Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Cajun Microwave For Sale

Tensho ken-O shonen shisetsu boy Ou mission 遣 Tensho


During the second half of the sixteenth century, Japan was experiencing an epochal transformation: the territorial division and anarchy that characterized the military since the Onin War (1447-1477) were giving way to reconciliation and the reunification of the country under one legitimate center of power. The first proponent of this process was the warlord (daimyo ) Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582) that since 1568, when he made his triumphal entry into Kyoto, was the de facto ' most powerful man in Japan. In order to extend its power is limited while that of his enemies, Nobunaga, among other things, protected and promoted the Society of Jesus and Christianity in Japan since she recently promoted. The Jesuits, the archipelago since 1549 alongside the Portuguese merchants, who were "confidential" trade in Japan (under the Treaty of Tordesillas del 1494 ), detenevano inoltre una sorta di monopolio per la conversione cattolica di quel paese. E' in un tale clima che ebbe origine un fatto oggi poco conosciuto: mi riferisco alla prima missione diplomatica giapponese in Europa ; in questo articolo ne illustrerò sinteticamente le cause, i protagonisti, e lo svolgimento complessivo.

Innanzi tutto, questa ambasceria fu voluta e organizzata dal gesuita italiano Alessandro Valignano (1539-1606), presente in Giappone fin dal 1579 in qualità di Visitatore delle Indie Orientali, al fine di raggiungere scopi ben precisi. In primo luogo, il missionario voleva inviare legati giapponesi in Europe to end the widespread skepticism of the Japanese, who believed that Jesus faces great dangers to arrive in a poor country, dangerous and potentially hostile as their own, primarily to escape a situation in Europe that had to be even worse, the Valignano therefore wanted to touch the Japanese the splendor of the Old Continent and show them that it had nothing to envy (anzi!) in Japan. Second, the delegation was to raise the prices of the Jesuits to the Pope, with the eyes of the pope of the new converts from distant lands precisely at a time when much of Europe had passed to the Protestant cause. Consequently, the Valignano si aspettava dalla corte romana sostanziali aiuti finanziari per le missioni gesuitiche e, cosa ancora più importante, un breve papale che rinnovasse il monopolio della Compagnia in Giappone.

L'ambasceria è anche conosciuta in giapponese come Tensho shonen shisetsu ; essa deve il suo nome al periodo in cui ebbe luogo (l' era Tensho , appunto: tra il 1573 e il 1591) e alla giovane età degli "ambasciatori" ( shonen shisetsu ) o alla loro destinazione, l'Europa ( ken -O shisetsu ). In particolare, i legati appointed to this diplomatic mission were four young noblemen of Kyushu, sent as representatives of some local gentlemen known to be great protectors of the Christians, the two officers were sent Ito Mancio (representing Yoshishige Otomo Sorin, daimyo of Bungo) and Chijiwa Michele (in representation of daimyo of Omura, Sumitada, and to Harima, Harunobu), they were then were joined Hara and Martin Nakaura Giuliano . These bound, all very young (Michael Chijiwa, the eldest, was fifteen years old the day of departure) sailed from Nagasaki on February 20, 1582 , accompanied by the same Valignano (but would have stopped to Goa to fill the role of the Provincial of India), his father Diego Mesquita (who will be their mentor for the entire trip), the Nuno Rodrigues father, brother Jorge from Loyola and a few others.

After a long, arduous and not without its pitfalls, the group finally arrived in Lisbon in ' August 1584. In the early days of the "European adventure," that no accident had contact only the Catholic side of the continent (Portugal, Spain and Italian states), everything went according to plan the Valignano: Japanese nobles were "driven" especially in churches , sanctuaries, seminars and visits to prelates, so as to bring to Japan an uplifting testimony of Western Christendom. However, the diplomatic mission was immediately carried out is not provided by the Visitor: as soon as he was aware of their arrival, Pope Gregory XIII decided to treat and consider the four young people as true ambassadors, giving them honors as the Public Consistory, usually reserved for the most distinguished diplomats and accredited. The example of the Pope was naturally followed by the other sovereign, Philip II in the head, which vied for honors in excel in demonstrations. To this is added then the curiosity and the popular enthusiasm for these "strange" characters whose mere appearance (not to mention the attitude, the gifts and habits) could not but arouse the public interest.

After being so joyfully received in the principal courts of Mediterranean Europe, especially those Italian, Japanese, made the four noble April 13, 1586 the long journey back: After a break just endless waiting for them to Goa where the Valignano, came with him to Nagasaki only 1590. Meanwhile, the situation in the archipelago was greatly altered by the Catholic minority: Nobunaga died, the new ruler of Japan, Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-1598), initially favorable to the Company, had come to look with suspicion, as to lay against it edict of expulsion in a five-point (July 25, 1587), the situation was further exacerbated by the Jesuits at the end of their monopoly broken down ' arrival of the religious orders related to the English crown (Franciscans and Dominicans), following the reunification of the latter with the Portuguese made by Philip II, moreover, clashes with the Jesuits, the Franciscans and Dominicans on the method of evangelization had further irritated the Japanese. No wonder then that the embassy had not reached the goal at the end of the much hoped Valignano: the testimony of the young ambassadors did not praticamene alcuna rilevanza in Giappone. In compenso però, la missione diplomatica aveva portato a un esito insperato e inatteso: aveva fatto conoscere all'Europa, e in particolare all'Italia, un mondo fino ad allora considerato dai più solo come il mitico Cipangu di Marco Polo .

