Topic 7 - How was the Nara Period Different from Rest of the Eras

(ALCORAN, Joseph P.)

The Nara period (奈良時代 Nara jidai) of the history of Japan covers the

years from AD 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, or Kyoto, a decade later in 794.

Beginning with the establishment of the new imperial capital at Nara in 710,

the Nara Period marked the incipient stage of the classical era of Japanese history.

It was during this period that imperial power was cemented and the dogma of

imperial succession from the sun goddess, Amaterasu, was codified in the Kojiki

and Nihonshoki. The Nara Period was also marked by the development of two

powerful schools of Buddhism, Tendai and the more esoteric Shingon, and the

ascendancy of Buddhism in general. The era came to an end when the Emperor

Kanmu (737 – 806) moved the capital to Heiankyō (Kyōto) shortly after the death

of the Empress Kōken (718 – 770), in an attempt to remove the court from the

intrigues and power plays of the Buddhist establishment at Nara.

 The Great Buddha (Daibutsu) in the main hall Big Buddha (Daibutsu) - his open hand alone is

as tall as a human being

As shown on the map above, areas in red indicate the boundaries of

settlement and political control by what modern ethnographers consider ‘ethnic’

Japanese. Most of Japanese society during this period was agricultural in nature
and centered on villages. Most of the villagers followed a religion based on the

worship of natural and ancestral spirits called kami.

The capital at Nara was modeled after Chang'an, the capital city of Tang

China. In many other ways, the Japanese upper classes patterned themselves

after the Chinese, including adopting Chinese written system, fashion, and the

religion of Buddhism.

Nara was built on the Chinese model of Chang-an, the Tang capital and so

had a regular and well-defined grid layout, two symmetrical halves, and buildings

familiar to Chinese architecture. A university dedicated to the Confucian tradition

was established, a sprawling royal palace was built and the state bureaucracy was

expanded to some 7,000 civil servants. The total population of Nara may have

been as high as 200,000 by the end of the period.

Tōdai-ji (東大寺, Eastern Great Temple)[1] is a Buddhist temple complex

that was once one of the powerful Seven Great Temples, located in the city of

Nara, Japan. Its Great Buddha Hall (大仏殿 Daibutsuden) houses the world's

largest bronze statue of the Buddha[2] Vairocana,[3] 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. Deer, regarded as

messengers of the gods in the Shinto religion, roam the grounds freely.

Todaiji (東大寺, Tōdaiji, "Great Eastern Temple") is one of Japan's most

famous and historically significant temples and a landmark of Nara. The temple
was constructed in 752 as the head temple of all provincial Buddhist temples of

Japan and grew so powerful that the capital was moved from Nara to Nagaoka in

784 in order to lower the temple's influence on government affairs.

Todaiji's main hall, the Daibutsuden (Big Buddha Hall) is the world's largest

wooden building, despite the fact that the present reconstruction of 1692 is only

two thirds of the original temple hall's size. The massive building houses one of

Japan's largest bronze statues of Buddha (Daibutsu). The 15 meters tall, seated

Buddha represents Vairocana and is flanked by two Bodhisattvas.

Great Buddha Hall (daibutsuden), a National Treasure

 Emperor Shōmu (聖武天皇 Shōmu-tennō, 701 – June 4, 756) was the 45th

emperor of Japan,[1] according to the traditional order of succession.[2]

Shōmu's reign spanned the years 724 through 749

743 (Tenpyō 15): The Emperor issues a rescript to build the Daibutsu (Great

Buddha), later to be completed and placed in Tōdai-ji, Nara.[

Taiho Ritsuryo

or

“Taiho Code”
 This was the first central law code of Japan which was

established at the end of the Asuka period.

Made it so the emperor was required to show

kindness to his people, created a medical care

system, two government branches and attempted to

bring peace and order to the Nara period.

http://factsanddetails.com/japan/cat16/sub106/item486.html#chapter-1
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nara_period
https://www.ancient.eu/Nara_Period/
http://www.japanpitt.pitt.edu/timeline/nara-period-710-794
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%C5%8Ddai-ji
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4100.html

ABOUT THE RESEARCH

1. Topics are already assigned as of January 19. Please see your respective

number in the list and match with the given topics. (See attached photos)

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purposes (word format). Document name format sample (Topic 1 - historically

significant events in Japan).