Category: HST267

This week, we looked at excerpts from the Tale of Genji. The Tale of Genji is written by a lady of the court, and gives an interesting insight into the daily life of people in the Heian nobility. In particular, the text shows the ways that women lived in the court, with boredom being something…

During the Nara and Heian periods, Japanese Buddhist thinkers engaged in a series of attempts to interpret or reinterpret Buddhist teachings to fit their contemporary circumstances and needs. The three primary attempts were the Six Schools of the Nara court, the Tendai and Shingon movements of the early Heian, and the Amida Buddha-dependent Pure Land…

This week, we looked at the Nara period, where Japanese rulers began to settle in one consistent capitol and embraced Buddhism. One of the interesting features of the Nara period was that the rulers continued to stay in one city; the most interesting part about that for me is why they had not done that…

This week, we looked at some of the earliest kingdoms in Japan. In particular, we looked at how the Japanese were influenced by their Chinese and Korean neighbors. For me personally, my look at this information went deeper, as I chose to look at Japanese political developments for the Yayoi and Yamato periods for my…

I was interested in the political hegemony that was present in the Yayoi and Yamato periods, particularly how politically united the kingdoms were. One of the areas that scholars point to in the question of political unity in Yayoi period Japan is the key shaped burial mounds that are found throughout the country. These burial…

This week, we looked at some of the foundational myths of Japan, as well as information about early culture on the Japanese islands. As far as actual history goes, the first culture on the Islands was the Jomon culture. Among other notable features, the Jomon culture produced some of the world’s earliest pottery. After the…

The first reading for the semester was an overview of the land of Japan itself. Perhaps the most important and basic fact is that Japan sits along the meeting of several tectonic plates. This leads in turn has led to the formation of the mountains that dominate much of Japan. I would expect these mountains…