Friday, December 5, 2008

Lemon And Egg For Kidney Stones

Taira Kiyomori Taira Kiyomori


Taira no Kiyomori (1118-1181) è un noto samurai del XII secolo, che negli ultimi anni del periodo Heian (794-1185) dominò la scena politica giapponese alla guida di un potente clan militare dell'epoca, i Taira . Suo padre Tadamori (1096-1153) aveva servito la Corte imperiale in 1129 Pirates of subduing the South East, and he had also allowed the rise of the Taira in the Capital from a strange incident while serving on guard at the palace, stopped an old lamplighter that he had alarmed the emperor, in so doing, Tadamori ingratiates it was who gave him his favorite concubine as a sign of gratitude for having calmed. Kiyomori was born from the union with the lady, who, once grown, would have boasted of his imperial blood in his veins.

Tadamori Following the death, which occurred in 1153, Kiyomori succeeded in driving the clan and took steps to further strengthen the power of the Taira. To this end, took advantage of disorders caused by certain sects of Buddhism like Tendai, whose legions of warrior-monks ( Sohei ), armed with naginata , threatened the capital. It was practically a monastic congregation, which became very powerful through the acquisition of private property ( Shoen ), were constantly fighting among themselves to increase land and prestige, not hesitating to make their religious and military strength at the same Court. To propitiate the favor of the Emperor, Kiyomori thought well then take action against them: in 1164, he attacked the monks who were causing disturbances with an arrow and hit the big shrine mobile they were carrying. They were joined by other attacks on religious institutions (such as Todaji Nara), which were by him destroyed and looted. With such an appeal to the despotism and violence Kiyomori could receive respect and charges and the ability to deal with the internal politics of the Emperor and the government. In this way, but Kiyomori came in contrast to the Fujiwara family (then quite influential in the Court) and with the Minamoto clan military that supported it. Political opposition eventually lead, in 1156, in the civil war known as Hogen no ran , that turned Hogen era (1156-1158) begun as a dispute over the succession between the 'Emperor retired Sutoku el' reigning Emperor Go Shirakawa . It was the first clash between the Taira and Mianmoto respectively supporters and Shirakawa Sutoku; eventually Kiyomori came out the winner, thanks in particular to the support of Yoshitomo, a leading member of Mianamoto who had passed on his side. However, Yoshitomo, following the death of his father and his brother, fighting in the ranks opposed, could not help but follow the moral norm that "a man can not live under the same roof as the killers of his father": in 1159, then led the Minamoto and Fujiwara survivors against the troops of the Taira gathered in the capital ( Rivolta Heijo ), but was defeated and killed in 1160. There followed many executions that decimated the Minamoto clan, although Kiyomori, in contrast to his cruelty and customs of the time, saved the whole offspring of Yoshitomo, probably prompted by the pleas of a concubine of a rebel, Tokiwa .

emerged victorious by Hogen rebellion and the Heijo, Kiyomori exercised undisputed dominion on the court for about two decades that Rokuhara period (1160-1180), which takes its name from the residence, home to the headquarters of the Taira capital. In this period, Taira replaced the Fujiwara in the role of imperial rulers, taking up the hierarchy of the court and being charged and allocated land in the provinces. As they had done before him Fujiwara, Kiyomori wanted to establish a close link with the imperial dynasty through political marriage, for example by marrying his daughter to a member of the royal family in the hope that an emperor was born Taira. Thus, in 1180 put his grandson on the throne only two years Antoku (1178-1185). But unlike the Fujiwara, the Taira were a family of civil aviation (the kuge ) dedicated to the pomp and ceremony of Court, but were part of the provincial warrior aristocracy (the buke ) were short a clan of samurai, who based his power on the use of force and respect for "Way of the Horse and the Arc" , a sort of moral code of ethics of the warrior.

However, settling in Heianko and forming in effect a new group of courtiers, Kiyomori ended up losing the military support of the provinces and moved away from the martial tradition of the countryside, in addition the despotism which was used to defend position arrived at court, gave rise to general discontent, even among those who were initially allies. It was so easy for Minamoto no Yoritomo (1147-1199), a son of Yoshitomo escaped death after Heijo the revolt, support the cause of the rebel prince Mochihito , and become the leader of a broad coalition anti-Taira samurai who led against Kiyomori from the eastern provinces. War broke out as the Genpei (1180-1185) ended with the expulsion of the Taira from the capital, and their destruction in the naval battle of Dannoura (among others there lost his life the Emperor Antoku child). Went down like this forever Kiyomori of the clan, who died of fever in 1181 just one year after the outbreak of the conflict.