To assume that newer and progressive adaptations by any culture should strictly adhere to the originating traditions would be fallacious. The utilization of newer institutions and technologies in Japan does not necessarily require a blind adherence to the authentic cultural framework amidst which these systems were adapted. But neither does it suggest that the adaptation of newer systems should result in changes (also brought forth by the acceptance of Western elements) that might eradicate a deeply ingrained set of cultural values and principles, preventing it from being maintained, reinterpreted, reinvented, and thus kept alive. What is so wonderful about the Japanese propensity to find beauty in darkness and gloom is the fact that it was an esoteric cultural response stemming from the very founding values of the culture's beliefs and geography. It is significant in its authentic contrast in both physical and metaphysical interpretations, and consequently, in it's use of light in architectural space as compared to the West. One could attribute it to the philosophical and religious influences of Shintoism and Buddhism that seeped into the culture, or one could argue that it is the subconscious and involuntary influence of the dense and misty natural surroundings on the psyches of a people who were deeply in harmony with nature.

Today only a precious slice of that shadowy Japan remains, one which hopefully will regrow in time, as a contemporary Japan seeks to reclaim some of its founding cultural values. While it is true that most of today's Japan barely manifests the shadowy world described above, there is actually some indication of a renaissance. Recently, better lighting companies have been showing an increasing tendency to produce effective diffused lighting fixtures for commercial and residential interiors that display sensitivity to the moods of the shadowy world. Contemporary vogues for electric lamps as a reinterpretation of traditional paper lanterns is but one example of the renewed awareness of a tranquil illumination that has often been forgotten.