisdom, experience, divisiveness, ugliness, and sexual attractiveness.
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Dying of Embarrassment
肩 shoulder
恥 shame
羞 ashamed
膝 knee
42
The longer you live, the more shame you suffer, says an old Japanese proverb. Shame can involve feeling exposed. The Japanese experience deep embarrassment about misusing words (and kanji!). The exposure might be literal; essays 1572 and 2031 mention how evacuees feel when fleeing a disaster naked. Indeed, the body provokes much shame; essay 1572 features a shocking quiz with恥 (shame) in five genital-related words. Shame has its own body language. Essay 1212 on 肩 presents a common term related to shoulder position and shame, and essay 2100 discusses shame-filled, head-on-the-floor prostration when apologizing for a grave error.
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Pride: Positive or Poisonous
誇 boast
慢 ridicule
玩 toy
傲 treat someone
41
These essays are practically meant to be read together. Sizable passages in essays 1233, 1837, and 2009 differentiate 誇, 慢, and 傲. The bundle presents positive types of pride, including healthy self-regard, restaurant signs about proudly serving noodles, and pride in one's college, hometown, historical buildings, or advances such as the Shinkansen. The collection also shows how the Japanese condemn arrogance, boasting, hyperbole, and ostentation, an aversion originating with a Buddhist view of pride as a "poison." Because 玩 has to do with toying with others, essay 1982 also touches on arrogance multiple times.
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Skin Deep
潤 moisten
燥 dry up
肌 skin
膚 skin
40
A Facebook friend posted pictures of once-gorgeous actors with wrinkled, dried-up faces. His caption: "Moisturize, people!" These essays convey the same message. The ones on 肌　and 膚 provide a primer on skin, including terms for dermatological problems, ads for onsen water that exfoliates skin, a photo of skin-friendly soap, and phrases likening skin to mochi, snow, and eggs. Essay 1757 also cites Confucian ideals about not damaging skin, and an essay 1704 quiz asks what color Japanese people think they are. Essay 1528 focuses on dehydration, including that of skin. And essay 1379 showcases marketing copy about moisturizers.
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Bugging Out
蚊 mosquito
蛍 firefly
昆 descendants
蜂 bee
39
As these essays show, people's relationships to insects run the gamut. Mosquitoes annoy, bite, or even kill us, so we repel them. The beloved firefly has inspired poems, songs, paintings, tourism, and firefly parks. Bugs play key roles in "The Tale of Genji," famous manga, one film, and photographs. Insects also serve as food; the Japanese eat locusts and bee larvae, as well as honey (which can become wine and medicine). But bee stings hurt badly, so there's that! Finally, insects have given rise to fun Japanese figurative language about ephemerality, hard work, and much more, as many quizzes reveal!
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The Artistic Mindset
彩 to color
匠 artisan
彫 sculpt
緻 detailed
38
This bundle is a masterclass in the artistic mindset. Essay 1290 celebrates vibrant colors, whether for painting with watercolors or oil or for designing spaces. Essay 1388 explores traditional craftsmanship, particularly highlighting the beauty of Japanese carpentry and the rigors of apprenticing for ages to master a skill. Essay 1590 covers several fields, from carving wood, making sculptures, and engraving metal to creating traditional tattoos that form a complete picture over much of the body. Essay 2065 extols the virtues of extreme detail, especially in doing elaborate drawings that bring dreamworlds to life with extraordinary realism.
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Inkblots
朱 scarlet
跡 trace
墨 black ink
痕 scar
37
Japanese calligraphy reflects the state of an artist's mind, spirit, and body. In one novel, a character studies her father's brushstrokes to assess his health. Applying ink to paper is soulful; one leaves behind traces of oneself that way. As essay 1821 shows, Zen has influenced sumi-e (ink paintings). That essay examines calligraphy and sumi-e from all angles, as do the other essays to some degree, including the way to liquefy inksticks (a meditative practice), the red marks with which teachers correct calligraphy, the vermilion stamps that serve as calligraphers' signatures, and the significance of bold strokes versus diluted ones.
