Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) bushido bo͝oshˈĭdō, bo͞oˈshĭdō [key] [Jap.,=way of the warrior], code of honor and conduct of the Japanese nobility. Of ancient origin, it grew out of the old feudal bond that required unwaver...

(Encyclopedia) Hotan kōˈtänˈ [key], city and oasis (1994 est. pop. 75,900), SW Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China, near the headstream of the Hotan River; the name sometimes appears as Ho-t'ien. It is the c...

(Encyclopedia) Snyder, Gary, 1930–, American poet, b. San Francisco. Associated with the beat generation of the 1950s, he lived (1956–68) in Japan, where he trained as a Zen monk. His poetry, influenced by Zen B...

(Encyclopedia) sun worship. Deification and adoration of the sun occurred primarily in agrarian societies. When man became a farmer, and thus dependent upon daily and seasonal changes of weather, he often turned to ...

(Encyclopedia) Jainism jīˈnĭzəm [key] [i.e., the religion of Jina], religious system of India practiced by about 5,000,000 persons. Jainism, Ajivika, and Buddhism arose in the 6th cent. b.c. as protests against ...

(Encyclopedia) Om ôm [key], [Skt.,=yes, so be it] for Hindus and Buddhists, a mystic word or mantra. Om is regarded as the syllable of the supreme Reality and is sometimes called “the mother of mantras.” It is ...

(Encyclopedia) Yoritomo (Yoritomo Minamoto) yōrēˈtōmō mēnäˈmōtō [key], 1148–99, Japanese warrior and dictator, founder of the Kamakura shogunate. After a prolonged struggle he led his clan, the Minamoto,...

(Encyclopedia) Bandaranaike, Sirimavo sērēmäˈvō bändränīˈkē [key], 1916–2000, Sri Lankan political leader, b. Sirimavo Ratwatte. She and her husband, S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike, converted to Buddhism from ...

(Encyclopedia) Gaitonde, V. S. (Vasudeo Santu Gaitonde), 1924–2001, Indian painter, grad. Sir Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy School of Art, Bombay (now Mumbai), 1948. He became part of the Progressive Artists Group (formed ...

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 Pagoda pagoda pəgōˈdə [key], name given in the East to a variety of buildings of tower form that are usually part of a temple or monastery group and serve as shrines. Those of India (see s...