The Famous Nanso Satomi Hakkenden, a Dog Story
23 april 2018 
2 min. read

The Famous Nanso Satomi Hakkenden, a Dog Story

The young woman in this koban-sized shunga design is Princess Fusehime who is making love to the canine hero Yastufusa. They are characters from the Japanese literary classic ‘The Eight Dogs Chronicles (Nanso Satomi Hakkenden)‘ which was written by the famous but troubled author Kyokutai Bakin (1767-1848). It can be summarized as a historical novel of the strange and supernatural set in a time of medieval war with eight central figures (each with ‘dog’ in their name).

satomi hakkenden

Princess Fusehime and Yatsufusa‘ (c.1840) from the series ‘Fûryû musha hakke (Eight Fashionable Warriors)‘ attributed to Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1797-1861) (Photo source William Pearl)

Water Margin

Bakin wrote his magnum opus over a period of 28 years (1814-1842) and was intended to be the Japanese counterpart of the Chinese classic ‘Water Margin‘, a story about the adventures of mercenary troop consisting 108 outlaws (aka. Suikoden Heroes).

Strong Female

When Bakin finally finished his ‘Nanso Satomi Hakkenden’ in 1842it spanned 106 volumes featuring 400 characters, making it one of the most comprehensive books in the world. The story includes a number of strong female characters, perhaps the most important being the bold Fusehime, who is associated with each of the eight heroes.

Androgyny

On many occasions, ‘Nanso Satomi Hakkenden’ hints at androgyny, which was a popular late-Edo theme. Fusehime, for instance, is described as being manlike, and by spreading her seedlike soul beads, she becomes the virtual mother-father of the eight heroes. Yatsufusa, who marries Fusehime, is a male dog possessed by a female soul.

Click HERE for more intimate encounters between Fusehime and Yatsufusa…!!!

A comprehensive description of the ‘Nanso Satomi Hakkenden’ tale can be found at woodblockprints.org…!!!

About the author
Marijn is the founder of shungagallery.com. With more than 20 years of experience within the sensual and erotic art of shunga he is an authority in the genre. During this time he served many customers with complementing their art collection.
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