The Museum of Criminology in the main campus of Meiji University in Ochanomizu, Tokyo has displays of policing in Japan and torture devices from around the world. It’s free and is a good place to spend 30 minutes to an hour if you’re in the area.
This exhibit shows an old Japanese torture technique. If you’ve ever done a traditional Japanese art and sat in seiza for an hour or so, you can imagine how painful this must be. I think I’d choose waterboarding any day.
Kongo rikishi, the “power lords of the diamond realm,” stand guard at many Buddhist temples in Japan. Bare-chested, sneering deities, the kongo rikishi are not your average Buddhas. Unlike the serene Kannon, Amida and Jizo statues, their ferocious faces and body-builder physiques are meant to frighten off evil spirits from the temple grounds, and in fact, they’re not true Buddhas at all, but rather protectors of the Buddha.
Kongo Rikishi also represent the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. Look closely at their faces and you’ll notice that the one on the left, the Missha Kongo (the secret-knowing Kongo) always has his mouth closed, and the one on the right, the Mishabe Kongo (the secret-speaking Kongo) always has his mouth open.
The Kongo Rikishi in this photo is at the Nakayama-dera, a temple for pregnant women in Takarazuka city, near Kobe.
To read more about Kongo Rikishi, visit the section on Nio at the excellent Japanese Buddhist Statuary homepage.
This funeral envelope is used to give money to the family of the deceased. They’re right beside the wedding envelopes in the stationery store, so make sure you get the right one. Wedding envelopes are usually decorated with gold thread or brighter colors.
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