Tenjiku Tokubei (1612 - c. 1692) (Japanese:
He was born in Sendo-machi, Takasago-cho, in today's Hyōgo Prefecture in 1612. His father was a salt wholesaler.
The adventurer
editAt the age of fifteen, in 1626, Tokubei was hired by a trading company in Kyoto. He pursued commercial activities aboard Japanese red seal ships.
In 1627, Tokubei visited China, Vietnam, and Siam (modern Thailand) on board a Japanese Red Seal ship. He would stay for some time in Siam and again visit the country on board one of the ships of the Dutch adventurer Jan Joosten van Lodensteijn.[1] He also sailed to India, to the source of the Ganges,[2] and the country of Magadha,[3] and returned with great wealth and numerous stories to tell.[4]
Upon his return to Japan, and after the introduction of the Seclusion policy (sakoku), Tokubei wrote an essay titled "Tenjiku Tokai Monogatari" (
He died around the age of 80 in his home town of Takasago.
The Kabuki character
editTenjiku Tokubei became a popular character of Kabuki and Joruri puppet dramas, where he was given the role of a magician. He was a popular subject of woodcut prints in the 18th and 19th centuries.
In September 1795, Sawamura Kunitaro I played the role of Tokubei's wife in the drama "Tenjiku Tokubei Kikigaki Ôrai", while the role of Tenjiku Tokubei was played by Arashi Koroku III.
Notes
edit- ^ Kansai Kippo News Vol.11 No.490 Wednesday, February 23, 2005 Archived June 13, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ The Russo-Japanese War: A Photographic and Descriptive Review by Richard Harding Davis - Page 458 "Tokubei travelled in India as far as the source of the Ganges"
- ^ "When he was fifteen years old, in 1626, he was employed by a trading company in Kyoto worked in Siam (Thailand) and Magadha (India). After that, in 1630, he went to India again in a Dutch ship, with Jan Joosten, a Dutchman, and traded there." Takasago City website "Tenjiku Tokubei -
高砂 市 ". Archived from the original on 2009-11-13. Retrieved 2008-06-15. - ^ Kabuki; the Popular Stage of Japan - Page 187 by Zoë Kincaid 1965 "Tokubei sailed away on unknown seas to India and returned with wealth greater than that of a daimyo, many strange tales to relate..."