Ukiyo-e Prints浮世絵版画Port Townsend, Washington |
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Ges thru Haiden Index/Glossary |
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The golden Buddha is being used to mark additions in January and February 2012. |
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TERMS FOUND ON THIS PAGE:
Gesaku, Geta, Gibōshi, Gofun, Gokaidō, Goko, Edmond de Goncourt, Goryō, Goshoguruma, Gozu, Gozu tennō, Gumbai, Gutenberg, Guren jigoku and dai guren jigoku, Gyōyō, Ha, Habutae, Hachimaki, Hachiman, Hagatame and Hagoita
戯作, 下駄, 擬宝珠, 胡粉, 五海道, 五鈷杵, 御霊, 御所車, 牛頭, 牛頭天王, 軍配, 紅蓮地獄 and 大紅蓮地獄, 杏葉, 派, 羽二重, 鉢巻, 八幡, 歯固め and 羽子板
ぎさく, げた, ぎぼうし, ごふん, ごかいどう, ごこ, ゴンクール. エドムンド, ごりょう, ごしょぐるま, ごず, ごずてんのう, ぐんばい, グーテンベルグ, ぐれんじごく and だいぐれんじごく, ぎょうよう, は, はぶたえ, はちまき, はちまん, はがため and はごいた |
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One more note about this page and all of the others on this site: If two or more sources are cited they may be completely contradictory. I have made no attempt to referee these differences, but have simply repeated them for your edification or use. Quote anything you find here at your own risk and with a whole lot of salt. |
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TERM/NAME |
KANJI/KANA |
DESCRIPTION/ DEFINITION/ CATEGORY Click on the yellow numbers to go to linked pages. |
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Gesaku |
戯作 ぎさく |
"The generic term for all popular fiction written between the middle of the 18th century and the close of the Edo period (1600-1868), and for literature of the early part of the Meiji period (1868-1912) that continued this tradition. The term originally meant 'written for fun'..." Generally flippant, facetious, but written with an 'elaborate structure'.
Quoted from: Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japan, vol. 3, p. 28, entry by Wolfgang Schamoni. 1 |
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Geta |
下駄
げた |
Wooden clogs usually made of paulownia or cryptomeria wood with oak or magnolia teeth, i.e., ha (歯 or は), supports. The term geta became popular during the Edo period although this type of footwear was being made as long ago as 300 B.C. During the Heian and Muromachi eras they were known by other names. The thong which holds the foot to the clog was generally made of cloth or leather.
Source: Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japan, vol. 3, p. 30, entry by Miyamoto Mizuo. |
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"Geta for men are plain wood and usually have black thongs while those for women are both lacquered and plain, and have beautifully colored thongs of silk or velvet."
Quoted from: Dictionary of Japanese Culture by Setsuko Kojima and Gene A. Crane, p. 76.
Mock Joya refers to the thong or strap as a hanao (鼻緒 or はなお). Lacquer geta are referred to as nurigeta (塗り下駄 or ぬりげた). Tall geta are called mountain, yama, or travel, dochu, geta.
"As everything became luxurious in the Tokugawa days, geta also showed luxurious trends. During the Bunka-Bunsei era (1804-30) geta with little drawers to hold scent bags or tiny bells appeared. Such geta were used by fashionable women. Many women also discarded their geta after a few days, as they liked to always wear new geta." [This is what I call the Prada and Imelda effects.]
Quote from: Mock Joya's Things Japanese, p. 14.
Mock Joya also notes three other customs associated with geta: 1) They are often given as gifts to people on their sick beds in hopes this will help them get up and walk away; 2) Don't ever give them to someone you love because they might just use them to walk away and find someone else; And 3) Put moxa under the geta of a guest who just doesn't get the hint that they have overstayed their welcome. Light the moxa and the guest will leave.
