Shiraishi Shozan

Image: From "The Posthumous Works of Master Shozan Shiraishi"

One of the figures who influenced Yukichi Fukuzawa was Shiraishi Shozan, a Confucian scholar of the Nakatsu Domain. In "The Autobiography of Fukuzawa Yukichi," there is an episode where Fukuzawa, a late bloomer, begins studying Chinese classics at the age of 14 or 15. However, the first step Fukuzawa took toward serious academic study was at Shozan's private school, Bankodo. At Bankodo, he studied the teachings of Shozan, who was devoted to the Kamei school, and it has been pointed out that these experiences influenced the formation of Fukuzawa's thought. Furthermore, the fact that Shozan—who was born into the lower samurai class but achieved success as a Confucian scholar after studying in Edo—was treated unfairly due to his low status and expelled from the domain must have been an event that made the young Fukuzawa feel the irrationality of feudal society as keenly as he did with his father, Hyakusuke.

In August of Bunka 12 (1815), Shozan was born to Kubota Takeuemon, a samurai of the Nakatsu Domain. His childhood name was Makitaro, his common name was Goroemon, and he later came to be known as Tsuneto. Shozan, the name by which he is best known, is his pseudonym. His biological father, who used the pseudonym Yukan, was a man of high scholarship who served as a scribe despite being a lower-ranking samurai. Although Shozan was the eldest son, he was later adopted by Shiraishi Danuemon, a samurai of the Nakatsu Domain, and inherited the family headship. His family rank was that of a minor official, and his stipend was extremely low at 4 koku and rations for 2 people, ranking below the Fukuzawa family, who were attendant pages with 13 koku and rations for 2 people. Fukuzawa noted in "Kyuhanjo" (Conditions in the Old Domain) that "lower-class samurai (omitted) at best receive seven or eight koku to over ten koku," making it clear that the Shiraishi family, being below average, lived in poverty. Despite such an environment, Shozan studied from a young age under Nomoto Hakugan, a Confucian scholar of the Nakatsu Domain and professor at the domain school Shinshukan. It is said that his talent was recognized and he was selected as a supervisor (tokugaku) at Shinshukan. At that time, the status gap within the Nakatsu Domain was widening; while Shinshukan was open to both upper and lower samurai at its founding, the trend shifted over time so that only the children of upper samurai could enter. While there is a theory that Shozan studied at the domain school Shinshukan, the circumstances of how he was able to enter despite his lower samurai status remain unclear.

Nomoto's private school was open to students regardless of status, and figures such as Shimazu Yutaro, Obata Tokuzo (the father of Tokujirō Obata), and later Fukuzawa's older brother Sannosuke studied under Nomoto. It is natural to assume that Shozan also initially studied at the private school and was recommended to the domain school because of his excellence. In "The Posthumous Works of Master Shozan Shiraishi" (Shiraishi Family Brief Genealogy), it is recorded that he "had a reputation for precocity and was appointed as a supervisor of the domain school at a young age." Shozan held an honorable position at a young age but did not become conceited; he was a diligent and precocious young man who felt ashamed of his shallow learning and desired to pursue scholarship more deeply.

In June of Tenpo 9 (1838), Shozan resigned from his position as supervisor and went to Edo to study. He first studied under Koga Doan, a Confucian scholar of the Shogunate, and entered Shoheiko the following year. Originally, admission to Shoheiko (Shoheizaka Academy) was limited to direct retainers of the Shogunate, but students from other domains could enter with the permission of an official Confucian scholar. These students from other domains either commuted or lived in the dormitory, but since the Shogunate covered the dormitory fees, the capacity was limited to 30 students (later 48), making it a narrow gate. After a few years, Shozan was selected as the head of the dormitory and person in charge of poetry and prose. The poetry and prose position was selected from two people in the dormitory, and the dormitory head (saicho), also called the student leader, was a position that led the students and was a great honor. During his stay in Edo, Shozan also visited famous families such as Noda Tekiho to study Neo-Confucianism and deepen his knowledge. On the other hand, the Kamei school had the greatest influence on Shozan. In "The Autobiography of Fukuzawa Yukichi," Fukuzawa states regarding Shozan that "his general academic style was of the Kamei school, and my teacher was a great believer in Kamei," citing his devotion to Kamei studies and his disdain for Hirose Tanso and Rai Sanyo as Shozan's academic characteristics. Although he never directly entered the Kamei school, Shozan was impressed by the writings of Kamei Shoyo and others, and thereafter began teaching Kamei studies instead of Neo-Confucianism.

