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List Of Characters In The Tale Of The Heike
This is a list of the characters that appear in ''The Tale of the Heike''. {{compact ToC, center=yes, extlinks=yes, nobreak=yes, c=, d=, e=, i=, j=, l=, o=, p=, q=, u=, v=, w=, x=, z= A *Ario, a loyal page boy in the service of Shunkan, who looked after him since he was young. He sought Shunkan out at Kikai-ga-shima and looked after him during his exile. * Taira no Atsumori, a young warrior known for his death in single combat at the hands of Kumagae no Jirô Naozane. He was well known for his skill with the flute. B * Saito Musashibo Benkei, a Sohei who served Minamoto no Yoshitsune. He is known for his immense strength, courage, and loyalty. He held back Minamoto no Yoritomo's forces while his master committed seppuku. F * Fukushō (副将, lit. "Vice-Commander", a nickname given to Taira no Yoshimune a.k.a. Taira no Nobumune by his father), son of Taira no Munemori, beheaded at age 7 (age 8 Japanese style) on the orders of Minamoto no Yoshitsune (see Heike Monogatari, ...
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The Tale Of The Heike
is an epic account compiled prior to 1330 of the struggle between the Taira clan and Minamoto clan for control of Japan at the end of the 12th century in the Genpei War (1180–1185). Heike () refers to the Taira (), ''hei'' being the ''on'yomi'' reading of the first ''kanji'' and "ke" () means family. Note that in the title of the Genpei War, "hei" is in this combination read as "pei" and the "gen" () is the first kanji used in the Minamoto (also known as "Genji" which is also pronounced using ''on'yomi'', for example as in '' The Tale of Genji'') clan's name. It has been translated into English at least five times, the first by Arthur Lindsay Sadler in 1918–1921. A complete translation in nearly 800 pages by Hiroshi Kitagawa & Bruce T. Tsuchida was published in 1975. Also translated by Helen McCullough in 1988. An abridged translation by Burton Watson was published in 2006. In 2012, Royall Tyler completed his translation, which seeks to be mindful of the performance s ...
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Taira No Kiyomori
was a military leader and ''kugyō'' of the late Heian period of Japan. He established the first samurai-dominated administrative government in the history of Japan. Early life Kiyomori was born in Heian-kyō, Japan, in 1118 as the first son of Taira no Tadamori, who was the head of the Taira clan. It has been speculated that Kiyomori was actually an illegitimate son of Emperor Shirakawa. His mother, Gion no Nyogo, was a palace servant according to '' The Tale of the Heike''. Family * Father: Taira no Tadamori * Mother: Gion no Nyogo (d. 1147) *Concubines and regents: **Wife: N/A *** Taira no Shigemori *** Taira no Munemori *** Taira no Tomomori *** Taira no Tokuko *** Taira no Shigehira Career After the death of his father in 1159, Kiyomori assumed control of the Taira clan and ambitiously entered the political realm in which he had previously only held a minor post. Before that though, in 1156, he and Minamoto no Yoshitomo, head of the Minamoto clan, suppressed ...
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Minamoto No Noriyori
was a late Heian period general, who fought alongside his brothers Minamoto no Yoritomo and Minamoto no Yoshitsune at a number of battles of the Genpei War. He was the sixth son of Minamoto no Yoshitomo. Early life As children, he and his brothers Yoritomo and Yoshitsune were spared by Taira no Kiyomori in 1160, following the death of their father, Minamoto no Yoshitomo, after their mother Tokiwa became Kiyomori's concubine. Genpei War Noriyori seemingly disappears from any record until 1180, when he served his brother Yoritomo in Kamakura. Beginning in 1184, four years into the Genpei War, he was sent out from Kamakura by Yoritomo, and made his way to the Taira strongholds of Shikoku. Noriyori helped defeat the wayward Minamoto no Yoshinaka, his cousin, at the Second Battle of the Uji and the Battle of Awazu, before moving on to play a central role in the Battle of Ichi-no-Tani. The Taira were pushed back, and the war fell into a lull for about six months, during which No ...
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Battle Of Awazu
Minamoto no Yoshinaka made his final stand at Awazu, after fleeing from his cousins' armies, which confronted him after he attacked Kyoto, burning the Hōjūjiden, and kidnapping Emperor Go-Shirakawa. During the pursuit he was joined by his foster brother Imai Kanehira and Tomoe Gozen. During the battle, they fought valiantly, holding off Noriyori's large force of thousands of men for a time. However, in the end, they both died in battle. Yoshinaka was struck dead by an arrow when his horse became mired in a paddy field A paddy field is a flooded field of arable land used for growing semiaquatic crops, most notably rice and taro. It originates from the Neolithic rice-farming cultures of the Yangtze River basin in southern China, associated with pre-A .... Kanehira committed suicide by leaping off his horse while holding his sword in his mouth. Gallery File:Toyoharu Awazu.jpg, Woodblock print of the battle of Awazu, by Utagawa Toyoharu, ca. 1760s. Yoshi ...
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Minamoto No Yoshinaka
, , or Lord Kiso was a general from the late Heian period of Japanese history. A member of the Minamoto clan, Minamoto no Yoritomo was his cousin and rival during the Genpei War between the Minamoto and the Taira clans. Yoshinaka was born in Musashi province. His dharma name was Tokuon'in Gisan Senkō (徳音院義山宣公). Early life Yoshinaka's father, Minamoto no Yoshikata, was killed by Minamoto no Yoshihira in 1155. Yoshihira also sought to kill Yoshinaka who escaped to Shinano Province. He was raised by Nakahara Kaneto, Imai Kanehira's father, together with his milk-brother Imai Kanehira, who would later become his best friend and most loyal retainer. Yoshinaka later changed his name from Minamoto to , to reflect the Kiso Mountains where he was raised. Genpei War Yoshinaka accepted Prince Mochihito's call to the Minamoto clan to rise against the Taira in 1181. He entered the Genpei War by raising an army and invading Echigo Province. He then defeated a Taira force s ...
