Higashiyama Culture

In the middle of the Ōnin War, eighth shogun Ashikaga Yoshimasa abandoned politics, retired to Kyoto's Higashiyama area, and built Ginkaku as a cultural figure. Higashiyama Culture is called the origin of traditional Japanese beauty.

Basic Knowledge

The symbol of Higashiyama Culture is Ginkaku (Ginkaku of Jishōji), built by Yoshimasa in Kyoto's Higashiyama area in 1489. Unlike the splendor of Kinkaku, it embodies a spirituality that values kota n and yūgen (a simple yet profound beauty). The first floor is in the shoin-zukuri style, and the second floor is in the Zen style; silver leaf was not actually applied.
The architectural style of Higashiyama Culture, shoin-zukuri, is the prototype of today's Japanese-style room. It features tatami mats, shoji screens, fusuma sliding doors, a tokonoma alcove, staggered shelves, and a tsukeshoin writing desk. The Tōgudō's Dōjinsai at Ginkakuji is a representative example.
In painting, ink-wash painting reached maturity. Sesshū traveled to Ming China to study painting techniques and established a distinctively Japanese style of ink-wash painting through works such as Autumn and Winter Landscapes and Landscape Scroll of the Four Seasons.
In addition, Noh theater developed further, and kyōgen (comedies performed between Noh plays) was established. In the tea ceremony, Murata Jukō became the founder of wabi tea. In renga, Sōgi edited Shinsen Tsukubashū. Otogi-zōshi (including Issun-bōshi and Urashima Tarō) also spread among ordinary people.

Further Study (Background and Influence)

The essence of Higashiyama Culture is the aesthetic of wabi and sabi. The spirituality of finding profound beauty in simplicity rather than splendor influenced the later tea ceremony of Sen no Rikyū, the haikai poetry of Matsuo Bashō, and even modern Japanese aesthetics.
A karesansui garden is a distinctive style that represents mountains and water using only stones and sand, without water. Representative examples include the Ryoanji Rock Garden and the Daisen'in Garden at Daitokuji in Kyoto.
Yoshimasa was an unsuccessful politician but an outstanding cultural figure. He employed the dōbōshū (specialists in performing arts and crafts who served the shogun, many of whom were monks of the Ji sect and used the title “Ami”), including Sesshū, Nōami, Geiami, and Sōami.
It is also important that otogi-zōshi spread as popular culture. The prototypes of stories handed down to the present, such as Issun-bōshi, Urashima Tarō, and Hachikazuki-hime, were established during this period.

Points of Caution (Easily Confused)

① Never confuse Kitayama Culture (Yoshimitsu and Kinkaku) with Higashiyama Culture (Yoshimasa and Ginkaku).
② Distinguish shoin-zukuri (Higashiyama Culture) from shinden-zukuri (the residences of Heian aristocrats). Shoin-zukuri is the prototype of the Japanese-style room; shinden-zukuri is the world of The Tale of Genji.
③ Distinguish Sesshū (Higashiyama Culture and master of ink-wash painting) from Josetsu and Shubun of Kitayama Culture (early ink-wash painters).
④ Remember the sequence: Murata Jukō (founder of wabi tea) → Takeno Jōō → Sen no Rikyū (who perfected wabi tea).

Practice

1. Give the name of the building representing Higashiyama Culture and the name of the shogun who built it.
2. Give the name of the architectural style that became the prototype of today's Japanese-style room.
3. Give the name of the painter-monk who traveled to Ming China to study ink-wash painting and painted Autumn and Winter Landscapes.