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The Meanings of Manga
娯 pleasure
撤 withdraw
漫 random
勃 sudden
36
This bundle provides a solid introduction to manga, especially essay 1838, with its definitions of "manga" and related vocabulary, a manga history, a list of manga genres, and explanations of the symbols used in these cartoons. Essay 1238 supplies essential context about the history of amusement in Japan, including a manga magazine. Essay 2113 discusses the sudden rise of the manga and anime subcultures in the 1970s, which led to classic works inspired by Osamu Tezuka, who started the so-called manga revolution. And essay 1630 showcases Shigeru Mizuki's epic manga about World War II, with translations of four panels.
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Fear Factor
虞 concern
恐 fear
怖 frightening
惧 fear
35
Do these kanji frighten you? After all, they overlap considerably. You could render おそれる (to fear) with all four characters, and people often use 恐 and 怖 interchangeably to convey myriad fears (e.g., of business risks). But this bundle makes important distinctions. You'll see that 恐 connects to respect (e.g., for Nature's power), politeness, financial crises, and uncertainty about the future. The essay on 怖 explores uniquely Japanese phobias. Meanwhile, 虞 expresses concern and caution in the face of threats. And 惧 mainly relates to endangered entities (species, occupations, or railways) and the fear of extinction.
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A Taste of Transience
浮 float
泡 bubble
夢 dream
露 public; dew
34
Buddhist views of impermanence once influenced words for "fragile life," words that include 浮. Later, a fear of death inspired living hedonistically in the "floating world"; related terms again feature 浮 (as "transient"). Because bubbles vanish without a trace, 泡 figures into words for "short-lived company" and "fringe candidate" (one who quickly disappears). Dreams (夢) slip away every day, and several words for "fleeting" combine 泡 and 夢. Similarly, dew evaporates, and one famous poem likens the poet's vanishing life to dew (露) and compares his world to a dream (夢).
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The Inevitable Storm
嵐 storm
稲 rice plant
梅 plum tree
雷 thunder
33
Storms produce down-to-earth concerns about when the rain will begin, the damage to crops and buildings, and more. Such grounded thinking permeates these essays. But they also include wildly fanciful beliefs: lightning impregnates rice, thunder is a scolding from a god who might wield a hammer, and a chant or a charm affords protection from lightning. Weather inspires copious metaphors, such as "political storm," "tempest in a teapot," and "thunderous applause." There's also 花に嵐 (inevitable storm that blossoms have to face); literally, it knocks off blossoms, and figuratively it means that one is bound to encounter difficulties.
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Reading the Face
唇 lips
顎 chin
眉 eyebrow
頬 cheek
32
From the eyebrows to the lips, we express emotions nonverbally by twitching parts of the face, blushing, or smiling. Learn how the Japanese use 眉 (eyebrow) in terms related to worry, melancholy, relief, and disapproval. Read about charming perceptions of facial structure; an eyebrow is an "eave" for the eye, and other parts are metaphorical girders, vehicles, and gates. Discover rich idioms, such as "scorched eyebrows" and "fox pups have white cheeks," and see how the Japanese associate certain facial parts with exhaustion, delicious food, ordering others around, travel expenses, and long-term financial considerations.
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Scents and Sensibility
香 fragrance
臭 foul-smelling
嗅 sniff
匂 fragrant
31
These four kanji are practically symbiotic. The verb 嗅ぐ takes 香り, 臭い, and 匂い as direct objects. Although people usually reserve 臭い for stenches and 匂い for fragrances, these words (both におい) can be interchangeable. Each could convey that something "smacks of" a quality. Whereas 臭い can mean that a man looks suspicious, as if he "smells of" a crime, 嗅 enables people to sniff out crimes! Three of the kanji have ties to religion, and with 香 as "incense," that connection is strong.
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Limbs and Joints
肩 shoulder
肢 limb
膝 knee
肘 elbow
30
Characters for body parts often feature 月 radicals. That's true here, but these four kanji have much more in common. First, limbs and joints are prone to soreness, injury, and disability, requiring various healing modalities. Second, the shoulders, elbows, and knees can show how we're relating to other people; the Japanese associate these body parts with lending support, sitting close for an intimate talk, and reining in someone's behavior. Those body parts also play roles in martial arts and sumo. Finally, one's stance can express seriousness, tension, pride, shame, discouragement, respect, remorse, or a lack of reservedness.
