Putting Down the Sword to Admire Beauty: The 'Ultimate Fandom' That Samurai Were Enthusiastic About
When you think of "gazing at goldfish", what kind of scenery do you imagine ? The bustle of a festival ? Or a cool aquarium on a summer afternoon ?
Actually, in the Edo period, it was those "samurai" who poured their passion into this small life more than anyone else.
From Sword to Goldfish
Edo, where a peaceful era without war continued.Proud samurai who once made a name for themselves on the battlefield were burning their passion in an unexpected place.That is "goldfish breeding".
It started as a "side job" to support their livelihood, but the samurai's craftsman-like and obsessive temperament ignited it. "More beautiful tail spreading" "More elegant back curves" They began to pursue ideal beauty in the small universe inside the bowl, as if mastering the art of war.
Passion to Create the Ultimate "Oshi"(Fandom)
Just like we support our favorite artists or find our own "Oshi" today.For the samurai of Edo, goldfish might not have been just fish, but the "ultimate Oshi" onto which they projected their own aesthetics.
Especially in the background where varieties such as "Ranchu" were polished, there was the strict aesthetic eye of the samurai who did not allow even a single error.They, who had polished the art of taking lives(martial arts), poured their heart and soul into nurturing small lives and protecting their beauty... In that gap, I feel an indescribable human touch and a prayer for peace.
Free Universe Found in the Bowl
Samurai who lived in a strict class system and customs.But only when looking at the goldfish swimming in the bowl, they might have been released from all roles and moved purely by beauty as "one human being".
The brilliance of goldfish captured by us Jun * Juane through the lens.It must be connected to the brilliance that the samurai of hundreds of years ago stared at lovingly while wiping their sweat.
Yoshiyuki Adachi "Kingyo Yogan So"(1748): Japan's oldest breeding book conveying the enthusiasm of Edo period goldfish lovers.
Katsumi Suzuki "Goldfish and Japanese"(Kodansha Academic Library, 2019): Detailed explanation of the transition of goldfish culture started from samurai's side job.
Nobuyuki Yoshida "Goldfish Spring and Autumn Cultural History"(Japan Animal Medicine, 2014): Record of the history of selective breeding and Japanese aesthetic sense continuing from Edo.
