Nanpo Bunshi
Nanpo Bunshi was the first abbot of the Kagoshima temple of Dairyû-ji, and author of an account of the history of firearms entitled Teppô-ki.[1]
Born in the village of Obi in Hyûga province, he is said to have been called a child prodigy in his youth. He studied the Neo-Confucian teachings of Keian Genju under Ichio Genshin at Ryûgen-ji in Kushima, Hyûga province.
Bunshi later became a prominent political advisor to Shimazu Yoshihisa, Shimazu Yoshihiro, and Shimazu Iehisa, playing a key role in advising policy on Satsuma's relations with Ryûkyû. He died in 1620, and is buried at Ankoku-ji in Kajiki, Satsuma province.
References
- Plaques on-site at former site of Dairyû-ji.
- ↑ Nanpo Bunshi, Teppô-ki, c. 1604, translated in Tsunoda, et al., Sources of Japanese Tradition, New York: Columbia University Press (1958), 308-312.