Fusuma are used to partition flooring rush mats rooms and as closet doors. A thick paper is glued on top of a Japanese paper lining. The beautiful designs and pictures painted on this paper create a superb room interior. In order to change the atmosphere of a room, one only has to change the paper. Unlike shoji, lighting is not taken into consideration. Fusuma principally function as room partitions and as beautiful works of art.
Kawara are tiles used on the roofs of Japanese houses. They were brought from China in the seventh century. Today they are made principally with clay and cement. Roofs made of kawara tiles are called "kawarabuki." They come in all sorts of shapes, depending on the location where they are used. Tiles with the figure of ogres usually are done in the form of ogres and are used as charms against bad luck.
Furin are small bells made of glass, metal or ceramic which are hung from the eaves of houses chiefly in summer. A rectangular strip of paper which is called tanzaku is hung from a clapper, and ancient Japanese poems or verses are written on it. When the tanzaku catches the breeze, the bell chimes. In the hot, humid Japanese summer, the sound of the furin vibrating in the breeze is, for the Japanese, a puff of coolness.
Kotatsu is a heating apparatus that fits the Japanese "lifestyle of sitting on flooring rush mats." A low wooden table is covered with a thick quilt and underneath is placed a ceramic container with burning charcoal. This makes it warm underneath, so when sitting covered to the waist with the thick quilt the body warms up. Today, it is done not with charcoal but with an electric heater beneath the table. As with the Western fireplace, the family in Japan relaxes around the kotatsu in winter.
Hibachi are ancient Japanese heating devices, made of ceramic, wood or metal. Ashes are laid in, a charcoal fire is kindled, hands held out to it are warmed, and it warms the room. It can also be used to boil water, by putting a brass kettle on a ring-shaped support with a tripod in the ashes. However, as lifestyles change, this apparatus has almost completely disappeared from the average contemporary family household.
Irori resemble fireplaces without chimney. A square hole is dug in the middle of a room, and fire is kindled with firewood as fuel. Its size is either 90 or 180 cm on each side. In the center, a pot hanger is suspended from the ceiling, from which cookpots or iron kettles are hung. In the past, the whole family would gather around the irori to eat and do other things, but nowadays this only happens in the countryside in old farming households.
Soroban are instruments used for calculation. They were brought from China. Several slender poles running through five or seven round pieces are inserted into a rectangular frame. The round pieces are moved to do the calculations. Nowadays, its place seems to be taken over by calculators, but learning soroban strengthens the ability to calculate mentally, so there are a lot of private soroban schools. There is even a license examination of soroban.
Uchiwa have frameworks of thinly split, spread-out bamboo on which paper is glued, and were brought into Japan from China more than 1,000 years ago. In the hot summer, fanning creates breezes and refreshment. They are also used for advertising by stenciling on store names and product names. The sight of a person wearing an informal cotton kimono and fanning oneself with an uchiwa is a typical Japanese summer scene.
Sensu can be said to be collapsible uchiwa. While uchiwa came from China, sensu originated in Japan. In addition to being used to create breezes and refreshment, sensu are indispensable props for classical Japanese dance and for comic storytelling. Because the shape of the unfolded fan is "broadening toward the end," symbolizing rising prosperity, it is also used as prop for celebrations or as a memento.
Chopsticks(hashi) are two sticks that hold food between them when one eats. They were brought from ancient China. In Japan, hashi are almost always used when eating. Most are made of wood or bamboo painted with lacquer or of plastic, but there are also high-class ones with the inside made of ivory. Hashi put out for visitors or in restaurants are half-split chopsticks; made of unfinished wood, they are to be used and thrown away. Most Japanese are skillful at using hashi, because they learned how from their parents during childhood.