During the Bakumatsu period (1853–1867), under pressure from Western countries, the Tokugawa shogunate was forced to end Japan’s policy of selfisolation and conclude unequal treaties with a number of Western powers. This caused deep discontent in the country, affecting various segments of the population. In the context of the political crisis, the shogunate launched a series of reforms aimed at strengthening its power, including military power. Great Britain secretly supported the opposition forces in the south of the country, and France made a bet on the shogunate, expressing its readiness to support its reforms. As a result, in January 1867, a French military mission consisting of 15 people arrived in the Japanese port of Yokohama, commanded by Captain Charles Chanoine, who had previously led French troops in China during the Second Opium War (1856–1860). The purpose of the mission was to modernize the obsolete military system of the Tokugawa shogunate. However, the recommendations of the French military advisers were not fully realized, because, after the outbreak of the civil war in January 1868 and the defeat of the supporters of the shogun, Emperor Meiji ordered the mission to leave Japan in October. A number of members of the mission, who did not obey this order, led by Jules Brunet, along with supporters of the shogunate, took part in the creation of the Republic of Ezo (1868–1869) on the island of Hokkaido.
The hermit poet Kamo-no Chō mei compiled a collection of tales about the awakening of the heart (Hosshinshū, c. 1216), continuing and updating the tradition of setsuwa collections of didactic tales. The peculiarities of the collection can be explained on the basis of the changes in the life of the Japanese Buddhist community that took place at the turn of the 12 th and 13 th centuries. The main characters of the tales are hermits, “escapees from the world,” and different aspects of their lives are discussed in the thematic sections of the collection. In addition to the tales, the book contains discussions of difficult questions of Buddhist preaching: how to treat death and love, one’s own body, the poetic word, and what a person can rely on if he or she wants to try to follow the Buddha’s path in the “evil age”. In addition to the Lotus Sutra, which gave the book its title and one of its narrative forms, the sources of the Hosshinshū include the sutras about the Pure Land and Genshin’s Ōjō y ō shū, as well as several other sutras and treatises that were common property of various schools in Japan. Chō mei includes both good and bad examples from the life of the Japanese Buddhist community in his book, with only occasional reference to India and China, and confines himself mainly to events recent and contemporary
The article deals with the genesis, semantics, and functions of the dragon image in Japanese culture. The relevance of the study is due to the increased attention of researchers to the basic values of local cultures, issues of symbolism, inextricably linked to the problems of national self-identification. The methodological basis of the study is the structural-semiotic approach, which was used to analyze the value content of the dragon image, the descriptive-analytical method, and the method of cognitive interpretation of the semantics of linguistic means verbalizing the dragon image in the Japanese language. In contrast to the Western tradition, in the culture of the peoples of East Asia, a dragon is a revered and significant symbol of power, strength, and authority. Stories about dragons are found in ancient texts of both Hinduism and Buddhism. It is established that the formation and evolution of the dragon cult in Japan was influenced by the mythical Chinese dragons, Indian Naga snakes, and the belief in dragons as deities of the water element. The author examines the genesis and evolution of the dragon image in different historical epochs, the influence of cultural-historical, natural, and religious factors on its transformation. It is shown that, in medieval Japan, the dragon was considered the protector of Buddhism, personifying strength, wisdom, prosperity, good luck, and images of these mythical creatures became an organic element of Buddhist culture. Particular attention is paid to the analysis of the image of the dragon as a sign of the Chinese zodiacal calendar, the representations of dragons in Japanese mythology, fairy tales and legends, in Hitachi Fudoki, Kojiki, Nihon Shoki. In the mythological picture of the world of the Japanese, the dragon is ambivalent and has both positive and negative features. It is revealed that the image of the dragon occupies an important place in Japanese traditional culture, painting, architecture, arts and crafts, calendar holidays, is widely represented in proverbs and sayings, set phrases and idioms. The reference to Japanese phraseology allowed to expand the base of the study and to reveal the totality of ideas about the dragon in the worldview of native speakers of the Japanese language. The author concludes that, nowadays, the image of the dragon in Japan has lost its sacral significance and is mainly used as tribute to tradition
