Demon Sword Dance Glossary

Demon Sword Dance

Book 2 of the Dororo Novel Series

Toriumi Jinzō

Glossary

 

Achi River (Japanese: 阿智川) The Achi River flows through modern-day Nagano Prefecture. Nuinosuke follows the river away from Tanaka Jūnai’s estate.

 

Akamatsu  Sanshuza (赤松三首座) Akamatsu Sanshuza was one of the followers of Jion, the monk who invented the Nen Ryū school of fighting. He taught Ito Kennōjō this fighting style, which was in turn passed down to Sabame Nuinosuke.

 

Ajimano (Japanese:味真野) Ajimano is a city in modern-day Fukui Prefecture, Echizen City. It is especially known for its cherry blossom viewing.

 

Alioth (Arabic, derived: اليَتّ‎) Alioth, also known as Epsilon Ursae Majoris is the brightest star in the constellation of Ursa Major, and at magnitude 1.77 is the thirty-third brightest star in the sky. It is the star in the tail of the bear closest to its body, and thus the star in the handle of the Big Dipper (or Plough) closest to the bowl. It is also a member of the large and diffuse Ursa Major moving group. Historically, the star was frequently used in celestial navigation in the maritime trade.

 

Alkaid (Arabic, derived: القايد القائد) Alkaid, also known as Eta Ursae Majoris, is a star in the constellation of Ursa Major. It is the most eastern (leftmost) star in the Big Dipper (or Plough) asterism. However, unlike most stars of the Big Dipper, it is not a member of the Ursa Major moving group. With an apparent visual magnitude of +1.84, it is the third-brightest star in the constellation and one of the brightest stars in the night sky.

 

Amatsumara (Japanese: 天津麻羅) is the god of ironworking and blacksmiths. The name Amatsumara means ma-ura ("eye divination"), which some believe means "one-eyed," in reference to the hazard of blacksmiths.

 

Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi (Japanese: 天叢雲剣) Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi is a magical sword from Japanese mythology. Literally translated, its name means “Sword of the Gathering Clouds of Heaven.” Susanō received the sword after pulling it from the corpse of the monster Yamata no Orochi.

 

Arachi Mountain Pass (Japanese: 愛発峠) Arachi Pass is a mountain pass that lies along the road leading to the Arachi Gate that protects Kyōto from attack from the north. Hyakkimaru takes the Arachi Pass route north to Ezichen Province from Mount Kurama.

 

Ariga Daisuke (Japanese: 有賀大介) Ariga Daisuke is a samurai who got drunk and passed out. Jukai gave him medicine that helped revive him. In exchange, he guided Jukai to Takefu and the chief inspector’s office.

 

Asakura Mitsuhisa (Japanese: 朝倉光玖) Asakura Mitsuhisa was a warlord and monk from the middle of the Muromachi Period to the beginning of the Sengoku Period of Japan. He was the vassal and younger brother of Asakura Takakage.

 

Asakura Takakage (Japanese: 朝倉孝景) Asakura Takakage was a military commander in the middle of the Muromachi period. He was the seventh head of the Asakura Clan and a general in the Western Army.

 

Ashikaga Shigeuji (Japanese: 足利成氏, c.1438-1497)  Ashikaga Shigeuji was a Muromachi period warrior and the fifth and last shōgun’s deputy in the Kantō region. The assassination of Uesugi Noritada by Ashikaga Shigeuji in 1454 kicked off a series of wars and skirmishes known to history as the Kyōtoku incident.  The Ashikaga, Uesugi, and other clans leaped into battle, either defending or assaulting Shigeuji as they fought for control of the Kantō region.

 

Ashikaga Tadayoshi (Japanese: 足利 直義, 1306 – March 13, 1352) Ashikaga Tadayoshi was a general of the Northern and Southern Courts period (1337–92) of Japanese history and a close associate of his elder brother Takauji, the first Muromachi shōgun. Son of Ashikaga Sadauji and Uesugi Kiyoko, daughter of Uesugi Yorishige, the same mother as Takauji, he was a pivotal figure of the chaotic transition period between the Kamakura and Muromachi shogunates. Tadayoshi is today considered a military and administrative genius and the true architect of many of his elder brother's successes.

 

Ashikaga Takauji (Japanese: 足利 尊氏, August 18, 1305 – June 7, 1358) Ashikaga Takauji was the founder and first shōgun of the Ashikaga shogunate. His rule began in 1338, beginning the Muromachi period of Japan, and ended with his death in 1358.

 

Ashikaga Yoshiakira (Japanese: 足利 義詮, July 4, 1330 – December 28, 1367) Ashikaga Yoshiakira was the second shōgun of the Ashikaga shogunate who reigned from 1358 to 1367 during the Muromachi period of Japan. He spent his childhood in Kamakura as a hostage of the Hōjō clan. His father Takauji joined forces with the banished Emperor Go-Daigo. The Kamakura shogunate was overthrown, and Go-Daigo began the process which came to be known as the Kenmu Restoration. Yoshiakira assisted Nitta Yoshisada (1301–1338) in his attack on the Kamakura shogunate. In 1349, an internal disturbance of the government caused Yoshiakira to be called back to Kyoto, where he found himself named as Takauji's heir. Yoshiakira succeeded his father Takauji as Sei-i Taishōgun after his death in 1358. Some months after his death he was succeeded by his son Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, who became the third shōgun in 1368.

 

Ashikaga Yoshimasa (Japanese: 足利 義政, January 20, 1436 - January 27, 1490) Ashikawa Yoshimasa was the eighth shōgun of the Ashikaga shogunate who reigned from 1449 to 1473 during the Muromachi period of Japan. He is the ruling shōgun when Hyakkimaru is born.

 

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu (Japanese: 足利 義満, September 25, 1358 - May 31, 1408) Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was the third shōgun of the Ashikaga shogunate. He was in power from 1368 to 1394 during the Muromachi period of Japan. In 1392, he negotiated the end of the imperial schism between the northern and southern imperial courts that had plagued politics for over half a century. Two years later, he became the highest-ranking member of the imperial court. In recognition for his diplomatic efforts (and overt displays of subservience), the Chinese Emperor Zhu Di pronounced Yoshimitsu "King of Japan." He ruled Japan during Jukai’s childhood.

 

Ashigaru (Japanese: 足軽) Ashigaru were infantry employed by the samurai class of feudal Japan. In the Ōnin War, ashigaru gained a reputation as unruly troops when they looted and burned Kyōto, which was the capital city of Japan at the time. Ashigaru became the backbone of many feudal Japanese armies.

 

Asuwa District (足羽郡) Asuwa was a district located in Fukui Prefecture, Japan. Historically, it was an area located in north-central Echizen Province, which now includes the cities of Fukui and parts of Sabae in Fukui Prefecture.

 

Asuwa River (足羽川) The Asuwa River is a river in modern-day Fukui Prefecture, Japan. It stretches 61.7 km (38 mi) from Mount Kanmuri in the town of Ikeda to the Hino and the Kuzuryū rivers. It is visible from the top of Mount Monju. 

 

Awataguchi Clan (粟田口氏) The Awataguchi Clan established a forge in Ezichen Province under the direction of the Kamakura shogunate in 1314. They originally came from Kyōto.

 

bamboo lily (Japanese: 笹百合) Also called the wild lily, the bamboo lily is difficult to cultivate, since it is highly susceptible to viral infection as well as Fusarium. The bamboo lily is short-lived outside its native habitat. The bell-shaped flowers perch atop two to three foot stems and are light pink to white in color. 

 

Banri Shūku (Japanese: 万理集九) Banri Shūku was a monk and poet who fled from Kyōto after it burned at the start of the Ōnin War.

 

Battle of Kurikara (Japanese: 倶利伽羅峠の戦い) The Battle of Kurikara, also known as the Battle of Tonamiyama (砺波山), was a crucial engagement in Japan's Genpei War; in this battle the tide of the war turned in the favor of the Minamoto clan, who eventually won the war.

 

Bizen Province (Japanese: 備前国) Bizen was a province of Japan on the Inland Sea side of Honshū, in what is today the southeastern part of Okayama Prefecture. Ancient and medieval Bizen was one of Japan's main centers for sword smithing.

 

Black Tortoise (Chinese: 玄武) The Black Tortoise is one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese constellations. Despite its English name, it is usually depicted as a turtle entwined together with a snake. Furthermore, in East Asian mythology it is not called after either animal, but is instead known as the "Black Warrior" under various local pronunciations. It represents the north and the winter season, thus it is sometimes called Black Tortoise of the North. In Japan, it is named Genbu and is one of the four guardian spirits that protect Kyōto. 

 

Blue Dragon (Chinese: 青龍) The Blue Dragon is one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese constellations. The Blue Dragon represents the east, the element of water, and the spring season. 

 

Bodhisattva (Sanskrit: बोधिसत्त्व) In Buddhism, a Bodhisattva is any person who is on the path towards Buddhahood. The term refers to anyone who has made a resolution to become a Buddha and has also received a confirmation or prediction from a living Buddha that this will be so. If a Buddha is considered as a god, then a Bodhisattva can be considered as a lesser or demigod.

 

Bōjō Shōshi (Japanese: 坊城影子) Mai assumed Shōshi’s physical shape through magic after being murdered by her husband. Shōshi was from the northern branch of the Fujiwara Clan.

 

Butsudahari (Japanese:仏陀波利) Butsudahari is a Japanese god in Buddhism associated with Manjushri, the bodhisattva associated with wisdom and compassion. In art, he is often depicted as a priest who sits at Manjushri’s right-hand side.

 

Bohai Sea (Chinese: 渤海) The Bohai Sea, also known as Bohai Gulf, Bo Gulf or Pohai Bay, is a marginal sea approximately 78,000 km2 (30,000 square miles) in area on the east coast of mainland China. It is the northwestern and innermost extension of the Yellow Sea, to which it connects to the east via the Bohai Strait.

 

Buddha (Japanese: 仏) Gautama Buddha, popularly known as the Buddha,  lived in ancient India (c. 5th to 4th century BCE). He is regarded as the founder of the world religion of Buddhism, and revered by most Buddhist schools as a savior, the Enlightened One who rediscovered an ancient path to release clinging and craving and escape the cycle of birth and rebirth. His teaching is based on his insight into the arising of duhkha (the unsatisfactory feelings of clinging to impermanent states and things) and the ending of duhkha—the state called Nibbāna or Nirvana. Buddhism is one of the most common religion in Japan, along with Shintoism.

 

bugbane (Japanese: サラシナショウマ)Bugbane, formally called actaea, is a genus of flowering plants of the family Ranunculaceae, native to subtropical, temperate and subarctic regions of Europe, Asia and North America.

Bugbane contains cardiac toxins that can have an immediate sedative effect on human cardiac muscle. The berries are the most poisonous part of the plant. Children have been poisoned by eating the waxy, shiny red or white berries. Ingestion of the berries can lead to cardiac arrest and death. It is toxic to rabbits. The berries are harmless to birds, the plant's primary seed disperser. Actaea species are closely related to plants in the genus Aconitum, a highly toxic plant genus which contains wolfbane and several varieties of monkshood.

 

bupleurum root (Japanese: 柴胡) These Asian plants are part of the Apiaceae (Umbelliferae) family, and resemble dill or fennel. However, bupleurum has long thin leaves rather than the lacy appearance of fennel and dill leaves. The roots of the plant are used in herbal medicine. Distillations from the plant are used to treat viral infections and epilepsy.

 

burnet (Japanese: ウレモコウ) Burnet, formally called sanguisorba, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rosaceae native to the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The plants are herbaceous perennials or small shrubs. The flowers are small, produced in dense clusters;  each flower has four very small petals, white to red in color.

Sanguisorba officinalis is used medicinally in Asia to treat gastrointestinal conditions and bleeding. Sanguisorba minor, salad burnet, has similarly been used medicinally in Europe to control bleeding. The leaves have a cucumber flavour and can be eaten in salads, or used fresh or dried and made into a tea.

 

chickweed (Japanese: ハコベ) Stellaria media, commonly known as chickweed, is an annual and perennial flowering plant. It is native to Eurasia and naturalized throughout the world. This species is used as a cooling herbal remedy and grown as a vegetable crop and ground cover for both human and poultry consumption. Flowers are white and small with five very deeply lobed petals. Some plants have no petals.

The plant has medicinal properties and is used in folk medicine. It has been used as a remedy to treat itchy skin conditions and pulmonary diseases. 17th-century herbalist John Gerard recommended it as a remedy for mange. Modern herbalists prescribe it for iron-deficiency anemia (for its high iron content), as well as for skin diseases, bronchitis, rheumatic pains, arthritis, and period pain. Not all of these uses are supported by scientific evidence. The plant was used by the Ainu for treating bruises and aching bones. Stems were steeped in hot water before being applied externally to affected areas.

 

Chiyotsuru Kuniyasu (Japanese: 千代鶴 国安1314-1396) Chiyotsuru Kuniyasu was a swordsmith who was active from the end of the Kamakura period to the Northern and Southern Court Period in the 1390s. He made Hōichi’s cane sword.

 

Classics of Herbal Medicine, The (Chinese: 神農) The Classics of Herbal Medicine is a Chinese book on agriculture and medicinal plants, traditionally attributed to Shennong. Researchers believe the text is a compilation of oral traditions, written between about 200 and 250 CE. The original text no longer exists but is said to have been composed of three volumes containing 365 entries on medicines and their description.

The first volume of the treatise included 120 drugs harmless to humans, the "stimulating properties": lingzhi, ginseng, jujube, the orange, Chinese cinnamon, Eucommia bark, cannabis, or liquorice root (Glycyrrhiza uralensis). These herbs are described as "noble" or "upper herbs." The second volume is devoted to 120 therapeutic substances intended to treat the sick, but have toxic, or potentially toxic properties of varying degrees. In this category are ginger, peonies and cucumber. The substances of this group are described as "human", "commoner" or "middle herbs." In the last volume there are 125 entries corresponding to substances which have a strong or violent action on physiological functions and are often poisonous. Rhubarb, different pitted fruits and peaches are among those featured. These herbs are referred to as "low herbs."

