This May, we are honoured to welcome special guests from Japan for a weekend of public incense gatherings and lectures on Japanese incense tradition at the University of British Columbia. The program will provide a rich experience of incense culture with an array of activities focused around a special keynote lecture and symposium on Friday, May 23, and public incense gatherings on Saturday and Sunday, May 24 and 25.

This program is presented by the Dōjin Japanese Arts Society in partnership with UBC Library, UBC Department of Asian Studies, and Nitobe Memorial Garden.

Symposium to include:

• Keynote Lecture by Master NISHIGIWA Jhōyo, Headmaster Designate of the Senzan Goryū School of Incense Tradition, Kyoto
• Lecture “A History of Incense in Japan – From the Heian Period to Oda Nobunaga” by YANO Tamaki, Professor Emeritus, Dōshisha University, Kyoto
• Lecture “Incense Woods and Incense Utensils Inherited by the Owari Tokugawa Family” by YOTSUTSUJI Hideki, Curator Emeritus, The Tokugawa Art Museum, Nagoya
• Special viewing of Edo-period materials from the UBC Library Rare Books and Special Collections

Public Incense Experience to include:

• 1 Incense session set in the traditional tearoom in Nitobe Memorial Garden featuring a single special incense (meikōgiki 名香聞)
• 1 Incense session held ryūrei 立礼 style (seated at long tables) in the Asian Centre consisting of an exercise in discerning among several different woods in a seasonally themed scent-matching game (kumikō 組香)
• Guided tours of Nitobe Memorial Garden
• Matcha tea service
• Educational exhibits and demonstrations

SYMPOSIUM

Date: Friday May 23, 2025
Time: 1:00 – 5:00 pm, preview of Rare Books and Special Collections from 12:00-1:00 pm
Location: Peña Room 301, Irving K. Barber Learning Centre, UBC
Fee: Free to the public
Registration is required.

PUBLIC INCENSE CEREMONIES

Dates: Saturday May 24 & Sunday May 25, 2025
Session Times: 10:00 am & 1:00 pm
Location: UBC Asian Centre & Nitobe Memorial Garden
Fee: $95
Registration is required.

For full program details and links to registration, please visit the official event page: https://www.dojinarts.org/experience-kodo-event-page