Intoned by the Yasha-shuu at the beginning of choubuku, 'bai' is the "seed syllable" for Bishamonten, originally known as Vaiśravaṇa.

The cakraratna is a wheel-shaped treasure possessed by the ideal universal ruler who rules ethically and benevolently over the entire world (the Chakravartin). It is carried in front of him to destroy his enemies and allow easy passage, and is a symbol worshiped in Buddhism.

A monk of Kurama Temple to whom Agi entrusts the corpse-hair mandala of Araki Murashige's clan. He is described as being in his early 30's with the physique of a warrior-monk and a tonsure that suited his face well. He is appears to be an attendant of the head monk.

Shimozuma Rairyuu performs kanshou on him.

A type of cave from which air flows due to the difference in ambient temperature and/or atmospheric pressure between its interior and exterior. The literal translation is 'wind cave', but (according to the Japanese Wikipedia) 'blowing cave' is used instead to differentiate this type of cave from those that are formed by wind.

Possessed by: Mori Ranmaru

A first-year junior high student at Takaya's school who appears to look up to Yuzuru. He is in the same band as Yuzuru. He is described as having a short, delicate figure with fine chestnut hair and hazel eyes so light they appear gold. He is half-Japanese and half-British.

He disappears after the fight at Jouhoku High.

The City of Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture and the largest city in the Chuugoku region of western Honshuu. Its name means "Broad Island," and was established on the delta coastline of the Seto Inland Sea in 1589 by the powerful daimyo Mouri Terumoto, who made it his capital. He built Hiroshima Castle there and moved in five years later, in 1593.

Hiroshima became a major urban center during the imperial period, and later a major port city. The city was a key shipping center during World War II, and became known as the first city in history to be targeted by a nuclear weapon when the US Air Force dropped an atomic bomb there on August 6, 1945.

Also known as: Ise Moritoki (伊勢盛時), Ise Souzui (伊勢宗瑞), Shinkurou (nickname—新九郎), Souunansouzui (Buddhist—早雲庵宗瑞)

Houjou Souun was the founder of the Later Houjou Clan, but he was never known as "Houjou Souun" during his lifetime. His son Houjou Ujitsuna, who succeeded him as clan head, adopted the clan name of Houjou and posthumously named his father Houjou Souun.

Though popularly portrayed as a humble masterless samurai, Souun's father, Ise Morisada, held an important post as an official of the shogunate according to modern-era research. The name of Ise Shinkurou Moritoki appears in written records from 1481, when he was appointed to a company of troops by Ashikaga Yoshihisa. Souun initially served his brother-in-law, Imagawa Yoshitada, and after his death, help his young son Imagawa Ujichika become the next head of the clan. In gratitude, Ujichika gave him Kokokuji Castle and the "uji" character in his name.

Souun took advantage of general unrest in the Eastern Provinces to take Izu Province for himself in 1493 (an event that many scholars mark as the beginning of the Sengoku), then Odawara Castle and Sagami Province in 1495. He died in 1519, leaving his new terrorities and the clan to his son Houjou Ujitsuna.

A military dictatorship which ruled Japan from 1185 (formally recognized in 1192) to 1333. The Kamakura Shogunate began when Minamoto no Yoritomo seized power from the imperial court in 1158 and made himself de factor ruler of the country. This militant goverment gave rise to a powerful warrior class, which had previously been considered subordinate and inferior.

After Yoritomo's death, Houjou Tokimasa, head of the Houjou Clan, claimed the title of regent over Yoritomo's son and heir Minamoto no Yoriie. He eventually made the title hereditary, and the Houjou Clan became the real power behind the shogunate. in 1333, the Kamakura Shogunate came to an end when its most powerful general, Ashikaga Takauji, sided with the emperor and destroyed the Houjou Clan. Ashikaga Takauji then established the Ashikaga Shogunate.

Lit.:"East of the Gate", the easternmost of five regions located on Honshuu Island which comprises of the seven prefectures of Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Chiba, and Kanagawa. This is the most highly developed and industrialized region of Japan and was the heart of feudal power during the Edo Period.

During the Edo Period, the area was also called the "Kanhasshuu" (関八州), or Eight Kantou Provinces: Musashi, Sagami, Kazusa, Shimousa, Awa, Kouzuke, Shimotsuke, and Hitachi.

Also known as: Koubou Daishi (弘法大師), or High Priest Koubou

A Japanese monk, scholar, poet, calligrapher, and artist who founded the Shingon school of Buddhism. He is credited with inventing kana (which includes hiragana and katakana) of the Japanese writing system as well as introducing homosexuality (or at least shudo) to Japan.

He studied in China from 804 to 806, where he was initiated into the Esoteric Buddhism tradition. He returned to Japan to establish the Shingon school, which would become the dominant Buddhism sect for the next 300 years. His teachings and his many writings, such as Attaining Enlightenment in This Very Existence, The Meaning of Sound, Word, Reality, The Ten Stages of the Development of Mind, and Ten Abiding Stages, synthesized Buddhism into a coherent whole, and displaced Confucianism with Buddhism as the official Japanese state ideology.

