Japan and the Koreas Chapter 28:1 [Image source:

Korea is a peninsula with low hills and mountains in the east, and coastal plains to the west. [Image source:

A “shrimp between whales”, Korea acts as a land bridge between China and Japan. [Image source:

Koreans claim descent from Tangun, son of the bear god, who founded the first Korean kingdom 5,000 years ago. [Image source:

Japan [Image source:

Japan is also known as Nippon or Nihon, which means “source of the sun.”

Japan is an archipelago consisting of four main islands –Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu, and Hokkaido – and over 4,000 thousand smaller ones. [Image source:

The Ocean has shaped Japanese culture and history. [Images source:

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1779 – Aftermath of a tsunami. [Image source:

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Since only 20% of the land is arable (easy to farm), the Japanese have had to rely on the sea to supplement their diet. [Image source:

The sea has also served as a natural barrier, preventing invasion from the mainland. [Image source:

According to legend, a divine brother and sister gave birth to the sun goddess Amaterasu Omi-kami.

The sun goddess Amaterasu gave birth to further life forms.

According to legend, Jimmu Tenno, a great- great-great- grandson of Amaterasu Omi- kami, became the first emperor (Mikado) of Japan circa 660 B.C. [Image source:

The early inhabitants of Japan probably migrated to the islands from other parts of Asia. [Image source:

Japan was occupied by hunter- gatherers from the Asian mainland ca. 10,000 years ago.

Subsequent invaders from Asia introduced the islanders to agriculture. [Image source:

The early inhabitants were dwelling in farming villages by 200 B.C.

Present-day Japanese are probably descended from the Yayoi, a village-dwelling people who lived along streams and on the coastal plains and grew rice in irrigated fields. [Image source:

Japan was invaded between 200 and 300 by horseback- riding, iron- clad warriors. [Image source: inese_warrior_yue_fei_wall_scroll.php]

Some scholars believe these invaders were the ancestors of the aristocratic warriors and imperial family. [Image source:

Before there was an emperor, regions of Japan were ruled by separate clans. (A clan is a group of families claiming descent from a common ancestor.) [Image source:

Shintoism

means “way of the gods” only known indigenous religion of Japan emphasizes sacred spaces and time

Kami “ divine spirits” can be found in nature and in the processes of creation, disease, and healing

Practices vary in local communities rituals often honour ancestors and the forces of nature emperors considered kami at one time -worshipped as divine before World War II

Traditional Japanese prayer cards left at a Shinto shrine in Japan.

By A.D. 400, the Yamato Clan emerged as the dominant clan in Japan. [Image source:

By the A.D. mid-500s the emperor had become a ceremonial figure, performing intercessory rituals to the gods on behalf of the people.

The Soga family emerged as the real political power in Japan. [Image source:

Buddhism arrived in Japan from Korea in A.D. 552.

Four Noble Truths 1. Life is full of suffering. 2. Suffering is caused by desire. 3. Eliminate desire to eliminate suffering. 4. Seek union with Brahma.

Union with Brahma is nirvana. The only way to end the painful cycle of reincarnation. Death Birth

Zen was a variant of Buddhism favoured by Japanese warriors.

Over the next four centuries, Japan developed close ties with China, adopting and adapting many elements of Chinese culture, such as art,... [Image source:

... medicine,... [Image source:

... astronomy,... [Image source:

... and writing system.

The Japanese ruling class adopted a strong central government based on the principles of Kung Fu-tzu.

The teachings of Kung Fu-tzu adopted by the Japanese included: ancestor worship respect for elders and those in positions of authority

Five Confucian Relationships Ruler - Ruled Husband - Wife Father - Son Older Brother - Younger Brother Homeboy - Homeboy