One of the most important features of the documents from the Shōsōin treasury is the opportunity for researchers not only to study the events, institutions, and sources of the Nara era, but also to see the Japanese 8 th century “with a human face.” Among the documents, there is a lot of material that talks about the everyday life and service of the sovereign’s subjects. This is of special interest for the author of the article, who aims to see a person who lived in ancient Japan. To create a basis for future research, the author conducts a source study of the Shōsōin documents as a preparatory stage for their study. The objectives of the article are to discuss where and why the Shōsōin documents were created; find out how they were placed into the treasury and how they were stored in it; give their classification, describe the types of documents; find out what happened to them after the conservation of the Shōsōin at the end of the 8th century, how the documents were rediscovered in the Edo period, how and why they were studied in the 19 th and 20 th centuries; talk about the scholars who were involved in their research, and about the modern study of the Shōsōin documents
Based on the analysis of statistical and information sources, academic publications, and the authors’ personal experience, the article analyzes the peculiarities of Japanese minimarkets that rank among amazing Japanese inventions, creations, and practices and have become an integral part of the Japanese way of life and a trademark of the country. In the academic literature, there have been no comprehensive works focused on this phenomenon so far, and their regional peculiarities, especially the geography of stores operated by different chains, are almost completely neglected. The purpose of this article is to highlight the key academic discourse, to characterize the unique character and universality, which, in fact, constitute the phenomenon of konbini, as well as to identify their regional features. The study clearly shows that these stores, which came to Japan from the United States in 1973, have been completely transformed and are constantly evolving, changing the store concept and presenting a globally unique phenomenon. It describes the characteristics of the leading chains of these stores in their endeavor to gain even greater popularity among consumers and the innovations that have emerged in recent years, including those caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Studying the phenomenon of konbini, the authors, on the one hand, note their transformation into an important element of social infrastructure, that meets the needs of modern society and is especially necessary in the context of rapidly progressing aging of the population, and, on the other hand, their certain negative impact, especially on the younger generation. The paper features an analysis of the regional characteristics of these stores and the cartographic material illustrating them. It is revealed that, within prefectures, the location of konbini correlates with the number of inhabitants (the number of stores is proportional to the population of municipalities), and each of the 20 konbini chains operating in Japan is located in its own specific area. The authors conclude that konbini facilitate the development of the country’s regions as a whole, and their role in Japanese society cannot be overemphasized. The Japanese experience can be relevant to other countries, including Russian chain stores
The article analyzes the foreign policy of Shinzō Abe, one of the most notable and unusual political figures of contemporary Japan, who was the head of Japanese government twice for a total of almost nine years. It traces how his political philosophy formed under the influence of ideological views of his relatives, prime ministers N. Kishi and E. Satō, as well as his father, Shintarō Abe. It also considers Abe’s approaches to building Japan’s relations with the countries which are most important for its interests. Abe was perceived as a devoted ally of the U. S. in Washington. He established relations of confidence with presidents Obama and Trump. For this purpose, he strengthened Japanese-American military-political cooperation, took steps to support American strategy in the Asia-Pacific region. He implemented, even if without substantial results, steps to stabilize relations with China, trying to combine policy of containing Beijing with efforts to develop bilateral ties. Abe paid substantial attention to relations with India, including for the purpose of the idea, which was put forward by him and supported by the U. S., to establish quadrilateral cooperation of “democracies” in the Indo-Pacific region – the U. S., Japan, India, and Australia. His policy in the Korean direction was not successful. The relations with Pyongyang remained in deadlock, and, with Seoul, the most acute bilateral problems were not finally solved. Abe also paid great attention to policy aiming to conclude a peace treaty with Russia on the basis of a radical improvement of Japanese-Russian ties in all spheres. The reasons for his failure in t hese directions are discussed in this article The article evaluates Abe’s efforts aimed at developing governmental documents and making the Diet adopt laws determining the basic directions of the foreign and military policy of the state. The author characterizes the results of the activity of S. Abe in the sphere of foreign policy and assesses its influence on the formation of the course of the Japanese government after his resignation
