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Fluent Fiction - Mandarin Chinese: Fearless Heights: Ming's Kite Adventure at the Great Wall Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/zh/episode/2025-11-21-23-34-02-zh Story Transcript:Zh: 秋天的长城，美丽如画。树叶变得五彩缤纷，微风轻拂着游人的脸颊。En: The Great Wall in autumn is picturesque, with tree leaves turning into a kaleidoscope of colors, and a gentle breeze brushing against the tourists' cheeks.Zh: 明、珍和莲站在一个观景台上，准备放风筝。En: Ming, Zhen, and Lian stood on a viewing platform, getting ready to fly a kite.Zh: 明充满激情地想拍下风筝在长城上空飞舞的照片。En: Ming was passionately eager to capture photos of the kite soaring above the Great Wall.Zh: 他相信这组照片会赢得本地摄影比赛。En: He believed that this set of photos would win the local photography contest.Zh: 然而，明有一个问题——他怕高。En: However, Ming had one problem—he was afraid of heights.Zh: 明看着悬崖边缘，心里有些犹豫。En: Ming gazed at the edge of the cliff, feeling a little hesitant.Zh: 风筝在他手里，轻轻舞动。En: The kite fluttered lightly in his hand.Zh: 珍稳重地拍了拍明的肩膀：“别担心，我们有备用计划。”En: Zhen reassuringly patted Ming's shoulder, saying, "Don't worry, we have a backup plan."Zh: 而莲兴奋地笑道：“明，别怕！我们在这里陪着你。”En: Lian excitedly laughed and said, "Ming, don't be afraid! We're here with you."Zh: 于是，他们开始了尝试。En: So, they began their attempt.Zh: 明小心翼翼地靠近边缘，他的心跳加速。En: Ming cautiously approached the edge, his heart racing.Zh: 风有时会停，时而又突然变大。En: The wind would sometimes die down and then suddenly pick up.Zh: 珍提议：“我们可以等风更稳定些，再放高风筝。”En: Zhen suggested, "We can wait until the wind is more stable before flying the kite higher."Zh: 他们决定三人一起合作，把风筝放得更高。En: They decided to work together to lift the kite higher.Zh: 莲在一旁鼓励着：“你能做到的，明！”En: Lian encouraged from the side, "You can do it, Ming!"Zh: 终于，风开始稳定。En: Finally, the wind stabilized.Zh: 风筝升得更高，在蓝天中划出一条美丽的弧线。En: The kite rose higher, tracing a beautiful arc in the blue sky.Zh: 明的手上冒出了汗。En: Sweat appeared on Ming's hands.Zh: 这时，一阵强风突然袭来，差点把风筝带走。En: Just then, a strong gust of wind suddenly hit, almost taking the kite away.Zh: 明知道这是他拍下完美照片的机会，但如果他放弃，这个完美的瞬间可能会消失。En: Ming knew this was his chance to capture the perfect photo, but if he let go, this perfect moment might vanish.Zh: 他必须做一个决定。En: He had to make a decision.Zh: “我不能放手！”明一脸坚定。En: "I can't let go!" Ming said with determination.Zh: 珍和莲紧紧抓着他的手臂，给他勇气与支持。En: Zhen and Lian held his arms tightly, giving him courage and support.Zh: 最终，他们齐心协力，把风筝顺利地拉回来。En: Finally, they worked together to successfully reel the kite back in.Zh: 明按下快门，捕捉到了风筝在长城上翱翔的动人瞬间。En: Ming pressed the shutter, capturing the moving moment of the kite soaring above the Great Wall.Zh: 回家的路上，明看着相机里的照片，满脸欣慰。En: On the way home, Ming looked at the photos in his camera, full of satisfaction.Zh: 他明白到，面对恐惧时，有朋友的支持是多么重要。En: He understood how important the support of friends is when facing fears.Zh: 同时，他也为自己克服了恐惧而感到骄傲。En: At the same time, he felt proud of himself for overcoming his fear.Zh: 长城的秋色依旧迷人，但明心中的那道墙却悄然消失了。En: The autumn scenery of the Great Wall remained enchanting, but the wall in Ming's heart had quietly disappeared. Vocabulary Words:picturesque: 美丽如画kaleidoscope: 五彩缤纷breeze: 微风cliff: 悬崖fluttered: 舞动reassuringly: 稳重地hesitant: 犹豫gust: 一阵强风vanish: 消失determination: 坚定support: 支持enchanted: 迷人overcoming: 克服passionately: 充满激情captured: 拍下belief: 相信stable: 稳定encouraged: 鼓励arc: 弧线shutter: 快门sweat: 汗courage: 勇气moment: 瞬间satisfaction: 欣慰racing: 加速capture: 捕捉attempt: 尝试successfully: 顺利地enchanting: 使人入迷quietly: 悄然

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Fluent Fiction - Mandarin Chinese: Gobbling Up Surprises: The Inflatable Turkey Saga Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/zh/episode/2025-11-18-23-34-02-zh Story Transcript:Zh: 叶子在地上沙沙作响，秋天的冷风轻轻吹过，阳光在明显冬季气息的空气中微微发亮。En: The leaves rustled on the ground as the chilly autumn wind gently blew by, and the sunlight shimmered slightly in the air, already bearing the distinct feel of winter.Zh: 在这宁静舒适的小区里，雷正在准备一个巨大的惊喜。En: In this quiet and comfortable neighborhood, Lei was preparing a huge surprise.Zh: 他计划在后院竖立一个巨大的充气火鸡，作为感恩节的一大亮点。En: He planned to erect a gigantic inflatable turkey in the backyard as a major highlight of Thanksgiving.Zh: 这天，雷充满了期待和兴奋，希望家人们会被这份意外感动。En: On this day, Lei was filled with anticipation and excitement, hoping his family would be moved by this unexpected surprise.Zh: 雷是一个热衷于策划惊喜的人。En: Lei is someone who loves planning surprises.Zh: 每到节日，他都会使出浑身解数，想要让家人和朋友都留下深刻的回忆。En: Every holiday, he goes all out, aiming to leave lasting memories for his family and friends.Zh: 这一次，他选中了一个硕大的充气火鸡，想动作神不知鬼不觉。En: This time, he selected an enormous inflatable turkey, wanting to act without anyone noticing.Zh: 他买下了它，并迫不及待地想要偷偷地把它搬到后院。En: He purchased it and couldn't wait to secretly move it to the backyard.Zh: 可是，这个任务并不像他想象中那么简单。En: However, this task was not as simple as he imagined.Zh: 火鸡太大，怎么进家都引人注目。En: The turkey was so large that it was conspicuous no matter how he brought it into the house.Zh: 雷的邻居喜欢窃窃私语，而他的伴侣明这一天比平时更早到家。En: Lei's neighbors liked to gossip, and his partner Ming happened to come home earlier than usual that day.Zh: 无奈之下，雷只好找来他的朋友莹来帮忙。En: In desperation, Lei had to ask his friend Ying for help.Zh: “我们可以趁着天黑再搬，”莹满脸疑惑地说，“为什么不就直接告诉大家呢？”En: “We could move it after dark,” Ying said, puzzled, “Why not just tell everyone directly?”Zh: “我就是想给他们一个大惊喜，”雷坚持，“太过明显的话，就没意思了。”En: “I just want to give them a big surprise,” Lei insisted, “If it's too obvious, it wouldn't be as fun.”Zh: 接受了雷的请求，莹也只得点头配合。En: Agreeing to Lei's request, Ying nodded and went along.Zh: 到了晚上，街灯洒下柔和的光辉，雷和莹偷偷溜进车库，开始艰难地移动充气火鸡。En: By evening, as streetlights cast a gentle glow, Lei and Ying snuck into the garage and began the difficult task of moving the inflatable turkey.Zh: 然而，正当他们穿过一个小路时，火鸡的庞大身躯卡在了篱笆上，动弹不得。En: However, just as they were crossing a small path, the giant turkey got stuck on a fence, unable to move.Zh: 正当雷和莹忙着设法将火鸡推进后院时，屋里的明听见了外面的动静，径直走了出来。En: While Lei and Ying were busy figuring out how to get the turkey into the backyard, Ming, inside the house, heard the commotion outside and came straight out.Zh: 雷和莹赶紧趴下，希望隐藏在篱笆的阴影里。En: Lei and Ying quickly crouched down, hoping to hide in the shadows of the fence.Zh: “雷，你在干什么？”明的声音从不远处传来。En: “Lei, what are you doing?” Ming's voice called out from not far away.Zh: 雷无奈地抬头，脸上露出一丝尴尬的微笑。En: Lei helplessly looked up, a trace of embarrassed smile on his face.Zh: “我……我们有一点小麻烦，”他终于承认。En: “I... we're having a little trouble,” he finally admitted.Zh: 闻讯而来的不仅仅是明，还有好奇的邻居们。En: It wasn't just Ming who came out, but also the curious neighbors.Zh: 他们纷纷过来帮忙，齐心协力地帮助雷把火鸡从木篱笆里救出来。En: They all came over to help, working together to rescue the turkey from the wooden fence.Zh: 最终，火鸡被成功竖立在后院，明亮而显眼地成为节日的中心。En: Finally, the turkey was successfully erected in the backyard, brightly and prominently becoming the centerpiece of the holiday.Zh: 雷望着眼前汇聚的家人朋友，心里充满了快乐。En: Lei looked at the gathered family and friends in front of him, his heart filled with joy.Zh: 虽然惊喜没有完全按照他的计划进行，但却带来了更多的欢乐和意外的团聚。En: Even though the surprise didn't go exactly as he planned, it brought more joy and unexpected reunion.Zh: 雷第一次明白，有时候，除了惊喜，分享和合作同样能带来深厚的快乐和温暖。En: Lei realized for the first time that, sometimes, aside from surprises, sharing and cooperation can also bring profound happiness and warmth.Zh: 在这样一个风和日丽的感恩节，所有人都满意地微笑着，享受着彼此的陪伴和节日的美好。En: On such a lovely Thanksgiving filled with sunshine and breeze, everyone smiled contentedly, enjoying each other's company and the beauty of the holiday.Zh: 雷意识到，生活中的意外，有时才是最珍贵的部分。En: Lei realized that sometimes, the unplanned moments in life are the most precious. Vocabulary Words:rustled: 沙沙作响chilly: 冷shimmered: 发亮erect: 竖立gigantic: 巨大的inflatable: 充气anticipated: 期待conspicuous: 引人注目gossip: 窃窃私语desperation: 无奈snuck: 偷偷溜commotion: 动静helplessly: 无奈地crouched: 趴下curious: 好奇prominently: 显眼centerpiece: 中心reunion: 团聚profound: 深厚contentedly: 满意地unplanned: 意外precious: 珍贵lastingly: 深刻trace: 一丝admitted: 承认rescue: 救silhouette: 阴影comply: 配合anticipated: 期待reluctantly: 不情愿

