clioshiddenportraits:Tomoe Gozen (Lady Tomoe) is by far the most well known onna bugeisha (meaning l
clioshiddenportraits:Tomoe Gozen (Lady Tomoe) is by far the most well known onna bugeisha (meaning literally woman warrior). She is described as an outstanding warrior, master of all the main weapons of her period - the long bow, sword, naginata and horse riding - being sent frequently to field as first captain of Minamoto no Yoshinaka, a general and one of the three main forces behind the Genpei War (1180-85). Tomoe and Yoshinaka were lovers, but their “official union” is not clear, as well as her origin or end, in one of the most common stories she’s daughter of Yoshinaka’s wet nurse and one of his close companions. What happened to her after Genpei is a more obscure matter, she actually might has died with the derrocada of Yoshinaka or married another samurai or yet become a nun (a common escape road for that age). Her story is told in a number of epics and even kabuki plays, appearing first in the Heike Monogatari (Tale of the House of Hei (other reading for the name of the Taira clan)), the biggest epic about the Genpei War and although such an uncertain story, for being compiled after oral tales, Tomoe became an icon nonetheless. She’s considered the embodiment of the onna bugeisha, celebrated and well known till this day, possessing even a memorial in Shiga.The Heike possess various translations in english, the first being avaiable online for free here: http://library.uoregon.edu/ec/e-asia/read/heike-whole.pdfNext, in the onna bugeisha tales, I’ll jump some centuries.Post from yesterday, not really satisfied, but oh well… -- source link
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