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Imai No Shirô Kanehira
Imai ( — characters for "now" and "water well", meaning "new place of residence") is a Japanese surname. ''The Japanese characters link to the Japanese-language Wikipedia'' *, Japanese animator *Asami Imai ( 今井麻美), voice actor *Eriko Imai ( 今井絵理子), artist *, Japanese figure skater *, Japanese cross-country skier *Hisae Imai ( 今井寿恵), photographer *Hisashi Imai ( 今井寿), Japanese rock musician * Isao Imai (other), multiple people * Kenji Imai (other), multiple people * Kohzoh Imai (今井浩三, born 1948), Japanese scientist *, Japanese snowboarder *Masaaki Imai (born 1930), Japanese organizational theorist * Miki Imai (other), multiple people *Nobuko Imai ( 今井信子), classical violist * Runa Imai (born 2000), Japanese swimmer * Sōkyū Imai ( 今井宗久), merchant *Tadashi Imai ( 今井正), film director *, Japanese middle-distance runner * Tomoki Imai, Japanese footballer * Toshiaki Imai ( 今井敏明), football m ...
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Minamoto
was one of the surnames bestowed by the Emperors of Japan upon members of the imperial family who were excluded from the line of succession and demoted into the ranks of the nobility from 1192 to 1333. The practice was most prevalent during the Heian period (794–1185 AD), although its last occurrence was during the Sengoku period. The Taira were another such offshoot of the imperial dynasty, making both clans distant relatives. The Minamoto clan is also called the , or less frequently, the , using the on'yomi reading for Minamoto. The Minamoto were one of four great clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian period—the other three were the Fujiwara, the Taira, and the Tachibana. History The first emperor to grant the surname Minamoto was Minamoto no Makoto, seventh son of Emperor Saga. The most prominent of the several Minamoto families, the Seiwa Genji, descended from Minamoto no Tsunemoto (897–961), a grandson of Emperor Seiwa. Tsunemoto went to the p ...
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Kajiwara Kagetoki
was a samurai and retainer of the Kamakura Shogunate during the late Heian and early Kamakura period. He was a spy for Minamoto no Yoritomo in the Genpei War, and a warrior against the Taira clan. He came to be known for his greed and treachery. He was a prominent eastern warrior and supplied Minamoto no Yoshitsune with a number of ships after the Battle of Yashima. Life Originally from Suruga Province, Kajiwara entered the Genpei War fighting under Ōba Kagechika, against the Minamoto. After the Taira victory at Ishibashiyama in 1181, he was sent to pursue the fleeing Minamoto no Yoritomo. Having discovered him, Kajiwara switched sides, leading his forces in another direction, and turning to Yoritomo's cause. Three years later, Kajiwara would lead the forces of Minamoto no Yoshitsune and Yoritomo into battle against their cousin Yoshinaka, and against the Taira. Attached to Yoshitsune's force, Kajiwara reported back to Yoritomo on Yoshitsune's actions, in order to sati ...
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Gautama Buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lumbini, in what is now Nepal, to royal parents of the Shakya clan, but renounced his home life to live as a wandering ascetic ( sa, śramaṇa). After leading a life of begging, asceticism, and meditation, he attained enlightenment at Bodh Gaya in what is now India. The Buddha thereafter wandered through the lower Indo-Gangetic Plain, teaching and building a monastic order. He taught a Middle Way between sensual indulgence and severe asceticism, leading to Nirvana, that is, freedom from ignorance, craving, rebirth, and suffering. His teachings are summarized in the Noble Eightfold Path, a training of the mind that includes meditation and instruction in Buddhist ethics such as right effort, mindfulness, and ''jhana''. He die ...
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Taira
The Taira was one of the four most important clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian, Kamakura and Muromachi Periods of Japanese history – the others being the Fujiwara, the Tachibana, and the Minamoto. The clan is divided into four major groups, named after the emperor they descended from: Kanmu Heishi, Ninmyō Heishi, Montoku Heishi, and Kōkō Heishi. The clan is commonly referred to as or , using the character's On'yomi for ''Taira'', while means "clan", and is used as a suffix for " extended family". History Along with the Minamoto, Taira was one of the honorary surnames given by the emperors of the Heian Period (794–1185 CE) to their children and grandchildren who were not considered eligible for the throne. The clan was founded when the Imperial Court grew too large, and the emperor ordered that the descendants of previous emperors from several generations ago would no longer be princes, but would instead be given noble surnames and ra ...
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Emperor Antoku
was the 81st emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 1180 through 1185. During this time, the Imperial family was involved in a bitter struggle between warring clans. Minamoto no Yoritomo with his cousin Minamoto no Yoshinaka, led a force from the Minamoto clan against the Taira, who controlled the emperor. During the climactic sea Battle of Dan-no-ura in April 1185, Antoku's grandmother Taira no Tokiko took him and plunged with him into the water in the Shimonoseki Straits, drowning the child emperor rather than allowing him to be captured by the opposing forces. The conflict between the clans led to numerous legends and tales. The story of Emperor Antoku and his mother's family became the subject of the Kamakura period epic poem ''The Tale of the Heike'' (Heike is an alternative reading of the Japanese characters for "House of the Taira"). Antoku's tomb is said to be located in a number of places around western Ja ...
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