2008-08-10, 01:57 | Link #761 |
Obey the Darkly Cute ...
Author
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: On the whole, I'd rather be in Kyoto ...
Age: 66
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"ki" (chi) is used loosely for many forms of energy. In terms of sport or martial art - its about focusing your energy (channeling ki). It isn't a hard leap to creatively imagine supernatural levels of ki and develop stories using it. *Appearing* to be able to project supernatural forms of ki gives psychological advantage -- "I've won before the battle started".
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2008-08-10, 02:07 | Link #762 |
Toyosaki Aki
Scanlator
Join Date: Nov 2007
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Well, Chinese has pretty much phased out use of the character "気/气" for use in that kind of context (I'm talking about 気になる、気不味い). It is no longer used generally to describe mood/feeling as it is in Japanese (used in anger [生气] and a few other cases).
As I understand it, in Chinese martial arts, "ki" is really used as a way to achieve focus. It is a very common meditation tool to imagine a flow of energy in your body to concentrate. No one really takes belief in "ki" seriously, though it's ubiquitous in all types of fantasy settings, especially 時代劇 in China/Korea/Japan.
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2008-08-10, 03:29 | Link #763 | |
Moving in circles
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Singapore
Age: 49
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Like Vexx said, it's mainly about focusing your energy during exercise. It doesn't just apply to martial arts alone, but to many forms of physical activity. In practise, it's all about learning how to control your breathing, ie, when to inhale, when to hold your breath and when to exhale. For example, in archery, you'd inhale when drawing the bowstring, let out a bit of your breath while aiming, and exhale completely when releasing the arrow. This is not as easy as it sounds, because usually, you'd be busy coordinating your muscles and mental concentration at the same time. Breathing is usually the first, and hardest, thing to master in any form of sports. |
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2008-08-10, 03:40 | Link #764 |
Obey the Darkly Cute ...
Author
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: On the whole, I'd rather be in Kyoto ...
Age: 66
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There's a lot of connection between the breath itself and "ki" (life energy==breath) .... and in almost any projectile art (rifle, archery, etc) control is critical.
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2008-08-10, 04:52 | Link #765 |
(`◉◞౪◟◉´)
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English speakers often refer to such phrases as "humour" and "melancholy", but nobody believes that the balance of four liquids in the body determine one's character.
I think the explanations TinyRedLeaf, Vexx and tripperazn made are excellent. And I want to add another idea. The Kanji 気 in Japanese was undoubtedly introduced from the continent, and the concept has been greatly influenced by Chinese thoughts. However, I think there had been the basic idea of ki among ancient Japanese before the intense communication commenced (~5C) and it caused slight difference in the interpretation. On one hand, Chinese concept of qi seems to have focused upon the internal substance of the body; they imagined qi and blood circulating within the flesh. On the other hand, Japanese ki was more like "mana" in the Pacific regions. They felt everything "living" had ki around it. If you know how to breathe properly, you can import the ki floating in the atmosphere into your body and, if you keep yourself holy and clean, you can purify tainted ki of others with your breath. The Purification Prayer of Shinto frequently mention the divine breath. Etymological approaches often lack proper supporting, but it is known that ki (raw), ki (tree), ke (spirit) and iki (breath) had something to share in the meaning. In modern Japanese language, ki is used to mean principally the "atmosphere" of something. You are not required to distinguish such details in watching most entertainments. But it may be sometimes misleading to interpret delicate Japanese stories on the basis of Chinese understanding or vice versa. |
2008-08-10, 07:25 | Link #766 |
AS Oji-kun
Join Date: Nov 2006
Age: 74
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Google criticized for bringing StreetView to residential neighborhoods in Japan.
From the (translated) open letter: "The residential roads of Japan's urban areas are a part of people's living space, and it is impolite to photograph other people's living spaces." The letter raises some difficult problems about the application of Western, particularly American, notions of openness to other cultures with very different conceptions of privacy.
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2008-08-10, 07:52 | Link #767 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Land of the rising sun
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There is also an idea that "Ryumyaku"(Leyline) in Feng shui which is believed to be the earth's "Ki myaku(Vein of Ki)" If I were to throw in my two cents worth, whether it be gravity electromagnetism and/or quantum entanglement, we really do not know what they are only knowing the result, so we can also associate it to be part of Ki(Qi). =Edit= I forgot one of the modern explanation for Ki in martial art is connection of power or follow through of entire body movement. Essentially if you are able to combine the entire energy of body movement governed by gravity from the toes to your fist without loss then it will be much stronger then just muscular strength alone. Last edited by Tri-ring; 2008-08-10 at 11:46. |
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2008-08-10, 10:56 | Link #768 | ||
Gregory House
IT Support
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Man, that was a wasted hour of my life I want back. Seriously.
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2008-08-10, 13:27 | Link #769 | |
Moving in circles
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Singapore
Age: 49
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The idea also extends to the kinds of food to eat. Oily, fried food is considered "heaty", and a definite no-no if you're feeling feverish. Conversely, hearty pork broths or clear chicken soups are good for curing colds, or for building strength generally. Vegetables are generally considered to have "cooling" effects — the more bitter the vegetable, the greater the "cooling" effect (especially bittergourd, the bane of many a Chinese kid, haha). You may scoff that these "superstitions", but I find that they make a lot of common sense. What's more, they do work. They may not have scientific backing, but I wouldn't outright dismiss folk wisdom gathered through centuries of empirical observation. They're worth trying out, so long as you remember to consult a doctor for serious illnesses. |
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2008-08-10, 13:45 | Link #770 | |
Member
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: イギリスだったり、ミャン
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2008-08-28, 20:03 | Link #773 |
Obey the Darkly Cute ...
Author
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: On the whole, I'd rather be in Kyoto ...
Age: 66
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http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-b...0080828r2.html
Interesting interview on Ainu culture and music in Japan.
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2008-08-28, 21:59 | Link #774 | |
( ಠ_ಠ)
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Somewhere, between the sacred silence and sleep
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Japanese streets are MUCH more narrow, and the raised camera of the google car can peek into many windows and private zones. There's already slew of examples around where camera recorded pictures of very private areas of the houses (considering that camera is only a few feet away). In US, most rural area houses have front yards, and/or a path to lead up to the houses. But in Japan, there's no space for that, and rooms of the housings are literally few feet away from the road. Think of it as someone running up, like 3 feet away from your window, and taking pictures of it.
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2008-08-29, 11:16 | Link #777 |
Honyaku no Hime
Fansubber
Join Date: May 2008
Location: In the eastern capital of the islands of the rising suns...
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do bear in mind that wikipedia can be edited by regular peeps like you and me. It's not the be all and end all :\
But as butter said, they tend to keep themselves to themselves. On the odd occasion (more so with guys) some famous or pricey onsens may see you sharing a bath with them, just look for the tats
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2008-08-30, 18:08 | Link #779 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Land of the rising sun
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Postal code(Similar to zip code) School address School name followed by department Actual name of teacher |
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culture, discussion, japan, japanese culture |
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