The Magic of Japan

The Magic of Japan

Author: Hector Garcia

Publisher: Tuttle Publishing

Published: 2021-08-31

Total Pages: 200

ISBN-13: 1462922368

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

A charming collection of quirky insights into Japanese culture. The Magic of Japan is writer Hector Garcia's intensely personal account of his fifteen years in Japan. A self-professed "otaku" or Japanese anime geek since childhood, Garcia has worked for a Japanese software company, mastered the language, and become one of Japan's most popular bloggers. This book is the culmination of his experiences and showcases Garcia's unique ability to delve beneath the surface of Japanese culture to describe its quirky and deep spiritual underpinnings. This collection of essays and beautiful photographs will appeal to his worldwide fan base--including those who devoured his previous bestsellers, A Geek in Japan and Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life--Japanophiles, armchair travelers and anyone with an interest in cultural and travel memoirs. The Magic of Japan features Garcia's keen observations on a wide variety of cultural topics: Japanese behavioral traits, including non-verbal communication, hansei (self-reflection), heijoshin (a calm mind) and shoshin (childlike openness) How Japan's geography and history have shaped its culture--its natural disasters, scarce resources, centuries of isolation and its feudal past Japanese idiosyncrasies, ranging from food traditions and absurd jobs to a love of queues The Japanese spirit, as evidenced in traditional art, manga and attitudes to women Shintoism and Buddhism, looking at temples, festivals, rituals and how religious beliefs pervade popular culture, as seen for example in Studio Ghibli's movie Spirited Away Japan's dark side, including crime, the yakuza, adultery, bullying and suicide The book ends with a gloriously random selection of all things Garcia considers especially magical about Japan--from izakaya to shiitake mushrooms, summer fireworks and green tea!


Ikigai

Ikigai

Author: Héctor García

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2017-08-29

Total Pages: 209

ISBN-13: 0143130722

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • 2 MILLION+ COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE “Workers looking for more fulfilling positions should start by identifying their ikigai.” ―Business Insider “One of the unintended—yet positive—consequences of the [pandemic] is that it is forcing people to reevaluate their jobs, careers, and lives. Use this time wisely, find your personal ikigai, and live your best life.” ―Forbes Find your ikigai (pronounced ee-key-guy) to live longer and bring more meaning and joy to all your days. “Only staying active will make you want to live a hundred years.” —Japanese proverb According to the Japanese, everyone has an ikigai—a reason for living. And according to the residents of the Japanese village with the world’s longest-living people, finding it is the key to a happier and longer life. Having a strong sense of ikigai—where what you love, what you’re good at, what you can get paid for, and what the world needs all overlap—means that each day is infused with meaning. It’s the reason we get up in the morning. It’s also the reason many Japanese never really retire (in fact there’s no word in Japanese that means retire in the sense it does in English): They remain active and work at what they enjoy, because they’ve found a real purpose in life—the happiness of always being busy. In researching this book, the authors interviewed the residents of the Japanese village with the highest percentage of 100-year-olds—one of the world’s Blue Zones. Ikigai reveals the secrets to their longevity and happiness: how they eat, how they move, how they work, how they foster collaboration and community, and—their best-kept secret—how they find the ikigai that brings satisfaction to their lives. And it provides practical tools to help you discover your own ikigai. Because who doesn’t want to find happiness in every day?


The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

Author: Marie Kondo

Publisher: Ten Speed Press

Published: 2014-10-14

Total Pages: 226

ISBN-13: 1607747316

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The book that sparked a revolution and inspired the hit Netflix series Tidying Up with Marie Kondo: the original guide to decluttering your home once and for all. ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL BOOKS OF THE DECADE—CNN Despite constant efforts to declutter your home, do papers still accumulate like snowdrifts and clothes pile up like a tangled mess of noodles? Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes tidying to a whole new level, promising that if you properly simplify and organize your home once, you’ll never have to do it again. Most methods advocate a room-by-room or little-by-little approach, which doom you to pick away at your piles of stuff forever. The KonMari Method, with its revolutionary category-by-category system, leads to lasting results. In fact, none of Kondo’s clients have lapsed (and she still has a three-month waiting list). With detailed guidance for determining which items in your house “spark joy” (and which don’t), this international bestseller will help you clear your clutter and enjoy the unique magic of a tidy home—and the calm, motivated mindset it can inspire.


