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King Arthur
Definition by Joshua J. Mark

King Arthur

King Arthur is among the most famous literary characters of all time. The Arthurian legend of the Knights of the Round Table, Camelot, the Quest for the Holy Grail, the love affair of Lancelot and Guinevere, and the wizard Merlin have informed...
Kojiki
Definition by Mark Cartwright

Kojiki

The Kojiki ('Record of Ancient Things') is the oldest book of Japanese history and the oldest text of any kind from Japan. Compiled in 712 CE by the court scholar Ono Yasumaro, the work begins with the gods and the creation of the world...
Ovid
Definition by Donald L. Wasson

Ovid

Publius Ovidius Naso, more commonly known to history as Ovid (43 BCE - 17 CE), was one of the most prolific writers of the early Roman Empire. His works of poetry, mostly written in the form of elegiac couplets, influenced many of the great...
Saichō
Definition by Mark Cartwright

Saichō

Saichō, also known as Dengyo Daishi (767-822 CE), was a monk and scholar who founded the Buddhist Tendai Sect in Japan. Based on the teachings of the Chinese Tiantai Sect, Saichō's simplified and inclusive version of Buddhism grew in popularity...
Bede
Definition by Wesley Fiorentino

Bede

Bede (c. 673-735 CE) was an English monk, historian, and scholar who lived in the Kingdom of Northumbria. He is at times referred to as the Venerable Bede or Bede the Venerable. He was a monk at the double monastery of Monkwearmouth-Jarrow...
Emperor Kammu
Definition by Mark Cartwright

Emperor Kammu

Emperor Kammu (aka Kanmu) reigned in ancient Japan from 781 to 806 CE and is most noted for relocating the capital to Heiankyo (Kyoto) in 794 CE. Kammu was one of the most powerful emperors Japan had seen or would ever see, and his reign...
Kukai
Definition by Mark Cartwright

Kukai

Kukai or Kobo Daishi (774-835 CE) was a scholar, poet, and monk who founded Shingon Buddhism in Japan. The monk became the country's most important Buddhist saint and has been credited with all manner of minor miracles. Noted as a gifted...
Tenjin
Definition by Mark Cartwright

Tenjin

Sugawara no Michizane, aka Tenman Tenjin (845-903 CE), was a scholar, poet, and high-level administrator in the Japanese court during the Heian Period. Badly treated and exiled, he would gain a spectacular revenge on his political rivals...
Heian Period
Definition by Mark Cartwright

Heian Period

The Heian Period of Japanese history covers 794 to 1185 CE and saw a great flourishing in Japanese culture from literature to paintings. Government and its administration came to be dominated by the Fujiwara clan who eventually were challenged...
Ninigi
Definition by Mark Cartwright

Ninigi

Ninigi-no-Mikoto, or simply Ninigi, is the grandson of the supreme Shinto deity Amaterasu, the sun goddess. He is the son of Ama-no-Oshiho-mimi and, descending to earth as the first just ruler, he brought with him gifts from Amaterasu as...
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