Call Me Grandfather

Call Me Grandfather

Call Me Grandfather

Call Me Grandfather

In the case of one’s first grandchild, don’t call me jijī—just call me grandfather.

Which leads to a pronunciation conversation for those whose mother tongue is Japanese.

Mother Tongue and Identity - Land Of The Rising Son

English is the global communication tool and its pronunciation challenges will torment the Japanese until the end of time.

Most English pronunciation contains sounds which are aurally alien to native Japanese speakers.

Having grandson use grandfather will act as a permanent pronunciation exercise to haunt him throughout his life.

Along with the extremely vexing ‘r’ pronunciation at the beginning of grandfather it is also part of the double-consonant ‘gr.’

Moreover, the nasty ‘ther’ combination finishing off this pronunciation nightmare provides even more distress for Japanese speakers of English.

Language notes:
(1) Double-consonants do not exist in Japanese.
(2) For the Japanese, the most challenging pronunciation is ‘r’ and ‘l’ and ‘b’ and ‘v.’
(3) The Japanese language contains subtle intonation and complex ideograms—the torment of all Japanese learners.

常用漢字表 - Land Of The Rising Son

On the island nation of Japan, one’s grandson may be referred to as “half.”

This seems to be controversial terminology among the Occidental Anglophone, now shortened to “Occixies,” but is in fact how the Japanese innocuously referred to mixed citizens.

Growing up in the countryside of Japan, one’s own daughter, mother of grandson, was also referred to as “half.”

Sarah - Avatar - Land Of The Rising SonThis is where the contemporary and more appropriate term “hybrid” has now become a part of the Japanese lexicon, replacing the archaic “half” when referring to people of mixed race in Japan.

One can not help but consider this timely arrival of grandson to be of profound serendipity.

For this is the very year where one’s own father became god, just one month before the birth of grandson.

Now the spirit of dearly departed great-grandfather has incarnated into his own great-grandson embodying our clan’s DNA.

His great-grandfather exemplified the Milk of Human Kindness to his dying day, and endeared by all those fortunate enough to have met him.

Lawrence Joseph Filiatrault - June 15, 1935 ~ April 5, 2022 - Land Of The Rising Son

The burning question for all to consider in these extraordinary times is:

What kind of world will be left for the descendants of our Sun?

The fact of the matter remains true—all children are born pure and unadulterated.

innocence of a child - Land Of The Rising Son

It is only with the initiation of cultural and societal protocols do children internalize the notion of race and religion.

Unfortunately, this is accompanied with prejudice that come with seeing other’s differences instead of similarities, in particularly concerning religion.

For the sake of our world and future of our descendants, our children and grandchildren must have a holistic understanding of their own cultural touchstones.

Asian Values- Filial Piety - Land Of The Rising Son

They must also recognize the significance of other cultures and the unique protocols, narratives, and mythology contained within.

The Japanese have always had the notion of take things from other cultures and molding the object of their affection into something distinctively Japanese.

Now grandson has the opportunity to build a miraculous community of likeminded people from around the globe thanks to the miracle of technology.

The leaders of the future must guide us into our common humanity, representing all diverse cultural characteristics from around the globe, making our unified whole so much more than its frail parts.

Ogen-kun kore kara yoroshiku onegai shinagara, call me grandfather.

Gravy ‘n’ Rice

Gravy ‘n’ Rice

Gravy ‘n’ Rice

It is always a joyful occasion when introducing the Japanese to the miracle of gravy ’n’ rice.

This remarkable meeting of two culinary culture touchstones fuses these staples into a flavour unlike any other.

For certain the Japanese hold rice in the highest esteem in connection with the cultural significance of this sacred grain, and the evolution of Japanese civilization.

Rice Fields in Japan - Land Of The Rising Son

Of equal significant meaning, but of less cultural magnitude are the humble drippings of pork roast, which are then turned into gravy.

Indeed one’s beloved father, in the French Canadian tradition was deeply fond of porcine and the versatility of this staple.

In fact, he loved pork so much, he would save bacon grease to add to his world famous pancakes.