The Book of Ichigo Ichie

The Book of Ichigo Ichie

Author: Héctor García

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2019-12-31

Total Pages: 209

ISBN-13: 0143134493

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Find happiness by living fully in the present with this definitive guide to ichigo ichie--the Japanese art of making the most of every moment--from the bestselling authors of Ikigai and The Four-Way Path. Every moment in our life happens only once, and if we let it slip away, we lose it forever--an idea captured by the Japanese phrase ichigo ichie (pronounced itchy-GO itchy-A). Often spoken in Japan when greeting someone or saying goodbye, to convey that the encounter is unique and special, it is a tenet of Zen Buddhism and is attributed to a sixteenth-century master of the Japanese tea ceremony, or "ceremony of attention," whose intricate rituals compel us to focus on the present moment. From this age-old concept comes a new kind of mindfulness. In The Book of Ichigo Ichie, you will learn to... appreciate the beauty of the fleeting, the way the Japanese celebrate the cherry blossoms for two weeks every April, knowing they'll have to wait a whole year to see them again; use all five senses to anchor yourself in the present, helping you to let go of fear, sadness, anger, and other negative emotions fueled by fixating on the past or the future; be alert to the magic of coincidences, which help us find meaning among the disconnected events of our lives; use ichigo ichie to help you discover your ikigai, or life's purpose--because it's only by learning to be present, to be tuned into what catches your attention and excites you in the moment, that you can identify what it is that most motivates you and brings you happiness. Every one of us contains a key that can open the door to attention, harmony with others, and love of life. And that key is ichigo ichie. A PENGUIN LIFE TITLE


Geek in Japan

Geek in Japan

Author: Hector Garcia

Publisher: Tuttle Publishing

Published: 2019-06-25

Total Pages: 197

ISBN-13: 1462920020

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Created specifically for fans of Japanese "cool culture," A Geek in Japan is one of the most iconic, hip, and concise cultural guides available. This new edition has been thoroughly revised and expanded with new chapters on Japanese video games, architecture, and a special section on visiting Kyoto. Reinvented for the internet age, it's packed with personal essays and hundreds of photographs, presenting all the touchstones of both traditional and contemporary culture in an entirely new way. The expansive range of topics include: Bushido, Geisha, Samurai, Shintoism, and Buddhism Traditional arts and disciplines like Ukiyo-e, Ikebana, Zen meditation, calligraphy, martial arts, and the tea ceremony Insightful essays on code words and social mores; dating and drinking rituals; working and living conditions and symbols and practices that are peculiarly Japanese Japanese pop culture genres and their subcultures, like otaku, gals, visual kei, and cosplay For visitors, the author includes a mini guide to his favorite neighborhoods in Tokyo as well as tips on special places of interest in other parts of Japan. Garcia has written an irreverent, insightful, and highly informative guide for the growing ranks of Japanophiles around the world.


Kaizen

Kaizen

Author: Sarah Harvey

Publisher: The Experiment

Published: 2020-01-21

Total Pages: 272

ISBN-13: 1615196579

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Reach your goals with Kaizen—the Japanese art of gentle self-improvement From Hygge to Ikigai, positive philosophies have taken the world by storm. Now, Kaizen—meaning “good change”—will help you transform your habits, without being too hard on yourself along the way. With Kaizen, even the boldest intention becomes a series of small, achievable steps. Each person’s approach will be different, which is why it’s so effective. First popularized by Toyota, Kaizen is already proven in the worlds of business and sports. Here, Sarah Harvey shows how to apply it to your health, relationships, money, career, hobbies, and home—and how to tailor it to your personality. Kaizen is the key to lasting change!


