A huge crowd of people leapt to their feet, whooping and smiling as they held up babies and waved flags. “Akihito is leaving some big shoes to fill for Naruhito,” said Jeff Kingston, director of Asian studies at Temple University in Japan. But it’s his blueprint for how to be a successful figurehead emperor that may be his best gift to his son. Emperor worship before the war was largely imposed by militaristic governments, but Akihito won over the public on his own. Naruhito’s struggle will be to now try to make the same connections his father mastered over the decades.

Source: National Post April 30, 2019 00:56 UTC