Kyokutei Bakin

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kyokutei Bakin (Japanese: 曲亭馬琴; 1767–1848) was one of the many pen names for Japanese author Takizawa Okikuni (瀧澤興邦), best known for his 106-volume literary opus Nansō Satomi Hakkenden.

Born in Edo (present day Tokyo) on 4 July 1767, Bakin was the fifth son of Omon and Okiyoshi, his father and a samurai in the service of one of the Shogun's retainers Matsudaira Nobunari. Two of his older brothers died in infancy while the other two, Rabun (1759–1798) and Keichū (1765–1786) played pivotal roles in Bakin's life. His younger sister Ohisa was born in 1771 and Okiku in 1774.

In his diaries, Bakin wrote that his father, a heavy drinker, was highly devoted to scholarship and the classics, diligent in his work as a samurai. He died when Bakin was only nine years old in 1775, having aggravated his gout through drinking. Bakin's family stipend was soon reduced by half and in December of the following year, Rabun gave up his devotion to the Matsudaira in favor of living as a rōnin. Bakin and his family were forced into a much smaller dwelling as a result.

Eventually Rabun received a new post and in 1778 Bakin's mother pretended to be sick in order to move in with him. Bakin had been placed in service of the Matsudaira lord's grandson, but was treated cruelly and ran away when only 14 in 1780. He left the following haiku as a note explaining his reasons for leaving:

こごらしに

思い立ちけり

神の旅

Chilled by winter winds

I have decided

To journey with the gods.

"The Eight Dog Chronicle" took 28 years to complete, and Bakin had grown blind and lost his wife and son in the meantime. The final parts of the novel were dictated to his daughter-in-law. Although he was born of lower samurai birth, Bakin renounced his status to become a writer. His works center on samurai themes, including loyalty and family honor, as well as Confucianism, bushido and Buddhist philosophy. Nansō Satomi Hakkenden has been adapted many times, but is best known in the west as the anime OVA The Hakkenden.