7/2/2023 0 Comments Japanese magic mirror![]() High level magical rituals are still performed in Buddhism and the common people still have vestiges of a dying magic culture, even into the start of the 20th century some families were segregated from communities because they were bewitched and cursed bloodlines. It must be recognized that magic did decline in Japan but it did not end. Personal magic, religious magic and shamanism was active right up until the 20th century and even into pre-WWII Japan. Pulling all these strands together, Antony has reformed the complex information with these brand new translations into a modern rendering, with stories and details that let a modern reader enter into the world of the forgotten legends of old Japan and the superstitions that color them, some of which still exist today. The Dark Side of Japan is illustrated with more than 100 images, some drawn from ancient scrolls, some photographs of contemporary Japan, some specially commissioned to explain some of the "hellish" concepts within-and remarkably hellish they are, too. Antony Cummins has also searched the now forgotten Victorian volumes on Japanese mythology and explains recent academic research on Japan for the non-expert. Most of the information comes from ancient documents, translated into English for the first time. The Dark Side of Japan is a collection of folktales, ritual black magic, protection spells, monsters, and other dark interpretations of life and death from Japanese folklore. However, the age of samurai at war was over by the 1600s and the land was under a single government, but even though war had all but finished, magic did not. Military study very much included the esoteric and the ritual, even if it was not put in to practice on the battlefield. (In the case of the Cincinnati Art Museum’s discovery, however, a second metal plate was likely soldered onto the back, leaving the original embossed Buddha concealed inside.By the year 1600, warfare changed and the Samurai did not depend as much on ‘magic’, but they did not fully forget their spells.Īccording to Cummins “large scale magical warfare had all but ended, with logic and practicality taking the lead in decisions made in combat, but ancient samurai schools did not forget their spells. For this reason, they are known in Chinese as “transparent” or “light-penetration” mirrors. When sunlight hits the reflective surface in a certain way, a hidden image – matching the design on the back – would be revealed, giving the illusion that light was passing right through the mirror. A mercury-based substance was then used to make additional surface stresses that were invisible to the naked eye but matched the elaborate patterns on the back, according to an article in the UNESCO Courier journal. Because the plate was of varying thickness, due to the embossed design, the process created very slight changes in curvature on the seemingly blank mirrored side. Scientists believe they then scratched and scraped the plain surface on the other side, before polishing it until it became reflective like a conventional mirror. ![]() To create the mysterious effect, artisans began by casting images, words or patterns onto one side of a bronze plate. 'The Dig' and five other culture recommendations if you love ancient discoveries ![]()
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