East Media Literature etc(Matching Terms and names)

Fantasy literature

Literature exploring phenomena outside mundane human perception, defined by an encounter with the unknown or "otherness."

Karma

The Buddhist principle of moral cause and effect where actions dictate rebirth and conditions across successive lives.

Six Dynasties (220–589)

The early medieval era of China marked by political fragmentation, social upheaval, and the rise of Buddhism and Daoism.

zhiguai

"Accounts of anomalies" or strange tales; early short prose recording supernatural, anomalous, or out-of-the-ordinary events, originally viewed as historical records.These stories often feature encounters with ghosts, immortals, and other supernatural beings, blending reality with fantasy.

chuanqi

"Transmission of marvels"; a narrative genre flourishing in the Tang dynasty characterized by longer, deliberately crafted, imaginative fictional tales.

xiaoshuo

Literally "minor talk" or trivial street gossip; the historical Chinese term that later evolved into the modern word for fiction.

bao

Reciprocity or retribution; the fundamental Chinese moral and cosmic concept that deeds, whether good or evil, will inevitably be repaid in kind.

Youming lu (Hidden and Visible Realms)

A seminal early medieval zhiguai collection attributed to Liu Yiqing that gathers folklore, anomalies, and tales deeply influenced by Buddhism.

Liu Yiqing (403–444)

Imperial prince of the Liu Song dynasty and patron of scholars, credited as compiler of both the Shishuo xinyu and the Youming lu.

Liu Chen and Ruan Zhao

Two mortals who journeyed into Mount Tiantai, wed immortal maidens, and found that centuries and seven generations had passed when they returned home.