This insightful guide provides an in-depth look at the history of male-female relations in Mexico; at how Indian, Moorish and Spanish influences molded the character of present-day Mexicans, and how these influences continue to play a role in sexual moral-ity, courting and marriage in Mexico. It covers the origins of the machismo cult, the smoldering pas-sions of men and women, the extraordinary romantic nature of Mexicans, the violent element in love, sex and marriage, visitors looking for romance in Mexico.and more! There are also some choice aphrodisiacs, including one that is known as "Raise the Dead!"
Dramatic changes have occurred in Japan's way of doing business since the late 1980s and early 1990s when its economic juggernaut was literally stopped in its tracks. The rapid rise of global competition and te fact that the Japanese real estate and financial industries copied the doomed American practices added to Japan's woes.
The purpose of this work is twofold—to afford a broad survey of the Latin American countries, with the colour and interest which so strongly characterizes this half of the New World; and to offer in some degree a detailed study of the region as concerns what (elsewhere) I have ventured to term a "science of humanity" or science of corporate life, whose main factors are topographical, occupational or industrial, and ethical or ethical-economic. New responsibilities are arising in our dealings and contact with foreign lands, especially those whose social affairs are still backward. We must beware how we regard the folk of such lands mainly as hewers of wood and drawers of water, or absorbents of exported goods or producers of dividends, or their lands as mainly reservoirs of raw material. Elemental forces are at work in the world to-day, which only justice and constructive intelligence can control. The English-speaking peoples have wide interests and consequent responsibilities in these lands: matters which are discussed in the final chapter. As will be seen, I have embodied many descriptive passages in this book from the various authors of the South American Series, to which the present work is in a measure auxiliary.
Mistress-keeping was traditional in Japan because virtually all marriages were arranged, love was not involved, and a nation-wide legal prostitution system catered to men (over and above the thousands of geisha). Times have changed, but mistress-keeping is still common. Old Japan hand and internationally known author of books on Asia Boye Lafayette De Mente takes an insider's and often humorous look at mistress-keeping in Japan then and now. The book is illustrated with provocative kanji characters. His insights into Japan's mizu shobai (water business), or the entertainment trades, are invaluable for businessmen and tourists alike.
The Bizarre and the Wondrous from the Land of the Rising Sun highlights unique aspects of Japan-ancient and modern-that have made the country fascinating to Westerners since they first stumbled upon the islands in 1543. These unusual attractions range from high-tech robots that do such things as act as tourist guides and perform delicate surgery, to festivals that go back more than two thousand years and strike many foreign visitors as being bizarre. Among the celebrations that could be labeled as bizarre are annual fertility festivals that feature authentic-looking replicas of the male penis carved in wood, from purse-size versions to ones that are over two meters long and weigh up to 800 pounds. The best known of the fertility festivals is the one staged each March 15 by the Tagata Shrine near the city of Nagoya. The largest wooden penis is carved anew each year, and after the ceremony is kept on display in the main shrine building until the following year when it is sold to private buyers. On the day of the festival the large version of the erect male organ is pulled through the streets on a wheeled cart by up to 12 men to the delight of raucous crowds and child-bearing-age women who try to touch the replica in order to increase their chances of becoming pregnant. Other penis replicas are edible versions made like candy and cookies that are sold to visitors as snacks and souvenirs to take home. Also on the incredible side is a legend that the young Jewish man now known and worshipped by Christians as Jesus Christ the son of God did not die on the cross-that, in fact, he lived and died in Herai Village in Japan. According to the Christian Bible Jesus was born in Israel. There is no further mention of him in the Bible until he is 12 years old when he appears at a Jewish synagogue and lambasts the rabbis for their un-Christian like behavior. The next mention of Jesus in the Bible is when he is in his early 30s and shows up at the Jordan River to be baptized by John, a well-known Jewish preacher. According to the Japanese legend, Jesus and his brother Isukiri spent most of those missing years in Japan, returning to Judea when Jesus was 34 years old. The story goes on to say that after he was betrayed to the Roman authorities he fled back to Japan, and it was his brother who was crucified. The story adds that Jesus married a Japanese girl, became a rice farmer, and lived the rest of his life in Herai [later renamed Shingo]. There is a tomb in Herai that has long been known as the burial place of Jesus [Jehova], the son of Mary. In the book, De Mente goes on to explain how the legend and the tomb became known to present-day Japanese authorities and was publicized in English for the first time in 1935. De Mente says he learned about the story in Tokyo in the early 1950s when he was editor of a monthly cultural magazine, including seeing a photograph of documentary evidence from a museum in Herai. Other fascinating stories in the book include how the infamous secret agents and assassins known as ninja [neen-jah] became a major part of Japanese history; why and how Japan became the first nation in the world to have a national network of roadside inns spaced one day's march apart; why the Japanese are so skilled at producing arts and crafts of extraordinary beauty; why single Japanese girls and men have a hard time hooking up; why Japan's izakaya are more fun than Irish pubs; why rice and other vegetables grow on top of buildings; how the Japanese came up with a new reason for wearing clothes...and some 50-plus other fascinating stories.
