Yoshida Kenkō (吉田兼好 Yoshida Kenkō, c. 1283 – c. 1350-52) was a Japanese monk and author of the collection of essays Tsurezuregusa (Essays in Idleness), a classic of early medieval Japanese literature. Events June 1 - Treaty of Rheinfelden - Duke Rudolph II of Austria has to waive his right to the Duchies of Austria and Styria Teutonic Knights subjugate Prussia Sopot comes under the control of Gdańsk Gregory Cyprius becomes Patriarch of Constantinople Northern section of the Grand Canal of China is completed... Events Hayam Wuruk becomes ruler of the Majapahit Empire The Black Death ravages Europe (1347-1351) Births Manuel II Palaeologus, future Byzantine Emperor John Montacute, 3rd Earl of Salisbury (approximate date). ... Events June 4 - Glarus joins the Swiss Confederation. ... Official language Japanese Capital Tokyo Largest City Tokyo Emperor Akihito Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 60th 377,835 km² 0. ... A Roman Catholic monk A monk is a person who practices monasticism, adopting a strict religious and ascetic lifestyle, usually in community with others following the same path. ... The word author has several meanings: The author of a book, story, article or the like, is the person who has written it (or is writing it). ... Essay, a short work that treats of a topic from an authors personal point of view, often taking into account subjective experiences and personal reflections upon them. ... Japanese literature spans a period of almost two millennia of writing. ...

Biography

Kenkō was born 1283 as the son of an administration official. His original name was Urabe Kaneyoshi (卜部兼好). After he grew up he became an officer of the imperial palace guards. Later in life he changed his name to Yoshida Kenkō, retired from public life and became a Buddhist monk and hermit. His reasons for becoming a hermit have led to a lot of speculation but remain eventually obscure. It has been conjectured that either his unhappy love for the daughter of the prefect of Iga or his mourning over the death of emperor Go-Uda caused his withdrawal from the world. Events June 1 - Treaty of Rheinfelden - Duke Rudolph II of Austria has to waive his right to the Duchies of Austria and Styria Teutonic Knights subjugate Prussia Sopot comes under the control of Gdańsk Gregory Cyprius becomes Patriarch of Constantinople Northern section of the Grand Canal of China is completed... A hermit, also known as an anchorite or anchoress, is a person living in voluntary seclusion, often for religious reasons. ... The word prefect can refer to any of a number of types of official, including: in Latin, praefectus: a high-ranking military or civil official in the Roman Empire; the title now attaches to the heads of some departments of the Roman Curia, who are traditionally Cardinals, and if they... IGA may stand for: Interactive genetic algorithm Iga Province This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Emperor Go-Uda (後宇多天皇) (December 17, 1267 - July 16, 1324) was the 91st imperial ruler of Japan. ...

Although he also wrote poetry and entered some poetry contests at the imperial court (his participation in 1335 and 1344 is documented) his enduring fame is based on his collection of 243 short essays which was published posthumously. Although most commonly called "Essays in Idleness", a more precise translation of the title would be "Notes from Leisure Hours" or simply "Leisure Hour Notes". Themes of these essays are for example the beauty of the changing seasons and nature in general, the transience of life, traditions, friendship etc. These essays were written in the zuihitsu style. The name zuihitsu means "follow the brush", and the purpose of this style of writing was to allow the writers brush to skip from one topic to the next, led only by the direction of their thoughts. Events Abu Said dies and the Ilkhan khanate ends Slavery abolished in Sweden Charles I of Hungary allies with Poland against the Hapsburgs and Bohemians Carinthia and Carniola come under Habsburg rule. ... Events English king Edward III introduces three new gold coins, the florin. ...

Influence of Tsurezuregusa on Japanese Literature

The Tsurezuregusa was already popular in the 15th century and was considered a classic from the 17th century onward until today. The Tsurezuregusa is part of the modern Japanese highschool curriculum, as well as that of the International Baccalaureate program. (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ... (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ... In education, a curriculum (plural curricula) is the set of courses and their contents offered by an institution such as a school or university. ...

See also

• Chance, Linda H (1997). Formless in Form: Kenko, "Tsurezuregusa," and the Rhetoric of Japanese Fragmentary Prose. Stanford: Stanford UP.
• Keene, Donald (1967). Essays in Idleness: The Tsurezuregusa of Kenko.