Edo Period Research Articles

Effectiveness of Kampo Extract Formulations in Traditional Japanese Herbal Medicine

Traditional Japanese herbal medicine, known as Kampo medicine, has unique diagnostic methods. In Kampo medicine, herbal formulations have been prescribed since the Edo period based on the experience of eminent Japanese practitioners, including the great masters. An instant preparation called the Kampo extract formula is often used in Japan.

Strangers in a Strange Land: Translating Catholicism in Early Modern Japan

Though many scholars have understood Tokugawa Japan's encounter with Christianity (1549-1650) to have ended in failure, an analysis of the period's religious literature demonstrates the considerable extent to which missionaries engaged with Japanese culture. This article examines several Kirishitan (Japanese Christian) texts printed between 1590 and 1620, devoting particular attention to the theological and philosophical terminology they employed. While sometimes borrowing directly from Latin and Portuguese, the new Catholic lexicon also drew from pre-existing Japanese vocabulary in the context of Buddhist and Neo-Confucian spirituality. Along with the education reforms introduced by the accommodationist Jesuit Alessandro Valignano, projects of Catholicism in translation complicate the picture of defeat and mutual misunderstanding that are often thought to characterize Japan’s Christian Century.

The Interpretation and Reconstruction of the Process of the Japanization of Confucianism: A Case Study on the Kyoto Faction of Zhu Xi Studies in Tokugawa Japan

The concept of the ‘Japanization of Confucianism’ took shape during the Meiji 明治 period (1868–1912 C.E.), reached its highest point of development in Tokugawa Japan (1603–1868), and is epitomized by the rise of the Kyoto faction (Kyō-gakuha 京學派) of Zhu Xi studies (Shushi-gaku 朱子學). However, due to the underestimation of Japanese Zhu Xi studies by scholars like Inoue Tetsujirō 井上哲次郎 from the early twentieth century onward, the Kyoto faction ipso facto has been largely eclipsed in the history of the study of Japanese Confucianism. In light of this, the present article investigates the representative scholars in the Kyoto faction to uncover the dynamic process of Confucianism’s penetration into Japanese society. A multiple-dimension study is conducted to dissect varied approaches to promoting the Japanization of Confucianism, including the vernacularization and sanctification of Confucianism in Japan. This article seeks to redefine the role of the Kyoto faction in the transmission of Confucianism across East Asia.

The Role Played by Zen “Kong” in Japanese Aesthetics

Japanese Zen Buddhism has led the way for Japanese aesthetics and has continued to bring this aesthetic to the public, most notably in the form of ukiyo-e. Zen Buddhism is a branch of Buddhism with the core principle of "no thought, no appearance, no dwelling," and "Katsu" as its practice from Linji School. As Zen became integrated into Japanese life, meditation was likewise manifested in social life, most notably in the Edo period. As a declining, last feudal period in Japanese history, the Edo Shogunate was flawed in terms of notification. The samurai class, which was attached to the Shogunate, was fundamentally lacking in subject matter, and the Tokugawa family gave them the idea of Bushido but not its inner pillar. Japanese merchants, who had no status, spent their money recklessly but gained confusion and emptiness. Bijinga-e, who specializes in painting Japanese geisha in Ukiyo-e, shows all the meanings of "Kong" through the composition, white space, and the form of people in the painting. Most impressionists in the nineteenth century expressed their emotions and imitated East Asian style artworks, and only "had the form but not the spirit." This paper thus concludes that the status of "Kong" in Japanese Zen aesthetics is like a butterfly in an invisible net, out of control and out of sight.

Visual image of the ainu in paintings and engravings of the 16th - early 19th centuries: historical and ethnographic source or artist’s imagination?

The article examines the main visual sources of the 16th - early 19th centuries, in which the images of the Ainu were introduced. The silk and paper scrolls, engravings in the books always attracted attention to the Ainu theme. Many issues in the ethnic history and physical anthropological type of the people, as well as the origins of their ornaments and tattoos remain debatable. The portraits of the Ainu that appeared during the Edo period, made by Japanese, Russian, and European artists and engravers, contributed to the spread of knowledge about this people. However, these visual images often reflected the artist’s subjective, often politically biased, views of the object. Despite this fact, one can get a certain idea of the Ainu appearance and the features of their material and spiritual culture by studying these canvases, engravings and illustrations. The purpose of this article is to consider the possibility of using pieces of art as a historical and ethnographic source.

