Ise in Japanese Culture: Kenkō Hōshi’s Essays in Idleness at the Intersection of Literature and History

Today (July 29, 2024), I am the chair, discussant, and one of the presenters for a panel about Ise Jingū called "Japan’s National Shrine: Ise Jingū in the Early Modern Period and Beyond" at the 13th International Convention of Asia Scholars (ICAS 13) in Surabaya, Indonesia. The other presenters on the panel are Yoshiko Yuasa 湯浅 佳子 (Tokyo Gakugei University), Kaoru Oshima 大島 薫 (Kansai University), Satoshi Sonehara 曽根原 理 (Tohoku University), and Jon Morris モリス　ジョン (Daito Bunka University).

In this post, I have included the panel abstract, my abstract, and a selected bibliography for my presentation, "Ise in Japanese Culture: Kenkō Hōshi’s Essays in Idleness at the Intersection of Literature and History." I originally gave a longer version of this talk in Japanese for a general audience, and besides revising it for an academic audience, based on the comments I received then, I have made significant changes to it. I plan to publish the research soon, so if you aren't in the audience today, keep your eye out for it in print.

PANEL ABSTRACT

Like Indonesia, Japan has a rich history of engaging with diverse religions, beliefs, philosophies, and people worldwide. The two countries have many institutions and sites bound up with religious traditions—in Japan, the imperial household and Mt. Fuji are perhaps the most iconic of these. However, many others are important for understanding Japanese history and culture, even though they are less well-known outside Japan. This panel focuses on Ise Shrine (Jingu)—one of the most revered religious sites in the nation’s Shinto religious tradition—to explore how an ancient indigenous religion has emphasized its deep-rooted traditions while evolving over the centuries to adapt to society within a varied religious landscape that has come to include a significant Buddhist and Christian presence. Agap of its cultural and historical significance, it maintains a unique position as a site that exerts tangible and intangible influences on the Japanese psyche.

Attention has primarily focused on Jingu in the ancient period, and we know considerably less about it from the late medieval (14th to 16th centuries) to the early modern period (17th to 19th centuries). In ancient times, Jingu received strong protection as a core component of the state organization. However, this support crumbled during the medieval period, forcing it to seek new patrons among warriors and upper-class farmers. Proselytizers or pilgrimage facilitators known as “onshi” were dispatched to acquire followers throughout Japan. While they successfully spread faith in the site, Jingu had difficulty obtaining sufficient financial support to fulfill its ritual functions. From the 17th century, the Tokugawa Shogunate revived Jingu, which had declined significantly, and by the late early modern period, commoner faith had spread widely, with tremendous numbers of people all over the country coming together to join in the “okage mairi” (pilgrimages of gratitude).

This panel’s research on early modern Jingu seeks to describe perceptions of the shrine from various disciplines to understand its place in national, local, elite, and popular culture. The first three presentations focus on literary and other textual sources to address issues such as evolving textual and visual understandings of Ise. The remaining two presentations explore the shrine’s political and popular aspects, including the relationship between Jingu (associated with the imperial family) and Toshogu Shrine, which enshrined the founder of the ruling warrior house.

MY ABSTRACT

This presentation uses a collection of historical and literary essays to explore the religious and cultural resonance of the Ise-Shima region, which is probably best known for having one of Japan's most sacred sites from the Shinto religious tradition.  It focuses on depictions of Ise in one of Japan’s most beloved classical texts, Kenko Hoshi’s14th-century Essays in Idleness. Scholars have paid considerable attention to Kenko’s incorporation of key concepts associated with the Buddhist worldview, and from the perspective of intellectual history, the text is considered an eloquent expression of Japanese views on impermanence.    

In contrast to the emphasis on Buddhist thought in the text, this presentation highlights connections made by the author to the Shinto tradition in relation to Ise. In particular, it considers a passage about a close unmarried female relative of the emperor tasked with performing ritual services at the Ise Shrine complex on behalf of the emperor and another section that introduces an anecdote about an oni (demon) woman from Ise. This presentation aims to deepen our understanding of the initial medieval religio-social context for the passages, reevaluate how Kenko’s medieval textual depictions of Ise were received in subsequent centuries, and consider how gender and other themes have been interpreted in both written and visual culture from the early modern period to the present.

