Ashikaga Period, in Japanese history, period of the Ashikaga Shogunate (1338-1573). It was named for a district in KyÅto, where the first Ashikaga shogun, Takauji, established his administrative headquarters. Although Takauji took the title of shogun for himself and his heirs, complete control of Japan eluded him. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi shogunate, also known as the Ashikaga shogunate, which was officially established in 1336 by the first Muromachi shogun Ashikaga Takauji. The period ended in 1573 when the 15th and last shogun Ashikaga Yoshiaki was driven out of the capital in Kyoto by Oda Nobunaga.
The early years of 1336 to 1392 of the Muromachi period is also known as the Nanboku-cho or Northern and Southern Court period. The later years of 1467 to the end of the Muromachi period is also known as the Sengoku period.
The Ashikaga shogunate, Japanese Ashikaga bakufu , was a feudal samurai government ruled by the shoguns of the Ashikaga family. Shoguns were de facto rulers of Japan although the authority of the Emperor was nominally acknolwedged. He was kept in imperial isolation as a distant but revered figure while governance devolved to the military dynasties.
This period is also known as the Muromachi period and gets its name from the Muromachi area of Kyoto where the third shogun Yoshimitsu established his residence. Local nobles, the daimyo, also exercised considerable power and the Shogun could only rule with the co-operation and support of these men. Consequently, much skill was required and the Shogun was forced to consider the regional nobles' interests as well as his own. The Shogunate began by re-opening contact and commerce with China and ended with the first contact with Europeans, including Christian missionaries.
The most successful of the Ashikaga rulers, the third shogun Yoshimitsu, managed to eliminate his rivals and settle a long-standing split in the imperial line, creating an era of stability that lasted several decades. A later succession dispute within the Ashikaga, however, led to the ÅŒnin War (1467-77) and was followed by a century of military struggle known as "the age of the country at war" (sengoku jidai).
RELIGION AND CULTURE
At the time of Ashikaga shogunate, no theatre and Chinese-style painting,Zen Buddhism flourished in Japan.That was the period when buddhism and shintoism meshed together . In spite of the political disorder, the Muromachi period witnessed great cultural growth, particularly under the influence of Zen Buddhism. The uniquely Japanese arts of the tea ceremony, flower arranging, and nÅ drama were developed, while the Sung style of ink painting (sumi) reached its height. In architecture simplicity and austerity were the general rule. Both the Golden Pavilion (Kinkakuji) and Silver Pavilion (Ginkakuji) in KyÅto were constructed as shogunal retreats during the Muromachi period.Francis Xavier, the Jesuit missionary arrived in Japan in 1549 and started establishing a Christian foothold. Art and culture especially flourished during the reign of the eighth Shogun. Keene (2003) shows how Ashikaga Yoshimasa reigned on the one hand over an artistic renaissance while on the other he almost single-handedly ended the effective power of the Shogun. While rivalry between daimyo's became more violent with the introduction of fire arms towards the end of the Ashigaka period, culture helped to unite the Japanese people and increased trade resulted in greater prosperity.
Cultural developments and the establishment of Buddhism
Some of Japan's literary monuments were written during the Nara period, including the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, the first national histories, compiled in 712 and 720 respectively; the Man'yÅshÅ«, an anthology of poems; and the KaifÅ«sÅ, an anthology written in Chinese by Japanese emperors and princes.
Another major cultural development of the era was the permanent establishment of Buddhism. Buddhism was introduced by Baekje in the sixth century, but had a mixed reception until the Nara period, when it was heartily embraced by Emperor ShÅmu. ShÅmu and his Fujiwara consort were fervent Buddhists and actively promoted the spread of Buddhism, making it the "guardian of the state" and a way of strengthening Japanese institutions.
During ShÅmu's reign, the TÅdai-ji (literally Eastern Great Temple) was built, and within it was placed the Great Buddha Daibutsu; a sixteen-metre-high, gilt-bronze statue. This Buddha was identified with the Sun Goddess, and a gradual syncretism of Buddhism and Shinto ensued. ShÅmu declared himself the "Servant of the Three Treasures" of Buddhism: the Buddha, the law or teachings of Buddhism, and the Buddhist community.
The central government also established temples called kokubunji in the provinces. The TÅdai-ji was the kokubunji of Yamato Province (present-day Nara Prefecture).
Although these efforts stopped short of making Buddhism the state religion, Nara Buddhism heightened the status of the imperial family. Buddhist influence at court increased under the two reigns of ShÅmu's daughter. As Empress KÅken (r. 749-758) she brought many Buddhist priests into court. KÅken abdicated in 758 on the advice of her cousin, Fujiwara no Nakamaro. When the retired empress came to favor a Buddhist faith healer named DÅkyÅ, Nakamaro rose up in arms in 764 but was quickly crushed. KÅken charged the ruling emperor with colluding with Nakamaro and had him deposed. KÅken reascended the throne as Empress ShÅtoku (r. 764-770). The empress commissioned the printing of 1 million prayer charms-the HyakumantÅ dharani -many examples of which survive. The small scrolls, dating from 770, are among the earliest printed works in the world. ShÅtoku had the charms printed to placate the Buddhist clergy. She may even have wanted to make DÅkyÅ emperor, but she died before she could act. Her actions shocked Nara society and led to the exclusion of women from imperial succession and the removal of Buddhist priests from positions of political authority.
