Medieval Japan

1. Medieval Japan Chapter 14 Section 3

2. Life in Medieval Japan Obey her father, husband, & son Reading Strategy Complete the diagram on page 273 in your ARNTG. Work in the fields cook Role of women Artists, writers, & warriors Spin & weave cloth Help with family business Care for children

3. Japanese Religion & Culture Zen Buddhism Pure Land Buddhism • Looked to Lord Amida, a Buddha of love and mercy • believers had to have faith in Amida and chant his name to get to his paradise in the clouds • Find inner peace through self-control and a simple way of life • emphasized martial arts and meditation • Sects of Mahayana Buddhism

4. Japanese Religion & Culture • During the Middle Ages, Japanese people practiced both Shinto and Buddhism.* • When it reached Japan, Buddhism had divided into different sects, or smaller religious groups.* • Pure Land Buddhism was a sect of Mahayana Buddhism. • Its message is about a happy life after death.*

5. Japanese Religion & Culture • Zen Buddhism is another important sect of Buddhism brought to Japan from China.* • Followers of Zen Buddhism also practiced meditation, where a person sat cross-legged and motionless for hours, with the mind cleared of all thoughts and desires • Zen teaches that people can find inner peace through self-control and a simple way of life.

6. Japanese Religion & Culture • Japanese art reveals the Japanese people’s love of beauty and simplicity.

7. Japanese Religion & Culture • Art in the Middle Ages included wooden items coated in lacquer, landscape paintings, folded paper called origami, and tea ceremonies. • Japanese buildings were influenced by Chinese or Japanese styles. • Shinto shrines followed the Japanese style; Buddhist temples followed the Chinese style.

9. Japanese Religion & Culture • The Japanese borrowed and adapted the Chinese style of writing using characters.* • Calligraphy, the art of writing beautifully, was important in Japan.* • The tanka is Japan’s oldest form of poetry.* • Lady Murasaki Shikibu wrote The Taleof Genji, the story of a Japanese prince.

10. Murasaki Shikibu

11. Japanese Religion & Culture • Noh plays taught Buddhist ideas and were performed on a bare stage by actors in robes and masks.

13. Japanese Religion & Culture • Sum It Up • How are martial arts and meditation connected to Zen Buddhism’s principle of self-control? • Both martial arts and meditation teach self-control, leading to inner peace.

14. *Very few people benefited from Japan’s wealth under the shoguns.* Most people in Japan remained poor. Japanese farmers worked hard to grow rice, wheat, millet, and barley. Economy and Society

15. Economy and Society • In the 1100s, advances in irrigation and crops allowed them to grow more food and their lives improved. • Artisans made weapons, armor, and tools for merchants to sell. • As trade increased, artisans began making pottery, paper, textiles, and lacquered items.

16. Economy and Society • Kyoto, the capital of Japan, was a major center of production and trade. • Many groups of artisans and merchants were located there and formed guilds, medieval business groups formed by craftspeople and merchants to protect profits.*

17. Economy and Society • Japanese extended families included grandparents, parents, and children, with a man heading the family. • Women were expected to obey their father, their husband, and their sons.*

19. Economy and Society • During the time of Shotoku, wealthy women could be rulers and own property, but women lost these freedoms after the samurai and daimyo took control.* • Despite their lack of freedom, some women made important contributions to Japanese culture. • Marriages were arranged by parents, but in farming families women had more control over whom they married.

20. Economy and Society • Sum It Up • Which groups in Japan benefited from the country’s wealth? • Nobles, merchants, and artisans benefited from Japan’s wealth.

21. Life in Medieval Japan • Section Wrap Up • How did religion shape Japan’s culture? Sects of Buddhism (Pure Land and Zen) and Shinto impacted Japan’s art, architecture, novels, and plays.

22. Life in Medieval Japan • Section Wrap Up • What was life like for people in medieval Japan? Nobles, merchants, and artisans grew wealthy. Most Japanese were farmers who remained poor. Women remained restricted in many areas of life.

23. Life in Medieval Japan What was life like for a Japanese farming woman? Wives of farmers worked long, hard hours in the fields. They also had to cook, spin and weave cloth, and care for their children.

24. Life in Medieval Japan How did the Shinto and Buddhist religions meet different needs in Japan? Shinto: concerned with daily life; Buddhism: prepared people for the life to come.

25. Life in Medieval Japan What were Noh plays, and how were they performed? Japan’s oldest form of play; performed on a simple, bare stage by actors who wore masks and danced, gestured, and chanted poetry to music.

26. Life in Medieval Japan Describe How did guilds benefit artisans and daimyos? Guilds offered protection from rival artisans, and sold daimyo goods they could not get themselves.

27. Life in Medieval Japan Analyze Why do you think women lost some of their freedoms when Japan became a warrior society? Answers will vary.

28. Life in Medieval Japan Descriptive Writing Write a brief article for a travel magazine describing the architecture of Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples in Japan during the Middle Ages Articles should note that Shinto shrines were Japanese in style, while Buddhist temples were built in a Chinese style.