Download or read book The Kojiki written by and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2014-09-30 with total page 314 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Written in the early eighth century, the Kojiki is considered JapanÕs first literary and historical work. A compilation of myths, legends, songs, and genealogies, it recounts the birth of JapanÕs islands, reflecting the origins of Japanese civilization and future Shinto practice. The Kojiki provides insight into the lifestyle, religious beliefs, politics, and history of early Japan, and for centuries has shaped the nationÕs view of its past. This innovative rendition conveys the rich appeal of the Kojiki to a general readership by translating the names of characters to clarify their contribution to the narrative while also translating place names to give a vivid sense of the landscape the characters inhabit, as well as an understanding of where such places are today. Gustav HeldtÕs expert organization reflects the textÕs original sentence structure and repetitive rhythms, enhancing the readerÕs appreciation for its sophisticated style of storytelling.
Download or read book The Kojiki written by Basil Hall Chamberlain and published by Library of Alexandria. This book was released on with total page 448 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Of all the mass of Japanese literature, which lies before us as the result of nearly twelve centuries of book-making, the most important Monument is the work entitled "Ko-ji-ki"1 or "Records of Ancient Matters," which was completed in A. D. 712. It is the most important because it has preserved for us more faithfully than any other book the mythology, the manners, the language, and the traditional history of Ancient Japan. Indeed it is the earliest authentic connected literary product of that large division of the human race which, has been variously denominated Turanian, Scythian and Altaic, and it even precedes by at least a century the most ancient extant literary compositions of non-Aryan India. Soon after the date of its compilation, most of the salient features of distinctive Japanese nationality were buried under a superincumbent mass of Chinese culture, and it is to these "Records" and to a very small number of other ancient works, such as the poems of the "Collection of a Myriad Leaves" and the Shintō Rituals, that the investigator must look, if he would not at every step be misled in attributing originality to modern customs and ideas, which have simply been borrowed wholesale from the neighbouring continent. It is of course not pretended that even these "Records" are untouched by Chinese influence: that influence is patent in the very characters with which the text is written. But the influence is less, and of another kind. If in the traditions preserved and in the customs alluded to we detect the Early Japanese in the act of borrowing from China and perhaps even from India, there is at least on our author's part no ostentatious decking out in Chinese trappings of what he believed to be original matter, after the fashion of the writers who immediately succeeded him. It is true that this abstinence on his part makes his compilation less pleasant to the ordinary native taste than that of subsequent historians, who put fine Chinese phrases into the mouths of emperors and heroes supposed to have lived before the time when .intercourse with China began. But the European student, who reads all such books, not as a pastime but in order to search for facts, will prefer the more genuine composition. It is also accorded the first place by the most learned of the native literati. Of late years this paramount importance of the "Records of Ancient Matters" to investigators of Japanese subjects generally has become well-known to European scholars; and even versions of a few passages are to be found scattered through the pages of their writings. Thus Mr. Aston has given us, in the Chrestomathy appended to his "Grammar of the Japanese Written Language," a couple of interesting extracts; Mr. Satow has illustrated by occasional extracts his elaborate papers on the Shintō Rituals printed in these "Transactions," and a remarkable essay by Mr. Kempermann published in the Fourth Number of the "Mittheilungen der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Natur und Völkerkunde Ostasiens," though containing no actual translations, bases on the account given in the "Records" some conjectures regarding the origines of Japanese civilization which are fully substantiated by more minute research. All that has yet appeared in any European language does not, however, amount to one-twentieth part of the whole, and the most erroneous views of the style and scope of the book and its contents have found their way into popular works on Japan. It is hoped that the true nature of the book, and also the true nature of the traditions, customs, and ideas of the Early Japanese, will be made clearer by the present translation the object of which is to give the entire work in a continuous English version, and thus to furnish the European student with a text to quote from, or at least to use as a guide in consulting the original. The only object aimed at has been a rigid and literal conformity with the Japanese text. Fortunately for this endeavour (though less fortunately for the student), one of the difficulties which often beset the translator of an Oriental classic is absent in the present case. There is no beauty of style, to preserve some trace of which he may be tempted to sacrifice a certain amount of accuracy. The "Records" sound queer and bald in Japanese, as will be noticed further on, and it is therefore right, even from a stylistic point of view, that they should sound bald and queer in English. The only portions of the text which, from obvious reasons, refuse to lend themselves to translation into English after this fashion are the indecent portions. But it has been thought that there could be no objection to rendering them into Latin,—Latin as rigidly literal as is the English of the greater part.