The image to the left is a detail from a print by Eizan showing an elegant woman walking through the snow. She is wearing high, black lacquer getas. |
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Gibōshi |
擬宝珠
ぎぼうし
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The jewel-like decoration found atop the newel post on a bridge, railing, platform or portable shrine. On the shrine it is called a souka (葱花 ).
Above is a photo taken by Fg2 and donated to the public domain through publication at http://commons.wikimedia.org/. In the right foreground is a large image of a gibōshi on a bridge leading to Matsumoto Castle.
The image to the left below was posted on commons.wikimedia.org and is also by Fg2, like the one posted above. It was too good to ignore.
First we want you to know that this 'jewel' always reminded us of a lotus bud about to flower. However, here it is: the following passage is from a footnote in W. G. Aston's Nihongi: Chronicle of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697. "Hirata conjectures that the jewel-spear (nu-boko or tama-boko) of heaven was in form like a wo-bashira.) Wo-bashira means literally male pillar. This word is usually applied to the end-posts or pillars of a railing or balustrade, no doubt on account of the shape on the top, which ends in a sort of a ball (nu or tama), supposed to resemble the glans. That by wo-bashira means a phallus is clear from his quoting as its equivalent the Chinese expression 玉莖, i.e. jewel-stalk, an ornate word for the penis." Others translate 玉莖 as the Jade Stem. |
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Gofun |
胡粉
ごふん
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Literally "foreign powder": "...probably introduced from China. This white is made from ground calcined clam/oyster shells and can be mixed with colours using nikawa rather than nori to give opacity and thickness."
Quote from: Japanese Woodblock Printing, by Rebecca Salter, University of Hawai'i Press, 2001, p. 30
Nikawa is animal glue used as a binder. Nori is rice paste.
Unlike the rest of the printing technique the gofun is splattered onto the surface in a controlled manner. Generally it is found in snow scenes, but as you can see it is not strictly limited to that motif. Because it is splattered no two prints would be exactly the same. Nor would all examples of this print by Kuniyoshi necessarily have gofun applied after the traditional printing process is completed.
The images to the left are by Kuniyoshi. The top one shows a close up detail of the spume produced by the towering waves on the left.
The gofun illustrations were sent to us by our great contributor E. Thanks E! |
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Gokaidō |
五海道 ごかいどう |
The five great roads established during the Edo period (1603-1868) to link the provinces to the shogunal center which is now called Tokyo. The five were the Tokaidō connecting Edo with Kyōto along a coastal road, the Nakasendō which traveled to Kyōto through the mountains, the Nikkōkaidō, the Kōshukaidō and the Ohshūkaidō. |
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Goko |
五鈷杵 ごこ |
A five-pronged vajra. See also our entry on kongōsho. |
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Goncourt, Edmond de |
ゴンクール. エドムンド |
Edmond (1822-96) along with his brother Jules (1830-70: ジュール) were among the first true enthusiasts for 'things Japanese'. They were early advocates for Japanese woodblock prints which had their first, official, government sanctioned debut in Paris in 1867. ¶ In 1891 Edmond published a book on Utamaro followed in 1895 with one on Hokusai. What these volumes lacked in factuality they made up for in enthusiasm and eloquence.
Edmond and Jules were inseparable. They wrote their novels together, gossiped maliciously together and debauched together. They shared all things good and bad. There was no negligible difference in their collective passion for an 'idealized' Japan based on their perceptions of the arts which they had seen in exhibitions and in the shops of a several brave dealers. To them Japan was a land of light - glorious light as expressed in the colors of their prints. ¶ While they considered themselves great literary stylists their novels never reached the popularity of several of their more famous peers like Flaubert and Zola. The Goncourts rejected romanticism for naturalism - even somewhat lurid naturalism. Van Gogh was believed to have read several of their works. Chérie is believed to be the impetus for Van Gogh's interest in Japanese prints. In Manette Salomon the Goncourts describe a fictitious Parisian artist depressed by the long, drab, gray days of winter. In an effort to escaped his malaise he opens an album of Japanese prints and is able to escape his dismal world by dreaming about a sun filled and exotic land. Later, "...in Maison d'un artist, Edmond de Goncourt recollects his collaboration with his brother Jules on Manette Salomon and theri interest in Japanaiserie: 'It is there that you will find those books of sunny prints in which, on the gray days of our dreary winter, with its cold, grimy skies, we made Coriolis [the hero artist] (ourselves in fact) seek some of the agreeable light of the empire of the RISING SUN'."
