[Craft Masters of Japan] Hikone Butsudan, or Buddhist altar, is traditional craftwork from the castle town of Hikone City, Shiga Prefecture. Its origins can be dated back to the Edo Period. There are seven steps in the creation process of the altars, which are conducted by the ‘Seven Masters’. Each...

This is a new program about the sacred island of Okinoshima, situated between the Japanese archipelago and the Korean peninsula. It has attracted the devotion of the local population in the Munakata region, who possessed advanced nautical skills. Large-scale rituals utilizing an enormous quantity of precious votive offerings were conducted...

There are 2.5 million people from all over the world currently living in Japan. How did they end up there? What drew them to come to Japan in the first place? Or more importantly, what made them want to stay? In this series, we take a look at various non-Japanese...