Konjaku monogatari-shu in the japanese didactic tales tradition of viiith -xith centuries

Konjaku monogatari-shu (Anthology of tales from the past) of the XIIth century occupies the central place among the different collections of setsuwa tales. Being the most extensive collection of tales, it contents stories from all previous setsuwa-shu, such as Nihon Ryoiki (Miraculous stories from Japan), and includes legends about rebirth in Pour Land Gokuraku, might of the Lotus Sutra, recordings of sermons for various rituals. In the anthology of tales one can also find stories taken from secular literature, including waka poetry collections, utamonogatari, gunkimonogatari, etc. To demonstrate specificity of Konjaku monogatari the authors compare it with several significant setsuwa collections and other works of literature in terms of composition, structure and subject area.