Many of the Japanese artworks and imported treasures from other countries during the era of Emperors ShÅmu and ShÅtoku are archived in ShÅsÅ-in of TÅdai-ji temple. They are called ShÅsÅin treasures, and illustrate the cosmopolitan culture also known as TempyÅ culture. Imported treasures show various influences of Silk Road areas, including China, Korea, India, and Islamic Empire. Also, Shosoin stores more than 10,000 paper documents so-called ShÅsÅin documents (æ£å€‰é™¢æ-‡æ›¸?). These are records written in the reverse side of the sutra or in the wrapping of imported items, and survived as a result of reusing wasted official documents. ShÅsÅin documents contribute greatly to the research of Japanese political and social systems of the Nara period, while they even indicate the development of Japanese writing systems (such as katakana)
ECONOMIC AND CULTURAL DEVELOPEMENT
Contact with the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) China was renewed during the Muromachi period after the Chinese sought support in suppressing Japanese pirates in coastal areas of China. Japanese pirates of this era and region were referred to as wokou, by the Chinese (Japanese wakÅ). Wanting to improve relations with China and to rid Japan of the wokou threat, Yoshimitsu accepted a relationship with the Chinese that was to last for half a century. In 1401 he restarted the tribute system, describing himself in a letter to the Chinese Emperor as "Your subject, the King of Japan". Japanese wood, sulphur, copper ore, swords, and folding fans were traded for Chinese silk, porcelain, books, and coins, in what the Chinese considered tribute but the Japanese saw as profitable trade.[citation needed]
During the time of the Ashikaga bakufu, a new national culture, called Muromachi culture, emerged from the bakufu headquarters in Kyoto to reach all levels of society. Zen Buddhism played a large role in spreading not only religious but also artistic influences, especially those derived from painting of the Chinese Song (960-1279), Yuan, and Ming dynasties. The proximity of the imperial court to the bakufu resulted in a commingling of imperial family members, courtiers, daimyÅ, samurai, and Zen priests. Art of all kinds-architecture, literature, Noh drama, comedy, poetry, the tea ceremony, landscape gardening, and flower arranging-all flourished during Muromachi times.
Shintoism
There also was renewed interest in Shinto, which had quietly coexisted with Buddhism during the centuries of the latter's predominance. In fact, Shinto, which lacked its own scriptures and had few prayers, as a result of syncretic practices begun in the Nara period, had widely adopted Shingon Buddhist rituals. Between the eighth and fourteenth centuries, Shintoism was nearly totally absorbed by Buddhism and became known as Ryobu Shinto (Dual Shinto). The Mongol invasions in the late thirteenth century, however, had evoked a national consciousness of the role of the kamikaze in defeating the enemy. Less than fifty years later (1339-43), Kitabatake Chikafusa (1293-1354), the chief commander of the Southern Court forces, wrote the Jin'nÅshÅtÅki (神皇æ£çµ±è¨˜, Chronicle of the Direct Descent of the Divine Sovereigns). This chronicle emphasized the importance of maintaining the divine descent of the imperial line from Amaterasu to the current emperor, a condition that gave Japan a special national polity (kokutai). Besides reenforcing the concept of the emperor as a deity, the Jin'nÅshÅtÅki provided a Shinto view of history, which stressed the divine nature of all Japanese and the country's spiritual supremacy over China and India. As a result, a change gradually occurred in the balance between the dual Buddhist-Shinto religious practice. Between the fourteenth and seventeenth centuries, Shinto reemerged as the primary belief system, developed its own philosophy and scripture (based on Confucian and Buddhist canons), and became a powerful nationalistic force.
Western influence
By the end of the Muromachi period, the first Europeans had arrived. The Portuguese landed in southern KyÅ«shÅ« in 1543 and within two years were making regular port calls, initiating the century-long Nanban trade period. The Spanish arrived in 1587, followed by the Dutch in 1609. The Japanese began to attempt studies of European civilization in depth, and new opportunities were presented for the economy, along with serious political challenges. European firearms, fabrics, glassware, clocks, tobacco, and other Western innovations were traded for Japanese gold and silver. Significant wealth was accumulated through trade, and lesser daimyÅ, especially in KyÅ«shÅ«, greatly increased their power. Provincial wars became more deadly with the introduction of firearms, such as muskets and cannons, and greater use of infantry.
Christianity
Soon after the European traders, Christian missionaries arrived and began winning converts to their new religion. Christianity had an impact on Japan, largely through the efforts of the Jesuits, led first by Saint Francis Xavier (1506-1552), who arrived in Kagoshima in southern Kyūshū in 1549. Both peasants and daimyo and merchants seeking better trade arrangements with the Portuguese were among the converts. Xavier wrote of the Japanese that they were "the best who have as yet been discovered, and it seems to me that we shall never find among the heathens another race to equal the Japanese."
By 1560 Kyoto had become another major area of missionary activity in Japan. In 1568 the port of Nagasaki, in northwestern Kyūshū, was established by a Christian daimyo and was turned over to Jesuit administration in 1579. By 1582 there were as many as 150,000 converts (two percent of the population) and two hundred churches. But bakufu tolerance for this alien influence diminished as the country became more unified and openness decreased. Proscriptions against Christianity began in 1587 and outright persecutions in 1597. Although foreign trade was still encouraged, it was closely regulated, and by 1640 the exclusion and suppression of Christianity had become national policy.