This paper aims at critically observing the alternating concatenation of seasonally inspired numbers and Japanese legends from time immemorial in the show Sekkashō (「雪華抄」, Snowflake Anthology), staged by the Japanese all-female musical company Takarazuka Revue’s Flower Troupe in late 2016. The goal is to disclose some of the strategies employed by Takarazuka Revue’s administrators in pursuing a necessary agenda of breaking with the tradition while steadily moving forward towards a future of self-reinvention, without disappointing the deeply conservative fans’ vast community. The analysis occurs both historically and systematically: on the one hand, the year 2016 was a “bridge” year between 2015, with its two major reconfigurations of the decadelong image of Takarazuka Revue as a bastion of shōjo culture firmly anchored in a delusional past and its stubborn rejection of common sense as well as historical reality, and 2017, with its blatant reconfiguration of soft power priorities in terms of theatrical representation; on the other hand, Sekkashō itself is a symbolical gem of Takarazuka Revue’s most typical features, signifying an effective yet dignified statement of not so much criticizing the past, but releasing oneself from its almighty grasp so that one can change the direction of the present towards a type of future different than the familiar flows of history so far
The phenomenon of “Japanese Dostoevsky” is the subject of active discussions in literary studies all over the world. One of the central issues discussed is the problem of the textual images in the works of F. M. Dostoevsky. The use of digital humanities’ technologies, the methods of corpus and computational linguistics makes it possible to formalize literary analysis’ tasks to state the texts’ problems in the language of algorithms. In this article the mechanisms of the transformation of textual images in Dostoevsky works in the Japanese representation will be considered. Different linguistic means are used to analyze the perception of the concept “love” as love-affection or love-passion, and concept “strange” as human essential or social characteristic in Russian and Japanese. Such analysis will help also to highlight the peculiarities of the “new translation school” that adheres to the strategy of domestication, making the foreign text more readable
The article is devoted to the study of a little-known scroll by the 18 th century Japanese artist Shiba Kōkan1. The provenance of the scroll and the reasons for its poor study are considered. The main attention is paid to the analysis of the history of the scroll and the symbolism of three elements of images on it: wave, triad, and flame-fire. These three elements are important components of the Japanese cultural and artistic code, forming it since ancient times while changing over time and retaining their significance in contemporary culture. The multiple meanings of the symbolism of the images on the scroll allow us to propose at least two possibilities for its interpretation: as a separate and independent work and as an illustration of the artist’s diary-pamphlet written by him at the end of his life. In this article, we deal primarily with the first possibility. The duality of the perception of the wave and the sea in the cultural code is reflected in the scroll. The islanders realized the sea not only as a physically surmountable barrier, but also as a kind of translator of information. The central part of the scroll depicts a meeting at the table of three wise men from Japan, China and the West, which is analogous to the illustration of the famous Chinese parable Three Wise Men Tasting Vinegar. The article analyzes in detail the portraits of the three participants of the meeting, considers possible prototypes of the Japanese character and the collective images of the Chinese and the European ones, confirmed by the carefully studied symbolism of their appearance, as well as the objects spread out in front of them. The burning Buddhist pagoda depicted at the top of the scroll and the three groups of people trying to extinguish it seem to be an allegory for the gathering around the table. It is also seen in the use of different ways and means of extinguishing the fire by groups of Japanese, Chinese, and Europeans. It seems that the scroll also has Buddhist connotations. The image reflects the irony, mockery, and laughter, which are among the characteristics of Edo culture. The final part of the article speculates on the possible dating and authorship of the scroll
