Doshisha（同志社）

Background

The “application to open a private school” submitted to the Kyoto Prefectural Government on August 23, 1875, lists the names of Jo Neesima and Kakuma Yamamoto (1828–1892) as “associated persons,” and also lists teaching histories of Neesima and Jerome D. Davis (1838–1910), who could not join because he was a foreigner. This document does not mention the name “Doshisha,” but the “Doshisha Regulations,” which were probably prepared around the same time, state, “The company was formed, an English school was opened, and it was named Doshisha.” In The Doshisha Centennial History, it is stated that “It was Yamamoto who gave the name Doshisha to the association. Doshisha, which means a company of like-minded people, was the perfect name for the school” (DCHGH, Vol. 1, p. 84). The scene in which Kakuma Yamamoto, who was preparing to establish an English school with Neesima, came up with the name Doshisha was depicted in several biographies and dramas, but no historical documents have beenfound to support this story (CWJN, Vol. 1, p. 627). The term “dōshi” (同志,people sharing one purpose) has been widely used since the Edo period to refer to those who share the same principles, aspirations, and beliefs. The fact that the school founded by Neesima, Yamamoto, and Davis was named “Doshisha” (company of “dōshi”) was a clear indication that it was a group of individuals sharing one purpose.
　The Doshisha Centennial History also states, “At the time of its establishment, the school did not use the name “juku” (tutoring school) or “gakuin” (academy) in its name, but instead used the word “sha” (社, company). Regarding the relationship between the term “company” and the trends of the times, it is noted that in 1868, Keio Gijuku was “founded as a modern private school by like-minded people who formed a company together, following the Western system of cooperative schools, and departing from the family school system” (Keio Gijuku Chronological Table, https:// www.keio.ac.jp/en/about/history/). The school founded by Yukichi Fukuzawa (1835–1901) was “new wine, that is a modern private school in England, served into old wineskins called ‘gijuku’ of Chinese origin” (Keio Gijuku Centennial History, vol. 1, 1958, p. 245). It is also said that at the center of the “company” vogue in the early Meiji period was the Meiroku- sha, established at the suggestion of Arinori Mori (1847–1889), who returned from America in 1873 (Akira Yanabu, The Establishment History of Translation Language, Iwanami-shinsho, 1982). This organization was modeled after Western academic societies and academies, and was a “society” where representative intellectuals of the time gathered to engage in enlightenment activities, but it gradually became a closed group of scholars and shifted to the Tokyo Academy of Sciences and the Imperial Academy under the direct control of the Ministry of Education. In contrast, the Kyōzon-dōshu (Coexisting Society), which was modeled on the British Association for the Promotion of Social Sciences and was formed by a group of Japanese students who had studied in England, aimed to be an agent of social reform, allowing women and others who wished to participate in its meetings to do so. (Takutoshi Inoue, “Meiroku-sha and Japan Academy vs. Kyōzon-dōshu and Kōjunsha: Yukichi Fukuzawa, Atsujiro Obata, and Tatsuo Baba,” Journal of Modern Japanese Studies, Vol. 22, 2005). The prevalence of such “societies” corresponds to the process of forming a group of individuals positioned as a constituent element of society (社会, “shakai”) in contrast to the long-established group of traditional community members (世間, “seken”).
　Fukuzawa joined the Shogunate’s delegation and observed social systems and customs in Europe and the United States, and he was impressed by the fact that some public institutions such as schools and hospitals were established not by the government but by private associations of like-minded people. Living in New England, Neesima experienced the activities of individuals, associations, and societies different from those in Japan, with the support of a mature civil society and church gatherings. The private schools Fukuzawa and Neesima established were organizations of like- minded individuals who came together for “public” rather than “private” purposes, and can be positioned as an attempt to introduce the Western system of civil society to Japan (see “Private Schools and Private Universities”). It could be said that the “gi” (義, righteousness) of Keio Gijuku and the “shi” (志, will) of Doshisha were meant to serve the public.

Contemporary Significance

The Word “Doshisha”

Most national and public universities are named after the region or municipality in which they were established. Many private universities are also named after cities or regions (Waseda University, Kwansei Gakuin University, etc.), but some are associated with the era of their establishment (Keio University, Meiji University, etc.), the names of their predecessor schools or founders (Seikei University, Ritsumeikan University, Tsuda University, etc.), or the academic fields taught or the names of their founding bodies (Sacred Heart University, Ryukoku University, Sophia University, Hosei University, etc.). In contrast, the name of Doshisha University is unique in that it indicates that it is a private university created by an association or corporation, and suggests the background of its establishment and the spirit of the university. The name has played an important role in shaping the image and uniqueness of Doshisha University both inside and outside the university, as evidenced by the college song that begins with the lyrics “One purpose, Doshisha, thy name.”
　The three men who were involved in the creation of Doshisha English School were: Jo Neesima, who wanted to establish an educational institution for the study of modern science based on Christian moral education; Kakuma Yamamoto, a former Aizu clan samurai who was planning to promote industry and education as an advisor to the Kyoto Prefectural Government; and J. D. Davis, whose mission was to establish a training school to train Christian evangelists. Their wishes were not entirely compatible with each other. The establishment of the Doshisha English School was achieved through the mediation of various conflicting interests, such as the conflict over whether to establish a training school or a school for teaching modern science, and the conflict with the Kyoto Prefectural Government over the teaching of the Bible. In the subsequent history of Doshisha, there were also various conflicts among employees and students, and Doshisha was subjected to pressure from the government of the time and the military. The term “Doshisha” seems to have played a major role in dealing with these conflicts. In this history of Doshisha, we can see the emergence of a conscience of “knowing together” (see “Conscience”).

The Spirit of the University’s Founding

The three men, Neesima, Yamamoto, and Davis, grew up in different circumstances, but came to unite in Kyoto to pursue their aspirations. One thing they had in common was that they each left the community in which they were born to establish new aspirations. They were all trying to free themselves from the community and state of their birth, including by founding a private school without the help of the government. In addition, although Kakuma Yamamoto did not travel abroad, he had gained insight into Western affairs through his exchange with Amane Nishi (1829–1897, a thinker who, after studying in the Netherlands, served the Meiji government and introduced modern Western thought to Japan) and his visit to Nagasaki. Furthermore, before meeting Neesima, he had read Tendo-Sogen (English title: Evidences of Christianity, an 1854 Chinese-language commentary on Christian doctrine by American missionary William Alexander Parsons Martin) and was sympathetic to Christianity. This international perspective and understanding of Christianity were also elements they shared.
　Although “Christianity,” “liberalism,” and “internationalism” have been advocated as educational principles of Doshisha University for a few decades, their historical background and contemporary significance are not fully understood. Rather, through the word “Doshisha,” it is important to learn the aspirations of the associates who were responsible for its establishment and to consider the relationship between the individual and society in civil society, in order to explore the founding spirit and envision the future of Doshisha.

(Akira Hayashida)