A journey to the heart of Japan
Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645) was the most famous swordsman, teacher of the Way of the Sword, and ronin (masterless samurai) of the early Edo period. His story has been enshrined in popular legend, novel and movie; the movie is repeated on television each New Years in either its 7 or 15-hour version. Musashi was like many… [Read more]
Shimazaki Toson (1872-1943) is one of many literary figures with connections to the Nakasendo, but Toson is the one with the closest and longest association. Toson was born and raised in Magome and he wrote about Magome, Kiso-Fukushima (where he had relatives by marriage), and the Nakasendo at length in his autobiographical novels. Toson was… [Read more]
The Nakasendo may have been a road through the mountains and half as wide as the Tokaido which followed the flatter coastal areas, but it was very heavily traveled in the Edo period. The primary reason for the highway system through Japan was to provide the Tokugawa shogunate with the communication network it required to… [Read more]
Princess Kazunomiya was the sister of Emperor Komei (reigned 1846-67) and was married to the 14th Tokugawa shogun, Iemochi, in 1862. The marriage was a political device intended to bring the imperial court and the Tokugawa shogunate into harmony, even though the princess, then aged 16, was already betrothed to someone else within the imperial… [Read more]
Buddhism entered Japan after the Indian offshoot from Hinduism was transformed in China. Together with Shinto, it is the religion which most Japanese profess to and has been a major religious and cultural influence on Japan. Buddhism entered Japan in the great wave of Chinese cultural influence in the 6th century. Specifically, Buddhism is said… [Read more]
Shinto is Japan’s native religion. It is often called ‘The Way of the Gods’ because it is written with two Chinese characters which can be so translated. Shinto often seems to be a confusing amalgam of beliefs because it combines a huge variety of local traditions with a more tightly defined body of beliefs important… [Read more]
Christianity came to Japan in two waves: in the 16th century and again in the 19th and 20th centuries. In both periods, it achieved some influence and made a moderate number of converts, but it has always remained Japan’s least important religion compared to Shinto and Buddhism. The Jesuits traveled with Portuguese and Spanish explorers… [Read more]
Ishidatami or ‘paving stones’ were laid down on rough patches of road, particularly over the mountain passes which were steep at the top and prone to erosion in the rainy season. Stones were laid carefully so that porters and carriers would have sure footing when they most needed it. Other than this, no attempt was… [Read more]
Dosojin are guardian deities who are closely associated with roads, travelers and local boundaries. They were assigned the task of keeping evil away from the Nakasendo and its travelers. Dosojin come in many forms, but are generally small, carved stones in a human shape. Often, they come in pairs of figures, but sometimes they are… [Read more]
One of the aids for both travelers and the people who worked on the highways in the early Edo period were regular distance markers, similar to the notion of ‘mile posts’ seen on Western roads. Rather than a simple post or stone pillar, however, Japanese highways were typically marked by large earthen mounds known as… [Read more]
The Warring States period (Sengoku jidai) lasted for the century from 1467 to 1567 although the wars and confusion of the age were not finally ended until the creation of the Tokugawa shogunate in 1603. The name is drawn from a similar period of civil war in China. It saw the breakdown of central authority,… [Read more]
The battle at Sekigahara in 1600 is seen as the last step in a centuries long process of political unification made remarkable by the degree of warfare. This was the Warring States period. The outcome of the battle was a definition of political relationships which were maintained during two and a half centuries of peace, stability, and… [Read more]
Porters and carriers were the primary means by which goods, travelers and their baggage moved along Japanese highways. When the first ‘official’ highways were established in Japan, probably in the 7th century AD, one of their most important functions was to facilitate the smooth passage of the rice tax due to the emperor each year…. [Read more]
The great highways of the Edo period, such as the Tokaido and the Nakasendo, fell into relative decline after the Meiji Restoration of 1868. The ‘alternate residence’ system (sankin kotai) had been abolished a few years earlier, and the roads no longer had to support frequent daimyo processions. Furthermore, the imperial court moved to Tokyo… [Read more]
Fire was a constant worry before the advent of new building materials and remains a major concern today. The traditional building was mainly constructed of flammable materials. The basic structure was of wood with the walls woven of bamboo or other material and covered with mud and plaster. Floors were wooden or wood covered over… [Read more]