Secular book printing began to spread in Japan since the beginning of the 17 th century. From the middle of the 17 th century, woodcut was completely dominant. The repertoire of publications was wide, including old texts written long before the Tokugawa period. Since commercial printing assumed that the book would be bought, only relevant old texts were published. The printed edition significantly expanded the circle of book readers. The Seiashō (Notes by a Frog from a Well) by Tonna (1289–1372) belongs to the karon genre (treatises on poetry) and is a guide for aspiring poets writing waka (Japanese songs). The text was published for the first time in 1648 and the first illustrated edition appeared in 1686, reprinted in 1709. The illustrator is believed to be Hishikawa Moronobu (1618–1694), although the book does not contain the artist’s name. The second illustrated edition dates back to 1752. This edition uses illustrations by Tachibana Morikuni (1679–1748). In both editions, illustrations are made on separate sheets, occupying a whole page. The illustrations are monochrome and include a drawing (a landscape illustrating the text of the poem) and an inscription of the poem at the top. An analysis and comparison of these two editions makes it possible to see some trends related to both printing itself and a number of more general cultural issues. The understanding of authorship receives a “visible” embodiment: in the first edition, neither the author of the text, nor the artist are identified, while the colophon of the second edition contains the names of both. During the time that has elapsed between the release of these two editions, the role of illustrations has grown significantly. The edition from the end of the 17th century contains 24 illustrations, and the book was made in such a way that it can exist in a version without illustrations; there, illustrations play a supporting role. The edition of the mid-18 th century contains 80 illustrations, and they can be distributed in the text of the book or concentrated in one place, making this edition close to the ehon books
Prime Minister Abe Shinzō inherited Russian policy from his father, Abe Shintarō, former Foreign Minister who endeavored to improve substantially Japan-Russia relations with Gorbachev. Consequently when Abe was reelected as Prime Minister in December 2012, Russian policy was one of his highest policy objectives. This analysis follows chronologically how his policy developed during the eight years of Prime Minister-ship until September 2020 when he retired. It gives overall perspectives on how he enlarged the scope of relationship from economic, cultural, security, ultimately tackling the most difficult issue of peace treaty negotiations. In November 2018 at his meeting with Putin in Singapore he proposed to resolve the territorial issue based on the 1956 Joint Declaration and for a while the negotiations proceeded well. But soon after, the two sides came apart in furthering closer ties. Two years after his retirement Abe was tragically assassinated. But in these two years, Abe left a testimony over his policy he covered as Prime Minister, to groups of journalists. Hokkaido Shimbun, which followed most meticulously Abe’s Russian policy published already a ground breaking book while he was still alive, including an important interview Abe made in December 2021. But another group of journalists primarily of Yomiuri Shimbun made a long interview on Abe’s overall policy agendas, Russian policy being one of the focal points, narrated surely without any anticipation of his tragic ending. Yomiuri Journalists published in 2023 all Abe’s account, which Abe surely expected to be published in much later stage. This paper’s analysis is primarily based on those so far little-known Yomiuri narrative. The author concludes that what remains as most impressive is Abe’s conviction that drastically improving relations with Russia is in Japan’s national interest and his tireless energy to have pursued his wide and deep scope of Japan’s relations with Russia including the most difficult issue of a peace treaty conclusion.
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, which has a number of advantages related to its geographical location, abundance of natural resources, openness to foreign capital, and dynamic development due to the market reforms carried out in the 1990s. This determines the interest in the country from China and Japan and the inclusion of Mongolia among the platforms of global competition between these largest Asian economies. Development of Japan-Mongolia and China-Mongolia political and economic relations in the second half of the 20 th century and Mongolia’s economic progress in recent decades have coincided with increasing competition between Japan and China in the world stage. At present, both countries are important trading partners for Mongolia and sources of capital needed to build its infrastructure and integrate it into global supply and production chains. The study of Sino-Japanese interaction in Mongolia may help us understand how Japan and China compete with each other in the world stage and to specify their areas of specialization and rivalry. The objective of this research is to show, taking infrastructure projects as an example, how the global competition between Japan and China unfolds in Mongolia. In order to evaluate the current state of economic relations between Mongolia and each of the countries, in the first part, the author traces the history of Japan-Mongolia and China-Mongolia relations from the establishment of diplomatic relations to the present time, focusing on infrastructure projects.The second part analyzes the interaction between Japan and China in Mongolia in the context of their growing economic competition. The study sheds light on particular areas of rivalry, while demonstrating that Japanese and Chinese projects not only compete but also complement each other.