In Tenpo 14 (1843), after completing his studies, Shozan returned to Nakatsu and opened a private school called Bankodo on Kitamon-dori in the Nakatsu castle town. Bankodo was a reputable school with many students among the Chinese classics schools. On the other hand, perhaps due to his low status, he was not very well-regarded by the Nakatsu Domain, and he managed the private school alongside his domain duties. While the Nomoto family (Nomoto Setsugan and Hakugan, father and son), the Yamakawa family (Yamakawa Torin and Gyokusho), and the Teshima family (Teshima Bussai and Engan, brothers; the younger brother Engan later married Shizu, the younger sister of Fukuzawa's mother Jun) were evaluated as Confucian scholars with an increase in rations for 7 to 10 people, Shozan was evaluated lowly as an official Confucian scholar with rations for only 3 people.

Fukuzawa began attending Bankodo around the beginning of the Kaei era (around 1848) and studied under Shozan for about four to five years, and it seems he was a quick learner. Regarding life at Bankodo, Fukuzawa wrote the following in "The Autobiography of Fukuzawa Yukichi":

"If you ask what kind of Chinese books I read while at Shiraishi's school, I focused on the classics, and of course, the Analects and Mencius, and I strove to study all the meanings of the classics. Especially, since the teacher seemed to like them, I really received lectures on and read well the Classic of Poetry and the Classic of History. Then I also listened well to lectures on things like Mengqiu, Shishuo Xinyu, Zuo Zhuan, Zhan Guo Ce, Laozi, and Zhuangzi..."

At Bankodo, they frequently practiced rote reading, lectures, and group readings of Chinese books. According to Fukuzawa, Shozan was a "strict teacher," but the deep foundation in Chinese classics obtained this way became Fukuzawa's base. Fukuzawa later reflected that when he attacked Chinese studies, he could suppress the vital points of Chinese studies while pretending not to know Chinese texts because of the guidance of "the great Confucian of Buzen, Master Shiraishi."

Fukuzawa was studying steadily under Shozan, but he was forced to interrupt his studies due to a certain incident: the Okatameban incident, a conflict between upper and lower samurai. Katameban were guards for the Nakatsu castle gates, and under the Katameban was a position called Kaiheiban, held by the ashigaru class, who actually performed the opening and closing of the gates. However, in Kaei 6 (1853), to reduce costs, an order was issued that lower samurai should also perform tasks originally for the ashigaru class, such as opening and closing the gates. Dozens of lower samurai who were dissatisfied with this filed a petition with the domain's upper management seeking to cancel the order.

Fukuzawa pointed out in "Kyuhanjo" regarding this incident that it was not just an organization of expenses and duties, but a plot by the upper samurai with the "idea of making the boundary between upper and lower samurai even clearer and pressing down the heads of the lower samurai." He criticized the futility of the conflict, saying, "In reality, this was not to save costs, nor to strengthen military preparations, but merely to plot a useless piece of mischief." For Fukuzawa, the path of learning that had finally begun to progress was suddenly closed in the form of his mentor's expulsion, and it must have been remembered as an irrational event caused by the family lineage system.

Shozan refused to guard the castle gates and continued protest activities for dozens of days as a central figure in the disturbance, succeeding in having the order canceled. However, he took responsibility for the commotion and was expelled from the Nakatsu Domain. It is said that when leaving the domain, Shozan shouted, "There is no road where there is no path," slashed a pillar of his house, and left composedly.

