This is Future Learning
Find out how our This is Future Learning campaign aims to transform access to education …
Home / History / Social History / Sino-Japanese Interactions Through Rare Books / The activity of the local daimyo presses
The activity of the local daimyo presses
Watch Prof. Sumiyoshi introduce some of the important books illustrates the trend in Muromachi period.
A new development in this period was the appearance of provincial presses sponsored by the local daimyo. Although early medieval provincial temples did print books mimicking the large temples of the Kinai area, they did so without any consistency or regularity. The printing undertaken by Gozan monks under the sponsorship of local lords in the late-medieval period differed from these earlier attempts in both form and content. Among the most active presses to thrive in large feudal towns and ports were those sponsored by the Hosokawa in Sakai, the Ōuchi in Yamaguchi, the Shimazu in Satsuma, the Imagawa in Sunpu, and the Asakura in Ichijōdani.
Sakai was an important center of trade with China, and because of its unique concentration of new professional groups such as merchants, physicians, printing there took a highly distinctive route. Among the most widely published titles by the provincial presses were the anthology of Zen koans Biyan Lu (1), the Analects (2) of Confucius, and the Chinese rhyming dictionary Shūbun inryaku(3). Here is Biyan Lu (1) printed in Muromachi period(). The Biyan lu is the foundational text of the Rinzai sect of Zen. It was printed by temples across Japan for use in religious instruction. The Analects were the cornerstone of secular education. The edition you see was printed in Sakai in 1533 (Tenmon 8) (2) and it is known as the Tenmon-era() Analects.
The Kamakura-period () Shūbun inryaku (3) provided the pronunciation of Chinese characters and was used as a reference for composing poetry in Chinese. By this point, most printed books were bound in the fukurotoji (bound pocket) style. Like the Gozan temple presses, the Sakai press published secular titles, but its range was wider and included scholarly works by the Kiyohara lineage of court scholars, and particularly the Analects, which were printed several times. In other words, book printing was becoming more and more secularized. Another significant publication was the Ming-dynasty() medical text Yishu Daquan(4), which was printed in the latest format from China.
Medical texts, which were also printed by the Asakura at Ichijōdani, epitomize the new trend of printing books for practical purposes in addition to religious and philosophical texts. During the Tenshō era (), Ishibe “Ryōsatsu” Nagakiyo, under the pseudonym “The Bookmaker,” printed the Shitai senbun shohō (5)(The One Thousand Character Classic in Four Calligraphic Styles) and dictionaries such as the Setsuyōshū(6). Originally (Nara period ()) the term “bookmaker” (literally, the sutra craftsman) referred to sutras copiers, but in the medieval period it came to be applied to printers and binders working at temple presses. Printing seems to have been a hereditary profession for the Ishibe family. The One Thousand Characters Classic was used to teach basic literacy, as was the Setsuyōshū.
Neither of them had anything to do with religion, and it is highly likely that they were made to be sold. Thus, from its beginnings in Gozan temples, printing during the Muromachi era(*) spread to the various local daimyo presses, became increasingly secularized, and even began to show the first signs of commercialization. The early experiments with secular texts by the Gozan-ban editions paved the way for the spread of kangaku (Chinese studies) to a wider section of society and also brought an increase in literacy rates. This is but one of the many ways in which the activity of the Gozan-ban influenced Japanese culture at large. However, it would take the influx of new technology from outside Japan for commercial printing to truly thrive.
In Muromachi period, publishing books becomes popular in other cities besides Kyoto (the ancient capital of Japan) with a variety of content. Watch Prof. Sumiyoshi introduce some of the important books illustrates the trend in Muromachi period.
Period names in China and Japan that appeared in the video
(*) in the English subtitle indicates the name of the period. Please refer to the following Chinese period names appeared in the video as well as Step1.3 “East Asian History at a Glance”.- Japan: Nara period (710-794)
- Japan: Kamakura preiod (1185-1333)
- Japan: Muromachi period (1392-1573)
- Japan: Tenmon era (in Muromachi period) (1532 – 1555)
- Japan: Tenshō era (in Azuchi-Momoyama period) (1573-1593)
- China: Ming-dynasty (1368-1644)
Books introduced in the video
- Biyan Lu(Blue Cliff Record, J. Hekiganroku), Muromachi period
Click to see the image and information - Two books of Analects (J. Rongo), both are Tenmon edition, published in 1533
Click to see the image and information [book#1][book#2] - Shūbun inryaku, by Kokanshiren (1278 – 1346, Zen prist in late Kamakura), Gozan-ban edition
- Yishu Daquan (J. Isho taizen), Ming-dynasty medical text
Click to see the image - Shitai senbun shohō (The One Thousand Character Classic in Four Calligraphic Styles),published by Ishibe ““Ryōsatsu” Nagakiyo, Tenshō era
- Setsuyōshū, dictionary, published by Ishibe “Ryōsatsu” Nagakiyo, Tenshō era
Related books
Here is another example of publishing by Daimyo, Imagawa family of Sunpu (Shizuoka prefecture in current Japan).- Rekidai Joryaku , Imagawa press, 1554
Click to see the image and information
Keywords introduced in the video
- Asakura
- Shimazu
- Satsuma
- Hosokawa
- fukurotoji
- Analects of Confucius
- Sakai
- Ōuchi
- Kinai
- Ichijōdani
- Yamaguchi
- One Thousand Characters Classic
- Rinzai sect
This article is from the online course:
Sino-Japanese Interactions Through Rare Books
Created by
What is machine learning? – A beginner’s guide
What is machine learning, and why is it so useful? We take a detailed look …
How to reduce your carbon footprint – 20 top tips
If you’re wondering what a carbon footprint is and why it’s so important, we’ve got …
Explore: the data industry in detail
We take a look at what the state of play is in the data industry. …
This article is from the free online
Sino-Japanese Interactions Through Rare Books
Our purpose is to transform access to education.
We offer a diverse selection of courses from leading universities and cultural institutions from around the world. These are delivered one step at a time, and are accessible on mobile, tablet and desktop, so you can fit learning around your life.
We believe learning should be an enjoyable, social experience, so our courses offer the opportunity to discuss what you’re learning with others as you go, helping you make fresh discoveries and form new ideas.
You can unlock new opportunities with unlimited access to hundreds of online short courses for a year by subscribing to our Unlimited package. Build your knowledge with top universities and organisations.
Learn more about how FutureLearn is transforming access to education
