Established in 1917, Kuroki Goishiten in Miyazaki Prefecture has been producing Go stones loved by many Go players.
As a new challenge, we have created "GODIANA", a product that focuses on the time spent playing Go as "time to face oneself", not as "time for fun and games".
The name "GODIANA" is derived from "GO," which refers to the overseas game of Go, and "DHYANA," which means "Zen" in Sanskrit. This time, we are going to play everyday, which is a pun on the Zen philosophy of "Nichinichi Kore Gojitsu" (meaning good day by day with Go game)
The name "GODIANA" comes from "DHYANA," which means "Zen" in Japanese. It means, "This moment when you are playing Go is always important. Kuroki Go Stone Store believes that people are the users of Go stones, and people communicate with stones. Therefore, the stones need to be made by human hands as well as being made of natural materials.
We have included the feel of the Clam shell Go stones and the sound of the stones when they are struck on the close grain board, a high quality board material, and even the time required for maintenance after use, so that you can spend time alone to face yourself. Busy modern people have limited time to face themselves. This set is a compact set that can be easily carried around for fireside chats or alone time in the study, and can also be well cared for. The use of authentic materials makes it an ideal gift for those who will cherish a good product for a long time. It is also recommended for those who are looking for a new hobby.
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The product is a Go set that is specialized for playing Go alone, feeling the sound of the stones and the touch of the Go board, while arranging the game record and engaging in a game of Go with your thoughts.
The amount of time that one spends alone with oneself varies from person to person. Some people spend it in their own room, while others spend it in nature. The size of the product was carefully selected to match the time spent alone. The total weight of the product is only about 750g, making it "compact" so that it can be carried anywhere.
The GODIANA craft Go bag is designed to hold a Go board and stones necessary for playing Go.
The Go board is a 5X5 board (25 stones), so it can be used anywhere. The paulownia box that holds the Go board and stones is also originally made and designed to fit nicely like a jewelry box, so that it is scratch-resistant when being transported. The compact folding mat is also included, so the board can be used without being damaged.
The Go stones are made by the skilled Clam shell Go stones craftsmen of Kuroki Goishiten. Each stone is made from a cylindrical piece of raw Go stones material, and each piece is individually cut and manufactured by our craftsmen. The stripes of the Clam shell are a sign of high quality.
We are particular about the ease of playing, and use selected Clam shell White Go stones of size 34, which are said to be the easiest to play among dozens of different sizes of Go stones, and Nachi Black Go stones of about 1 cm thickness.
The board is made of Kaya wood, which has a beautiful grain and color, and the best texture, feel, taste, sound, and smell of the wood. Usually, new Kaya, Icho, and Hiba are used, but this time, we have chosen the best material for this board. The thickness of the board is about 3 cm.
The scales on the board are not printed, but craftsmen finish each line on the board with real lacquer, "tamari-finishing". You can see that each line is raised when you stroke the scale line with your hand.
Many customers have asked us "How should I take care of it? We have received comments from many customers such as "How should I take care of the Go stones? Also, there are many people who have never used Go stones before.
We are also aware that there are many people who will be touching go stones for the first time.
We have mentioned how to take care of go stones on our home page, but this time, we have enclosed a care set supervised by a selector of Kuroki Goishiten, a specialty store of go stones. We designed this set after many trials and errors in terms of material, size, and feel, so that you can use your Go stones with more care than ever before.
Just as you love leather products, Go stones will shine even more beautifully if you take care of them properly. It is our greatest pleasure that our craftsmen put their hearts and souls into making these stones and boards so that you can use them with love and care for many years to come.
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Kuroki Go Stone Store was founded in 1917 by Sojiro Kuroki, the founder of Kuroki Goishiten, and based on the philosophy of the founder, Kazushi Kuroki, the second generation, formed the basic philosophy of Kuroki Go Stone Store today. "It is people who use Go stones, and people interact with stones. Therefore, Kazushi Kuroki upheld the philosophy that stones must be made of natural materials and at the same time, they must be made by human hands.
This basic philosophy has been passed down to Kuroki Goishiten, and even today, with the advancement of mechanization, every single stone is handled once by every craftsman in a 24-step process that takes about three months.
The process takes about three months and 24 steps in modern times.
As long as the culture of Go continues to exist in the world, our philosophy of "products" will never change.
In the days when mass production was the norm, there were several suppliers of Go stones, but today there is only one supplier for both white and black Go stones. The supply of raw materials for both white and black Go stones is getting more and more difficult every year due to the shortage of labor and decreasing demand, and it is not surprising that the supply could stop at any time.
There are only about seven Clam shell Go stones craftsmen in Japan, including retired ones. In order to pass on the traditions and techniques of Clam shell Go stones to the next generation, we believe it is necessary to increase the number of new Go fans and the Go population, thereby deepening their understanding of Go culture and Go tools and gradually increasing demand.
Go equipments, the tools of Go, are supported by not only Go stones but also Go boards, Go chests (containers for Go stones), and many other tools made by the traditional skills of many craftsmen. If the supply of any one of these items were to cease, there is a strong possibility that the culture of Go tools would reach a point of irreversibility, and I have a strong sense of crisis that our industry is at a major crossroads.
According to "Leisure White Paper 2022" (edited and published by Japan Productivity Center) published on October 31, 2022, the Go population in Japan in 2021 decreased to 1.5 million. According to the white paper, the Go population was 4 million in 2012, about 10 years ago, and in the past 10 years, the playing population has decreased to less than half of the previous year, resulting in a serious decline in the number of people playing Go.
In addition, more than 30% of the Go population is in their 70s, and the aging of the population is also progressing, making it a major challenge to popularize Go among younger generations. In addition, the fact that opportunities to play Go face to face, one-on-one, have been drastically reduced due to the Corona Disaster, which will force people to play no face to face from 2020, is thought to have accelerated the decline in the Go market.
Under such circumstances, our sales have decreased by more than 30% during the past three years compared to the pre-Corona period. Not only our company, but also craftsmen and manufacturers across the country who make Go tools were exposed to a very difficult sales situation.
So, when we thought about "what we can do," we decided that we needed to take on the challenge of increasing the number of Go players, even if only in a small way. We also decided to plan "GODIANA" as an opportunity for young people in their 20s to 50s, who have never been exposed to the world of Go, to get in touch with the game. Furthermore, we would be very happy if, through "GODIANA," we could show people who manufacture and sell niche traditional handicrafts like ours our "attitude to take on new challenges," and thereby encourage even one person to take a step forward into something new.
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