On Aug. 28, Lin Kobayashi and other members of the ISAK board participated in the “jichinsai” ground-breaking ceremony at Asama Terrace. Construction of ISAK school buildings is scheduled to commence on Sept. 3. The jichinsai, a centuries’ old tradition in Japan, is a ritual in which a Shinto priest asks the kami (god) of the land for permission for the site to be used, and offers a blessing for a safe, incident-free construction process.