Outside the ruins of the Tanagura Castle in Fukushima there stands a venerable six hundred year-old tree: a keyaki (zelkova serrata) It has a height of 32 meters and almost ten meters in girth It serves as a living symbol of Tanagura-machi Keyaki is also the prefectural tree of Fukushima Among the highlights of the two-day tour was rice-harvesting there was no mention of visiting the Tanagura-Joseki (棚倉城跡) or Kamegajyo Park（亀ケ城公園）where the Tanagura oh-keyaki – the great zelkova serrata of Tanagura has been living for centuries The encounter with this great creature was pure chance I didn’t know about its existence and I wasn’t prepared for the meeting after I got off the bus to join the town festival I made a mental note about its location and promised to visit it instead of walking with the group in the town parade I decided to explore the ruins of the castle and had a quiet conversation with the grand oh-keyaki I told him I live in Yokohama but I’m originally from the Philippines He thanked me for visiting his hometown and he shared a story this keyaki tree was growing at the castle ground There used to be a shrine there before the castle was built The tree was planted not far from the shrine a daimyo (military general/feudal lord) to construct the castle the shrine had to be moved somewhere and the young keyaki had to be uprooted and transplanted the young keyaki was replanted outside the castle compound This zelkova serrata has outlived human ambitions The castle had been long gone (it was burned down in 1868 by the Meiji Government as part of its campaign to eliminate remnants of the shogunate and of feudalism) but the great keyaki continues to grow and watch over the town among the twelve castles in Japan that have survived and have been restored one of them – the Hikone Castle in Shiga Prefecture (construction of the complex begun in 1604) its lord’s palace – the Keyaki Goten (Zelkova Palace) I would purchase a keyaki tansu (zelkova chest) or a nagado daiko drum I should content myself with little bits of happiness I’d like to pay a visit to this sacred tree again Sign up for our weekly newsletter of articles from Japan Thanks for visiting The use of software that blocks ads hinders our ability to serve you the content you came here to enjoy We ask that you consider turning off your ad blocker so we can deliver you the best experience possible while you are here Spartan Men's Golf Begins Season in Japan for Topy Cup9/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf Spartan Men's Golf Blog from The Topy Cup - The Michigan State men's golf team opens the 2009-10 season in unique fashion Play begins on Wednesday morning in Japan - Tuesday evening in Michigan - and will run until Friday The Spartans are one of four American school participating in the prestigious event Michigan State also competed in the 1995 Topy Cup finishing third out of the 11 participating teams An autumnal delight that used to attract tourists to Fukushima Prefecture still grows in the region’s mountains and forests Wild mushrooms continue to record high levels of cesium almost a decade since the 2011 disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant resulted in extensive radioactive contamination “I had never imagined we would be affected by a nuclear accident,” says　　Tsutomu Jinno a 71-year old who used to head a matsutake mushroom harvesting association in the town of Tanagura in Fukushima Prefecture Tanagura is more than 80 kilometers from the nuclear plant high doses of radioactive substances were detected in the area’s wild mushrooms radioactivity barely registers in the rice or vegetables grown there but the wild mushrooms are a different story Japan’s standard for radioactive cesium in general food is 100 becquerels per kilogram The levels in Tanagura’s matsutake mushrooms are still three times that Tanagura’s matsutake had a reputation for their exquisite taste and aroma Tourists used to flock to the region each autumn to pick them and the delicacy was an important source of income Jinno holds on to a hope that those days will return but now it’s to prevent others from collecting them illegally it is painful to throw them away,” Jinno laments Almost all of Fukushima prefecture is covered by a ban on the shipment of wild mushrooms a former professor at Koriyama Women’s University says mushrooms like matsutake grow on a layer about five centimeters below the ground and that layer formed by decaying foliage and argillaceous soil is prone to absorb the cesium contained in leaves it takes a long time for dead leaves to decompose This is part of the reason cesium levels in some mushrooms began to increase three to five years after the nuclear accident Hiroi says government standards must be adhered to but he wonders if the rules are too restrictive: “Strict standards are necessary for foods we eat on a daily basis but we only consume mountain vegetables or wild mushrooms several times a