 

Daian Temple (Japanese: 大案寺)  The Daian Temple Complex was once one of the powerful Seven Great Buddhist Temple Complexes located in the city of Nara, Japan.

 

Daigo Kagemitsu (Japanese: 醍醐景光) Daigo Kagemitsu is Hyakkimaru’s biological father. He sold Hyakkimaru’s body to forty-eight demons in exchange for power.

 

Daigo Shinbē (Japanese: 醍醐甚兵) Daigo Shinbē is one of the lords with the Daigo Clan name that Asakura Takakage has heard of. Daigo Shinbē is either fictionalized or so obscure as to pass unrecorded in most historical texts.

 

Daikoku Masamune (Japanese: 大黒政宗) Daikoku Masamune is one of the rare signed works of the famed swordsmith Masamune.

 

Daikuromaru Fortress (Japanese: 大黒丸城) Daikuromaru Fortress is a fortress in Ezichen province that is controlled by the Asakura Clan.

 

dharani (Japanese: 陀羅尼) Dharanis are Buddhist chants, mnemonic codes, incantations, or recitations, usually the mantras consisting of Sanskrit or Pali phrases. Believed to be protective and with powers to generate merit for the Buddhist devotee, they constitute a major part of historic Buddhist literature. Many of these chants are in Sanskrit and Pali, transliterated into Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Sinhala, Thai and other regional scripts. Mahayana sutras--such as the Lotus Sutra and the Heart Sutra--include or conclude with dharanis. They are a part of the regular ritual prayers as well as considered to be an amulet and charm in themselves, whose recitation is believed to allay bad luck, diseases or other calamity.They were an essential part of the monastic training in Buddhism's history in East Asia. In some Buddhist regions, they served as texts upon which the Buddhist witness would swear to tell the truth.

 

Dororo (Japanese: どろろ) Dororo is a young thief who used to live in Kyōto before meeting Hyakkimaru. Dororo saved Hyakkimaru from a battle in the capital and the two became fast friends. Dororo accompanies Hyakkimaru on his quest to find his birth father, Daigo Kagemitsu.

 

Dōgen Zenji (Japanese:道元禅師; 19 January 1200 – 22 September 1253), also known as Dōgen Kigen, was a Japanese Buddhist priest, writer, poet, philosopher, and founder of the Sōtō school of Zen in Japan. Originally ordained as a monk in the Tendai School in Kyoto, he was ultimately dissatisfied with its teaching and traveled to China to seek out what he believed to be a more authentic Buddhism. Upon his return to Japan, he began promoting the practice of zazen (sitting meditation).

 

Dōko (Japanese: 土公) Dōko is an earth god that supposedly fell to earth in ancient times near the city of Tsuruga. The Buddhist monks of Kehi Shrine believes that he protects the area.

 

Dubhe (Arabic, derived: ظهر الدب الاكبر‎) Dubhe, also known as Alpha Ursae Majoris, is the second-brightest object in the northern constellation of Ursa Major. This prominent asterism is known as the Big Dipper, the Plough, and the Great Bear. Alpha Ursae Majoris is the northern of the 'pointers' (or 'guards'), the second being Beta Ursae Majoris, or 'Merak.’ This pair of stars point towards Polaris, the North Star.

 

Eastern Army (東軍) The Eastern Army supported shōgun Ashikaga Yoshimasa in his desire for his brother to inherit his position instead of his son. The Eastern Army was led by Hosokawa Katsumoto.

 

Echigo Province (Japanese:  越後) Echigo Province was an old province in north-central Japan, on the shores of the Sea of Japan. It bordered on Uzen, Iwashiro, Kōzuke, Shinano, and Etchū Provinces. It corresponds today to Niigata Prefecture, minus the island of Sado.

 

Emperor Chūai (Japanese: 仲哀天皇) Emperor Chūai  was the 14th legendary Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Chūai is the first monarch to ascend the throne who was not a son of the previous Emperor, as the latter's only child died young. He is also noted for having his capital in Kyūshū, rather than Yamato like his predecessors. Chūai's reign is conventionally considered to have been from 192 to 200 AD, though he may have reigned much later. A statue of him is worshiped as a god at Kehi Shrine.

 

Emperor Daigo (Japanese: 醍醐天皇, February 6, 885 – October 23, 930) Emperor Daigo was the 60th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Daigo's reign spanned the years from 897 through 930. He is named after his place of burial.

 

Emperor Go-Daigo (Japanese:後醍醐天皇, 26 November 1288 – 19 September 1339) was the 96th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. He successfully overthrew the Kamakura shogunate in 1333 and established the short-lived Kenmu Restoration to bring the Imperial House back into power. This was to be the last time the Emperor had any power in Japan until the Meiji Restoration in 1868.

 

Emperor Go-Kōgon (後光厳天皇,  23 March 1338 – 12 March 1374) Emperor Go-Kōgon was the 4th of the Emperors of Northern Court during the Period of the Northern and Southern Courts. According to pre-Meiji scholars, his reign spanned the years from 1352 through 1371. His reign was turbulent; he was often forced to flee Kyōto to other provinces for the sake of his own safety.

 

Emperor Kōtoku  (Japanese:孝徳天皇, 596 – November 24, 654) Emperor Kōtoku was the 36th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.The years of his reign lasted from 645 through 654. Empress Kōgyoku was his elder sister from the same parents; he succeeded his sister to the Imperial Throne after he voluntary abdication. According to contemporary records, he was of gentle personality and was in favor of Buddhism. He enacted the Taika Reform edicts.

In 645 he created a new city in the area called Naniwa, and moved the capital from Yamato Province to this new city (later called Nara). The new capital had a sea port and was good for foreign trade and diplomatic activities. In 653, Kōtoku sent an embassy to the court of the Tang dynasty in China, but some of the ships were lost en route. After his death, the Empress Kōgyoku, ascended to the throne under another name, Empress Saimei.

 

Emperor Monmu (Japanese: 文武天皇, 683–707) Emperor Monmu was the 42nd emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Monmu's reign spanned the years from 697 through 707. He was a grandson of Emperor Tenmu and Empress Jitō. He was the second son of Prince Kusakabe. Monmu's mother was Princess Abe, a daughter of Emperor Tenji. Monmu's mother would later accede to the throne herself, and she would be known as Empress Genmei.He left a young son, Obito, who eventually became Emperor Shōmu. Emperor Monmu's reign lasted 10 years. He died at the age of twenty-five. 

 

Emperor Ninmyō (Japanese: 仁明天皇,  27 September 808 – 6 May 850) Emperor Ninmyō was the 54th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Ninmyō's reign lasted from 833 to 850, during the Heian period.

 

Emperor Ōjin (応神天皇) Emperor Ōjin was the 15th legendary Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. No firm dates can be assigned to this Emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 270 to 310  According to the Shinto religion and Buddhism in Japan, Emperor Ōjin is the divine spirit of the deity Hachiman (八幡神).

 

Emperor Sujin (Japanese: 崇神天) Emperor Sujin was the tenth Emperor of Japan. While Sujin is the first emperor whose existence historians widely accept, he is still referred to as a "legendary emperor" due to a lack of information available and because dates for his reign vary.

 

Emperor Takakura (Japanese: 高倉天皇,  September 20, 1161 – January 30, 1181) Emperor Takakura was the 80th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 1168 through 1180. He was served by Kagami Tōmitsu in the capacity of an Inner Palace guard.

 

Emperor Toba (Japanese: 鳥羽天皇,February 24, 1103 – July 20, 1156) Emperor Toba was the 74th Emperor of Japan,  according to the traditional order of succession. Toba's reign spanned the years from 1107 through 1123. 

 

Emperor Uda (Japanese: 宇多天皇, June 10, 866 – September 3, 931) Emperor Uda was the 59th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Uda's reign spanned the years from 887 through 897.

 

Emperor Wuzong of Tang (Chinese: 武宗皇帝, July 2, 814 – April 22, 846), Emperor Wuzong of Tang was an emperor of the Tang Dynasty of China, reigning from 840 to 846. Emperor Wuzong is mainly known in modern times for the religious persecution that occurred during his reign.

 

Emperor Zhu Di (Chinese: 朱棣) A Chinese Emperor who reigned between 17 July 1402 – 12 August 1424. He was the winner of the Jingnan Campaign, a three-year civil war that lasted from 1399–1402. It occurred between two descendants of the Ming dynasty's founder Zhu Yuanzhang: his grandson Zhu Yunwen by his first son, and Zhu Yuanzhang's fifth son Zhu Di, the Prince of Yan.

 

Empress Genshō (Japanese: 元正天皇, 683 – May 22, 748) Empress Genshō was the 44th monarch of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Her reign spanned the years 715 through 724. Genshō was the fifth of eight women to take on the role of empress regnant, and the only one in the history of Japan to have inherited her title from another empress regnant rather than from a male predecessor.  

 

Empress Jingū (Japanese: 神功皇后) Empress Jingū  was a legendary Japanese empress who ruled as a regent following her husband's death in 200 AD. Legends say that after seeking revenge on the people who murdered her husband, she turned her attention to conquering a "promised land." Jingū is considered to be a controversial monarch by historians, since her alleged decision was to invade the Korean Peninsula without cause. There is a statue of her at Kehi Shrine that is worshiped as a god.

 

Empress Jitō (Japanese: 持統天皇, 645 – 13 January 703) Empress Jitō was the 41st monarch of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Jitō's reign spanned the years from 686 through 697. In the history of Japan, Jitō was the third of eight women to take on the role of empress regnant. She received a gift of a preserved pure white gypsy moth from the governor of Ezichen Province during her reign.

 

Ennin (Japanese: 円仁, 793 CE or 794 CE – 864 CE) Ennin was a priest of the Tendai sect of Buddhism. He was instrumental in expanding the Tendai sect’s influence, and bringing back crucial training and resources from China, particularly esoteric Buddhist training, and Pure Land teachings. In 838, Ennin accompanied Fujiwara no Tsunetsugu's diplomatic mission to the Tang dynasty Imperial Court in China. Ennin was in China when the anti-Buddhist Emperor Wuzong of Tang took the throne in 840, and he lived through the Great Anti-Buddhist Persecution of 842–846. As a result of the persecution, he was deported from China, returning to Japan in 847. In 847, Ennin returned to Japan and in 854, he became the third head of the Tendai sect. He built buildings to store the sutras and religious instruments he brought back from China. While his chief contribution was to strengthen the Tendai tantric Buddhist tradition, the Pure Land recitation practices (nenbutsu) that he introduced also helped to lay a foundation for the independent Pure Land movements of the subsequent Kamakura period (1185–1333). Ennin also founded the temple of Ryushakuji at Yamadera and wrote over a hundred books. Ennin was the monk who had originally written Manjushri’s mantra. 

 

Ezichen Province (Japanese: (越前国) Ezichen Province was a province of Japan in the area that is today the northern portion of Fukui Prefecture in the Hokuriku region of Japan. Echizen bordered on Kaga, Wakasa, Hida, and Ōmi Provinces. The fighting done between the provinces of Ezichen and Kaga was particularly fierce during the Ōnin War.

 

Ezo (Japanese: 蝦夷) Ezo refers to the northern part of Japan, especially Hokkaido, but also the Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands.

 

five elements theory (Chinese: 五行) The five elements theory is a Chinese philosophy used to describe interactions and relationships between things. The five elements — wood, fire, earth, metal, and water — are believed to be the fundamental elements of everything in the universe between which interactions occur.

 

Fuchu-Ogasawara Clan (Japanese: 府中小笠原氏) The Fuchu-Ogasawara Clan split off the main Ogasawara Clan and was led by Ogasawara Muneyasu.

 

Fudō Masamune (Japanese: 不動政宗) Fudō Masamune is one of the rare signed works of the famed swordsmith Masamune.

 

Fujiwara no Tametoki (藤原 為時) (died 1029?) was a Japanese aristocrat, author of Japanese waka and Chinese poetry of some repute, and father of Murasaki Shikibu (Lady Murasaki", author of The Tale of Genji, born ca. 970 or 973). Tametoki's position at the Shikibu-shō ministry was what probably became part of his daughter's historical appellation, "Murasaki Shikibu". Tametoki finally wrote a poem to Emperor Ichijō that so moved the monarch it garnered him governorship of Echizen Province.

 

Fujiwara Seiko (Japanese: 藤原政子)  Fujiwara Seiko was the daughter of Fujiwara Kamonojō and the wife of Tanbano Hisamaro. She was Jukai’s mother.

 

Fushimi (Japanese: Fushimi (伏見区) Fushimi is one of the eleven wards in the city of Kyōto, in Kyōto Prefecture, Japan. In the novel, it is the location of the Hall of Hell.

 

Genkai Namitarō (Japanese:玄海浪太郎): A pirate who allows Jukai and Sakuzō to live on an estate on the mountain of Kurama in exchange for free medical treatment for himself and his crew. He brings Jukai rare books, medicines, and tools. Genkai Nadaemon is his father.

 

Genpei War (Japanese: 源平合戦, 1180–1185) The Genpei War was a national civil war between the Taira and Minamoto clans during the late Heian period of Japan. It resulted in the downfall of the Taira and the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate under Minamoto no Yoritomo, who appointed himself as shōgun in 1192, governing Japan as a military dictator from the eastern city of Kamakura.

 

Gōshō Temple (Japanese: 毫摂寺) Gōshō Temple is a Buddhist temple in modern-day Echizen City, Fukui Prefecture. It was built in 1233 and is considered a cultural historic site in Japan.

 

Hachiman (Japanese: 八幡神) Hachiman is the syncretic divinity of archery and war, incorporating elements from both Shinto and Buddhism. In Shinto religion, he is mortally Emperor Ōjin (応神天皇) who reigned in the 3rd–4th century and was the son of Empress Jingū (神功皇后), who later became deified. His messenger is the dove, symbolizes both the bow and arrow found in samurai banners associated to him where he is called "Yumiya Hachiman" (弓矢八幡). Since ancient times Hachiman has been worshiped by farmers as the god of agriculture and by fishermen, who hoped that he would fill their nets with many fish.