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This episode we cover the first silver mine in Japan, as well as the way that this sovereign is approaching offerings to the kami and handling family matters. For more check out: https://sengokudaimyo.com/podcast/episode-138   Rough Transcript: Welcome to Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.  My name is Joshua and this is Episode 138: Offerings and Covenants   A gentle summer breeze blew through the cherry-tree-covered hills of Yoshino valley.  The royal residence, a kind of summer home for the royal family, normally somewhat quiet, was suddenly abuzz with activity.  The regular groundskeepers and those who tended the site throughout the year mingled with servants sent from the capital to make it ready for a royal visit.  Rooms were aired out and swept. Metal fixtures were polished.  The kitchen was stocked and ready to go. It had been some years since the prince—now sovereign—had resided in the valley as an attempt to proclaim he had retired from the world.  Now he was sitting at the top of the state government, but as such, he was more often than not living in the grand palace in Asuka, which he had renovated at the start of his reign. This, the Yoshino palace, was left as more of a vacation home—though "home" hardly did it justice given its majesty compared to the meager dwellings that otherwise surrounded it. And now there was a massive royal procession on their way.  Sure, it was the sovereign and his queen, and only a handful of princes, but they would each need their own quarters and likely have their own household staff that would no doubt need to be fed and housed.  In such a way a "simple" outing for the royal family was so often anything but for those who had to make it happen. And yet, such labor was much preferred to toiling in the fields, especially as the heat of the day started to rise, and the height of summer loomed large in the all-too-immediate future.   Alright, so we are in the midst of the reign of Ohoama, aka Temmu Tennou, the brother of Naka no Ohoe, who came to power through the use of military force—purportedly used in self-defense—and the sovereign who would have a profound effect on solidifying the Ritsuryo state, as well as the Chronicles and the history of the archipelago as we know it.  We've talked about Ohoama's ascension to the throne, and even his first year.  We mentioned how, during his reign, he rewarded those who helped him, tweaked the rank system, and we talked a bit about what we know of the clothing and the material culture of the period. This episode, we continue looking at what occurred during Ohoama's reign.  Specifically we'll be covering some of the ways in which Ohoama and his court were shaping the government and the structures of power to serve him and his family.  This includes everything from ritual, such as making offerings to various kami, to the way that he seems to have centralized power to himself and his family, which would have lasting impacts through the Asuka and Nara periods. First, though, a tiny little digression about silver.  We start in the 3rd lunar month of the second year since Ohoama ascended the throne, or the year 674 by the western calendar.  We are told that Woshiumi no Miyatsuko no Ohokuni, the governor of Tsushima, the island that formed the main border between the archipelago and the mainland, reported that silver had been produced there for the first time, and sent in some as tribute.  This is the first recorded instance of silver being produced in Japan. At this time, silver mining was mostly limited to finding a vein of silver on the surface and digging it out as far as one could possibly go into the rock and stone.  Still, silver would eventually become an important resource for the archipelago.  Tsushima would continue to produce silver through modern times.  Granted, production was limited until new refining techniques were introduced from Joseon Korea in the 16th century.  This was just as Ming dynasty deposits were declining, and as such, silver would become a major export from the archipelago to the mainland.  Indeed, by the 17th century, it is said that Japan accounted for one quarter to one third of the entire world's silver production. For now, however, the discovery of native silver was certainly a good start, but the Yamato court wasn't switching to a silver coin currency just yet—rice and cloth were still the major currencies for tax and trade purposes.  Still this find seems not insignificant, and clearly the chroniclers thought so as well -- as did the court.  They granted Ohokuni, the governor of Tsushima, the rank of Lower Shoukin.  The silver produced by the mine was offered to the various kami of heaven and earth, and presents were made to the high ministers and others of the rank of Shoukin and above. Now back to the Chronicles, and to the meat of what I'll be talking about this episode. On the 3rd day of the 8th lunar month of 674, we are told that the Royal Prince Wosakabe was sent to Isonokami shrine to polish up the divine treasures, at which point the sovereign made a rather spectacular decree:  he declared that all of the precious things originally deposited in the sacred treasuries by the various houses should be returned to their descendants. This appears to be a reference to the long-standing practice by Yamato of demanding that those they had gained some level of hegemony over turn over their sacred objects for Yamato's keeping.    We talked about this back in episodes 19 and 29, for example, when we talked about how Mimaki Iribiko, aka Sujin Tenno, and Ikume Iribiko, aka Suinin Tenno, had both requested treasures from Izumo and elsewhere, to be stored in the treasure house of Isonokami. We aren't told what all of these treasures were, but we can deduce that these were sacred treasures of the different houses and localities, much as the mirror, jewel, and sword were sacred treasures of Yamato.  These were items that early on distinguished the elite class in the archipelago, and had come to be gathered in the divine store houses.  You may recall how, early on, we saw mentions in the Chroncles that ships sent out to meet with others from different lands would place such treasures on a makeshift tree on the deck as a way of depicting who they were—who they represented. It would seem that these sacred objects came to represent the divine ancestors of the elites, and so eventually were associated with the idea of power and authority.  As Yamato spread its influence, possibly as much through the spiritual authority of Mt. Miwa as through its economic and military capability, it seems to have demanded that the various lands that came under its sway place their sacred treasures in Yamato's storehouse—a powerful image of Yamato's authority.  In a sense, this was a kind of hostage situation: recognize our authority, or your most sacred treasures, representing your ancestors, will be at risk .  One wonders if this isn't part of the reason that we find buried caches of bronze ritual items, including weapons, bells, and other such things, perhaps as a means of keeping them safe from those who would steal them away. However, in the new era of the Ritsuryo system, those objects, while still considered divine and sacred, did not hold the same value as they once had.  Perhaps I'm reading too much into it, but this really seems to me to be particularly illustrative of the idea that the cultural imaginary of state power and authority had shifted.  Yamato's power and authority was no longer based on its role as a spiritual powerhouse as much as it was centered on the continental framework of a heavenly mandate and a system of laws and punishments.   And so, the sovereign could return the sacred items back to their descendants, because to do so did not cost him anything, and at the same time would no doubt earn him goodwill.  He could appear magnanimous and, in so doing, solidify his position as the supreme hegemon of this new state.  In many ways this acknowledged the importance of the divine treasures to the people and to the kami while also no doubt reinforcing Confucian stereotypes of the benevolent ruler. More importantly, this shows how Ohoama was restructuring the rituals of the state.  After all, he had the Jingikan, an entire governmental department dedicated to administering the various shrines and sacred rituals; so even if the sacred treasures were returned, they were still technically under the control of the state apparatus.  We've already talked about the Daijosai, the Feast of First Fruits for a new reign, a central ritual to which Ohoama had added further pomp and circumstance.  But as no less a scholar than Herman Ooms has written about, Ohoama also initiated the practice of ordering regular centralized offerings to not just one particular kami, but to several or even a number of kami, or shrines, at any given time.  We see this in the following year, on the 23rd day of the first lunar month of 675, in an almost off-hand remark. Later, in the 10th month of 676 offerings were made to all of the "Ahimbe" kami of Heaven and Earth—that is all of kami that were part of the festival of first fruits held on the first day of the rabbit on the 11th lunar month.  Offerings were also made to all of the Heavenly and Earthly kami on the second day of the year in 681. Of course, these offerings would not just be enriching the shrines of these various kami, but it would also reflect on the various uji connected to each of those shrines, as well. Another example of the court's involvement in these ritual innovations appears to be the worship of the deities at Tatsuta and Hirose.  The first example of that is also in 675, in the 4th month of that year.  Prince Mino and Saheki no Muraji no Hirotari were sent to the Wind-gods at Tateno, in Tatsuta.  Aston notes that there is a litany to the Wind-gods mentioned in the Engishiki, a 10th century collection of information on various rituals of the time, so this practice seems to have taken hold, at least enough to persist over 3 centuries later.  Also in the 4th month of 675, Hashibito no Muraji no Ohobuta and Sone no Muraji no Karainu were sent to worship the Oho-imi deity at Kahawa, in Hirose. The Oho-imi appears to be a "big abstinence" deity, whom Aston identifies with Waka'ukahime, responsible for food.  Worship is again paid twice in the year 676, once in 677, then twice again in 679, continuing twice a year, almost exclusively in the 4th and 7th lunar months, through the end of the reign.  Why were these particular deities chosen for special worship by the court?  Ooms notes that these shrines were built downstream along the Yamato river, which, along with its tributaries, was responsible for the irrigation of the crops in the Nara basin.  This mirrors, in some ways, the responsibility of rulers in the Yellow River and Yangzi river regions to help ensure the flow of the rivers while preventing devastating flooding – a very continental idea of the responsibilities of the sovereign, though expressed here with a particularly Japanese style. Indeed, Aston associates the deity at Hirose, with the deity of food.   Likewise, the Wind-deities at Tatsuta were also related to helping to grow crops.  After all, Tatsuta would have been situated near the break in the mountains that surrounds the Nara basin, where the Yamato River flows out towards the Kawachi plain.  As anyone who lives near a mountain gap is no doubt familiar, those areas are notorious for channeling weather phenomena, including storms, which can bring rain, but could also bring terrible winds.  So it does seem a natural point to pray for good weather for your harvest or otherwise, given the geography that made up the sovereign's world. We also have, in this reign, considerably more discussion of Ise than we've seen, previously.  In 673 we have the Royal Princess Ohoku no Himemiko entering the Saigu, the Abstinence, or Purification, Palace, where she was to be purified before going to Ise, which she did in the 10th lunar month of 674.  Ohoku is said to have been the first official Saiou, the unmarried royal princess sent to oversee shrine operations, of Ise Shrine.  This is a practice we see at multiple shrines, although it's most prominent at Ise. The term for the position in general is Saiou, although at Ise the royal princess would also be known as the Saiguu, after the purification palace.  Although Ohoku is said to have been the first Saiguu at Ise, this is muddied somewhat by some earlier mentions in the Chronicles.  There are those who are said to have been sent as Shrine Princesses to Ise back in the time of Mimaki Iribiko and Ikume Iribiko, but the process was largely discontinued—or at least rarely mentioned—until this period.  There are certainly several named individuals who are said to have served the Deity of Ise previously, starting with the presumably mythical Yamato Hime, who is credited with founding the shrine.  There are also various royal princesses are noted as either having served or as having been made ineligible due to their indiscretions. However, those earlier mentions rarely go into the detail we see here —starting with the abstinence hall, where the would-be Shrine Princess must purify herself prior to approaching the shrine, a process that took some time.  Certainly we first really see this put into action with Ohoku, and from that time the position of Saiguu or Saiou at Ise does appear to have been regularly filled.  That Ohoku was actually the first "Saiguu" shrine princess appears to be confirmed by the "Fusou Ryakki", which states that the first Saiou was appointed when then Prince Ohoama, in the midst of the Jinshin war, made a prayer to Ise and offered the royal princess Ohoku no Himemiko in exchange for victory.  In fact, a lot of the focus on Ise seems to stem from its apparent involvement, at the behest of either Ohoama or his consort, Uno no Sarara Hime, in the conflict. The following year we are told that the Royal Princesses Towochi and Abe proceeded to Ise Shrine as well, though presumably just for a brief visit.  Towochi, you may recall, was Ohoama's daughter who had been married to Ohotomo, aka Koubun Tennou, whom Ohoama had defeated to take the throne.  Abe was a daughter of Naka no Oe, half-sister to Ohoama's queen, Uno, and would eventually go on to marry the Crown Prince, Kusakabe.  That gives you some idea of the position of those were going to the shrine. Princess Towochi herself would fall ill a few years later in 678.  In fact, it was just as the sovereign himself was preparing to go pay a visit to the abstinence palace, perhaps so that he could also head out to Ise.  The court had a divination to figure out when he would leave, officers had cleared the roads, and the public functionaries were in a line of procession when word came that Princess Towochi, suddenly took ill and died within the palace.  This stopped everything in its tracks, and in that year there was no sacrifice made to the kami of heaven and earth.  I suspect that this was in part due to mourning and in part due to the pollution more generally associated with death. Two weeks later, she was buried at Akaho, and Ohoama raised a lament for her. Later, in 686, we are told that the Royal Princess Taki, the Princess Yamashiro no Hime, and the Lady Ishikawa were all sent to Ise Shrine, though Princess Taki returned in less than a fortnight. Why all this focus on Ise?  Remember that the Chronicles were begun in this era, and so the "truth" they would tell would be the truth that Ohoama and his immediate successors orchestrated. The focus on Amaterasu, her shrine at Ise, and the role of the sovereign as Heavenly Descendant was thus part of the overarching narrative that the Chroniclers tried to promote.  Still, hints that the focus on Ise shrine may have been something largely created in this era, however, are scattered throughout the existing literature, despite the Chroniclers' best efforts. For one thing, it is fairly clear that early on, the focus in the Chronicles is on  Mt. Miwa and the deity  Ohomononushi, rather than Amaterasu.  We also see the fingerprints of deities like Takami no Musubi, who in one story is the one who is actually responsible for sending the Heavenly Grandchild down to earth in the first place. It also seems telling that Amaterasu is not mentioned in earlier court rituals.  Worship of Amaterasu by the royal family takes place at Ise shrine.  Meanwhile, there are various rituals preserved within the traditions of the palace that include many other, seemingly older deities. I have also noted in the past how Ise shrine isn't even the primary shrine of Ise no Kuni.  In fact, that is claimed by Tsubaki shrine, the shrine to Saruta Hiko no Ohokami, with a separate shrine to Ame no Uzume, who are both said to have met the heavenly grandchild on his descent. None of this is to say that Ise Jingu was brand new at the time of the Chronicles' writing —there does seem to have been a shrine on that spot for some time, though even the Chronicles suggest that it might have been moved from a shrine originally housed in the Nara basin.  It is also possible, and even likely, that the rise of Ise and Amaterasu coincided with other trends at the time.  Even if the Sun Goddess had not always been centered in Yamato ritual, she was not a new deity, and it may have been the case that her prominence, and that of her shrine in Ise had been growing in prominence before this time, and so the court was now adopting that popularity for themselves.  Of course, Ohoama and Uno don't exactly spell out what they were attempting to achieve, beyond the unification of the archipelago, more broadly.  How, exactly, their focus on Ise Shrine was meant to play into that I don't know that I could fully state, but it certainly seems to have allowed the sovereign to create a new cultic focus for kami worship with a story that touched on regions from Kyushu all the way to the eastern shore of the Kii peninsula. Given the decentralized nature of kami worship, I don't believe it was possible to completely rewrite all of the stories—hence the numerous and conflicting accounts given in the Chronicles.  However, that is also what would have made it easier to hide newly fabricated—or perhaps simply exaggerated—stories in the mix.  And of course, it wasn't necessarily that the Chroniclers were creating things out of whole cloth, but they were able to choose those things that people would remember and what would be lost and forgotten over time.  They had to make the decision, for instance, which story they told was the "main" storyline, and which were listed as coming from "other books", implying a degree of separation from the truth. Through all of this, it certainly seems that propping up the royal family and its lineage was a central focus—even if that lineage was largely something that had recently been created.  As a reminder, we see a lot heavier reliance at this point on royal princes as opposed to other elite families, and an actual or implied reliance, in particular, on the royal family, as that is where Ohoama was consolidating most of the power and authority. Kitayama Shigeo coined the term "Koushin Seiji" to refer to this idea of a consolidated royal—or imperial—family managing the affairs of state.  Literally it is something like "Imperial Family Government".   In Shigeo's concept this was specifically an autocratic authority executed by the sovereign, and those of his immediate family.  Of course, writing in the post-war era, it is more than a little likely that Shigeo and others were looking at the concept of Tennou in the 20th century compared with many other world monarchs.  In that vein, the Asuka and Nara periods do seem to have been one of the rare times—perhaps even the last time—that the sovereigns had such a direct hand in the government and the making and establishment of law and tradition. That said, not everyone ascribes entirely to the idea that Ohoama was a completely autocratic despot—after all, it was clear that there were still plenty of powerful families in the archipelago, and the Ritsuryo state itself was also being strengthened.  Still, it does seem that Ohoama had brought his queen, Uno no Sarara, and his descendants into government.  And they would not only assist him, but continue his work for the next generations, such that even though the histories would not be finished until well after Ohoama's death, they would still show his influence on events. The dedication of the royal family to work as one is perhaps most clearly demonstrated in the events of the 5th lunar month of 679.  It was then that the sovereign, and his family, proceeded to the Yoshino Palace.  Now Ohoama had plenty of offspring—among them 10 sons.  And as long as he was around, there would be a certain amount of civility, but he knew all too well how things could break down after a sovereign's death.  And so he brought them together and he made them enter into a pact, which we know as the Yoshino Covenant, or Yoshino no Meiyaku.  Besides Ohoama himself, there were several others in attendance, presumably those who might stand to one day inherit the realm.  These included his partner and queen, Uno no Sarara Hime, as well as her son, Prince Kusakabe, who would be named Crown Prince, only a couple of years later.  It also included the Royal princes Ohotsu, Takechi, Kawashima, Osakabe, and Shiki.  All of these individuals were made to swear an oath to support each other, even though they were all from different mothers, and they agreed. But so what?  Why does it matter?  It is all well and good that Ohoama brought them together for a bit of kumbaya in his old digs away from the capital, but was there anything really to this covenant. This covenant is significant in several ways.  First off, it is clear that Ohoama was pulling in his family and trying to ensure they were onboard with what he was doing and what was planned.  Furthermore, it set out a clear line of succession, something that had not really been done up to this point. We have ideas on what would have made a candidate eligible, but other than naming a particular crown prince there hasn't exactly been any clear process or rules of precedence for who would assume the throne.  Here, though, we have a list that appears to be in order of precedence, since it otherwise may not seem to make sense, at least from a modern perspective. A key clue in the Chronicles is often the order of the names.  The most important or highest ranking person is usually given first, and then names are typically given in descending order of precedence.  There are clues that this is the case, but it becomes even more stark when we actually see reference to an individual's court rank or the size of their fief.  Since this period brings about court rank even for royal princes, we have some of that, at least in later records.  As such, there is the idea that this order was actually providing for a line of succession.   As I mentioned, up to this point, the contest for the throne was a toss up with each monarch's death.  Claims from competing princes were often considered equally valid until one proved their claim through a political or military victory.  Ohoama appears to have been trying to add greater structure to this.  Specifically, we see that Uno no Sarara's son, Kusakabe, is given pride of place.  In fact, throughout the Chronicle it is typical that we see the Chroniclers designate a queen—a Kougou—that is considered the primary wife.  This queen is almost always found to be the descendant of previous royalty, granting their child a doubly royal lineage, through both the maternal and paternal lines.   There has been plenty of reason to doubt that this was actually the case, and it often seems like the Chroniclers stretched things more than a bit to make it all work out.  However, now we are almost more concerned with the very *truth* that the Chroniclers were attempting to burn into the social consciousness rather than the historical facts, because that gives us direct insight into how the court of the day viewed succession and legitimacy.And that does lead to another possible thought:  since the Chroniclers knew how things turned out it is possible that they were the ones ensuring that the order was as we have it.  So we cannot definitively say that this exactly mirrors's Ohoama's idea, but it certainly seems in line with his history and intentions and helps set the stage for us, at least, regarding what would later transpire in regards to succession.. Getting back to the covenant, as I noted, the first person listed, after Ohoama and Uno no Sarara Hime, is Prince Kusakabe.  He would be about 17 or 18 years old at this time, which is probably why he wasn't formally named Crown Prince until a couple of years later.  He isn't the eldest son, however.  Rather he was the second son.  Ohoama's eldest son, Prince Takechi, was actually third in line. Takechihad been with his father helping to lead the troops during the Jinshin War. While he was some 8 years senior to Kusakabe, he was nonetheless a son of Amago no Musume, one of Ohoama's consorts from a powerful clan, but not a royal princess like Uno no Sarara, Kusakabe's mother. Between Kusakabe and Takechi, in the second place spot for succession, was actually Prince Ohotsu, whom we also mentioned during the Jinshin War.  Ohotsu was likely 16-17 years old around this time.  While he was the third eldest child, he, like Kusakabe, was the son of a Royal Princess, Princess Ota, daughter of Naka no Oe, giving him greater bonafides than Takechi, apparently. So, in the top three slots, we have: Ohoama's eldest son by a royal mother, Ohoama's second eldest son by a royal mother, and finally Ohoama's eldest son by a non-royal mother. Fourth in line, and the 4th eldest, presumably, though I don't know that we have an actual age for him, is Prince Wosakabe.  He likely wasn't too young, however, as he had been given the task, previously, to polish the divine treasures in Isonokami's storehouse. It would appear that six of Ohoama's other sons didn't even get a mention.  That includes Princes Naga and Yuge, born to another daughter of Naka no Ohoe, Ohoye no Himemiko.  Then there is Prince Toneri, son of Royal Princess Nittabe, not to be confused with Royal Prince Nittabe, Ohoama's son by way of a daughter of Fujiwara no Kamatari.  Finally there was Royal Prince Hodzumi, a maternal grandson of Soga no Akaye, and Prince Shiki, a full brother to Prince Wosakabe. Prince Toneri is particularly conspicuous in his absence.  We know that he held the 5th rank, and two positions in government—that of Nagon, or Councillor, as well as the Minister of the Household, our Kunaikyou.  This may be because he was not doing so well.  We aren't told the story until the following year, on the 2nd day of the 7th lunar month of 680, when we are told that Prince Toneri took ill and was on the point of death.  His half-brother, Prince Takechi, went to check on him, and a day later Toneri passed away.  The way these are written it would be easy to believe that it all happened in a pretty short timeframe, but it is also just as likely that illness lingered, especially without modern medicine.  So it is possible that Prince Toneri was too sick at the time of the original covenant, though there could be some other reason we weren't told. This doesn't necessarily hold for all of the others, though.  For instance, we have the Princes Naga and Yuge mentioned in 693, well over a decade later, being granted the 2nd Broader Pure Rank at the same time that Prince Takechi is granted the 1st Broader Pure Rank.  So we can at least see that they were ranked below Takechi.   Similarly we see Prince Hodzumi likewise attained 2nd Broader Pure Rank at some point, and was still around to have his own fief and to receive houses to it in the following reign.  Hozumi even ranked above some of the others were in Yoshino, and yet was not present. It is possible that the princes not mentioned, assuming they had not met with an untimely end that was not mentioned in the record somewhere, could have been too young or too junior at the time of the meeting.  After all, when we look at the known ages of those who were there, we see that Prince Takechi may have been 25 years old, but Prince Kusakabe and Prince Otsu were just under 20, and it is unclear if others were older or younger than they were. There are two other princes who were part of the covenant who were not, perhaps surprisingly, sons of Ohoama.  Rather they were his nephews, sons of Ohoama's brother, Naka no Ohoe.  They were the princes Kawashima and Shiki. Kawashima is mentioned several times throughout the record.  Kawashima's mother was from a high ranking noble family, but given that Kawashima was married to his cousin, one of Ohoama's daughters, that may have brought him closer to the family.  He was about 22 years old at the time, too.  We see him often teaming up with Prince Osakabe on various projects, including the project to compile together the history of the royal household.  In fact, Prince Kawashima always precedes Prince Osakabe when they are mentioned together.  That said, we have evidence of Kawashima only being awarded up to 3rd Greater Pure rank, below even that of some who were not present, such as Prince Hodzumi.  His importance and impact, however, is noted through his numerous appearances in the record. In contrast, Prince Shiki has almost no mentions in the record.  It doesn't help that there are two Princes Shiki, one born to Naka no Ohoye and one born to Ohoama.  Their names are spelled differently, however, and although the first character of "Shiki" used in the Yoshino record matches neither name, the second character suggests that this was the son of Naka no Ohoye and not the Shiki that was brother to Prince Osakabe—though given that one followed the other in the record, there may have been some confusion on this point. And with all of that we have our apparent line of succession, as well as an idea of who the movers and shakers might be within the royal family.  From Ohoama and Uno no Sarara, we have Princes Kusakabe, Ohotsu, Takechi, Kawashima, Osakabe, and Shiki.  Six princes, four directly descended from the current sovereign, Ohoama, and two from the Naka no Ohoe lineage. Obviously, promoting the idea of a strictly patrilineal succession of father to son would have caused some problems for Ohoama's own legitimacy, not that anyone was going to gainsay him while he was on the throne.  However, with Kusakabe they seem to have established that in a de facto format, at least.  Furthermore it provided a blueprint for succession might fall to the other lines should the main line not work out.  This put Prince Ohotsu as next in line, should anything happen to Kusakabe, followed by Takechi.  That Kawashima may have had a shot over Osakabe and then Shiki is interesting as it suggests that it wasn't strictly about who descended from whom. We'll have to wait for Ohoama's death before we can fully appreciate how well this worked, of course.  Throughout history, agreements and covenants amongst powerful interests are often only as permanent as long as all of the interests remain aligned with one another, whether through mutual benefit or threat of consequences.  Once the power shifts, as it always does, those promises and treaties are almost always up for renegotiation, unless they are supported by some higher authority, whatever that might be. Following the royal family's off-site, they returned to the palace in Asuka.  There they had a formal ceremony in the Great Hall, the Ohodono, where the six princes all demonstrated their allegiance and paid respects to Ohoama.  Given the timing of this event, one can likely assume that it was a kind of public acknowledgement of the covenant and the agreement that they would all be working together as a united front on the project of the government. And with that, I think we can bring it to  a close for now.  There is plenty more about this reign to discuss before we move on, but we'll get there. Until then, if you like what we are doing, please tell your friends and feel free to rate us wherever you listen to podcasts.  If you feel the need to do more, and want to help us keep this going, we have information about how you can donate on Patreon or through our KoFi site, ko-fi.com/sengokudaimyo, or find the links over at our main website,  SengokuDaimyo.com/Podcast, where we will have some more discussion on topics from this episode. Also, feel free to reach out to our Sengoku Daimyo Facebook page.  You can also email us at the.sengoku.daimyo@gmail.com.  Thank you, also, to Ellen for their work editing the podcast. And that's all for now.  Thank you again, and I'll see you next episode on Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.  

