As these essays show, political power shifted dramatically during the Heian period (794–1185). Emperors became figureheads while aristocrats grabbed true power. Starting in the mid-9th century, the Fujiwara clan became regents and advisers, excluding other clans from that scene. In the tussle for power, entire families could be eliminated; in one massive sea battle, the Minamoto clan exterminated the Taira family. By the late 10th century, Fujiwara power reached its zenith. For instance, Japanese artists developed a national style from 894 to 1185, and art historians call that the Fujiwara period, simply because of who was in charge.

In the Heian era (794–1185), aristocrats flourished in Japan and relished their newfound power. Only they could afford private lessons (in poetry). Being terrible snobs, they scornfully demanded that the samurai compose poems impromptu; viewing the samurai as savages, the nobles were setting the samurai up to fail. During those times of gross power imbalances, this term mattered: 罷る (to go somewhere by order of a superior). Of course, the nobles were the masters. But nothing lasts forever; by the mid-12th century, control of Japan shifted away from aristocrats into the hands of the samurai. Oops!

Your clothes may feel binding, but as these essays show, nothing compares to the strangling sartorial restrictions of the Heian era (794–1185). The elites changed clothes whenever they pooped! They also wore at least six types of clothing simultaneously, putting them on in a fixed order. For instance, aristocrats had to wear short-sleeved kimonos under other layers. Fortunately, Heian shoe innovations made life better for everyone. The Japanese devised three types of sandals. The nobility began wearing shoes more often, and common people made their own footwear.

Religion greatly influenced the Heian era (794–1185), as this bundle shows. Pious types took pilgrimages and carved massive Buddha figures onto rock faces. In one Kyushu city alone, 59 such statues have been deemed national treasures. Those years also gave rise to Shugendo, a mixture of mountain worship, esoteric Buddhism, and Taoism. But not all developments were positive. At remote temples, some monks sodomized boys who were training to be priests, causing countless Japanese to pull away from temples. Many also felt turned off by monks' arrogance and by temples' tax-exempt status. Consequently, several new sects of Buddhism emerged.

The Heian era (794–1185) left its mark on architecture. Temple halls and towers are the representative structures of the period, which is when the Japanese likely invented pagodas (塔) of two and five stories. Traditional Heian-era palatial-style architecture includes a roofed corridor (廊) connecting two buildings. As the 栽 essay shows, one style of palace combined residential buildings, gardens, and connecting corridors. After all this grandeur, the 蔽 essay brings us down to earth by mentioning features of a regular Japanese house, including partitioning screens, immovable walls, fusuma (sliding doors), and shoji (sliding windows).

The Heian period (794–1185) produced literary firsts, as this bundle shows. Major publications included "The Tale of Genji," (54 volumes!), "The Tales of Ise" (collected poems and prose), "The Tale of the Heike" (an epic), and "Konjaku Monogatarishu" (more than a thousand tales from India, China, and Japan, including Japanese folklore). The famous いろは poem emerged, using all basic archaic syllables only once. And whereas people used to wax poetic about ume (Japanese apricots), Heian poetry instead reflected a sudden appreciation of cherry blossoms, with 花 (flower) newly meaning "cherry blossom" in verse.

As these essays show, Japanese culture flourished in the Asuka and Nara periods (550–794). Asuka-era architectural styles impress even today. In that period, the Japanese brought stringed instruments back from China. Around the same time, the Japanese began producing copious inksticks, leading to calligraphy, ink drawing, and ink painting (and soon to dyeing clothes). Simultaneously, the literary world made great gains; the first nonfiction (two history chronicles) and a poetry anthology came out—all still significant works. The earliest Japanese gardens also emerged in the late Nara period.

Eighth-century Japanese governments exercised astounding power. The authorities established colors that each rank of bureaucrats could wear and permitted only the highest-ranking ones to dress in dark purple (紫). The imperial court cultivated (墾) certain fields using public labor, permitting regular people to hold private land permanently only in 743. A rigorous legal and political framework known as the ritsuryo system forced people to do 10 days of unpaid labor if they couldn't pay taxes. And the Dazaifu, an agency governing all of Kyushu, wielded such might that it had its own diplomatic relations with China.

Thank archaeologists for demystifying the Jomon and Yayoi eras (c. 14,000 BCE–300 CE). By examining shell mounds—glorified trash heaps—these scholars have determined what ancient people ate, owned, and valued. Bones from a Tokyo shell mound revealed that Jomon cannibalism existed. Moreover, archaeologists have found a crucial Jomon food source (Castanopsis nuts), unearthed bronze Yayoi-era vessels and Yayoi-era defensive structures, and uncovered about 15,000 goggle-eyed figurines (c. 3000 BCE–400 CE). Many look pregnant, so people likely associated them with fertility, also possibly believing that one could transfer illnesses into them and out of humans.

Researchers studying ancient Japan have little material—mainly ruins of buildings, earthenware, and iron tools. Nevertheless, as these essays show, scholars understand much about what drove the Jomon and Yayoi (ethnic groups who fought and killed each other). For instance, people hungered for metal to craft weapons, vessels, coins, and needles (to make clothes), and this quest sparked battles. Still, many aspects of the Jomon and Yayoi eras (c. 14,000 BCE–300 CE) remain contested; experts disagree about the origins of the Yayoi people and of wet rice cultivation in Japan, as well as the existence of Stonehenge-like Jomon-era monuments.