Save Your Bacon Grease - Land Of The Rising Son

Pancakes Maple Syrup Bacon - Land Of The Rising Son

Not only were his pancakes excellent, he was also fond of (deep) frying eggs in bacon grease as well, something his spouse put a stop to later in his long life (June 15, 1935 ~ April 5, 2022).

Eggs Cooked in Pork Grease - Land Of The Rising Son

Historically speaking, the Japanese do not roast whole pieces of meat or birds as Japanese kitchens are rarely equipped with a proper oven.

Indeed, the average Japanese housewife’s need for an over, or the concept of roasting something whole lies outside Japanese culinary protocol.

The only thing the Japanese housewife is roasting is a piece of fish, one for each member of the family in the ubiquitous fish grill, which is present in all Japanese kitchens.

パロマコンロ - Land Of The Rising Son

魚頭焼き- Land Of The Rising Son

It is because the Japanese do not have a concept of authentic gravy is exactly where the magic lies.

There are pretenders to the throne of sauces, such as the popular yet mundane demi glace, or other types of Japanese sauces (tare), which although delicious, can not match the heavenly combination of gravy ’n’ rice.

焼肉のタレ- Land Of The Rising Son

Eating gravy ’n’ rice for the first time is an enlightening experience for any Japanese person lucky enough to be offered gravy ’n’ rice and may only happen once in a lifetime.

One could say the meeting of sacred Japanese polished rice, and pork grease gravy, which is prepared by gently folding flour into pork fat while mixing the secret flavoured water, containing the hidden mystery of our clan’s gravy recipe invoking a somewhat religious experience.

Enlightenment- Land Of The Rising Son

It’s almost as if introducing the Japanese to gravy ’n’ rice created a fusion of Japanese and Occidental culinary civilization, in the unlikely combination of gravy ’n’ rice.

Adding authenticity to the complete meal entails roasted potatoes slathered with New Zealand grass-fed butter and a generous helping of fresh Aomori garlic.

Don’ forget a health drizzle of Australian macadamia nut oil, and a sprinkle of herbs and spices, which only adds to the perplexing menagerie of flavours one has coaxed out of the lowly potato.

Gravy can be successfully made from may different kind of fat drippings.

A traditional turkey dinner often related to Occidental holidays is a case in point.

For certain, there is a vegan recipe for gravy one can smear all over veggies and indeed even fruit until the heart has become content.

Here one would only need to substitute a vegetable soup cube and other magic (salts, herbs, spices) available to those who chose not to eat the carcasses of dead animals.

Perhaps one can consider gravy ’n’ rice as a metaphor for foundation of a wonderful life.

The foundation of life is rice, and topped with gravy, adds variety and spice to life .

Rice Stalk - Land Of The Rising Son

Be Japanese

Be Japanese

Be Japanese

Be Japanese

The Japanese are born and raised in an ancient culture based upon kata.

Under strict conditioning of kata over centuries, each Japanese naturally developed a sixth sense as to aesthetics in a strictly Japanese Way.

Form, order, and process are the three pillars of Japanese society and the foundations of their ancient system.

From centuries past, the Japanese were acutely aware of the aesthetics of design, extending into the sublime Japanese societal protocol of form, order, and process, which are critical for a successful life in Japanese society.

Japanese Rock Garden - Land Of The Rising Son

Island people are isolated by circumstance and over centuries of living within the kata system the Japanese were rarely exposed to other customs, behaviour, or habits.

This naturally led the Japanese to become acutely sensitive to any deviation from the Japanese way of doing things.

Even with the introduction of industrialism into Japan in the 1860s, the disappearance of the samurai class did not end Japanese kata culture.Industrial Japan - Land Of The Rising Son

The way of kata has been carefully nurtured and thoroughly curated over millennia and is an ingrained part of the Japanese spirit reaching into the very fiber of what it means to be Japanese.

The core philosophy of shi kata (way of doing) is evolutionary, and an integral part of the Japanese psyche.

The way of kata is expressed not only inside the nooks and crannies of the Japanese language, but is also deeply embedded in the habits and customs of the Japanese.