 

Hamara Genyōhiken (Japanese: 破魔羅幻妖秘拳) Hamara Genyōhiken translates, roughly, to “monster and spirit exorcism.” It is a magical discipline taught to Jukai by his master, Yōda. He uses it to repel and exorcise demons and evil spirits.

 

Hatakeyama Yoshimoto (Japanese: 畠山義統 ) Hatakeyama Yoshimoto was an ally of the Western Army during the Ōnin War (1467-77). Hyakkimaru encounters part of his army while traveling through the Arachi Mountain Pass.

 

Heisen Temple (平泉寺白山) The Heisen Temple is a Shinto shrine in the city of modern-day Katsuyama, Fukui Prefecture, Japan. Noted for its mossy gardens, the shrine gardens were designated a National Place of Scenic Beauty in 1930 and a National Historic Site of Japan in 1935. Its main festival is held annually on April 20. The area of the shrine is within the boundaries of Hakusan National Park.

 

Hida Province (Japanese: 飛騨国) Hida was a province of Japan in the area that is today the northern portion of Gifu Prefecture in the Chūbu region of Japan. Hida bordered on Echizen, Mino, Shinano, Etchū, and Kaga Provinces. It was part of Tōsandō Circuit. Currently, the entire area of the former Hida Province consists of the cities of Hida, Takayama and most of the city of Gero, and the village of Shirakawa, in Ōno District.

 

Hino River (日野川) is a major river in the western part of Tottori Prefecture. The river flows east-northeast for 77 kilometers (48 mi), and is the longest river in the prefecture. The Hino River emerges from the Chūgoku Mountains. The source of the river is at an elevation of 1,004 metres (3,294 ft) in an area near Mount Mikuni and Mount Dōgo in Nichinan in southeastern Tottori Prefecture. At Kofu, the river turns north-northwest. The lower part of the Hino River flows through the Yonago Plain before finally discharging into Miho Bay at Hiezu near Yonago.

 

Hokuriku Road (Japanese: 北陸道) The Hokuriku Road goes north from Kurama through Arachi Mountain Pass to several provinces that border the Sea of Japan. Hyakkimaru takes this road on his journey to find Daigo Kagemitsu.

 

hokushinhiyōken (Japanese: 北辰秘鷹剣) Seven Stars Demonic Exorcism. This is the name of the technique that Hyakkimaru uses to kill the demons that fall to earth at the end of the novel.

 

homa sticks (Japanese: 護摩木) Homa sticks are wooden or bamboo sticks on which prayers are written. A homa, in all its Asian variations, is a ceremonial ritual that offers food to fire and is ultimately linked to the traditions contained in the Vedic Buddhist tradition.The fire sacrifice is a form of quid pro quo where through the fire ritual, a sacrificer offered something to the gods and goddesses, and the sacrificer expected something in return.

 

Honekawa Dōken (Japanese: 骨皮道賢, date of birth unknown; date of death: April 22, 1468) Honekawa Dōken was the head of large group of roving bandits who lived during the Muromachi period. He was originally the head of a government police organization. During the Ōnin War in 1467, he served as the chief commander of foot soldiers of Hosokawa Katsumoto's army. Using Mt. Inari as an army base, Douken fought against the enemy by setting fires and harassing the enemy. In 1468, he was killed by Asakura Toshikage. He is believed to have been attacked while he was disguised as a woman to flee from his enemies.

 

Hosokawa Shigeyuki (Japanese: 細川成之, 1434 – October 13, 1511) Hosokawa Shigeyuki was the Japanese provincial military governor and feudal lord of Awa, Mikawa and Sanuki Provinces in the Muromachi period. He belonged to the Eastern Army during the Ōnin War. He became a priest in his later years. He died at the age of 78 in 1511.

 

Hōgan-ryū (Japanese: 判官流) Hōgan-ryū is a fighting style based on Nen-ryū. Jion was the founder of the Nen ryū fighting style, famous for the simple saying "Strike with the left arm extended. Jion's fourteen disciples shared his teachings to fourteen different regions. One of these disciples, Akamatsu Sanshuza, taught Ito Kennōjō the Hōgan-ryū style.

 

Hōgen Temple (Japanese: 豊源寺) Hōgen Temple is a temple of the Tendai sect of Buddhism that was once located in Sakai District , Echizen Province (currently Sakai City , Fukui Prefecture).

 

Hōichi (Japanese: 法一) Hōichi is the name of the blind monk who Hyakkimaru and Nuinosuke encounter on their travels. He carries a lute and can see into the true nature of people and objects (like cursed swords).

 

Humane King Sutra (Japanese: 仁王経) The Humane King Sutra is found in Taisho No. 245 and 246. Many scholars have suspected this sutra to be composed in China but not all scholars agree with this viewpoint. This sutra is unusual in the fact that its target audience, rather than being either lay practitioners or the community of monks and nuns, is the rulership (i.e. monarchs, presidents, prime ministers, etc.) The foregrounded teachings, rather than being meditation and wisdom, are "humaneness" and "forbearance,” these being the most applicable religious values for the governance of a Buddhist state. In some modern Chinese temples, the sutra is used during prayers on behalf of the government and the country.

 

Hyakkimaru (Japanese:百鬼丸) Hyakkimaru was discovered as an infant by Jukai near Iwakura Shrine on the banks of the Takano River. His eyes, limbs, and sensory perceptive organs were all missing when he was discovered. In this novel, he goes on a journey to find his birth father, Daigo Kagemitsu.

 

Hyōtankuzure (Japanese: 瓢箪崩れ) A mountain set opposite Konpira near the Takano River. It is twinned with (and directly set across from) Mount Konpira, with Hyōtankuzure representing the element of light (yang) and Konpira representing the element of darkness (yin). 

 

Ichijō Kanera (Japanese: 一条 兼良, June 7, 1402 – April 30, 1481) Ichijō Kanera, was the son of regent Tsunetsugu. He was a Japanese court noble of the Muromachi period (1336–1573). Before the Ōnin War, he "enjoyed universal respect for his scholarship, had a large and distinguished family, and owned perhaps the finest library of the time.” Kaneyoshi fled to Nara, where his son was the abbot of the Kofuku Temple. He remained there for ten years before returning to the capital.

 

Ichijō Masafusa (Japanese: 一条政房, 1443-November 29, 1469) Ichijō Masafusa was a court noble in the Muromachi period. He hid in Fukugon Temple at Fukuhara, Settsu Province, when he escaped alone from the turmoil in Kyōto during the Ōnin War. However, he was pierced in the heart by a soldier of the Eastern  Army without putting up any resistance and passed away on October 26, 1469.

 

Ichijōdani (Japanese:  一乗谷) Ichijōdani is a valley located to the  southeast of modern-day central Fukui, Japan. The Asakura family ruled over the province of Echizen from Ichijōdani for five generations. Several centuries later, the Ichijōdani Asakura Clan Ruins were excavated and have been partially reconstructed. The Ichijōdani ruins were designated a Japan Heritage Site in 2019.

 

Ichijōdani  River (一乗谷川) The Ichijōdani  River is a narrow stream that passes through Ichijōdani and crosses the Asuwa River.

 

Ikkyū Sōjun (Japanese: 一休宗純, 1394–1481) Ikkyū Sōjun was an eccentric, iconoclastic Japanese Zen Buddhist monk and poet. He had a great impact on the infusion of Japanese art and literature with Zen attitudes and ideals, as well as on Zen itself, often breaking religious taboos with his stance against celibacy. He was forced to flee the  Katsuroan Temple after it burned down during the Ōnin War.

 

Imajō (Japanese: 今庄) Imajō was a city in the ancient province of Ezichen. Hyakkimaru takes the road to Imajō after leaving the massacred village.

 

Ina Basin (Japanese: 伊那谷) Ina Basin is a catchment area for the Ina River and the Tenryū River. Sabame Nuinosuke lived near the Ina Basin when he was employed in Shinano Province.

 

Ise Grand Shrine (伊勢神宮, Ise Jingū) The Ise Grand Shrine is located in Ise, Mie Prefecture of Japan. It is a shrine complex composed of many Shinto shrines dedicated primarily to the sun goddess Amaterasu. The Inner Shrine, Naikū, is located in the town of Uji-tachi south of central Ise, and is dedicated to the worship of Amaterasu, where she is believed to dwell. The shrine buildings are made of solid cypress wood and use no nails but instead joined wood. The Outer Shrine, Gekū, is located about six kilometers from Naikū and dedicated to Toyouke-Ōmikami, the god of agriculture, rice harvest and industry. Besides Naikū and Gekū, there are an additional 123 Shinto shrines in Ise City and the surrounding areas, 91 of them connected to Naikū and 32 to Gekū. 

Purportedly the home of the Sacred Mirror, the shrine is one of Shinto's holiest and most important sites. Access to both sites is strictly limited, with the general public not allowed beyond sight of the thatched roofs of the central structures, hidden behind four tall wooden fences. However, tourists are free to roam the forest, including its ornamental walkways which date back to the Meiji period.

 

Ito Kennōjō (Japanese: 伊藤健之丞) Ito Kennōjō learned the Nen Ryū school of fighting from a disciple of the warrior monk Jion, Akamatsu Sanshuza. He taught this fighting style to Sabame Nuinosuke.

 

Iwakura Shrine (Japanese: 磐座大明神) A sacred site at the foot of the mountain of Hyōtankuzure, believed to be blessed by a compassionate god. The markers for the shrine are large, irregular boulders.

 

japonica flower (Japanese: 木瓜) The japonica flower is more specifically known as the Japanese quince. The species have become popular ornamental shrubs in parts of Europe and North America, grown in gardens both for their bright flowers and as a spiny barrier. The fruits are suitable for making liqueurs, as well as marmalade and preserves. The tree is suitable for cultivation as a bonsai.

 

Jion (Japanese: 念阿弥慈恩, 1351–1409) Jion was a monk during the Northern and Southern Courts Period (14th century) of Japan. His full name was Nenami Okuyama Jion (he was born Sōma Shiro Yoshimoto, but adopted the Buddhist name Jion later in life). Jion was the founder of the Nen ryū fighting style, famous for the simple saying "Strike with the left arm extended.” During Jion's life, he trained fourteen disciples. Jion's fourteen disciples shared his teachings to fourteen different regions. Even the famous Miyamoto Musashi is said to have followed some of Jion's fighting principles.

 

Jizo (Japanese: 地蔵) Jizo is a bodhisattva primarily revered in East Asian Buddhism. He is often regarded as the bodhisattva of hell-beings, as well as the guardian of children and patron deity of deceased children and aborted fetuses. He is usually depicted as a monk with a halo around his shaved head. He carries a staff to force open the gates of hell and a wish-fulfilling jewel to light up the darkness.

 

Jukai (Japanese: 寿海) A former doctor for the Japanese imperial court who now treats the common people. His surname is Tanbano. He discovered Hyakkimaru abandoned in the Takano River and adopted him.

 

Kaga Province (Japanese: 加賀国) Kaga was a province of Japan in the area that is today the south and western portion of Ishikawa Prefecture in the Hokuriku (northwestern) region of Japan. Kaga bordered on Echizen, Etchū, Hida, and Noto Provinces. It was part of Hokurikudō Circuit, which refers to a series of roads that connected the capitals of each of the provinces that made up the region.

 

Kagami Mitōmitsu (Japanese: 加賀美遠光) Kagami Mitōmisu was the father of Osogawara Nagakiyo, the founder of the Osogawara Clan. He served Emperor Takakura as an Inner Palace guard.

 

Kagura (Japanese: 神楽) Kagura is a specific type of Shinto ritual ceremonial dance. The phrase is a contraction of "kami no kura (seat of god)", indicating the presence of god in the practice. Usually a female shaman will perform the dance and obtain the oracle from the god----in the setting, the dancer herself turns into god during the performance.

 

Kahiru River (Japanese: 鹿蒜川) The Kahiru River is a tributary of the Hino River; it runs alongside Kinome Pass on the Hokuriku Road.

 

Kai Clan (Japanese: 甲斐市) Lord Shiba Yoshidao entrusted the Kai Clan to protect the port city of Tsuruga while his armies were fighting in battles and wars away from Ezichen Province, where Tsuruga is located.

 

Kai Jōchi (Japanese: 甲斐常治, birth unknown, died 1459) Kai Jōchi was a warlord of the Muromachi period who was responsible for protecting Ezichen Province and Toe Province.

 

Kaizu (Japanese:海津) Kaizu is a city located in Gifu, Japan. Most of the city is located at sea level and is well known for levees surrounding the area.

 

Kamakura shogunate (Japanese: 鎌倉幕府) The Kamakura shogunate was the feudal military government of Japan during the Kamakura period from 1185 to 1333. The Kamakura shōguns were members of the Minamoto clan until 1226, the Fujiwara clan until 1252, and the last six were minor princes of the Imperial family. The Kamakura shogunate was overthrown in the Kenmu Restoration under Emperor Go-Daigo in 1333, re-establishing imperial rule until Ashikaga Takauji overthrew the Imperial government and founded the Ashikaga shogunate in 1336.

 

Kamo River (Japanese: 鴨川) The Kamo River is located in Kyōto Prefecture, Japan. The water level of the river is usually relatively low, but during the rainy season, the pathways sometimes flood in their lower stretches. The encounter between Minamoto no Yoshitsune and Benkei at Gojō Bridge (not the present one, but presumably Matsubara Bridge) over the river is a famous legend set in the late Heian period.

 

Kamo River Dispensary (Japanese: 鴨川悲田院) The Kamo River Dispensary was a workhouse and charity run out of a Buddhist temple in Kyōto. It was established in the 700s by the Japanese Empress Kōmyō. Jukai’s mother, Seiko, went there once or twice a month to procure additional medical supplies for herself and her husband.

