This work is based on the "Nihon ryoiki" written by the Nara period monk Keikai, and looks at the lives of the people of that time.

This book reveals that Buddhist beliefs had already taken root among the people as early as the Nara period (710-794). We will also learn what kind of faith it was. This book also makes us think about what kind of salvation the people, not the aristocrats and monks, were seeking from Buddhism.

It was a very gratifying work for me to think about Japanese Buddhism. I highly recommend this work.

I found the section in the second half of the book on how the capital was moved from Heijo-kyo to Heian-kyo very stimulating. It is often said that the capital was moved from Heijo-kyo to Heian-kyo to distance itself from Buddhist powers, but it was interesting to learn that this was not actually the case, and that a major factor was a shift in the emperor's imperial lineage.

It is also interesting to look at the Nara and Heian periods from perspectives that we do not usually consider, such as the difference between the roles of the Buddhist capital Heijo-kyo and the political city of Heian-kyo.

The book itself was very easy to read and I was able to read it easily.

This is a recommended reference book to get an overall picture of the Nara and early Heian periods.

In this book, interesting points that are truly eye-opening are made more and more. The commentary on Prince Shotoku and the formation of the state and the syncretism of Shintoism and Buddhism are especially interesting. It is extremely interesting.

I am a monk of the Jodo Shinshu sect. Shinran, the founder of Jodo Shinshu, was a monk who lived from the late Heian to Kamakura periods. I often have the opportunity to listen to lectures and Dharma talks about the period in which Shinran lived, but I do not have such opportunities to learn about the historical background and Buddhism in the Nara and Heian periods, which goes back even further than that. For such a person like me, it was very gratifying to learn about Buddhism and the historical background of this period, which is also the foundation of Japanese Buddhism.