Berlin October 5-12, 2024. Parallel to Japan's Five Principles

 In a post I wrote about our experience in Japan, I described how our guide identified five important principles of Japanese behavior within the culture. In Prague, the tall, dignified buildings -- many of them Medieval -- were topped with statues of the saints and apostles.  

I saw an interesting parallels of both in Berlin; I could not help but think this was quite a commentary on the similarities and differences in these cultures.  

On the tops of the reconstructed buildings in Berlin (reconstructed because the tour guide on our "Fat Tire Bike Tour" reported that between 75% and 90% of all the buildings in Berlin were destroyed in World War II), statues loomed overhead.  We stood in the platzes of lore in the Mitte area of town and gazed up at darkened figures silhouetted above. These figures appeared on the government buildings, the museums, and cathedrals.

"Those are the original figures," the tour guide reported as we looked skyward in Babelplatz near Humbolt University. "To save them from expected destruction, Berliners removed them and took them to the country. Thus, they were preserved and able to be returned to the newly reconstructed buildings after the war.  This is why they are darker than the buildings. The buildings are young; the figures are old." The figures are carved from limestone, which turns dark with exposure to pollutants over time. 

To me, the figures appeared in the same style as the apostles and the saints on the Prague buildings. When I said to my friend in Prague that they appeared to be looking down in judgement, she quickly corrected me, "Oh no. They are supporting us, loving us, strengthening us, and reminding us who we are."

The figures in Berlin were different.  One held an abacus.  One held a weighing scale like the scales of justice we see in medieval art or in law courts. One clutched her breast and held an expression of love and compassion. One held a lyre. "These statues are Romanesque. The planners wanted Berlin to have the feel of ancient Rome."  We all nodded, noting that the statue in Alexanderplatz was of Neptune and four nymphs (representing the four rivers in Germany.) We also couldn't help but notice the columns and buildings that must have been modled after the acropolis, complete with a facade in a golden ratio.

"Virtues," said the tour guide, bringing my attention back to the figures perched on the perimeter of the roofs.  "The communist state is secular and society worked to combine the secular with the Christian." 

While looking for the Rausch Schokolade shop, I found a cathedral with a large dome and nine statues of figures near the top looking downward at the surrounding platz.  Venturing inside close to the 4:00 pm hour (16:00 on the twenty-four hour clock used in Germany), the woman at the door said, "It's about to become loud in here with the bells.  Be prepared." I was energized and began to climb the staircase spiraling up the dome to hear the magnificent bells up close. In the wall of the stairwell, I found the following description of the figures that appeared to generally apply to similar figures around down: 

"The nine figures on the gable peaks and roof parapets of the tower base symbolize six secular and three Christian virtues: On the north side we find patience, compassion, and kindness; on the south side gratitude, charity, and moderation; on the east side faith, hope, and love." (Italics are mine.) One could easily argue, in my opinion, that all nine are secular.

The principles in Japan?  These were posted at the entry to the Golden Temple, where our guide said many do not follow the last, but the first is the most important: 

1. Be kind and show respect for all living things. 

2. Do not steal.

3. Do not engage in sexual improprieties.

4. Do not lie.

5. Do not drink alcohol.