Guide to the Institute

Okura Institute for the Study of Spiritual Culture
Public Interest Incorporated Foundation

Objective in Founding the Institute
The Okura Institute for the Study of SpiritualCulture was established by Kunihiko Okura(1882–1971) on April 9, 1932 and has a history ofmore than 80 years.
Thefounder,
Kunihiko Okura,was
abusinessman who served as the president of The
Okura Yoshiten Ltd. He wanted to improve Japanand the world by adding splendid individuals toit. According to him, a splendid person wassomeone who was pure and possessed strength ofmind, who would not succumb to selfish desires,and had an abundance of intellect.
Several methods have been accrued over the long
history of humanity for developing splendidpeople. As their results are concentrated in fields
Kunihiko Okura
such as philosophy, religion, and history, most Taken in the period heresearch at the Institute is conducted in these was appointed Presidentof Toyo University (1937)
fields.

Column 1:

The Thoughts of Kunihiko Okura

Man’s Purpose

While food, clothing, and shelter are but means for fulfilling the object, we often forget the object
and think only of the means. Purpose is the fulfilling of God’s law and doing of God’s work.
Taken from My Thoughts, a collection of approximately 1,400 thoughts of Kunihiko Okura, written
continuously between 1925 and 1945. Each day, the Institute’s website features one of these thoughts.

Current activities
The articles of association of the Institute express its goal of contributing to the development of Japanese and world
cultures through research into the spiritual cultures of both the East and the West. The overall purpose of theInstitute is derived from this. In order to develop splendid people, Kunihiko Okura considered it most effective tocombine and utilize the good points of both Eastern and Western civilizations. To achieve the objective of its articles ofassociation, the Institute carries out the following activities:

Research into spiritual culture
Its specific topics of research are business concepts, cultural projects, educational activities, theintegration of the cultures of East and West (focusing on regional studies related to Yokohama, whichfrom the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate became a key conduit for Western culture flowing intoJapan), the thoughts and achievements of the founder, Kunihiko Okura, and the history of theInstitute. It also focuses on collecting and preserving materials related to these themes.

Activities to disseminate the research findings on spiritual culture
In order to share its research findings with society at large, the Institute holds public lectures andexhibitions of artifacts and documents, as well as editing and publishing the research bulletin,
Okurayama Ronsyu. The Institute cooperates with public institutions and various groups to organize
lectures, produce documents, and run library tours and local walks.

The research bulletin

Okurayama Ronsyu

The management of the Library; supplementing andmaintaining the Library's collections
The Institute’s Library was opened when the Institute was established in 1932. Kunihiko
Okura considered it essential for people aspiring to become splendid to hone theirintellectual gifts by reading books. The Library was opened to the public so that everyone
could read the books. It has a collection of around 100,000 books in fields including
philosophy, religion, history, and literature. These include foreign language dictionaries andabout 10,000 foreign books; in addition, books stored in the Library can be accessed via theInternet. The digital archives, which are open to the public, include visual materials donatedto the Library by the Nobel Prize-winning Indian poet, Rabindranath Tagore.

Column 2:

An exhibition of artifacts

What is the oldest book?

The oldest book in the Library collection is Platonis opera quae extant Omnia (theComplete Works of Plato), published in 1578. Kunihiko Okura purchased it during a1926 tour of the libraries and educational and religious facilities of Europe.
Platonis opera quae extant Omnia

About the Institute’s Former Main Building
The present Okurayama Memorial Hall was constructed as the Institute's main building in 1932. Kunihiko
Okura wanted to express, through the shape of this building, the human ideal of a pure mind, strong will, andabundant intellect. The architect Nagano Uheiji (1867–1937) created a structure that embodied Kunihiko Okura’sconcept.
Although the Institute was based in this building, the site was sold to Yokohama City in 1981, and its buildings
were donated. Currently, Yokohama City owns the Institute’s former main building ,and the building is managed bya designated administrator. The Institute continues to occupy the East Wing of the former main building.
The building was designated a Yokohama City Designated Tangible Cultural Property in 1991. In 2004, 4,546
related artifacts held in the Institute’s collections were also designated Yokohama City Designated Tangible
Cultural Property. In the design of the three-story building, the central building, chapel (presently the hall), andcloister (presently the gallery) represented “the mind”; they were enclosed by the East and West Wings, representing“intellect.”
The cloister, which is presently the gallery, was a place for Zen meditation to train the mind, while the Library's
collection of books was located in the East Wing, as they symbolized “intellect.” Some key architectural features areintroduced below.