The first lord of Hikone, Ii Naomasa, had been one of Tokugawa Ieyasu’s most loyal and trusted generals. As a reward for his services the Ii family were entrusted with a hereditary position of high status and authority as fudai daimyo in the Tokugawa shogunate. The Ii daimyo, otherwise known by their honorific title of… [Read more]
Although the centers of commercial activities were located in the towns and large cities which grew up in the Edo period, the old province of Omi, the area south and east of Lake Biwa, played a large role. The Omi merchants became famous throughout Japan, and very rich too, through their base in jute and other… [Read more]
Conditions which were extremely favorable to commerce began to appear, ironically, during the Warring States period. As sengoku daimyo unified and enlarged their domains, they found that although they perhaps wanted the independence which mercantilist policies promised, they could not remain aloof from a national economic system. In fact, many of the policies they pursued… [Read more]
In the 17th century, the Edo shogunate authorities placed strong emphasis on revitalizing the highway system to ensure that orders and messages could be relayed quickly, efficiently, and safely between Edo and the provinces. This was essential for effective government. Among the many different types of travelers regularly seen along the ‘Five Roads’ were runners,… [Read more]
Alternate residence duty, or sankin kotai, was a system developed in the Warring States period and perfected by the Tokugawa shogunate. In essence, the system demanded simply that daimyo reside in the Tokugawa castle at Edo for periods of time, alternating with residence at the daimyo’s own castle. When a daimyo was not residing in… [Read more]
Although China was the center of civilization in East Asia and a major influence on Japan, much of that influence came to Japan through Korea rather than directly from China. If Chinese influence was responsible for major changes in Japan – the import of Buddhism, writing, Confucianism, and technology – then Korea was the active… [Read more]
Most accounts date the origins of a national system of highways to 702AD: the year of the Taiho Code. Among other things, the Taiho reforms formalized a system of national administration (known as the “Ritsuryo system”), based on a division of the country into seven major regions, or ‘circuits’, and an additional one incorporating the… [Read more]
During the 7th century a centralized political state gradually emerged, providing the foundations for a unified Japan under the direct control of the emperor. After a number of imperial palaces had been built, then later dismantled, at various sites near modern-day Nara and Osaka the first imperial and administrative capital was built at Fujiwara at… [Read more]
Contact between Japan and China goes back to around 200AD, according to the Chinese histories, and the influence of China on Japan is as deep as it is long. Whether you look at language, culture, political institutions, or the Nakasendo itself, Chinese influence is readily apparent. At the same time, Japan has always remained different,… [Read more]
Properly speaking, there have been no dynastic struggles in Japan; only one dynasty has ruled Japan and it continues. That simplistic statement, however, covers up a lot of exceptions to the rule. To begin with, Japanese emperors and empresses (there have been ten empresses with the last reigning from 1762-1771) have seldom exercised much power…. [Read more]
Although closely akin to their Asian neighbors in both physical appearance and cultural background, many Japanese today maintain a strong belief in the unique identity of the Japanese race. Perhaps the strongest argument in support of this notion is the fact that the Japanese language (excluding imported words – mainly from China) has no close… [Read more]
The concept that the emperors and empresses of Japan are descended from gods was enshrined in the Shinto religion, in Japan’s earliest histories, and in the 1889 Meiji Constitution. Article 3 of this constitution stated in its entirety ‘The Emperor is sacred and inviolable’. In Japan’s earliest histories, however, the story is told at greater… [Read more]
Politics changed sharply at the end of the Edo period (1603-1868): the period came to an end. But the fact that the period came to an end, after 250 years of stability and continuity raises the question Why? Historians approach the question from two directions. One is perhaps more obvious: Westerners came and their coming… [Read more]
The Tokugawa political system was perhaps the most complex feudal system ever developed. It was similar to the European feudal system (pope, emperor or king, feudal barons, and retainers in Europe compared to emperor, the shogun, the daimyo, and samurai retainers in Japan), but it was also very bureaucratic, an attribute not associated with European… [Read more]
A samurai in the Edo period, Takayama Hikokuro (1747-93) is more symbol than substance since few facts are known for sure about him. The statue of Takayama at the Sanjo Bridge in Kyoto is a testament to the impact he had, but there are many stories which surround his legend. One popular tale has it… [Read more]
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