2006/10/15
Published in "Juku" No. 252, 2006
Yukichi Fukuzawa was born in Osaka as the second son of Hyakusuke Fukuzawa, a low-ranking samurai of the Nakatsu Domain.
Despite the misfortune of losing his father before he could remember, he was raised in a relaxed yet proper family environment in Buzen-Nakatsu, where his mother took him after returning to their hometown.
Based on the depiction of the young Yukichi in "Fukuō Jiden," we seek to trace the roots of Yukichi Fukuzawa, a leader of modern Japan.
Born in Osaka as the Second Son of a Low-Ranking Samurai
On January 10, 1835 (the 12th day of the 12th month of the 5th year of the Tenpō era), Yukichi Fukuzawa was born as the second son of Hyakusuke Fukuzawa (age 43) and his wife, Jun (age 31). His father worked at the Buzen-Nakatsu Domain's *kurayashiki* (warehouse-residence) located at the northern end of Tamae Bridge in Dojima, Osaka (present-day Fukushima Ward, Osaka City), which is where Yukichi was born. Although thin, he was a large, big-boned baby, and it is said that his father was overjoyed when the midwife told him, "This child will surely grow up splendidly if you just give him plenty of milk."
His father, Hyakusuke, was of a rank "several grades better than an *ashigaru* (foot soldier), but still low-ranking among the samurai class" (all subsequent uncredited quotes are from "Fukuō Jiden"), and his duties involved dealing with merchants for rice transactions and managing the domain's debts. Although this was typically a post with a two- to three-year rotation, his integrity and competence were so highly valued that his service in Osaka ultimately extended to 15 years, during which he was promoted to the highest family status possible for a low-ranking samurai. Hyakusuke also had a side to him as a Confucian scholar. He cherished interacting with fellow scholars and reading above all else, and his personal library is said to have reached 1,500 volumes. On the very day Yukichi Fukuzawa was born, Hyakusuke finally obtained a long-sought collection of laws from the reign of the Qianlong Emperor of the Qing dynasty, titled "Jōyu Jōrei." He took one character from this title and named his son "Yukichi." It can be said that Yukichi Fukuzawa was deeply connected to "learning" from the moment of his birth.
However, the peaceful days of the seven-member Fukuzawa family did not last long. In 1836 (the 7th year of the Tenpō era), Hyakusuke died suddenly at the age of 44. Having lost his father at just 18 months old, Yukichi Fukuzawa, along with his mother and four older siblings, would move to the domain's territory of Nakatsu (present-day Oita Prefecture).
To Buzen-Nakatsu After His Father's Death
The "Former Residence of Fukuzawa Yukichi," now preserved as a historic site in Rusuimachi, Nakatsu City, is the house that Yukichi Fukuzawa purchased from his mother's family and moved into around the age of 17. Before that, they lived in a small, gateless house measuring two and a half *ken* (approx. 4.5m) wide and five *ken* (approx. 9m) deep, located diagonally across the street. The house had been left unattended for 15 years during the Osaka assignment and had fallen into disrepair. They managed to repair it with funds raised through a *tanomoshikō* (a mutual financing association common among ordinary people at the time), and thus began the life of the mother and her five children in Nakatsu. Incidentally, to prevent the vacant house from becoming a playground for neighborhood children during their stay in Osaka, the adults had apparently concocted a ghost story about a "Bloody Spear Mansion."
"My five siblings and I simply could not blend in with the people of Nakatsu. [...] My siblings and I all spoke with an Osaka dialect. Where the Nakatsu people would say *sō jachiko*, we would say *sō de omasu*, so we found each other strange and hardly spoke." It wasn't just their language; their hairstyles and clothing also differed from those of the locals, and they gradually began to spend more time indoors. "The fact that I was extremely active yet poor at climbing trees and completely unable to swim was likely because I was isolated, unable to relax and play with the other children of the domain."
However, despite these circumstances, "though we did not have a strict father, the mother and children lived together in harmony, and we never once had a sibling quarrel." He also came to respect the noble character of his father, about whom his mother would tell him on various occasions.
