2022 Fiscal Year Research-status Report
From Transculturation to Culture-Specific Ethics: The Implementation of Confucian Ritual Forms in 19th Century Japan
| Project/Area Number |
19K00937
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| Research Institution | The Toyo Bunko |
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Principal Investigator |
Chard Robert 公益財団法人東洋文庫, 研究部, 研究員 (30571492)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2019-04-01 – 2024-03-31
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| Keywords | Confucianism / Ritual |
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
The overall topic of this research is the use of material Confucian symbols in the official schools of early modern Japan. The Bakufu took direct control of the Shoheizaka Gakumonjo school at the Yushima site in the late Edo period, inspiring domain schools to continue the established temple-school complex form, including the Sekiten sacrifices to Confucius and other related rites, but these symbolic expressions underwent change as Bakufu demands on education and contact with the outside world led to substantial changes in educational goals. The current research project examines the changing role of education in this period through research on the visible cultural displays such as temples and rituals.
In the fourth year of this research project, the main activity has remained the collection and analysis of primary source materials from domain schools that shed light on the Confucius temples, Sekiten rituals, and their role in the education system. Questions addressed include the motivations for maintaining the traditional design of the temple-school structure, the educational aims of the schools, ideas on inculcating talent and morality, and the social backgrounds of the students at the schools. The central question is why so much effort and resources were devoted to maintaining the various visible trappings of the school-temple system at a time when the older Confucian-based educational content was on the decline. The results from this work is being actively disseminated through academic conference presentations and publications.
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| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
3: Progress in research has been slightly delayed.
Reason
In the earlier stages of the project, the coronavirus outbreak meant that the planned investigations in regions around Japan could not be carried out. In the current year the lingering pandemic conditions still inhibited normal domestic and international travel and normal access to libraries and archives, resulting in further delays in field research. As a result, the main project to collect textual evidence on Confucian ritual forms in the late Edo period, when the numbers of domain schools suddenly increased in conjunction with the renewal of the Shoheizaka Gakumonjo school, has been substantially delayed.
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| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
The project will continue along the lines planned, building on the foundation of the work done so far. The collection of archival documents relating to major domain schools around Japan will continue to be progressed, and with this the further investigation of the forms of Confucian learning, and education in late Edo domain schools more widely. The results of this research will continue to be disseminated to the public in stages as it is completed.
More precisely, the research will consist of field visits to archives and libraries in Japan and internationally, to collect materials on the material culture of the temple-school complex, such as the Sekiten and other related rites, to analyze the material collected, and disseminate the results domestically and internationally through academic publications and conference presentations.
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| Causes of Carryover |
A proportion of the funds allocated for the year have remained unspent as a result of the continuing coronavirus pandemic, which reduced the amount of travel and library and archive research undertaken. The unspent funds will be reallocated to the next year.
The postponed research activity will be completed in the next year as much as conditions permit: this will consist of field visits to archives and libraries in Japan and internationally, to collect materials on the material culture of the temple-school complex, such as the Sekiten and other related rites, analyze the material, and disseminate the results domestically and internationally through academic publications and conference presentations.
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