by axxxm
My impressions on Kyoto
18/February/2023 in Tokyo
I had never expected that 2-week-stay in Kyoto brought me such vivid impressions
Will write about 2 things; Rivers & Names
"River is a community where people gather & where culture is born/evolved"
This is just a common knowledge & sense that people in Europe know, or are completely unconscious of because it's just too obvious
Kyoto made me remember this simple, too obvious notion
Tokyo has several rivers, but the point is whether or not the river is part of people's everyday life Rivers in Tokyo are completely separated from daily life
Kyoto's 3 rivers were unforgettable;
Kamo River for its closeness, friendliness & surprising water clearness
Katsura River for its naturalness & shining wildness
Uji River for its motherly nature for cultural prosperity
Besides the river, water itself is very abundant in Kyoto
Kyoto has many shrines where local people come to get natural groundwater
Never saw people doing this in Tokyo
Kyoto people must know water is a part of our life....., actually a fundamental element of our existence
As a Tokyo person, I have contact with water only when turning on a water tap
Never go out to get a water, or even never appreciate it
Kyoto is surrounded by mountains
No direct contact with the sea or lakes
But still Kyoto is such a water-rich city and looks certain that this water fertility is the prime reason for richness of Kyoto's cultures & history
Around Kyoto-Osaka-Nara regions used to be the Japan's capital cities for centuries
Many old traditional Japanese words remain as town/city/district names
They sound very beautiful & highly attractive to my ears, such as
Karasuma-Oike/烏丸御池
Gion-Shijo/祇園四条
Rokuhara Mitsuji/六波羅蜜寺
Sawarabi/早蕨
Hachijoguchi/八条口
Tamatsukuri/玉造
Sakuranomiya/桜宮
It's just a name, but it brings a strong sense of depth & profoundness behind, in other words, romantical & historical sentiment
And it reminds me of this another obvious fact that I'm tightly tied with this country's history & traditions
Most probably this sense is something only native Japanese persons can get
But I'm certain anyone of any country can have the same sentiment regarding names/words of their own country & feel the deep connection with it
And probably this is the significance & precious-ness of one's own language......an essential part of oneself
