Save

The Ee ja nai ka and the Meiji Restoration

A View from Nagoya through Hosono Yōsai’s Kankyō manpitsu

In: Journal of Religion in Japan
Author:
Takashi Miura University of Arizona USA Tucson

Search for other papers by Takashi Miura in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Close
Download Citation Get Permissions

Access options

Get access to the full article by using one of the access options below.

Institutional Login

Log in with Open Athens, Shibboleth, or your institutional credentials

Login via Institution

Purchase

Buy instant access (PDF download and unlimited online access):

$34.95

Abstract

Hosono Yōsai 細 野 要 斎 (1811–1878), an Owari domain official, left a voluminous diary titled Kankyō manpitsu 感興漫筆 (Random Jottings Composed at Leisure), containing accounts from 1836 to 1878. Entries addressing the late months of 1867 describe the ee ja nai ka ええじゃないか phenomenon that developed in Nagoya. Yōsai’s portrayals of the ee ja nai ka contradict its received image as a rowdy pandemonium in which the populace expressed their resentment against the Tokugawa regime. Rather, what we see is a series of localized religious activities commemorating talismans (ofuda お札) that reportedly fell from the sky, many of them representing deities particularly popular in Nagoya. Based on an examination of Kankyō manpitsu, this article argues that the relationship between the ee ja nai ka and the Meiji Restoration must be evaluated on a region-specific basis and that the narrative of the Meiji Restoration is not directly relevant to understanding the nature of the ee ja nai ka in Nagoya.

Content Metrics

All Time Past Year Past 30 Days
Abstract Views 1178 218 23
Full Text Views 144 23 8
PDF Views & Downloads 210 37 13