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The Acceptance of Western Culture in Japan. General ObservationsAuthor(s): Jiro NumataReviewed work(s):Source: Monumenta Nipponica, Vol. 19, No. 3/4 (1964), pp. 235-242Published by: Sophia University

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The Acceptance of Western Culturein JapanGeneral Observations

By Jiro Numata, Tokyo

ITHE most significantWestern culturewhichhadthe most forceful mpact

on pre-Meiji Japanwas Rangakua Dutch learning), he studyof Dutchlanguage and science. However, we should not ignore the significanceofNambanbunkab, he science and cultureof Portugaland Spain, which hadbeen introduced to Japan earlier than Dutch science.

Contact between Japanand Europe startedin 1543 when a Portugueseship was driven ashore on the coast of Tanegashima. This was the firstexposureof the Japanesepeopleto Christianity nd to contemporaryEuropeanscience and culture under Christian nfluence,as well as to the gun, a productof contemporaryEuropeanscience. For almost a century Japanwas underthe influence of this new enlightenment. The greatest contribution ofNambanbunkawas made in the fields of medicine, astronomy,navigation,and shipbuilding.

This science and these techniques were adopted as the naturalresultof the contact between Japan and the Iberian Peninsula, a contact whichwas directlyconnected with Christianmissionarywork.

Medicine,for instance,was adoptedby the Jesuitsas a subsidiarymeansof missionarywork. Jesuit missionariesprovidedhospitalsand orphanages,dedicatingthemselvesto medical work and to diffusion of their knowledgeand techniques to Japanesedoctors. In astronomythe Western world had

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2 Jir Numata 236reached a highly developedstage. This astronomy,which was a theologicalrather han a purelyscientificachievement,was adopted n Japanand becamequite influential. It was not only medicine and astronomy,however,whichwere taken over; as the visits of Portuguese ships increased, techniquesin navigationand shipbuilding,new processes in mineralogicalrefiningforthe exploitationof silver, and other scientific skills began to be adoptedinJapan. All in all, the contributionof Nambanbunkato Japanesescientificgrowth was indeed momentous.

However,because of the close relationshipbetween Namban bunkaandChristianity, this new science and culture necessarily declined when thefriction between the missionariesand the government administration in-creased. The Christian Prohibition Act was executed with great severity,especially during the early years of the Tokugawa regime, which resultedin the closing of direct lines of communication with Nambanbunka. Inthe Kan'eia era (1624-1643), when the national solationpolicy was adopted,this Christianculturewas almostexterminated; but hereand thereremnantswere preserved n the lower levels of society, or were found mixed with theDutch science and culture which began to be introducedat the time.

IIThe relationshipbetween Japan and Holland began when the Liefde

driftedashoreon the coast of Japan n 1600. The Dutch EastIndia Companyobtained permission from the shogunate to carry on trade. Establishingafactory n Hirado,bacitynearNagasaki, heDutch beganbusiness,competingwith the British and the Portuguese. The shogunate, however, estab-lished its national solationpolicy in 1633, and by 1639 it was carrying t outrigorously. Fromthat time on the Dutch, togetherwith the Chinese, ook overthe monopoly of tradingwith Japan.

Later the Dutch had to move from Hirado to Nagasaki-Dejima.c InDejima there were always several, sometimes more than ten, Dutch resi-dent officerscarryingon business under the chief of the factory. Under theclose supervisionof the Japanesegovernment they wereseverely restrictedfrom going out and were kept from contact with Japanesepeople except for afew interpreters. The only opportunitythe Dutch had for contact with theJapaneseoutside Nagasakiwas on the annual occasion when the chief of the

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237 Western Culture in Japan 3factorywenttoEdo(theold name orToky6)topresenthimselftotheTokugawashogun.a Laterthis visit was allowedonly once in five years. This relation-ship continued orabouttwo hundredyearsuntilthe lastdays of the Tokugawaregime.

However restrictedthis relationshipwas, it was through it that Dutchscience and culturewere brought into this isolated land. Along with theDutch merchants in Dejima there were alwaysone or two physicianswhowere the only scientists in Dejima. They were the ones who introducedDutch science-more properly, Europeanscience.

The first Japanesewho learned the new science were the interpretersand a few physicianswho had special contact with the interpreters. Laterthis privilegewas extended to a few more scholars n Edo, mainlyphysicians,who were able to get into contactwith the Dutch when they cameto Edo fortheir audience.

A translation ervicewas createdby necessitywhen the Dutch-Japanesetrade startedin Hirado. Some of the interpreters ollowed the Dutch whenthey moved to Nagasakiand there continued their services, As manyotherstook up the same employmentthere, some kind of a caste systembegan to*emerge mong the interpreters. As a rule this job was hereditary.

