Letter by Shokado Shojo
- Person
-
作者松花堂昭乗
- Date
-
制作年 AD17
- Title
- ショウカドウショウジョウヒツショジョウ
- Collections
- Century Akao Collection
- Depository
- Institute of Oriental Classics (Shido Bunko) Campus Mita
- Ref. number
- AW-CEN-002257-0000
- License
- CC BY Images license
- Creditline
-
慶應義塾（センチュリー赤尾コレクション）
- URL
- Classification
- Art
- AI Tagging
- Handwriting Wood Font Rectangle Art
Shokado Shojo (1584-1639) was a Buddhist priest of the Shingon Sect during the Edo Period. He also called himself Seisei-O. After becoming Takimoto-bo Jitsujo’s disciple, Shojo succeeded his master to become head priest of the Takimoto-bo sub-temple. Later, Shojo conceded his post to one of his disciples and retired to the newly-built Shokado sub-temple. His deep virtues and charismatic personality earned him numerous followers and friendships with Confucian scholars, Zen monks and other intellectuals of the age. Notable among them were Konoe Nobutada (1599-1649), Ishikawa Jozan (1583-1672), Kogetsu Sogan (1574-1643), and Takuan Soho (1573-1645). Shojo studied the Oieryu School (lit. “honorable family school,” also Oie School) of Japanese-style wayo calligraphy under Soncho Hosshinno (an imperial prince who resided at a Buddhist temple), but it was the great Kobo Daishi (Priest Kukai) who Shojo truly admired, favoring the Daishi Style. After mastering this style, Shojo perfected an elegant, free-flowing style of brushwork, which was later renowned as the Shokado School, or Takimoto School, of calligraphy. From this letter, we learn that a person named Kinoshita Ukyo (unidentified; perhaps related to Kinoshita Nobutoshi) had asked Shokado Shojo to suggest some ancient calligraphy masterpieces for him to buy. Shojo recommends “Wakan Roeishu-gire” (a fragment from copies of verses in the Anthology of Japanese and Chinese Poems for Recitation), attributed to Gokyogoku Yoshitsune, and “Orai-gire” (lit. “Orai fragment”). The owner of the “Orai-gire” claims that it was written by Sesonji Tsunetomo (the ninth heir to the Sesonji School of calligraphy), but Shojo thinks that it was written by Sesonji Sadanari, who was Tsunetomo’s son.During the early Edo Period, the widespread practice of tea ceremony and the popularity of calligraphic exemplars triggered a collecting frenzy for ancient calligraphy masterpieces. Handwritten originals were cut into fragments, decorated, framed and traded as valuable pieces of art to be displayed in otherwise sober tea rooms. This letter serves as evidence of the rising fad. Shojo advises the addressee to collect only what he likes and not be affected by their value, revealing an interesting point on connoisseurship. In this sense, this letter is quite thought-provoking.
追而申候何条古筆なとあらは尋可申候之旨被仰越候此秋朗詠之切一紙廿二行うたともニ是は後京極摂政と申候京衆も見とれ及難候よし申候 又往来之詞一紙七行是ハ世尊寺経朝とぬしハ申候へとも愚僧ハ定成と存候右両種を金三分と申候拙僧代之儀ハ無案内候ノ条各へも御見せなされ御意ニも入候はゝ可被召置候自然こゝもと御めにかけ申候御意ニ不入候ハゝ返可被下候以上（花押）木右京様
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- Title (EN)
- Letter by Shokado Shojo
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Quantity 1紙
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