Download or read book The Imperial Edicts in the Shoku Nihongi written by Ross Bender and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2018-01-05 with total page 204 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The imperial edicts from the eighth century comprise a magnificent collection of ancient Japanese prose. Known as the senmyo, they were inscribed in Old Japanese in the court history Shoku Nihongi (Chronicles of Japan, Continued), the language of whose narrative was classical Chinese. As oracular pronouncements of monarchs who considered themselves living gods, they are an invaluable source for early Japanese history, religion, and linguistics. It was these edicts that attracted the attention of the great 18th century philologist Motoori Norinaga, who published a lengthy commentary on these venerable documents. Norinaga was greatly interested in the apparent purity of the ancient Japanese language found in these edicts as well as in the Kojiki and Man'yoshu; his commentary identified the sixty-two senmyo now comprising the canon, and his readings still form the foundation for the study of these texts to the present day.This is the first complete English translation of the imperial edicts.
Download or read book Folk Religion in Japan written by Ichiro Hori and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 1974 with total page 294 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ichiro Hori's is the first book in Western literature to portray how Shinto, Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist elements, as well as all manner of archaic magical beliefs and practices, are fused on the folk level. Folk religion, transmitted by the common people from generation to generation, has greatly conditioned the political, economic, and cultural development of Japan and continues to satisfy the emotional and religious needs of the people. Hori examines the organic relationship between the Japanese social structure—the family kinship system, village and community organizations—and folk religion. A glossary with Japanese characters is included in the index.
Download or read book ABC Dictionary of Ancient Japanese Phonograms written by John R. Bentley and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2015-12-31 with total page 618 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Making one's way through the dense jungle of Old Japanese poetry and prose can be a daunting and discouraging task because of the complex writing systems used during the Asuka (550–710 CE) and Nara (710–789 CE) eras. The intricate script is a bewildering mix of Chinese characters employed for their semantic or phonetic value or as hints to other words—or even for word games. For the first time in English, this dictionary lists all 1,215 Chinese characters used as phonograms (ongana) or vernacular characters (kungana) in Old Japanese texts. It brings together a vast amount of data in relation to Chinese phonology: Old Chinese, Later Han Chinese, Middle Chinese, Sino-Japanese (both Go-on and Kan-on), Sino-Korean, Sino-Vietnamese, and Chu Nom. The entries contain examples from more than twenty Old Japanese texts showing how each character was used and in what context. Data from excavated wooden tablets, or slips (mokkan), is included as well as a chart of all the graphs and where they appear in the cited material. Students and scholars of Old Japanese writing and language and those more widely interested in the culture and history of pre-Heian Japan now have important linguistic and textual data at their fingertips arranged by character to help them decipher material from the ancient past.
Download or read book The Cambridge History of Japanese Literature written by Haruo Shirane and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2015-12-31 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Cambridge History of Japanese Literature provides, for the first time, a history of Japanese literature with comprehensive coverage of the premodern and modern eras in a single volume. The book is arranged topically in a series of short, accessible chapters for easy access and reference, giving insight into both canonical texts and many lesser known, popular genres, from centuries-old folk literature to the detective fiction of modern times. The various period introductions provide an overview of recurrent issues that span many decades, if not centuries. The book also places Japanese literature in a wider East Asian tradition of Sinitic writing and provides comprehensive coverage of women's literature as well as new popular literary forms, including manga (comic books). An extensive bibliography of works in English enables readers to continue to explore this rich tradition through translations and secondary reading.
