Category Archives: Japanese women

BENZAITEN-Japanese Gods and Goddesses

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Benzaiten (an Edo painting)

I’m delving into the paranormal life and times of Japanese Gods and Goddesses. Not delving, let’s just say putting my toes into the ocean. So the first one of these series of blogs, one of the main ones  for my sequel to Pillow Book of the Flower Samurai, is Benzaiten, or Benten. She is amazing. As  you can see, women tattoo their bodies with her image. Why is she so popular? As a Goddesses, they don’t get much better. Even her name:      … Continue reading →

(ALMOST) ANONYMOUS SAMURAI WARRIOR QUEENS

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Watching the Smithsonian program, “Samurai Warrior Queens,” I found myself, again, marveling at how anonymous the historians (?mostly male) kept women’s contributions — anonymous. I am reading the kokinshū for the sequel to Pillow Book of the Flower Samurai, which I am currently calling The Samurai’s Daughter. The kokinshū is a massive Imperial collection of poetry from  the early 10th century. And the translators/authors of this fabulous book speak of this very thing. The anonymity of women and their contributions.     In the kokinshū many of the poems’… Continue reading →

New Year, Old Thoughts

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Empress Jingu

I want to share with you a line from one of my poems: Sexism is the last racism What do I mean by this? Sexism has proved itself to be the last bastion of prejudice. From the first question we ask when babies are born, “boy or girl?” to the language we speak, the way we act (which for my money is also language), to legal and political rights and privileges. This is every country, every nation, everywhere. male forms If you’re questioning this, good.… Continue reading →

#1 In Historical Fiction—ACCURACY!

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ancient traditional lacquered pillow

There are four characteristics I value in historical fiction. I’ll be talking about each one in the next few posts. 1. Most important for me is ACCURACY.  I truly like the facts to be correct. For example, I noticed that Harlequin Romances was advertising for historical romance. Great. I know a little (okay, a lot) about the late Heian period. BUT. But, I am familiar with their standards. The way the romances are supposed to go—is nowhere near the path the romances of the Heian… Continue reading →

The Bow and Arrow: Another Weapon Also Used by Women

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The bow and arrow provided the majority of weaponry in Heian and early Kamakura Japan. the predominance of the sword did not actually come “into” use, although it was used, until later. The actual ascendancy of the bow and arrow began during the wars before and the Genpei War. Shooting the bow and arrow became, like most of the arts in Japan, an elaborate and systematic process which required much practice. There are actually eight named stages of shooting an arrow: 1.ASHIBUMI (footing) 2. DOZUKURI… Continue reading →

Women’s Weapons: The Naginata

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Between the 12th and approximately the 15th centuries  women defended themselves, their families and their homes. They concealed daggers in their sleeves or sashes and delivered their deadly blades with great accuracy. Women also used the naginata, which is a pole having a long, curved sword at the top.  For an ambush, women swung naginata  in narrowed places, cutting the legs of  horses to disable the enemy soldiers. Sometimes women fought alongside their husbands in battle. And they were expected to commit seppuku (ritual suicide)… Continue reading →

HISTORICAL FACT FROM HISTORICAL FICTION

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Two women sleeping under winter quilts

One of the things I love about historical fiction is that I am able to learn about the historical time, people and events. So — who were the real people and who are fictional characters in Pillow Book of the Flower Samurai? Kozaishō and all of the Taira:  Michimori, his family members, and even his ‘sidekick’, Tokikazu,were real. The Retired Emperor Go-Shirakawa and Antoku did live as well.                   As did the Minamoto: Yoshitsune, Yoritomo, Yoshitomo, Yoshinaka, Noriyori, and Yukiie. Kozaishō’s family, Akio, Toshiko, the girls on the… Continue reading →

MORE REAL FEMALE SAMURAI

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By the 15th century, the role of women in Japan changed significantly. For a long time before then, women inherited their parents property, then the law of primogeniture was defended by Confucianism and Buddhism. Don’t get me started on that…     More recently, the Boshin War (1868-69) also witnessed the fighting spirit of Japan’s samurai-class women. After a month-long siege, the Aizu region surrendered. Its samurai went to prisoner of war camps, and the domain was divided up and redistributed to imperial loyalists.  … Continue reading →