Source: An essay by Tsukasa Kōdera, "Van Gogh's Utopian Japonisme," at the beginning of the Catalogue of the Van Gogh Museum's Collection of Japanese Prints.
It is interesting that in the literary world they were known as realists and not romantics yet that didn't stop them from romanticizing an idealized Japan. It was this Japan which had such a profound effect on Van Gogh and is one of the main reasons he moved to the south of France. If he couldn't travel to Japan at least he could try to capture the light of the Midi as the next best thing.
The image to the left is from a print of Edmond by Felix Bracquemond. |
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Goryō |
御霊 ごりょう |
Spirits of the dead, often described as angry. Ghosts! "In the tenth century, more miyadera [mixed Buddhist/Shinto sites] appeared in the capital as sites for a new type of ritual practice; the pacification of so-called goryō or 'angry ghosts.' Here, again, it must be noted that these ghosts were neither traditional kami, nor part of the Buddhist pantheon... Goryō were the ghosts of aristocrats who had been falsely accused of some political crime and had died in disgrace, often in exile. Their spirits were believed to have returned to the capital, where they not only haunted their enemies, but also caused epidemic that struck the entire population. Goryō festivals started as a popular practice in the early ninth century.... These festivals, called goryōe, also included a wide range of entertainments (songs, dances, wrestling, horse races, archery and popular theatre), and attracted large crowds. Understandably, the Court felt ill at ease with this popular worship of those ghosts of its dead enemies, and tried to suppress or at least control goryōe. One way to achieve this was by staging official goryōe, while prohibiting 'private' goryōe." After an extended epidemic which took many lives the Court held a goryōe on its own grounds in 863. "Altars to six noted goryō were erected, monks chanted... musicians played court music, sons of the prominent courtiers, as well as Chinese and Koreans... performed dances, and various 'miscellaneous entertainments' were staged. The gates of the palace were opened, and commoners flocked to the grounds to enjoy the display. Two years later, in 865, private goryōe were banned, but with little effect." (Source and quote from: Buddhas and Kami in Japan: Honji Suijaku as a Combinatory Paradigm, p. 26-7)
Goryōe were performed in graveyards, temples and miyadera. By ca. 950 special buildings, Goryōdō, had been erected on holy ground to hold these events. One of the most important of these was at the Kitano Tenmangū devoted mainly to the spirit of Sugawara Michizane.
See also our entry on Tenjin, the deified name of Sugawar Michizane, on our Tengu thru Tombo page. See also our entry on onryō a different type of vengeful spirit on our O thru Ri page. |
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Goshoguruma |
御所車
ごしょぐるま |
An ox-drawn cart used by the early court nobility. The image to the left is a detail from a print by Hokusai.
According to Royall Tyler a 14th c. commentary relates the story that the Empress asked Lady Murasaki to write some new tales to amuse the court. "Having none to offer, the empress asked Murasaki Shikibu to write one. The lady therefore went on pilgrimage to Ishiyama-dera, a temple near the southern end of Lake Biwa, a day's journey by ox carriage east of Kyōto, in search of inspiration." This may have been the origin of The Tale of Genji.
Quoted from: "Harvard Magazine", May-June 2002, Vol. 104, No. 5, p. 32.
