Temple Bells Die Out (Historical Context)

Historical Context

Edo Period in Japan

The Edo Period in Japan lasted from 1600 to 1868, beginning with Tokugawa Ieyasu's founding of the shogunate at Edo, now Tokyo. Tokugawa Ieyasu was named Shogun by the emperor. A shogun is a supreme military leader, and a shogunate is the period during which respective shoguns reigned, and the place where they established their reign. Edo shogunate was Japan's last. It was preceded by Kamakura shogunate and Muromachi shogunate. Tokugawa Ieyasu revolutionized the way Japan was governed by eliminating the feudal system, establishing a military government in Edo, and encouraging trade with the Dutch and English in the early part of the century. However, in 1635 Shogun Iemitsu, Tokugawa Ieyasu's successor, forbade traveling abroad and limited trade to the port of Nagasaki, so Japan traded only with the Chinese and Dutch. Shogun Iemitsu was fearful that foreign influence would destabilize Japanese society. Despite the isolation, however, the Japanese economy thrived, and along with it, Japanese art and literature such as kabuki, ukiyo-e, and haiku, which many historians claim originated with Bashō. An increase in urban education and the development of the merchant class helped to create a readership and distribution system for much of the new literature. The Edo itself was defined by a rigid class system, with the samurai at top, followed by artisans, farmers, and merchants, and a code of behavior dictated daily life, from such details as what one could wear to whom one could marry.

In the mid 1670s, Bashō lived in Edo, where he studied Zen Buddhism under the priest, Butcho, and edited a collection of poetry called The Seashell Game. During this period, Bashō cultivated students who, like himself, had also dropped out of samurai society, the highest class in Japanese society. Literary historians believe Bashō wrote "Temple Bells Die Out" between 1686 – 1691, when the poet traveled through the northern provinces of Honshu, gathering material for Narrow Road to the Interior, a travelogue of poetry and prose.

The ban on Western literature was lifted in 1720, and by the end of the eighteenth century, the Edo shogunate had begun its decline. The financial system was deteriorating because of ongoing natural disasters such as famine and because of the government's harsh taxing of farmers, who rioted in response. The merchant class began to exert more power, while the status of the samurai class continued to erode. The merchants were consolidated in cities, especially Edo, Osaka, and Kyoto. In 1700, Edo had a population of more than one million, while Osaka and Kyoto had about 400,000. A decline of morals and an increase in corruption marked the second half of the Edo period, but the government continued its ban on contact with foreigners. It was not until 1853 that the Tokugawa government finally relented and opened a few of its ports to an American, Commodore Perry. The Tokugawa shogunate fell in 1868 as American warships cruised off the coast of the country, and as an angry nationalist movement rose up against the shogunate. With Emperor Meiji restored to imperial power, America had access to a huge new market for its goods.

Topics for Further Study

• Where is the speaker standing or sitting in relation to the blossoms and the temple bells? Write a short essay situating the speaker, speculating on what he was doing before and after the bells rang.
• In groups, compose a poster depicting Bashō's poem and hang it in your classroom.
• Write a haiku that "updates" Bashō's haiku by describing things that are unmistakably contemporary. Read it to your class and discuss its imagery. Compare yours with others in the class.
• Research the history of Zen Buddhism and prepare a short presentation on it to deliver to your class.
• Write a short description of your idea of a perfect evening and then exchange yours with a classmate's. In pairs, discuss the differences and similarities and what your description suggests about the things that you value.
• Research Bashō's and Zen Buddhism's influence on Beat writers Jack Kerouac and Gary Snyder and present your research to your class for discussion. Consider issues such as Zen's appeal to writers living in the 1940s and 1950s in America.