SOME ONLINE RESOURCES (my presentation)

• Jinja Honchō 神社本庁 (Association of Shinto Shrines): ""Jinja Honcho was formed with the consensus of 80,000 Shinto shrines throughout the Japanese archipelago in 1946. Since then, respecting the Grand Shrine of Ise as the most prominent shrine in Japan, Jinja Honcho has worked to encourage Shinto rituals, to promote the prosperity of Shinto shrines, and to support the continuity of Japanese culture and traditions."
• Irei, the Spirituality of the Japanese (PDF)
• Jinja, Heart of Japan (PDF)
• Soul of Japan (PDF)  this booklet covers all the basics and gives a good idea of what Shinto is from the perspective of its largest organization.
• To Nurture A Noble Spirit - The Power of the Imperial Rescript on Education -
• Rosemarie Bernard (Shinto and Ecology Bibliography) : also conveniently available as a downloadable document.
• John Breen and Mark Teeuwen (A Shinto Bibliography in English) (PDF)
• Kokugakuin University's Shinto Portal 
• Articles in Translation
• Encyclopedia of Shinto

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY (my presentation)

Aoki Akira 青木晃, ed. Tsurezuregusa: Hanpon eiri 版本絵 徒然草. Osaka: Izumi Shoin 和泉書院, 1981.

Anderson, Benedict ベネディクト・アンダーソン. Teihon sōzō no kyōdōtai: Nashonarizumu nokigen to ryūkō 定本 想像の共同体―ナショナリズムの起源と流行. Tokyo Shoseki Kōbō Hayayama 書籍工房早山, 2007.

Arisue Ken 有末賢. “Shūgōteki kioku to kojinteki kioku: Kioku no kyōyūsei to bōkyakusei wo megutte” 集合的記憶と個人的記憶 : 記憶の共有性と忘却性をめぐって. Hōgaku kenkyū: Hōritsu, seiji, shakai 法學研究：法律・政治・社会 89, no. 2 (2016): 19–40.

Ariyoshi Tamotsu 有吉保, ed. Tsurezuregusa shōmitsu saishiki Yamato ehon 徒然草　詳密彩色大和絵本. Tokyo: Bensei Shuppan 勉誠出版, 2006.

Chance, Linda H. 1997. Formless in Form: Kenkō, Tsurezuregusa, and the Rhetoric of Japanese Fragmentary Prose. Stanford: Stanford University Press.

Chance, Linda H. 1997. “Constructing the Classic: Tsurezuregusa in Tokugawa Readings.” Journal of the American Oriental Society 117, no. 1 (Jan.–Mar.): 39–56.

Foucault, Michel. "What is an Author?" In Michel Foucault: Language, Counter-Memory, Practice, edited by Donald F. Bouchard.  Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1977.

Fujita Masakatsu 藤田正勝. Nihon bunka wo yomu: Itsutsu no kīwādo 日本文化をよむ 5つのキーワード. Tokyo: Iwanami Shinsho 岩波新書, 2018.

Geertz, Clifford C. ギアーツ. Bunka no kaishakugaku 文化の解釈学〈1〉 [The Interpretation of Cultures]. Tokyo: Iwanami Gendai Shinsho 岩波現代新書, 1987.

Gomi Fumihiko 五味文彦. Zōho Tsurezuregusa no rekishigaku 増補「徒然草」の歴史学. Tokyo: Kadokawa Gakugei Shuppan 角川学芸出版, 2014.

Hishikawa Moronobu菱川師宣. Yamato-e tsukushi 大和絵つくし. 1680.

Ichiko Teiji 市古貞次 and Miki Sumito 三木紀人. Tsurezuregusa (koten arubamu) 徒然草 (古典アルバム). Tokyo: Meji Shoin 明治書院, 1970.

Kanagawa Kenritsu Kanazawa Bunko 神奈川県立金沢文庫. Kanagawa Geijutsusai Tokubetsuten: Tsurezuregusa no emaki to hanpon　神奈川芸術祭特別展　徒然草の絵巻と版本. Yokohama 横浜: Kanagawa Kenritsu Kanazawa Bunko 神奈川県立金沢文庫, 1986.