 

Kanegasaki Castle (金ヶ崎城) Kanegasaki Castle was a  Japanese castle located in what is now part of the city of Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture in the Hokuriku region of Honshū, Japan. It was also known as Tsuruga Castle.

 

Kaneko Tomoyasu (Japanese: 金子朝奏) Kaneko Tomoyasu proposes a marriage between his younger son and Madenokōji Kimifusa’s daughter, Mai.

 

Kannon (Japanese: 観音) The proper Japanese name of this Buddhist god is Kanzeon Bosatsu, in English often called a goddess of compassion and mercy. Kannon is not a Buddha, but a Bodhisattva, a being who is able to achieve Nirvana but delays doing so through compassion for suffering beings. Kannon is extremely popular in Japan, mostly because of her efficacy at answering prayers and the many miracles attributed to her, and many temples are named after her.

 

Kansai region (Japanese: 関西地方, 近畿地方) The Kansai region lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo and Shiga, often also Mie, sometimes Fukui, Tokushima and Tottori. The Kansai region can also be referred to as the Kinki region.

 

Katsuroan Temple (Japanese: 瞎驢庵) This temple burned down during the Ōnin War; the monk Ikkyū Sōjun fled into the countryside afterward.

Kehi (Japanese: 気比大神) Kehi is a god that is enshrined at Tsurugi Shrine in Ezichen.

 

Kehi Shrine (Japanese: 氣比神宮) Kehi Shrine is a Shinto shrine in the city of Tsuruga, Japan. The shrine is considered the chief guardian shrine of the entire region.

 

Kehi Ujiharu (Japanese: 気比氏治) Kehi Ujiharu was the head priest of the Kehi Shrine in the 1330s. He built Kanegasaki Castle and fought on the side of Nitta Yoshisada before his surrender to Shiba Takatsune.

 

Kennin Temple (Japanese: 建仁寺) Kennin Temple is a Zen temple located just south of Kyōto's famous Gion geisha district. The temple serves as one of the head temples of the Rinzai Sect of Japanese Buddhism, and is ranked third among the five great Zen temples of Kyōto.The temple was constructed in 1202 and is considered to be the oldest Zen temple in Kyōto. Asakura Mitsuhisa served there as a monk when he was a young man.

 

Kinome Pass (Japanese: 木ノ芽峠) Kinome Pass is a mountain pass on the Hokuriku Road to the north of the city of Tsuruga.

 

Kiso Yoshinaka (Japanese: 木曾 義仲, 1154 – February 21, 1184 ) Kiso Yoshinaka was a general of the late Heian period of Japanese history. A member of the Minamoto clan, Minamoto no Yoritomo was his cousin and rival during the Genpei War between the Minamoto and the Taira clans. He was raised by Nakahara Kanetō, together with his milk brother Imai Kanehira, who would later become his best friend and most loyal retainer.

In 1181, Yoshinaka received Prince Mochihito's call to the members of the Minamoto clan to rise against the Taira. Yoshinaka entered the Genpei War raising an army and invading Echigo Province. He then defeated a Taira force sent to pacify the area. In 1183, Yoshinaka was confronted by Minamoto no Yoritomo, whose army had entered Shinano. The two reconciled and resolved to unite against the Taira. Yoshinaka then sent his son to Kamakura as a hostage. However, having been shamed, Yoshinaka was now determined to beat Yoritomo to Kyōto, defeat the Taira on his own, and take control of the Minamoto for himself.

Yoshinaka defeated the army of Taira no Koremori at the Battle of Kurikara Pass and marched to Kyōto. The Taira retreated out of the capital, taking the child Emperor Antoku with them. Yoshinaka's army entered the capital with the cloistered Emperor Go-Shirakawa.Learning Go-Shirakawa had sought help from his cousin Yoritomo, Yoshinaka seized the cloistered emperor and burned his palace. Yoritomo ordered his brothers Yoshitsune and Noriyori to destroy Yoshinaka.

Yoshinaka was driven out of Kyoto and killed by his cousins at the Battle of Awazu in Ōmi Province (present-day Shiga Prefecture) along with Kanehira. With night coming and with many enemy soldiers chasing him, he attempted to find an isolated spot to kill himself. However, the story says that his horse became trapped in a field of partly frozen mud and his enemies were able to approach him and kill him.

He was buried in Ōtsu, in Ōmi; a temple was built in his honor during the later Muromachi period. Its name, Gichū-ji, has the same two kanji as his given name. Kanehira's grave is also in Ōtsu, but it is not close to Yoshinaka's.

Minamoto no Yoshinaka is one of many main characters in the Kamakura period epic, the Tale of Heike. The story of Yoshinaka and Kanehira is fairly well known in Japan; it is also the subject of the Noh play Kanehira, in which Kanehira's tormented ghost describes his and Yoshinaka's death, and his wish to go to the other side.

 

Korikuma (Japanese: 狐狸熊 ) Korikuma literally means foxes, tanuki (raccoon dogs) and bears, which are all wild animals known for being clever. It is the name of a famous bandit leader in Ezichen Province.

 

Koshi (Japanese: 越 or 高志) Koshi is the ancient name of the Hokuriku Road. It means “Go Across Road” or “Pass Through Road.”

 

Kosode (Japanese:小袖) A kosode was a type of short-sleeved Japanese garment and the direct predecessor of the kimono. Though its component parts directly parallel those of the kimono, its proportions differed, typically having a wider body, a longer collar and narrower sleeves. The sleeves of the kosode were typically sewn to the body entirely, and often featured heavily rounded outer edges. The kosode was worn in Japan as common, everyday dress by both men and women.

 

Kujō Masatada (Japanese: 九条 政忠, 1439–1488) Kujō Masatada was a Japanese court noble of the Muromachi period (1336–1573). He held a regent position from 1487 to 1488 and fled Kyōto at the start of the Ōnin War.

 

Kumārajīva (Sanskrit: कुमारजीव, simplified Chinese: 鸠摩罗什; traditional Chinese: 鳩摩羅什, 344–413) Kumārajīva was a Buddhist monk, scholar, missionary and translator from the Kingdom of Kucha (present-day Aksu Prefecture, Xinjiang, China). He was an adherent and teacher of of Mahayana Buddhism. Kumārajīva settled in Chang'an, China’s capital, during the Sixteen Kingdoms era. He is mostly remembered for the prolific translation of Buddhist texts written in Sanskrit to Chinese he carried out during his later life. 

 

Kurama (Japanese: 鞍馬)  Kurama is the name of the mountain where Jukai and Sakuzō live; this is where Hyakkimaru grows up. It is also the site of a famous Buddhist temple founded in the eighth century. Both the town and the mountain of Kurama are located near Kyōto, the ancient capital of Japan.

 

Kuzuryū River (Japanese: 九頭竜川) The Kuzuryū River is a river flowing through modern-day Fukui Prefecture, Japan. It has its source at the Aburasaka Pass in the city of Ōno and empties into the Sea of Japan near the city of Sakai. Some of the main rivers that flow into the Kuzuryū River include: the Itoshiro River, the Hino River, the Asuwa River and the Takeda River.

 

Kūkai (Japanese: 空海; 27 July 774 – 22 April 835) Kūkai was a Japanese Buddhist monk, calligrapher, and poet who founded the esoteric Shingon school of Buddhism. With the blessing of several Emperors, Kūkai was able to preach Shingon teachings and found Shingon temples. Like other influential monks, Kūkai oversaw public works and constructions. Mount Kōya was chosen by him as a holy site, and he spent his later years there until his death in 835 C.E. Because of his importance in Japanese Buddhism, Kūkai is associated with many stories and legends. One such legend attribute the invention of the kana syllabary to Kūkai, with which the Japanese language is written to this day (in combination with kanji), as well as the Iroha poem, which helped to standardize and popularise kana. 

 

Kyōgoku Masamune (Japanese: 京極政宗) Kyōgoku Masamune is one of the rare signed works of the famed swordsmith Masamune.

 

Kyōto (Japanese:京都) Kyoto is one of the oldest municipalities in Japan and was chosen as the seat of Japan's imperial court by Emperor Kanmu. The original city was arranged in accordance with traditional Chinese architecture following the model of the ancient Chinese capital of Chang'an. The emperors of Japan ruled from Kyōto in the following eleven centuries until 1869. It was the scene of several key events of the Muromachi Period, Sengoku Period, and the Boshin War, such as the Ōnin War, the Honnō-ji Incident, the Kinmon incident and the Battle of Toba–Fushimi. Upon the Imperial Court victory over the Tokugawa shogunate, the capital was relocated to Tokyo after the Meiji Restoration. Dororo lived in a burned-out temple in Kyōto before meeting Hyakkimaru.

 

Lady Mai (Japanese: 真衣 ) See Mai.

 

Madenokōji Clan (Japanese: 万里小路氏) The Madenokōji family were court nobles with the family status of meike (the fourth highest status for court nobles). They were an offshoot of the Fujiwara Clan. family crest is bamboo and a sparrow. This family was founded during the middle of the Kamakura Period by Madenokōji Sukemichi, the fourth son of Fujiwara no Suketsune. Madenokōji Nobufusa and Madenokōji Fujifusa played active role during the Northern and Southern Courts Period as trusted vassals of Emperor Go-Daigo.

 

Madenokōji Kimifusa (Japanese: 万里小路氏公房) Madenokōji Kimifusa was Lady Mai’s father. He was the keeper of the Imperial Court’s historical archives.

 

Mai (Japanese: 真衣 ) Mai is an Imperial Court lady belonging to the Madenokōji Clan. She settles in Hino Village and establishes a shrine to worship insect gods. She also takes and becomes the lover of  Sabame Nuinosuke.

 

maimai moth (Japanese: マイマイ蝶) This is a colloquial or local name for the gypsy moth. Dororo and Hyakkimaru see one struggling out of its cocoon on their way to the ruined temple where they meet Mio and the children.

 

Maimai Onba (Japanese: マイマイオンバ) Often translated as “moth mother.” She assumes the guise of an ordinary woman named Mai who lives on an estate in Ezichen Province.

 

Manjushri (Chinese: 文殊) Manjushri is a bodhisattva associated with prajñā (wisdom) in Mahāyāna Buddhism. His name means "Gentle Glory" in Sanskrit.

 

Manjushri’s mantra (Japanese: 八字文殊鎮宅法) Manjushri’s mantra is an eight-syllable meditation chant. In Japanese, this is hachi-ji-mon-ju-chin-taku-hō. It is a chant to seek quietness and a way home on the Buddhist eight-fold path to enlightenment.

 

Masamune (Japanese: 正宗, c.1264–1343) Masamune, also known as Gorō Nyūdō Masamune, was a medieval Japanese blacksmith who is widely recognized as Japan's greatest swordsmith. He created swords and daggers, known in Japanese as tachi and tantō respectively. However, many of his forged swords were made into katana by cutting the tang in later times. No exact dates are known for Masamune's life. It is generally agreed that he made most of his swords between 1288 and 1328.

Masamune is believed to have worked in Sagami Province during the last part of the Kamakura period (1288–1328), and it is thought that he was trained by swordsmiths from Bizen and Yamashiro provinces, such as Saburo Kunimune, Awataguchi Kunitsuna and Shintōgo Kunimitsu.

 

Matsubara Guest House (Japanese:松原客館) The Matsubara Guest House was historically located near the Japanese city of Tsuruga; it was used to shelter Chinese envoys entering Japan from the Bohai Sea.

 

Megrez (Arabic, derived: المغرز) Megrez, also known as Delta Ursae Majoris, is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Major. With an apparent magnitude of +3.3, it is the dimmest of the seven stars in the Big Dipper asterism.

 

Meihō Sotetsu (Japanese: 明峰素哲, 1277-1350) Meihō Sotetsu was a Japanese Zen Buddhist monk who lived during the late Kamakura period and early Muromachi period. Meihō was given an elaborate funeral in 1350 in which some seventy-two items were used to decorate his cremation pyre. The funeral also displayed an increase in the use of esoteric rituals, such as the chanting of the Śūrangama mantra, and the Mantra of Light. These were each chanted by a group of 100 monks who did so continuously with multiple shifts.

 

Merak (Arabic, derived: المراق) Merak, also known as Beta Ursae Majoris, is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Major. The apparent visual magnitude of this star is +2.37, which means it is readily visible to the naked eye. It is more familiar to northern hemisphere observers as one of the "pointer stars" in the Big Dipper, or the Plough (UK), which is a prominent asterism of seven stars that forms part of the larger constellation. Extending an imaginary straight line from this star through the nearby Alpha Ursae Majoris (Dubhe) extends to Polaris, the north star.

 

Minamoto no Hiromasa (Japanese: 源博雅, 918 – September 28, 980) Minamoto no Hiromasa was a nobleman and gagaku musician in the Heian Period. He was the eldest son of Prince Katsuakira and the grandson of Emperor Daigo. He is credited with popularizing saibara songs.

 

Minamoto no Yoritomo (Japanese: 源 頼朝, May 9, 1147 – February 9, 1199) Minamoto no Yoritomo was the founder and the first shōgun of the Kamakura shogunate of Japan, ruling from 1192 until 1199.

Yoritomo was the son of Minamoto no Yoshitomo and belonged to Seiwa Genji's prestigious Kawachi Genji family. After setting himself as the rightful heir of the Minamoto clan, he led his clan against the Taira Clan from his capital in Kamakura, beginning the Genpei War in 1180. After five years of war, he finally defeated the Taira Clan in the Battle of Dan-no-ura in 1185. Yoritomo thus established the supremacy of the warrior samurai class and the first shogunate at Kamakura, beginning the feudal age in Japan which lasted until the mid-19th century.

 

Minamoto no Yoshinaka (Japanese: 源義仲, 1154 – February 21, 1184) Minamoto no Yoshinaka was a general of the late Heian period of Japanese history. A member of the Minamoto clan, Minamoto no Yoritomo was his cousin and rival during the Genpei War between the Minamoto and the Taira Clans. Yoshinaka was born in Musashi province. See also Kiso Yoshinaka.