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Droplets of Moisture
霜 frost
曇 cloudy
霧 fog
露 public; dew
29
A book title mentioned in the 霧 essay collectively refers to clouds, rain, and fog by citing their common "rain" radical. That unites the kanji in this bundle, as well. All four essays explore the realities of damp weather, as when fog grounds planes, frost damages crops, and people seek shelter from the elements. Because of such challenges, these characters make great metaphors. The Japanese associate 霜 with hardship; 曇 with life's ups and downs, as well as gloomy feelings; 霧 with mental fog; and 露 with transience. Because 露 symbolizes vanishing realities, that kanji in particular has inspired poetry.
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Pleasure and Leisure
悦 ecstasy
暇 free time
娯 pleasure
愉 pleasure
28
These four essays provide the key to happiness. With 暇 one has free time, whether a vacation, a leave of absence, or simply time to kill. Then 娯 provides destinations for having structured fun, including amusement parks, theaters, or venues for karaoke, pachinko, or horse races. With 愉 people relax into a carefree sense of fun and pleasure. And with 悦 one can experience joy and delight in a variety of things, including hospitality, a sense of progress, food, artistic masterpieces, a college acceptance, religious rapture, and sexual ecstasy.
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Central Parts
軸 axis
髄 marrow
枢 hinge
芯 core
27
All four kanji represent centers—with slight differences. An axis (軸) lies inside something (a planet, feather, or scroll), as does marrow (髄) and a core (髄 or 芯). Other objects (e.g., doors) revolve around pivots (枢). The body contains specialized brain centers, as well as an axis, marrow, and a core. More abstractly, an axis occupies the center of one's existence. Also, one feels things to the core, the essence of an activity (e.g., aikido) is vitally important, and 枢 helps symbolize the center of the economy, of power, and more.
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Crossing Waterways
越 surpass
沖 offshore
渡 cross
遡 go upstream
26
A waterway poses challenges to travelers, but such obstacles are surmountable, as all these kanji demonstrate. Both 越 and 渡involve crossing rivers via bridges or boats, and 越 is in a town name that actually means "crossing the river." As 沖 often pertains to fishing some distance from the shore, crossing that water reaps benefits. With 遡 one goes upstream, either along the shore on foot or in the river itself if one is a salmon looking to spawn. The carp, which famously swims upstream, symbolizes courage, spirit, and achievement for conquering the challenges of a waterway.
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Following Whims
随 follow
漂 drift about
浮 float
浪 wandering
25
All who wander are not lost, at least not with this collection of kanji. They largely represent the happiest forms of aimless wandering, hedonism, freedom from worldly concerns, and wanderlust. Yes, this can veer off into extramarital affairs, restlessness, vagrancy, and unemployment. One kanji figures into a term for "failed college applicant." But another relates to essay writing as "following the pen" wherever it wishes. And two essays in this bundle touch on the Sanka, Japan's homegrown nomads and original hippies. Let freedom ring!
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Pottery Is Paramount
皿 dish
陶 pottery
鉢 bowl
丼 bowl of food
24
In Japanese cuisine, beautiful presentations are paramount, beginning with the pottery. Essay 1650 explains the philosophy of such aesthetics, including the Zen idea that the transformation of clay into teacups is a religion itself. The other three essays provide vocabulary that distinguishes between vessels (dishes, bowls, and cups) of different sizes and depths. Those essays explore the terms donburi, hibachi (not what you might think!), suribachi, and hachimaki. Moreover, those sources show how, from a kanji perspective, the crowns of our heads are upside-down pots or flat dishes, also explaining how one might eat a "big serving of the head"!
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Rate of Change
徐 gradually
漸 gradually
頓 suddenly
勃 sudden
23
This bundle presents life at a range of speeds. Two essays focus on gradual change—for better and for worse—in everything from health to the economy. By contrast, three essays touch on sudden developments, including the outbreak of war, a surge of energy, the rapid rise of subcultures, getting an erection, standing up abruptly, bursts of wit, quick enlightenment, and sudden death. Tying these extremes together, 頓 runs the gamut; when it means "to stay in place" or "stop," this kanji involves setbacks and stalemates, but as "sudden" it pops up in words for wild, crazy behavior.
