Friday, November 4, 2022 and Saturday, November 5, 2022
6:30 PM 8:30 PM
“Float a glowing lantern on our shining koi pond during our Floating Lanterns night. Toro nagashi refers to the Japanese river lantern festivals where they release candle-lit lanterns into the river together with their prayers for peace. Be mesmerized by the poetic glow of candlelight and relax for the night to the sound of Japanese folk music playing softly in the background. Purchase a floating lantern at the door and launch it on our koi pond to participate in this ancient Japanese tradition without ever leaving Tucson.”
Thu, Oct 27, 2022 9:30 AM to Sun, Nov 6, 2022 5:00 PM
“Have you ever heard of “The Way of Flowers”? Sounds intriguing? Come to our Annual Fall Ikebana Festival and experience the essence of the season with a wide array of colorful floral arrangements displayed in original vases throughout the Gardens.
Ikebana, also known as “the Way of the Flowers”, is the meditative art of Japanese floral arranging dating back to the 15th century. It subtly harmonizes nature and the hand of the arranger to create floral compositions that move the observer’s heart.
Unlike the flowers you may have seen here in America, Ikebana uniquely emphasizes shape, line, and form while giving equal attention and importance to the branches, stems, and leaves of a plant rather than merely arranging its blooms. This emphasis on the often forgotten parts of plants in western culture, make Ikebana truly inspirational. If you haven’t seen an ikebana arrangement for yourself yet, you must come to our festival this Fall! For our friends who come every year, the arrangements are never recreated so there will be Gardens full of new arrangements for you to explore as well.
Date & Time:
Festival will be held during our regular admission hours from 10/27 – 11/06. Special event fees apply, please check ticket prices below.”
Our general admission hours are:
Thursday – Saturday: 9:30 AM – 4:30 PM
Sunday: 12 PM – 5 PM
Tickets: General admission: $18 – Children under 15: $5 – Members: $10
One of our founding Council members on our Southern Arizona Japanese Cultural Coalition, retired UA Professor Min Yanagihashi has just published a new book entitled “The Japanese American Experience: Change & Continuity” by Liberty Hill Publishing. Min is a Nisei (2nd generation) from Honolulu, Hawaii and taught at the University of Arizona in their East Asian Studies Dept.
In this book, Min captures our Japanese American experience as immigrants, the racism during World War II of being relocated into mass internment camps, the hard work & determination to reach economic success thereafter, the strong values taught to our descendants like me (Sansei, 3rd generation).
Dr. Min Yanagihashi
Read this book to find out more about our Japanese American struggles & strengths. It is now available through barnesandnoble.com and amazon.com. Description of book from Amazon:
“Immigration and racism are contentious issues in many societies. This book deals, in part, with these two controversies through the experiences of the Japanese Americans. No other second-generation ethnic group is given the kind of recognition achieved by the Nisei (second-generation Japanese Americans). But it was a perilous journey, fraught with endless discrimination, questioning of loyalty, and even confinement in concentration camps. Yet they were able to achieve remarkable success in politics and made significant advances in American society. Although thoroughly assimilated, they kept alive their rich cultural heritage. America is a country with diverse cultures, and this diversity is to be celebrated and not feared, for herein lies the strength of America. The narrative begins with a historical perspective and ends with an observer-participant view of recent events. This is a story that needs to be told. “
“The year 2022 marks the 350th death anniversary of Zen Master Yinyuan Longqi (隱元隆琦 1592-1673, Ingen Ryūki in Japanese). Special ceremonies and events will be held in both Japan and China to honor this great Zen master. In North America, the Center for Buddhist Studies, College of Humanities at the University of Arizona is organizing a series of commemorative events which will run for one year beginning May 3, 2022. These events will present and explore the extraordinary life of Zen Master Yinyuan and the great achievements of the Huangbo 黃檗 Chan tradition (known as the Ōbaku school of Zen Buddhism in Japan) that Yinyuan pioneered in China and Japan. These events highlight the intersection between religion, art, and culture in China and Japan and will be presented in both online and offline formats. Activities will include an online exhibition of works of art related to the Ōbaku tradition, academic lectures, musical performances, and tea-related events.”
Lecture series starting on Oct. 24, location will be Old Main,Silver & Sage Room, 1200 E. University Blvd. (or UA Main Library, 1500 E. University Blvd.) or via zoom.
“The Japanese tea ceremony, or chanoyu (translated literally as “hot water for tea”), is a cherished ritual involving the preparation and presentation of powdered green tea in a highly stylized manner.
A host and a guest, wearing traditional Japanese kimono specific to the ceremony, will demonstrate how tea has been prepared, served, and enjoyed in Japan since the 12th century.