In Ansei 1 (1854), after leaving Nakatsu, Shozan headed for the Usuki Domain in Bungo Province. For a while, he lived temporarily in a tenement house in the Shinmachi castle town, but later, through the introduction of Tetsuden, the chief priest of Gekkeiji Temple (the family temple of the Inaba clan, lords of the Usuki Domain), he was welcomed into the Usuki Domain as a head scholar and became a professor at the domain school Gakkokan. There were several head scholars in the Usuki Domain, but all were from the Neo-Confucian standpoint, so Shozan taught Kamei studies in a separate building and also participated in domain government reforms. This reform was called the "Tenpo Reform," which aimed to renew old evils by reorganizing the domain structure and appointing talented individuals regardless of family rank. Shozan supported the 14th domain lord, Akimichi, as a personal attendant and was highly valued, even accompanying him to Edo. Around this time, Shozan's long-awaited eldest son was born, and his life in Usuki was fulfilling (Giichiro Kudara, "History of Usuki Domain Scholarship").

Furthermore, Heigoro Shoda, known as a top executive of Mitsubishi, was from the Usuki Domain and is said to have attended Shozan's lectures at Gakkokan around the age of 13, and Shozan raised many talented individuals (Juichi Shukuri, "Heigoro Shoda"). However, when Akimichi died young in Bunkyu 2 (1862), Shozan faced the misfortune of leaving Usuki the following year, partly due to backlash against the exceptional treatment he had received. For the next few years, he served as a professor at a village school in Buzen Yokkaichi, producing many disciples who later became members of the House of Representatives or government officials. When he was permitted to return to the Nakatsu Domain in Meiji 2 (1869), he became a Confucian official and professor upon his return, and his family rank was promoted to upper samurai status, with his stipend increased to rations for 7 people. He worked on the reform of Shinshukan as a professor of Chinese classics, and after the educational system reform, he also worked at Kataba Junior High School, the successor to Shinshukan, but resigned shortly after to focus on education at Bankodo. He actively wrote works until his later years, but passed away from stomach cancer in Meiji 16 (1883) at the age of 69.

The bond between Fukuzawa and Shozan was deep, with a particularly famous episode being "Selling Household Goods for a Debt of Forty Ryo" in "The Autobiography of Fukuzawa Yukichi." After the death of his brother Sannosuke, Fukuzawa needed to settle a large debt of 40 ryo incurred through various expenses. He decided to sell everything in the house to repay the debt, and his main hope among them was Hyakusuke's extensive collection of books. Hyakusuke, who was an excellent scholar, had collected precious Chinese books (tohon) despite being poor, and Fukuzawa thought they could be sold for a high price. However, there was no prospect of having expensive books bought in Nakatsu, so the troubled Fukuzawa turned to Shozan, who was then a Confucian scholar of the Usuki Domain. Shozan appealed to the Usuki Domain, which purchased most of the collection for 15 ryo, saving Fukuzawa from his predicament. This Fukuzawa family book collection still exists and is held by Usuki City.

The two continued their friendship thereafter, and their interaction lasted throughout their lives. When Fukuzawa published "Popular Discourse on National Rights" in Meiji 11 (1878), he sent a copy to Shozan, and Shozan wrote an epilogue for it the following year to celebrate its completion. Also, in the thank-you letter for receiving the book, Shozan consulted about the education of his eldest son, Sadakichi, and seemed to have Keio University in mind, stating that it was necessary to study broadly rather than just Chinese classics. On the other hand, when Fukuzawa recommended Western studies to Shozan, Shozan replied with the following Chinese poem as his answer.

New learning: the Handan walk not yet mastered; again forgetting the old steps, two difficulties combined.

Not following the fashion of the times is not to defy the world; I wish to avoid crawling for the rest of my life.

This is based on the anecdote "The Walk of Handan" from the Autumn Floods chapter of Zhuangzi. It is an anecdote that if you blindly imitate others, you will forget your own original ways and lose both. Shozan composed that if he took up Western studies anew, his Chinese studies would become neglected and half-hearted, so it would be better for him to devote himself exclusively to Confucianism. It is said that when Fukuzawa saw this reply, he laughed loudly, saying, "He says whatever he pleases." Seeing his mentor's poem based on the Zhuangzi he had studied in his youth, Fukuzawa likely felt a sense of nostalgia.