| Collected in two sections (上・下巻), the text is a compilation of twenty-eight documents circulated in Ryûkyû at that time, selected by Taichû to represent Ryûkyû's culture and customs. These include pieces reflecting Ryukyuan poetry, festivals, [[Buddhist temples]] & offerings made to them, events surrounding the reception of [[Chinese investiture envoys|Ming imperial envoys]], tax goods collected from the other islands, and the cargoes of Ryukyuan and Japanese ships which made port at [[Naha]]. Letters included in the collection, exchanged between members of Ryûkyû's cultural elite, reveal considerable familiarity with and interest in Japanese poetry (''[[Kokinshu|Kokinshû]]'', ''[[Manyoshu|Man'yôshû]]'', ''[[Ise monogatari]]'', ''[[Senzaishu|Senzaishû]]'', etc.), [[tea ceremony]], and tea utensils. | | Collected in two sections (上・下巻), the text is a compilation of twenty-eight documents circulated in Ryûkyû at that time, selected by Taichû to represent Ryûkyû's culture and customs. These include pieces reflecting Ryukyuan poetry, festivals, [[Buddhist temples]] & offerings made to them, events surrounding the reception of [[Chinese investiture envoys|Ming imperial envoys]], tax goods collected from the other islands, and the cargoes of Ryukyuan and Japanese ships which made port at [[Naha]]. Letters included in the collection, exchanged between members of Ryûkyû's cultural elite, reveal considerable familiarity with and interest in Japanese poetry (''[[Kokinshu|Kokinshû]]'', ''[[Manyoshu|Man'yôshû]]'', ''[[Ise monogatari]]'', ''[[Senzaishu|Senzaishû]]'', etc.), [[tea ceremony]], and tea utensils. |
| + | In contrast to the ''Ryûkyû Shintô ki'' which was [[Printing and Publishing|published]] as a woodblock-printed book and widely circulated in Japan, the ''Ryûkyû ôrai'' circulated only in manuscript form. It still had a considerable circulation among elite circles in Japan, thanks in large part to [[Ban Nobutomo]], but did not make it into the popular publications market.<ref>Yokoyama, 57.</ref> |
| *Yokoyama Manabu 横山学, ''Ryûkyû koku shisetsu torai no kenkyû'' 琉球国使節渡来の研究, Tokyo: Yoshikawa kôbunkan (1987), 53-54. | | *Yokoyama Manabu 横山学, ''Ryûkyû koku shisetsu torai no kenkyû'' 琉球国使節渡来の研究, Tokyo: Yoshikawa kôbunkan (1987), 53-54. |