Joseph P. Alcoran, UAP, M.

Arch-CTM, PhD-TM Student

TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
INTRODUCTION CONTRIBUTIONS
Japanese society was agricultural in nature and
centered on villages which follows a Shinto religion
based on the worship of natural and ancestral spirits
Nara takes its name called kami. Deer, regarded as messengers of the
from Heijô-kyô (平城 gods in the Shinto religion, roam the grounds freely.
京 ). It served as the
imperial capital from
710 until 794.
Map of Japan

It is the capital city of Nara Prefecture located in

Amaterasu, one of the central kami in the Shinto faith Todai-ji (Eastern Great Temple)

the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the Tōdai-ji (Eastern Great Temple) is a Buddhist
northern part, bordering Kyoto Prefecture. temple complex that was once one of the powerful
During the Nara Period, the Japanese absorbed Seven Great Temples, located in the city of Nara.
virtually anything Chinese. They imported from
Chinese the administrative rules, philosophy,
religion, transcription, fashion as well as the city
planning. Nara artisans produced refined Buddhist
sculptures and erected grand Buddhist temples.
Great Buddha Hall (daibutsuden), a National Treasure Daibutsu

JAPANESE ERAS Its Great Buddha Hall (Daibutsuden) houses the

world's largest bronze statue of the Buddha
Japanese Paleolithic before 14,000 BC Vairocana, known in Japanese as Daibutsu. The 15
1
Human inhabitation led to the development of pottery. meters tall, seated Buddha represents Vairocana and
is flanked by two Bodhisattvas. The temple also
Jōmon Period 14,000 BC – 300 BC
2 Tribal/clan organization, stone age hunters & gatherers. serves as the Japanese headquarters of the Kegon
school of Buddhism. Emperor Shōmu was the 45th
Yayoi Period 300 BC – 250
3
Rice cultivation, metalworking & potter's wheel.
emperor of Japan, commissioned the Daibutsu.
Kofun Period 250 – 550 The capital at Nara was modeled after Chang'an,
4 Emergence of powerful clan rulers, buried in kofun (large the capital city of Tang China.
tomb mounds); close contacts with mainland Asia
Asuka Period 538-710
5
A great wave of reforms -- Taika no Kaishin (Taika Reforms)
aims to strengthen the emperor's power.

6 NARA PERIOD 710-794 Chang‘an Kimono

Early kimono robes be crossed left over right,

7 Heian Period 794 – 1185
Imperial court moves to Heiankyo (now Kyoto). Official
contacts with China stop in 838.
like the Chinese, became the convention of how the
Japanese kimono robe is wrapped until today.
Chinese language and literature were studied
intensively; the Chinese characters were adapted to
the Japanese language; and numerous Chinese
manuscripts, Buddhist scriptures, were copied.

8 Kamakura Period 1185 – 1333

Military government by Minamoto no Yoritomo. Emperor,
remains in Kyoto with the court aristocracy.

9 Muromachi Period 1336 – 1573 Japanese Writings Taiho Code or Taiho Ritsuryo

Muromachi district of Kyoto becomes base for Shogun

Ashikaga Takauji's new military government. Taihō code (701). Legal codes based on Chinese
models were compiled to replace the less-structured
10 Sengoku Period 1467 – 1600
The Warring States Period. Think “samurai Game of
native tradition of legal process.
Thrones.” Extremely powerful samurai warlords begin land
grabs in the chaos brought on by the Onin War. CONCLUSION
11 Azuchi-Momoyama Period 1560 – 1600 Nara period is the high point of the enterprise &
Oda Nobunaga starts process of reunifying Japan after a
century of civil war; followed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
in many ways can be considered a period of heroic
Foundation of modern Japan is laid. achievement. Japan did not have the economic
resources to support a miniature version of the
12 Edo Period 1600 – 1868
Japan enters an age of peace and national isolation Chinese empire. However, they gave it a very good
try. They did not achieve their goals, but they
13 Meiji Period 1868 – 1912
Emperor is restored; made transition to nation-state.
transformed Japan into a very different country from
the tribal state of the 6th century, a country that can
14 Taishō Era 1912 – 1926 fairly be called civilized in terms of intellectual &
Expands economic base within Asia and Pacific. artistic development, a status that will never be lost.

15 Shōwa Era 1926 – 1989 References:

WW II and its aftermath, as well as economic recovery
16 Heisei Era 1989 – present
Global issues foster debate; crowned Prince Akihito.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nara_period
https://www.ancient.eu/Nara_Period/
http://www.japanpitt.pitt.edu/timeline/nara-period-710-794
https://www.britannica.com/event/Nara-period
花倉
https://japanthis.com/japanese-eras/