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Nue
The Nue (鵺, 鵼, 恠鳥, or 奴延鳥) is a legendary yōkai or mononoke from Japanese mythology. Appearance In the ''The Tale of the Heike, Tale of Heike'', it is described as a Japanese Chimera (mythology), Chimera having the head of a Japanese macaque, monkey, the limbs of a tiger, the body of a Japanese raccoon dog, and the front half of a snake for a tail. In other writings, nothing is stated about its torso; in these versions, it is sometimes depicted to have the torso of a tiger. The ''Genpei Jōsuiki'' describes it as having the back of a tiger, the limbs of a tanuki, the tail of a fox, the head of a cat, and the torso of a chicken. It is said to make terribly eerie bird cry "hyoo hyoo" noises that resemble that of the scaly thrush. In the movie ''Akuryōtō'' (originally by Seishi Yokomizo), the catchphrase "nights where the nue cry are dreadful" refers to this fact. The nue is also said to have the ability of shape-shifting, often into the form of a black cloud th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tiger
The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is a large Felidae, cat and a member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes. It is traditionally classified into nine Holocene, recent subspecies, though some recognise only two subspecies, mainland Asian tigers and the island tigers of the Sunda Islands. Throughout the tiger's range, it inhabits mainly forests, from coniferous and temperate broadleaf and mixed forests in the Russian Far East and Northeast China to tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests on the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. The tiger is an apex predator and preys mainly on ungulates, which it takes by ambush. It lives a mostly solitary life and occupies home ranges, defending these from individuals of the same sex. The range of a male tiger overlaps with that of multiple females with whom he mates. Females give birth to usually two or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yōkai
are a class of supernatural entities and Spirit (supernatural entity) , spirits in Japanese folklore. The kanji representation of the word comprises two characters that both mean "suspicious, doubtful", and while the Japanese name is simply the Japanese transliteration or pronunciation of the Chinese term ''yaoguai, yāoguài'' (which designates similarly strange creatures), some Japanese commentators argue that the word ''yōkai'' has taken on many different meanings in Japanese culture, including referring to a large number of uniquely Japanese creatures. are also referred to as , or . However, most Japanese generally think of the two loose classes of spirits as highly different, although some academics and Shinto practitioners acknowledge similarities within the seeming dichotomy between the natures of them and most ''kami'', which are generally regarded as relatively beneficent in comparison, and class the two as ultimately the same type of spirits of nature or of a m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sexagenary Cycle
The sexagenary cycle, also known as the gānzhī (干支) or stems-and-branches, is a cycle of sixty terms, each corresponding to one year, thus amounting to a total of sixty years every cycle, historically used for recording time in China and the rest of the East Asian cultural sphere, as well as in Southeast Asia. It appears as a means of recording days in the first Chinese written texts, the oracle bones of the late second millennium BC Shang dynasty. Its use to record years began around the middle of the 3rd century BC. The cycle and its variations have been an important part of the traditional calendrical systems in Chinese-influenced Asian states and territories, particularly those of Japan, Korea, and Vietnam, with the old Chinese system still in use in Taiwan, and in Mainland China. In India, the Ahom people (descendants of the Dai people of Yunnan who migrated to Assam in the 13th century) also used the sexagenary cycle known as Lak-Ni. This traditional metho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heian Period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a period in Japanese history when the Chinese influence on Japanese culture, Chinese influences were in decline and the national culture matured. The Heian period is also considered the peak of the Japanese Emperors of Japan, imperial court, noted for its Japanese art, art, especially Japanese poetry, poetry and Japanese literature, literature. Two syllabaries unique to Japan, katakana and hiragana, emerged during this time. This gave rise to Japan's famous vernacular literature, with many of its texts written by court ladies who were not as educated in Chinese as their male counterparts. Although the Imperial House of Japan had power on the surface, the real power was in the hands of the Fujiwara clan, a powerful Kuge, aristocratic family wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Snake
Snakes are elongated limbless reptiles of the suborder Serpentes (). Cladistically squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales much like other members of the group. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more joints than their lizard ancestors and relatives, enabling them to swallow prey much larger than their heads ( cranial kinesis). To accommodate their narrow bodies, snakes' paired organs (such as kidneys) appear one in front of the other instead of side by side, and most only have one functional lung. Some species retain a pelvic girdle with a pair of vestigial claws on either side of the cloaca. Lizards have independently evolved elongate bodies without limbs or with greatly reduced limbs at least twenty-five times via convergent evolution, leading to many lineages of legless lizards. These resemble snakes, but several common groups of legless lizards have eyelids and external ears, which snakes lack, althoug ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Emperor Go-Shirakawa
