英語訳
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Toyohashi City Historical Discourse (Yamada Sōhen and Ogasawara Tadatomo) 226
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"[Sōtan] did not pursue fame or profit, but simply enjoyed frugality and took pleasure in tea preparation. Sōhen studied in his school for years, directly inheriting his teachings and obtaining the orthodox transmission of the Rikyū family methods."
Thus it is written. Sōhen died in Edo on April 2, Hōei 5 (1708) at the age of 85, and was buried at Ganryū-ji temple within Higashi Hongan-ji in Asakusa, and his grave still exists today. Although the "Meijin Kishin-roku" states he was buried at Zenryū-ji, when I recently went to Tokyo and visited Higashi Hongan-ji in Asakusa to inquire, it was indeed at Ganryū-ji, not Zenryū-ji, where the tomb is located. However, the current monument was erected in July 1896 by someone named Fukushima Ryōsaburō. Only the foundation stones appear to be old and from the original period, but the tombstone itself cannot be recognized as having the old form, which I find quite regrettable.
Sōhen's writings include the previously mentioned "Chadō Benmō-shō" and "Rikyū Tea Utensil Illustrated Guide," along with "Chadō Yōroku" and others. All of these provide detailed records of tea ceremony matters, and this person was the first to make public through these books much of what had traditionally been extremely secret oral transmissions. This provided extraordinary convenience not only to practitioners of the way but also to ordinary people, and here we can greatly understand Sōhen's principles.
When investigating the things Sōhen left in this area, regrettably many have indeed disappeared, but first, the grounds of Shinmei Shrine in Minato district of our city and the grounds of Ichiikō-an in the same district were designed by him, and even today one can somewhat glimpse their former appearance. Also, what is called Kuretake Spring in front of Shōrin-ji temple in Matsuyama district was Sōhen's beloved spring, but now one can hardly tell whether any traces remain.
However, among Sōhen's beloved utensils, quite a few are still preserved in various households in our city. Among these, the wooden statue of Amida Buddha carved by Sōhen himself, in the collection of Mr. Ohara Uhei of Fudagi district, is the most magnificent piece, with "Made in the late June of Jōkyō 5, year of Boshin, at age 62, Sōhen" carved on its back. Authentic items used by him are also preserved at Myōen-ji temple.
Now, one thing I would like to mention is that in the Sōhen biography in the "Dai Nihon Jinmei Jisho" (Great Dictionary of Japanese Names), it states that tea ceremony was popular at the time, and schools like Enshū-ryū went against Rikyū's original intentions, making tea ceremony a kind of medium for luxury, where one could not be considered a tea master without handling rare utensils and treasures. Sōtan deeply lamented this,
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Toyohashi Mayor Mr. Ōguchi Kiroku has devoted his extensive knowledge and inexhaustible energy to compiling the history of Toyohashi City for over a year, and now as the manuscript is nearly complete...
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and once sent a written communication about this matter to Kobori Enshū, to which Enshū replied that while this was reasonable, it was not his personal intention, but came from higher orders to strengthen the foundation for governing the country and bringing peace to the realm. However, Sōtan maintained that this completely went against the true purpose of tea ceremony, and wished to spread the true tea way to Edo. At precisely that time, Ogasawara Tadatomo, having great ambition to correct the evil customs of the realm, summoned Sōtan. But since Sōtan himself was advanced in years, he came to recommend his distinguished disciple Sōhen to the Ogasawara family.
While I cannot determine the source of this account and therefore cannot immediately believe it, I find this theory quite fascinating. Indeed, as policy of the Tokugawa shogunate at that time, there may well have been circumstances like those Kobori Enshū described. At the same time, I think we can understand the policies that Tadatomo and Sōhen adopted regarding tea ceremony at that time.
Consequently, Sōhen is still today said to preserve the most secret orthodox traditions of Rikyū's tea way. Fortunately, for understanding Sōhen's lineage in tea ceremony, there is a genealogical chart at the beginning of the "Dai Nihon Jinmei Jisho," which would be convenient for grasping the general outline.
Incidentally, I should mention that the "hen" character in Sōhen's name should properly be 徧, but since there are examples of his own handwriting using 偏, I believe he used both forms. Indeed, the tombstone in Asakusa I mentioned earlier has the 偏 character carved on it.
⦿The Ogasawara Family Generations and Yoshida's Circumstances
Now, Tadatomo died in the seventh month of Kanbun 3 (1663), and his heir was his eldest son Naganori. On October 9 of that year, he received 40,000 koku from his father's hereditary domain, with the remaining 5,000 koku divided between his younger brothers: 3,000 koku to Tango-no-kami Nagasada and 2,000 koku to Geki Nagaaki. Regarding this matter, the "Mikawa Kikigaki" states:
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Toyohashi City Historical Discourse (The Ogasawara Family Generations and Yoshida's Circumstances) 227