Refining a Shugenja Elite

Abstract

In this article I investigate the reform of Haguro Shugendō undertaken by the bettō (Chief Administrator) Kakujun in concert with the elite shugenja households of Tōge during the Kasei (1804–1829) era. I argue that this collaboration demonstrates the centrality of the household to early modern Shugendō and the importance of relationships between those households and powerful institutions such the bettō. Household, status, and both bureaucratized and document-based patron-client relationships—institutions that permeated early modern Japanese society—are crucial for understanding Shugendō. In this light, shugenja communities such as Tōge simultaneously displayed the characteristics of both a warrior retainer corps and a socially stratified, self-governing rural village. Kakujun reorganized Haguro’s administrative and social structures, clarifying and documenting its social hierarchy to an unprecedented degree. In the process, established households had their traditional privileges guaranteed or even expanded, resulting in a mutually beneficial relationship between the bettō and local elites.