John K. Nelson in his Enduring Identities refers to this vehicle as an iidashi-guruma, or more informally, a gissha. |
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Gozu |
牛頭 ごず |
Ox-headed demon or deity often found in images of the Buddhist hell. |
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Gozu tennō |
牛頭天王 ごずてんのう |
Said to be the Indian god Gavagriva.
"The main deity enshrined here was (at least by the mid-eleventh century) Gozu Tennō or 'the Bull-Headed Heavenly King,' a deity of unknown origin who was later identified further with the more orthodox Buddhist divinities Yakushi and Jūichimen Kannon on the one hand, and the kami Susanoo on the other. In a variety of sources,it is suggested that Gozu Tennō was a foreign deity of Indian or Korean origin. Whatever his origin, this foreign deity was believed to possess extraordinary magical powers, and to be supremely effective in dispelling and destroying disease-spreading goryō." Quoted from: Buddhas and Kami in Japan: Honji Suijaku as a Combinatory Paradigm, introduction by Mark Teeuwen and Fabio Rambelli, p. 27.
"...the transformation of vengeful spirits into protectors can be seen in Gozu Tennō who protects people against smallpox, dōsojin road deities who protect travelers, and Kitano Tenjin for everything related to water, fire, and thunder." Ibid., entry by Irene H. Lin, p. 70 |
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Gumbai (or gunbai) |
軍配 ぐんばい |
War paddle |
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I have to admit to a bit of confusion on this one. In our entry on tōuchiwa we list it as a fan which has its origin in the T'ang Dynasty (618-907) from China. But it looks remarkably like the gumbai and what the difference is is unknown to me. Dorothea Buckingham in her The Essential Guide to Sumo (p. 70) is absolutely convinced of the distinction between the two. "The wooden fan held by the referee is not a fan at all, but a war paddle. Legend has it that Nobunaga [1534-82 - 信長 or のぶなが] ...was an avid sumo fan and designed the gunbai for the sumo referee. The gunbai was later used by the warring commanders as a battle signal." Turning the gumbai signaled the beginning of a battle. Buckingham notes that some experts believe it was a war paddle long before it was used in sumo.
The rank of the referee (gyōji: 行司 or ぎょうじ) is indicated by the color of the braided cord (himo: 紐 or ひも) hanging from the gumbai. The highest rank uses a purple cord and the next highest a purple and white one. Lower ranks use scarlet followed by scarlet and white, then green and white followed by green or black. "The gunbai of the senior gyoji are often trimmed in silver. Some are decorated with gold leaf designs or kanji characters; others are lacquered."
紐 or himo, which is the braided cord hanging from the gumbai, can also be read as gigolo or pimp. I have no idea why. This seems rather odd, don't you agree? If you know why this is please write and tell me. (No opinions please. Just the facts maam or sir as the case may be.) |
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Guren jigoku and dai guren jigoku |
紅蓮地獄 ぐれんじごく and 大紅蓮地獄 だいぐれんじごく |
The Crimson and Great Crimson Lotus Hells: "...the seventh and eighth of the eight freezing hells. They are named after the splotchy red appearance of their inhabitants’ frostbitten skin, which is said to resemble the blossoms of a crimson lotus." Quoted from footnote 46 of R. Keller Kimbrough's translation of The Tale of the Fuji Cave.
These hells are reserved for thieves, burglars, bandits and pirates. The souls condemned to freeze in the ice there are to remain for 35.000 years. |
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Gyōyō |
杏葉
ぎょうよう |
Apricot leaf - used as a family crest or mon.
"The puzzling 'tassel' design, written with ideographs that literally mean 'apricot leaf,' appears to be a pattern which originated in Southeast Asia and eventually came to Japan through T'ang China." This motif resembled the tassels attached to saddles and bridles. It is often confused with the zingiber motif.