Japan’s ancient kata culture continued to evolve after the downfall of the Tokugawa Shogunate as the unwritten protocol of the kata system were naturally infused into the industrialized economy of Japan starting from the Meiji restoration in 1867.

Those who did not conform to the traditional way of kata in both attitudes and behaviour were rejected by the higher levels of the evolving Japanese system.

Companies and organizations weeded out candidates who did not conform to the national mold.

Japanese fans cleaning up the stadium after soccer match - Land Of The Rising Son

One can still observe meticulously structured elementary and secondary education with very specific kata this very day in modern Japan.

From the start of Japanese compulsory education, protocol such as identical uniforms and bowing, strict routines for classroom performance, and serving fellow pupil’s lunch are all protocol of societal form, order, and process.

The system is designed to mold its citizens into a homogenized product of Japanese culture, shaping them into what it means to be Japanese.

The overall result of all Japanese being subjected to this strict molding process during childhood and their teen years was a strengthening of a common set of “Japanese” characteristics.

Bowing in Japan society protocol Form Order Process - Land Of The Rising Son

These unified characteristics play an innovative role in Japan, and even more so now, as the kata system applies to everyone, not just those of the privileged class.

One could almost say the Japanese are forerunners of the equality and diversity protocol due to the Meiji restoration, and those from any class who could conform to these strict societal edicts could be successful inside the “System.”

These characteristics included:

1. A compulsion to work together in clearly defined exclusive groups.

2. A fierce loyalty to their group and to Japan.

3. A highly developed sense of balance, form, order, and process.

4. An intuitive feel for precision, accuracy, and correctness.

5. Extraordinary manual dexterity and the ability to work especially well on small sophisticated things.

6. A predisposition to apply themselves with single-minded dedication to the task at hand.

7. An overwhelming desire to excel and to be as good as or better than anyone else.

Discipline, patience and loyalty - Land Of The Rising Son

On an important cultural note: Even if one excels, it is imperative to downplay the talent behind a mask of humility in order to maintain internal harmony.

Ponder this reality: An entire nation physically and mentally conditioned in form, order, and process have a significant advantage over people who are less trained, and work from a state of individualistic egotism as opposed to Japanese groupism and community.

Admirable qualities are also accompanied by negative characteristics as well.

1. Inability to think and act independently.

2. Stereotyping everyone in terms of family, education, university, company size, and position.

3. A tendency to do nothing rather than cause any kind of friction.

4. A tendency to maintain the status quo until pressured from the outside.

5. Inability to identify themselves with other nationalities and races.

The foundation of Japanese society is firmly rooted in kata culture, and embodies the spirit of form, order, and process of the Japanese Way.

Ise Jingu Banner - Land Of The Rising Son

 

Godless

Godless

Godless

The ancient traditional Japanese values and behaviour differ fundamentally from those raised in Christianized cultures in the most extraordinary Ways.

In 1543, a Chinese junk with several Portuguese traders was blown off course into Japan.

Here the first ever recorded encounter between Westerners and Japanese occurred on Tanegashima off the coast of Kyushu.

種子島 地図 - Land Of The Rising SonIt was here the Japanese were first introduced to firearms, gun powder, and tobacco.

Indeed the lord of the island was so impressed with the Portuguese matchlock instrument of death, he ordered his craftsmen to set up a foundry and duplicate them.

Here is evidence of the innate Japanese trait of taking novel items from other worlds and crafting the object into something uniquely Japanese, and more often than not, superior in all aspects.

Japanese Tanegashima Matchlock Arquebus - Land Of The Rising Son

In spite of these brilliant displays of craftsmanship and understanding, in the eyes of the Westerners, the Japanese had no sense of morality or ethics.

Imagine the shock of the first puritanical foreign missionaries arriving in Japan, in what Koizumi Yakumo describes as “fairyland.”

The attitude and behaviour of the Japanese in most practical matters, including those of a sexual nature, are in fundamental alignment with nature, as is indicative of an agrarian island nation.

Japan Satellite Map - Land of The Rising Son

Even today the Japanese do not regard nudity or sex as sinful or something shameful.

This was made evidently clear as one enjoyed a leisurely outdoor bath in one of the ubiquitous hot springs sprinkled throughout Japan.

