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735–737 Japanese Smallpox Epidemic
The was a major smallpox epidemic caused by the Variola major virus that afflicted much of Japan. Killing approximately one third (around 1 million individuals) of the entire Japanese population, the epidemic had significant social, economic, and religious repercussions throughout the country. Origins A few decades prior to the outbreak, Japanese court officials had adopted the Chinese policy of reporting disease outbreaks among the general population. This recording practice greatly facilitated the identification of smallpox as the disease that afflicted Japan during the years 735–737. Increased contact and trade between Japan and the Asian mainland, directly and through Korea, had led to more frequent and serious outbreaks of infectious diseases, including smallpox. The smallpox epidemic of 735–737 was recorded as having taken hold around August 735 in the city of Dazaifu, Fukuoka in northern Kyushu. The infection had ostensibly been carried by a shipwrecked Japanese fish ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tenpyō
was a after '' Jinki'' and before '' Tenpyō-kanpō.'' This period spanned the years from August 729 through April 749. The reigning emperor was . Change of era * 729 : The new era name was created to mark an event or series of events. The previous era ended and the new one commenced in ''Jinki'' 6, on the 5th day of the 8th month of 729. Events of the ''Tenpyō'' era * 740 (''Tenpyō 12, 8th month''): In the court of Emperor Shōmu in Nara, Kibi no Makibi and Genbō conspire to discredit Fujiwara no Hirotsugu, who is '' Dazai shoni'' in Kyushu.Titsingh, . * 740 (''Tenpyō 12, 9th month''): Hirotsugu revolts in reaction to the growing influence of Genbō and others. * 740 (''Tenpyō 12, 9th month''): Under the command of Ōno no Azumabito, an army of 17,000 is sent to Kyushu to stop the potential disturbance. * 740 (''Tenpyō 12, 10th month''): Hirotsugu is decisively beaten in battle; and he is beheaded in Hizen Province. * 740 (''Tenpyō 12''): ''The capital is move ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Emperor Shōmu
was the 45th emperor of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 聖武天皇 (45)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Shōmu's reign spanned the years 724 through 749, during the Nara period. Traditional narrative Before his ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne, his personal name (''imina'') is not clearly known, but he was known as Oshi-hiraki Toyosakura-hiko-no-mikoto. Shōmu was the son of Emperor Monmu and Fujiwara no Miyako, a daughter of Fujiwara no Fuhito.Varley, p. 141. Shōmu had four Empresses and six Imperial sons and daughters.Brown, p. 272. Events of Shōmu's reign Shōmu was still a child at the time of his father's death; thus, his grandmother, Empress Gemmei, and aunt, Empress Gensho, occupied the throne before he acceded. * 724 ('' Yōrō 8, 1st month''): In the 9th year of Genshō''-tennō''s reign (元正天皇九年), the empress abdicated; and her younger brother received the succession (‘‘senso’’). Shortly therea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Smallpox Epidemics
Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) certified the global eradication of the disease in 1980, making it the only human disease to be eradicated. The initial symptoms of the disease included fever and vomiting. This was followed by formation of ulcers in the mouth and a skin rash. Over a number of days, the skin rash turned into the characteristic fluid-filled blisters with a dent in the center. The bumps then scabbed over and fell off, leaving scars. The disease was spread between people or via contaminated objects. Prevention was achieved mainly through the smallpox vaccine. Once the disease had developed, certain antiviral medication may have helped. The risk of death was about 30%, with higher rates among babies. Often, those who survived had extensive scarring of thei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nara Period
The of the history of Japan covers the years from CE 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capital of Japanese civilization until Emperor Kanmu established a new capital, Nagaoka-kyō, in 784, before moving to Heian-kyō, modern Kyoto, a decade later in 794. Japanese society during this period was predominantly agricultural and centered on village life. Most of the villagers followed Shintō, a religion based on the worship of natural and ancestral spirits named ''kami.'' The capital at Nara was modeled after Chang'an, the capital city of the Tang dynasty. In many other ways, the Japanese upper classes patterned themselves after the Chinese, including adopting the Chinese writing system, Chinese fashion, and a Chinese version of Buddhism. Literature Concentrated efforts by the imperial court to record its history produced t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
8th Century In Japan
8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9. In mathematics 8 is: * a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2. * a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of the form , being an integer greater than 1. * the first number which is neither prime nor semiprime. * the base of the octal number system, which is mostly used with computers. In octal, one digit represents three bits. In modern computers, a byte is a grouping of eight bits, also called an octet. * a Fibonacci number, being plus . The next Fibonacci number is . 8 is the only positive Fibonacci number, aside from 1, that is a perfect cube. * the only nonzero perfect power that is one less than another perfect power, by Mihăilescu's Theorem. * the order of the smallest non-abelian group all of whose subgroups are normal. * the dimension of the octonions and is the highest possible dimension of a normed division algebra. * the first numb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Smallpox Demon
or smallpox devil is a demon which was believed to be responsible for causing smallpox in medieval Japan. In those days, people tried to appease the smallpox demon by assuaging his anger, or they tried to attack the demon since they had no other effective treatment for smallpox. History In Japanese, the word ''hōsōshin ''or ''hōsōgami'' (疱瘡神 (ほうそうしん, ほうそうがみ）) translates literally to "smallpox god". According to the ''Shoku Nihongi'', smallpox was introduced into Japan in 735 into the Fukuoka Prefecture from Korea. In those days, smallpox had been considered to be the result of ''onryō'', which was a mythological spirit from Japanese folklore who is able to return to the physical world in order to seek vengeance. Smallpox-related kami include Sumiyoshi sanjin. In a book published in the Kansei years (1789–1801), there were lines that wrote that smallpox devils were enshrined in families which had smallpox in order to recover from smallpox. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endemic (epidemiology)