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Booze 101
酵 ferment
醸 brew
酔 drunk
酎 sake
22
The 酔 essay examines intoxication from every angle, including great Osaka bars, studies of drunkards, tipsy cats and wasted elephants, and hangover prevention. The other three essays detail the processes of making saké, shochu, and beer, exploring all of the following (and much more): the ingredients in alcohol, the intricacies of fermentation, modes of distilling and brewing, malt, an old method of making saké by chewing rice and spitting it out, saké as a living entity, the image problem saké once had in Japan, alcoholic offerings to gods, the health benefits of shochu, and using alcohol to make food.
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Do or Die
執 hold on to
遂 accomplish
徹 go through
粘 sticky
21
Tenacity binds these essays together, sometimes as the secondary sense of characters. The literal stickiness of 粘 (e.g., natto, clay, and snail mucus!) inspired the figurative meaning "tenacity," as in "stick-to-it-ness." Mainly, 執 involves performing tasks (often by wielding long, thin objects such as pens or batons), but as "tenacity" this kanji drives words about persistence, obsession, and grudges. The whole bundle showcases adherence to beliefs and goals, doing things thoroughly, and seeing things through (e.g., athletes who accomplish greatness). These essays also depict the dark side of such devotion—namely, obstinacy, self-centeredness, discord, monomania, ill health, and more.
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Concepts of Time
旬 season
昔 ancient; old
暦 calendar
頃 time
20
The sun, moon, and seasons are natural clocks, but time is also a construct. As this bundle shows, the Japanese divide time into units of 10 (days, months, or years), also perceiving 72 microseasons. Japan has observed lunar, solar, and other calendars, plus 60-year cycles and multiple era systems. For all this precision, people approximate time with "the good old days," "once upon a time," or "around the time." They also have a particular take on time when saying that a food is in season, "at your age," and "It's a great time" for a certain activity.
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Lofty Views
岳 mountain peak
峠 ridge
峰 summit
麓 foot of a mountain
19
Sometimes a mountain isn't just a mountain. See how the Japanese associate certain parts with the peak of a crisis or with a risky situation that leaves no room for error. Find out how most of the population reveres mountains as sacred and how they act on these beliefs. Discover a legendary rivalry between two great mountains, one that proved transformative for both. Learn how particular perceptions of mountains have inspired famous artwork. And see how, to the Japanese, the foot of a mountain appears to be the hem of its "skirt"!
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Intricate Systems
繭 cocoon
桑 mulberry
巣 nest
蜂 bee
18
These essays detail complex, interdependent systems, both natural and economic. Sericulture was once so essential to Japan's economy that mulberry (桑) fields are marked on maps, as silkworms eat only mulberry leaves. These animals laboriously spin cocoons (繭), producing filaments that become silk kimonos after many financial transactions. Similarly, Japanese apiarists oversee busy bees (蜂) that make not only hives and honeycomb but also honey to be sold and consumed in multiple ways. Animals build intricate nests and webs (both 巣) that inspire terrific Japanese figurative language. People even eat some nests!
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Windows of Time
午 noon
更 again
宵 early evening
旦 dawn
17
Rock around the clock with these four kanji. They might seem to represent mere points in a 24-hour stretch. But as 午 appears in terms for "morning" and "afternoon," it applies to a large chunk of the day. Then 宵 takes over, generally meaning "early evening" but also sometimes "evening." We find 更 in terms for the ancient Chinese system of night watches that ran from about 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. Night ends with dawn (旦). These multipurpose kanji also symbolize parts of the year, from New Year's (旦) to late autumn (更).
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Corduroy Landforms
畝 furrow
堤 embankment
畔 paddy ridge
堀 ditch
16
The Japanese have long corrugated the earth, mounding and trenching it with grand plans. Embankments (堤) rise above rivers to prevent floods. Dug-out moats (堀), whether empty or full, contrast with higher bordering land for castle defense. An agricultural field features ridges (畝) and furrows, with plants in raised areas, irrigation in "valleys." A footpath is just high enough above a flooded rice field (畔) that 畔also represents "causeway, a raised road across low or wet ground." See how the Japanese have gone to great lengths to create "corduroy" landforms.
