The development and evolution of different sects of Japanese Buddhism such as Zen Buddhism played an important role in the development of classical Japanese culture during the four major periods, as demonstrated in the way which the Nara period, the Heian era, the Kamakura period, and the Edo period were all shaped by the rise and decline of different Buddhist sects. It is these transitions that make Japanese history a myriad but fascinating web of interconnected events that manages to confound even the most veteran historians. In the beginning, Buddhism was just a pastime of the elite class of landowners and daimyos, which had no special meaning for ordinary people. It was primarily another way for the central government to gain power and influence among the numerous local lords with whom it had to deal regularly. However, it should be noted that most of these new converts to Buddhism did not abandon their previous religions, but instead fused them together with various aspects of Shinto, the indigenous religion native to Japan (“Japanese Buddhism,”1). This created several fusions of the two religions wherever and whenever they met ("Japanese Buddhism",1). However, when Buddhism was introduced to the general population through the process of hierarchical diffusion, it quickly branched out and evolved from its original form into different sects that shaped contemporary Japanese culture (Kasahara, 302). Buddhism was first introduced to Nara Japan through trade. with Han China and, according to reports, one day some ambassadors from the Chinese imperial court showed up at the emperor's palace bringing, among other gifts, the finger bone of Buddha, to be presented as a gesture of goodwill in order to spread their religion. .... middle of the sheet ......the most totalitarian discipline of the Mahayana Buddhist school and the spontaneity of the Tao. Elements of neo-Confucianism are also combined which serve to make the school altogether more rigid and inflexible in its ways (“Zen”,1). This was probably why the military liked him so much, because he was simple, but at the same time highly disciplined, making it impossible to confuse or reject his requests. For this reason, Japanese society became slightly more orderly and rigid, especially towards the Samurai class who totally embraced the philosophies of Zen Buddhism. In fact, this caused some conflict between the peasants and the Samurai class because, because the peasants believed that the Samurai were being unfair in forcing them to follow such strict rules and guidelines, several riots broke out in the more rural provinces of Japan. (“Japanese Buddhism”,1).