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Ueno Park
is a spacious public park in the Ueno, Tokyo, Ueno district of Taitō, Tokyo, Japan. The park was established in 1873 on lands formerly belonging to the Buddhist temples in Japan, temple of Kan'ei-ji. Amongst the country's first public parks, it was founded following the Park#History, Western example as part of the borrowing and assimilation of international practices that characterizes the early Meiji period. The home of a number of major museums, Ueno Park is also celebrated in spring for its cherry blossoms and ''hanami''. In recent times the park and its attractions have drawn over ten million visitors a year, making it Japan's most popular city park. History Ueno Park occupies land once belonging to Kan'ei-ji, founded in 1625 in the "Oni (folklore)#Demon Gate, demon gate", the Feng shui, unlucky direction to the northeast of Edo Castle. Most of the temple buildings were destroyed in the Battle of Ueno in 1868 during the Boshin War, when the forces of the Tokugawa shogunate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cherry Blossom
The cherry blossom, or sakura, is the flower of trees in ''Prunus'' subgenus '' Cerasus''. ''Sakura'' usually refers to flowers of ornamental cherry trees, such as cultivars of ''Prunus serrulata'', not trees grown for their fruit (although these also have blossoms). Cherry blossoms have been described as having a vanilla-like smell, which is mainly attributed to coumarin. Wild species of cherry tree are widely distributed, mainly in the Northern Hemisphere. They are common in East Asia, especially in Japan, where they have been cultivated, producing many varieties. Most of the ornamental cherry trees planted in parks and other places for viewing are cultivars developed for ornamental purposes from various wild species. In order to create a cultivar suitable for viewing, a wild species with characteristics suitable for viewing is needed. ''Prunus speciosa'' (Oshima cherry), which is endemic to Japan, produces many large flowers, is fragrant, easily mutates into double flo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Park
A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside towns and cities. National parks and country parks are green spaces used for recreation in the countryside. State parks and provincial parks are administered by sub-national government states and agencies. Parks may consist of grassy areas, rocks, soil and trees, but may also contain buildings and other artifacts such as monuments, fountains or playground structures. Many parks have fields for playing sports such as baseball and football, and paved areas for games such as basketball. Many parks have trails for walking, biking and other activities. Some parks are built adjacent to bodies of water or watercourses and may comprise a beach or boat dock area. Urban parks often have benches for sitting and may contain picnic tables and barbecue gr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dō (architecture)
. It is very often used in Buddhism in Japan, Japanese Buddhism as a suffix in the name of some of the many buildings that can be part of a Japanese Garan, temple compound. (Other endings, for example -''den'' as in ''butsuden'', exist.) The suffix can be the name of a deity associated with it (e.g. ''Yakushi-dō'', a name customarily translated as "Yakushi Hall") or express the building's function within the temple's compound (e.g. ''Main Hall (Japanese Buddhism), hon-dō'', or main hall).Hall names are capitalized only when they refer to specific examples (e.g. XX-ji's Main Hall) or include proper names of deities (e.g. Yakushi-dō). Some words ending in -''dō'' are ''Butsu-dō'', ''hō-dō'', ''hon-dō'', ''jiki-dō'', ''kaisan-dō'', ''kō-dō'', ''kon-dō'', ''kyō-dō'', ''mandara-dō'', ''miei-dō'', ''mi-dō'', ''sō-dō'', ''Yakushi-dō'' and ''zen-dō''. With some exceptions, for example the words ''hondō'', ''hokke-dō'' and ''kon-dō'', these terms do not indicate an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kannon
Guanyin () is a common Chinese name of the bodhisattva associated with Karuṇā, compassion known as Avalokiteśvara (). Guanyin is short for Guanshiyin, which means "[The One Who] Perceives the Sounds of the World". Originally regarded as male in Indian Buddhism, Guanyin has been more commonly depicted as female in China and most of East Asia since about the 12th century. Due to sociogeographical factors, Guanyin can also be historically depicted as genderless or adorning an androgynous apprentice. On the 19th day of the sixth lunar month, Guanyin's attainment of Buddhahood is celebrated. Guanyin has been incorporated in other religions, including Taoism and Chinese folk religion. Some Buddhists believe that when one of their adherents departs from this world, they are placed by Guanyin in the heart of a sacred lotus in religious art, lotus and then sent to the western pure land of Sukhāvatī. Guanyin is often referred to as the "most widely beloved Buddhist Divinity" with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meiji Restoration
The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ruling emperors before the Meiji Restoration, the events restored practical power to, and consolidated the political system under, the Emperor of Japan. The Restoration led to enormous changes in Japan's political and social structure and spanned both the late Edo period (often called the Bakumatsu) and the beginning of the Meiji era, during which time Japan rapidly Industrialization, industrialised and adopted Western culture, Western ideas and production methods. The origins of the Restoration lay in economic and political difficulties faced by the Tokugawa shogunate. These problems were compounded by the encroachment of foreign powers in the region which challenged the Tokugawa policy of , specifically the arrival of the Pe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tokugawa Shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars of the Sengoku period following the collapse of the Ashikaga shogunate. Ieyasu became the ''shōgun,'' and the Tokugawa clan governed Japan from Edo Castle in the eastern city of Edo (Tokyo), Edo (Tokyo) along with the ''daimyō'' lords of the ''samurai'' class. The Tokugawa shogunate organized Japanese society under the strict Edo society, Tokugawa class system and banned most foreigners under the isolationist policies of ''Sakoku'' to promote political stability. The Tokugawa shoguns governed Japan in a feudal system, with each ''daimyō'' administering a ''Han system, han'' (feudal domain), although the country was still nominally organized as provinces of Japan, imperial provinces. Under the Tokugawa shogunate, Japan experienced rapid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boshin War
