72 Microseasons ...
When four seasons just won't do. (The Bus 3.23)
Welcome aboard The Bus!
The Stop
Thought to have originated around the middle of the 6th century CE, the traditional Japanese calendar combines an observation of the four seasons recognised in the West with a precise identification of natural events occurring during these periods. Each of the four seasons is divided into six parts, creating a total of 24 sekki (major divisions) which ‘divide the solar year into equal sections of about fifteen days.’ These 24 sekki are then each further subdivided into three, resulting in a calendar composed of 72 ko (micro-seasons) that last for around five days. The resulting ‘map of time’ is a remarkable blend of ‘culture and nature’ that became the basis for the Japanese urban elite’s ‘social and artistic life’ for centuries.1
The calendar works by marking the progress of the seasons through ‘incremental changes in nature’ and naming the 72 ko to reflect those observations and events. Thought to have originally been imported into Japan from Korea, the earliest versions referenced Northern China’s climate and natural changes and required constant adjustment to suit the Japanese environment.2 Over centuries, the calendar continued to be adapted and refined until 1685 when it was officially configured by Shibukawa - the official astronomer to the Shogunate government in the Edo period. His calendar became the calendar and as such remained in common use until 1873, when the Meiji government - in an attempt to modernise Japan - abolished the old system in favour of the Western solar-based Gregorian calendar. However, despite official policy enforcing this change, certain groups - ‘notably, farmers, fishermen and aesthetes’ - continued to use it and kept the traditional calendar alive.
Today, the traditional calendar is used by people who are interested in ‘recalibrating’ their year. With remarkably precise poetic names such as ‘Bush warblers start singing in the mountains’ (9-13 February), ‘Last frost, no seedlings grow’ (25-29 April) and ‘Dew glistens white on grass’ (8-12 September), the meditative quality of the calendar offers a ‘poetic journey through the Japanese year in which the land awakens and blooms with life and activity before returning to slumber.’ Users must ‘radically slow down’ in order to find beauty and meaning in the smallest details of the everyday environment, so that they are able to better experience ‘deep seeing’ by becoming ‘more attuned to the rhythms of the natural world.’
For the full list of the 72 seasons, follow this link: 72 Microseasons (Nippon.com)
The Detour
Today’s Detour is to a documentary (12:39) produced by the Victoria and Albert Museum on Shakespeare’s First Folio - the first ever collection of his plays. Without this book, plays such as Macbeth, Twelfth Night and The Tempest would have been lost. It’s a fascinating journey, and worth the time.
Unboxing Shakespeare's First Folio
The Recommendation
Today’s Recommendation is Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004). Directed by Michel Gondry and starring Kate Winslet and Jim Carrey, the American science fiction/romance tells the story of Joel and Clementine who, after their relationship dissolves, decide to undergo a medical procedure to erase their memories of each other. Written by Charlie Kaufmann,3 it’s a typically surreal and convoluted plot which nevertheless grips from the outset. Critically and commercially successful upon its release, the film has since become a cult classic. Highly recommended.4
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) Trailer
The Sounds
Today’s playlist is composed of five great summer-themed tracks: ‘Suddenly Last Summer’ (The Motels, 1983), ‘Summer in the City’ (The Lovin’ Spoonful, 1966), ‘Summertime’ (DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, 1991), ‘In the Summertime’ (Thirsty Merc, 2004), and ‘Doin’ Time’ (Sublime, 1997). Enjoy!
The Thought
Today’s Thought is from the source for the title of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Alexander Pope’s poem Eloisa to Abelard (1717). In this poem, a retelling of the true-life story of Heloise and Abelard,5 Pope writes from the perspective of Heloise who, forced into a convent after an illicit affair with her mentor, Abelard, ponders the nature of love, religion and memory (among other things):
‘How happy is the blameless vestal's lot!/The world forgetting, by the world forgot./Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind!/Each pray'r accepted, and each wish resign'd;’
If you have a thought on this Thought - or any part of today’s issue - please leave a comment below:
And that’s the end of this Stop - I hope you enjoyed the diversion!
Thanks to everyone who subscribes - your interest and support is truly appreciated. If you like The Bus, please SHARE it with a friend or two.
If you haven’t climbed aboard The Bus, please do!
If you like The Bus, why not check out other newsletters?
The Sample sends out articles from blogs and newsletters across the web that match your interests. If you like one, you can subscribe with one click.
Refind picks five links from around the web that make you smarter, tailored to your interests. Refind is a must-read newsletter loved by over 200,000 curious minds. There’s also a very cool app. Sign up for free!
Until the next Stop …
Sources for today’s Stop include: 72 Microseasons (Nippon.com), 72 Microseasons (Kyoto Journal) and 72 Microseasons (Field and Nest).
The calendar was originally based around the traditional Chinese lunisolar calendar, a ‘hybrid timekeeping method’ incorporating both the moon’s orbit around the earth and the earth’s orbit around the sun. The consequence was that each of the 24 major seasonal points links to a ‘particular astronomical event or signifies some other natural phenomenon.’
Kaufman also wrote the screenplays for Being John Malkovich (1999) (see The Bus ‘Oblique Strategies’ (Issue 2.4)) and Adaptation (2002), and directed Synecdoche, New York (2008), Anomalisa (2015) and I’m Thinking of Ending Things (2020). He also published his first novel, Antkind, in 2020. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.
It is a really good film - and this is high praise from me as I normally find Jim Carrey insufferable.
For more on this Medieval love story - which includes illicit sex, pregnancy, a secret marriage and castration - see: Heloise/Abelard (Britannica). For a bit more about Pope, see The Bus ‘Binfield’ (Issue 2.39).
I love the idea of dividing the calendar into micro seasons. It seems to me our seasons here in the Midwest are shifting. It stays cooler later into the summer, and stays warmer later into the fall. Currently, I feel like we’re just coming out of the season “winter got drunk and stumbled into summer.” Ok, so it’s not exactly poetic, but it’s accurate.
Love that Motels tune. Your Brevard calendar hits the highlights but left out 'groups of summer campers and river tubers try to finish Dolly's ice cream cones before the goods melt'. I am so ready for Chanterelle season!