Western Memoirs - Seiyo Kibun

A book written by Arai Hakuseki. In 1708 (5th year of the Hoei era), he infiltrated Yakushima (Kagoshima Prefecture) as a Roman envoy and Italian missionary, Giovanni Battista Sidotti, and wrote down the information he had gathered about Europe and other foreign affairs, as well as matters related to Christianity. Although the description of world geography is more detailed and systematic in "Sairan Igen," this book is characterized by its easy-to-understand writing in Japanese and its detailed description of Christian doctrine (the second of three volumes). Of course, it harshly criticizes Christianity from the standpoint of Confucian morality and rationalism. In addition, since he asked the same questions to the heads of the Dutch trading posts who came to Edo, many parts of the book are free from prejudice. He also supplements the gaps in his articles on the War of Spanish Succession (1701-14) and the Northern War (1702-21) by asking questions to the Dutch. Like "Sairan Igon," revisions were made until the end of Arai's life, as is known from the surviving handwritten copy in beautiful handwriting. This work was passed on in strict secrecy to the Arai family, so few people knew about it, and it only became relatively well-known among intellectuals after it was presented to the shogunate by order in 1793 (Kansei 5). As a work critical of Christianity and with a "Japanese spirit, Western learning" philosophy (stating that the West is superior in material aspects such as machines, and the East and Japan are superior in spiritual aspects such as morality), this work played a major role in the history of thought during the isolationist period, and was translated into English by American missionaries before the Meiji era. The handwritten copy is held by the National Archives of Japan. It is included in "Arai Hakuseki Zenshu Vol. 4," "Shin-tei Seiyo Kibun" (Heibonsha, Toyo Bunko), "Nihon Shiso Taikei 35 Arai Hakuseki," Iwanami Bunko, etc.

[Michio Miyazaki]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

新井白石(あらいはくせき)の著書。1708年（宝永5）に屋久島（鹿児島県）に潜入したローマの使節、イタリア人宣教師ジョバンニ・バッティスタ・シドッチを取り調べた際、聴取したヨーロッパをはじめ海外事情とキリスト教関係事項とを書き記したもの。世界地理の記述では『采覧異言(さいらんいげん)』のほうが詳しく体系化もされているが、国文で平易に書き、キリスト教教義をも詳細に書いている（3巻のうちの下巻）点が本書の特色。もちろん儒教道徳と合理主義の立場から、キリスト教には厳しい批判を加えている。また同じ事項を、江戸にやってきたオランダ商館長らに尋ねたことから、偏見を免れたところも少なくない。スペイン継承戦争（1701～14）や北方戦争（1700～21）の記事などでも、オランダ人から聞いて不足を補っている。『采覧異言』と同じく最晩年まで増訂の筆が加えられたことが、みごとな筆跡をもつ現存自筆本によって知られる。本書は新井家に極秘のうちに伝えられたため知る人も少なく、1793年（寛政5）幕府の命令で献上されてから、やっと知識人の間でわりあい知られるようになった。キリシタン批判書であり「和魂洋才(わこんようさい)」的考え方（器械など物質面では西洋が優れ、道徳など精神面では東洋、日本が優れているとする）をしている点で、鎖国制下における本書の思想史的役割は大きく、明治以前すでにアメリカ人宣教師によって英訳もされた。自筆本は国立公文書館蔵。『新井白石全集　第4巻』、『新訂西洋紀聞』（平凡社・東洋文庫）、『日本思想大系 35　新井白石』、岩波文庫などに所収。

［宮崎道生］

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