Wearing White for Seppuku

This may (or may not) have roots in the Chinese custom of wearing white
for funerals (where white symbolizes mourning, death, etc.). It makes
sense, since many of Japan's customs -- including language, writing,
clothing, government, and the arts -- are borrowed and/or influenced by
the Chinese, particularly the Tang dynasty (618-907).

As a side note, foreigners are often referred to as "foreign devils"
(quai loh, Cantonese). Could this have the slightest connection to
Sonnou-Joui?

Hm. That's sort of what I thought. I was planning to eventually pry deeper
into both the 47 ronin story and seppuku. Maybe I will find out more then...

As for the foreign devil thing... Perhaps a little? "Sonno-joi" literally
means "Revere the Emperor" and "expel the barbarians." Everything I have read
about the slogan so far points to it having originated in Mito. (Possibly from
Tokugawa Nariaki himself?) But both "barbarians" and "foreign devils" were terms
commonly used to decribe foreigners at the time so it could have just as
easily been worded the other way. The feeling behind all of it was the same at
any rate.

-MissB


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hi

Just wanted to comment on what you said about death garb privately. I'm a
student of Japanese history in college, so I've read authoritative sources
on the topic. Death garb is usually white because white is the Buddhist
color of death. However, everyone thinks the Shinsengumi haori was blue
because of the 47 Ronin's seppuku kimono. This is incorrect, as the blue
seppuku kimono for the 47 ronin comes from kabuki plays, as does the black
haori with the white triangles. So Shinsengumi were inspired more by the
kabuki 47 ronin than the real ones-- because as you said, dating back to the
Chinese origins of that custom, death colors are white, not blue.

As much as the 47 ronin are heroes, their history is as murky as that of the
Shinsengumi if not murkier. Another thing to consider about the 47 ronin is
the black uniform, brand-new armor, etc. that they're always portrayed with.
It makes no logical sense for 47 men with no income from a liquidated domain
to be able to afford all of that.

Please let me know if you have any additional questions.

Thanks.

--Masayoshi

My understanding is that while the term *sonno joi* may have been
coined in Mito with the writing of the charter of Nariaki's school
(the Kodokan) in ca. 1841, the philosophy behind it is actually very
old and having to do with imperial might/duty in vanquishing Japan's
enemies. The Mito Tokugawa were famed for their loyalty to the
emperor and kokugaku (Japanese studies) one of the leading
intellectual pursuits. Unfortunately, because of the political and
intellectual climate of Mito (and elsewhere) prior to the bakumatsu,
it became a rallying cry and lost much of its original meaning,
becoming confused with tobaku (overthrow the bakufu).

phil

--- In SHQ@yahoogroups.com, Warg3791@a... wrote:
> Hm. That's sort of what I thought. I was planning to eventually pry
deeper
> into both the 47 ronin story and seppuku. Maybe I will find out
more then...
>
> As for the foreign devil thing... Perhaps a little? "Sonno-joi"
literally
> means "Revere the Emperor" and "expel the barbarians." Everything I
have read
> about the slogan so far points to it having originated in Mito.
(Possibly from
> Tokugawa Nariaki himself?) But both "barbarians" and "foreign
devils" were terms
> commonly used to decribe foreigners at the time so it could have
just as
> easily been worded the other way. The feeling behind all of it was
the same at
> any rate.
>
> -MissB
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Sonno Joi, to my knowledge, was coined by the radical court noble Takenouchi
Shikibu, who was repressed by the Bakufu leader Matsudaira Sadanobu in the
late 1700s.

--M.