A Late Start on the Path of Learning
Living in poverty, his mother, Jun, could not afford to focus on her second son's education. The young Yukichi was skillful with his hands and "good at devising things," helping his mother by re-covering tatami mats, re-papering shoji screens, repairing roots, and doing side jobs. However, he started his studies later than the children of other samurai. "I neither practiced calligraphy nor read books. I did absolutely nothing." But, "upon turning fourteen or fifteen, I saw that everyone I knew in the neighborhood was reading books, and I felt it was shameful or embarrassing that I alone was not." With this resolve, he began attending a private school taught by a Confucian scholar. He quickly demonstrated a talent for learning, showing a level of comprehension that surpassed even his teacher's in group readings of "Mencius" and "The Analects." Thereafter, he devoured numerous Chinese classics. He particularly excelled at "The Commentary of Zuo on the Spring and Autumn Annals (Zuo Zhuan)," stating, "Most students would stop after three or four of the fifteen volumes of *Zuo Zhuan*, but I read all of them through, rereading them about eleven times and memorizing the interesting parts."
However, no matter how academically gifted he was, there was no path to advancement in the Nakatsu Domain, which was strict about the hierarchy of samurai ranks. While high-ranking samurai (*jōshi*) held important positions and were financially well-off, the promotion prospects for low-ranking samurai (*kashi*) like those of the Fukuzawa family were limited, even if they were capable. Marriage with the upper class was forbidden, and the distinction between noble and common was clearly expressed even in daily language. This hereditary class system extended to the relationships between children, and his rebellious spirit against it, combined with his feelings for his father who died without achieving fame due to his low rank, gave rise to the famous phrase from his autobiography: "The hereditary class system is my father's enemy." It is said that his father, during his lifetime, had considered making his second son, Yukichi, a Buddhist priest, a path where advancement was possible regardless of social status. Yukichi Fukuzawa, sympathizing with his father's feelings, stated, "Thinking of the depth of his affection, I often recall this and, while resenting the feudal class system, I find myself weeping alone as I imagine my late father's thoughts." The opening line of the first part of "Gakumon no susume (An Encouragement of Learning)," written for the people of Nakatsu—"It is said that heaven does not create one man above or below another man. Any existing distinction between the wise and the stupid, between the rich and the poor, comes down to a matter of education."—can be seen as the sublimation of his youthful indignation against the class system into a universal philosophy.
His critical spirit toward established authority also extended to the conventions and superstitions of the time. Around the age of 12 or 13, the young Yukichi inadvertently stepped on a piece of paper bearing the official title of the lord of the Nakatsu Domain and was severely reprimanded by his older brother. Although he apologized on the spot, he was not convinced in his heart. So, "I wondered what would happen if I stepped on a charm with a god's name on it, and when I tried stepping on one where no one could see, nothing happened." He continued to conduct such "pranks," empirically verifying that divine punishment did not follow reason, such as by swapping the sacred stone of an Inari shrine. This childlike critical spirit toward the class system and conventions of feudal society, and his empiricist attitude of verifying things for himself... The first steps of Yukichi Fukuzawa, who brought modern thought to our country and became a leader of modern Japan, can be traced back to his boyhood in Nakatsu.
Lifelong Feelings for His Hometown
At the age of 19, the young Yukichi set off to study in Nagasaki, declaring, "I have no lingering attachment to my hometown. Who would stay in a place like this? Once I leave, I'll be like a cannonball, never to return." However, Yukichi Fukuzawa would visit Nakatsu seven times throughout the rest of his life.
In 1870 (the 3rd year of the Meiji era), after the Meiji Restoration, he returned to his hometown to bring his mother to Tokyo, staying for about two weeks. During this time, he was asked for his opinion by a high-ranking domain official and advocated for the complete abolition of armaments and the establishment of a Western-style school (Nakatsu City School). He also drafted the "Farewell Message to Nakatsu," a message to the people of his hometown who were building a new society after the Restoration. This document preached the importance of the spirit of freedom and independence, what was likely Japan's first argument for monogamy—stating that "the foundation of human morality is the married couple"—and the necessity of learning and reading books.
In 1894 (the 27th year of the Meiji era), a visit to the family graves with his two sons became Yukichi Fukuzawa's final trip home. On that occasion, he visited the nearby Yabakei Gorge. Hearing that the land of Kyoshuho, a peak boasting a magnificent view, was for sale, he purchased approximately 120 ares of the area to preserve the scenic spot. Despite his complex feelings, there is no doubt that the land of Nakatsu remained the irreplaceable hometown of Yukichi Fukuzawa throughout his life.