Send us a textIn this month's episode, the crew of the Pyrite El Dorodo tie up loose ends on Ming 3 and venture forth into exotic and hostile jungle climes of Ming 7. Continuing on their search for the lost Emperor, will they finally find the object of their quest, or will the danger lurking in the alien jungle find them first?

Welcome back to another episode of Fratello On Air! This week, we chat about the legendary five-digit Rolex era and how it's probably the greatest collection of modern watches. We discuss why and mention some of our favorite models. Enjoy the show!For many of us, it seems that the five-digit Rolex period was around forever. In fact, the watches debuted in the late 1970s and stayed in production until 2012! That's a long time! Of course, there were tweaks over the 30-plus years, but the watches remain relevant today. We discuss their impact and why owning one can be an endgame move.HandgelenkskontrolleWe kick off our show with a discussion about Mike's recent trip to the United States and his proximity to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Then, we move on to watches. Mike recently spent a lengthy amount of time with the new Ming 37.11 Odyssey, a diver GMT that truly struck his fancy. Yes, he has ordered one. Then, Balazs mentions the new Louis Erard 2340, an attractive take on the integrated-bracelet sports watch. For the Handgelenkskontrolle, both of us are wearing a Ming 22.01 GMT. Mike's Gilt version is on the titanium Ming Universal Bracelet. However, Balazs scores the win with his Kyoto variant on the new titanium Ming Polymesh. It's fabulous!Five-digit RolexFor our main topic, we move on to five-digit Rolex and why it still reigns supreme as the greatest modern collection of watches. These pieces all had one foot in the modern era and one in the vintage period. Slim cases, stamped clasps, and mostly stamped end links are just some of the lovely old-world characteristics. Modern movements finally brought a quick-setting date function and modern frequencies. For those who enjoy aging, aluminum bezels, and the chance to find tritium, these watches tick a lot of boxes. Most importantly, though, these pieces can all be worn daily and should remain usable for decades to come. We also discuss how values are rising again after a post-pandemic drop.It's hard to go wrong with any five-digit Rolex, but each of us shares our favorite three models. Balazs enjoys the Submariner 14060 with tritium markers, an Explorer II 16570 with a polar-white dial, and the watch that brought Rolex into the mainstream, the Submariner Date 16610. As for Mike, he's in love with the flashy Submariner 16618 with blue dial, the ultimate classic Explorer 14270, and the under-the-radar Datejust 16200 or Turn-O-Graph 16264. Really, there's no wrong choice within the entire catalog, but we'd love to hear yours!We hope you enjoy today's episode. As always, thanks for listening, and feel free to share any topics that you'd like us to cover in the future.

For this episode's Opportunity Spotlight, we are joined by Elissa Ming Morrissette, Senior Vice President & Chief Development Officer of BC Cancer Foundation, who talks about their new Executive Director role. She explains what they are looking for in their future ED, who will play a pivotal role in the largest philanthropic funder of cancer research in British Columbia. Elissa also explores her collaborative leadership style built on trust, as well as some compelling reasons why a seasoned leader should join their foundation.

In this episode of PNC C-Speak, Ming Min Hui, executive director of the Boston Ballet, shares her journey from a ballet-loving child to a Wall Street banker and ultimately to Boston Ballet. She discusses the importance of merging business acumen with arts management, the mission-driven aspects of her work, and how the Boston Ballet influences the community through education and accessibility.  “Because it is a nonprofit and it's a mission-fulfilling organization, we can keep at the center of everything we do a real focus on pushing the boundaries of dance forward,” Hui says. “Really taking the risks of innovating and investing in these large-scale artistic works that are not necessarily commercially driven.” Listen to hear more about: How Hui's career went from Wall Street to ballet (0:53)The involvement of Boston Ballet in the community (7:58) The ways the Boston Ballet is shaping Boston's cultural landscape (15:10)          What's next for the Boston Ballet (21:47)Download a transcript of this episode.

MING's weekly Warmth radio show features the best in today's house and EDM as well as exclusive mixes and interviews from guest artists.MING Stuff >> https://solo.to/mingsmusic1001Tracklists >> https://1001.tl/lbknx3Beatport Track Charts >> https://hoodfamo.us/BPWRMTH

Ming Johanson - Tech History History of Chess and the future of the game with AISee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We return to our rundown of Flash Gordon, just as Flash and Prince Barin are being taken to the Hawkmen's planet to fight to the death!Flash Gordon was directed by Mike Hodges, the British filmmaker behind Get Carter and Pulp, and produced by the legendary Dino De Laurentiis. Based on the King Features comic strip created by Alex Raymond, the film stars Sam J. Jones as the all-American hero Flash, Melody Anderson as Dale Arden, Ornella Muti as the dangerous Princess Aura, Max von Sydow as Ming the Merciless, and Topol as the eccentric scientist Dr. Hans Zarkov. The supporting cast includes Timothy Dalton, Brian Blessed, Peter Wyngarde, Peter Duncan and John Hallam — a line-up that reads like a who's who of cult cinema.We dig into the incredible production history of Flash Gordon, from De Laurentiis' first attempts in the 1960s to his decision to turn down George Lucas — a choice that helped inspire Star Wars. The film's troubled development included a scrapped version by Nicolas Roeg, with Debbie Harry once rumoured to play Princess Aura. Eventually, Hodges took the reins, working from a screenplay by Lorenzo Semple Jr., the same writer who brought Batman's colourful POW! ZAP! style to TV in the 1960s. That influence is clear throughout, giving Flash Gordon its unmistakable comic-book tone.The film was shot mainly at Elstree and Shepperton Studios, pushing British set design and visual effects to the limit. For the famous Hawkmen sequence, the crew built a sixty-foot-high, hundred-foot-wide blue screen powered by a million watts of light. The result is one of the most gloriously excessive moments in sci-fi history — a flying army, Brian Blessed shouting “Gordon's alive!” and Queen blasting through the speakers.Speaking of Queen, we explore how their soundtrack revolutionised film music, paving the way for rock bands to score major blockbusters. The combination of Freddie Mercury's operatic flair and Howard Blake's orchestral compositions gave Flash Gordon a sonic identity that still feels fresh today.We also look at the film's eclectic cast. Sam J. Jones' brief but memorable career, Melody Anderson's move from acting to social work, and Ornella Muti's headline-grabbing life and legal troubles. There's Max von Sydow's path from The Seventh Seal to The Exorcist and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Topol's secret links to Mossad, Timothy Dalton's long and winding journey to becoming James Bond, and Peter Wyngarde's transformation from Department S to the gold-masked villain Klytus.And, of course, the mighty Brian Blessed — mountaineer, Shakespearean thunder-god, near-astronaut, and national treasure. From I, Claudius to Doctor Who, Cats, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, and beyond, he's one of Britain's most extraordinary performers.In this episode, we unpack the layers of Flash Gordon as both cult classic and chaotic masterpiece: how its bright visuals masked a difficult shoot, how its camp sensibility influenced generations of filmmakers, and why it remains a cornerstone of British sci-fi fandom. Whether you're here for trivia, nostalgia, or the Queen soundtrack alone, this is one of our most detailed episodes yet — and we'll be back next week with part two to finish the adventure.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/general-witchfinders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Wu Hsin revient sans cesse sur trois points clés. Premièrement, sur le plan phénoménal, lorsque l'on cesse de résister à Ce-qui-est et que l'on entre davantage en harmonie avec Lui, on atteint un état de Ming, ou vision claire. Une fois ce stade atteint, toute action devient wei wu wei, ou action sans action (sans effort), et l'on travaille en harmonie avec Ce-qui-est pour accomplir ce qui est nécessaire. Deuxièmement, à mesure que la vision claire s'approfondit (ce qu'il appelle l'ouverture de la grande porte), on comprend qu'il n'y a personne qui fasse quoi que ce soit et qu'il n'y a qu'Un qui fasse tout à travers les nombreux et divers phénomènes objectifs qui lui servent d'instruments. De là découle la troisième et dernière étape : le moi apparemment séparé est une idée fausse, créée par l'esprit qui divise tout en pseudo-sujet (moi) et objet (le monde extérieur à ce moi). Cette apparente dualité (dva en sanskrit, duo en latin, dual en anglais), ce sentiment d'être séparé et distinct, est la cause profonde du malheur.   Wu Hsin, qui signifie "sans mental", est un sage chinois imaginé par Roy Melvin, qui aurait un siècle après Confucius. Ses messages, situés au carrefour du zen, du taoisme et de l'advaita, sont intemporels et pleins de paradoxes permettant ainsi de ralentir l'esprit, voire de l'arrêter, à l'instar des koans zen, révélant ainsi notre nature profonde.   Après avoir écouté cet audio, oubliez le.   Bibliographie: Les enseignements perdus de Wu Hsin (https://www.babelio.com/livres/Melvin-Les-enseignements-perdus-de-Wu-Hsin/1922242 )   Musique: Bruno Léger   Narration et réalisation: Bruno Léger   Production: Les mécènes du Vieux Sage   Que règnent la paix et l'amour parmi tous les êtres de l'univers.    OM Shanti, Shanti, Shanti.  

Circadian timing shapes how we sleep, feel, and function each day. Satchidananda Panda, Ph.D., Salk Institute, explains that keeping daily light, meals, movement, and sleep in step with the body's internal clock supports alertness, metabolism, and recovery. Panda notes that evening light and late eating can make it harder to fall asleep and may work against healthy glucose control, while thoughtful timing of activity can improve energy and rest. He highlights that when we take medicines matters because the body's response changes across the day. Travel and shift work challenge these rhythms, but simple habits with light exposure, meal timing, and sleep can ease the strain. Panda also describes ongoing efforts testing practical routines, including limited daily eating windows paired with light and activity strategies. Series: "Stein Institute for Research on Aging" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 40733]

Circadian timing shapes how we sleep, feel, and function each day. Satchidananda Panda, Ph.D., Salk Institute, explains that keeping daily light, meals, movement, and sleep in step with the body's internal clock supports alertness, metabolism, and recovery. Panda notes that evening light and late eating can make it harder to fall asleep and may work against healthy glucose control, while thoughtful timing of activity can improve energy and rest. He highlights that when we take medicines matters because the body's response changes across the day. Travel and shift work challenge these rhythms, but simple habits with light exposure, meal timing, and sleep can ease the strain. Panda also describes ongoing efforts testing practical routines, including limited daily eating windows paired with light and activity strategies. Series: "Stein Institute for Research on Aging" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 40733]

Circadian timing shapes how we sleep, feel, and function each day. Satchidananda Panda, Ph.D., Salk Institute, explains that keeping daily light, meals, movement, and sleep in step with the body's internal clock supports alertness, metabolism, and recovery. Panda notes that evening light and late eating can make it harder to fall asleep and may work against healthy glucose control, while thoughtful timing of activity can improve energy and rest. He highlights that when we take medicines matters because the body's response changes across the day. Travel and shift work challenge these rhythms, but simple habits with light exposure, meal timing, and sleep can ease the strain. Panda also describes ongoing efforts testing practical routines, including limited daily eating windows paired with light and activity strategies. Series: "Stein Institute for Research on Aging" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 40733]

Circadian timing shapes how we sleep, feel, and function each day. Satchidananda Panda, Ph.D., Salk Institute, explains that keeping daily light, meals, movement, and sleep in step with the body's internal clock supports alertness, metabolism, and recovery. Panda notes that evening light and late eating can make it harder to fall asleep and may work against healthy glucose control, while thoughtful timing of activity can improve energy and rest. He highlights that when we take medicines matters because the body's response changes across the day. Travel and shift work challenge these rhythms, but simple habits with light exposure, meal timing, and sleep can ease the strain. Panda also describes ongoing efforts testing practical routines, including limited daily eating windows paired with light and activity strategies. Series: "Stein Institute for Research on Aging" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 40733]

Circadian timing shapes how we sleep, feel, and function each day. Satchidananda Panda, Ph.D., Salk Institute, explains that keeping daily light, meals, movement, and sleep in step with the body's internal clock supports alertness, metabolism, and recovery. Panda notes that evening light and late eating can make it harder to fall asleep and may work against healthy glucose control, while thoughtful timing of activity can improve energy and rest. He highlights that when we take medicines matters because the body's response changes across the day. Travel and shift work challenge these rhythms, but simple habits with light exposure, meal timing, and sleep can ease the strain. Panda also describes ongoing efforts testing practical routines, including limited daily eating windows paired with light and activity strategies. Series: "Stein Institute for Research on Aging" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 40733]

Circadian timing shapes how we sleep, feel, and function each day. Satchidananda Panda, Ph.D., Salk Institute, explains that keeping daily light, meals, movement, and sleep in step with the body's internal clock supports alertness, metabolism, and recovery. Panda notes that evening light and late eating can make it harder to fall asleep and may work against healthy glucose control, while thoughtful timing of activity can improve energy and rest. He highlights that when we take medicines matters because the body's response changes across the day. Travel and shift work challenge these rhythms, but simple habits with light exposure, meal timing, and sleep can ease the strain. Panda also describes ongoing efforts testing practical routines, including limited daily eating windows paired with light and activity strategies. Series: "Stein Institute for Research on Aging" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 40733]

Circadian timing shapes how we sleep, feel, and function each day. Satchidananda Panda, Ph.D., Salk Institute, explains that keeping daily light, meals, movement, and sleep in step with the body's internal clock supports alertness, metabolism, and recovery. Panda notes that evening light and late eating can make it harder to fall asleep and may work against healthy glucose control, while thoughtful timing of activity can improve energy and rest. He highlights that when we take medicines matters because the body's response changes across the day. Travel and shift work challenge these rhythms, but simple habits with light exposure, meal timing, and sleep can ease the strain. Panda also describes ongoing efforts testing practical routines, including limited daily eating windows paired with light and activity strategies. Series: "Stein Institute for Research on Aging" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 40733]

En 2001, dans le village de Dahong, niché au cœur de la province chinoise du Hubei, le Nouvel An lunaire battait son plein. Tandis que les feux d'artifice illuminaient le ciel, une autre série de détonations, plus sourdes, plus inquiétantes, a soudain résonné dans la montagne voisine… Les villageois ont aussitôt compris que des pilleurs de tombes tentaient de passer à l'action, et ils alertèrent immédiatement la police. L'emplacement de la tombe était connu de longue date, mais pas ce qu'elle renfermait… En pénétrant le mausolée, après l'arrestation des pillards, les archéologues envoyés par les autorités découvrirent alors un véritable trésor, datant de la dynastie Ming. Des milliers d'objets fabuleux en or, jade et pierres précieuses… Parmi lesquelles, des émeraudes venues de l'autre bout du monde. La Voix des Bijoux est un podcast de L'École des Arts Joailliers, avec le soutien de Van Cleef & Arpels. Avec la participation de Bei He, historienne de l'art et professeur à l'École des Arts Joailliers. Écrit par Martin Quenehenne et Aram Kebabdjian, interprété par Pierre-François Garel et produit par Bababam. Hébergé par Acast. Visitez acast.com/privacy pour plus d'informations.