Samurai Magic

Samurai Magic

Author: Thor Templar

Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform

Published: 2016-09-23

Total Pages: 348

ISBN-13: 9781539059509

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Lots of Never Revealed Before Secret Ancient Magic Training - Only In This Edition!! This new edition is amazing powerful and very easy to use! This little known ancient grimoire has been providing excellent results for many years. The new methods in this edition make this system one of the most powerful ever offered to the public. The Samurai were fantastic warriors and it was not only because of their sword, it was because of their Magic!! You can learn the same powerful system they used. The only book of its kind ever published in the world! A unique and very powerful Japanese magic system used by the Ancient Samurais. Few people know that Samurais used magic in battles and in individual combat. As well as in life in general. Japan has a long history of using magic. Sigils were their favorite. But, all kinds of magic was used including Dolls nailed to trees and all kinds of magic formulas. All this has been kept super secret until now. This updated edition offers several new methods included with 20 Sigils to connect you to the Samurai Stream of magical power. This Stream connection initiates you into Samurai magic and the path of the Warrior Monk. Exclusively in this edition is a secret Samurai magic empowering circle seen for the first time in print. It empowers the Sigils in the book to release their awesome powers. This is the first time a Japan Magic Circle has been made public. It is one of the many new secrets revealed in this edition. Along with details on the Special Samurai Evocation Powder you sprinkle on the Sigils and place in the Circle to activate them and other formulas. These and more secrets are revealed for the first time! Making this one of the most powerful Occult Tools you can own.


The Ikigai Journey

The Ikigai Journey

Author: Hector Garcia

Publisher: Tuttle Publishing

Published: 2020-06-23

Total Pages: 214

ISBN-13: 1462921442

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

In The Ikigai Journey, authors Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles take their international bestseller Ikigai: the Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life a step further by showing you how to find your own ikigai through practical exercises, such as employing new habits and stepping outside your comfort zone. Ikigai is the place where our passion (what we love), mission (what we hope to contribute), vocation (the gifts we have to offer the world) and profession (how our passions and talents can become a livelihood) converge, giving us a personal sense of meaning. This book helps you bring together all of these elements so that you can enjoy a balanced life. Our ikigai is very similar to change: it is a constant that transforms depending on which phase of life we are in. Our "reason for being" is not the same at 15 as it is at 70. Through three sections, this book helps you to accept and embrace that--acting as a tool to revolutionize your future by helping you to understand the past, so you can enjoy your present. Section 1: Journey Through the Future: Tokyo (a symbol of modernity and innovation) Section 2: Journey Through the Past: Kyoto (an ancient capital moored in tradition) Section 3: Journey Through the Present: Ise (an ancient shrine that is destroyed and rebuilt every twenty years) Japan has one of the longest life spans in the world, and the greatest number of centenarians--many of whom cite their strong sense of ikigai as the basis for their happiness and longevity. Unlike many "self-care" practices, which require setting aside time in an increasingly busy world, the ikigai method helps you find peace and fulfillment in your busy life.


The Secret of the Blue Glass

The Secret of the Blue Glass

Author: Tomiko Inui

Publisher: Pushkin Children's Books

Published: 2017-01-24

Total Pages: 193

ISBN-13: 1782690794

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

On the first floor of the big house of the Moriyama family, is a small library. There, on the shelves next to the old books, live the Little People, a tiny family who were once brought from England to Japan by a beloved nanny. Since then, each generation of Moriyama-family children has inherited the responsibility of filling the blue glass with milk to feed the Little People and it's now Yuri's turn. The little girl dutifully fulfils her task but the world around the Moriyama family is changing. Japan is caught in the whirl of what will soon become World War II, turning her beloved older brother into a fanatic nationalist and dividing the family for ever. Sheltered in the garden and the house, Yuri is able to keep the Little People safe, and they do their best to comfort Yuri in return, until one day owing to food restrictions milk is in shorter supply...


Be More Japan

Be More Japan

Author: DK Eyewitness

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2019-07-30

Total Pages: 480

ISBN-13: 1465497099

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Whether you're dreaming about your first journey, revisiting the trip of a lifetime or simply in love with all things Japan, Be More Japan will transport you to this fascinating country. Dive into the thrilling and serene world of Shinto monks, street food vendors, anime characters, Okinawan centenarians, technological innovators, J-Pop megastars, ancient philosophers, onsen dwellers and so many more. There are so many ways to fall in love with Japan. It's home to one of the world's most unique cultures: a perfectly balanced celebration of past traditions; the vibrancy of now and the need to look fearlessly into the future. From architecture to martial arts; from ramen to robots; kawaii to Kusama; ikigai to ikebana; towering skyscrapers to shrines - Be More Japan uncovers the art and creativity behind modern Japanese living through its kaleidoscope of contrasting places, people and practices. With beautiful design throughout and with each page alive with facts, history and inspiration, Be More Japan invites you to absorb a little Japanese wisdom into your daily life.