Kanagawa Kenritsu Kanazawa Bunko 神奈川県立金沢文庫. Tokubetsuten Kenkō Hōshi toTsurezuregusa 特別展 兼好法師と徒然草. Yokohama 横浜: Kanagawa Kenritsu Kanazawa Bunko 神奈川県立金沢文庫, 2022.

Karasumaru Mitsuhiro-bon 烏丸光広本. Karasumaru Mitsuhiro 烏丸光広. Tsurezuregusa 徒然草. Location and Publisher Unknown. 1613.

Kawahira Toshifumi 川平敏文. Kenkō Hōshi no kyozō: Giden no kinseishi 兼好法師の虚像　偽伝の近世史. Tokyo: Heibonsha Sensho 平凡社選書, 2006.

Kawahira Toshifumi 川平敏文. Tsurezuregusa no jūnana seiki: Kinsei bungei shichō no keisei 徒然草の十七世紀ー近世文芸思潮の形成. Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten 岩波書店, 2015.

Kawahira Toshifumi 川平敏文. Tsurezuregusa: Mujōkan wo koeta miryoku 徒然草 無常観を超えた魅力. Tokyo: Chūkō Shinsho 中公新書, 2020.

Keene, Donald, tr. Essays in Idleness. New York: Columbia University Press, 1967.

Kō Iku 黄昱. “Tsurezuregusa ni okeru kanseki juyō no hōhō: Dai nijūgo dan ‘tōri mono to iwaneba’ wo megutte” 『徒然草』における漢籍受容の方法 ―第二十五段「桃李もの言はねば」をめぐって―. Kokubungaku kenkyū shiryōkan kiyō 国文学研究資料館紀要 39 （March 2013）: 155–187.

Kubota Jun 久保田淳. Tsurezuregusa hikkei 徒然草必携. Tokyo: Gakutōsha 學燈社, 1987.

Kurata Toshiaki 蔵田敏明 and Watanabe Iwao 渡辺巌. Tsurezuregusa no Kyōto wo aruku: Kenkō Hōshi 徒然草の京都を歩く：兼好法師. Tokyo: Tankōsha 淡交社, 2005.

McKinney, Meredith, tr. Yoshida Kenkō and Kamo No Chōmei: Essays in Idleness and Hōjōki. New York: Penguin Classics, 2013.

Ogawa Takeo 小川剛生. Shinpan Tsurezuregusa gendaigoyaku tsuki 新版　徒然草　現代語訳付き. Tokyo: Kadokawa Sofia Bunko 角川ソフィア文庫, 2015.

Ogawa Takeo 小川剛生. Kenkō Hōshi: Tsurezuregusa ni kisarenakatta jijitsu 兼好法師—徒然草に記されなかった真実. Tokyo: Chūokōron Shinsha 中央公論新社, 2017.

Ogawa Takeo 小川剛生. Tsurezuregusa wo yominaosu 徒然草をよみなおす. Tokyo: Chikuma Shobō 筑摩書房, 2020.

Ogino Ayako 荻野文子. NHK hyakufun de meicho bukkusu: Kenkō Hōshi Tsurezuregusa NHK「100分de名著」ブックス兼好法師　徒然草. Tokyo: NHK Shuppan NHK 出版, 2012.

Saikū Rekishi Hakubutsukan 斎宮歴史博物館. NARIHIRA: Inishie no miyabi otoko no monogatari NARIHIRAーいにしへの雅び男のものがたりー. Taki-gun 多気郡, Mie Prefecture 三重県: Saikū Rekishi Hakubutsukan 斎宮歴史博物館, 2022.

Shimauchi Yūko 島内裕子. Tsurezuregusa no hensen 徒然草の変遷. Tokyo: Perkikansha ペリカン社, 1992.

Shimauchi Yūko 島内裕子. Mineruva nihon Hyōdensen: Kenkō ミネルヴァ日本評伝選 兼好. Kyoto: Mineruva Shobō ミネルヴァ書房, 2005.

Shōgakukan 小学館, ed. Shinpen Nihon koten bungaku zenshū 12: Taketori monogatari,Ise monogatari, Yamato monogatari, Hiranaka monogatari 新編　日本古典文学全集１２　竹取物語　伊勢物語　大和物語　平中物語. Tokyo: Shōgakukan 小学館, 1994.