 

Minamoto no Yoshitsune (Japanese: 源義経, c. 1159 – June 15, 1189) was a military commander of the Minamoto clan of Japan in the late Heian and early Kamakura periods. During the Genpei War, he led a series of battles which toppled the Ise-Heishi branch of the Taira clan, helping his half-brother Yoritomo consolidate power. He is considered one of the greatest and the most popular warriors of his era, and one of the most famous samurai fighters in the history of Japan. Yoshitsune perished after being betrayed by the son of a trusted ally.

 

Mino Province (Japanese: 美濃国) Mino is one of the old provinces of Japan, encompassing the southern part of modern-day Gifu Prefecture. Although the ancient provincial capital was near Tarui, the main castle town was at Gifu, the home of Inabayama Castle. In 713, the road crossing through Mino and Shinano provinces was widened to accommodate increasing numbers of travelers. Mino Province served an important military and political role as the path to Kyōto.

 

Mio (Japanese: 美緒) Mio is a war survivor whose family was wiped out by the Eastern Army. She takes in abandoned and injured children and takes care of them at a ruined temple in Kinome Pass.

 

Misaka Pass (Japanese: 神坂峠) Misaka Pass is the highest point on the ancient Tōsandō highway connecting Ina District in Shinano Province with Ena District in Mino Province. It is mentioned in the Nara period Nihon Shoki chronicles as a location where the legendary warrior Yamato Takeru was harassed by a mountain god on his way to conquer eastern Japan, and where he shot and killed a white deer which was an avatar of the god on his return journey. This legend was a reflection of the evil reputation of the pass, which was steep, isolated, and long, and often plagued by bandits who preyed on travelers. Nuinosuke travels through it after massacring everyone at the Tanaka estate.

 

Mizar (Arabic, derived: المئزر) Mizar, also known as Zeta Ursae Majoris, is a second-magnitude star in the handle of the Big Dipper asterism in the constellation of Ursa Major. It forms a well-known naked eye double star with the fainter star Alcor, and is itself a quadruple star system.

 

Mongol invasions of Japan (Japanese: 元寇) The Mongol invasions of Japan, which took place in 1274 and 1281, were major military efforts taken by Kublai Khan of the Yuan dynasty to conquer the Japanese archipelago. Ultimately a failure, the invasion attempts are of macro-historical importance because they set a limit on Mongol expansion and rank as nation-defining events in the history of Japan. The invasions are referred to in many works of fiction and are the earliest events for which the word kamikaze ("divine wind") is widely used, originating in reference to the two typhoons that decimated the Mongol fleets.

 

Mount Atago (Japanese: 愛宕山) Mount Atago is a very common name for peaks all over Japan. The most famous is a 924m mountain in the northwestern part of Ukyo-ku, in the city of Kyōto, Kyōto Prefecture, Japan. The Atago Shrine is located on the top of the mountain.

 

Mount Ena (Japanese: 恵那山) Mount Ena is a mountain peak of the Kiso Mountains range in the Chūbu region of Japan. It is 2,191 m (7,188 ft) in elevation and is located on the border between modern-day Nakatsugawa in Gifu Prefecture and Achi in Nagano Prefecture. The Japanese Alps ranges, Mount Ontake, Mount Haku, and part of Mount Fuji can be seen from the summit of Mount Ena.

 

Mount Fuji (Japanese: 富士山) Mount Fuji is located on the island of Honshū. It is the highest mountain in Japan, standing 3,776.24 m (12,389.2 ft), and the seventh-highest peak of an island on Earth. The mountain is located about 100 km (62 mi) southwest of Tokyo and is visible from there on clear days. Mount Fuji's exceptionally symmetrical cone, which is covered in snow for about five months of the year, is commonly used as a cultural icon of Japan and it is frequently depicted in art and photography, as well as visited by sightseers and climbers.

 

Mount Hachibuse (Japanese: 鉢伏山) Mount Hachibuse is a peak to the west of the Japanese city of Tsuruga. It is located in modern-day Kobe.

 

Mount Haku (Japanese: 白山), Mount Hakusan is a dormant stratovolcano in Japan. It is located on the borders of Gifu and Ishikawa, on the island of Honshū. Mount Haku is thought to have first been active 300,000 to 400,000 years ago, with the most recent eruption occurring in 1659. Along with Mount Tate and Mount Fuji, it is one of Japan's "Three Holy Mountains."

 

Mount Hino (Japanese:日野山), Mount Hino, nicknamed “Mount Fuji of Echizen,” is a mountain located in modern-day Echizen City, Fukui.

 

Mount Kurama (Japanese: 鞍馬山) See Kurama.

 

Mount Monju (Japanese:文殊山) Mount Monju is a mountain in current-day Fukui Prefecture, Japan. The name of the mountain is derived from the Manjusri bodhisattva enshrined at the top of the mountain.

 

Mount Ochi (Japanese: 越知山) Mount Ochi is a mountain with an altitude of 612.8m on the border between Fukui City, Fukui Prefecture and Echizen Town, Niū District. Since ancient times, it has been counted as one of the five mountains of Echizen along with Mt. Hakusan, Mt. Hino, Mt. Monju, and Mt. Zao. Ochi Shrine is on the summit of the mountain.

 

Mount Tezutsu (Japanese: 天筒山) Mount Tezutsu is a  mountain (height of 171m) in Tsuruga, Fukui prefecture, Japan. It is within easy viewing distance of Kehi Shrine.

 

Mount Zaō (Japanese: 蔵王連峰) The Zaō Mountains, commonly called Mount Zaō, are a complex cluster of stratovolcanoes on the border between Yamagata Prefecture and Miyagi Prefecture in Japan. The central volcano of the group includes several lava domes and a tuff cone, which contains a crater lake named Okama. One striking feature of Zaō's famous ski resorts is the "snow monsters" that appear in mid-winter. Strong wind over the nearby lake fling water droplets which freeze against the trees and their branches, until near-horizontal icicles begin to form. Falling snow settles on the ice formations, and the end result is a grotesque figure of a tree. The effect of a full forest of such trees gives visitors a ghostly impression.

 

mudra (Sanskrit: मुद्रा) A mudra is a symbolic or ritual gesture or pose in Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism. While some mudras involve the entire body, most are performed with the hands and fingers.

 

Muramasa (Japanese: 村正, born before 1501) Muramasa, commonly known as Sengo Muramasa, was a famous swordsmith who founded the Muramasa school and lived during the Muromachi period (14th to 16th centuries) in Kuwana, Ise Province, Japan (current Kuwana, Mie) .In spite of their original reputation as fine blades favored by the shōgun Tokugawa Ieyasu and his vassals, the katana swords made by Muramasa gradually became a symbol of the anti-Tokugawa movement. In lore and popular culture from the 18th century onward, the swords have been regarded as yōtō (妖刀, "wicked katana"). Hyakkimaru carries a sword forged by Muramasa.

 

Murasaki Shikibu (Japanese: 紫 式部, c. 973 or 978 – c. 1014 or 1031) Murasaki Shikibu was a Japanese novelist, poet and lady-in-waiting at the Imperial court in the Heian period. She is best known as the author of The Tale of Genji, widely considered to be one of the world's first novels, written in Japanese between about 1000 and 1012. Murasaki Shikibu is a descriptive name; her personal name is unknown, but she may have been Fujiwara no Kaoriko (藤原 香子), who was mentioned in a 1007 court diary as an imperial lady-in-waiting.

 

Mutsu Province (Japanese: 陸奥国) Mutsu was an old province of Japan in the area of Fukushima, Miyagi, Iwate and Aomori Prefectures. It was a large province on the northeastern portion of Japan’s largest island, Honshū.

 

Myōkichi (Japanese: 妙吉祥) Myōkichi is another name of Manjushri, the bodhisattva associated with prajñā (wisdom) in Mahāyāna Buddhism. His name means "Gentle Glory" in Sanskrit. The people of Mio’s village worshiped Myōkichi before the village was wiped out by an invading army.

 

Nakatsugawa (Japanese: 中津川市) Nakatsugawa is a city located in modern-day Gifu, Japan. The area around Nakatsugawa was part of the historical Mino Province.

 

Nakayama Pass (Japanese: 中山峠) Nakayama Pass is a mountain pass that goes north from Imajō to Hokkaidō.

 

Nihil (Japanese: 丹蛭) Nihil means ‘crimson leech;’ the red described is the same color as red earth. It is the name of a demon-possessed sword carried by Sabame Nuinosuke.

 

Nitta Yoshisada (Japanese: 新田 義貞, 1301 – August 17, 1338) Nitta Yoshisada was the head of the Nitta clan in the early fourteenth century, and supported the Southern Court of Emperor Go-Daigo in the Nanboku-chō period. He famously marched on Kamakura, besieging and capturing it from the Hōjō clan in 1333. Later, he fought the Takauji brothers on the Emperor's behalf in a see-saw campaign which saw the capital changed hands several times. After a peaceful compromise was agreed, Yoshisada was entrusted with two royal princes. At the siege of Kanegasaki (1337), both princes were killed, along with Yoshisada's son, although Yoshisada was able to escape.

 

Niū District (Japanese: 丹生郡) Niū is a district in modern-day Fukui Prefecture, Japan. The modern city of Ezichen is located in Niū District.

 

Northern Court (Japanese: 北朝) The Northern Court, also known as the Ashikaga Pretenders or Northern Pretenders, were a set of six pretenders to the throne of Japan from 1336 through 1392. The present Imperial House of Japan is descended from the Northern Court emperors. They were opposed to the Southern Court, whose claim to imperial rule was more legitimate.

 

Noto Province (Japanese: 能登国)  Noto was a province of Japan in the area that is today the northern part of Ishikawa Prefecture in Japan, including the Noto Peninsula, which is surrounded by the Sea of Japan. Noto bordered on Etchū and Kaga provinces to the south, and was surrounded by the Sea of Japan to the east, north and west.

 

Ōdzu Clan (Japanese: 麻生津氏) The monk Tokuyūbō who serves at the Ryōgen Temple on Mount Monju was born into the Ōdzu Clan. 

 

Ogasawara Arimune (Japanese: 小笠原有宗) Ogasawara Arimune is part of the Ina-Onigasawara Clan branch; he is the samurai lord that Sabame Nuinosuke serves. He orders Nuinosuke to murder forty-two carpenters and builders so that they won’t betray the secrets of the fortresses they built to the Ogasawara Clan’s enemies. While a Ogasawara Clan is historically real, Arimune appears to be entirely fictionalized.

 

Ogasawara Clan (Japanese: 小笠原氏) The Ogasawara Clan was a Japanese samurai clan descended from the Seiwa Genji. The Ogasawara acted as governors of Shinano Province during the Sengoku Period (c. 1185–1600), and as feudal lords of territories on Kyūshū during the Edo period (1600–1867).

During the Kamakura and Muromachi periods, the clan controlled Shinano province, while related clans controlled the provinces of Awa, Bizen, Bitchū, Iwami, Mikawa, Tōtōmi and Mutsu. According to some theories, the Miyoshi clan and the Mizukami clan were descendants of the Ogasawara clan.

 

Ogasawara Mitsuyasu (Japanese: 小笠原光康) Ogasawara Mitsuyasu was the leader of the Ina-Ogasawara branch of the Ogasawara Clan. He supported Hosokawa Katsumoto and the Eastern Army during the Ōnin War (1467-77).

 

Ogasawara Mochinaga (Japanese: 小笠原持長）Ogasawara Mochinaga was the head of the Ogasawara Clan. He supported the Hatakeyama Clan and the Western Army during the Ōnin War (1467-77).

 

Ogasawara Nagakiyo (Japanese: 小笠原長清) Osogawara Nagakiyo was the founder of the Osogawara Clan; his original name was Kagami.  He was the son of Kagami Mitōmitsu; his father Tōmitsu served Emperor Takakura as an Inner Palace guard. Nagakiyo’s older brother served the Taira Clan, but Nagakiyo served Minamoto no Yoritomo, putting the brothers on opposite sides in the Genpei War.

 

Ogasawara Nasanaga (Japanese: 小笠原政長) Osogawara Nasanaga was the grandson of Osogawara Nagakiyo; he taught horsemanship and archery to Ashikaga Takauji, founder of the Ashikaga shogunate.

 

Onryō (Japanese: 怨霊) In Japanese traditional beliefs and literature, an  onryō (literally "vengeful spirit", sometimes rendered "wrathful spirit") refers to a ghost believed to be capable of causing harm in the world of the living, injuring or killing enemies, or even causing natural disasters to exact vengeance to redress the wrongs it received while alive, then taking their spirits from their dying bodies.

 

Osen Keisan (Japanese: 横川景三, 1429 - December 25, 1493) Osen Keisan was a Zen monk in the middle to late Muromachi period. He was a representative figure in Gozan Bungaku (literature written by the Zen monks of five high-ranking Zen temples in Kyōto). He was a close aid of the eighth shogun, Ashikaga Yoshimasa of Muromachi bakufu (Japanese feudal government headed by a shogun), as the adviser for foreign affairs and literature. He fled from Kyōto at the start of the Ōnin War.

 

Ōhashi Kageyuzaemon (Japanese:大橋勘解由左衛門) Ōhashi Kageyuzaemon was a Muromachi-era warlord who perfected speciality techniques with the spear and sword. Sabame Nuinosuke follows the precepts of his sword school.

 

Ōhashi Seigen (Japanese: 大橋清源) Ōhashi Seigen Ōhashi Kageyuzaemon was a Muromachi-era warlord who perfected speciality techniques with the spear and sword. Sabame Nuinosuke follows the precepts of his sword school.

 

Ōmushi Shrine (Japanese: 大虫神社) Ōmushi Shrine is an ancient shrine in Ezichen Province (modern-day Fukui Prefecture). Three gods are enshrined there: Ōkuninushi, an earth god, Watatsumi, a sea god, and Ōta no Mikoto, an ancestral god.