A Dramatic WednesdayFirst,  a look at this day in History.Then, Escape, originally broadcast November 5, 1950, 75 years ago, Earth Abides, part 1 starring John Dehner.  The George Stewart story about the end of The Age Of Man, and the beginning of The Age Of The Rat.Followed by Boston Blackie starring Dick Kollmar, originally broadcast November 5, 1946, 79 years ago,  A New Face for Joe Harvey.  Joe Harvey has had plastic surgery and has a whole new face. The cops will never find him now...only, his new face is that of Donald Tate, a cop-killer. Then, Dangerous Assignment starring Brian Donlevy,  originally broadcast November 5, 1952, 73 years ago, Havana.  U.S. agent Steve Mitchell travels overseas on a covert mission to uncover corruption and espionage threatening American interests abroad.Followed by Nick Carter Master Detective starring Lon Clark, originally broadcast November 5, 1944, 81 years ago,  Death in the Pool.  Nick investigates a baffling murder case involving a mysterious disappearance and a deadly secret hidden behind an ordinary crime.Finally, Claudia, originally broadcast November 5, 1947, 78 years ago, The Broken Mandarin.  After a visit to the zoo, the Ming meets his ancestors.Thanks to Richard G for supporting our podcast by using the Buy Me a Coffee function at http://classicradio.streamCheck out Professor Bees Digestive Aid at profbees.com and use my promo code WYATT to save 10% when you order! Find the Family Fallout Shelter Booklet Here: https://www.survivorlibrary.com/library/the_family_fallout_shelter_1959.pdfhttps://wardomatic.blogspot.com/2006/11/fallout-shelter-handbook-1962.html

Fluent Fiction - Mandarin Chinese: A Violin's Calling: Li Wei's Journey to Self-Belief Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/zh/episode/2025-11-04-23-34-02-zh Story Transcript:Zh: 李伟站在学校的走廊上，微风轻轻拂过他的脸。En: Li Wei stood in the school hallway as a gentle breeze brushed against his face.Zh: 他手里握着小提琴，心里却像装着一只快乐的小鸟，总是想飞出去。En: He held a violin in his hand, but in his heart, there was a joyful little bird that always wanted to fly away.Zh: 深秋的校园被五颜六色的树叶装扮得格外美丽。En: The campus in late autumn was extraordinarily beautiful, adorned by colorful leaves.Zh: 晚秋的阳光明媚，但李伟的心情却紧张得像即将到来的暴风雨。En: The late autumn sun shone brightly, but Li Wei's mood was as tense as an impending storm.Zh: 李伟是个腼腆的学生，通常在人群中很少引起注意。En: Li Wei was a shy student, usually not attracting much attention in a crowd.Zh: 他的好朋友小林和明对他即将参加的学校才艺表演充满了期待。En: His close friends, Xiaolin and Ming, were filled with anticipation for his upcoming performance at the school talent show.Zh: 小林总是对李伟的才艺充满信心，但李伟自己却常常感到不安。En: Xiaolin always had confidence in Li Wei's talent, but Li Wei often felt uneasy himself.Zh: 他害怕在舞台上出错，害怕面对台下那么多双期待的眼睛。En: He was afraid of making mistakes on stage, scared of facing so many expectant eyes from the audience.Zh: 距才艺表演还有一星期，李伟在音乐教室练习，小提琴的声音在空气中回旋。En: With a week until the talent show, Li Wei practiced in the music classroom, the sound of the violin resonating through the air.Zh: 他开始犹豫，是坚持下去，还是退出比赛。En: He began to hesitate, unsure whether to persevere or withdraw from the competition.Zh: 就在这时，小林走了进来，她拍拍李伟的肩膀说：“你可以的，我们都相信你。”En: Just then, Xiaolin walked in and patted him on the shoulder, saying, "You can do it, we all believe in you."Zh: 明也点头赞同。En: Ming nodded in agreement.Zh: 李伟心里暖暖的，他决定不再逃避。En: Li Wei felt a warmth in his heart and decided not to avoid it anymore.Zh: 他找到了音乐老师，悄悄分享了自己的担心。En: He found the music teacher and quietly shared his worries.Zh: 老师微笑着说：“音乐是从心里演奏出来的，不用害怕，让它自然流淌。”En: The teacher smiled and said, "Music is played from the heart. Don't be afraid, let it flow naturally."Zh: 才艺表演的那天晚上，学校礼堂座无虚席，舞台灯光明亮。En: On the night of the talent show, the school auditorium was packed, and the stage lights were bright.Zh: 李伟穿着整洁的演出服，紧张地站在舞台一侧，他的手心微微出汗。En: Dressed neatly in performance attire, Li Wei stood nervously at one side of the stage, his palms slightly sweaty.Zh: 轮到他上场的时候，所有的灯光都对准了他。En: When it was his turn, all the lights focused on him.Zh: 台下一片安静，李伟却慌了神。En: The audience was silent, but Li Wei felt a wave of panic.Zh: 就在此时，他看见了坐在前排的小林，她正在对他微笑，并给了他一个坚定的点头。En: At that moment, he saw Xiaolin sitting in the front row, smiling at him and giving him a steadfast nod.Zh: 李伟深吸一口气，抚慰自己内心的紧张，慢慢将弓拉过琴弦。En: Li Wei took a deep breath, calming his inner nerves, and slowly drew the bow across the strings.Zh: 悠扬的琴声在寂静的礼堂中荡漾开来。En: The melodious sound of the violin spread throughout the silent auditorium.Zh: 当最后一个音符消散在空气中时，全场爆发出热烈的掌声。En: When the last note faded into the air, the entire hall erupted in enthusiastic applause.Zh: 李伟从未想过自己能得到这样的认可，他的心中涌出一股难以言喻的自豪感。En: Li Wei had never imagined receiving such recognition, and an indescribable sense of pride surged within him.Zh: 经过这次表演，李伟不再只是那个胆小内向的学生。En: After this performance, Li Wei was no longer just the timid and introverted student.Zh: 他发现自己可以在朋友和老师的支持下，面对任何挑战。En: He discovered that with the support of his friends and teachers, he could face any challenge.Zh: 他走下舞台，和小林、明交换了一个胜利的微笑。En: He stepped off the stage and exchanged a victorious smile with Xiaolin and Ming.Zh: 李伟知道，这是一个新的开始。En: Li Wei knew this was a new beginning.Zh: 通过这一次的努力和成功，他明白了一个重要的道理：自信是一点一点积累起来的，只要相信自己，就能创造出奇迹。En: Through his effort and success this time, he understood an important truth: confidence is built up bit by bit, and as long as you believe in yourself, you can create miracles.Zh: 秋天的校园仍然热闹非凡，而李伟的心情，已如同这灿烂的阳光，灿烂而温暖。En: The campus in autumn was still bustling, but Li Wei's mood was now as splendid and warm as the radiant sunlight. Vocabulary Words:hallway: 走廊breeze: 微风brushed: 拂过violin: 小提琴joyful: 快乐adorned: 装扮extraordinarily: 格外tense: 紧张impending: 即将到来的storm: 暴风雨shy: 腼腆anticipation: 期待performance: 表演uneasy: 不安persevere: 坚持withdraw: 退出steadfast: 坚定melodious: 悠扬resonating: 回旋auditorium: 礼堂attire: 服装slightly: 微微sweaty: 出汗panic: 慌了神calm: 抚慰enthusiastic: 热烈recognition: 认可pride: 自豪感victorious: 胜利splendid: 灿烂

A Funny Tuesday First, a look at the events of the day.Then, Abbott and Costello, originally broadcast November 4, 1943, 82 years ago with guest Lana Turner.   Abbott and Costello are having trouble getting into the NBC studio before they go on the air. This program is remembered as being broadcast on the day Lou Costello's infant son died by drowning. No mention of this tragedy is made until the very end of the show, when Bud Abbott tells the radio audience what happened. During the program, there was no sign by Costello of anything else on his mind but the next corny joke.  Followed by The Burns and Allen Show,  originally broadcast November 4, 1941, 84 years ago, Gracie playing Mrs North?   MGM wants Gracie to appear in the new movie to be made about "Mr. and Mrs. North." Gracie's not interested. The locket Paul Whiteman has for his wife complicates the plot. Then, The Milton Berle Show, originally broadcast November 4, 1947, 78 years ago, A Salute to Football.   Milton goes to see the "Fighting Irish." Followed by The CBS Radio Workshop, originally broadcast November 4, 1956, 69 years ago, Joe Miller's Joke Book.   A documentary about the history of jokes, including a fictionalized visit from the venerable Joe Miller himself!Finally, Claudia, originally broadcast November 4, 1947, 78 years ago, Roger's Visit.  David is given a beautiful Ming statuette...a short-lived gift.  Kathryn Bard and Paul Crabtree star.Thanks to Laurel for supporting our podcast by using the Buy Me a Coffee function at http://classicradio.streamCheck out Professor Bees Digestive Aid at profbees.com and use my promo code WYATT to save 10% when you order! If you like what we do here, visit our friend Jay at http://radio.macinmind.com for great old-time radio shows 24 hours a day

We and our guest writer Nate Ming discuss Shonen Jump manga Embers.   MAL Description: Middle school brawler Noboru Haitani has never lost a fight. But the bitter taste of a soccer defeat gradually warms him up to the sport, until one day Haitani finds himself in a match against a team featuring middle school soccer prodigy Takami. An outlaw fights his way into the world of soccer!   Show Notes: • You can reach us at Twitter @shonenflopcast, Tumblr shonen-flop, or email shonenflop@gmail.com   • You can find our guest at bsky.app/profile/nateming.bsky.social   • Become a member of our community by joining our Discord. You can hang out with us, submit your questions or six word summaries! Find it at https://discord.com/invite/4hC3SqRw8r   • Want to be a guest? You can ask to be on a future episode at bit.ly/shonen_flop_guest   Credits: • Manga by Nishii, Soutarou (Art), Kurumazaki, Kei (Story)   • Shonen Flop is hosted by David Weinberger and Jordan Forbes   • Additional editing assistance by Dylan Krider you can find his podcast, Anime Out of Context at animeoutofcontext.com   • Assistance with pronunciation, translation, and other miscellaneous research done by Tucker Whatley and MaxyBee   • Episode art by Merliel (IG: mer_liel)   • Cover art funded by our generous art benefactor Nigel Francis

MING's weekly Warmth radio show features the best in today's house and EDM as well as exclusive mixes and interviews from guest artists.MING Stuff >> https://solo.to/mingsmusic1001Tracklists >> https://1001.tl/lbknx3Beatport Track Charts >> https://hoodfamo.us/BPWRMTH

