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Takahiro UedaDiary of a Monk

Welcome to our website. For those of you who are visiting our blog for the first time. First of all, please click here.

Nice to meet you. My name is Takahiro Ueda, the administrator of this blog. This blog started as my attempt to look at various things in my daily life and write words with the motto of asking myself questions, as you can see in the title of the blog.

This article will give you a general guide within our blog. If you are new to our blog or wondering what to read, please read this article first.
Dostoevsky's JourneyDostoevsky and His Wife's Fateful Journey: Travels in Western Europe of Madness and Love

Takahiro Ueda, "Dostoevsky and His Wife's Fateful Journey: A Western European Journey of Madness and Love" List of Articles - Please use this list as a table of contents.

This article is a collection of 30 articles from my European travelogue, "Dostoevsky, Fateful Journey with His Wife: Travels in Western Europe of Madness and Love".

I like Dostoevsky. But above all, I love "Dostoevsky with Mrs. Anna. I would be very happy if the journey of these two men could be seen by as many people as possible.
A Global History of ChocolateBuddhism in Sri Lanka, Nepal and Southeast Asia

Naoko Takeda, "The World History of Chocolate" - Recommended commentary book to learn about the transition of chocolate from modern to contemporary times and surprising information about Kit Kat.

Chocolate, with which we are all familiar, is a product of modernity. Especially with the Industrial Revolution in England, chocolate began to take on a very different meaning. This book is a very exciting way to learn about this process.

Also, as mentioned in the title of this article, this book also provides the history of Kit Kat, which we are all familiar with.

This book makes it clear that the rise in popularity of these chocolate confections was precisely the result of modernization.

This book is highly recommended to learn about the origins of chocolate, which is directly related to our daily lives. If you read this book together with "The History of Chocolate" introduced in the previous issue, you will surely deepen your understanding of chocolate even more.
History of ChocolateBuddhism in Sri Lanka, Nepal and Southeast Asia

Kawade Bunko "History of Chocolate" - A recommended work to learn about the origins of chocolate and its history dating back to the Mayan civilization!

This book is a large-scale work that looks at the history of chocolate, which is familiar to us all, going back to the Mayan civilization in BC.

I picked up this book because I was researching the Western distribution of tea and coffee in my study of Sri Lankan history. Tea, coffee and chocolate entered the West at about the same time and were popular as beverages. I also wanted to learn about the history of chocolate because I thought that the development of plantations and trade was very significant in terms of European and Asian thought.

That is when I came across this book, "The History of Chocolate". I fell in love with this book at first sight.
Ranman and DostoevskyDostoevsky and His Wife's Fateful Journey: Travels in Western Europe of Madness and Love

On whether Keiko Kotobuki of "Ranman," who fought off debt collectors, and Dostoevsky's wife, Mrs. Anna, may look alike.

When I saw Jueko-san, who successfully turned away a debt collector in this week's NHK morning drama "Ranman," I couldn't help but think of Dostoevsky's wife, Madame Anna.

Mrs. Anna also supported Dostoevsky, who had no livelihood, and even helped him clean up his manuscripts, publish them, and even fight off debt collectors.

In this article, we will discuss their similarities and the unexpected aspects of Mr. and Mrs. Dostoevsky.
Rome and DostoevskyTravels in Rome" - Charms of the Theater City of Rome and Pilgrimage to Bernini

(42) What does Dostoevsky, who criticized Roman Catholicism, think of Rome, the temple of beauty and theater city?

We have updated our Rome travelogue 41 times so far.

As I reported in the introduction to this travelogue, I toured Rome with the question, "Although Dostoevsky hated Roman Catholicism, could he not be captivated by St. Peter's Basilica, its main temple, and Bernini's stage art in Rome?

For me, I did not forget Dostoevsky for a single moment during my stay in Rome. I was always with Dostoevsky during my stay in Europe.

So what did Dostoevsky actually think of Rome during his stay?

The truth is that we do not know as Dostoevsky left nothing behind. But even so, I have come to the conclusion that Dostoevsky would have liked but disliked Rome.
mountain where monsters roamBritish and German Literature, History and Culture

Thomas Mann's "The Devil's Mountain" Synopsis and Comments - What is life? A hodgepodge of strong personalities! A masterpiece of German literature!

This novel is very important to me. If I had to choose my "Ten Greatest Novels," "The Devil's Mountain" would certainly be among them. It is so powerful and has such a strong impact. It is a work of great scale!

I first read this book when I was a graduate student. I had been wanting to read a profound novel about life issues, and this was the one I suddenly came across. I was originally interested in Thomas Mann, having read "Death in Venice" as a student and having heard his name mentioned in connection with Goethe.

Then I came across this book, and a passage I will never forget was burned into my mind.
Dostoevsky and His Wife's Fateful Journey: Travels in Western Europe of Madness and Love

My thoughts after "Dostoevsky's Journey" and future blog updates - in reply to the message to all visitors to this blog.

I like Dostoevsky. But above all, I love "Dostoevsky with Mrs. Anna. I would be very happy if the journey of these two men could be seen by as many people as possible.

After this, our blog will be updated with articles about Rome, but for me personally, I will now plunge into the study of Buddhism. Finally, I have returned to my main focus. I will be studying the history, thought, and culture of Buddhism along the route of its transmission from India, Asia, China, and Japan. My ultimate goal is to write a novel biography of Shinran Shonin. My research is now entering a new phase, and I have no regrets about my nearly four years of research on "Shinran and Dostoevsky.
Dostoevsky and His Wife's Fateful Journey: Travels in Western Europe of Madness and Love

(29) The connection between the sudden death of his beloved child Alyosha and "The Brothers Karamazov" - Dostoevsky as the father of his children.

In our previous article, we introduced you to Dostoevsky, the loving wife.

And in this article I would like to conclude my travelogue by introducing Dostoevsky as a father.

Dostoevsky, the loving wife, Dostoevsky, the father of a child.

I will now share with you an episode that is absolutely essential to know Dostoevsky as he walked with his wife.

I believe that if you read "The Brothers Karamazov" with the knowledge of Dostoevsky's love for his children, something different will surely grow inside your heart.