Hosshinshū 發心集 [発心集]

Archive Unit
  • This material is held at
  • Reference
      GB 59 16107.g.34
  • Dates of Creation
      1670
  • Language of Material
      Japanese
  • Physical Description
      8 volumes Condition: Good. A clean copy, but with minor worm damage in several maki. Impression: Atozuri, printed from worn blocks. Illustrations: A total of 88 single-page sumizuri woodcuts, printed on recto and verso of the same folio in each case. Each illustrated folio carries the same number as the text folio before it, preceded by mata (又). Illustrations distributed as follows: (maki 1) 14; (maki 2) 12; (3) 8; (4) 10; (5) 12; (6) 10; (7) 10; (8) 12. Seals of ownership: None.

Scope and Content

Variant title: Chōmei hosshinshū 長明發心集 [長明発心集 ]. Variant title: Kamo no chōmei hosshinshū 鴨長明發心集 [鴨長明発心集]. Author/compiler: Kamo no Chōmei 鴨長明, poet and essayist, 1155-1216. Imprint: [Kyōto] , Yoshida Shirōemon, Fujimura Den'emon, Kanbun 10, 1670. Kanki on fol. 31b of maki 8 reads: 寛文拾庚戌年 ／ 三月中旬開板 ／ 中御門通弱檜木町 ／ 吉田四郎右衛門 ／ 藤村傳右衛門. Description: 8 kan, 8 satsu, in a box. (Maki 1) ff. 32; (2) ff. 29; (3) ff. 29; (4) ff. 30; (5) ff. 31; (6) ff. 28; (7) ff. 36; (8) ff. 31. 25.8 x 17.6 cm. Fukurotoji. Blockprint. Printing frame 20.8 x 16.1 cm. (average). Single-line borders. Single white fishtail design on hanshin. Hiragana-majiri text with printed furigana. 11 lines to page, 22-24 characters to line. Original light fawn covers, with original printed title slips on left bearing gedai: Chōmei hosshinshū 長明發心集. Title from mokurokudai and naidai at head of text in each maki. Hashiragaki 發心集 + maki no. + folio no. Edition: The second of two pre-modern dated editions, the first being a katakana-majiri edition (also blockprinted) published in Keian 4 慶安四年 (1651), without illustrations. Contents: A collection of 102 Buddhist tales, legends and anecdotes, many concerned with Buddhist converts who have renounced the world, with the workings of Karma, and with the awakening of faith. An example of setsuwa bungaku. Unsigned preface on first 2 folios. Author statement following naidai at head of text of maki 1: Kamo no Chōmei sen 鴨長明撰 (although Chōmei is now believed to have been responsible for writing only the first part of the work).

Access Information

Not Public Record(s)

Unrestricted

Acquisition Information

Acquired from Richard Lane, 5 Aug. 1958.

Other Finding Aids

Kenneth Gardner, Descriptive Catalogue of Japanese books in the British Library printed before 1700 (London and Tenri, 1993). C. Japanese works 和書 5. Literature - fiction 国文-小説 b. Setsuwa bungaku 説話文学

Bibliography

Nihon koten bungaku daijiten 日本古典文学大辞典, vol. 5, p. 464; Nihon bungaku shoshi 日本文学書誌, p. 482; Nihon bungaku shoshi 日本文学書誌K, vol. 3, (下) p. 98.