Male members of Japan's famous samurai class, which began evolving at the end of the 12th century, were required to undergo physical, mental and spiritual training that gave them incredible skills in a number of martial arts. By the 1600s, samurai were also expected to become versed in aesthetics, calligraphy, philosophical matters and writing poetry. SABURO-The Saga of a Teenage Samurai are true-to-life stories of a young boy who opts to become a roving shugyosha (shuu-g'yoh-shah), or samurai in training, rather than serve a feudal lord, leading him to extraordinary adventures that bring out the culture of his times. Saburo was born in the mid-1600s when the country was ruled by the illustrious Tokugawa line of shoguns who had closed the country off to foreigners except for a tiny detachment of traders in Nagasaki-and had turned their backs on Western guns in favor of the traditional sword. Each story is filled with cultural and historical facts that reveal both negative and positive elements in the lives of the samurai class, with Saburo surmounting those that are negative and eventually finding a master who explains the essence and the purpose of life. It is both an educational and an inspirational read for young people.
The influence of your facial features on other people begins the moment you are born -- from how you are going to be treated for the rest of your life, to the level of happiness and success you are likely to achieve. As you grow into adulthood, the size, shape and quality of your facial features also send out subliminal signals about your inborn sexual nature. In this provocative handbook, internationally known author and face-reader Boye Lafayette De Mente provides valuable insights and useful do's and don'ts in the selection of playmates and lifemates.
This book - now available in paperback - is the first in-depth review and assessment of Laura Esquivel criticism. Outstanding essayists - from diverse critical perspectives in Latin American literature and film - explore Esquivel's critical reputation, contextualize her work in literary movements, and consider her four novels, as well as the film based on Like Water for Chocolate. The book begins with An Introduction to Esquivel Criticism, reviewing 20 years of global praise and condemnation. Elena Poniatowska, in an essay provided in the original Spanish and in translation, reflects on her first reading of Like Water for Chocolate. From unique critical perspectives, Jeffrey Oxford, Patrick Duffey, and Debra Andrist probe the novel as film and fiction. The Rev. Dr. Stephen Butler Murray explores Esquivel's spiritual focus, while cultural geographer Maria Elena Christie uses words and images to compare Mexican kitchen-space and Esquivel's first novel. Elizabeth Coonrod Martinez and Lydia H. Rodriguez affirm divergent readings of The Law of Love, and Elizabeth M. Willingham discusses the contested national identity in Swift as Desire. Jeanne L. Gillespie and Ryan F. Long approach Malinche: A Novel through historical documents and popular and religious culture. In the closing essay, Alberto Julian Perez contextualizes Esquivel's fiction within Feminist and Hispanic literary movements. This book has won the Harvey L. Johnson Book Award for 2011, conferred by the South Central Organization of Latin American Studies at its 44th annual Congress in Miami, Florida (March 9, 2012).
FOR PARENTS, TEACHERS, PRETEENS & TEENS: Japan's famous samurai warriors, who ruled the country from 1192 until 1868, were one of the most remarkable groups of people the world has ever seen. Their skills with the sword and other weapons of war have seldom been equaled and never surpassed. During the latter centuries of the samurai reign their training went beyond the martial arts to include such cultural pursuits as poetry, painting, calligraphy, history, philosophy and human behavior. Schooling in the skills and knowledge necessary to produce a samurai began in early childhood, and was a lifelong effort. Samurai Principles & Practices That Will Help Preteens & Teens in School, Sports, Social Activities & Choosing Careers, by internationally known Japanologist and author Boy Lafayette De Mente, identifies the principles and practices that made up the educational and training process of samurai youths. The book covers all of the basics of the samurai training-setting goals, discipline, diligence, perseverance, respect, personal appearance, keeping things in order, using intuitive and emotional intelligence, and tapping into cosmic power. De Mente says that training in karate, kendo (the way of the sword) and meditation are paths to learning the skills, morality and motivation that made the samurai so successful, and recommends that this training be incorporated into the educational system of Western countries. An intriguing handbook for success that should especially appeal to the video game generation...