Source: The Elements of Japanese Design: A Handbook of Family Crests, Heraldry and Symbolism, by John W. Dower, p. 126. |
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Ha |
派 は |
Ha means clique, faction, school or sect. For example, Torii Kiyonaga (鳥居清長 or とりい.きよなが: 1752-1815) was the fourth head of the Torii school or Torii ha (鳥居派). |
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Habutae |
羽二重
はぶたえ |
A type of silk that was worn by samurai. According to at least one web site there were government edicts which restricted its use at times only to this class of men. Peasants and women were forbidden to wear it.
The detail to the left shows a rōnin or masterless samurai wearing a habutae as a summer garment. Notice the crest or mon visible near the figures left shoulder blade. This fellow is taken from an early Kunisada print ca. 1816-17 portraying the actor Matsumoto Kōshirō V as Ono Sadakurō. |
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Hachimaki |
鉢巻
はちまき |
A headband: A thin towel or strip of cloth tied around the head. Originally imbued with a religious significance today they are also worn by laborers. They date from as early as the 4th century.
"Hachimaki came to be worn in battle, apparently because they were believed to strengthen the spirit. They were also believed to repel evil spirits; for this reason boys wore hachimaki made of iris leaves on Boy's Day...and sick people or women giving birth often donned them." (Quoted from: Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japan, vol. 3, entry by Miyamoto Mizuo, p. 74)
The image to the left is a detail from a print by Shunshō.
Hachimaki can also be written as 鉢巻き. Literally this term means 'to tie around a bowl'. "Many Japanese wear one when they apply themselves to an arduous task, to gather strength, both spiritually and physically. It also serves to absorb sweat. They wear one when carrying a portable shrine (mikoshi) at festivals, when selling items at street fairs, when doing construction work, or when studying for entrance examinations. Schoolchildren often wear red or white ones at athletic meets (undōkai) to distinguish teams." (Source and quote from: Dictionary of Japanese Culture by Setsuko Kojima and Gene A. Crane, pp. 86-7)
"Under the helmet and inner cap, finally, the bushi wore a band of cloth around his head tied either at the back... or in the front. This headband was called hachi-maki, and it was usually white in color, in deference to the ever-present possibility of death. Headbands in red (aka) were also used. These hachi-maki became extremely popular among Japanese fighters of all ages, classes and periods. During World War II, white hachi-maki were employed as the insignia of the suicide pilots, the kamikaze, who hurled themselves and their planes loaded with explosives against enemy vessels in a desperate attempt to reverse the tide of war. These headbands are still used today in many Japanese clubs where arts of combat and other competitive sports are taught and practiced." (Quoted from: Secrets of the Samurai: The Martial Arts of Feudal Japan by Oscar Ratti and Adele Westbrook, p. 217) |
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"Whether a hat (kasa) is worn or no, the head is invariably wrapped with a hachimaki, a sort of small towel (tenugui) of white cotton. In warm weather this is tied as a band about the forehead and knotted in front (knotting it behind was the warrior's fashion) ; in winter it becomes a hōkaburi, covering the top of the head and tied beneath the chin. Women wear it turban-fashion, completely enveloping the hair." Quoted from: Victoria and Albert Publication 120T by Albert J. Koop, p. 18, 1920.
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Hachiman |
八幡 はちまん |
God of War - Hachiman is "One of the most popular Japanese deities, traditionally regarded as the god of archery and war, in which context he is referred to as yumiya Hachiman..." He is worshipped at tens of thousands of shrines and sub-shrines. That amounts to about half of the registered shrines in Japan.
'Hachiman' literally means 8 flags.
