Definitions by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫
Tale of Genji
The Tale of Genji was authored by a female courtier. The tale is about life in the Japanese medieval court.
Tale of Genji by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ July 7, 2011
Ronin
Landless or masterless peasant soldiers or samurai who through dishonor or the loss of their masters were forced to wander Japan until some other lord would accept their services.
Ronin by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ June 24, 2011
Samurai
Samurai by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ June 20, 2011
Daimyo
Each samurai had a lord in which he served. The Daimyo were known for their skill as generals and military leaders. Following the shogun, the daimyo were the most powerful rulers from the 10th century to the early 19th. The daimyo were only subordinate to the Shogun and only one man at a time could be Shogun. There were many daimyos all across Japan, but there was only one Shogun at a time. The samurai who had no lord were known as Ronin.
Daimyo by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ June 18, 2011
Shogun
Shogun was the ultimate rank one could achieve in Japan. The Shogun was the Supreme Military Dictator. Only one Daimyo (feudal lord) at a time could obtain the title. And only the His Imperial Highness, the reigning Emperor, the Divine Son of Heaven, who lived in seclusion with the Imperial Families at Kyoto, could grant the title. With the appointment of Shogun went absolute power: the Emperor's seal and mandate. The Shogun ruled in the Emperor's name. All power was derived from the Emperor because he was directly descended from the gods. Therefore any daimyo who opposed the Shogun were automatically in rebellion against the throne, and at once outcast and all his lands forfeit. The reigning Emperor was worshipped as a divinity because he was descended in an unbroken line from the Sun Goddess, Amaterasu Omikami, one of the children of the gods Izanagi and Izanami, who had formed the islands of Japan from the firmament. By divine right the ruling Emperor owned all the land and was obeyed without question. But in practice, for more than six centuries real power had rested behind the throne.
A Shogunate was the government, office, or rule of a Shogun. There was three shogunates in Japanese history.
1) Kamakura Shogunate (1192–1333)
2) Ashikaga Shogunate (1336–1573)
3) Tokugawa Shogunate (1603–1868)
1) Kamakura Shogunate (1192–1333)
2) Ashikaga Shogunate (1336–1573)
3) Tokugawa Shogunate (1603–1868)
Shogun by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ May 12, 2011
Eta
A derogatory term used by the Japanese to refer to the Burakumin in the feudal era. Burakumin were a Japanese social minority group. The burakumin are one of the main minority groups in Japan, along with the Ainu of Hokkaido, the Ryukyuans of Okinawa and Japanese residents of Korean and Chinese descent. The burakumin are descendants of outcast communities of the feudal era, which mainly comprised those with occupations considered "tainted" with death or ritual impurity (such as executioners, undertakers, workers in slaughterhouses, butchers or tanners), and traditionally lived in their own secluded hamlets and ghettos.
"No, you will not be allowed to commit Seppuku. That's an honor. You have no honor and no self-discipline. You will be crucified like a common criminal today. Your swords will be broken and buried in the eta village. Your son will be buried in the eta village. Your head will be put on a spike for all the population to jeer at with a sign on it: 'This man was born samurai by mistake. His name has ceased to be!'“- Lord Toranaga from the novel Shogun by James Clavell.
Eta by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ April 20, 2011
Shintoism
Shintoism is a religion based in Japan and the Japanese culture. It's beliefs center mainly around the kami or the spirits. They believe in many of these spirits, and they also believe in worshiping and holding rituals and festivals for these spirits which they hold with honor and respect.
Shintoism by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ December 4, 2010