Transferring from Kogakkan University 皇學館大学 to Nagoya Gakuin University 名古屋学院大学

 Today, I retired from Kogakkan University in Ise, Mie Prefecture. I enjoyed being a faculty member from 2014 to 2024 and greatly appreciate the opportunities for research and teaching, as well as the friendships I shared with the other faculty and staff.  I wrote a short farewell for one of the school publications below:

On Retiring from the University

As of March 31, I will be retiring from Kogakkan University and transitioning to Nagoya Gakuin University. Since joining the Communication Department in the Faculty of Letters in 2014, I have had the privilege of spending countless meaningful hours in the classroom with thousands of students. I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to interact not only with students in the Department of Communication but also with students from all faculties. Together, we have enjoyed the standard curriculum courses such as "English Expression" and "Introduction to Kogaku," as well as the specialized courses in our department, including "Foreign Affairs," "Japanese Cultural History," and seminars for juniors and seniors. 

My tenure as a full-time faculty member may have been relatively short. However, when the Department of Communication Studies was established 24 years ago, I trained and brought my high school students to the first English speech contest organized by the department, and since then, I have felt a connection with the university.

Kogakkan is a unique space where faculty, staff, and students study and research Japanese history, culture, and the country's spirit and embody Japanese values in their daily activities. I am proud and grateful to have engaged in education and research in this unique environment.

Although my role as a full-time faculty member is coming to an end, I am genuinely excited to continue my association with the university as a part-time lecturer. I am deeply grateful for the warm support I have received from the faculty and staff, and I eagerly look forward to your continued support in April and beyond.

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From tomorrow, I will begin teaching at Nagoya Gakuin University 名古屋学院大学 as a member of the Faculty of Intercultural Studies 国際文化学部.

"Ise" and Japan Study Program: Tenth Anniversary 「伊勢」と日本スタディプログラムのリユニオン 10周年

In celebration of the tenth anniversary of the "Ise" and Japan Study Program, four participants were invited back to reflect on the program in panel discussions over the course of three days. Please see the video below for a brief introduction to the event.    

　この記念すべき年を祝して、4人のかつての参加者を再び伊勢に招きし、3日間にわたるパネルディスカッションで「伊勢」と日本スタディプログラムを振り返りました。以下の動画で、パネルディスカッションの簡単な紹介をご覧いただけます。

The “Ise” and Japan Study Program began in 2014 as a collaborative project between Kogakkan University and Ise City. One of the program’s aims has been to invite researchers worldwide to deepen their understanding of Ise and Japan by attending university lectures and fieldwork. Another aim has been to increase Ise’s visibility by having participants share what they have learned and felt in their native languages via social networking services (SNS) and other online media. Beginning in 2014, with 13 participants, 124 researchers from over 30 countries joined the program.    

　「伊勢」と日本スタディプログラムは、伊勢市と皇學館大学の協働により実施しているもので、伊勢や日本に関する大学でのさまざまな講義や、伊勢を中心とした各地でのフィールド・スタディを通じて、伊勢や日本への理解を深めていただくことを目的としています。。また、学んだ内容や感じたことをインターネットやSNS等を使って、母語や英語で情報発信していただくことにより、外国の方々の伊勢や日本に関する興味・関心を高め、伊勢の知名度向上を図ることも目的としています。2014年に13人の参加者でスタートして以来、30カ国以上から合計124人もの研究者の方々に参加していただきました。

 See the video below for extended clips of discussions and comments by panel participants, the mayor of Ise, the president of Kogakkan University, the Dean of the Faculty of Letters at Kogakkan University, and a longtime faculty member who has participated in the program since its inception.

　以下の動画には、パネルディスカッション参加者、伊勢市長、皇學館大学学長、皇學館大学文学部長、そして初回から参加した皇學館大学教員によるディスカッションやコメントが収録されています。ご覧ください。

If you want to learn more about the program, please see the following website (mainly in Japanese): http://ise-japan.kogakkan-u.ac.jp/info/detail.php?mdid=6999

And, if you want to learn more about Shinto, Ise, and Mie Prefecture, I have gathered links to materials that may be of use. https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5176503056937137810/2825470813504798096 

Graduation Papers

Every year in December, fourth-year students in the Communication Department at Kogakkan University must submit a graduation paper or project to graduate. Although the graduation papers are generally not available to be read by the general public, one of my students in 2020 submitted an especially well-researched thesis that was later published in the Kogakkan Ronsō 皇學館論叢 journal as 「戦時下における遊びと食事 : 太平洋戦争中の人々の暮らし」(Play and Food in Wartime : People's Lives during the Pacific War), so it is available to view online (in Japanese).

