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Shiragi Saburo, born as Minamoto no Yoshimitsu, was a samurai from the Minamoto clan who lived during the Heian Period. He was brother of the famed Minamoto no Yoshiie. Yoshimitsu is renowned for founding the martial art, <i>Daito-ryu aiki-jujutsu</i> (jujutsu).<br/><br/> It is said that Yoshimitsu studied where to strike vital points and joint lock techinques by dissecting the corpses of men killed in battle. He served during the Later Three-Year War (1083-1087), and was made lord of Kai Province for his service.
Liu Tang, Japanese name Sekihatsuki Ryu To, with banner and sword.<br/><br/> The Water Margin (known in Chinese as Shuihu Zhuan, sometimes abbreviated to Shuihu, 水滸傳), known as Suikoden in Japanese, as well as Outlaws of the Marsh, Tale of the Marshes, All Men Are Brothers, Men of the Marshes, or The Marshes of Mount Liang in English, is a 14th century novel and one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature.<br/><br/> Attributed to Shi Nai'an and written in vernacular Chinese, the story, set in the Song Dynasty, tells of how a group of 108 outlaws gathered at Mount Liang (or Liangshan Marsh) to form a sizable army before they are eventually granted amnesty by the government and sent on campaigns to resist foreign invaders and suppress rebel forces.<br/><br/> In 1827, Japanese publisher Kagaya Kichibei commissioned Utagawa Kuniyoshi to produce a series of woodblock prints illustrating the 108 heroes of the Suikoden. The 1827-1830 series, called '108 Heroes of the Water Margin' or 'Tsuzoku Suikoden goketsu hyakuhachinin no hitori', made Utagawa Kuniyoshi's famous.
Chinese dragons are legendary creatures in Chinese mythology and folklore, with mythic counterparts among Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Bhutanese, Western and Turkic mythology.<br/><br/> In Chinese art, dragons are typically portrayed as long, scaled, serpentine creatures with four legs. In yin and yang terminology, a dragon is yang (male element) and complements a yin (female element) fenghuang or phoenix.<br/><br/> In contrast to European dragons, which are considered evil, Chinese dragons traditionally symbolize potent and auspicious powers, particularly control over water, rainfall, hurricane, and floods. The dragon is also a symbol of power, strength, and good luck. The emperors of China usually used the dragon as a symbol of imperial power.
Ogata Gekkō (尾形月耕, 1859-1920) was a Japanese painter and woodblock print artist of the ukiyo-e genre.<br/><br/> Gekkō's work was originally closely based upon that of Kikuchi Yōsai. He was inspired by Hokusai, creating a series of one hundred prints of Mount Fuji. He also developed his own style, with significant stylistic elements borrowed from nihonga painting.