noun:

• Dynastic period (the Nara period and esp. the Heian period, characterized by the rule of the emperor as opposed to shogunate) ➜ 武家時代

noun:

• an ideal topography for the four Taoist gods, with a river in the east, a broad avenue in the west, a basin in the south, and a hill in the north - four character idiom

noun:

• land-tax rate during the Edo period, in which the government took 70 percent of the year's crop and the farmers kept 30 percent - four character idiom

expression / noun:

• collecting herbs and pulling out young pine trees by the roots (annual event held on the first Day of the Rat of the New Year)

noun / ~の noun:

• the best in the land; the best of its kind in the country; par excellence in the whole country - four character idiom

noun:

• splitting the bill so that the others end up paying the whole amount; wheedling the others into paying the whole bill - four character idiom

noun / ~する noun:

• selling on the market (in the marketplace, in stores, etc.); making something commercially available

~の noun:

• commercial (e.g. software); over-the-counter; off-the-shelf; store-bought

noun:

• collecting herbs and pulling out young pine trees by the roots (annual event held on the first Day of the Rat of the New Year) - obscure term ➜ 子の日の遊び

noun:

• small opening in the side of some traditional Japanese clothing for women and children (e.g. kimono, yukata) (located where the sleeve meets the bodice, below the armpit)

expression:

• trying to straighten the horns of a bull, and killing it in the process; trying to correct a small defect and ruining the whole thing; The cure is worse than the disease - four character idiom

noun:

• the concerned government agencies; the ministries and agencies that are relevant to the matter at hand; the relevant authorities - four character idiom

noun:

• the two leading actors (in a play); the two star players; the two distinctive features; the two main items (attractions) - four character idiom

noun:

• Edo Castle (residence of the Shogun during the Edo period, now the site of the Tokyo Imperial Palace)

noun / ~する noun:

• scoring the first point; winning the first game ［せんしょう］

noun:

• lucky day in the morning, but not in the afternoon ➜ 六曜

noun:

• double slap in the face (second slap administered by the return motion of the back of the hand)

noun / ~の noun:

• eventful times for the nation; the nation being in turmoil; the storm clouds gathering in the land - four character idiom

expression:

• starting something in the eleventh hour; have not thy cloak to make when it begins to rain; don't lock the stable door after the horse has been stolen; braiding the rope only after the thief is caught - proverb ➜ 泥縄【どろなわ】・泥縄式【どろなわしき】

noun:

• Buddhist service centred around the Lotus Sutra held over four days in Shiga Prefecture, starting from the 24th day of the second month of the lunisolar calendar

expression:

• putting the cart before the horse; putting the diapers on before (the baby) is born [literal] - idiom

noun:

• The Three Jewels; The Triple Gem; Triratna; The Three Treasures; Buddha, Dharma, Sangha; Buddha, the teachings of Buddha, and the community of monks and nuns - Buddhism term

expression:

• when the enemy is defeated, the victorious soldiers can be killed off; when the nimble rabbit dies, the hunting dog is cooked [literal]

noun / adverbial noun:

• utmost limits; to the finish; to the (bitter) end; to the hilt; down to the bedrock - four character idiom

expression:

• the clothes do not make the man; the cowl does not make the monk - proverb

expression:

• the busier you are, the better you work - proverb
• the more, the better - proverb

noun:

• staying awake on the eve of the 57th day of the sexagenary cycle (to prevent the three worms from reporting one's wrongdoings and shortening one's lifespan), while worshipping Sakra, the Blue-Faced Vajra, or Sarutahiko ➜ 三尸