(Diana Liao, left and Kimiko Gunji, right. Image from 2019)

For this grant, Gunji Sensei with be working closely with Diana, Japan House Education Associate and former Japan House Intern, focusing on chabako, a style of tea ceremony where tea items are stored within a special box. Chabako is one of over 850 different styles of tea ceremony procedures existing in the Urasenke Tea School.

Gunji Sensei and Diana have a long history of working together and are excited to begin this project to make chabako accessible to more audiences. 

This is not the first time Gunji Sensei has won awards from the IACA. In both 1986 and 1987, she was the recipient of Illinois Arts Council Fellowship in the Field of Crafts, and in 1992, she was the recipient of Illinois Arts Council Fellowship for Kabuki/Kimono Apprenticeship with then student and daughter (and now Director of Japan House) Jennifer Gunji-Ballsrud.

MAP acknowledges the need for structured opportunities to pass on traditional, folk, and classical ethnic arts as part of the preservation of Illinois’ cultural heritage. MAP is made possible with an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Please look forward to their contributions to continue Illinois’ rich cultural heritage!

Please join us this Sunday, March 28 at 4pm
as we present a very special
Japan House Shares, Rikyu-ki.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH

 
Following a short presentation by Yang Du, University of Illinois PhD Student in Educational Statistics and Research Design, there will be a Tea Ceremony by Kimiko Gunji, Professor Emeritus and President of Chado Urasenke Tankokai Urbana Champaign Association.

NEW! A 20-minute Q&A with Professor Gunji, Yang Du and Lindsey Stirek will be offered to a limited number of guests. If you are interested in joining the ZOOM chat (will be pushed LIVE on Facebook), please email Coordinator Michael Darin at mdarin@illinois.edu by noon Sunday.
 

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Watch the YouTube Premiere video with the Japan House Staff at 4pm where you can LIVE CHAT! Make sure you log in a few minutes early to see the countdown. If you would like to watch the Japan House Shares videos at your leisure, they are available online indefinitely. CLICK HERE FOR JAPAN HOUSE SHARES PLAYLIST
 

𝗕𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗘 𝗔 𝗝𝗔𝗣𝗔𝗡 𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗦𝗘 𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗡

We have extended the application deadline!
 

If you are a University of Illinois undergraduate (OR YOU KNOW ONE), and interested in Japanese culture, the Japan House Internship might be the perfect opportunity for you!

Interns will receive 3 hours of academic credit for ARTJ 399 Japan House Internship (Tuesday / Thursdays 2 - 4 pm at Japan House). At this point in time, this course will be a hybrid course in which some sessions will take place in person and others online via Zoom. When meeting in person, students must follow University policies and protocols of testing, mask-wearing, social distancing and use of Safer Illinois app for building access.

Japan House Interns will be introduced to traditional Japanese Arts and Culture, specifically focusing on Chado, the Way of Tea. Interns will learn how to assist in tea ceremonies, whisk tea, serve tea to the public, and how to be a proper guest for a tea ceremony. Interns will also be exposed to other facets of Japanese arts and culture, such as yukata dressing, gardening, etiquette, and much more. Additionally, Interns will learn about the rich history of Japan House and how to present our history to the public.

Applications for Fall 2021 are now being accepted through April 2, 2021 at 11:59pm.
 

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
 

不欺之力

𝘈𝘻𝘢𝘮𝘶𝘬𝘢𝘻𝘢𝘳𝘶 𝘯𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘬𝘢𝘳𝘢

“Do not be deceived by anything and everything. Whatever you face, face with a whole-hearted effort.”

𝘊𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘺 𝘦𝘹𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺: 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘰𝘳 𝘌𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘴 𝘚𝘩𝘰𝘻𝘰 𝘚𝘢𝘵𝘰
𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘣𝘺: 𝘑𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘯 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘋𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘑𝘦𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘎𝘶𝘯𝘫𝘪-𝘉𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘴𝘳𝘶𝘥

Assistant Director of Academic Programming, Lindsey Stirek, shared with me that this statement is a slightly modified version from another Zen statement that is: "𝘚𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘪, 𝘢𝘻𝘢𝘮𝘶𝘬𝘢𝘻𝘢𝘳𝘶 𝘯𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘬𝘢𝘳𝘢 (獅子、欺かざるの力)," which translates as: “a lion has the power not to be deceived."

In the wild, a lion will always put forward all of its energy and strength to attack an animal – whether it is merely a rabbit or even if it is an elephant. In the world of Zen, this statement encourages all of us to think about putting forward sincere energy and effort into all tasks at hand. Currently, many of us are feeling frustrated and depleted. I believe that this statement is a reminder for all of us that, from time to time, it is critical to clear your mind and to try earnestly to focus on the task at hand. Whatever the task may be — from finishing a report, or learning something new or even something as mundane (for some!) as yard work – we should try to put forward our whole-heart and not to be distracted or weighed down by so many other concerns. In essence, allow yourself this… allow yourself a moment to focus on only one thing — just as the lion does. Nothing else matters in that moment… just the one task at hand.

To me, right now, it is about finding small ways to feel successful, to feel empowered, to feel good about what we are doing. I do find myself feeling overwhelmed and looking at the days melt away with little to show at times. Without the confidence to travel, to meet with many people and to be primarily be in one place, I feel like we start to believe that we should be able to get even more done. This is part of the deception. Don't let your circumstances cloud what you should and can do. This feeling of fatigue and lack of motivation is a reality and it is truly affecting how we function and our productivity. Thus, this statement was a powerful reminder to all of us that we can only do so much and that we must take on what we can and do what we can with sincerity and enthusiasm. If you face every task begrudgingly the outcome is inevitably negative or lifeless.

Lions symbolize bravery, strength and often times, royalty, across the world. In Buddhism, Shakyamuni is often referred to as a lion - not as a symbol of intimidation, but as an entity of nobility with characteristics of undaunted courage, fearlessness, and relentlessness. I hope we can all embrace these characteristics as we continue to move forward in this extended time of uncertainty. Find strength in what you can control and give yourself the allowance to recognize what you can and cannot do. Give yourself credit and choose not to be so hard on yourself. Embrace a courageous and full heart and recognize that you can only do what you can.