It seems to me that the requirement to write a graduation paper independent of any specific class can be a really valuable experience because it provides an opportunity to make a meaningful contribution to a field of study after a long research and writing process. In my final seminar at Kogakkan, students submitted papers with the following titles:

1. 英語音声指導の現状と改善策　―中学校におけるやり取りを中心に―
2. 日本におけるオートバイロードレースの現状と課題　―魅力発信の比較研究―
3. 文明の衝突論の再検討 ―ロシアによるウクライナ侵攻を中心に　―
4. 自転車ヘルメット着用における努力義務化の効果に関する一考察―安全意識向上を中心に―
5. 観光地情報提供のデジタル化　―伊勢志摩とクアラルンプールの案内を中心に―
6. 伊勢湾のサワラブランドにおける高付加価値化　―「答志島トロさわら」「波乗り鰆」の事例分析―
7. 文化資源の商品化の一考察―「神宮杉」を中心に　―
8. 先進国首脳会議と開催地の観光資源　―2016年のG7伊勢志摩サミットと2023年のG7広島サミットの比較研究―
9. ダークツーリズムの魅力に関する研究　―チェルノブイリ原発事故とタイタニック号沈没事故を中心に―
10. サッカー観戦から見る国内外のイメージと現実の考察
11. 日本語教育におけるアスペクトの説明　―日中の日本語教科書を中心に―

The titles cover topics that generally focus on culture or language education--ranging from a re-examination of Samuel Huntington's "clash of civilizations" theory with a focus on Russia's invasion of Ukraine (no. 3) to the digitization of information displayed or distributed at tourist attractions in Kuala Lumpur and Ise-Shima (no. 5) 

My Last Seminar at Kogakkan

Today, I finished my last seminar at Kogakkan University. I have enjoyed teaching this seminar for nearly a decade in a supportive and stimulating educational atmosphere with many outstanding students, so it was difficult to say goodbye to the class.

I will leave my position at Kogakkan at the end of March and begin a new position in the Intercultural Studies Department 国際文化学部 at Nagoya Gakuin University (NGU) 名古屋学院大学 from April. I am planning to teach a seminar there as well, but I will spend some time this year adapting the content to the new environment. 

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Second-year students in the Communication Department at Kogakkan had to choose the seminar they wanted to join as third-year students, and the explanation below is what I used to introduce it to them.

ゼミのタイトル Seminar Title： 「日本の過去と現代」ゼミ Japan’s Past and Present Seminar

① 　ゼミ紹介　Seminar Introduction 

【キーワード】　ディスカッション Discussion 、プレゼンテーション Presentation 、比較文化史 Comparative Cultural History 、日英・英日翻訳 English<->Japanese Translation

ディスカッションとプレゼンテーションを通じて、日本の過去と現在の接点を探求する。3年生では、日本三大随筆（『枕草子』、『方丈記』、『徒然草』）などの古典文学を題材に用い、現代にも通じる要素を確認しながら、日本文化の理解を深める。また、これらと並行して、英語で観光案内看板・地図、博物館展示の解説パネル、インターネットに投稿するビデオの作成などによって、世界に日本の歴史・文化を実際に発信していく。4年生では、各自の卒業論文完成に向け、専門領域の知識を習得するとともに必要な文献の精読、論文の書き方を学ぶ。教職・一般企業・公職に求められている英語力を培う。

Third-year students deepen their understanding of Japanese culture through discussions and presentations. We read classical literature such as Japan’s three most representative works from the "random jottngs" or "heterogenous narrative" (zuihitsu) genre--The Pillow Book by Sei Shōnagon, Hojoki by Kamo no Chōmei, and Tsurezuregusa by Kenkō Hōshi--to identify elements that are still relevant in today’s society. At the same time, we communicate Japanese history and culture to the world by creating English-language tourist information signs and maps, explanatory panels for museum exhibits, and videos to be posted on the Internet. In the fourth year, students acquire knowledge in the topics they want to focus on, read the necessary sources, and improve their writing as they work to complete their graduation theses. In this seminar, students cultivate English language skills required for teaching, general business, and public service.　