The cleaning lady was chatting with stark-naked male patron in what could only be described as a surreal scene in a peculiar movie.

She was also kind enough to mention the lovely day while checking the bath temperature, as one was soaking solo in the outdoor taru buro.

外たる風呂 - Land Of The Rising Son

No issues, as one was able to overcome the Occidental Christian shame and punishment protocol concerning nudity, which also happens to be a reflection of the beauty and divinity of our common body and soul.

These criticisms of the Japanese was to continue for the next 400 years.

Exposed here is the Occidental Christians protocol of projecting superiority over Japanese culture and way of life, where they advocates detachment from the natural ebb and flow of life, and one’s own ancestors.

A more practical understanding of the difference between Western and Japanese morality only really came to light the mid-1900s

The difference between these two distinct minds is directly bound to the religious systems dominating the two cultures.

Keep in mind, the Japanese are not, and never have been “religious” in the mythological sense of Christianity.

In the West, Christianity and its dogma is based upon the absolute principles of good and bad, right and wrong.

Good and Evil - Land Of The Rising Son

This is the dominant philosophical and spiritual force of Christianity which embodies a detailed code of thought and behaviour that was drummed into Westerners from childhood.

Even all the more unpleasantly so, every thought and action was prescribed and judged by a single, all-powerful, all-knowing god.

The Holy Trinity - Land Of The Rising Son

Westerners were conditioned to pass judgment on every aspect of life, labeling every thought and action as good or bad, moral or immoral.

All precepts pertaining to life were expressed in these absolute terms.

These canons of Mammon were created to serve generation after generation of morally bankrupt religious parasites sucking the spirit and soul from our common humanity.

Mammon and the Greed of the Christian Church - Land Of The Rising Son

Life in the West was ruled by absolute principles, starting with the Ten Commandments.

The indoctrinated Christian Occidentals were conditioned to suffer emotional and spiritual pain if they broke any of these commandments, even when their “misbehaviour” was unknown to others.

Catholic Nun Corporal Punishment - Land Of The Rising Son

For this omnipresent Western style god, or more realistically, what has now morphed into the “State,” wants to knows if you have been naughty or nice, and will for certain exact its pound of flesh and revenge as it sees fit, jury, judge, and executioner, all in the name of the lord.

The prime directive of Western culture was that everyone should be conditioned to automatically distinguish between right and wrong as
prescribed by the Church.

However, this has never guarantee “good” or even humane behaviour, and much of the evil committed by the West is still done in the name of religion.

Jesuit Tyranny - Land Of The Rising Son

In Japan, on the other hand, there is no single omnipotent god whatsoever.

The Japanese have their own constitution handed down from Taishi Shōtoku in 604 CE, which takes a much more pragmatic approach to carry oneself throughout life.

Taishi Shōtoku - Land Of The Rising Son

There are no religious texts teaching absolute truths.

The roots of the Japanese are in the detailed guidelines concerning form order, and process.

These are matters of social status, position, gender, relationships, and the like, and has nothing to do with religious tenets whatsoever.

Among the Japanese, ultimate power is not in the hands of a god, but in the hands of their group.

Japanese fans cleaning up the stadium after soccer match - Land Of The Rising Son

What the Japanese fear the most is the opinion and judgement of the individual member of their group, and they must do their best to conform to the majority opinion and wishes of their superiors.

In cultural context, when circumstance were peaceful, what was true and moral was determined by the majority of the group.

This consensus mentality is deeply embedded in the psyche of the Japanese, and is a fundamental protocol to which the Japanese innately adhere.

In times of conflict and chaos, when the center of power changed, truth and morality also changed to conform to the new circumstances.

In other words, the virtuous Japanese were those who stayed in harmony with their fellow group members, and obeyed all etiquette rules demanded by their social system.

土下座 - Land Of The Rising Son

There is no such thing as absolute good or bad in the psychological make up of the Japanese.

There is only the immediate needs of the many.

Whatever serves the needs of the majority is good, whatever does not is bad.

By extension of this situational morality, whatever benefits group leaders in Japanese society is also good for that group’s members.