The , sometimes known as the Japanese Revolution or Japanese Civil War, was a civil war in Japan fought from 1868 to 1869 between forces of the ruling Tokugawa shogunate and a coalition seeking to seize political power in the name of the Imperial Court in Kyoto, Imperial Court. The war stemmed from dissatisfaction among many Kazoku, nobles and young samurai with the shogunate's handling of foreigners following the opening of Japan during the prior decade. Increasing Unequal treaties, Western influence in the economy led to a decline similar to that of other Asian countries at the time. An alliance of western samurai, particularly the domains of Chōshū Domain, Chōshū, Satsuma Domain, Satsuma, and Tosa Domain, Tosa, and court officials secured control of the Imperial Court and influenced the young Emperor Meiji. Tokugawa Yoshinobu, the sitting ''shōgun'', realizing the futility of his situation, abdicated and handed over political power to the emperor. Yoshinobu had hoped t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Ueno
The was a battle of the Boshin War, which occurred on July 4, 1868 (''Meiji 1, 15th day of the 5th month''), between the troops of the Shōgitai under Shibusawa Seiichirō and Amano Hachirō, and Imperial "Kangun" troops. Prelude Though the Shōgitai was mainly made up of former Tokugawa retainers and residents of the surrounding provinces, some domains supported the Shōgitai, such as Takada ''han'' (Echigo Province, 150,000 ''koku''), Obama ''han'' (Wakasa Province, 103,000 ''koku''), Takasaki ''han'' (Kōzuke Province, 52,000 ''koku''), and Yūki ''han'' (Shimosa Province, 18,000 ''koku''). Facing them were the combined forces of the Chōshū Domain, Chōshū, Ōmura Domain, Ōmura, Sadowara Domain, Sadowara, Hizen Domain, Hizen, Chikugo Domain, Chikugo, Owari Domain, Owari, Bizen Domain, Bizen, Tsu Domain, Tsu, Inaba Domain, Inaba, and Higo Domain, Higo domains, under the general command of Chōshū's Ōmura Masujirō. Shibusawa and Amano initially posted the 2000-strong ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
University Of California Press
The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty of the University of California, established 25 years earlier in 1868. As the publishing arm of the University of California system, the press publishes over 250 new books and almost four dozen multi-issue journals annually, in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences, and maintains approximately 4,000 book titles in print. It is also the digital publisher of Collabra and Luminos open access (OA) initiatives. The press has its administrative office in downtown Oakland, California, an editorial branch office in Los Angeles, and a sales office in New York City, New York, and distributes through marketing offices in Great Britain, Asia, Australia, and Latin America. A Board consisting of senior officers of the University of Cali ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edo Castle
is a flatland castle that was built in 1457 by Ōta Dōkan in Edo, Toshima District, Musashi Province. In modern times it is part of the Tokyo Imperial Palace in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is therefore also known as . Tokugawa Ieyasu established the Tokugawa shogunate there, and it was the residence of the ''shōgun'' and the headquarters of the military government during the Edo period (1603–1867) in Japanese history. After the resignation of the ''shōgun'' and the Meiji Restoration, it became the Tokyo Imperial Palace. Some moats, walls and ramparts of the castle survive to this day. However, the grounds were more extensive during the Edo period, with Tokyo Station and the Marunouchi section of the city lying within the outermost moat. It also encompassed Kitanomaru Park, the Nippon Budokan Hall and other current landmarks of the surrounding area. History The warrior Edo Shigetsugu built his residence in what is now the ''Honmaru'' and ''Ninomaru'' part of Edo Castle, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Feng Shui
Feng shui ( or ), sometimes called Chinese geomancy, is a traditional form of geomancy that originated in ancient China and claims to use energy forces to harmonize individuals with their surrounding environment. The term ''feng shui'' means, literally, "wind-water" (i.e., fluid). From ancient times, Landscape, landscapes and bodies of water were thought to direct the flow of the universal qi – "cosmic current" or energy – through places and structures. More broadly, feng shui includes astronomical, astrological, architectural, cosmological, geographical, and topographical dimensions. Historically, as well as in many parts of the contemporary Chinese world, feng shui was used to choose the orientation of buildings, dwellings, and spiritually significant structures such as tombs. One scholar writes that in Western culture, contemporary Western societies, however, "feng shui tends to be reduced to interior design for health and wealth. It has become increasingly visible th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oni (folklore)
An ( ) is a kind of ''yōkai'', demon, orc, ogre, or troll in Japanese folklore. They are believed to live in caves or deep in the mountains or in hell. Oni are known for their superhuman strength and have been associated with powers like thunder and lightning, along with their evil nature manifesting in their propensity for murder and cannibalism. They are typically portrayed as hulking figures with one or more horns growing out of their heads, massive teeth, and occasionally a third eye in the center of the forehead."Oni." ''Handbook of Japanese Mythology'', by Michael Ashkenazi, ABC-CLIO, 2003, pp. 230–233. They are typically depicted with red, blue, black, or yellow colored skin, wearing loincloths of tiger pelt, and carrying iron kanabō clubs. They also have three to six digits on each hand and foot tipped with claw-like nails. Oni are able to change their looks to fool their victims into trusting them. Oni can be male or female, but have been predominantly male through ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