Europeans in Japan: from trade to knowledge

The Dutch trading posts, first at Hirado and later at Deshima in northwest Kyushu, existed from 1609 to 1855. These almost two and a half centuries can be roughly divided in two parts. In the XVII th and the beginning of the XVIII th century the relations between the Dutch and the Japanese were marked by the mutual interest in trade and by the readiness of the Dutch to unconditionally obey the strict rules of their presence in Japan. The second half of Dutch presence at Desima is characterized by decline of trade and increase of mutual interest. Trade began to decline after the Shogunate prohibited the export of gold and silver in 1668. In 1743 for the first time trade with Japan became unprofitable. In 1799 the Dutch East India Company (VOC) ceased to exist. This was due both to the loss of its markets in Persia, India, and Europe and to increased competition with England and France for colonial markets. Another reason for the company's bankruptcy was the managerial errors of its management - the company was paying dividends to shareholders in Holland that exceeded its profits. Despite the economic losses, both sides were in no hurry to end the relationship. For Japan, Deshima remained a small window to Europe, through which they learned about the outside world and its scientific and technological achievements. The emergence of qualified translators from the Dutch language in Japan coincided with the Shogunate's interest in the development of science, opened up a source of knowledge for the country and the emergence of a new branch of science, Rangaku, which means «Dutch science». The Netherlands, maintaining its trading post in Japan, proceeded not only from the desire to maintain its status as a global empire, but also got a chance to study and appreciate the rather unique intellectual and cultural potential of the Japanese, becoming a unique source of knowledge about this country for Europe. Last 15 years of Tokugawa period is called Bakumatsu (what means the «end of Tokugawa period»), which was followed by Meiji restoration, and development of intensive contacts between Europe and Japan.

近世末期から明治時代初期における和釘の価額と近代における洋釘の価額の関係

This article examined the changes in the value of Japanese nails from the end of the Edo period to 1879, and compared them with the value of nails in the building specifications in the Dajokan Kobunroku. This article also compared the value of Japanese nails and Western nails. The following points become clear.

The Influence of Ukiyo-e on Modern Illustration

Ukiyo-e is an art form that was developed during the Edo period in Japan, depicting mainly the culture of the Japanese marketplace, as well as places of entertainment and landscape scenery. Ukiyo-e had a great impact on European painting and influenced the creation of a large number of people, including the Impressionists, and gave European art a new look. Ukiyo-e's lines, composition, colors, and choice of materials not only profoundly influenced Western art, but also the creation of modern illustration, and traces of Ukiyo-e can be seen everywhere in modern illustration works.

THE BUSHIDO CODE: HISTORY AND MODERNITY

The article examines the historical and modern interpretation of the Japanese code of "Bushido", "The Way of the warrior", as the basic principles of morality and rules of conduct of warriors in life and society since about the X century. The penetration of the foundations of "Bushido" into the broad strata of society with the advent of the Edo era (1603-1867), gave it the character of national morality and equated it with the state ideology. An assessment is given of the transformation of the principles of "Bushido" into "Heimindo", "The Way of the commoner", in the XX century, an attempt to "elevate commoners to the status of samurai", preserving the ideals of loyalty, benevolence and justice in society. The preservation of the principles of "Bushido" in the Japanese national culture in the era of globalization is substantiated.

Dietetic Materia Medica (Yue Fu Shi Wu Ben Cao) : The rise of Dietetic Materia Medica in the Edo Period in Japan

Food was believed to have some medicinal properties apart from its everyday sustenance in Japan in the Edo period (1603-1867). The dietetic materia medica then became a knowledge system in Japan with reference of the knowledge system of traditional Chinese materia medica, following some related books published.Dietetic Materia Medica (Yue Fu Shi Wu Ben Cao) was written by Nagoya Genyi as the pioneer work on dietetic materia medica in the Edo period. The book was divided into two volumes. The first one involved a total of 290 types of dietetic materia medica and 167 types of botanical medicines (grains, vegetables, aquatic plants, fungi, fruits, and herbs). The second volume included 123 types of animal medicines (fish,meso, poultry and animal sections). Its author, Nagoya Genyi, was the first doctor to link food with clinical treatment in Japan. He mainly focused on disease treatment in terms of specific classification and exposition. In this sense, the book was characteristic of materia medica rather than its museum properties. The content of the book showed the writing style and the medical tendency of the early food materia medica in the Edo period. Researching this book can help in understanding the compilation of dietetic materia medica represented by physicians in this period in Japan.