Certainly, the first Westerners in Japan who were indoctrinated into the absolutist Christian principles of right or wrong were shocked when encountering the circumstantial and human-centred morality of the Japanese.

The foundation of the Japanese Way and our harmonious society is a divine blend of Shinto, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Tao.

神道・儒教・仏教・道教 - Land Of The Rising Son

The Japanese need not, nor want a dogmatic desert deity passing subjective eternal judgment upon the Japanese race, or the clans of Japan.

Not only are the ancestral clans watching over the decedents from the Shinto god-shelfs and Buddhist alters, the Japanese must deal with the rigours of our “tate shakai” society and must adhere to the form, order and process of their group.

Japanese Symbol of Peace and Harmony - Land Of The Rising Son

Regardless, each Japanese has plenty to live up to in this strict hierarchical society, and one can plainly see the moral code of the Japanese imbedded into the DNA.

True to their nature, the Japanese have now folded the democratic principles introduced by the United States in 1945 into their ancient moral code into what can simply now be referred to as “The System.”

香取神宮 - Land Of The Rising Son

Mark Of The Beast

Mark Of The Beast

Mark Of The Beast

Mark Of The Beast

One of the most terrifying images for Occidental children raised in Christianity is Lucifer, otherwise known as Satan.

There is nothing more horrifying to a child than the image of demons spewing sulphur upon the naked and damned burning for eternity in the fiery sulfur-pits of hell.

It is here where Beelzebub and his legions of savages and beasts take eternal pleasure in torturing the souls of those who have run afoul of the self-appointed Oracles, thus sentenced to eternal damnation.

Welcome to Hell - Land Of The Rising Son

In case one did not know, in Christian mythology the number 666 is know as “the mark of the beast.”

Indeed there are some Americans who actually think world governments are possessed by Satan.

One could say that large swaths of humanity have actually been brainwashed into the ridiculous notion of evil existing outside of oneself.

Brainwashed Zombies on the Cell Phone - Land Of The Rising Son

Christian mythology, and the bastardization thereof has become so pervasive and ingrained into the American culture that this psychological imprint of deception and lies has gone far beyond any semblance of commonsensical sanity.

Let us examine carefully why this is so, and why it can be said the Americans have clearly become unhinged from reality with a distinctly all-American staple; violence, despair, and dystopia.

America as a failed state – Land Of The Rising Son

Most of the dear readers will not know who this is, but let us shine the light of truth and identify exactly what evil looks and sounds like in its purest form.

This woman’s name is Madeleine Albright, an American diplomat who served as the United States secretary of state from 1997 to 2001.

Madeleine Albright An American Warmonger - Land Of The Rising Son

This is also a resolute nod to the American’s insufferable insistence on equality of men and women, and here we can see American women represented by a warmonger, and despicable merchant of suffering and death.

She can also be joined by Condoleezza Rice, a woman of colour and a diabolical warmonger in her own right, and this is where the Americans have fundamentally embrace diversity and inclusiveness; women too can be inherently evil.

Rice - Bush - Cheney - Land Of The Rising Son

Here is what Albright said on TV beaming out nation-wide U$A as she sang the praise of war and the death of innocent Middle Eastern children.

Interviewer: We have heard that half a million children died. That more children that died than in Hiroshima. Is the price worth it?

Hiroshima Devastated by Atomic Bomb - Land Of The Rising Son

Madeleine Albright: I think this is a very hard choice. We think the price is worth it. It is a moral question, but the moral question is even a large one. Don’t we own it to the American people and to the American military and to other countries in the region that this man not be a threat.

Just to make this clear.

The position of the American government is:

The butchering of at least 500,000 innocent Middle Eastern children by these Occidental Christians is perfectly acceptable collateral damage to feed greed, thirsty for power, and global dominion over others.

War Criminals George W Bush - Donald Rumsfeld - Dickwad Cheney - Land Of The Rising Son

A casket, a dead soldier and a lament from a war long ago - Land Of The Rising Son

Welcome to Hell Boys You Get Everything Your Deserve - Land Of The Rising Son

No Japanese person would find a statement of this nature from a government official acceptable whatsoever.

