Samurai Soul Calligraphy Class “The Last Word” near Osaka Castle

Overview

Experience the noble spirit of resignation in samurai culture with this exclusive calligraphy course near Osaka Castle!

Samurai Calligraphy Final Brushstrokes of a Lifetime “The Last Word”

This unique activity invites you into the rich traditions of the samurai mindset when they face their inevitable end. Begin by donning traditional samurai attire, either hakama or kimono. You'll explore their philosophy of resignation, understanding its significance as a last testament.

The heart of the experience lies in reflecting upon your own life, identifying the emotions, memories, and philosophies you wish to express. This culminates in the selection of a single, powerful kanji character that encapsulates your essence. Finally, unleash your creativity with an oversized brush on a large canvas, channeling your spirit and emotions into dynamic brushstrokes, creating a calligraphy piece that embodies the samurai's final words.

Highlights

• Unleash your creativity with an oversized brush on a large canvas, creating a dynamic and expressive work
• Write a huge and meaningful kanji to the bold beat of the taiko drums
• The only place near Osaka Castle where you can experience such immersive samurai calligraphy
• Understand the samurai spirit of noble resignation through immersive calligraphy
• Book with a Rakuten account to earn points for each reservation

Important Information

Suitable for ages 6+

Please bring undershirts and underpants (t-shirts are acceptable) to wear as innerwear for hakama and kimono; we have a few innerwear available for loan, but sizes are limited

Staff who can speak two or three languages (English, Spanish, and Japanese) will provide interpretation

A welcome drink is provided: taste matcha, a traditional Japanese popular beverage (quench your thirst with iced green matcha during the summer months)

About Calligraphy

The following information is required by the calligraphy teachers in preparation for the activity; please inform us of the following information before the day of the experience:

Your full name

Email address to send the photo shooting data to

What to Bring

Undergarments to wear beneath samurai outfit (e.g. t-shirt and underpants)

Your “booking confirmed” email from Rakuten Travel Experiences

Meeting Point

Samurai Honor, Excellence Takayama 1F

Venue Address

Excellence Takayama, 2-3-19 Shiginonishi, Joto-ku, Osaka-shi, Ōsaka Prefecture, Japan, 536-0014

Cancellation Policy

No-show: You pay 100% of experience price

Same day: You pay 100% of experience price

Previous day: Free cancellation

Description

In samurai culture, "resignation" is literally a person's resignation from this world, or the words they write to say goodbye to this world as they prepare to die. They are one's last words. They express one's pride as a samurai, readiness to die, and thoughts about the world.

In this experience, you will write a letter of resignation to prepare for death before going to war in the Warring States Period, when life and death were always side-by-side.

What to Expect

First, you will change into traditional samurai attire, either hakama or kimono, to perform the resignation in Japanese costume.

Learn Shodo, the Art of Japanese Calligraphy

Begin with an introduction to Japanese calligraphy, exploring the differences between Western calligraphy and the expressive, meditative art of “shodo.” You’ll learn about the tools, techniques, and the unique Japanese appreciation for “blank spaces”— the beauty found not just in the characters, but in the margins around them.

Gain a deeper understanding of the difference between the calligraphy that exists overseas, and Japanese “shodo” calligraphy. Shodo is a traditional Japanese culture that uses brush and ink to express kanji characters in an artistic way. It is usually appreciated for the neatness of the characters, the way the brush is used, the shade of the ink, and the beauty of the overall arrangement. But it can also be a dynamic and powerful exporession of raw emotion and deep spirituality.

Looking Back on Your Life

What feelings do you entrust to a single letter? Reading it makes you think about the rest of your life. Decide on the last character you’ll write. Each kanji character has its own meaning, so please reflect on your life and think carefully about it.

Practice basic brush strokes and the stroke order of the chosen kanji.

Reflecting on your life so far, imagine a story about whom and what kind of feelings you would like to leave behind, and think about the character composition (design) of your last character in this world.

Nothing is beautiful precisely, because there is nothing. The Japanese have a unique sense of beauty called "beauty of the margins," in which the space is considered to be beautiful as well as the letter itself.

Resignation

One of the essential practices of the samurai at the time of their death is the resignation. When they foresee their death, they look back on their life so far and write it down in writing as their last words on earth. However, they are not lamenting for themselves. They say that life is fleeting, and the poems of the samurai who lived through a time when they did not know what tomorrow would bring are a painful reminder of how fleeting life can be.

The calligraphy of resignation strongly expresses the life philosophy of the person who wrote it. Unlike ordinary calligraphy, where one keeps one's mind quiet and focused and faces a half-sheet of paper alone, the calligraphy is written on a huge whole sheet of paper with a heavy brush. This writing process is expressed as a performance.

Larger-than-life Calligraphy

With an oversized brush, more than five times larger than usual, the artist puts his soul into creating a powerful, fragile, and beautiful single character on a 150 cm x 150 cm sheet of paper. By expressing the whole body dynamically, the artist can freely manipulate the oversized brush.

Wadaiko Optional Add-on

The Japanese drum will add overwhelming power and presence, and its powerful tone will further enhance the expressive power of the calligraphy and make it more dynamic and expressive.

Both calligraphy and taiko are traditional cultures that have been handed down from generation to generation in Japan. By combining both, we will be able to convey the appeal of traditional culture to a wider audience.