Sanzan tani biography

  • sanzan tani biography

    • Tani Sanzan

    Deafblind Japanese teacher

    Tani Sanzan (1802 – 11 December 1867) was a Japanese Confucian scholar and educator in the late Edo period. Deafened in his teenage years, Sanzan became blind in his later life and communicated with his students through tactile communication. In his writings he argued for the rejection of Western political and cultural influence.

    Life and work

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    Sanzan was born in Kyōwa 2 (1802) in a merchant house in Yagi Village.[1] He was the third son of his father Shigeyuki and his mother Chiya.[2] Sanzan lost his hearing around the age of 16.[2]

    He went to Kyoto to study in 1829.[2] Sanzan studied with scholar Ikai Keisho (1761–1845) and was friends with intellectuals such as Rai San'yō and Yoshida Shōin.[1] Sanzan opened a private school, Kojokan.[1] Sanzan was appointed as a Confucian vassal by the lord of the Takatori domain.[2] In 1847, Sanzan conducte