He was contemporaneous with Shaichou, the founder of the Tendai school.

The largest city in Nagano Prefecture, Matsumoto is surrounded by mountains and is acclaimed for its beautiful views.

Nickname: Arajirou (荒次郎)

Eldest son of Miura Yoshiatsu and last head of the Sagami Miura Clan. His father gave him Arai Castle (also known as Misaki Castle) in Sagami and handed the position of clan head to him in 1510. He was known as the 'brave warrior with the strength of 85' and fought against Houjou Souun, but he lost Okazaki Castle and Sumiyoshi Castle, and went to ground in the Miura Peninsula. He and his father held Arai Castle in a three-year siege, but the castle fell at last, and he witnessed Yoshiatsu's seppuku.

Yoshioki then charged out into the midst of his enemies and was killed, thus ending the Miura line. With his death the Houjou Clan achieved subjugation of Sagami.

Note: English sites seem to universally give Miura Yoshioki's name as Miura Yoshimoto, which the Japanese Wikipedia lists as a possible reading. It officially gives the reading as "Yoshioki", which is also used by Mirage.

Mizuya (Water-room) Shrine is a small shrine which sits between the main shrine of Sengen Grand Shrine and Wakutama Pond where a visitor can draw Mt. Fuji’s holy water.

Literally: "seal"; symbolic gestures usually made with the hands that imparts a specific quality to the user. In Esoteric Buddhism, each deity has his or her own mudra, which is used in conjunction with a mantra to perform a specific spell.

Shingon of both Śakra and the 'God of Thunder.' Unique to Japanese Buddhism, Śakra, Lord of the Devas (Śakro devānām indraḥ) is worshiped as the 'God of Thunder' and is often paired with the God of Wind.

"naumaku sanmanda bodanan" = a devotion to the Buddhas/"homage to all the Buddhas"
"indoraya sowaka" (also "indaraya sowaka") = reverence to Śakra, or "hail Śakra!"

「のうまくさまんだ　ぼだなん　ばいしらまんだや　そわか」

A mantra of Bishamonten which protects the caster from fatigue and calamity, usually used when starting a long or complex invocation.

"noumakusamanda bodanan" = a devotion to the Buddhas/"homage to all the Buddhas".
"Baishiramandaya" = a reverence to Bishamonten, or "hail Bishamonten!"

Okazaki Castle was built near the top of a small hill jutting out into the Sagami plains—geographically, not a very strategic position, but it was placed almost at the center of Sagami and therefore suitable for governance. It is unknown what happened to the castle after the Houjou Clan conquered Sagami.

The mantra of departure which sends a summoned bodhisattva home.

Shingon of the treasure carriage, used to send the carriage which goes out to receive the idol of the Buddha. The accompany ritual gesture is made with the middle, ring, and little fingers interwoven, with forefingers touching and heels of hands touching, and thumbs spread.

Also known as: reisa-nouryoku (霊査能力)

Lit.: "Spiritual investigation"; the ability to use the spiritual senses to distinguish between residual thought signatures, and thus recognize spiritual entities. A person with a high-level form of this ability could potentially recognize souls by the pattern of their "soul-nucleus", which is the part of the soul that remains unchanged through purification and rebirth, especially if they had met that person before previously. Haruie and Kousaka both excel at this ability, though Kousaka seems to be one of the few to possess a very high-level form of it.

Also known as: Sagami Gulf, Sagami Bay

A bay with a temperate climate located south of Kanagawa Prefecture, around 25 southwest of Tokyo.

Satomi Yoshitaka was the son of Satomi Sanetaka and became head of the Satomi Clan by killing the then-head, his cousin Satomi Yoshitoyo (son of his father's older brother Satomi Yoshimichi) in 1534. The traditional version of the story goes that Yoshitoyo killed Yoshitaka's father, who was in communication with the Houjou, and Yoshitaka killed him in revenge. In recent years, however, historians have theorized that Yoshitaka and Sanetaka, father and son, allied themselves with the Satomi Clan's bitter enemy, the Houjou Clan, in order to take over the clan. They then changed the records to hide the fact that they betrayed the Houjou Clan after their plan succeeded.

As clan head, Yoshitaka fought numerous battles with Houjou Ujitsuna and Houjou Ujiyasu. He pushed into Shimousa and Kazusa, making his stronghold Kuruji Castle in Kazusa, and brought about the golden age of the clan. He battled the Houjou to the last and died at Kuruji Castle at the age of 68.

The capital city of Miyagi Prefecture, it is also the largest city in the northeast region of Japan. It is home to one million people, and is aptly nicknamed Mori no Miyako, the Capital of Trees.

The eastern part of present-day Shizuoka Prefecture, ruled by the Imagawa clan for much of the Sengoku Period. It was later taken over by Takeda Shingen when Imagawa Yoshimoto was defeated by Oda Nobunaga. When Tokugawa Ieyasu came to power the province was assigned to one of his allies.