 

Ōnin War (Japanese: 応仁の乱) The Ōnin War was a civil war that lasted from 1467 to 1477. Ōnin refers to the Japanese era during which the war started; the war ended during the Bunmei era. A dispute between a high official, Hosokawa Katsumoto, and a regional lord, Yamana Sōzen, escalated into a nationwide civil war involving the Ashikaga shogunate and a number of daimyō in many regions of Japan. The war initiated the Sengoku period, "the Warring States period." This period was a long, drawn-out struggle for domination by individual samurai lords, resulting in a mass power struggle between the various houses to dominate the whole of Japan.

 

Ōno District (Japanese: 大野郡) Ōno District is a district located in Gifu Prefecture, Japan (historically, this would be in Mino Province). The district is in a mountainous region near the geographic center of Japan.

 

Ōsaka Gate (Japanese: 逢坂の関) In ancient times, three barriers were set up along the roads to defend Japan’s capital city of Nagaoka. One was near Suzuka, one was near Fuwa, and one was near Shinchi. When the capital moved to Kyōto, Arachi no Seki (the Shinchi gate) was removed and the Osaka gate was added.

 

Ōu Mountains (Japanese: 奥羽山脈) The Ōu Mountains are a mountain range in the Tōhoku region of Honshū, Japan. The range is the longest range in Japan and stretches 500 km (311 mi) south from the Natsudomari Peninsula of Aomori Prefecture to the Nasu volcanoes at the northern boundary of the Kantō region. Though long, the range is only about 35 kilometres (22 mi) wide. The highest point in the range is Mount Iwate, 2,038 metres (6,686 ft).

 

Ōube Nō (Japanese: 大生部多) Ōube Nō was a monk and a believer in insect worship, brought his ideas to the village near where Lady Mai lives in the year 645 (it is 1468 when Lady Mai moves to this village). He brought the butterfly chrysalis that was revered as a sacred object in Lady Mai’s shrine to the village.

 

pagoda tree (Japanese: 槐) The pagoda tree, also known as  the Chinese scholar tree or Sophora japonica, is a species of tree in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family Fabaceae. The pagoda tree is native to China; despite the name, it was introduced in Japan. It is a popular ornamental tree in Europe, North America and South Africa, grown for its white flowers, borne in late summer after most other flowering trees have long finished flowering. It grows to 10–20 meters tall with an equal spread, and produces a fine, dark brown timber. The leaves of the pagoda tree are one of the fifty fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine.

 

Phecda (Arabic, derived: فخذ الدب) Phecda, also known as Gamma Ursae Majoris, is a star in the constellation of Ursa Major. Since 1943, the spectrum of this star has served as one of the stable anchor points by which other stars are classified. It is more familiar to most observers in the northern hemisphere as the lower-left star forming the bowl of the Big Dipper, together with Alpha Ursae Majoris (Dubhe, upper-right), Beta Ursae Majoris (Merak, lower-right) and Delta Ursae Majoris (Megrez, upper-left). Along with four other stars in this well-known asterism, Phecda forms a loose association of stars known as the Ursa Major moving group. Like the other stars in the group, it is a main sequence star, as the Sun is, although somewhat hotter, brighter and larger.

 

Prince Oshikuma (Japanese: 忍熊王)  Prince Oshikuma was the son of Emperor Chūai, but Empress Jingū gave birth to another son--three years after Emperor Chūai’s death. Oshikuma conspired with Imperial Prince Kogasaka, his older brother, to attack the Empress’ army and depose her. However, Imperial Prince Kagosaka died early in an attack by a wild boar. Imperial Prince Oshikuma was frightened by this ill omen and retreated. Prince Oshikuma lost his bow and sword through the tactics of Takenōchi no Sukune, then ran away, and was finally defeated at Ōsaka. He jumped into the Yodo River, committing suicide. He apparently received a magical sword from the god Susanō at Tsurugi Shrine.

 

Prince Shōtoku (Japanese: 聖徳太子, February 7, 574 – April 8, 622) Prince Shōtoku was a semi-legendary regent and a politician of the Asuka period in Japan who served under Empress Suiko. He was the son of Emperor Yōmei and his consort, Princess Anahobe no Hashihito, who was also Yōmei's younger half-sister. His parents were relatives of the ruling Soga clan. The Prince is renowned for modernizing the government administration and for promoting Buddhism in Japan.

 

Ri (Japanese: 里) A ri is a Japanese unit of measurement that corresponds to about two and a half miles (four kilometers).

 

Rinzai Sect (Japanese: 臨済宗) The Rinzai Sect is one of three sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (with Sōtō and Ōbakg the others). Rinzai is the Japanese line of the Chinese Linji school, which was founded during the Tang dynasty by Linji Yixuan (Japanese: Rinzai Gigen). Though there were several attempts to establish Ru beininzai lines in Japan, it first took root in a lasting way through the efforts of the monk Myōan Eisai. In 1168, Myōan Eisai traveled to China, whereafter he studied Tendai for twenty years. In 1187, he went to China again, and returned to establish a Linji lineage, which is known in Japan as Rinzai. Decades later, Nanpo Shōmyō (1235–1308) also studied Linji teachings in China before founding the Japanese Ōtōkan lineage, the most influential and only surviving branch of Rinzai.  

The time during which Rinzai Zen was established in Japan also saw the rise of the samurai to power. Along with early imperial support, Rinzai came to enjoy the patronage of this newly ascendant warrior class. During the Muromachi period, the Rinzai Sect was the most successful of the Buddhist sects because it was favored by the shōgun.  

 

Ryōgon Temple (Japanese: 楞厳寺) There are several Ryōgon Temples in Japan; the one the novel refers to is the one on the Eastern slope of Mount Monju. It is a Buddhist temple that Hyakkimaru stops at before climbing the mountain.

 

Ryūsen Temple (竜泉寺) Ryūsen Temple is sacred to Hayagrivam an avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. He is worshiped as the god of knowledge and wisdom, with a human body and a horse's head, brilliant white in color, with white garments and seated on a white lotus. Symbolically, the story represents the triumph of pure knowledge, guided by the hand of Divinity, over the demonic forces of passion and darkness. Historically, Ryūsen Temple has been used as a military facility several times, and is sometimes referred to as Ryūsen Castle.

 

Sabae (Japanese: 鯖江) Sabae is a city located in modern-day Fukui prefecture. Historically, Sabae was part of ancient Echizen Province.

 

Sabame Nuinosuke (鯖目縫之介)  Sabame Nuinosuke is the retainer of Ogosawara Arimune. He wields a demon-possessed sword made by Muramasa called Nihil.

 

Sagami Province (Japanese: 相模国) was a province of Japan located in what is today the central and western Kanagawa Prefecture. Sagami was one of the original provinces of Japan established in the Nara Period. The area has been inhabited since prehistoric times. During the Kamakura period, Sagami was the center of the Kamakura shogunate, based in Kamakura, founded by Minamoto no Yoritomo and subsequently controlled by his former stewards, the Hōjō clan.

 

saibara (Japanese: 催馬楽) Saibara is a genre of accompanied vocal Japanese court music that existed during the Heian period in the Nara and Kyōto regions. It draws from traditional folk music and may have developed out of music to drive horses along, as the Chinese characters that compose its name seem to indicate. Song texts are short and simple in character and describe scenes of life. The repertoire was once estimated at some 400 songs. Courtiers sang saibara songs for entertainment. In the 14th century, because of the many wars, the repertoire of saibara declined, as many were lost due to the turmoil.

 

Saidai Temple (Japanese: 西大寺) The Saidai Temple is a Buddhist temple that was once one of the powerful Seven Great Temples in the city of Nara, Japan. The temple was established in AD 765 as a counterpart to Tōdai Temple.

 

Saigyō Hōshi (Japanese: 西行法師, 1118 – March 23, 1190) Saigyō Hōshi was a famous Japanese poet of the late Heian and early Kamakura period. Born Satō Norikiyo (佐藤義清) in Kyōto to a noble family, he lived during the traumatic transition of power between the old court nobles and the new samurai warriors. Buddhism was considered to be in decline and no longer as effective a means of salvation. These cultural shifts during his lifetime led to a sense of melancholy in his poetry. For reasons now unknown, he quit worldly life to become a monk, taking the religious name En'i (円位). He later took the pen name Saigyō (西行), meaning “Western Journey,” a reference to Amida Buddha and the Western paradise. He lived alone for long periods in his life in Saga, Mt. Koya, Mt. Yoshino, Ise, and many other places, but he is more known for the many long, poetic journeys he took to Northern Honshū that would later inspire the poet Bashō in his Narrow Road to the Interior. 

 

Sakuzō (Japanese: 作蔵) Jukai’s live-in helper in the estate built on the mountain of Kurama. He is missing one leg, which has been replaced by a prosthesis made by Jukai. His vocal chords were also severely damaged when he took an arrow to the throat during a peasant uprising that he led, so he has difficulty speaking.

 

samādhi (Sanskrit: समाधी) Samādhi is a state of meditative consciousness. In the yogic and Buddhist traditions, it is a meditative absorption or trance. In the oldest Buddhist sutras, on which several contemporary western teachers rely, it refers to the development of a luminous mind which is mindful and essentially fair. In Buddhism, samādhi is the last of the eight elements of the Noble Eightfold Path.

 

Sea of Japan (Japanese: 日本海) The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the Russian mainland. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it has almost no tides due to its nearly complete enclosure from the Pacific Ocean.

 

Seinaiji (Japanese: 清内路村, Seinaiji-mura) Seinaiji was a village located in Shimoina District, Nagano Prefecture, Japan. Historically, it was located in Shinano Province.

 

Semimaru (Japanese: 蝉丸) Semimaru was a Japanese poet and musician of the early Heian period.  Some accounts say he was a son of Emperor Uda, Prince Atsumi, or that he was the fourth son of Emperor Daigo. There are also claims that he lived during the reign of Emperor Ninmyō. Semimaru was a blind lute player who lived alone in a straw hut in Ausaka, which means "meeting slope". "Ausaka is a slope about five miles east of the center of modern Kyoto. Its apex is a narrow pass through the eastern range of mountains separating Kyoto from the area of Lake Biwa." The emperor established a formal check point barrier, Ausaka no seki, at this summit in 646. Today, the place is known as Osaka.

In Noh, there is a Zeami Motokiyo play, Semimaru, that depicts the life of a "young man, blind from birth...abandoned on a mountainside by is father", and his sister, Sakagami, "a beautiful young woman" that "suffers episodes of inexplicable madness which compel her to wander the countryside aimlessly."

 

septicweed (Japanese: オオハソウ) Septicweed, formally known as senna occidentalis, is a pantropical plant species.Vernacular names include ‘au’auko’i in Hawaii, septicweed, coffee senna, coffeeweed, piss-a-bed, Mogdad coffee, negro-coffee, senna coffee, Stephanie coffee, stinkingweed or styptic weed.

In Jamaica the seeds are roasted, brewed and served as tea to treat hemorrhoids, gout, rheumatism, and diabetes. Mogdad coffee seeds can be roasted and used as a substitute for coffee. They have also been used as an adulterant for coffee. There is apparently no caffeine in mogdad coffee.

Despite the claims of being poisonous, the leaves of this plant, have been used in the diet of the Maldives for centuries in dishes such as mas huni and also as a medicinal plant. This plant is mainly used for the treatment of bone fractures and bone dislocation as an herbal treatment in India.

 

Seto Inland Sea (Japanese: 瀬戸内海) The Seto Inland Sea is the body of water separating Honshū, Shikoku, and Kyūshū, three of the four main islands of Japan. It serves as a waterway connecting the Pacific Ocean to the Sea of Japan.

 

Shennong (Chinese: 神農) Shennong, variously translated as "Divine Farmer" or "Divine Husbandman," was a mythological Chinese ruler who has become a deity in Chinese and Vietnamese folk religion. He is venerated as a culture hero in China and Vietnam.

Shennong has at times been counted amongst the Three Sovereigns (also known as "Three Kings" or "Three Patrons"), a group of ancient deities or deified kings of prehistoric China. Shennong has been thought to have taught the ancient Chinese not only their practices of agriculture, but also the use of herbal drugs. He was credited with various inventions: these include the hoe, plow, axe, digging wells, agricultural irrigation, preserving stored seeds by using boiled horse urine, the weekly farmers market, the Chinese calendar (especially the division into the 24 jieqi or solar terms), and to have refined the therapeutic understanding of taking pulse measurements, acupuncture, and moxibustion, and to have instituted the harvest thanksgiving ceremony.

 

Shiba Clan (Japanese: 斯波氏) The Shiba Clan was a Japanese clan descended from Ashikaga Yasuuji and the Seiwa-Genji. In the Kamakura period, the family was treated as a branch family of Ashikaga, which called themselves the Ashikaga family name, and it was not until the Muromachi period that Shiba was renamed as a family name. The clan held influence and territory in the provinces of Echizen Province and Owari Province, which they governed in the Muromachi period. They supported the Western Army during the Ōnin War.

 

Shiba Takatsune (Japanese: 斯波 高経, 1305 – August 9, 1367) Shiba Takatsune was the governor of Echizen Province during the 14th century wars between the Northern Court and Southern Court in Japan. He acted to block the northward progress of Nitta Yoshisada, who supported the Emperor's Southern Court against the shōgun's Northern Court. Shiba served the shōgun and thus the Northern Court.

 

Shiba Yoshikado (Japanese: Shiba Yoshikado 斯波義廉) Shiba Yoshikado (date of birth and death unknown) was a Japanese provincial military governor in the mid to late Muromachi period. He was the military governor of Owari Province, Echizen Province and Totomi Province. He supported the Western Army in the Ōnin War.

 

Shiba Yoshitoshi (Japanese: 斯波義敏) Shiba Yoshitoshi was a Japanese provincial military governor of Ezichen Province in the late Muromachi period. He had many conflicts with a senior vassal, Kai Jōchi, the deputy military governor of Ezichen. When Yoshitoshi succeeded as the head of the Shiba Clan, the conflict between the two escalated into open war; Shiba Yoshitoshi fled to Kanegasaki Castle to escape from him. He supported the Eastern Army in the Ōnin War.

