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Life in Medieval Japan

Chapter 14/Section 3. Life in Medieval Japan. I. Japanese Religion and Culture (pgs. 499-502). Most Japanese came to believe in both Buddhism and Shinto Shinto was concerned with daily life, while Buddhism prepared people for the life to come

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Life in Medieval Japan

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  1. Chapter 14/Section 3 Life in Medieval Japan

  2. I. Japanese Religion and Culture (pgs. 499-502) • Most Japanese came to believe in both Buddhism and Shinto • Shinto was concerned with daily life, while Buddhism prepared people for the life to come • These religions inspired Japanese art, architecture, novels, and plays

  3. Pure Land Buddhism • By the time Buddhism reached China, it had developed into many different sects (sehkts), or smaller religious groups • One of the most important sects in Japan was Pure Land Buddhism; a type of Mahayana Buddhism • Pure Land Buddhists believed that Lord Amida, a buddha of love and mercy, founded a paradise above the clouds

  4. What Is Zen Buddhism? • Buddhist monks brought Zen to Japan from China during the 1100s and taught that people could find inner peace through self-control and a simple way of life • Followers of Zen learned to control their bodies through martial arts, or sports that involved combat and self-defense • They also practiced meditation, where a person sat cross-legged and motionless for hours to clear their mind and find inner peace http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Llqup1Uir6k&feature=relmfu

  5. Art and Architecture • During the Middle Ages, the Japanese borrowed artistic ideas from China and Korea • Japanese artisans made wooden statues and furniture, landscape paintings on paper scrolls or silk, learned to fold paper into decorative objects called origami, and created gardens

  6. Poems and Plays • Calligraphy, or the art of writing beautifully, was much admired and was said to reveal much about a person’s education, social standing, and character • Japan’s oldest form of poetry is called tanka (TAHNG*kuh) and is an unrhymed poem of five lines

  7. LadyMurasakiShikibu(mur*uh*SAH* kee / shee*kee*boo) wrote The Tale of Genji, some believe to be the world’s first novel, or long fictional story • The oldest type of Japanese plays was called Noh and were used to teach Buddhist ideas

  8. II. Economy and Society (pgs. 503 – 504)Farmers and Artisans • Much of Japan’s wealth came from the hard work of Japan’s poor farmers and most lived and worked on daimyo estates • They grew rice, wheat, millet, and barley • The Japanese also began producing more goods like weapons, armor, and tools • New roads made travel and trade much easier

  9. Many Japanese merchants and artisans settled in the capital of Kyoto • They formed groups called guilds (or zain Japanese), to protect and increase their profits • Japan also traded with Korea, China, and Southeast Asia • They exchanged lacquered goods, sword blades, and copper for silk, dyes, pepper, books, and porcelain

  10. The Role of Women • Around the time of Prince Shotoku, wealthy women enjoyed more freedom and could be rulers and own property • When samurai and daimyo came to power, those freedoms were lost • Women from wealthy families often had arranged marriages • There were even a few female samurai. One named Tomoe who was written about in The Tale of the Heike

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