Buildings

3rd Floor

N

The layout of the Institute andOkurayama Memorial Hall, highlighting special
architectural features
Black text… Institute facilities
Grey text ... Memorial Hall facilities

Pre-Hellenic style
2nd Floor

EntranceThe
entrance
waspreviously called the “room ofthe mind,” as the golden lightthat pours down from above
cleanses the mind. Sculpturesof a lion and eagle signify that
God is always watching.

This architectural style wasnamed by Nagano Uheiji. TheBuildings
incorporate
narrow-based pillars and otherelements characteristic of thearchitectural styles of the Cretan
and Mycenaean civilizations.

1st Floor

An undergroundmonument
Kunihiko Okura, during the construction of
the building foundation, buried a monument
under the building, (Ryukonhi), on which thefounding idea of the Institute is carved.

Column 3: How much did it cost to build?
These buildings were equipped with the latest facilities at the time they were built. These included an electric
book lift, internal heating, flush toilets, and a facility to supply hot water. The fully equipped buildings cost
459,356 yen and 18 sen to build. The total cost, including the cost of purchasing the land and constructing theattached facilities, was about 700,000 yen. Kunihiko Okura paid the full amount from his own pocket. This would
be a considerable amount by today’s standards.
Okurayama Memorial Hall is available for public use, with some facilities, including the meeting rooms, hall, and gallery, open to the public.
For inquiries regarding their use, please contact the designated administrator. TEL: 045-544-1881

Guide to Using the Library
Library Opening Times

The Library’s first reading room: 9:30 AM–4:30 PM, Tuesday–Saturday
The second reading room: 9:30 AM–4:30 PM on days when the library is open (thereare occasions when it is temporarily closed, for events, etc.)

Closed Days

Sunday, Monday / national holidays / the New Year period (as there are occasions
when the Library is temporarily closed, please check the calendar at http://www.okuraken.or.jp/tosyokan/annai_lib/)

Lending books

1st Reading Room Once you have obtained a lending card for the library, you may borrow books,regardless of your home address. For making a card, please visit the library with adocument that confirms your address (for example, a driver’s license or insurancecertificate).
 An individual may borrow up to 10 books for two weeks. It is possible to extend theborrowing period once, as long as another person has not reserved the relevant
book. A loan can be extended by two weeks, calculated from the original due date.
(Extensions can be requested at the Library counter, by telephone, or by email, atokuraken-tosyokan@abox3.so-net.ne.jp)

Copy service

2nd Reading Room Copy charges: size B5–A3, black and white, 20 yen per sheet/color, 80 yen per sheet(Please be aware that the range of pages that can be copied is determined by theCopyright Act. Depending on the condition of the document, it may not be possible
to make copies.)

Okura Institute for the Study of Spiritual Culture Library
Tel: 045-834-6636／FAX：045-542-0051／E-mail： okuraken-tosyokan@abox3.so-net.ne.jp
The Library’s official website is http://www.okuraken.or.jp/library_en
The OPAC online catalogue is at https://sv2.opac.jp/paop/cgi-bin/index.cgi?LibId=013v2d8
Visual materials from the Tagore collection are online at http://www.okuraken.or.jp/tagore/

The Institute’s mandala is on
permanent display in the Library

AccessNearest station
Okurayama Station (the TokyuToyoko Line)
From the bus stop in front of
Okurayama Station (Yokohama
Municipal Bus No. 41)
Seven minutes on footHow to reach the Institute from the station
Turn right at the Okurayama Station
ticket gate and climb the Kinenkan
Zaka hill.

Okura Institute for the Study of Spiritual Culture Public Interest Incorporated Foundation
2-10-1, Okurayama, Kohoku Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture, 222-0037
Tel: 045-542-0050 / FAX: 045-542-0051 / E-mail: okuraseishinbunka@js6.so-net.ne.jp
The Institute’s official website is at http://www.okuraken.or.jp/home_en/* Please telephone during the Library’s opening hours when contacting the Institute or Library.
* Please be aware that inquiries made to the Institute or Library will be answered primarily in Japanese.
Compiled and Published by Okura Institute for the Study of Spiritual Culture,
Public Interest Incorporated Foundation, March 2015