was the 77th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His de jure reign spanned the years from 1155 through 1158, though arguably he effectively maintained imperial power for almost thirty-seven years through the ''insei'' system – scholars differ as to whether his rule can be truly considered part of the ''insei'' system, given that the Hōgen Rebellion undermined the imperial position. However, it is broadly acknowledged that by politically outmaneuvering his opponents, he attained greater influence and power than the diminished authority of the emperor's position during this period would otherwise allow. Posthumously, this 12th-century sovereign was named after the 11th-century Emperor Shirakawa. ''Go-'' (後), translates literally as "later"; and thus, he is sometimes called the "Later Emperor Shirakawa", or in some older sources, may be identified as "Shirakawa, the second" or as "Shirakawa II". Unusually, the years of Go-Shirakawa's reign ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Man'yōgana
is an ancient writing system that uses Chinese characters to represent the Japanese language. It was the first known kana system to be developed as a means to represent the Japanese language phonetically. The date of the earliest usage of this type of kana is not clear, but it was in use since at least the mid-7th century. The name "man'yōgana" derives from the '' Man'yōshū'', a Japanese poetry anthology from the Nara period written with ''man'yōgana.'' Texts using the system also often use Chinese characters for their meaning, but ''man'yōgana'' refers to such characters only when they are used to represent a phonetic value. The values were derived from the contemporary Chinese pronunciation, but native Japanese readings of the character were also sometimes used. For example, (whose character means 'tree') could represent (based on Middle Chinese ), , or (meaning 'tree' in Old Japanese). Simplified versions of ''man'yōgana'' eventually gave rise to both the hira ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Emperor Nijō
was the 78th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 1158 through 1165. Genealogy Before his ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne, his personal name (his ''imina'') was Morihito''-shinnō'' (守仁親王). He was the eldest son of Emperor Go-Shirakawa. He was the father of Emperor Rokujō. *Empress: Imperial Princess Yoshiko (姝子内親王) later Takamatsu-in (高松院), Emperor Toba’s daughter. *Empress: Fujiwara no Ikushi (藤原育子), Fujiwara no Tadamichi’s daughter *Tai-Kōtaigō: Fujiwara Masuko (藤原多子) Later Grand Empress Dowager Omiya, Tokudaiji Kin'yoshi's daughter. *Toku-no-Kimi (督の君), Minamoto Tadafusa’s daughter also Fujiwara no Narichika’s Wife *Kasuga-dono (春日殿), Nakahara Moromoto’s daughter ** First Daughter: Imperial Princess Yoshiko (僐子内親王; 1159-1171) *Umeryo-kimi (右馬助), Minamoto Mitsunari’s daughter ** First Son: Imperial Prince Priest Son ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Emperor Toba
was the 74th Emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 鳥羽天皇 (74)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Toba's reign spanned the years from 1107 through 1123. Genealogy Before his ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne, his personal name (his ''imina'') was Munehito''-shinnō'' (宗仁親王). He was the son of Emperor Horikawa. His mother was Empress Dowager Fujiwara no Ishi (藤原苡子) Toba had three Empresses, some consort ladies and 14 imperial sons and daughters.Brown, p. 321. * ''chūgū'' : Fujiwara no Tamako (藤原璋子) later Taikenmon’in (待賢門院), Fujiwara no Kinzane‘s daughter ** First Son: Imperial Prince Akihito (顕仁親王) later Emperor Sutoku ** First Daughter: Imperial Princess ''Yoshiko/Kishi'' (禧子内親王; 1122–1133) – Saiin at Kamo Shrine ** Second Son: Imperial Prince Michihito (通仁親王; 1124–1129) ** Third Son: Imperial Prince Kimihito (君仁親王; 1125–1143) ** Second D ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Emperor Konoe
was the 76th emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 近衛天皇 (76)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Konoe's reign spanned the years from 1142 through 1155. Genealogy Before his ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne, his personal name (his ''imina'') was Narihito''-shinnō'' (体仁親王). He was also known as Tosihito''-shinnō''.Titsingh p. 186./ref> Emperor Konoe was the eighth son of Emperor Toba. His mother was Fujiwara no Nariko (1117–1160), the wife of Emperor Toba. *''Kōgō'': Fujiwara no Tashi (藤原多子), Tokudaiji Kin'yoshi‘s daughter and Fujiwara no Yorinaga’s adopted daughter. Later married Emperor Nijo and become Emperor Rokujo’s foster mother. *''Chūgū'': Fujiwara no Shimeko (藤原呈子) later Kujō-in (九条院), Fujiwara no Koremichi’s daughter and Fujiwara no Tadamichi’s adopted daughter. Events of Konoe's life Konoe was named heir shortly after he was born in 1139; and he was proc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japanese Macaque
The Japanese macaque (''Macaca fuscata''), also known as the snow monkey, is a terrestrial Old World monkey species that is native to Japan. Colloquially, they are referred to as "snow monkeys" because some live in areas where snow covers the ground for months each year – no other non-human primate lives farther north, nor in a colder climate. Individuals have brownish grey fur, pinkish-red faces, and short tails. Two subspecies are known. In Japan, the species is known as ''Nihonzaru'' (ニホンザル, a combination of ''Nihon'' 日本 "Japan" + ''saru'' 猿 "monkey") to distinguish it from other primates, but the Japanese macaque is very familiar in Japan—as it is the only species of monkey in Japan—so when Japanese people simply say ''saru'', they usually have the Japanese macaque in mind. Physical characteristics The Japanese macaque is sexual dimorphism, sexually dimorphic. Males weigh on average , while females average .Fooden J, Aimi M. (2005) "Systematic revie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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). It has been translated into English at least five times. The first translation was by Arthur Lindsay Sadler, in 1918–1921. A complete translation in nearly 800 pages by Hiroshi Kitagawa & Bruce T. Tsuchida was published in 1975. It was 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, he says, seeks to be mindful of the performance style for which the work was originally intended. Historical novelist Eiji Yoshikawa published a prose rendering in the '' Asahi Weekly'' in 1950, under the title ' (''Shin Heike Monogatari''). Background Title Heike () refers to the Taira (), ''hei'' being the ''on'yomi'' reading of the first ''kanji'' and "ke" () meaning "family". However, in t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
