The Waters of Literature: Dogo Walked by Masaoka Shiki and Natsume Soseki

Matsuyama, the Town of Haiku, and Shiki Masaoka

Matsuyama, which includes Dogo, is the town that gave birth to Shiki Masaoka (1867–1902), the innovator who introduced "shasei" (sketching from life)—a method of depicting what is in front of one's eyes as it is—to modern haiku and tanka. Until his short life of 35 years ended due to tuberculosis, Shiki carved the scenery and hot springs of his hometown of Matsuyama into numerous works. Inside the city, there is the Matsuyama Municipal Shiki Memorial Museum, which traces Shiki's life and achievements, and haiku monuments are scattered around Dogo and the approach to Ishite-ji. For Shiki, who was at the center of the reform movement of haiku and tanka, Matsuyama and the hot springs of Dogo were the original landscapes that remained unchanged throughout his life.

Soseki's Post in Matsuyama and Living with Shiki

In April 1895, Soseki Natsume arrived in Matsuyama as an English teacher at Matsuyama Middle School (currently Matsuyama Higashi High School). In the summer of the same year, Shiki, who had traveled to the continent as a war correspondent for the First Sino-Japanese War and had returned to Matsuyama after coughing up a large amount of blood on his way back, moved into Soseki's boarding house, and the two are said to have lived under the same roof for about 50 days. This boarding house was called "Gudabutsu-an," where Shiki lived downstairs and Soseki upstairs, and it also served as a venue for haiku gatherings with young poets who assembled there. The two are said to have frequently visited the bath of Dogo Onsen Honkan, and the private room on the third floor of the Honkan, which they are believed to have used at that time, remains as the "Botchan Room."

The Birth of "Botchan-yu"

The experience of about one year in Matsuyama later culminated in the novel "Botchan" (1905). The hot spring that the protagonist frequently visits in the story is said to be modeled on Dogo Onsen, and in connection with this, the Honkan is still called "Botchan-yu" today. In 1994, which marked the 100th anniversary of the completion of the Honkan, the Botchan Train, a restoration of the light railway that once ran through Matsuyama, was put into operation, and the Botchan Karakuri Clock was installed in Hojoen in front of Dogo Onsen Station. This is an example of how a literary work shaped the actual landscape of the town over time.

Tracing Haiku Monuments — Traces of Literature Remaining in the Hot Spring Town

In Hojoen, a small park in front of Dogo Onsen Station, a footbath, a karakuri clock, and a yugama that once held hot water are placed, and the locomotive of the Botchan Train is parked in the station square. Along with the statue of Shiki Masaoka and haiku monuments standing in various places, including the approach to Ishite-ji, Dogo is a town where visitors can trace the remnants of literature between visits to hot springs as a "hot spring of literature." By reading each haiku monument as you walk, you may get a little closer to the atmosphere of Meiji-era Matsuyama that Shiki and Soseki saw.

※ The public opening status and fees of each facility are subject to change. Please check the detail pages of each spot and official information for the latest information.