In epidemiology, an infection is said to be endemic in a specific population or populated place when that infection is constantly maintained at a baseline level without extra infections being brought into the group as a result of travel or similar means. An endemic disease always has a steady, predictable number of people getting sick, but that number can be high (''hyperendemic'') or low (''hypoendemic''), and the disease can be severe or mild. Also, a disease that is usually endemic can become epidemic. For example, chickenpox is endemic (steady state) in the United Kingdom, but malaria is not. Every year, there are a few cases of malaria reported in the UK, but these do not lead to sustained transmission in the population due to the lack of a suitable vector (mosquitoes of the genus ''Anopheles''). Consequently, the number of people infected by malaria is too variable to be called endemic. However, the number of people who get chickenpox in the UK varies little from y ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Japan Times
''The Japan Times'' is Japan's largest and oldest English-language daily newspaper. It is published by , a subsidiary of News2u Holdings, Inc.. It is headquartered in the in Kioicho, Chiyoda, Tokyo. History ''The Japan Times'' was launched by Motosada Zumoto on 22 March 1897, with the goal of giving Japanese people an opportunity to read and discuss news and current events in English to help Japan to participate in the international community. The newspaper was independent of government control, but from 1931 onward, the paper's editors experienced mounting pressure from the Japanese government to submit to its policies. In 1933, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs appointed Hitoshi Ashida, former ministry official, as chief editor. During World War II, the newspaper served as an outlet for Imperial Japanese government communication and editorial opinion. It was successively renamed ''The Japan Times and Mail'' (1918–1940) following its merger with ''The Japan M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Provincial Temple
were Buddhist temples established in each of the provinces of Japan by Emperor Shōmu during the Nara period (710 – 794). History Shōmu (701 – 756?) decreed both a ''kokubun-ji'' for monks and a for nuns to be established in each province. Tōdai-ji, the provincial temple of Yamato Province, served as the head of all ''kokubun-ji'', and Hokke-ji held that duty for the ''kokubunni-ji''. Modern place names Modern place names based on this etymology include: *Kokubunji, Kagawa * Kokubunji, Tokyo * Kokubunji, Tochigi See also * 735–737 Japanese smallpox epidemic * Fuchū * Glossary of Japanese Buddhism * Ichinomiya is a Japanese historical term referring to the Shinto shrines with the highest rank in a province. Shrines of lower rank were designated , , , and so forth. ''Encyclopedia of Shinto'' ''Ichi no miya'' retrieved 2013-5-14. The term gave rise t ... References Buddhist temples in Japan Buddhist archaeological sites in Japan Former prov ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Provincial Temple
were Buddhist temples established in each of the provinces of Japan by Emperor Shōmu during the Nara period (710 – 794). History Shōmu (701 – 756?) decreed both a ''kokubun-ji'' for monks and a for nuns to be established in each province. Tōdai-ji, the provincial temple of Yamato Province, served as the head of all ''kokubun-ji'', and Hokke-ji held that duty for the ''kokubunni-ji''. Modern place names Modern place names based on this etymology include: *Kokubunji, Kagawa * Kokubunji, Tokyo * Kokubunji, Tochigi See also * 735–737 Japanese smallpox epidemic * Fuchū * Glossary of Japanese Buddhism * Ichinomiya is a Japanese historical term referring to the Shinto shrines with the highest rank in a province. Shrines of lower rank were designated , , , and so forth. ''Encyclopedia of Shinto'' ''Ichi no miya'' retrieved 2013-5-14. The term gave rise t ... References Buddhist temples in Japan Buddhist archaeological sites in Japan Former prov ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daibutsu
or 'giant Buddha' is the Japanese term, often used informally, for large statues of Buddha. The oldest is that at Asuka-dera (609) and the best-known is that at Tōdai-ji in Nara (752). Tōdai-ji's daibutsu is a part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara and National Treasure. Examples See also * Japanese Buddhism * Japanese Buddhist architecture * Japanese sculpture * List of National Treasures of Japan (sculptures) In the mid-6th century, the introduction of Buddhism from Korea (Baekje) to Japan resulted in a revival of Japanese sculpture. Buddhist monks, artisans and scholars settled around the capital in Yamato Province (present day Nara Prefecture) and pa ... References External links Photographs and information on famous DaibutsuNew York Public Library Digital Gallery, early photograph of Kamakura Daibutsu from rearNew York Public Library Digital Gallery, early photograph of Hyōgo Daibutsu {{Colossal Buddha statues Colos ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tōdai-ji
is a Buddhist temple complex that was once one of the powerful Seven Great Temples, located in the city of Nara, Japan. Though it was originally founded in the year 738 CE, Tōdai-ji was not opened until the year 752 CE. The temple has undergone several reconstructions since then, with the most significant reconstruction (that of the Great Buddha Hall) taking place in 1709. Its Great Buddha Hall (大仏殿 ''Daibutsuden'') houses the world's largest bronze statue of the Buddha Vairocana, known in Japanese as ''Daibutsu'' (大仏). The temple also serves as the Japanese headquarters of the Kegon school of Buddhism. The temple is a listed UNESCO World Heritage Site as one of the "Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara", together with seven other sites including temples, shrines and places in the city of Nara. History Origins The beginning of building a temple where the Kinshōsen-Ji complex sits today can be dated to 728 CE, when Emperor Shōmu established Kinshōsen-Ji (金 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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