Download or read book The Athen um written by James Silk Buckingham and published by . This book was released on 1897 with total page 914 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Athenaeum written by and published by . This book was released on 1897 with total page 922 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The New World written by and published by . This book was released on 1896 with total page 820 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book A Study of the Origin of the Japanese State written by Seigo Takahashi and published by . This book was released on 1917 with total page 112 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Sources of Japanese Tradition From earliest times to 1600 written by William Theodore De Bary and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2001 with total page 555 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book written by Hironari Inbe and published by . This book was released on 1925 with total page 156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Nihongi written by Yasumaro O and published by Createspace Independent Pub. This book was released on 2013-01-24 with total page 730 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Nihon Shoki, translated as The Chronicles of Japan, is the second oldest book of classical Japanese history. The book is also called the Nihongi (The Japanese Chronicles). It is more elaborate and detailed than the Kojiki, the oldest book, and has proven to be an important tool for historians and archaeologists as it includes the most complete historical record of ancient Japan. The Nihongi was finished in 720 AD under the editorial supervision of Prince Toneri and with the assistance of Yasumaro no O. The book begins with the Japanese creation myth, explaining the origin of the world and the first seven generations of divine beings, and continues its account through to events of the 8th century. It is believed to record accurately the latter reigns of Emperor Tenji, Emperor Temmu and Empress Jito. It describes episodes from mythological eras and diplomatic contacts with other countries. The Nihongi was written in classical Chinese, as was common for official documents at that time. Yasumaro no O (died August 15, 723) was a Japanese nobleman, bureaucrat, and chronicler. He is most famous for compiling and editing, with the assistance of Hieda no Are, the Nihongi and the Kojiki, the two oldest books on Japanese history.
Download or read book Resistant Islands written by Gavan McCormack and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2018-03-08 with total page 351 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Now in a thoroughly updated edition, Resistant Islands offers the first comprehensive overview of Okinawan history from earliest times to the present, focusing especially on the recent period of colonization by Japan, its disastrous fate during World War II, and its current status as a glorified US military base. The base is a hot-button issue in Japan and has become more widely known in the wake of Japan’s 2011 natural disasters and the US military role in emergency relief. Okinawa rejects the base-dominated role allocated it by the US and Japanese governments under which priority attaches to its military functions, as a kind of stationary aircraft carrier. The result has been to throw US-Japan relations into crisis, bringing down one prime minister who tried to stop construction of yet another base on the island and threatening the incumbent if he is unable to deliver Okinawan approval of the new base. Okinawa thus has become a template for reassessing the troubled US-Japan relationship—indeed, the geopolitics of the US empire of bases in the Pacific.
Download or read book Shinto the Kami Way written by Sokyo Ono, Ph.D. and published by Tuttle Publishing. This book was released on 2011-09-13 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "An excellently rounded introduction by an eminent Shinto scholar."--Library Journal Shinto, the indigenous faith of the Japanese people, continues to fascinate and mystify both the casual visitor to Japan and the long-time resident. Relatively unknown among the religions of the world, Shinto: The Kami Way provides an enlightening window into this Japanese faith. In its general aspects, Shinto is more than a religious faith. It is an amalgam of attitudes, ideas, and ways of doing things that through two millennia and more have become an integral part of the way of the Japanese people. Shinto is both a personal faith in the kami--objects of worship in Shinto and an honorific for noble, sacred spirits--and a communal way of life according to the mind of the kami. This introduction unveils Shinto's spiritual characteristics and discusses the architecture and function of Shinto shrines. Further examination of Shinto's lively festivals, worship, music, and sacred regalia illustrates Shinto's influence on all levels of Japanese life. Fifteen photographs, numerous drawings and Dr. Ono's text introduce the reader to two millennia of indigenous Japanese belief in the kami and in communal life. Chapters include: The Kami Way Shrines Worship and Festivals Political and Social Characteristics Some Spiritual Characteristics