Examining Utagawa Kuniyoshis Yose-e: The Playfulness and the Grotesque in the Floating World

Utagawa Kuniyoshi is a highly regarded Japanese woodblock print-making master; most of his works are welcomed by the mass, for they address most aspects of civilians' everyday life in Late Edo Japan. However, some of his works seem set on uncommon themes with distorted expressions that make them less pleasing than simple popular art. This work aims at deciphering Kuniyoshis unconventional yose-e woodblock printings by contextualizing his works under the tradition of creating playful and grotesque ukiyo-e during the late Tokugawa period. By using theories of Edo aesthetics in these unattractive, sometimes disturbing images, this essay attempts to locate the cultural position of this relatively obscure branch of Late Edo ukiyo-e designing.

The Material Complexity of Three Seventeenth-Century Cabinets Exported from the Far East

ABSTRACT This paper focuses on three Far East cabinets that have ended up in Sweden for various reasons and on various routes. Some specific characteristics have been analysed using various scientific methods: sectional microscopy, wood taxonomy, X–ray fluorescence microscopy, pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, strontium isotope ratio measurement, and radiocarbon dating. The results show that the cabinets contain wood from species endemic to Japan, namely asunaro (Thujopsis dolabrata) and hinoki (Chamaecyparis obtuse). They are coated with urushi sap derived from Toxicodendron vernicifluum trees, in two cases confirmed to be harvested in China, and one case probably blended with sap exuded from Toxicodendron succedanea harvested in North Vietnam. Their black appearance is due to a soot pigment typical of many products from the early Edo period or older. The data obtained with scientific methods, unavailable in the past, improve knowledge about these cabinets. Such new information should be made available to scholars and the general public.

Quantitative Evaluation of the Physiological Load of Walking on Historic Traffic Paths: Case Study of the Tokaido Hakone Pass East Slope during the Edo Period

Quantitative Evaluation of the Physiological Load of Walking on Historic Traffic Paths: Case Study of the Tokaido Hakone Pass East Slope during the Edo Period

RELIGIOUS POLICY OF JAPAN IN THE XV-XVII CENTURIES IN THE CONTEXT OF CENTRALIZATION OF AUTHORITY AND THE EMERGENCE OF REALISTIC AUTHORITARIANISM

This publication attempts to study the religious policy of Japan from the time of the unification of the country through the efforts of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi to the consolidation of the Tokugawa shogunate in close connection with the ongoing political processes - the centralization of authority and the formation of the Tokugawa military oligarchy based on realistic authoritarianism. The significance of the ideological postulates of the religions common in pre-Edo and Edo Japan is established in the context of overcoming feudal fragmentation and the consistent construction of the Tokugawa shogunate. The main directions of the state religious policy of the period under review are singled out and the nature and political reasons for the positive or negative attitude towards common religions on the part of the ruling class are revealed. The understanding of realistic authoritarianism as a set of methods for retaining Tokugawa power by harsh, manipulative, but excluding direct violence methods is being consolidated. The thesis is substantiated that the Confucian doctrine became the ideological basis for the centralization of authority and the emergence of realistic authoritarianism of the first Tokugawa shoguns, the implementation of which made it possible to establish the regime of the Tokugawa military oligarchy through the policy of “soft power”, blocking the emergence of centrifugal and separatist tendencies among influential daimyo. It is proved that the state during the period under review pursued a conservative religious policy which was expressed in the patronage of traditional beliefs (Shintoism, Buddhism and Zen Buddhism) and the prohibition of Christianity, which was perceived, on the one hand, as a belief alien to the Japanese and, on the other hand, as a worldview that encroaches on the foundations of Japanese statehood. In the context of the study of religious policy towards Christians, it is concluded that the Confucian idea of achieving state order by unifying social life and consistently getting rid of political and axiological factors that could bring disorganization into normal and habitual functioning of social matter played a significant role in the prohibition of Christianity and Catholic missionary work.

Poultry consumed by the Dutch in the Dejima trading post, Nagasaki, Japan

Chickens, wild ducks, and geese were considered the main avifaunal food resources in early modern Japan. However, bird consumption in areas outside Edo (early modern Tokyo) has seldom been discussed. Nagasaki was the only place where trade with foreign countries occurred and where knowledge and culture from the West were introduced. Therefore, to understand bird utilisation in early modern Japan, comparing bird consumption in Nagasaki, which may have been subject to foreign influence, with that in the town of Edo might be beneficial. To elucidate bird consumption in Nagasaki, we analysed bird remains recovered from the Oranda Shokan site, which was inhabited by Dutch people in the early modern age. Our results revealed that chickens were the most frequently consumed birds throughout the Edo period (1603–1868), and those targeted for consumption included juveniles and hens. Other poultry such as domestic ducks and geese were also consumed at the site. These poultry consumption patterns are different from those observed in the town of Edo. The results of this study suggest the existence of regional differences in poultry consumption during the Edo period.

