Episode 28 - The Great Saigo, Part 1
This week, we'll begin another two-parter dealing with the life and death of Saigo Takamori, one of the great leaders of the Meiji Restoration. This week, we'll discuss his rise to public prominence a...
26 Okt 201322min
Episode 27 - The Way of Yin and Yang
This week, we're discussing Onmyodo, the mystical study of divination based off of the theories of yin and yang (in-yo or on-myo in Japanese). We'll be covering the entire history of the practice, inc...
19 Okt 201319min
Episode 26 - The History of Manga
This week, we're going to talk about the evolution of manga. We'll discuss the roots of the comic form in Japan, both Eastern and Western, and its rapid explosion in popularity after World War II.
12 Okt 201321min
Episode 25 - The Shadow Shogun
This week we will be discussing the great political wheeler and dealer of modern Japanese politics: Tanaka Kakuei. We will trace the rise of this man of the people, the heights of his power, and his e...
6 Okt 201328min
Episode 24 - In Buddha's Name: The Rise and Fall of the Ikko Ikki, Part 2
We'll be wrapping up our discussion of the Ikko Ikki this week, as the unstoppable force of the militant wing of Jodo Shinshu meets the immovable objects of Tokugawa Ieyasu and Oda Nobunaga. What foll...
22 Sep 201325min
Episode 23 - In Buddha's Name: The Rise and Fall of the Ikko Ikki, Part 1
For our first two-part episode, we're going to discuss the Ikko Ikki, a militant insurrection of believers in the faith of Jodo Shinshu, or True Pure Land Buddhism. We'll discuss the rise of the movem...
15 Sep 201326min
Episode 22 - The Way of the Warrior
For our first listener-submitted topic, we're tackling Bushido: the warrior code of the samurai class. We'll discuss the evolution of the bushido ideology, the role it played during the ages of warfar...
8 Sep 201322min
Episode 21 - The Crash
For our final outline episode, we'll be tackling the origins and effects of the real-estate bubble which devastated the Japanese economy in 1991, and which so brutally halted the story of Japanese gro...
1 Sep 201323min
