Gotta be careful how you use your chopsticks in Japan.

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I came across this interesting link while browsing around today. It lists many or most of the things that can get you in trouble when using chopsticks in Japan. Here it is: [A Japanese Glossary of Chopsticks Faux Pas][link].

If you remember none of the other guidelines, remember these two!

> 合わせ箸 Awasebashi (also known as 拾い箸 hiroibashi or 箸渡し hashiwatashi)
> !!! (Serious) To pass food from one pair of chopsticks to another. This is taboo due to the custom after a cremation service of picking up remains and passing them between chopsticks.

That "serious" tag is not an overstatement. Seriously don't do it. 

> 🥢 立て箸 Tatebashi (also known as 突き立て箸 tsukitatebashi, 仏箸 hotokebashi)
> !!! (Serious) To stand chopsticks upright in a bowl of rice. This is taboo, as it is the way rice is presented as a Buddhist funeral offering.

Yeah, if you need to pause when eating rice, put the chopsticks down on the chopstick holder; absolutely do not stick them in the rice upright or angled and leave them there. 



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There are a lot listed, and it goes without saying that some of these fall away when in a casual setting, so you will see other people doing them in Japan. It's like eating with your elbows on the table in the States. We all know it's considered rude in polite situations, but most of the time no one cares. 

For example:

> 回し箸 Mawashibashi
> To stir soup with the chopsticks.

Go into any cheaper restaurant that serves miso soup and I pretty much guarantee you you'll see people stirring the soup with their chopsticks as they lift it to their mouths. 

That said, always keep in mind that until you know better, it's generally safer to be careful and follow all the polite rules. Heck, even when you do know the acceptable times to break the rules, as a foreigner it may be best to stick to them most of the time. 

(and yeah, you may be made fun of for being too polite, but in a politeness based society I'd rather be too polite than rude. And if this does happen, well, you just learned a situation when it is acceptable to bend a specific rule)

Anyway, good list! Enjoy. Here is that link again: [A Japanese Glossary of Chopsticks Faux Pas][link]

[divider]: https://images.hive.blog/0x0/https://images.ecency.com/DQmR3iwCn9yvwXDXfuNjmMX6FrjAvFfYQWgA4QRckpens1j/external_content.duckduckgo.png
[link]: https://www.nippon.com/en/japan-data/h01362/

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<td><img src="http://68.media.tumblr.com/9ed59bcbc3d0c81b382b0df883f91773/tumblr_inline_ni2uuza1ku1qz4uph.jpg" alt="Hi there!"></td>
<td><a href="https://hive.blog/about/@dbooster/about-david-laspina-v1-2">David LaSpina</a> is an American photographer and translator lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time and searching for the perfect haiku.</td>
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