THE WORLD CIVILIZATIONS AND INDIA , PART-40

CULTURAL DEVELOPMENTS DURING EDO PERIOD OF JAPAN

The cultural developments during the EDO PERIOD grew as the merchant classes in JAPAN started spending excess of their earnings on the cultural and social pursuits . When trade and commerce developed , affluency in the society increased many folds . Such affluency expressed itself in the form of cultural development as such . It all happened during the EDO PERIOD of JAPAN . Now the merchant classes who started spending their money on such cultural pursuits were so affluent that their lifestyle became hedonistic . This hedonistic lifestyle was called in the JAPANESE language as UKIYO . UKIYO meant floating world in the JAPANESE language . This new lifestyle expressed itself , at least , in two forms in the JAPANESE society : 1. UKIYO-ZOSHI ; and 2. UKIYO-e art . The UKIYO-ZOSHI implied ‘ books of the floating world ‘. This was the first major genre of the popular JAPANESE fictions . Their period ranged between 1680s to 1770s . These Literatures mainly developed in and around the cities like KYOTO and OSAKA . UKIYO-e was a genre of the popular JAPANESE art forms which flourished during the period ranging from 17th to 19th centuries as such . These popular art forms were produced in the woodwork prints , KABUKI actors , SUMO wrestlers , folk tales and dances and erotica .

KABUKI DANCE & BUNRAKU THEATER

Let us start with KABUKI dance form which developed in JAPAN during the EDO PERIOD . The KABUKI is a form of JAPANESE DANCE-DRAMA . KABUKI dance theater is famous for its heavily styled performances on stage . Some of its performers used to wear KUMADORI make-up . This dance form originated in early EDO PERIOD when IZUMO NO OKUNI formed a female dance group who used to perform dances and light sketches in KYOTO . When in 1629 AD women were banned to perform in KABUKI theaters , then all-male theatrical form of KABUKI dance theater developed in the JAPANESE society . And this theaterical dance form still exists in the JAPANESE society and in 2005 UNESCO declared it as possessing ‘ an intangible heritage ‘ having ‘ outstanding universal values ‘ of the humanity .

BUNRAKU is considered as a form of traditional JAPANESE puppet theater . It was founded in OSAKA in the beginning of the 17th century . Three main type of performers took part in this form of theater were as follows : 1. THE NINGYOZUKAI ( puppeteers ) , 2. THE TAYU ( chanters ) ; and 3. SHAMISEN ( musicians ) . Popularly known as NINGYO JORURI could be traced back its origin during 1680s in the JAPANESE society . The playwright known as CHIKAMATSU MONZAEMON whose period had been from 1653 AD to 1724 AD , collaborating with a professional chanter TAKEMOTO GIDAYU ( 1651 AD to 1714 AD ) , established a TAKEMOTO puppet theater at OSAKA in 1684 AD . However , the name BUNRAKU was given to this particular Theater form in 1805 AD as it was again established in OSAKA and which was named after a puppeteer UEMURA BUNRAKUKEN .

HAIKU POETRY & GEISHA PERFORMING ARTS OF JAPAN

HAIKU POETRY was developed by the master of poetry art , MATSUO BASHO , whose period in the JAPANESE history was considered from 1644 AD to 1694 AD . He was the most famous poet of the EDO PERIOD of JAPAN . He was regarded as the greatest Master of the HAIKU form of poetry . MATSUO BASHO’S HAIKU poetries were internationally renowned . As many of his poems are reproduced on Monuments and Traditional historical sites as such . Although MATSUO BASHO was famous in the west for his HAIKU/HOKKU , yet he considered himself as poet of RENKU . RENKU is a JAPANESE form of ‘ popular collaborative linked verse poetry ‘.

GEISHA , a new professional entertainers , developed during the EDO PERIOD of JAPAN was a class of female JAPANESE performing artists . These entertainers were trained in traditional JAPANESE performing arts styles such as dance , music and singing . Their distict appearances were characterized by trailing KIMONO , traditional hairstyles and OSHIROI make up . They generally used to be performed in a parties known as OZASHIKI organized for the wealthy clientele of JAPAN as such .