This episode we start to get more into the material culture of the period with court fashion, as we look at the court robes that went along with the updated court ranks.  Granted, we only have a few resources, but from those it does seem like we can construct at least a plausible idea of what the court may have looked like at this time. For more discussion, check out the blogpost:  https://sengokudaimyo.com/podcast/episode-137   Rough Transcript Welcome to Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.  My name is Joshua and this is Episode 137:  Courtly Fashion. In the New Year's ceremony, the court officials lined up in front of the Kiyomihara Palace, arranged by their relative court rank, dressed in their assigned court robes.  The effect was impressive—the rows of officials painting the courtyard like the bands of color in a rainbow, albeit one with only a couple of hues.  The fact that they were all wearing the same style of dress and black, stiffened gauze hats only added to the effect.  The individual officers were all but lost in what was, at least in outward form, a single, homogenous machine of government, just waiting for the command of their monarch to attend to the important matters of state. We are covering the reign of Ohoama no Ohokimi, aka Ama no Nunahara oki no mabito no Sumera no Mikoto, aka Temmu Tennou.  Last episode we went over the changes he had made to the family titles—the kabane—as well as to the courtly rank system.  For the former, he had consolidated the myriad kabane and traditional titles across Yamato into a series of eight—the Yakusa no Kabane.   These were, from highest to lowest: Mabito, Asomi, Sukune, Imiki, Michinoshi, Omi, Muraji, and Inaki.  By the way, you might notice that "Mabito" actually occurs in Ohoama's posthumous name:  Ama no Nunahara oki no mabito, which lends more credence to the idea that that kabane was for those with a special connection to the royal lineage. Besides simplifying and restructuring the kabane, Ohoama also reformed the court rank system.  He divided the Princely ranks into two categories:  Myou, or Bright, and Jou, or Pure.  For the court nobles the categories were:                Shou – Upright                Jiki – Straight                Gon – Diligent                Mu – Earnest                Tsui – Pursue                Shin – Advancement Each category was further divided into four grades (except for the very first princely category, Myou, which was only two).  Each grade was then further divided into large, "dai", or broad, "kou". And this brings us to our topic today. Along with this new rank system, Ohoama's administration also instituted a new set of court sumptuary laws. Some are vague in the record—we can just make assumptions for what is going on based on what we know from later fashion choices.  Others are a little more clear.  We'll take a look at those sumptuary laws, particularly those that were directly associated with the new court rank system, but we'll also look at the clothing styles more generally. To start with, let's talk about what we know about clothing in the archipelago in general.  Unfortunately, fabric doesn't tend to survive very well in the generally acidic soils of the Japanese archipelago.  Cloth tends to break down pretty quickly.  That said, we have fragments here and there and impressions in pottery, so we have some idea that there was some kind of woven fabric from which to make clothing out of. And before I go too far I want to give a shout out to the amazing people at the Kyoto Costume Museum.  They have a tremendous website and I will link to it in the comments.  While there may be some debate over particular interpretations of historical clothing, it is an excellent resource to get a feel for what we know of the fashion of the various periods.  I'll also plug our own website, SengokuDaimyo.com, which has a "Clothing and Accessory" section that, while more geared towards Heian and later periods, may still be of some use in looking up particular terms and getting to know the clothing and outfits. At the farthest reaches of pre-history, we really don't have a lot of information for clothing.  There is evidence of woven goods in the Jomon period, and we have Yayoi burials with bits of cloth here and there, but these are all scraps.  So at best we have some conjecture as to what people were wearing, and possibly some ability to look across the Korean peninsula and see what people had, there. There are scant to no reliable records from early on in Japanese history, and most of those don't really do a great job of describing the clothing.  Even where we do get something, like the Weizhi, one has to wonder given how they tended to crib notes from other entries. There is at least one picture scroll of interest: Portraits of Periodical Offering of Liang, or Liáng -Zhígòngtú.  It is said to have been painted by Xiao Yi in the early 6th century, and while the original no longer exists there is an 11th century copy from the time of the Song Dynasty.  The scroll shows  various ambassadors to the Liang court, including one from Wa.  The Wa ambassador is shown with what appears to be a wide piece of cloth around his hips and legs, tied in front.  His lower legs are covered in what we might call kyahan today: a rather simple wrap around leg from below the knee to the foot.  He has another, blue piece of cloth around his shoulders, almost like a shawl, and it is also tied in front.  Then there is a cloth wrapped and tied around his head. It's hard to know how much of this depiction is accurate and how much the artist was drawing on memory and descriptions from things like the Weizhi or Wei Chronicles, which stated that the Wa people wore wide cloths wrapped around and seamlessly tied As such, it may be more helpful to look at depictions actually from the archipelago: specifically, some of the human-figured haniwa, those clay cylinders and statues that adorned the burial mounds which gave the kofun period its name.  Some of these haniwa are fairly detailed, and we can see ties, collars, and similar features of clothing. These haniwa primarily seem to cluster towards the end of the Kofun period, in the later 6th century, so it is hard to say how much they can be used for earlier periods, though that is exactly what you will typically see for periods where we have little to know evidence.  I'm also not sure how regional certain fashions might have been, and we could very much be suffering from survivorship bias—that is we only know what survived and assume that was everything, or even the majority. Still, it is something. Much of what we see in these figures is some kind of upper garment that has relatively tight sleeves, like a modern shirt or jacket might have, with the front pieces overlapping create a V-shaped neckline.  The garment hem often hangs down to just above the knee, flaring out away from the body, and it's held closed with ties and some kind of belt, possibly leather in some cases, and in others it looks like a tied loop of cloth.  There is evidence of a kind of trouser, with two legs, and we see ties around the knee.  In some cases, they even have small bells hanging from the ties.  Presumably the trousers might have ties up towards the waist, but we cannot see that in the examples we have. We also see individuals who have no evidence of any kind of bifurcated lower garment.  That may indicate an underskirt of some kind, or possibly what's called a "mo"—but it could also be just a simplification for stability, since a haniwa has a cylindrical base anyway.  It is not always obvious when you are looking at a haniwa figure whether it depicts a man or woman: in some cases there are two dots on the chest that seem to make it obvious, but the haniwa do come from different artisans in different regions, so there is a lot of variability. We also see evidence of what seem to be decorative sashes that are worn across the body, though not in all cases.  There are various types of headgear and hairstyles.  Wide-brimmed and domed hats are not uncommon, and we also see combs and elaborate hairstyles depicted.  On some occasions we can even see that they had closed toed shoes.  For accessories, we see haniwa wearing jewelry, including necklaces (worn by both men and women), bracelets, and earrings.  In terms of actual human jewelry, early shell bracelets demonstrate trade routes, and the distinctive magatama, or comma shaped jewel, can be found in the archipelago and on the Korean peninsula, where it is known as "gogok".  Based on lines or even colored pigment on the haniwa, it appears that many of these outfits were actually quite heavily decorated.  Paint on the outfits is sometimes also placed on the face, suggesting that they either painted or tattooed themselves, something mentioned in the Wei Chronicles.  We also have archaeological examples of dyed cloth, so it is interesting that people are often depicted in undyed clothing.  There is one haniwa that I find particularly interesting, because they appear to be wearing more of a round-necked garment, and they have a hat that is reminiscent of the phrygian cap: a conical cap with the top bent forward.  These are traits common to some of the Sogdians and other Persian merchants along the silk road, raising the possibility that it is meant to depict a foreigner, though it is also possible that it was just another local style. If we compare this to the continent, we can see some immediate difference.  In the contemporaneous Sui dynasty, we can see long flowing robes, with large sleeves for men and women.  The shoes often had an upturned placket that appears to have been useful to prevent one from tripping on long, flowing garments.  Many of these outfits were also of the v-neck variety, with two overlapping pieces, though it is often shown held together with a fabric belt that is tied in front.  The hats appear to either be a kind of loose piece of fabric, often described as a turban, wrapped around the head, the ends where it ties together trailing behind, or black lacquered crowns—though there were also some fairly elaborate pieces for the sovereign. As Yamato started to import continental philosophy, governance, and religion, they would also start to pick up on continental fashion.  This seems particularly true as they adopted the continental concept of "cap rank" or "kan-i". Let's go over what we know about this system, from its first mention in the Chronicles up to where we are in Ohoama's reign. As a caveat, there is a lot we don't know about the details of these garments, but we can make some guesses. The first twelve cap-ranks, theoretically established in 603, are somewhat questionable in their historicity, as are so many things related to Shotoku Taishi.  And their names are clearly based on Confucian values:  Virtue, Humanity, Propriety, Faith, Justice, and Wisdom, or Toku, Nin, Rei, Shin, Gi, and Chi.  The five values and then just "Virtue", itself. The existence of this system does seem to be confirmed by the Sui Shu, the Book of Sui, which includes a note in the section on the country of Wa that they used a 12 rank system based on the Confucian values, but those values were given in the traditional Confucian order vice the order given in the Nihon Shoki.   The rank system of the contemporaneous Sui and Tang dynasties was different from these 12 ranks, suggesting that the Yamato system either came from older dynasties—perhaps from works on the Han dynasty or the Northern and Southern Dynasty, periods—or they got it from their neighbors, Baekje, Silla, and Goguryeo.  There does seem to be a common thread, though, that court rank was identifiable in one's clothes. As for the caps themselves, what did they look like?  One would assume that the Yamato court just adopted a continental style cap, and yet, which one? It isn't fully described, and there are a number of types of headwear that we see in the various continental courts. Given that, we aren't entirely sure exactly what it looked like, but we do have a couple of sources that we can look at and use to make some assumptions.  These sources l ead us to the idea of a round, colored cap made of fabric, around the brim that was probably the fabric or image prescribed for that rank.  It is also often depicted with a bulbous top, likely for the wearer's hair, and may have been tied to their top knot.     Our main source for this is the Tenjukoku Mandala Embroidery (Tenjukoku-mandara-shuuchou) at Chuuguuji temple, which was a temple built for the mother of Prince Umayado, aka Shotoku Taishi.    This embroidery was created in 622, so 19 years after the 12 ranks would have been implemented. It depicts individuals in round-necked jackets that appear to have a part straight down the center.  Beneath the jacket one can see a pleated hem, possibly something like a "hirami", a wrapped skirt that is still found in some ceremonial imperial robes.  It strikes me that this could also be the hem of something like the hanpi, which was kind of like a vest with a pleated lower edge.  Below that we see trousers—hakama—with a red colored hem—at least on one figure that we can see.  He also appears to be wearing a kind of slipper-like shoe. As for the women, there are a few that appear to be in the mandala, but it is hard to say for certain as the embroidery has been damaged over the years. That said, from what we can tell, women probably would have worn something similar to the men in terms of the jacket and the pleated under-skirt, but then, instead of hakama, we see a pleated full-length skirt, or mo.  We also don't have a lot of evidence for them wearing hats or anything like that. The round necked jacket is interesting as it appears to be similar to the hou that was common from northern China across the Silk Road, especially amongst foreigners.  This garment  came to displace the traditional robes of the Tang court and would become the basis for much of the court clothing from that period, onwards.  The round necked garment had central panels that overlapped, and small ties or fastenings at either side of the neck to allow for an entirely enclosed neckline.  This was more intricate than just two, straight collars, and so may have taken time to adopt, fully. The next change to the cap-rank system was made in 647, two years into the Taika Reform.  The ranks then were more directly named for the caps, or crowns—kanmuri—and their materials and colors.  The ranks translate to Woven, Embroidered, Purple, Brocade, Blue, Black, and finally "Establish Valor" for the entry level rank. The system gets updated two years later, but only slightly.  We still see a reference to Woven stuff, Embroidery, and Purple, but then the next several ranks change to Flower, Mountain, and Tiger—or possibly Kingfisher.  These were a little more removed from the cap color and material, and may have had something to do with designs that were meant to be embroidered on the cap or on the robes in some way, though that is just speculation based on later Ming and Qing court outfits. Naka no Ohoye then updates it again in 664, but again only a little.  He seems to add back in the "brocade" category, swapping out the "flower", and otherwise just adds extra grades within each category to expand to 26 total rank grades. And that brings us to the reforms of 685, mentioned last episode.  This new system was built around what appear to be moral exhortations—Upright, Straight, Diligent, Earnest, etc.  And that is great and all, but how does that match up with the official robes? What color goes with each rank category?  Fortunately, this time around, the Chronicle lays it out for us pretty clearly. First off we are given the color red for the Princely ranks—not purple as one might have thought.  Specifically, it is "Vermillion Flower", hanezu-iro, which Bentley translates as the color of the "Oriental bush" or salmon.  In the blogpost we'll link to a table of colors that the founder of Sengoku Daimyo, Anthony Bryant, had put together, with some explanation of how to apply it.  I would note that there is often no way to know exactly what a given color was like or what shades were considered an acceptable range.  Everything was hand-dyed, and leaving fabric in the dye a little longer, changing the proportions, or just fading over time could create slightly different variants in the hue, but we think we can get pretty close. From there we have the six "common" ranks for the nobility.  Starting with the first rank, Upright, we have "Dark Purple".  Then we have "Light Purple".  This pattern continues with Dark and Light Green and then Dark and Light Grape or Lilac.  Purple in this case is Murasaki, and green here is specifically Midori, which is more specifically green than the larger category of "Aoi", which covers a spectrum of blue to green.  The grape or lilac is specifically "suou", and based on Bentley's colors it would be a kind of purple or violet. The idea is that the official court outfits for each rank would be the proper color.  And yes, that means if you get promoted in rank, your first paycheck—or rice stipend—is probably going to pay for a new set of official clothes.  Fortunately for the existing court nobles at the time, in the last month of 685, the Queen provided court clothing for 55 Princes and Ministers, so they could all look the part. And the look at court was important.  In fact, several of the edicts from this time focus specifically on who was allowed—or expected—to wear what.  For instance, in the 4th month of 681, they established 92 articles of the law code, and among those were various sumptuary laws—that is to say, laws as to what you could wear.  We are told that they applied to everyone from Princes of the blood down to the common person, and it regulated the wearing of precious metals, pearls, and jewels; the type of fabric one could use, whether purple, brocade, embroidery, or fine silks; and it also regulated woollen carpets, caps, belts, and the colors of various things. And here I'd like to pause and give some brief thought to how this played into the goals of the court, generally, which is to say the goal of creating and establishing this new system of governance in the cultural psyche of the people of the archipelago.  From the continental style palaces, to the temples, and right down to the clothing that people were wearing, this was all orchestrated, consciously or otherwise, to emphasize and even normalize the changes that were being introduced.  When everything around you is conforming to the new rules, it makes it quite easy for others to get on board. The court had surrounded themselves with monumental architecture that was designed along continental models and could best be explained through continental reasoning.  Even if they weren't Confucian or Daoist, those lines of reasoning ran through the various cultural and material changes that they were taking up.  Sure, they put their own stamp on it, but at the same time, when everything is right in front of you, it would become that much harder to deny or push back against it. And when you participated in the important rituals of the state, the clothing itself became a part of the pageantry.  It reinforced the notion that this was something new and different, and yet also emphasized that pushing against it would be going against the majority.  So court uniforms were another arm of the state's propaganda machine, all designed to reinforce the idea that the heavenly sovereign—the Tennou—was the right and just center of political life and deserving of their position.  Getting back to the sumptuary laws and rank based regulations: It is unfortunate that the record in the Nihon Shoki doesn't tell us exactly how things were regulated, only that they were, at least in some cases.  So for anything more we can only make assumptions based on later rules and traditions.  A few things we can see right away, though.  First is the restriction of the color purple.  Much as in Europe and elsewhere in the world, getting a dark purple was something that was not as easy as one might think, and so it tended to be an expensive dye and thus it would be restricted to the upper classes—in this case the princely and ministerial rank, no doubt.  Similarly brocade and fine silks were also expensive items that were likely restricted to people of a particular social station for that reason. The mention of woolen rugs is particularly intriguing.  Bentley translates this as woven mattresses, but I think that woolen rugs makes sense, as we do have examples of woolen "rugs" in Japan in at least the 8th century, stored in the famous Shousouin repository at Toudaiji temple, in Nara.  These are all imported from the continent and are actually made of felt, rather than woven.  As an imported item, out of a material that you could not get in the archipelago, due to a notable lack of sheep, they would have no doubt been expensive. The funny thing is that the carpets in the Shousouin may not have been meant as carpets.  For the most part they are of a similar size and rectangular shape, and one could see how they may have been used as sleeping mattresses or floor coverings.  However, there is some conjecture that they came from the Silk Road and may have been originally meant as felt doors for the tents used by the nomadic steppe peoples.  This is only conjecture, as I do not believe any of these rugs have survived in the lands where they would have been made, but given the size and shape and the modern yurt, it is not hard to see how that may have been the case.  Either way, I tend to trust that this could very well have meant woolen rugs, as Aston and the kanji themselves suggest, though I would understand if there was confusion or if it meant something else as wool was not exactly common in the archipelago at that time or in the centuries following. The last section of the regulations talks about the use of caps and belts.  The caps here were probably of continental origin:  The kanmuri, or official cap of state of the court nobles, or the more relaxed eboshi—though at this time, they were no doubt closely related. In fact, a year later, we have the most specific mention to-date of what people were actually wearing on their heads: there is a mention of men tying up their hair and wearing caps of varnished gauze.  Earlier caps related to the cap rank system are often thought to be something like a simple hemisphere  that was placed upon the head, with a bulbous top where the wearer's hair could be pulled up as in a bun. The kanmuri seems to have evolved from the soft black headcloth that was worn on the continent, which would have tied around the head, leaving two ends hanging down behind.  Hairstyles of the time often meant that men had a small bun or similar gathering of hair towards the back of their head, and tying a cloth around the head gave the effect of a small bump.  This is probably what we see in depictions of the early caps of state.  Sometimes this topknot could be covered with a small crown or other decoration, or wrapped with a cloth, often referred to as a "Tokin" in Japanese.  But over time we see the development of hardened forms to be worn under a hat to provide the appropriate silhouette, whether or not you actually had a topknot (possibly helpful for gentlemen suffering from hair loss).  And then the hat becomes less of a piece of cloth and more just a hat of black, lacquered gauze made on a form, which was much easier to wear.  At this point in the Chronicle, the cap was likely still somewhat malleable, and would made to tie or be pinned to that bun or queue of hair.  This explains the mention of men wearing their hair up.  This pin would become important for several different types of headgear, but ties were also used for those who did not have hair to hold the hat on properly. Two years after the edict on hats, we get another edict on clothing, further suggesting that the court were wearing Tang inspired clothing.  In 685 we see that individuals are given leave to wear their outer robe either open or tied closed. This is a clue that this outer robe might something akin to the round-necked hou that we see in the Tenjukoku Mandala, where the neck seems to close with a small tie or button.  However, we do see some examples, later, of v-necked garments with a tie in the center of the neck, so that may be the reference..  Opening the collar of the formal robes was somewhat akin to loosening a necktie, or unbuttoning the top button of a shirt.  It provided a more relaxed and comfortable feeling.  It could also be a boon in the warm days of summer.  Leaving it closed could create a more formal appearance. The courtiers also had the option of whether or not to wear the "Susotsuki", which Bentley translates as "skirt-band".  I believe this refers to the nai'i, or inner garment.  This would often have a pleated hem—a suso or ran—which would show below the main robe as just a slight hem.  Again, this is something that many would dispense with in the summer, or just when dressing a bit more casually, but it was required at court, as well as making sure that the tassles were tied so that they hung down.  This was the uniform of the court.  We are also told that they would have trousers that could be tied up, which sounds like later sashinuki, though it may have referred to something slightly different.  We are also given some regulations specifically for women, such as the fact that women over 40 years of age were allowed the discretion on whether or not to tie up their hair, as well as whether they would ride horses astride or side-saddle.  Presumably, younger women did not get a choice in the matter.  Female shrine attendants and functionaries were likewise given some leeway with their hairstyles. A year later, in 686, they do seem to have relaxed the hairstyles a bit more: women were allowed to let their hair down to their backs as they had before, so it seems that, for at least a couple of years, women under the age of 40 were expected to wear their hair tied up in one fashion or another. In that same edict, men were then allowed to wear "habakimo".  Aston translates this as "leggings" while Bentley suggests it is a "waist skirt".  There are an example of extant habakimo in the Shousouin, once again, and they appear to be wrappings for the lower leg.  It actually seems very closely related to the "kyahan" depicted all the way back in the 6th century painting of the Wo ambassador to Liang. Even though these edicts give a lot more references to clothing, there is still plenty that is missing.  It isn't like the Chroniclers were giving a red carpet style stitch-by-stitch critique of what was being worn at court.  Fortunately, there is a rather remarkable archaeological discovery from about this time. Takamatsuzuka is a kofun, or ancient burial mound, found in Asuka and dated to the late 7th or early 8th century.  Compared to the keyhole shaped tombs of previous centuries, this tomb is quite simple: a two-tiered circular tomb nestled in the quiet hills.  What makes it remarkable is that the inside of the stone burial chamber was elaborately painted.  There are depictions of the four guardian animals, as well as the sun and the moon, as well as common constellations.  More importantly, though, are the intricate pictures of men and women dressed in elaborate clothing. The burial chamber of Takamatsuzuka is rectangular in shape.  There are images on the four vertical sides as well as on the ceiling.  The chamber is oriented north-south, with genbu, the black tortoise, on the north wall and presumably Suzaku, the vermillion bird, on the south wall—though that had been broken at some point and it is hard to make out exactly what is there. The east and west walls are about three times as long as the north and south walls.  In the center of each is a guardian animal—byakko, the white tiger, on the west wall and seiryuu, the blue—or green—dragon on the east.  All of these images are faded, and since opening of the tomb have faded even more, so while photos can help, it may require a bit more investigation and some extrapolation to understand all of what we are looking at. On the northern side of both the east and west wall we see groups of four women.  We can make out green, yellow, and red or vermillion outer robes with thin fabric belt sashes, or obi, tied loosely and low around the waist.  There is another, lightly colored—possibly white, cream or pink—that is so faded it is hard to make out, and I don't know if that is the original color.  These are v-necked robes, with what appear to be ties at the bottom of the "v".  Around the belt-sash we see a strip of white peaking out from between the two sides of the robe—most likely showing the lining on an edge that has turned back slightly.  The cuffs of the robe are folded back, showing a contrasting color—either the sleeves of an underrobe or a lining of some kind.  Below the outer robe is a white, pleated hem—possibly a hirami or similar, though where we can make it out, it seems to be the same or similar color as the sleeves.  Under all of that, they then have a relatively simple mo, or pleated skirt.  The ones in the foreground are vertically striped in alternating white, green, red, and blue stripes.  There is one that may just be red and blue stripes, but I'm not sure.  In the background we see a dark blue—and possibly a dark green—mo.  At the base of each mo is a pleated fringe that appears to be connected to the bottom of the skirt.  The toe of a shoe seems to peek out from underneath in at least one instance.  They don't have any obvious hair ornaments, and their hair appears to be swept back and tied in such a way that it actually comes back up in the back, slightly.  They appear to be holding fans and something that might be a fly swatter—a pole with what looks like tassels on the end. In comparison, at the southern end of the tomb we have two groups of men.  These are much more damaged and harder to make out clearly.  They have robes of green, yellow, grey, blue, and what looks like dark blue, purple, or even black.  The neckline appears to be a v-necked, but tied closed, similar to what we see on the women.  We also see a contrasting color at the cuff, where it looks like the sleeves have turned back, slightly.  They have belt-sashes similar to the women, made of contrasting fabric to the robe itself.  Below that we see white trousers, or hakama, and shallow, black shoes.  On some of the others it is suggested that maybe they have a kind of woven sandal, but that is hard to make out in the current image.  On their heads are hats or headgear of black, stiffened—probably lacquered—gauze.  They have a bump in the back, which is probably the wearer's hair, and there is evidence of small ties on top and larger ties in the back, hanging down.  Some interpretations also show a couple with chin straps, as well, or at least a black cord that goes down to the chin.  They carry a variety of implements, suggesting they are attendants, with an umbrella, a folding chair, a pouch worn around the neck, a pole or cane of some kind, and a bag with some kind of long thing—possibly a sword or similar. The tomb was originally found by farmers in 1962, but wasn't fully examined until 1970, with an excavation starting in 1972.  The stone at the entryway was broken, probably from graverobbers, who are thought to have looted the tomb in the Kamakura period.  Fortunately, along with the bones of the deceased and a few scattered grave goods that the robbers must have missed, the murals also survived, and somehow they remained largely intact through the centuries.  They have not been entirely safe, and many of the images are damaged or faded, but you can still make out a remarkable amount of detail, which is extremely helpful in determining what clothing might have looked like at this time—assuming it is depicting local individuals. And there is the rub, since we don't know exactly whom the tomb was for.  Furthermore, in style it has been compared with Goguryeo tombs from the peninsula, much as nearby Kitora kofun is.  Kitora had images as well, but just of the guardian animals and the constellations, not of human figures. There are three theories as to who might have been buried at Takamatsuzuka.  One theory is that it was one of Ohoama's sons.  Prince Osakabe is one theory, based on the time of his death and his age.  Others have suggested Prince Takechi.  Based on the teeth of the deceased, they were probably in their 40s to 60s when they passed away. Some scholars believe that it may be a later, Nara period vassal—possibly, Isonokami no Maro.  That would certainly place it later than the Asuka period. The third theory is that it is the tomb of a member of one of the royal families from the Korean peninsula—possibly someone who had taken up refuge in the archipelago as Silla came to dominate the entire peninsula.  This last theory matches with the fact that Takamatsuzuka appears to be similar to tombs found in Goguryeo, though that could just have to do with where the tomb builders were coming from, or what they had learned. That does bring up the question of the figures in the tomb.  Were they contemporary figures, indicating people and dress of the court at the time, or were they meant to depict people from the continent?  Without any other examples, we may never know, but even if was indicative of continental styles, those were the very styles that Yamato was importing, so it may not matter, in the long run.     One other garment that isn't mentioned here is the hire, a scarf that is typically associated with women.  It is unclear if it has any relationship to the sashes we see in the Kofun period, though there is at least one mention of a woman with a hire during one of the campaigns on the Korean peninsula.  Later we see it depicted as a fairly gauzy piece of silk, that is worn somewhat like a shawl.  It is ubiquitous in Sui and Tang paintings of women, indicating a wide-ranging fashion trend.  The hire is a fairly simple piece of clothing, and yet it creates a very distinctive look which we certainly see, later. Finally, I want to take a moment to acknowledge that almost everything we have discussed here has to do with the elites of society—the nobles of the court.  For most people, working the land, we can assume that they were probably not immediately adopting the latest continental fashions, and they probably weren't dressing in silk very much.  Instead, it is likely that they continued to wear some version of the same outfits we see in the haniwa figures of the kofun period.  This goes along with the fact that even as the elite are moving into palaces built to stand well above the ground, we still have evidence of common people building and living in pit dwellings, as they had been for centuries.  This would eventually change, but overall they stuck around for quite some time.  However, farmers and common people are often ignored by various sources—they aren't often written about, they often aren't shown in paintings or statues, and they did often not get specialized burials.  Nonetheless, they were the most populous group in the archipelago, supporting all of the rest. And with that, I think we will stop for now.  Still plenty more to cover this reign.  We are definitely into the more historical period, where we have more faith in the dates—though we should remember that this is also one of the reigns that our sources were specifically designed to prop up, so we can't necessarily take everything without at least a hint of salt and speculation, even if the dates themselves are more likely to be accurate. Until then, if you like what we are doing, please tell your friends and feel free to rate us wherever you listen to podcasts.  If you feel the need to do more, and want to help us keep this going, we have information about how you can donate on Patreon or through our KoFi site, ko-fi.com/sengokudaimyo, or find the links over at our main website,  SengokuDaimyo.com/Podcast, where we will have some more discussion on topics from this episode. Also, feel free to reach out to our Sengoku Daimyo Facebook page.  You can also email us at the.sengoku.daimyo@gmail.com.  Thank you, also, to Ellen for their work editing the podcast. And that's all for now.  Thank you again, and I'll see you next episode on Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.  