② 　Seminar Characteristics ゼミの特色・他のゼミとの違い

 日本の歴史・文化をテーマにして、授業形態は英語でのプレゼンテーションとディスカッションが中心となる。たとえ、日本の歴史に詳しくなく、英語が得意でなくても、気軽に履修することができる。ただし、積極的に授業に参加してもらいたい。卒業論文の研究テーマは学生の自主性を重んじる。それぞれのテーマで論理的思考能力を育成し、情報収集と整理の方法を習得し、文献の読解能力を養い、論文執筆能力の向上を最終目的にしてゼミを行う。英語の卒業論文も可能である。

The theme of the course is Japanese history and culture, and the format of the class is mainly presentations and discussions in English. Even if you are unfamiliar with Japanese history and English is not your strong suit, you are welcome to take this course. However, students are expected to participate actively in class. Each student chooses their research topic for their graduation thesis. The seminar is designed to foster logical thinking skills for each topic, learn how to collect and organize information, and develop reading skills. The ultimate goal of this seminar is to improve each student's writing ability to complete the graduation thesis. English graduation theses are also welcome.

③ 　担当専門科目　Classes Taught in the Department 

「日本文化史Ⅰ・Ⅱ」、「英語音声学Ⅰ・Ⅱ」、「Global Japan」、「Tourism English」、「Japanese Culture and History」、「Shinto English」という学科専門科目を担当している。ビジネス・プロフェッショナル、外国人の接客、英語教員として求められる基礎知識とスキルを養成する科目であり、他の担当科目と連動して構成されている。外国人とより良いコミュニケーションを取るのに役に立つので、中・高（英語）免許取得希望の学生もこの授業を選択することが望ましい。Japanese Cultural History I & II, English Phonetics I & II, Global Japan, Tourism English, Japanese Culture and History, and Shinto English. These courses are designed to cultivate the essention knowledge and skills needed by business professionals, people working with non-Japanese customers, and English teachers. The courses are designed to connect with others I teach at Kogakkan. Students who wish to obtain a junior or senior high school (English) license should also select this class, as it is helpful for better communication with non-Japanese speakers of English. 

Spring Semester: Comparative Cultural History Workshop for Europe and Japan 日欧比較文化史部会

 Today was our last meeting of the "Comparative Cultural History Workshop for Europe and Japan" 日欧比較文化史部会. In the workshop, we read, translate, and discuss English and Japanese research about Japanese history. If you are interested in joining us next semester, please talk to me or Professor Okano Tomohiko 岡野友彦 (History Department 国史学科).

A Documentary on the Chronicles of Japan 日本書紀

 The university students's television studio at Kōgakkan University have completed an English version of a documentary on the Chronicles of Japan 日本書紀. 

I provided a brief introduction to it at the beginning. However, the rest of the English narration in the video was provided by one of Ms. Kunimoto, who was responsible for the project from the initial planning stages to the final editing. 

Below is a transcription of my introduction to the video:

"Hello, and welcome to this video documentary. My name is Christopher Mayo, and I am a faculty member at Kogakkan University 皇學館大学. Our university is located in Ise City, Mie Prefecture. It is one of only two universities in Japan where students can become certified as Shinto priests. One of the most sacred sites in the Shinto tradition, the Ise Jingu shrine complex 伊勢神宮, is located nearby. The documentary you are about to watch was produced by the Kogakkan University Student Television Station, which is run by students who create the material from start to finish, including the planning, filming, and editing of videos. This documentary is focused on an ancient text called the Nihon Shoki, or Chronicles of Japan. The Nihon shoki 日本書紀, or Nihongi, was compiled and written down in the eighth century based on earlier written records and oral traditions. As the first of the so-called Six State Histories 六国史, or Rikkokushi, it took the form of an official history. The first two volumes contained material dealing with the divine origins of Japan. The remainder followed the activities of Japan’s sovereigns up until the end of Empress Jitō’s reign in 697. W.G. Aston first translated it into English in 1896. As this video explains, the Nihon shoki remains a key source for anyone interested in learning more about Japanese beliefs, customs, history, and ideas. We hope you enjoy the video."