"The traditional instructional verses of the Chinese martial art of baguazhang. The book includes translation (from sixteen sources) of the original texts, commentary on the meaning, and discussion of the variations in text and translation notes."--

Why did almost one thousand highly educated "student soldiers" volunteer to serve in Japan's tokkotai (kamikaze) operations near the end of World War II, even though Japan was losing the war? In this fascinating study of the role of symbolism and aesthetics in totalitarian ideology, Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney shows how the state manipulated the time-honored Japanese symbol of the cherry blossom to convince people that it was their honor to "die like beautiful falling cherry petals" for the emperor. Drawing on diaries never before published in English, Ohnuki-Tierney describes these young men's agonies and even defiance against the imperial ideology. Passionately devoted to cosmopolitan intellectual traditions, the pilots saw the cherry blossom not in militaristic terms, but as a symbol of the painful beauty and unresolved ambiguities of their tragically brief lives. Using Japan as an example, the author breaks new ground in the understanding of symbolic communication, nationalism, and totalitarian ideologies and their execution.

Winner, 2023 Choice Outstanding Academic Title Our relationship with things abounds with paradoxes. People assign value to objects in ways that are often deeply personal or idiosyncratic yet at the same time rooted in specific cultural and historical contexts. How do things become meaningful? How do our connections with the world of things define us? In Ming and Qing China, inquiry into things and their contradictions flourished, and its depth and complexity belie the notion that material culture simply reflects status anxiety or class conflict. Wai-yee Li traces notions of the pleasures and dangers of things in the literature and thought of late imperial China. She explores how aesthetic claims and political power intersect, probes the objective and subjective dimensions of value, and questions what determines authenticity and aesthetic appeal. Li considers core oppositions—people and things, elegance and vulgarity, real and fake, lost and found—to tease out the ambiguities of material culture. With examples spanning the late sixteenth to the mid-eighteenth centuries, she shows how relations with things can both encode and resist social change, political crisis, and personal loss. The Promise and Peril of Things reconsiders major works such as The Plum in the Golden Vase, The Story of the Stone, Li Yu’s writings, and Wu Weiye’s poetry and drama, as well as a host of less familiar texts. It offers new insights into Ming and Qing literary and aesthetic sensibilities, as well as the intersections of material culture with literature, intellectual history, and art history.

"The Flowers and Gardens of Japan" with the aid of Florence Du Cane is a captivating exploration of Japan's rich botanical heritage and its profound have an effect on on Japanese subculture. Through vivid descriptions and lovely illustrations, Du Cane takes readers on a adventure through the captivating global of Japanese gardens, showcasing the super beauty of its flora. The book delves into the importance of flowers in Japanese artwork, literature, and regular existence, providing insights into the deep religious connection between the Japanese people and nature. Du Cane highlights iconic Japanese vegetation which includes cherry blossoms, chrysanthemums, and irises, revealing the symbolic meanings attributed to every bloom. In addition to exploring traditional lawn designs, the book additionally examines the position of gardens in Japanese society, from tranquil temple gardens to meticulously manicured imperial gardens. Du Cane's meticulous attention to element and heartfelt appreciation for Japanese horticulture make "The Flowers and Gardens of Japan" a useful resource for anybody interested in the intersection of nature, tradition, and aesthetics in Japan.