Sorry this one's a bit late — but to make up for it, we've gone all in with an extra-long episode of General Witchfinders, split into two parts. This week, we take you through the extraordinary, over-the-top world of Flash Gordon (1980) — the space opera superhero film that blended camp comedy, science-fiction spectacle, and Queen's iconic soundtrack into something truly cosmic. The second half of this intergalactic adventure will land next week. Flash Gordon was directed by Mike Hodges, the British filmmaker behind Get Carter and Pulp, and produced by the legendary Dino De Laurentiis. Based on the King Features comic strip created by Alex Raymond, the film stars Sam J. Jones as the all-American hero Flash, Melody Anderson as Dale Arden, Ornella Muti as the dangerous Princess Aura, Max von Sydow as Ming the Merciless, and Topol as the eccentric scientist Dr. Hans Zarkov. The supporting cast includes Timothy Dalton, Brian Blessed, Peter Wyngarde, Peter Duncan and John Hallam — a line-up that reads like a who's who of cult cinema. We dig into the incredible production history of Flash Gordon, from De Laurentiis' first attempts in the 1960s to his decision to turn down George Lucas — a choice that helped inspire Star Wars. The film's troubled development included a scrapped version by Nicolas Roeg, with Debbie Harry once rumoured to play Princess Aura. Eventually, Hodges took the reins, working from a screenplay by Lorenzo Semple Jr., the same writer who brought Batman's colourful POW! ZAP! style to TV in the 1960s. That influence is clear throughout, giving Flash Gordon its unmistakable comic-book tone. The film was shot mainly at Elstree and Shepperton Studios, pushing British set design and visual effects to the limit. For the famous Hawkmen sequence, the crew built a sixty-foot-high, hundred-foot-wide blue screen powered by a million watts of light. The result is one of the most gloriously excessive moments in sci-fi history — a flying army, Brian Blessed shouting “Gordon's alive!” and Queen blasting through the speakers. Speaking of Queen, we explore how their soundtrack revolutionised film music, paving the way for rock bands to score major blockbusters. The combination of Freddie Mercury's operatic flair and Howard Blake's orchestral compositions gave Flash Gordon a sonic identity that still feels fresh today.We also look at the film's eclectic cast. Sam J. Jones' brief but memorable career, Melody Anderson's move from acting to social work, and Ornella Muti's headline-grabbing life and legal troubles. There's Max von Sydow's path from The Seventh Seal to The Exorcist and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Topol's secret links to Mossad, Timothy Dalton's long and winding journey to becoming James Bond, and Peter Wyngarde's transformation from Department S to the gold-masked villain Klytus.And, of course, the mighty Brian Blessed — mountaineer, Shakespearean thunder-god, near-astronaut, and national treasure. From I, Claudius to Doctor Who, Cats, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, and beyond, he's one of Britain's most extraordinary performers. In this episode, we unpack the layers of Flash Gordon as both cult classic and chaotic masterpiece: how its bright visuals masked a difficult shoot, how its camp sensibility influenced generations of filmmakers, and why it remains a cornerstone of British sci-fi fandom. Whether you're here for trivia, nostalgia, or the Queen soundtrack alone, this is one of our most detailed episodes yet — and we'll be back next week with part two to finish the adventure. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/general-witchfinders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fluent Fiction - Mandarin Chinese: From Rainfall to Triumph: Ming's Quest for Success Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/zh/episode/2025-10-30-07-38-20-zh Story Transcript:Zh: 在一个阴沉的秋日早晨，明从窗外望去，细雨无声地拍打着玻璃。En: On a gloomy autumn morning, Ming gazed out the window as fine rain silently tapped against the glass.Zh: 今天是重阳节，公司休息了一天，En: Today was the Chongyang Festival, and the company had a day off.Zh: 然而有一个重要会议需要明参加，他已经准备了很久。En: However, there was an important meeting that Ming needed to attend, one he had been preparing for a long time.Zh: 对他来说，这次会议决定了升迁的机会，这个机会对他和他的家人都至关重要。En: For him, this meeting could determine a promotion opportunity, which was crucial for both him and his family.Zh: 明平时是个勤奋的员工，总是承担着比别人更多的工作。En: Ming was typically a diligent employee, always taking on more work than others.Zh: 他希望今天的表现能打动严格但公正的老板嘉，赢得她的称赞。En: He hoped that his performance today could impress his strict yet fair boss, Jia, and earn her praise.Zh: 可是，天有不测风云，En: But, as fate would have it, unexpected events occurred.Zh: 他踏入地铁站后，被告知有突发的交通问题：由于大量的秋叶落在铁轨上，加上大雨，列车延误。En: When he stepped into the subway station, he was informed of sudden traffic issues: due to a large amount of fallen autumn leaves on the tracks, combined with heavy rain, the trains were delayed.Zh: 时间在一分一秒地流逝，明站在站台上，心急如焚。En: Time ticked by second by second as Ming stood on the platform, anxious.Zh: 为了不浪费更多时间，他马上拨通了同事亮的电话。En: Not wanting to waste more time, he quickly dialed his colleague Liang's phone number.Zh: “亮，帮我个忙，我可能会迟到。En: "Liang, can you do me a favor? I might be late.Zh: 能不能先帮我撑一下会议？”明尽量让自己的声音不显得慌乱。En: Could you cover for me at the meeting?" Ming tried to keep his voice calm.Zh: 亮总是很乐于助人，他安慰明：“放心吧，交给我。En: Liang was always helpful and reassured Ming: "Don't worry, leave it to me.Zh: 我先替你说几句。”挂掉电话后，明焦急地在脑中盘算着如何到达公司。En: I'll start with a few words for you." After hanging up, Ming anxiously planned in his head how to get to the company.Zh: 打车是最快的选择，但费用不菲。En: A taxi was the fastest option, but costly.Zh: 他犹豫了一下，决定寻找其他路线。En: He hesitated for a moment and decided to look for alternative routes.Zh: 终于，他发现还可以搭乘一条鲜有人知的小路公交，虽然这样他不得不淋湿在雨中，却别无选择。En: Finally, he discovered he could take a little-known bus route, although this meant getting wet in the rain, he had no other choice.Zh: 来到公司时，明的衣服已经湿透。En: When he arrived at the company, Ming's clothes were already soaked.Zh: 他急冲冲进了会议室，会议正进行得如火如荼。En: He rushed into the meeting room, where the meeting was in full swing.Zh: 他喘息着走到前面，亮已经把他的演讲稿准备好放在桌子上。En: Panting, he went to the front, and Liang had already prepared his presentation on the table.Zh: 明开始他的演讲，虽然开场有些紧张，但他很快镇定下来，流利地讲述自己的计划和建议。En: Ming began his presentation, and although he was initially nervous, he quickly composed himself and eloquently outlined his plans and proposals.Zh: 期间，他奋力抑制身体的寒意，全神贯注于会议。En: Throughout, he fought to suppress the chill in his body, fully concentrating on the meeting.Zh: 会议结束后，嘉点头表示认可，并对明说：“虽然过程有些曲折，但你的努力得到了体现。”En: After the meeting ended, Jia nodded in approval and said to Ming, "Although the process was a bit turbulent, your efforts were evident."Zh: 她赞扬明在困难前表现出的顽强和创新精神。En: She praised Ming for his tenacity and innovation in the face of difficulties.Zh: 那一天，明不仅赢得了老板的嘉许，也学会了如何依赖团队的力量。En: That day, Ming not only gained his boss's approval but also learned how to rely on the power of teamwork.Zh: 明白了自己的同事其实是可依靠的伙伴，能够在关键时刻伸出援手。En: He realized that his colleagues were indeed reliable partners who could lend a hand at critical times.Zh: 从此以后，明不再孤军奋战，而是与同事们更加紧密地合作。En: From then on, Ming no longer fought alone but collaborated more closely with his colleagues.Zh: 他意识到，寻求帮助并不是软弱，而是表示一种成熟与智慧。En: He realized that seeking help was not a sign of weakness but a demonstration of maturity and wisdom. Vocabulary Words:gloomy: 阴沉autumn: 秋日gazed: 望silently: 无声地promotion: 升迁diligent: 勤奋strict: 严格praise: 称赞fate: 不测风云unexpected: 突发anxious: 心急如焚hesitate: 犹豫alternative: 其他discovered: 发现eloquently: 流利地outlined: 讲述composed: 镇定panting: 喘息turbulent: 曲折tenacity: 顽强innovation: 创新rely: 依赖collaborated: 合作maturity: 成熟wisdom: 智慧lend a hand: 伸出援手critical: 关键reassured: 安慰suppressed: 抑制full swing: 如火如荼

Zhengde or Wuzong of Ming, a most perplexing ruler.Support the show

Welcome to another episode of Fratello On Air! This week, we discuss the triumphant return of Seiko to the forefront of value-laden watchmaking. For some, perhaps the massive Japanese company never left. From our perspective, though, 2025 has been a turning point. We feel that the brand has truly listened to its fan base and the market. Listen along to why we feel this way and what else we'd like to see.After what felt like a lengthy period of offering chunky watches with big price tags, it seems that Seiko has made a triumphant return. Reasonably sized watches with prices that have held steady, while others have increased dramatically, are just a couple of our observations. Listen in and see if you agree with the rest of our thoughts on this fan-favorite watch brand.HandgelenkskontrolleWe kick off our episode by celebrating Balazs's return from the Big Apple. There's even a little singing to get everyone in the mood! Then, we recall our recent discussion about the fortunes of several brands in five years. Mike envisions a slim 37mm Panerai dress watch with a manual-winding movement and crown lock. Could it work? Then, screen-related entertainment makes an appearance as we mention A House of Dynamite, Task, and Slow Horses. Finally, Balazs shares his thoughts on the recent watch events in New York City and a disturbing visit to a Rolex boutique in SoHo. For the Handgelenkskontrolle, Balazs has been wearing the Ming 57.04 Iris Chronograph and was flashing it around New York. Mike is keeping with the theme and is also sporting a Ming. The watch is currently under embargo, but it is coming out in November. Spoiler alert: it's fantastic!Seiko's triumphant returnIn 2025, we've seen some fantastic releases. The previously mentioned recent announcements resonated with fans. Earlier, watches like the Seiko 5 SRPL91 and SRPL93 "Gene Kranz" or the new Speedtimer models seemed to nail the brief. The market has been asking for smaller, thinner watches with slimmer, better bracelets. Seiko has delivered. Plus, while others continue to raise prices, Seiko has held the line, albeit at higher prices than seven or eight years ago. Still, the watches are competitive, attractive, and desirable. Sure, there's still work to do, especially related to movement accuracy, but we remain hopeful. Overall, it's nice to see one of our favorite marques pulling at our heart and purse strings again! Let us know if you agree with us on the company's triumphant return and what else you'd like to see from Seiko.As always, thanks for listening to the latest episode of Fratello On Air! If you have ideas for future shows, please feel free to let us know.

MING's weekly Warmth radio show features the best in today's house and EDM as well as exclusive mixes and interviews from guest artists.MING Stuff >> https://solo.to/mingsmusic1001Tracklists >> https://1001.tl/lbknx3Beatport Track Charts >> https://hoodfamo.us/BPWRMTH

Chris and Ming have returned from Santa Fe Comicon with some tales! We pepper in some Chicago stories in as well!

Afropop Electrofunk​​ congolais et jazz mandingue. Nos premiers invités Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko (Sénégal) & Volker Goetze (Allemagne) présentent l'album Sargal. Une musique qui coule comme une eau claire, suggère le calme et une vertigineuse sensation d'apaisement. Le chanteur et musicien sénégalais Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko et le trompettiste et joueur de bugle allemand Volker Goetze forment un duo d'une renversante éloquence poétique. Le premier, héritier d'une célèbre lignée de djèli (griots mandingues) joueur de kora, et le second, musicien, producteur et réalisateur, ont en commun le même élan pour des tissages musicaux naviguant entre plusieurs univers : jazz, musique mandingue, flamenco… sans jamais s'égarer dans une fusion hasardeuse et plate. Ils ont de plus invité ici un ami de bonne compagnie en la personne du célèbre percussionniste Mino Cinelu, qui intervient sur trois des douze compositions de ce bel album intitulé Sargal. Un mot wolof exprimant une idée de remerciement et de gratitude que l'on pourrait tout à fait leur adresser en retour, tant leur musique fait du bien. (Patrick Labesse).   Titres interprétés au grand studio - Sargal Live RFI - Bétiyata feat. Mino Cinelu, extrait de l'album - Rokhaya Live RFI. Line Up : Volker Goetze (trompette), Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko (kora et chant). Son : Mathias Taylor et Jérémie Besset. ► Album Sargal (Motéma/PIAS/Integral 2025). Site Volker Goetze - YouTube Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko - Facebook du duo. Actu concert 29/10/25 Paris Église Bon Secours.   Puis nous recevons le groupe congolais Kin'Gongolo Kiniata pour l'album Kiniata. Formé dans l'effervescence des rues de Kinshasa, Kin'Gongolo Kiniata redéfinit les contours de la musique congolaise, tout en honorant ses racines culturelles profondes. L'album Kiniata est une célébration de cette énergie brute, un hommage à la vie urbaine et aux traditions congolaises, marquées par l'usage du Lingala dans des textes qui racontent les luttes, les espoirs et les triomphes de la vie quotidienne. Leurs rythmes effrénés et leurs mélodies envoûtantes rappellent l'esprit de l'article 15 («Débrouillez-vous») dans son essence transformatrice et rebelle. Mais ici, c'est l'âme de Kinshasa qui résonne à travers chaque note, chaque percussion recyclée, chaque riff électrique. Titres interprétés au grand studio : - Toye Mabe Live RFI - Kin'gongolo, extrait de l'album - Elengi Ya Ko Vivre Live RFI. Line Up : Leebruno (chant, percussions metal), Mille Baguettes (chant, batterie), Ducap (chant percus plastique), Djino (basse) et Bébé Mingé (chœurs, harpe, guitare). En entrevue : Djino & Leebruno. Son : Mathias Taylor, Benoît Letirant. ► Album Kiniata (Hélico 2025). Kin'Gongolo Kiniata - Instagram. Actu Concerts : Primeurs de Massy 31/10 + Péniche Metaxu (Pantin) 29/11/2025.

Afropop Electrofunk​​ congolais et jazz mandingue. Nos premiers invités Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko (Sénégal) & Volker Goetze (Allemagne) présentent l'album Sargal. Une musique qui coule comme une eau claire, suggère le calme et une vertigineuse sensation d'apaisement. Le chanteur et musicien sénégalais Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko et le trompettiste et joueur de bugle allemand Volker Goetze forment un duo d'une renversante éloquence poétique. Le premier, héritier d'une célèbre lignée de djèli (griots mandingues) joueur de kora, et le second, musicien, producteur et réalisateur, ont en commun le même élan pour des tissages musicaux naviguant entre plusieurs univers : jazz, musique mandingue, flamenco… sans jamais s'égarer dans une fusion hasardeuse et plate. Ils ont de plus invité ici un ami de bonne compagnie en la personne du célèbre percussionniste Mino Cinelu, qui intervient sur trois des douze compositions de ce bel album intitulé Sargal. Un mot wolof exprimant une idée de remerciement et de gratitude que l'on pourrait tout à fait leur adresser en retour, tant leur musique fait du bien. (Patrick Labesse).   Titres interprétés au grand studio - Sargal Live RFI - Bétiyata feat. Mino Cinelu, extrait de l'album - Rokhaya Live RFI. Line Up : Volker Goetze (trompette), Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko (kora et chant). Son : Mathias Taylor et Jérémie Besset. ► Album Sargal (Motéma/PIAS/Integral 2025). Site Volker Goetze - YouTube Ali Boulo Santo Cissoko - Facebook du duo. Actu concert 29/10/25 Paris Église Bon Secours.   Puis nous recevons le groupe congolais Kin'Gongolo Kiniata pour l'album Kiniata. Formé dans l'effervescence des rues de Kinshasa, Kin'Gongolo Kiniata redéfinit les contours de la musique congolaise, tout en honorant ses racines culturelles profondes. L'album Kiniata est une célébration de cette énergie brute, un hommage à la vie urbaine et aux traditions congolaises, marquées par l'usage du Lingala dans des textes qui racontent les luttes, les espoirs et les triomphes de la vie quotidienne. Leurs rythmes effrénés et leurs mélodies envoûtantes rappellent l'esprit de l'article 15 («Débrouillez-vous») dans son essence transformatrice et rebelle. Mais ici, c'est l'âme de Kinshasa qui résonne à travers chaque note, chaque percussion recyclée, chaque riff électrique. Titres interprétés au grand studio : - Toye Mabe Live RFI - Kin'gongolo, extrait de l'album - Elengi Ya Ko Vivre Live RFI. Line Up : Leebruno (chant, percussions metal), Mille Baguettes (chant, batterie), Ducap (chant percus plastique), Djino (basse) et Bébé Mingé (chœurs, harpe, guitare). En entrevue : Djino & Leebruno. Son : Mathias Taylor, Benoît Letirant. ► Album Kiniata (Hélico 2025). Kin'Gongolo Kiniata - Instagram. Actu Concerts : Primeurs de Massy 31/10 + Péniche Metaxu (Pantin) 29/11/2025.

