Kyoto speaks

Of the 58  Kyoto residents we interviewed in “Kyoto Speaks,” nearly every one lamented the way traditional culture was dying out before their very eyes. This was during the “bubble” years, when whole blocks of machiya townhouses were being razed. 

Among the interviewees was Sogyu—monk, gardner, and drummer—who spoke about the ‘countercultural scene’ in Kyoto in the 70s. This photo was taken later, in 1988 by American Beat poet Allen Ginsberg and  shows Sogyu (right), the future head abbot of Daitokuji, Takada Myoho (center), and the legendary poet Sakaki Nanao (left). Ginsberg was in Kyoto to read his acclaimed poem Howl at Kyoto Seibukodo. Many of the American Beat writers came to Kyoto because of the influence of poet Gary Snyder who had studied Zen at Daitokuji. In many ways, Kyoto Journal is a continuation of their literary legacy here. We have published Snyder, Nanao, and Ginsberg as well as many others related to this group, including poets Alan Lau, Patricia Donegan, and Kazuko Shiraishi.

The second, smaller image is of Ginsberg taking the picture itself. It was shot by the photographer Watanabe Hitomi, who spent her life documenting Japanese counterculture. Her most well-known images depict clashes between police and the students who had barricaded themselves inside the administrative offices of Tokyo and Kyoto Universities to protest the Vietnam War.