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In Hot Water
栓 plug
槽 vat
岡 hill
呂 spine; ロ sound
15
Bathing in Japan could mean communing with nature, following rigid procedures in a bathhouse, or soaking in water that other relatives have used. These essays cover all situations. They introduce practical terms for "bathtub," "turning on a faucet," and "overflowing." You'll learn where people bathed before owning bathtubs. You'll see how, in bathhouses, smaller, raised pools and larger pools below floor level respectively represent land and sea. You'll learn which "bathtub" term the Japanese associate with empty basins versus full pools at hot springs. And you'll discover how bathing has connected to religion, family bonds, prostitution, and a famous thief.
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Ups and Downs
凹 concave
丘 hill
凸 convex
岡 hill
14
This essay collection about hilly topography focuses in part on the physical world: bumpy surfaces, volcanic cones, lens curvature, embossed paper, and especially flat abs! But such topics are also rich in figurative possibilities. One essay first examines objects that stand apart from the rest, then demonstrates how being separated from the main action affords a clear vantage point. That essay also touches on unrequited love. Another illuminates how it feels to be overwhelmed and slightly depressed. A third addresses the ups and downs of life. Uneven ground proves to be fertile!
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Fruit Basket
桑 mulberry
桃 peach tree
梅 plum tree
柿 persimmon
13
This "fruit basket" has caused creative juices to flow in Japan. The trees and fruits connect to colors, haiku, proverbs, myths, folktales, and wordplay. People associate peaches with Shangri-la and instability, Japanese apricots with happiness, and persimmons with Mount Fuji and writing brushes. The Japanese fully use certain trees—the wood in furniture, the leaves in tea (and even in sushi!), and fruit, roots, and bark in dye, paper, and Traditional Chinese Medicine. The juice goes into drinks, alcoholic or tame. And the Japanese and ancient Chinese have viewed these fruits and their trees as warding off misfortune!
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Favorite Foods
芋 potato
寿 longevity
麺 noodles
拉 kidnap
12
Sushi comes in infinite varieties (as the 寿 essay shows). Noodles can take many forms and be made from a multitude of flours (as the 麺 and 拉 essays demonstrate). Sweet potatoes differ by region (as the 芋 essay makes clear). In Japan these favorite foods inspire not only cravings but also deep passion, nostalgia, arguments over origin stories, and hairsplitting about the preparation methods particular to certain locales. People also have strong beliefs about these dishes, eating certain noodles for longevity, treating sweet potatoes as guilty pleasures, and regarding uncut sushi as lucky.
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Flower Power
菊 chrysanthemum
丹 rust; vermilion
梗 blockage
藤 wisteria
11
In this bouquet of essays, flowers represent far more than beauty. Those showcased here (including the Chinese bellflower of the 梗 essay and the tree peony of the 丹 essay) symbolize everything from the emperor, nobility, and wealth to honor, love, and feminine beauty. The Japanese also associate some of these flowers with hardiness or with grief. People celebrate them in family crests, at festivals, with dolls, and in a range of artistic creations. Supposedly, the flowers even confer health benefits—curing headaches, cooling and invigorating the blood, and removing phlegm.
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Be Square
升 measure
井 well
坪 tsubo
斗 Big Dipper
10
As these essays amply demonstrate, squares delineate much of life in Japan. Two tatami mats placed side by side form a square, and those squares (坪) constitute units of measurements, whether of floor space or land area. Ceilings traditionally have lattice patterns. Students write in squares on grid paper. People drink saké from wooden masu boxes. Japanese wells are typically square, and the shape of a well ledge has inspired all kinds of hashtag-like designs from famous corporate logos to family crests to fabric patterns. These essays will have you thinking inside the box!
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Making the Rounds
傘 umbrella
浜 seashore
鎌 sickle
梨 Japanese pear tree
09
All four kanji symbolize curving objects that have inspired fascinating creative leaps. Umbrella designs made people connect 傘 with domes, mushroom caps, snake eyes, and swords. Land and sea meet in a curvy line, so 浜 helps represent "wavy design" in everything from raked gravel to furniture to dog dishes. As "sickle," 鎌 drives words for crescent-shaped things (e.g., hamachi kama, curving ridges, a dolphin fin, and a dental tool). And the pear influences terms for pear-shaped islands and certain rounded body parts.
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What Used to Exist
掘 dig
跡 trace
痕 scar
踪 footprint
08
All four essays involve digging into matters, examining physical evidence of the past (including ruins, footprints, or even handwriting), making discoveries, drawing conclusions about what happened, and then taking action. That could mean closing the case on a crime, declaring a missing person legally dead and doling out inheritance money, reconstructing a historic site, or pursuing someone who has disappeared. All four essays reinforce the idea that although a living creature can vanish or die ridiculously fast, we all leave marks on this world.