Sometime between 765 and 781 Hachiman received the Buddhist title of Daibosatsu or great bodhisattva and was regarded as an incarnation of the Amida Buddha. The Minamoto adopted Hachiman as their clan deity. In time he was portrayed as both a warrior and a Buddhist priest. (Source and quotes: A Popular Dictionary of Shito by Brian Bocking)
At Tobishima in Ugo province Hachiman devotees don't eat chicken because the god was believed to dislike them. Another group which worshipper a different god have a taboo against eating crabs. |
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Hagatame |
歯固め
はがため |
Tooth hardening: "...the practice of chewing tough edibles - such as rice cakes, radishes, or certain varieties of meat and fish - during the New Year's season. Strong teeth, it was thought, ensured good health and longevity." (Quoted from: Quoted from: Jewels of Japanese Printmaking: Surimono of the Bunka-Bunsei Era 1804-30 by Joan Mirviss and John Carpenter - cat. entry #15, p. 62)
"Among the many New Year's customs was that of tooth-hardening. This was observed in the Palace on the second day of the year, when the Imperial Table Office prepared certain dishes, such as melon, radish, rice-cakes, and ayu [鮎 or あゆ] fish, which were supposed to strengthen the teeth. This in fact had the same purpose as many other New Year practices, viz. the promotion of health and longevity. Evidently the tooth-hardening foods were served on yuzuriha [譲葉 or ゆずりは] leaves. This strikes Shōnagon as strange since the same leaves were used to serve the food for the dead." (Quoted from: The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon, translated and edited by Ivan Morris, Penguin Classics, 1979, footnote 124, p. 294)
The photo to the left is of yuzuriha leaves shown here courtesy of Shu Suehiro at http://www.botanic.jp/index.htm. |
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Hagi |
萩 はぎ |
Bush clover:
We chose the marubahagi (丸葉萩 or まるばはぎ), Lespedeza cyrtobotrya image posted by Shu Suehiro at http://www.botanic.jp/index.htm. |
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Hagoita |
羽子板
はごいた |
A battledore used in the game of hanetsuki.
"As New Year's approaches, hagoita...are displayed in all their glory in shops. Particularly women, young and old, crave for these hagoita. These beautiful battledores are, however, not to be used for playing the game of hane... It is the plainer ones that are used for thsi purpose." The game goes back to the Muromachi period (1392-1573). The shuttlecock was composed of several feathers stuck in a soapberry nut and the battledore was generally carved from paulownia, cryptomeria or other light wood.
Originally the battledores were simple, but in time some were spruced up by elaborate paintings. These were the ones used by members of the Imperial court. "Later on, Edo citizens with wealth and culture added so many artistic touches and such elegance to them that they became unsuitable in actually playing the game.... As Kabuki dramas were popular, there appeared in Edo hagoita bearing the likenesses of famous actors in their great roles, made with oshie or gorgeous silk and brocade pieces pasted together to represent persons and their costumes."
Sources and quotes from: Mock Joya's Things Japanese (p. 470-1)
The image to the left is a detail from a print by Tamikuni showing the actor Sawamura Kunitaro II as an onnagata decorating a battledore.
In the section above Mock Joya puts the earliest date for the use of the hagoita back to the 14th c., but in 1984 The Shogun Age Exhibition gives a different chronology on page 259. "Documents of the time indicate that hanetsuki originated in the Heian period (12th century) as a kind of exorcism, and only in the Muromachi period (15th century) did it become a form of recreation."
But wait! The Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japan (vol. 3, p. 77, entry by Yamada Tokubei) states "The first recorded mention of the game occurs in 1432, when it was played at the imperial court." This was published in 1983, one year before the Shogunal exhibition. Both cannot be correct.
Our policy is to post contradictory information whenever we feel that each source has some degree of credibility. Conflicts are way beyond our ability to resolve. That is for future generations of scholars. Perhaps our postings will help in this process. |
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拝殿
はいでん |
In Shinto the "Hall of Worship. A shrine building or equivalent space, part of the hongū, which is available to worshippers for their prayers and offerings."
To the left is the Kanshinji haiden (観心寺.拝殿 or かんしんじ.はいでん) posted at commons.wikimedia by Kenpei. |
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LINKS TO OUR OTHER INDEX/GLOSSARY PAGES Click on any of the pages listed below!
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The beautiful photo of wisteria being used as wallpaper is shown courtesy of Katorisi at |
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