Ikebana is philosophical, aesthetic flower arrangement, bringing flowers to life.
Originating in symbolic, sacrificial flower arrangements made by Buddhist monks in their temples,
in time ikebana became more simple and modest in scale.
The Samurai cherished the art of flower arrangement as one of their spiritual interests.
For centuries, Ikebana was a man's hobby; only by the 1860´s women were allowed to practice it.Tokonoma is a small alcove or hollow, which constitutes the sacral centre of a traditional Japanese house. The Tokonoma was reserved for beautiful and valuable things, such as the equipment used for the tea ceremony, scroll boards or calligraphy rolls, beautiful kimonos, ikebana flower arrangements, miniature bonsai trees, ancestral swords or helmets and incense bowls. These artefacts were changed according to the season.
