Drink of the gods in everyday and holyday Japanese culture

The subject of research is sake - traditional Japanese alcoholic beverage. The purpose of the article is to determine the role of sake in Japanese culture, to identify the ideas, national stereotypes, and a system of values behind it. The relevance of the study is determined by the symbolic value of gastronomic culture as a means of identifying an ethnic group. The national cuisine of any nation is formed under the influence of various factors: natural and geographical features of the area, type of civilization, and fundamental cultural values. Its analysis allows us to come closer to understanding more global issues of identity formation, preservation and translation of cultural heritage, and features of national thinking. Due to its semiotic functions, food can serve as a symbol in various life situations. Using a specific set of products endowed with cultural meaning, the nation retains its original features. Thus, gastronomic culture reveals traits of a national character and contributes to the preservation of cultural identity. Sake is a ritual beverage with a thousand-year history, a concentrate of cultural meanings that identify a person and society in their inextricable relationship. For centuries it has been part of the life of almost every person in Japan, has inspired forms of conduct and ways of thinking because of its importance in rites commemorating everything from birth to death. Sake is more than a drink taken to enjoy. It also serves a vital social purpose at the defining moments in life. The author has analyzed sake as a sacred beverage, mentioned in the ancient Japanese Chronicles, showed its close connection with Shinto rituals, determined the role in the everyday and festive culture of the Japanese. Belief in the divine nature of sake is rooted in ancient myths and legends. Tolerant attitude towards the drunk in Japan also goes back to ancient rituals. Turning to literary sources and Japanese phraseology made it possible to significantly expand the research base and to reveal the totality of ideas about sake in the worldview of native Japanese speakers. The main methods of work are conceptual and contextual analysis, lingvocultural commentary, implemented in the methods of classification and systematization of material. Аnalysis of numerous examples made it possible to explicate the spiritual, sacred significance of sake, to conclude that in the Japanese worldview it is more than just an alcoholic drink, it is associated with ideas that encompass the entire sphere of a person’s life: life, death, work, family, generational communication, change of seasons. As a cultural marker sake carries culturally significant information and serves as the most important means of understanding cultural identity.

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