 

Shigeakira (重明親王, 906 - October 13, 954) Shigeakira was the fourth son of Emperor Daigo. He never had any disputes over the imperial throne, but he had made great attainments and had refined taste and excellent musical talent, so his father, Emperor Daigo, left him a will in the presence of both Imperial Prince Shigeakira and Imperial Prince Yoshiakira during the Emperor's last moment. Also, in the Imperial Palace of his half brother, Emperor Murakami, he was much appreciated and always played the thirteen-stringed koto and a flute at banquets. It is believed that he began the long artistic tradition of teaching blind monks how to play the lute.

 

Shimojō (Japanese: 下條村) is a village located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. Historically, it was part of Shinano Province.

 

Shinano Province (Japanese: 信濃国) Shinano Province was an old province of Japan that is now Nagano Prefecture. Sabame Nuinosuke is originally from Shinano. Shinano bordered on Echigo, Etchū, Hida, Kai, Kōzuke, Mikawa, Mino, Musashi, Suruga, and Tōtōmi Provinces. The ancient capital was located near modern-day Matsumoto, which became an important city of the province.

 

Shinto (Japanese: 神道) Shinto is a religion which originated in Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners Shintoists, although adherents rarely use that term themselves. There is no central authority in control of Shinto and much diversity exists among practitioners. 

Shinto is polytheistic and revolves around the kami ("gods" or "spirits"), supernatural entities believed to inhabit all things. The link between the kami and the natural world has led to Shinto being considered animistic and pantheistic. The kami are worshiped at household shrines, family shrines, and public shrines. The latter are staffed by priestsi, who oversee offerings of food and drink to the specific kami enshrined at that location. This is done to cultivate harmony between humans and kami and to solicit the latter's blessing. Other common rituals include the kagura dances, rites of passage, and seasonal festivals. Public shrines also supply religious paraphernalia such as amulets to the religion's adherents.

Shinto does not emphasize specific moral codes although it places a major conceptual focus on ensuring purity, largely by cleaning practices such as ritual washing and bathing. Shinto has no single creator or specific doctrinal text, but exists in a diverse range of local and regional forms.

 

Shirouma (Japanese: 白馬) Shirouma is a villager who lives on Mount Hino. He witnessed Sabame Nuinosuke killing a man on the side of the road.

 

Shōbutsu (Japanese: 生仏) Shōbutsu was a blind monk and lute player who was taught the Tale of Heike by another monk, Yoshida Kenkō.

 

Shōrin-ryū (Japanese: 少林流) Shōrin-ryū is the Okinawan school of karate.s It is a Japanese martial art considered to be a modified version of Shaolin Kung Fu. Shōrin-ryū is a holistic system whose training methods are divided into three parts: self-defense training, mental training and, health training. The basis are the concepts that "spirit and body are not separable" and that it is integral to train both the body and mind as one.

 

shrubby sophora (Japanese: クララ) Sophora flavescens, the shrubby sophora, is a species of plant in the genus Sophora of the family Fabaceae. This genus contains about 52 species, nineteen varieties, and seven forms that are widely distributed in Asia, Oceania, and the Pacific islands. About fifteen of these species have a long history of use in traditional Chinese medicines. Toxic effects from use of the root may include nausea, dizziness, vomiting, constipation, spasms, disturbance of speech, irregular breathing, respiratory failure and death.

 

Shugendō (Japanese: 修験道) Shugendō was a set of religious practices that blend Shinto mountain worship and Buddhism. The final purpose of shugendō was for practitioners to find supernatural power and save themselves and others by conducting religious training while climbing mountains.

 

Soga Clan (Japanese: 蘇我氏) The Soga Clan was one of the most powerful aristocratic kin groups of the Asuka period of the early Japanese state—the Yamato polity—and played a major role in the spread of Buddhism. Through the 5^th  and 7^th  centuries, the Soga Clan was the first of many families to dominate the Imperial House of Japan by influencing the order of succession and government policy. The last Soga predates any historical work in Japan, and very little is known about its earliest members. 

 

Sonohara River (Japanese: 園原川) The Sonohara River flows through Shinano Province near Achi.

 

Southern Court (Japanese: 南朝) The Southern Court were a set of four emperors (Emperor Go-Daigo and his line) whose claims to sovereignty from 1336 through 1392 were usurped by the Northern Court. This period ended with the Southern Court definitively losing the war, and they were forced to completely submit sovereignty to the Northern Court. While later Japanese sovereigns were descended from the Northern Court, posterity assigns sole legitimacy during this period to the Southern Court.

 

Stemona (Japanese: ビャクブ) Stemona is a genus of vines and subshrubs in the family Stemonaceae. Stemona is native to China, the Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, Papuasia, and northern Australia. Stemona tuberosa is one of the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine.

 

Sun Simiao (Japanese:孫思邈; died 682) Sun Simiao was a Chinese physician and writer of the Sui and Tang dynasty. He was titled as China's King of Medicine for his significant contributions to Chinese medicine and tremendous care to his patients. Sun wrote two books--Beiji Qian Jin Yao Fang ("Essential Formulas for Emergencies Worth a Thousand Pieces of Gold") and Qian Jin Yi Fang ("Supplement to the Formulas of a Thousand Gold Worth")--that were both milestones in the history of Chinese medicine, summarizing pre-Tang dynasty medicine. The former listed about 5300 recipes for medicines, and the latter 2000.

 

Śūrangama sutra (Sanskrit: शूरङ्गम सूत्र; traditional Chinese: 大佛頂首楞嚴經, full Japanese title: 大仏頂如来密因修証了義諸菩薩万行首楞厳経) The Śūrangama sutra is a Mahayana Buddhist sutra that has been especially influential in Chan Buddhism. The general doctrinal outlook of the Śūrangama sutra is that of esoteric Buddhism and Buddha-nature. There have been questions regarding the translation of this sutra as it was not sponsored by the Imperial Chinese Court and as such the records regarding its translation in the early eighth century were not carefully preserved; however, it has never been classified as apocrypha in any Chinese-language sources and is considered an esoteric, if standard, sutra. 

 

Susanō (Japanese:スサノオ) Susanō is a Shinto god in Japanese mythology. The younger brother of Amaterasu, goddess of the sun and mythical ancestress of the Japanese imperial line, he is a multifaceted deity with contradictory characteristics (both good and bad), being portrayed in various stories either as a wild, impetuous god associated with the sea and storms, as a heroic figure who killed a monstrous serpent, or as a local deity linked with the harvest and agriculture.

 

sutra (Japanese: 経) A sutra, in Indian literary traditions, refers to an aphorism or a collection of aphorisms in the form of a manual or, more broadly, a condensed manual or text. Sutras are a genre of ancient and medieval Indian texts found in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.

 

sweet flag (Japanese: 石菖蒲 ) Sweet flag is officially known as acorus calamus (also sway or muskrat root, among many common names). It is a species of flowering plant with psychoactive chemicals. Although used in traditional medicine for centuries to treat digestive disorders and pain, there is no clinical evidence for its safety or effectiveness. Ingesting sweet flag may be toxic.

 

Tachibana orange tree (Japanese: 橘) The Tachibana orange tree is a citrus fruit tree, though the fruit is inedible for humans. The peel is often ground to make a spice. Larval insects and caterpillars like eating the leaves and fruit of this tree.

 

Taga Takatada (多賀高忠, 1425–September 23, 1486) Taga Takatada  was a military commander during the Muromachi Period. He was a senior vassal of the Kyōgoku Clan.   Takatada twice served as a member of Samurai Dokoro (the Board of Retainers in Kyōto). He had an active career as the right-hand man of his lord and biological cousin, Kyōgoku Mochikiyo. In 1467, when the Ōnin War began, Takatada, along with Mochikiyo, led 10,000 soldiers to join the Eastern Camp including Hosokawa Katsumoto, overpowering the Western Army. In the novel, he is good friends with Honekawa Dōken; he researches Hyakkimaru’s past on his friend’s behalf.

 

Taichō (Japanese: 泰澄, July 20, 682 – April 20, 767) Taichō was a monk in Nara period Japan. He was raised in Echizen Province, which was in the southern portion of present-day Fukui Prefecture. He is said to be the first person to reach the top of Mount Haku in neighboring Kaga Province and other peaks in the Ryōhaku Mountains.

 

Taika Reforms (Japanese: 大化の改新) The Taika Reforms were a set of doctrines established by Emperor Kōtoku in the year 645. They were written shortly after the death of Prince Shōtoku and the defeat of the Soga clan, uniting Japan.

 

Taira Clan (Japanese:平氏) The Taira Clan was one of the four most important clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian, Kamakura and Muromachi Periods of Japanese history—the others being the Fujiwara, the Tachibana, and the Minamoto.  In 1180, Yoritomo organized a large-scale rebellion against the rule of the Taira Clan (the Genpei War), which culminated with the destruction of the Taira Clan by the Minamoto Clan.

 

Taisei Rōjin (Japanese: 大聖老人) Taisei Rōjin is a Japanese god in Buddhism who is associated with Manjushri, the bodhisattva associated with wisdom and compassion. The name means “saintly old man,” which is reflected in depictions.

 

Takao Castle (Japanese: 高尾城) Takao Castle's origins are unclear, but it was used in 1488 by Togashi Masachika, governor of Kaga Province, to oppose the Kaga Ikkō-Ikki. Togashi Masachika had been forced out of Kaga by his brother, Koshiyo Masachika, but with the outbreak of the Ōnin War in 1467, Togashi saw his opportunity to regain control and brokered an alliance with the Ikkō-Ikki. The Ikkō-Ikki helped Togashi back to power and he was reinstated as the ruler of Kaga Province after defeating his brother. However, the Ikkō-Ikki felt that once back in power their new governor was not upholding the promises he had made to their movement and began a long series of rebellions.  In 1488, the Ikkō-Ikki swarmed Takao Castle and Togashi Masachika fell on his own sword as the castle fell. Takaojō was destroyed and abandoned.

 

Takamoto steel (Japanese: 喬基の鋼鉄) This is the steel that many Muramasa swords are purported to be made of in the novel. It is responsive to spiritual energy and demons.

 

Takenōchi no Sukune (Japanese: 武内宿禰) Takenōchi no Sukune was supposedly the son of Princess Kagehime, and also descended from Emperor Kōgen. Takenouchi no Sukune served under five legendary emperors, Emperor Keikō, Emperor Seimu, Emperor Chūai, Emperor Ōjin, and Emperor Nintoku, but was perhaps best known for his service as Grand Minister to the Regent Jingu, with whom he supposedly invaded Korea. While Jingu was regent to her son, Ōjin, Takenōchi was accused of treason. He underwent the "ordeal of boiling water" as a way to prove his innocence.

 

Takeda Nobutada (Japanese:  武田信賢, 1420 - June 29, 1471) Takeda Nobutada was a warlord and provincial military governor in the Muromachi period and the second head of the Wakasa-Takeda clan that was a branch family of the Takeda clan. In the Ōnin War, he belonged to the Eastern Army led by Hosokawa Katsumoto and fought against the Isshiki clan of the Western Army. He also went to Kyōto and fought there against the army of the Yamana clan of the Western Army.

 

Takefu (Japanese: 武生) Takefu is the site of the main Judicial Office in Ezichen Province. Hyakkimaru decides to go there to look for records about Daigo Kagemitsu.

 

Takenōchi no Sukune (Japanese: 武内宿禰)Takenouchi no Sukune was a legendary Japanese hero-statesman of the 1^st century, and a Shinto god. Takenouchi no Sukune was supposedly the son of Princess Kagehime. Descended from Emperor Kōgen, Takenouchi no Sukune served under five legendary emperors, Emperor Keikō, Emperor Seimu, Emperor Chūai, Emperor Ōjin, and Emperor Nintoku, but was perhaps best known for his service as Grand Minister (Ōomi) to the Regent Empress Jingū, with whom he supposedly invaded Korea. In addition to his martial services to these emperors, he was reputedly also a spirit medium.

 

Takumaru (Japanese: 鷹丸) Takumaru is the name that Hyakkimaru gives to a pure white hawk that lives on Mount Monju. The name simply means “hawk” and includes the gendered -maru for boys’ names.

 

Tale of Heiji (Japanese: 平治物語) The Tale of Heiji is a Japanese war epic detailing the events of the Heiji Rebellion of 1159–1160, in which samurai clan head Minamoto no Yoshitomo attacked and besieged Kyōto, as part of an Imperial succession dispute, in which he was opposed by Taira no Kiyomori, head of the Taira clan. The Tale exists in three main forms: written, oral, and painted.

 

Tale of Heike (Japanese: 平家物語) The Tale of Heike is an epic account compiled prior to 1330 of the struggle between the Taira clan and Minamoto clan for control of Japan at the end of the 12^th century in the Genpei War (1180–1185). Heike (平家) refers to the Taira (平), hei being the Sino-Japanese reading of the first Chinese character.

 

Tale of Hōgen (Japanese: 保元物語) The Tale of Hōgen is a Japanese war chronicle which relates the events and prominent figures of the Hōgen Rebellion. This literary and historical classic is believed to have been completed in the Kamakura period ca. 1320. Its author or authors remain unknown. The events which are recounted in the Hōgen story become a prelude to the story which unfolds in Tale of Heiji.

 

Tama-hime no Mikoto (Japanese: 玉姫命) Tama-hime no Mikoto was the daughter of Empress Jingū. She is revered as a god at Kehi Shrine.

 

Tanaka Jūnai (Japanese: 田中十内) Tanaka Jūnai is Sabame Nuinosuke’s instructor in horsemanship and archery; they were also friends for many years until Nuinosuke decided to disobey the orders of their shared lord, Ogosawara Arimune.

 

Tanaka Sayo (Japanese: 田中 沙代) Tanaka Sayo is the daughter of Tanaka Jūnai; she was Sabame Nuinosuke’s betrothed bride.