Fluent Fiction - Mandarin Chinese: Rekindling Friendship in the Forbidden City: A Mid-Autumn Tale Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/zh/episode/2025-10-25-07-38-20-zh Story Transcript:Zh: 紫禁城的秋天，总是带着一种独特的魅力。En: Autumn in the Zijincheng, the Forbidden City, always carries a unique charm.Zh: 金黄的树叶在风中轻轻摇曳，红色的灯笼点缀着古老的建筑，空气中弥漫着甜蜜的月饼香和香烛味。En: Golden leaves gently sway in the wind, red lanterns adorn the ancient buildings, and the air is filled with the sweet fragrance of yuebing and incense.Zh: 明亮的圆月挂在天上，为宽阔的庭院披上银色的光辉。En: A bright full moon hangs in the sky, draping the vast courtyard in a silver glow.Zh: 今天是中秋节，En: Today is the Zhongqiujie, the Mid-Autumn Festival.Zh: 莲站在紫禁城的一角，心里却难以平静。En: Lian stands in a corner of the Forbidden City, yet her heart is far from calm.Zh: 她手里捧着一封沉甸甸的邀请，邀请她在这里与明见面。En: She holds a heavy invitation in her hands, inviting her to meet Ming there.Zh: 多年前的误会让两人渐行渐远，心中的伤痛与不信任像是无形的墙，将她们隔离开来。En: Years of misunderstandings had caused the two to drift apart, with the pain and distrust within their hearts becoming an invisible wall separating them.Zh: 但今晚，她决定面对过去。En: But tonight, she has decided to confront the past.Zh: 莲和明曾是亲密的朋友，她热爱艺术保护，他专注历史研究。En: Lian and Ming were once close friends; she had a passion for art preservation, and he was focused on historical research.Zh: 本该是志同道合的伙伴，但一场误会却将两人拉开了距离。En: They should have been kindred spirits, but a misunderstanding pulled them apart.Zh: 莲一直想知道真相，想要对过往释怀。En: Lian always wanted to know the truth, to make peace with the past.Zh: 而明，他想修复他们的关系，期盼能弥补自己曾犯的错。En: As for Ming, he wished to repair their relationship, hoping to make amends for the mistakes he made.Zh: 月光倾洒在庭院时，明走近了暮光中的莲。En: As the moonlight poured over the courtyard, Ming approached Lian in the twilight.Zh: 他微微一笑，声音中透着一丝紧张：“莲，好久不见。”En: He gave a slight smile, his voice tinged with a bit of nervousness: " Lian, long time no see."Zh: 莲点点头，努力让自己冷静：“是啊，太久了。”En: Lian nodded, trying to stay calm: "Yes, it's been too long."Zh: 两人漫步在灯笼下，沉默了一会儿，终究是明先开口：“当初的事，是个误会。En: They strolled under the lanterns in silence for a while, until Ming finally spoke: "What happened back then was a misunderstanding.Zh: 我从未想过会那样发展。我对不起你。”En: I never intended things to turn out that way. I'm sorry."Zh: 莲心里柔软的地方被触及，眼泪险些夺眶而出。En: The soft spot in Lian's heart was touched, tears almost welling in her eyes.Zh: “我一直想知道是什么让我们变成这样。”她低语着，抬头看着明。En: "I've always wanted to know what turned us into this." She whispered, looking up at Ming.Zh: 明回忆起过去，解释了当初的种种。En: Ming recalled the past and explained the events as they unfolded.Zh: 他的坦诚让莲心中的绳结慢慢松开。En: His honesty slowly untied the knot in Lian's heart.Zh: 她望着他，终于明白误会是如何发生的，而他们都曾是误会的受害者。En: She looked at him and finally understood how the misunderstanding occurred and that they had both been victims of it.Zh: 灯光下，他们谈了很久。En: Under the lanterns, they talked for a long time.Zh: 风中夹着月饼的甜香，明亮的灯笼像是给他们点亮了全新的未来。En: The wind carried the sweet scent of yuebing, and the bright lanterns seemed to illuminate a whole new future for them.Zh: 莲感受到心中逐渐涌起的温暖和和解的力量。En: Lian felt a warmth rising within her, a power of reconciliation.Zh: 她终于微笑起来：“或许，我们可以重新开始。”En: She finally smiled: "Perhaps we can start anew."Zh: 明笑了，灯笼的光映在他的脸上，带来无尽的温情。En: Ming smiled, with the light of the lantern reflecting on his face, bringing endless warmth.Zh: 两人决定将过去抛在脑后，共同庆祝这美好的节日。En: The two decided to leave the past behind and celebrate this beautiful festival together.Zh: 中秋的夜空下，他们找到了新的开始，新的友谊和无法轻易斩断的情谊。En: Beneath the Mid-Autumn night sky, they found a new beginning, a new friendship, and a bond that couldn't be easily severed.Zh: 莲终于明白，过去的阴影无法阻止她走向光明的未来。En: Lian finally understood that the shadows of the past couldn't prevent her from moving towards a bright future.Zh: 在紫禁城古旧的廊柱之间，她学会了原谅，也学会了为未来的可能性敞开心扉。En: Between the ancient pillars of the Forbidden City, she learned to forgive and to open her heart to the possibilities of the future. Vocabulary Words:charm: 魅力sway: 摇曳adorn: 点缀fragrance: 香味courtyard: 庭院invitation: 邀请confront: 面对kindred spirits: 志同道合amends: 弥补twilight: 暮光untied: 松开knot: 绳结illuminate: 点亮reconciliation: 和解severed: 斩断pillars: 廊柱sweetness: 甜蜜full moon: 圆月calm: 平静misunderstanding: 误会distrust: 不信任preservation: 保护research: 研究victims: 受害者drift apart: 渐行渐远repaired: 修复separate: 隔离unfolded: 发生possibilities: 可能性forgive: 原谅

Welcome to the Scottish Watches Podcast 720! The updated Omega Speedmaster “Grey Side of the Moon” sparks debate, with impressive hand-wound movement and slimmer proportions, but a price hike that raises... The post Scottish Watches Podcast #720 : Back To The Future of Watches – Omega, Czapek, MING, Casio, Seiko, Formex and More appeared first on Scottish Watches.

The Ming mandarin who helped, 400 years later, to start the Cultural Revolution.Support the show

Welcome back to another episode of Fratello On Air! This week, we talk about the best-value used watches. Of course, this isn't an exhaustive list but just a sampling of some great pre-owned picks. If you're expecting the usual suspects, prepare to be surprised. Enjoy the show!Yes, we're back with a follow-up to our popular show about currently available watches offering the best value with a look at the used marketplace. Sites such as Chrono24 and eBay present a veritable cornucopia of options, but we've managed to pare it down to six interesting picks. Listen in as we reveal them.HandgelenkskontrolleWe recorded this episode before Balazs's trip to New York City for various watch events. Therefore, you'll need to wait to find out if he had any fun travel experiences! For this installment, Mike is wearing his Ming 37.02 Minimalist, a straightforward watch that can happily be worn in casual and formal settings. Balazs, on the other hand, was rocking an off-the-wall timepiece earlier in the day. On his wrist was a 1999 Ikepod Megapode, a watch designed by Marc Newson.Best-value used watchesFor today's show, we gave ourselves a few rules. First, we didn't want to repeat any of the best-value new watches, even though those candidates are a great deal on the secondary market. We also stayed away from vintage watches because it's hard to compare prices for new and used pieces. Plus, it's also more challenging to find a mint or barely used vintage watch. With that in mind, we did not come together before the episode to share our picks. We were completely unscripted, which makes the choices even more surprising.We mention the Patek Philippe Gondolo 5014. In any form, these watches present a more horologically interesting and often less expensive choice than a similar Cartier Tank. The Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Control Date ref. Q4018420 is another killer value for the money. Secondhand Grand Seiko watches are routinely seen as best-value opportunities. We both love the 9S64-powered manual-winding SBGW2xx models, including the 235, 283, 291, and 293. While it's not small, the IWC Portugieser Automatic IW500705 is a killer watch at work or play. Who knew how affordable the 38mm Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe is? What a deal! Finally, we mention the late Omega Seamaster Railmaster ref. 220.10.40.20.01.001 from 2017. Feel free to let us know your thoughts about our picks and the best-value used watches you've been considering.We hope you enjoy today's episode. Let us know if you have any topics that you'd like us to cover in the future.

A Tale of Three Tribes in Dutch Formosa (by Yao-Chang Chen, translated by He Wen-ching)Sitting in for Amy is the duo John Ross & Eryk Michael Smith of Plum Rain Press and the Formosa Files podcast. They discuss their very first book release, a historical novel set in southwestern Taiwan in the mid-1600s. The Dutch East India Company's presence there (1624-1662) came to an end after a series of battles and an epic nine-month siege by the Ming loyalist warlord Koxinga (aka Zheng Chenggong), born from a Japanese mother and a Chinese father. Three Tribes tells the story of the Dutch, the Chinese, and the Indigenous Siraya people. The main protagonist is Maria, the teenage second daughter of Reverend Antonius Hambroeck, who arrives in Formosa in 1648. Although Maria is a fictional character (Dr. Chen's imagined Dutch ancestor), the majority of characters in the story, including her family, are real historical people.A Tale of Three Tribes in Dutch Formosa was first published in 2012 in Chinese to great acclaim. For the author, Dr. Chen Yao-chang, then in his sixties, it was an unexpected new career as a historical novelist. The novel was translated into English by Ho Wen-ching, a professor and translator.Notes: Tainan is where the Dutch settlement was and is the old capital city.The Dongning Kingdom was from 1661-1883Frederick Coyett was the last Dutch Governor. See also:Formosa Files Podcast the best podcast on the history of TaiwanPlum Rain Press Your book gateway to East Asia  The Books on Asia Podcast is co-produced with Plum Rain Press. Podcast host Amy Chavez is author of The Widow, the Priest, and the Octopus Hunter: Discovering a Lost Way of Life on a Secluded Japanese Island. and Amy's Guide to Best Behavior in Japan.The Books on Asia website posts book reviews, podcast episodes and episode Show Notes. Subscribe to the BOA podcast from your favorite podcast service. Subscribe to the Books on Asia newsletter to receive news of the latest new book releases, reviews and podcast episodes.

MING's weekly Warmth radio show features the best in today's house and EDM as well as exclusive mixes and interviews from guest artists.MING Stuff >> https://solo.to/mingsmusic1001Tracklists >> https://1001.tl/lbknx3Beatport Track Charts >> https://hoodfamo.us/BPWRMTH

Fluent Fiction - Mandarin Chinese: From Market Jitters to Majestic Presentations: Ming's Triumph Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/zh/episode/2025-10-20-22-34-02-zh Story Transcript:Zh: 北京的西单市场，充满了秋天的气息，四周都是丰收的色彩和渐凉的空气。En: The Xidan market in Beijing is full of autumn vibes, surrounded by the colors of harvest and the gradually cooling air.Zh: 人群中，叫卖声不绝于耳，烤栗子的香味四处飘散。En: Among the crowd, the cries of vendors are unending, and the fragrance of roasted chestnuts wafts everywhere.Zh: 这里是一个既吸引人又忙碌的地方。En: This is a place both attractive and bustling.Zh: 明和李正是这片喧闹中的两个学生。En: Ming and Li are two students amidst all this hustle and bustle.Zh: 他们在为一场学校的科学项目做准备。En: They are preparing for a school science project.Zh: 明虽然做事井井有条，而且非常细心，但却对讲演有些紧张。En: Although Ming is organized and very meticulous, he gets a bit nervous about presentations.Zh: 尤其是在李面前，他总是希望能给她留下深刻的印象。En: Especially in front of Li, he always hopes to make a deep impression.Zh: 李却不同，他自信开朗，总是能让身边的人感到轻松快乐。En: Li, on the other hand, is different; he is confident and cheerful and always makes those around him feel relaxed and joyful.Zh: 他们的项目虽然准备得很充分，但明还是对即将到来的演讲感到不安。En: Even though their project is well-prepared, Ming still feels uneasy about the upcoming presentation.Zh: 他深知，如果不能很好地表现，自己会感到非常失望。En: He knows that if he doesn't perform well, he will feel very disappointed.Zh: 李则似乎不怎么担心，他觉得只要尽力就好。En: Li, however, doesn't seem too worried; he believes that as long as they do their best, it will be fine.Zh: 最终，在一个明亮秋日的午后，明鼓起勇气，向李请求帮助。En: Eventually, on a bright autumn afternoon, Ming gathered the courage to ask Li for help.Zh: 他们在市场的一个安静角落开始排练，虽然周围人声不绝，可这让明的紧张感减轻了不少。En: They started rehearsing in a quiet corner of the market, and although the surrounding noise was ceaseless, it significantly eased Ming's nerves.Zh: 到了正式演讲的时间，明缓缓走上市场中的小舞台，心中却如同有小鹿在乱撞。En: When it was time for the formal presentation, Ming slowly walked onto the small stage in the market, feeling like there were butterflies in his stomach.Zh: 他吸了一口气，看了一眼站在旁边微笑的李，决定面对恐惧。En: He took a deep breath, glanced at Li, who smiled beside him, and decided to face his fears.Zh: 随着演讲的进行，虽然周围还是那么吵闹，但明感受到了内心的平静。En: As the presentation progressed, although the surroundings remained noisy, Ming felt a sense of inner calm.Zh: 他逐渐找到了自己的节奏，条理清晰地展示了他们的项目。En: He gradually found his rhythm and presented their project clearly and logically.Zh: 演讲结束，市场的喧闹彷佛都在耳边消失。En: After the presentation ended, it seemed as if the market's noise disappeared around them.Zh: 他们的老师走过来，称赞了他们的努力，并对明的表现表示了肯定。En: Their teacher came over, praised their efforts, and affirmed Ming's performance.Zh: 明的脸上露出了久违的微笑，而李则递给他一个鼓励的眼神。En: Ming showed a long-awaited smile, and Li gave him an encouraging look.Zh: 经过这次经历，明的自信心倍增。En: Through this experience, Ming's confidence grew immensely.Zh: 他明白了请求帮助并不可怕，相反，它能带来进步。En: He realized that asking for help is not something to fear; rather, it can lead to improvement.Zh: 同时，他和李之间的友谊也因此更加深厚。En: Meanwhile, his friendship with Li became even deeper.Zh: 这一天的市场依旧热闹如初，但对明来说，一切却变得不一样了。En: The market remained as lively as ever that day, but for Ming, everything felt different.Zh: 在秋风的吹拂下，他感受到了成长的力量。En: In the autumn breeze, he felt the power of growth. Vocabulary Words:vibes: 气息harvest: 丰收amidst: 中meticulous: 细心uneasy: 不安rehearsing: 排练ceaseless: 不绝eased: 减轻butterflies: 紧张glanced: 看affirmed: 肯定immensely: 倍增lively: 热闹inward: 内心bustling: 忙碌fragrance: 香味roasted: 烤attractive: 吸引人organized: 井井有条presentation: 讲演disappointed: 失望courage: 勇气embrace: 面对rhythm: 节奏cheerful: 开朗surroundings: 周围logical: 条理teacher: 老师praise: 称赞growth: 成长