Furthermore, the wholesale slaughter of 500,000 innocent children being an “acceptable price to pay” is inconceivable and conceptually unfathomable within the Japanese language.

Angry Japanese Woman Thumbs Down - Land Of The Rising Son

Unlike those with a superiority complex and the accompanying arrogance, the Japanese are always incrementally improving (kaizen), including the evolution of the Japanese society, and the way the Japanese view the modern world.

Kaizen Philosophy - Land Of The Rising Son

Interestingly enough, the Japanese view of good and evil is much more pragmatic and realistic than most other idealogical dogma.

This is reflected in the plethora of gods in Japanese mythology, representing the entire spectrum of humanity.

善悪神 - Land Of The Rising Son

The Japanese innately understand good and evil resides in all people.

As one journeys along the Way, recognize that all answers lie within.

One must rise alone to face and slay the demons and dragons inside of us each and every day.

Welcoming the Sun with deep seated gratitude is the place to start everyday.

香取神宮 - Land Of The Rising Son

Bonus: Madeleine Albright – The American Warmonger Mama and the Serbians

Don’t go where you have killed the citizen’s brothers, sisters, and children.

 

 

Father Became God Today

Father Became God Today

Father Became God Today

Father Became God Today

June 15, 1935 ~ April 5, 2022
昭和10年6月15日 〜 令和4年4月5日

Must have been tough growing up in poverty in Northern British Columbia starting on June 15, 1935.

Quesnel - British Columbia - Land Of The Rising Son

However, one will never know, as my father brought himself out of poverty and gave his family the life he never had.

Anyone who has had the joy of fly-fishing for rainbow trout, on a pristine mountain lake, nestle into the alpine mountains of British Columbia, can understand the significance of such a deep and meaningful childhood experience.

Fly Fishing - Land Of The Rising Son

He made his way out of the darkness of poverty through the sheer force of his will and settled down in 1963, in a pristine paradise, which is referred to by the locals as “gods country.”

He provided his children and wife with extraordinary formative life experiences, all the while facing increasingly complex modern world problems as a simple man.

The primary valuable lessons instilled by father was his work ethic and how to carry oneself with integrity and honour.

Tokugawa Ieyasu - Land Of The Rising Son

At the age of twelve, one was switch off the “allowance” system, to a much more practical protocol of cleaning toilets and washing the floors of my father’s car dealership.

The wage matched the era: 1975, first wage, $.75/hour.

Canadian-25-cent-caribou-quarter-coin - Land Of The Rising Son

X 3
=75¢
= Rich!

Lowneys Cherry Blossom - Land Of The Rising Son

My father faced many adversities during his lifetime, and his philosophy of “knock down 7 get up 8” served him throughout his life, where he followed the Sun and found his own Way.

He believed life was to be full, rich, and vibrant, regardless of whatever circumstances comes one’s way, or the “hand that was dealt.”

This philosophy was the foundation of a powerful life-force driving this incredibly resilient man forward, despite being born to alcoholic French-Canadian parents, and into poverty.

He also happened to have been indoctrinated with Catholicism, in which one’s mother referred to him as a “cradle Catholic” just the other day.

Regardless of Rome’s distinctly black and white view of the afterlife, one has discovered the “holy grail” if you will.

Three Sacred Symbols Of Japan - Land Of The Rising Son

Here in Japan, the ancient protocol of Ancestor Worship superseded any delusional notion of a separation from one’s own family, clan, or community.

The foundation of the Japanese Way is Shintoism, and it is here where the dearly departed become gods.

The fresh deity’s spirits embodies the personality and deeds accomplished while residing upon this mortal coil.

My father’s 86-year journey under Sun Goddess Amaterasu has now come to an end, and it is here one can say:

My beloved father, you have now become a God, and it is here on our clan’s “kamidana” your spirit resides as our Ujigami protecting us for infinity.

神棚 - Land Of The Rising Son

Lawrence Joseph Filiatrault - June 15, 1935 ~ April 5, 2022 - Land Of The Rising Son

神棚について - Land Of The Rising Son