Departments
Intermediate Japanese - Free Online Course
IKEBANA
生花
"flower arranging"
Ikebana is also known as kadō / 華道. A completed ikebana arrangement is traditionally placed in the tokoma, or alcove, of a Japanese-style room.
Ikebana is derived from the ritualized flower offerings of Buddhist priests in medieval times. Flower arranging was established as an art form during the 1500s. Different “schools” of flower arranging developed over time, each one emphasizing different aspects of the art.
Most of the older schools of ikebana insist that an arrangement should include three stems which symbolize “heaven,” “earth,” and “humanity.” In the early twentieth century, new schools emerged that downplay this symbolism, so that most modern practitioners of ikebana think only of its artistic aspects.