year The current radioactive levels would cause almost no harm.” Japan has tougher guidelines than the global rules an organization that sets international food standards limits radioactive cesium in food at 1,000 becquerels per kilogram The Japanese standard of 100 becquerels is ten times stricter Because of the wide variety of wild mushrooms it is often difficult for ordinary people to tell one species from another If one type is found to have too much of a radioactive substance shipments of all wild mushrooms from the municipality are halted And the process to get the ban lifted is long and complicated Municipal authorities have to gather samples of a specific species from more than five locations and confirm that the radioactive substances are under the standard of 100 becquerels The same test is conducted the following year to see if the levels have declined further samples are collected from 60 different locations in the municipal area – and if they all clear the 100 becquerels standard A health ministry official told NHK that there is not enough data for a review yet matsutake mushrooms were more than just a source of income They had a role to play in keeping the community together Jinno says it’s also regrettable that children are losing interest in seasonal foods “People used to gather seasonal wild vegetables in the mountains and cook them,” he recalls they have stopped doing that and our food culture is becoming lost Children can’t become interested in foods that are not on their table but it is virtually impossible to decontaminate the vast mountains Leaf KYOTO Exploring Kyoto's Mysteries Crab repayment" passed down in an old temple in Yamashiro-cho In Kyoto, November 1, 2008, commemorating the millennium of The Tale of GenjiClassics Day."and proclaimed events related to the classics are held on this day I went back to "Nihon ryoiki" and "Konjaku monogatari shu" to look for other worlds in the classics Many of the tales are set in Kyoto and the surrounding area I had the opportunity to visit Yamashiro-cho located in the southern part of Kyoto Prefecture.Kanimanji TempleI stopped by theA temple of the Shingon sect of Buddhism known for the spiritual tale of "Crab's Return," which appears in the Reiki Get off at Tanagura Station on the JR Nara Line and walk through pleasant countryside that retains the atmosphere of the old days crossing the Tenjin River to the destination Stone monument marking Kanimanji Temple in front of Tanagura Station Chinese temple dedicated to Cancer (3rd zodiacal sign) a masterpiece from the Hakuho period (710-794) and designated as a national treasure The design of the crab and lotus flower in one is lovely and shows how deep the connection between this ancient temple and the crab is Crab emblem on the evergreen incense burner at the Crab Man Temple handed down in that temple.The Crab's Back."According to the differentiki There was a pious father and daughter in Yamashiro Province the daughter rescued a crab caught by the villagers and let it escape The father also found a frog about to be swallowed by a snake and saved it promising to give the daughter in marriage The father and daughter asked the man to wait for a moment and returned him to their home they put a board on the building and stayed inside to recite the Fumonponjutsu of the Kannon Sutra the man who came to the house is angry that he was promised differently and begins to rampage back into the form of a snake the father and daughter went out of the house to find the snake dead cut to pieces here and there by the crab's scissors it is told as "the story of a crab and a frog whose lives were bought and released and who were saved by the crab in this world 12," where a daughter saved eight crabs and a big frog and the eight crabs cut the snake to shreds This episode of the crab in Yamashiro Town which is passed down throughout the country and the frog returns the favor.The story of the "snake-in-arms tale" spread to many parts of the country as the origin of the tale.I also ask "Even though I am a crab without enlightenment Buddhist teachings must have spread widely so I wonder if the model for this spiritual experience was the Sawagani crab The daughter in the anecdote is said to have received the blessings of the goddess Kannon who is said to be the principal deity of Kaniman-ji Temple It is said that this was the beginning of Kaniman-ji Temple.Once a person dies they are buried together without regard to whether they are friend or foe which is typical of temples and very Japanese The "Crab's Return" continues to be loved in the Yamashiro area such as Iruikon-in-tan (interracial marriage tale) closely relate things from the other world to people.In the past the other world was probably more accessible than it is today It was a small walking trip that made me feel closer to the legends of the other world by experiencing the classics and actually walking in the places where they were set