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Power Centers
京 capital
鎌 sickle
畿 city
阪 slope
07
Kyoto, Tokyo, Kamakura, Nara, and Osaka have, at various times, been the centers of political power in Japan, three serving as national capitals. These cities teem with history, some of it violent, thanks to battles for ascendancy centuries ago. Those vying for power even turned several temples into political strongholds. Nowadays, the cities pride themselves on culinary specialties, striking architecture, regional products, and prominent temples (one with a gigantic Buddha statue). Proverbs and stereotypes reveal the distinctive personality traits associated with each location.
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Prefectures Preserving the Past
媛 beautiful woman
埼 cape
栃 horse chestnut
阜 hill
06
All four kanji pop up in prefecture names, so these essays take us through four prefectures with scenic mountains, castles, connections to famous writers, and charming old architecture. Find out which city is known as Little Edo for its historic buildings and its traditional-looking warehouses, and see which location is known as Little Kyoto because it has retained its original appearance. Learn where traditional A-frame-like houses dominate the landscape, and discover a cultural theme park that re-creates the Edo era.
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Holding Space: Containers and Lids
缶 can
鉢 bowl
瓶 flower pot
蓋 lid
05
As all four kanji represent containers or lids, the essays abound in canning and bottling goods, whether jam or tuna, beer or shochu. Food preparation takes center stage, from grinding spices and kneading dough to cooking mushrooms in a teapot. Things heat up with hibachis, kettles, steam boilers, and the "cauldron of hell"! More unexpectedly, Buddhism keeps popping up, what with ritual vessels and mendicant priests who carry begging bowls. Body parts serve as metaphorical lids and pots. And with more figurative leaps we touch on opening the lid of one's mind and bottling youth.
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Steeped in Saké
酌 bartending
升 measure
斗 Big Dipper
杯 cup
04
Just one kanji in this bundle includes a "saké" radical (oddly enough!), but saké flows liberally through all four essays, which collectively soak you in Japanese drinking culture. They showcase containers of alcohol, from tiny "choko" cups and wooden "masu" boxes to barrels of saké, and ways of measuring these liquids. The essays focus on the role of alcohol in celebrations (especially at the new year) and in rituals to honor the dead. Japanese expectations around drinking become clear, including the importance of refilling another person's glass and even the ritual of exchanging cups. Kanpai!
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Sounds, Sanskrit, and Statues
刹 temple
那 what?
奈 Nara
弥 increasingly
03
To represent certain sounds with kanji, ancient people had particular go-to characters. Thus, these four kanji contribute yomi (rather than meaning) to many place names (including Nara, Kanagawa, Naha, a term for "China," and some mythical locations) and to plenty of religious words transliterated from Sanskrit. Buddhism takes center stage in all four essays, two of which contrast massive statues of Vairocana Buddha and Amitabha Buddha in Nara and Kamakura respectively. Surprisingly, three kinds of noodles pop up along the way!
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I’ve Got the Blues
紺 navy blue
紫 purple
藍 indigo
瑠 lapis lazuli
02
A deep dive into dyeing gives you the blues in the best of ways, also illuminating the clothing of commoners versus that of the elites and priests. Speaking of priests, three of the essays connect to Buddhism. More unexpectedly, sea creatures, achievement medals, the colors of the rainbow, birds, gems, and vegetables all prove to be common ground. See which color the Japanese associate with uniforms and which one they think of when seeing soy sauce and cigarette smoke.
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Color Me Surprised!
褐 brown
彩 to color
朱 scarlet
丹 rust; vermilion
01
Nature abounds in these essays, including blood-red sunsets, brightly colored birds, and fall foliage. Logically, art forms such as painting, calligraphy, and lacquering also emerge as central themes. But who would have guessed that color ties in with many body parts: blood, the eye, lips, skin, cells, and even a point where energy is concentrated. Mental states also matter here with faces flushed with rage, diligence in work, depression and lifelessness, and vitality. Moreover, multiple essays touch on religion, minerals (including one ingested for longevity), and old forms of currency (one of which was chocolate!).
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