In medieval Japan (ca. 1185–1603), Buddhist practices and concepts contributed substantively to the ways in which old age was defined and understood. The widespread custom of lay ordination at the onset of old age rendered a large proportion of the elderly population Buddhist home-leavers (shukke). Many medieval literati adopted the persona of the aged Buddhist recluse when composing poetry or essays that touched on Buddhist themes. On the other hand, didactic texts and illustrations used the miseries incumbent on the aged body as a means of leading auditors and readers to an appreciation of Buddhist truth. Buddhist legends utilized the figure of the mysterious, enigmatic old man (okina) as a stand-in for local gods or as avatars of buddhas or bodhisattvas. The aged female body, however, was most often employed to represent demonic beings.
