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Todaiji temple was commissioned by Emperor Shomu to bring peace to a tumultuous period. The nearby Nara Park is home to hundreds of deer roaming freely. (Photo by Lisa Vogt)
I have heard a hundred times that “Japan is an island country with a long history of isolation, and many aspects of the culture developed completely unaffected by outside influences until the Black Ships came and forced open our doors.”
I have to say that this notion, however popular, is not entirely true. From the early 1600s to the mid-1800s, yes, Japan had “officially” isolated itself from the world.