The mainwork of these interpretersnaturallycenteredon tradedealingsbut some of them learnedDutch sciencethroughtheirdailycontactswith theDutch. Those who worked for the Dutch physicians had the best chancesof acquiringmedicalknowledgeandtechniques. Somepeoplepickedup otherkinds of knowledge and techniques, but they never exceeded in numberthose with medical knowledge.

As these interpreters ollowed the Dutch officers to Edo for the shogunaudience,they rendered heir servicestheretoo, in translatingwhat the Dutchsaid to Edo scholarsand physicians,and in telling what they themselveshadlearned from the Dutch in Dejima.

Thus, some amongthe interpretersand amongthe physicians who hadclose acquaintancewith them acquired considerableknowledge of Dutchscience. Naturally,most of them were from Nagasaki,but there were somefrom Edo too, for the reasonjust mentioned. Dutch medicine was calledK6mr-ryub by theJapanesetthetime.

Nishi Gempoc (d. 1684), Arashiyama Hoand (1633-1693), andNarabayashiChinzane (1643-1711) were typical Japanese physicians who

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4 Jiro Numata 23&learnedDutch medicine this way. We should not ignore the fact that amongthem were some who had learned Namban-ryzia medicine derived from Por-tugal.

IIIThe fact that Dutch science spread slowly but consistently in Japan

and became rooted in its culture is proof that Dutch science had developedfurther than Japanese (Dutch science was mainly natural science). This,fact at the same time provesthatthe Japanesehadenough scientificknowledgeand intelligenceto develop it even more. Otherwise, it would have beenimpossible for the Japaneseto learn Dutch science and to improve it.

At thetimewhenthis learningwas going on, Japanese ociety was enjoyinga politicaland social stabilitywhich was insured by the feudal system con--nectingthe centralgovernmentand the feudal clans. On the economicside,agriculturalproductive capacity had increased, bringing with it industrial)expansion. Commercialactivities were to be found throughoutthe country,thus establishing he economicpowerof the merchants,whose living standard,had improved, allowing more room for cultural research. It was an idealbackgroundfor artistic and intellectual advancement. Great progress wasmade in severalfields of natural science necessaryfor public welfare and in-dustry, such as medicine, astronomy,botany, and agriculture. This period,ran from the beginning of the national seclusion until the Genrokuberas(1688-1703), that is, from the late seventeenth century up to the beginningof the eighteenthcentury.

The culturewhich was flourishing n this period was of course the tradi-tionalculture fromChina,basedmainlyon Confucianism. The mainstreamrof Confucianism t the time was a school calledShushigaku.cIt was followedby the new school, kogaku.d The stress on Logic of Shushigaku,to etherwith the minutenessand positivism of kogakufostered the developmentofpositive, empiricalsciences to meet the needs of an advancedsocial economy.

Since the traditionalnationalscience provideda solid basis, the comingof the advancedEuropeansciencesmade it possiblefor Japanesescience to,evolve. We might add that the motivation for this contact and acceptanceof Europeanscience were more governmentdirected than spontaneous.

In this sense, we shouldgive greatcredit to the progressivepolicy of thea -5 L b jc c dj d y


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239 Western Culture in Japan 5eighth shogun, Yoshimunea (1684-1751), who directed national policyfor thirty-five long years after 1716, the first year of the Ky6h6b period.After his installation, Yoshimune continued to make reforms in various fields.These reforms are known in the history of Japan as the Kyoho no kaikakuc(Ky6ho Reformation). One of the wise policies of Yoshimune was his strongencouragement of utilitarian sciences. He himself actually made distinguishedachievements: he built a quadrant and set it in the Edo Castle, his residence;he appointed professional astronomers for government positions; he mitigatedthe law on prohibited books (Chinese translations of books on Western sciencecontaining Christian elements and specifically religious books), permittingthe import of books on astronomy. He also made contributions to agricultureby promoting research on sugar production, ginseng cultivation, andexperimental cultivation of eastern and western medicinal herbs.

Yoshimune's policy for the expansion of production was a necessary meansaimed at strengthening the finances of the shogunate. It was directed towardencouraging agricultural production for the purpose of quickening industrialexpansion. With the resultant improvement in their finances, the farmerswould be able to bear heavier taxes and in this way the financial position ofthe shogunate would be strengthened. Yoshimune, at the same time, markedthe practicality of Dutch science and attempted to import it. He orderedinterpreters, government-employed physicians, and other professional peopleto visit the Dutch and absorb what knowledge they could of their fields.Also, he had the Dutch import from their own country various manufacturedproducts, animals and plants, machines, and publications. In 1740, hestarted the educational training of government employed scholars by havingAoki Kon'y6d (1698-1769) and Noro Genj6e (1693-1761) learn science andlanguage from the Dutch scientists. Both Aoki and Noro were deeply versedin Confucianism, specifically that of kogaku. Every year they visited theDutch during their stay in Edo for the shogun interview, and learned fromthem and their interpreters. Aoki specialized in the Dutch language, Noroin botany. As a result, Aoki wrote three books: Oranda moji ryakkJf (Ex-planation of Dutch Words), Oranda wayakug (Japanese Translation of Dutch),and Oranda bun'yakuh Translation of Dutch Conversation). Noro publishedOranda honz6 wagei (Understanding of Dutch Botany). Through these twomen the knowledge of Dutch language and science was first diffused within

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6 Jiro Numata 240Japan'sculturalheartland nsteadof being confined to Nagasaki, a com-parativelyremote city.

