How a Medieval Monk-Poet (Saigyô) and Japan Became Identified with ‘Nature’

Mike Sugimoto

doi:10.18573/j.2017.10130

Abstract

Japan and, more specifically, the celebrated early medieval monk-poet Saigyo have long been associated with properties of ‘nature’. From Ruth Benedict’s postwar work of anthropology The Chrysanthemum and the Sword , to earlier appropriations by nineteenth-century artists of Japonisme , to greenways lined with cherry trees, Japan as nature has been a powerful cultural cliche. This paper traces the misidentification of a key poet, Saigyo, with the qualities of nature, and argues that this rendering of Japanese culture is an ideologically invested part of Orientalism.

Highlights

Japan and, the celebrated early medieval monk-poet Saigyô have long been associated with properties of ‘nature’
From Ruth Benedict’s postwar work of anthropology The Chrysanthemum and the Sword, to earlier appropriations by nineteenth-century artists of Japonisme, to greenways lined with cherry trees, Japan as nature has been a powerful cultural cliché
This paper traces the misidentification of a key poet, Saigyô, with the qualities of nature, and argues that this rendering of Japanese culture is an ideologically invested part of Orientalism

Summary

Introduction

The celebrated early medieval monk-poet Saigyô have long been associated with properties of ‘nature’. LaFleur assumes antinomic categories, interprets Saigyô as fulfilling those dichotomies internal and external to the development of Buddhist thought (mind/body, original enlightenment/enlightenment through experience, China/Japan, Buddhism/Shinto, etc.).

Results

Conclusion