“A Global Web of Elegies”

Abstract Is the elegy global? To wrestle with this impossibly large question, can we approach it intrinsically by searching within elegy for traces of the genre’s worldwide reach? A contemporary elegy that can serve as a portal to the genre’s globality is Edward Hirsch’s book-length Gabriel (2014), a lament for the poet’s son that weaves a global web of elegies, citing more than a dozen mourning poets from classical and Edo Japan, medieval, Renaissance, and Romantic Britain, Renaissance Poland, nineteenth-century Germany and France, and twentieth-century Italy, Russia, and India. Though not comprehensive, Hirsch’s gathering makes visible the elegy’s global resonances, divergences, and scope.

Life expectancy in Japan (17<sup>th</sup> – first half of the 20<sup>th</sup> centuries)

Life expectancy is the most important indicator of the state of society and the quality of life of the people who live in it. It depends on many factors that affect mortality: nutrition, physical activity, epidemic and other diseases, natural, social and anthropogenic disasters, the level of public anxiety, the state of the environment, healthcare, hygiene, etc.In Japan during the Tokugawa period, the body did not belong to the person himself. His mission was to “serve” – to the overlord and parents. This was possible only if the person was healthy for as long as possible. During the Tokugawa era, the Japanese were taught that only a healthy person could fulfill his duty. Healthcare was entrusted to the person himself, there was no public health system. Despite the huge differences in natural conditions, lifestyle, nutritional diet, scientific and medical ideas, in terms of life expectancy, Japan was approximately on the same level as major European countries.After the Meiji revolution, the concept of “service” did not disappear, but now the main object of service became the state represented by the emperor. The state made serious efforts in the field of healthcare, but the negative consequences of modernization for a long time did not allow to increase life expectancy. Its slow but steady growth begins only in the second half of the 1920s. However, before the Second World War, Japan lagged significantly behind the developed countries of the West in terms of life expectancy. The expansionist policy of Japan demanded to increase the number of Japanese people. Since increasing life expectancy is a time-consuming task, the choice was made in favor of a policy of increasing the birth rate.

An observational comic novel of manners. Review of the Russian edition of the book Footing It Along the Tōkaidō by Jippensha Ikku

The article offers a critical review of the Russian edition of the comic novel Footing it Along the Tōkaidō by an outstanding writer of the Tokugawa era (1603–1868) Jippenshya Ikku. Recently published by Saint Petersburg’s Hyperion, the novel was masterfully translated from Japanese by Anastassya Y. Borkina who thoroughly studied this complex observational comedy of manners or humerous book (kokkeibon) and provided the necessary analytical apparatus, including commentaries and a preface. The narrative develops around the adventures of two characters, Yajirobei and Kitahachi, who embark on a journey along the so-called Tōkaidō road, the most important of the routes of Japan, connecting Edo and Kyoto. They meet various personages from a variety of cities and regions as well as from different strata of society, getting themselves into farcical situations and every time finding their way out of comic conundrums. The road itself works as a central axis of the story, propelling the characters forward and offering diverse settings for their escapades. The novel with illustrations by the writer was especially popular in nineteenth century Japan, yet the adventures of Yajirobei and Kitahachi remain well-known up until today, providing inspiration for a trove of literary parodies, manga novels, anime books, and video games.

近世の白山三禅定道における室の変遷と形式

By the end of the Sengoku period, accommodations known as muro had been established around the three peaks of Mt. Haku (Hakusan) by temples and shrines at the foot of the mountain. By the early Edo period, villages along the worship ascent trails to Hakusan’s three peaks had constructed their own muro. They were simple wooden huts built on flat land and near water. Although enclosed by stone walls to protect against wind, they often needed to be renovated and reconstructed. After frequent disputes over rights, Heisenji Temple seized power, leading to the decline of the ascent trails and muro.

An Exploration of the Ecological Wisdom in Kumazawa Banzan’s Confucian Thought

Against the backdrop of an increasingly serious global ecological crisis, scholars have turned their attention to Eastern Confucianism in an attempt to find ecological wisdom in traditional Confucianism in order to seek a path of harmonious development between human beings and nature. Kumazawa Banzan, as a Confucianist and a realist with environmental consciousness who emerged in the context of the severe environmental destruction in the early Edo period, is very representative. In this paper, we will take Kumazawa’s Confucianism as an object of study and explore ecological wisdom in his Confucianism, taking his mountain and forestry thought as an example to understand its contemporary value.