Fluent Fiction - Mandarin Chinese: Unfolding Memories at the Night Market: A Priceless Connection Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/zh/episode/2025-10-17-22-34-02-zh Story Transcript:Zh: 夜市在秋天的晚上显得特别热闹。En: The night market is especially lively on an autumn evening.Zh: 为了庆祝中秋节，摊位在串灯的照耀下闪烁，空气中弥漫着街头小吃的香味，热闹的人群欢声笑语。En: To celebrate the Zhongqiu Jie, the stalls glimmer under the glow of string lights, and the air is filled with the aroma of street food, accompanied by the merriment and laughter of the bustling crowd.Zh: 在这个熙熙攘攘的地方，有一个特别的摊位。En: In this bustling place, there is a particular stall.Zh: 摊前，摆放着老旧而珍贵的物品。En: At the front of the stall, old and valuable items are on display.Zh: 摊主是一位名叫魏的老先生，他小心翼翼地看护着自己的宝贝。En: The stall owner is an elderly gentleman named Wei, who carefully watches over his treasures.Zh: 在一旁，年轻的连和她的朋友明轻声讨论着。En: Beside him, a young woman named Lian and her friend Ming are softly discussing.Zh: “连，看那个模具。好漂亮。”明指着一个古老的月饼模具说。En: "Lian, look at that mold. It's so beautiful," Ming said, pointing at an ancient mooncake mold.Zh: 连的眼神中闪烁着怀念，这模具让她想起了已故的祖母。En: A glimmer of nostalgia appeared in Lian's eyes; this mold reminded her of her late grandmother.Zh: 她深深地吸了一口气，朝魏走去。En: She took a deep breath and approached Wei.Zh: “您好，我对这个模具很感兴趣。”连礼貌地说道。En: "Hello, I'm very interested in this mold," Lian said politely.Zh: 魏抬头，目光犀利地打量着连。En: Wei looked up, scrutinizing Lian with a sharp gaze.Zh: “这是珍贵的模具，不常见，价钱要高。”En: "This is a precious mold, not often seen, so the price is high."Zh: 连心头一紧。En: Lian's heart tightened.Zh: 她知道自己带的钱不够。En: She knew she didn't have enough money with her.Zh: 她深思，该如何说服魏呢？En: She pondered how to convince Wei.Zh: “这个模具让我想起了我的外婆。她也有一个类似的，我们小时候每个中秋节都会一起做月饼。”连回忆着，声音有些颤抖。En: "This mold reminds me of my grandmother. She had a similar one, and every Mid-Autumn Festival, we would make mooncakes together," Lian recalled, her voice slightly trembling.Zh: 明在一旁点头附和，“她的祖母非常特别，连一直对这些古董情有独钟。”En: Ming nodded in agreement beside her, "Her grandmother was very special, and Lian has always had a deep passion for these antiques."Zh: 听到连真诚的言语，魏的神情放松了些。En: Hearing Lian's sincere words, Wei's expression relaxed a bit.Zh: 他微微叹了一口气。En: He sighed softly.Zh: “你知道，很多东西不是用钱可以买到的。”En: "You know, many things can't be bought with money."Zh: 连点头，诚恳地说：“我理解。我想保存一些我们家族的记忆，而不只是买东西。”En: Lian nodded, sincerely saying, "I understand. I want to preserve some of our family memories, not just buy things."Zh: 魏沉默片刻，被她的诚意打动了。En: Wei was silent for a moment, touched by her sincerity.Zh: “好吧，我愿意给你一个特别的价钱。我希望你能好好珍惜它。”En: "Alright, I'll be willing to give you a special price. I hope you will cherish it."Zh: 连感激不已，她感到自己不仅仅是得到了一个模具，更是得到了与祖母重新连接的一部分记忆。En: Lian was immensely grateful; she felt she had gained not just a mold, but a piece of memory connecting her with her grandmother.Zh: 在夜市的灯光中，连手握珍贵的模具，心中充满了感激。En: In the lights of the night market, Lian held the precious mold, her heart filled with gratitude.Zh: 她明白，有时，情感与诚意比金钱更有价值得多。En: She realized that sometimes, emotions and sincerity are worth more than money.Zh: 而在她的身旁，明露出满意的微笑，庆祝朋友如愿以偿。En: Beside her, Ming had a satisfied smile, celebrating her friend's wish being fulfilled.Zh: 在悦耳的喧嚣声中，连体会到了人与人之间简单却珍贵的联系。En: In the pleasant clamor, Lian experienced the simple yet precious connection between people. Vocabulary Words:lively: 热闹autumn: 秋天glimmer: 闪烁aroma: 香味bustling: 熙熙攘攘的stall: 摊位valuable: 珍贵的treasures: 宝贝mold: 模具nostalgia: 怀念scrutinizing: 打量trembling: 颤抖antique: 古董sincere: 真诚的preserve: 保存memories: 记忆cherish: 珍惜grateful: 感激gratitude: 感激fulfill: 如愿以偿pleasant: 悦耳的clamor: 喧嚣connection: 联系elderly: 年老的glow: 照耀precious: 珍贵的gaze: 目光convince: 说服expression: 神情sigh: 叹息

Fluent Fiction - Mandarin Chinese: Unveiling Family Secrets at Beijing's Temple of Heaven Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/zh/episode/2025-10-16-22-34-02-zh Story Transcript:Zh: 秋天的北京，天坛在中秋节的灯笼下显得格外辉煌。En: In the autumn of Beijing, the Temple of Heaven appeared particularly magnificent under the lanterns of the Mid-Autumn Festival.Zh: 莲、明和夏三人一起走进节日的人群，空气中是月饼的香甜和石雕注入的历史气息。En: Lian, Ming, and Xia walked into the festival crowd together, the air filled with the sweet aroma of mooncakes and the historical ambiance infused by stone carvings.Zh: 莲的目光好奇地扫视四周，她对家族的过去有着强烈的兴趣，总觉得这里藏着什么等待着她去发现。En: Lian curiously scanned her surroundings; she had a strong interest in her family's past and always felt that something here was waiting for her to discover.Zh: 莲和明是从小一起长大的朋友。En: Lian and Ming had been friends since childhood.Zh: 明一边啃着豆沙月饼，一边笑着说：“莲，你不会又在找老故事了吧？”En: While Ming was nibbling on a red bean paste mooncake, he laughed and said, "Lian, you're not looking for old stories again, are you?"Zh: “是啊，我觉得这里有个秘密，和我们的家族有关。”莲回答道，她的眼神坚定而充满热情。En: "Yes, I feel there's a secret here related to our family," Lian replied, her gaze firm and full of enthusiasm.Zh: 明耸了耸肩不置可否。En: Ming shrugged, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.Zh: 三人走到天坛的一座古老建筑前。En: The three of them walked to an ancient building in the Temple of Heaven.Zh: 灯笼的光芒下，墙壁上的雕刻仿佛在诉说过去的故事。En: Under the glow of lanterns, the carvings on the walls seemed to recount stories of the past.Zh: 这时，夏悄声走到莲身边。En: At this point, Xia quietly approached Lian.Zh: 他是莲的堂兄，对家族历史知之甚详，却总是小心谨慎。En: He was Lian's cousin and was well-versed in family history, yet always cautious.Zh: “莲，这儿有些事情最好不要去碰。”夏低声说，他显得有些紧张。En: "Lian, some things here are best left untouched," Xia said softly, looking a bit nervous.Zh: 莲心里清楚，夏是在提醒她那件不为人知的古代神器。En: Lian knew in her heart that Xia was reminding her of a little-known ancient artifact.Zh: 据说，那个神器与他们家族息息相关，也许藏着一个诅咒。En: It was said that this artifact was closely linked to their family and possibly harbored a curse.Zh: 但莲心意已决，她想揭开真相，即使冒着可能引发家族争议的风险。En: But Lian was determined; she wanted to uncover the truth, even at the risk of potentially stirring up family controversy.Zh: 在灯笼的光线下，她看着夏，语气坚定：“不试试怎么知道呢？或许这东西能让我们更了解自己。”En: In the lantern's light, she looked at Xia and said firmly, "How will we know if we don't try? Maybe this thing can help us understand ourselves better."Zh: 终于，莲在天坛的某个角落找到了那个神器。En: Finally, Lian found the artifact in a corner of the Temple of Heaven.Zh: 它是一个古老的匣子，雕刻着繁复的花纹。En: It was an ancient box with intricate carvings.Zh: 她小心翼翼地打开匣子，里面竟然藏着一封泛黄的信。En: She carefully opened the box, and inside was a yellowed letter.Zh: 信中写下了一段家族的故事，那是一个关于过去希望与梦想的故事。En: The letter recounted a story of the family's hopes and dreams from the past.Zh: 原来，这个神器并没有诅咒，而是家族祖先留下的勇气与爱的象征。En: It turned out that this artifact was not a curse but a symbol of courage and love left by the family's ancestors.Zh: 莲感动地读完信，眼中闪烁着泪光。En: Moved by the letter, Lian finished reading it, tears shimmering in her eyes.Zh: 她明白，这一切不仅仅是对过去的追寻，更是对当下生活的努力和希望。En: She realized that this was not just a pursuit of the past but also an effort and hope for the present life.Zh: 那一晚，在月亮清辉的洒落下，莲重新诠释了自己的身份。En: That night, under the clear brilliance of the moon, Lian redefined her identity.Zh: 她感谢家族的历史，也坚定了继续传承的决心。En: She was grateful for her family's history and was determined to continue the legacy.Zh: 莲心中怀着深深的自豪与宁静，仰望那明亮的中秋之月，微笑着与身边的亲人再次分享家族的故事。En: With deep pride and peace in her heart, Lian looked up to the bright Mid-Autumn Moon, smiling and sharing the family's stories again with her loved ones beside her. Vocabulary Words:autumn: 秋天magnificent: 辉煌lanterns: 灯笼festival: 节日crowd: 人群aroma: 香甜ambiance: 气息scanned: 扫视surroundings: 四周carvings: 雕刻curiously: 好奇地uncover: 揭开artifact: 神器cousin: 堂兄controversy: 争议legacy: 传承intricate: 繁复carved: 雕刻着yellowed: 泛黄pursuit: 追寻effort: 努力courage: 勇气dreams: 梦想gratitude: 感谢pride: 自豪identity: 身份determined: 坚定ancestor: 祖先symbol: 象征gaze: 凝视

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In this episode of the Modern Mommy Doc Podcast, Dr. Whitney reconnects with longtime friend and colleague Dr. Anne-Ming Yeh—Stanford-trained pediatric gastroenterologist, integrative medicine specialist, and author of Constipation Conquered: A Holistic Guide to Your Child's Constipation.Together, they tackle a surprisingly common (and often frustrating) parenting challenge: constipation in kids. Dr. Yeh shares why she wrote her new book, how she blends evidence-based medicine with integrative approaches, and what parents can realistically do to help their kids—from picky toddlers to neurodivergent kids with unique needs.You'll learn:The truth about common constipation myths (spoiler: laxatives aren't evil).How to know whether your child's constipation is mild, moderate, or severe—and when to seek specialist care.Simple prevention tips: the right balance of fluid before fiber, why leafy greens act like a “broomstick for your gut,” and how bananas might be binding.Why the gut-brain connection matters, and how small daily rituals (from tea time to affirmations to Snoop Dogg's kids' album!) can actually support digestion.The difference between “mush” (softening stool) and “push” (helping the colon's muscles coordinate), and why some kids may need specialized therapies like biofeedback.Why integrative medicine is about both/and—using food as medicine when possible, and leaning on safe medications when necessary.This conversation is practical, reassuring, and yes—sometimes even funny. It's a reminder that while poop may not be a glamorous parenting topic, helping kids feel comfortable, confident, and healthy in their bodies is always worth it.______This episode is brought to you by Suvie: If dinnertime is your daily chaos hour, I've got something game-changing.It's called Suvie. It's a smart countertop appliance and meal delivery service that makes effortless home-cooked meals. And here's the coolest part - The Suvie Kitchen Robot that refrigerates your food all day, then cooks it automatically—roasting, slow cooking, even air frying—so dinner's ready exactly when you need it.I use it because I don't have time to meal prep every Sunday. I need something that works with my actual schedule. Suvie does.You can load it in the morning, set it, and forget it. No stress. No last-minute drive-thru.Suvie makes dinner one less thing to worry about.Check it out at suvie.com/modernmommy and get 16 free meals with this link.

Fluent Fiction - Mandarin Chinese: Autumn Reunion on the Changcheng: A Journey to Reconciliation Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/zh/episode/2025-10-15-07-38-20-zh Story Transcript:Zh: 在一个金色的秋天早晨，阳光柔和地洒在长城上。En: On a golden autumn morning, the gentle sunlight was softly spilling over the Changcheng.Zh: 树叶在微风中轻轻摇曳，满山的五彩缤纷似乎在为重阳节庆祝。En: Leaves were swaying gently in the breeze, and the vibrant colors covering the mountains seemed to be celebrating the Chongyang Festival.Zh: 雷和明正在长城上徒步旅行，呼吸着清新的空气，享受着这难得的节日休闲。En: Lei and Ming were hiking on the Changcheng, breathing in the fresh air and enjoying this rare holiday leisure.Zh: 雷天性冒险，步伐轻快。En: Lei is naturally adventurous, with a brisk pace.Zh: 他和好朋友明一起来这里散心。En: He came here with his good friend Ming to unwind.Zh: 明总是个顾虑周到的人，他的细腻使雷感到踏实。En: Ming is always a thoughtful person, whose meticulous nature gives Lei a sense of reassurance.Zh: 突然，远远地，一个熟悉的身影映入雷的眼帘。En: Suddenly, a familiar figure caught Lei's eyes from afar.Zh: 他的心猛然一跳，那是他的哥哥，已经多年未见。En: His heart skipped a beat—it was his brother, whom he hadn't seen in many years.Zh: 雷心里涌起一股莫名的愤怒和失落。En: A surge of inexplicable anger and loss welled up in Lei's heart.Zh: 从小，他的哥哥对他影响深远，但后来不知为何离开了家。En: Since childhood, his brother had a profound influence on him, but then, for some unknown reason, he left home.Zh: 雷一直想知道原因，却始终没有机会。En: Lei had always wanted to know the reason but never had the chance.Zh: 明看出了雷的犹豫和挣扎，他微笑着说：“也许这就是个合适的机会。En: Ming noticed Lei's hesitation and struggle, and with a smile, he said, "Maybe this is a suitable opportunity.Zh: 重阳节是团圆的节日，试着和他聊聊吧。En: Chongyang Festival is a time for reunion; try talking to him.Zh: 和解也许会让你更安心。”En: Reconciliation might bring you peace of mind."Zh: 雷踌躇不决，En: Lei was indecisive.Zh: 他想知道实情，却又害怕揭开旧伤。En: He wanted to know the truth but was afraid to reopen old wounds.Zh: 但这次，他决定听从朋友的建议。En: However, this time, he decided to follow his friend's advice.Zh: 他走近哥哥，迎着冷冽的秋风，开口道：“哥哥，那时候你为什么离开？”En: He approached his brother, facing the chilly autumn wind, and said, "Brother, why did you leave back then?"Zh: 哥哥显得有些意外，但随即露出了歉意的神情。En: His brother appeared somewhat surprised but quickly showed a look of apology.Zh: “那时候，我太年轻，不知道如何面对那些压力。En: "Back then, I was too young and didn't know how to deal with the pressures.Zh: 我走错了路，但是一直很惦记家。”En: I took a wrong path, but I always missed home."Zh: 长城上，兄弟俩在这静谧的秋季风景里聊了很久。En: On the Changcheng, the two brothers talked for a long time amidst the tranquil autumn scenery.Zh: 随着阳光一点点偏斜，雷渐渐释怀。En: As the sunlight gradually shifted, Lei slowly found relief.Zh: 哥哥的离开虽然带来了痛苦，但今天的对话让他心里的结终于解开。En: Although his brother's departure brought pain, today's conversation finally untied the knot in his heart.Zh: 夕阳西下时，雷微笑着和哥哥说：“过去的就让它过去吧，我们以后还要好好联络。”En: As the sun set in the west, Lei smiled and said to his brother, "Let's let the past go, and let's keep in touch from now on."Zh: 在绵延的长城上，雷的心里终于找到了一份宁静与和解。En: On the sprawling Changcheng, Lei finally found a sense of peace and reconciliation in his heart.Zh: 他决心与哥哥一起书写新的家庭篇章。En: He was determined to write a new family chapter with his brother.Zh: 明站在一旁，欣慰地看着这一切。En: Ming stood by, watching everything with satisfaction.Zh: 他知道雷已豁然开朗，正像秋天的长城一样，美丽却坚固。En: He knew that Lei had come to a moment of realization, much like the Changcheng in autumn—beautiful yet strong.Zh: 这个重阳节，他们不仅收获了秋日的美景，更收获了心灵的平和与重聚的欣喜。En: This Chongyang Festival, they not only harvested the beauty of autumn but also the peace of mind and joy of reunion. Vocabulary Words:gentle: 柔和swaying: 摇曳vibrant: 五彩缤纷brisk: 轻快meticulous: 细腻reassurance: 踏实familiar: 熟悉inexplicable: 莫名indecisive: 踌躇不决tranquil: 静谧apology: 歉意realization: 豁然开朗untied: 解开reconciliation: 和解sprawling: 绵延determined: 决心reunion: 团圆unwind: 散心profound: 深远hesitation: 犹豫struggle: 挣扎opportunity: 机会pressure: 压力relief: 释怀chapter: 篇章adventurous: 冒险breeze: 微风chilly: 冷冽satisfaction: 欣慰harvested: 收获

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This week on Wrist Enthusiast Radio, we're diving into one of the most unexpected crossovers in watchmaking — college football and luxury watches. Ben and Craig hit the road with Axia Time, the brand behind official watches for the College Football Playoff and the Heisman Trophy, and we share what really goes on behind those limited-edition team pieces. Then, we head to Geneva Watch Days 2025, where we break down our favorite releases from Ming, Bulgari, Grand Seiko, Micromilspec, and more. From the Heisman Trophy to high horology, this episode covers one of the wildest weeks we've ever had in watches.   Learn more about Axia Time here: https://axiatime.com/   Make sure to check out the sponsor of our podcast, Delugs! Delugs is a great place to get all your watch straps and accessories. Definitely check them out! Delugs website: https://delugs.com/   Follow us on Social Media: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wristenthusiast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wristenthusiastradio Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wristenthusiast TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wristenthusiast   Follow Craig: https://www.instagram.com/craig_karger/ Follow Ben: https://www.instagram.com/benswatches/ Follow Derek: https://www.instagram.com/theminutemon/

The face tells a story, etched in its lines, the color of our skin, and the expressions we carry. These are not mere physical features; they are a language—an ancient map that, if we learn to read, can reveal traces of our life's journey, ancestral gifts, and the yet to be resolved challenges holding us back. This wisdom often goes unnoticed in a world focused on external appearances, but it is there if you know how to perceive .In this conversation with Anita Chopra, we journey through the landscapes of the face, and the unexpected twists of fate that lead us to our Ming—that essence that makes us grow. Anita's approach is a tapestry woven from her personal journey and professional practice. She listens to the body's narrative, honors the lessons from her mentors, and uses her unique skills to help patients find their golden path.Join us as we explore the power of being truly seen, the profound wisdom of accepting ourselves, how our life's path is found in a glimmer on the periphery, and the courage it takes to become the person you were always meant to be.