 

Tanbano Hisamaro (Japanese: 丹波寿麻呂) Father of Jukai and a famous court physician obsessed with advancing medical research. Married Fujiwara Seiko and was persecuted for his beliefs and research by the Japanese imperial court.

 

Taoism (Chinese: 道教)Taoism is a philosophical and spiritual tradition of Chinese origin which emphasizes living in harmony with the Tao (which means 'Way’). In Taoism, the Tao is the source, pattern and substance of everything that exists. Taoist ethics vary depending on the particular school, but in general tend to emphasize action without intention, naturalness, simplicity, spontaneity, compassion, frugality, and humility.

 

Tarui (Japanese: 垂井) Tarui describes a region on the Hokuriku Road that Sabame Nuinosuke passes by on his travels.

 

Tendai Sect (Japanese: 天台宗) Tendai is a Buddhist sect established in Japan in the year 806 by the monk named Saichō, posthumously known as Dengyō Daishi. The Tendai school rose to prominence during the Heian period (794-1185), gradually eclipsing the powerful Yogacara school and competing with other forms of Buddhism to become the most influential at the Imperial Court.

 

tengu (Japanese: 天狗, lit. "Heavenly Dog" or "Heavenly Sentinel") are a type of legendary creature found in Japanese folk religion. They are considered a type of yōkai (supernatural beings) or Shinto kami (gods). The tengu were originally thought to take the forms of birds of prey and monkey deities; they are traditionally depicted with human, monkey and avian characteristics. Sarutahiko Ōkami is considered to be the original model of Konoha-Tengu (a long-nosed supernatural creature with a red face), which today is widely considered the tengu's defining characteristic in the popular imagination.

Buddhism long held that the tengu were disruptive demons and harbingers of war. Their image gradually softened, however, into one of protective and even manifestations of Buddhist deities, if still dangerous, spirits of the mountains and forests.

 

Tenryū River (Japanese: 天竜川) The Tenryū River is a river in central Honshū, Japan. With a length of 213 km (132 mi), it is Japan's ninth longest river. The Tenryū River is mentioned in Nara period records as the Violent Tenryū (暴れ天竜, Abare-Tenryū) for its fast, turbulent flow and its propensity to flood. The upper portion of the river flows through Shinano Province.

 

Three Gates (Japanese: 三関) In ancient times, three barriers were set up to defend Japan’s capital city of Nagaoka. One was near Suzuka, one was near Fuwa, and one was near Shinchi . When the capital moved to Kyōto, Arachi no Seki (the Shinchi gate) was removed and the Osaka gate was added.

 

Tochinoki Pass (Japanese: 栃の木峠) The Tochinoki Pass connects the city of Imajō to the region around Osaka.

 

Todai Temple Complex (Japanese: 東大寺) The Todai Temple Complex was once one of the powerful Seven Great Buddhist Temple Complexes located in the city of Nara, Japan. Though it was originally founded in the year 738 CE, Todai Temple Complex was not opened until the year 752 CE. Its Great Buddha Hall houses the world's largest bronze statue of the Buddha Vairocana.

 

Todōza (Japanese:当道座) Todōza was an autonomous mutual support group for the male blind that existed from the medieval period through early modern times in Japan. Imperial Prince Saneyasu, a son of Emperor Ninmyo, was blind (because of an eye disease). He lived in seclusion in Yamashina and got the blind together to teach them biwa (Japanese lute), kangen (gagaku piece without dance) and poetry.

 

Togashi Clan (Japanese: 富樫氏) The Togashi Clan was an offshoot of the Fujiwara Clan whose territory encompassed most of Kaga (modern-day Ishikawa Prefecture). The clan was split over which side to support during the Ōnin War.

 

Togashi Masachika (Japanese: 富樫政親, died 1488) Togashi Masachika was a general samurai lord in Japan during the Muromachi period. A member of the Togashi family, he ruled Kaga Province as military governor. When the Ōnin War broke out, Masachika sided with the Hosokawa Clan (Eastern Army), while his brother Kochiyo sided with Yamana Clan (Western Army).

 

Tokoyo (Japanese: 常世神) Tokoyo is a god of insects, said to bring longevity and wealth. He is the god that Lady Mai worships in her shrine.

 

Tokuyūbō (Japanese: 徳祐坊) Tokuyūbō is the chief priest of the Ryōgon Temple on the eastern side of Mount Monju.

 

Tōgen Zuisen (Japanese: 桃源瑞仙, c. 1430-1489) Tōgen Zuisen was a Buddhist monk, a poet, and a contemporary and friend of Osen Keisan. He fled from Kyōto at the start of the Ōnin War.

 

Tōkai region (Japanese:東海地方) The Tōkai region is a subregion of the Chūbu region and Kansai region in Japan that runs along the Pacific Ocean. Because Tōkai is a sub-region and is not officially classified, there is some disagreement about where exactly the region begins and ends; however, Japanese maps widely conclude that the region includes Shizuoka, Aichi, Gifu and Mie prefectures.

 

Tōsandō Road (Japanese: 東山道) Tōsandō is a Japanese geographical term. It means both an ancient division of the country and the main road running through it. Historically, it was situated along the central mountains of northern Honshu. The Tōsandō region encompasses eight ancient provinces. Ōmi, Mino, Hida, Shinano, Kōzuke, Shimotsuke, Mutsu, and Dewa. After 711, Tōsandō was understood to include Musashi Province as well.

 

Tōshichirō (Japanese: 藤七郎) Tōshichirō is the headman of the village of Hino.

 

Tsūgen Jakurei (Japanese: 通幻寂霊 , 1322 - May 5, 1391) Tsūgen Jakurei was a Japanese Zen monk and poet. Some contemporary records suggest that when itinerant priests came to him in order to receive training, he tested them, and if he perceived any impurity of motivation, he threw them down into a pit. He became a monk in his native Kyūshū, but soon traveled north to present himself before the doors of the Daijo Temple in Kaga Province, where Meihō Sotetsu received him warmly. 

 

Tsunuga Arashito (Japanese: 都怒我阿羅斯等) Tsunuga Arashito was an ancient Korean prince who probably lived in the first century BCE. He is usually credited with the naming of the Japanese seaport Tsuruga.

 

Tsuruga (Japanese: 敦賀津)Tsuruga is a city bordered by Wakasa Bay and the Sea of Japan to the north. Among cities on the Sea of Japan coast, Tsuruga is the nearest city to the Pacific Ocean. Tsuruga and Nagoya are historically close to Shiga Prefecture and Kyoto. Although Tsuruga promotes itself as the leading city of the "Wakasa region," the city always belonged to the ancient Echizen Province.

 

Tsurugi Shrine (Japanese: 剱神社)  Tsurugi Shrine is a Shinto shrine in Ezichen Province, close to Takefu and Sabae. Hyakkimaru visits it on his journey to Mount Monju.

 

Unryū (Japanese: 雲龍) Unryū is a fictional temple complex in Fushimi (a place known for its temples). Unkei, a Buddhist image maker and the disciple of Unga, carved forty-eight demon statues and sealed them inside one of the temples there. This temple is called the Hall of Hell.

 

Utenō (Japanese:于闐王) Utenō is a Japanese god in Buddhism who is often depicted with Manjushri, the bodhisattva associated with wisdom and compassion. Art from the seventeenth century depicts Utenō as an Indian king leading the lion that Manjushri rides.

 

Vermilion Bird (Chinese: 朱雀) The Vermillion Bird is one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese constellations. According to the Taoist five-elements system, it represents the fire-element, the direction south, and the season summer correspondingly. It is sometimes called the Vermilion Bird of the South.It is described as a red bird that resembles a pheasant with a five-colored plumage and is perpetually covered in flames. It is known as Suzaku in Japanese. 

 

Virūdhaka (Japanese: 増長天) Virūdhaka is a major deity in Buddhism. He is one of the Four Deva Kings. The name Virūdhaka comes from the identical Sanskrit term, which refers to sprouting grain. As such, his name means "increase" or "growth." Virūḍhaka is the guardian of the southern direction.

 

Virūpāksa (Japanese:  広目天) Virūpāksa is the guardian of the western direction and one of the four Deva Kings. He possesses the divine eye, which allows him to see great distances as well as the karma of sentient beings.

 

Wakasa Province (Japanese: 若狭国) Wakasa was a province of Japan in the area that is today the southwestern portion of Fukui Prefecture in the Hokuriku (northwestern) region of Japan. Wakasa bordered on Echizen, Ōmi, Tanba, Tango, and Yamashiro Provinces. It was part of Hokurikudō Circuit,  which refers to a series of roads that connected the capitals of each of the provinces that made up the region.

 

Western Army (西軍)The Western Army supported the son of shōgun Ashikaga Yoshimasa, Yoshihisa, to inherit his position instead of his brother. The Western Army was led by Yamana Sōzen.

 

White Tiger (Chinese: 白虎) The White Tiger is one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese constellations. It is sometimes called the White Tiger of the West. It represents the west in terms of direction, the element of metal, the autumn season. It is known as Byakko in Japanese. 

 

wormseed (Japanese: ヨモギ) Artemisia cina, commonly known as wormseed, is an Asian species of herbaceous perennial in the daisy family. Its dried flowerheads are the source of the vermifugic, anti-parasitic drug santonin since ancient times. Its common names arise from its known ability to expel worms. The powder is grayish-green in colour with an aromatic odour and a bitter taste. It is native to China, Pakistan, Russia, Turkestan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan.

 

Yama-dera (山寺) Yama-dera is the popular name for the Buddhist temple of Risshaku-ji (立石寺) located northeast of Yamagata City, in Yamagata Prefecture, Japan. The temple has been a place for pilgrimage for centuries, and is designated as both a Place of Scenic Beauty and as a National Historic Site. The temple buildings clinging to the steep, forested, rocky hillsides are picturesque and unusual.

 

Yamashiro Province (Japanese: 山城国) Yamashiro was a province of Japan, located in Kinai. It overlaps the southern part of modern Kyoto Prefecture on Honshū. Yamashiro Province included Kyoto itself, as in 794 AD Yamashiro became the seat of the imperial court, and, during the Muromachi period, was the seat of the Ashikaga shogunate as well. The capital remained in Yamashiro until its de facto move to Tokyo in the 1870s.

 

Yamato Province (Japanese: 大和国) Yamato was a province of Japan, located in Kinai, corresponding to present-day Nara Prefecture in Honshū.

 

Yamato Takeru (Japanese: ヤマトタケルノミコト) Yamato Takeru, originally Prince Ōsu (小碓命, Ōsu no Mikoto), was a Japanese legendary prince of the Yamato dynasty, son of Emperor Keikō, who is traditionally counted as the 12th Emperor of Japan. His name written in kanji can vary, which is why his Japanese name is given in katakana. One of his sons became Emperor Chūai, the 14th Emperor of Japan.

 

Yellow Dragon (Chinese: 黃龍) The Yellow Dragon is one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese constellations. The Yellow Dragon represents the central direction, the element of earth, and the midsummer season. 

 

yin and yang (Japanese: 陰陽) In Ancient Chinese philosophy, yin and yang is a conceptualization of dualism, describing how obviously opposite or contrary forces may actually be complementary, interconnected, and interdependent in the natural world, and how they may give rise to each other as they interrelate to one another. In Chinese cosmology, the universe creates itself out of a primary chaos of material energy, organized into the cycles of yin and yang and formed into objects and lives. Yin is the receptive and yang the active principle, seen in all forms of change and difference such as the annual cycle (winter and summer), the landscape (north-facing shade and south-facing brightness), sexual coupling (female and male), the formation of both men and women as characters and sociopolitical history (disorder and order).

 

Yoshida Kenkō (Japanese: 兼好, 1283–1350) Yoshida Kenkō was a Japanese author and Buddhist monk. His most famous work is Tsurezuregusa (Essays in Idleness), one of the most studied works ). He is credited as the partial author of the Tale of Heike.

 

Yosaku (Japanese: 与作) Yosaku is the name of a man in Hino Village who takes in Hyakkimaru for the night. Like Hyakkimaru, he is an only child who always wanted siblings. He asks Hyakkimaru for help in exterminating the maimai moths (gypsy moths).

 

yōkai (Japanese: 妖怪) Yōkai are a class of supernatural entities and spirits in Japanese folklore.  Yōkai are also referred to as ayakashi (あやかし), mononoke (物の怪) or mamono (魔物). Yōkai are not literally demons in the Western sense of the word, but are instead spirits and entities, whose behaviour can range from malevolent or mischievous to friendly, fortuitous, or helpful to humans. The nearest or equivalent definition for yōkai in Western world should be "specter".

Yōkai often have animal features (such as the kappa, depicted as appearing similar to a turtle, and the tengu, commonly depicted with wings), but may also appear humanoid in appearance. Some yōkai resemble inanimate objects (such as the tsukumogami), while others have no discernible shape. Yōkai are typically described as having spiritual or supernatural abilities, with shapeshifting being the most common trait associated with them.

 

Zasawake no Mikoto (Japanese: 伊奢沙別命) Zasawake no Mikoto is the semi-legendary Prince Tsunuga Arashito, who traveled from his home in Silla (Korea) to Tsuruga during the reign of Emperor Sujin. According to legends, he had horns coming from his head; the area was named “Tsunuga,” written, literally, “horn-deer,” and over time it became “Tsuruga.”

 

Zenzai Dōji (Japanese: 善財童子) Zenzai Dōji is a Japanese god in Buddhism associated with Manjushri, the bodhisattva associated with wisdom and compassion. He is sometimes depicted holding or gathering medicinal plants. There is a legend that claims that the boy Zenzai prayed to Manjushri to put him on the path to enlightenment.

 

Zuikei Shuho (Japanese: 瑞渓周鳳, January 2, 1392 – June 3, 1473) Zuikei Shuho  was a Buddhist priest of the Rinzai sect in the mid-Muromachi Period. In 1446, he  assumed the post of the chief priest of Shokoku-ji Temple; he fled from Kyōto after the temple burned down.