IVCultivated in this way through Yoshimune's administration,Rangaku

came into full blossom in the following Tanumaa era (1760-1780). Thisera was named for rojib TanumaOkitsuguc(1719-1788) who was in chargeof the administrationat the time (rojluwas the official title for the highestadministrativeposition in the government). So far as personal taste wasconcerned,Tanuma was rampekid,a devoteeof things Dutch, but he did not,as Yoshimunedid, officiallyencourageDutch science. However,it was cul-turallythe richestperiod of the Edo era. The expansionof commercehadreached its peak. The standardof living of the merchant class had almostrisen abovethat of the leadingwarrior lass,and as a result,the taste for exoticand foreign-made things had increasedamong the wealthy merchants andupper-classwarriorgroup. This taste for Dutch things, rampeki, s seenclearly in the lives of Shimazu Shigehidee(lord of Satsuma: 1745-1833)and Kuchiki Masatsunal (lord of Tamba Fukuchiyama: 1750-1802). Ac-cording to the Dutch who lived in Nagasaki,Tanuma attemptedto softenthe Foreign-TradeProhibitionAct and ordered he Dutch to build a Westernstyle ship.

Thus, in this period,wider and closer contactwith the Dutch and Dutchculture were in evidence. The import of Dutch booksincreased so muchthat even commonpeople could get them. Non-governmentphysicians, byreceiving he nominal title of court physician or astronomer,could see theDutch people during their stay in Edo. This relatively liberal, exotic at-mosphere was one of the characteristicsof the Tanuma era.At the time, the policy of expanding production was continued afterthe Yoshimuneadministration. To promotethis policy, the study of thingssuch as plants, animals,and mineralswas carriedon with great enthusiasm.Thanks to the increasingneeds of society, practicalDutch science beganto grow in importance.

In this period, there were two outstandingphysicians: Maeno Ry6taku(1723-1803),gwho learnedthe Dutch language rom Aoki Kon'y6 and Sugita

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241 Western Culture in Japan 7Gempakua (1733-1817), who belonged to the school of Komo-ryu- surgery.Maeno was an official physician for Okudaira,b lord of Buzen Nakatsu;Sugita for Sakai,c lord of Wakasa Obama. Both were well grounded intraditional Chinese medicine. They built up further knowledge by visitingand interrogating the interpreters who followed the Dutch to Edo. Theywere fortunate enough to acquire an imported Dutch book on anatomy.Though unable to read the contents, they were fascinated by the minutenessof the illustrations. In 1771, when they had a chance to attend a post-mortemexamination in Edo, they found an exact identity between what they hadseen in the book and what they saw before their eyes. This new discoverypromoted their ambition to read the book. The book was the Dutch trans-lation of Tabulae Anatomicae, written by a German named J. A. Kulmus.The Dutch translation was published in 1734 and was named OntleedkundigeTafelen. It took four years for Maeno, Sugita, and two friends, NakagawaJun'and (1739-1786), a physician in the same clan as Sugita's, and Katsu-ragawa Hoshfle (1751-1809), a physician for the government, and severalothers, to translate it. Finally, after long efforts, the translation waspublished in 1774 under the name of Kaitai shinshof (A New Book onAnatomy).This book was significant because it was the first systematic introduction

-to European science, and because it permitted the first systematic studyof European science by Japanese people. Maeno and Sugita styled this newlearning "Dutch science" or Rangaku. Winning general acceptance, thisterm, which was initially used for medical science, was later applied to variouskinds of imported learning.

Rangaku, after being exploited by Maeno and Sugita, was given furtheradvancement by Otsuki Gentakug (1757-1827) who had learned from bothof them. Otsuki's followers spread this study far and wide: to Osaka, Ky6to,and other centers. Even in Nagasaki eminent Rangaku scholars like ShizukiTadaoh (1760-1806) developed from the ranks of the interpreters. At the sametime, the contents of Rangaku came to include the complete study of the scienceand culture of the Dutch. It embraced not only language and medicinebut all the other natural sciences like astronomy, foreign geography, botany,physics, and chemistry. Later it was expanded to include the social sciencesand humanities.

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8 Jiro Numata 242In this waythe rapidadoption of westerncultureduringthe Meijiperiod

did not happen in a vacuum, but it had been preparedby the continuouscontacts, throughthe Dutch, with western civilizationduringthe periodofnational solation.

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