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Chigo in the Medieval Japanese Imagination

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 July 2008

Paul S. Atkins
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Abstract

This article explores the representation of chigo—adolescent males attached to Buddhist temples or aristocratic households who were educated, fed, and housed in exchange for personal, including sexual, services—in medieval Japan. The author discusses how chigo were depicted in historical records, in contemporary short fictional narratives, and in a “Chinese” legend invented by Japanese Tendai monks; the chigo are also compared to the Tang consort Yang Guifei. Fictional and real chigo tend to fall victim to violence, and it is argued that the chigo functions as a surrogate sacrificial victim, a cultural figure whose role is outlined most prominently in the works of René Girard.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Asian Studies , Volume 67 , Issue 3 , August 2008 , pp. 947 - 970
Copyright
Copyright © The Association for Asian Studies, Inc. 2008

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