Ecology in seventeenth-century Japan: the 'Great Way' of Kumazawa Banzan

Summary: Kumazawa Banzan used Chinese cyclical cosmology and thoughts on the relationship between man and nature to diagnose an ecological crisis in his world, particularly in the exploitation of nature. He emphasized the importance of agriculture and the ontological interdependence of man and nature, critiqued political corruption and material consumption, and proposed a restoration of a materially frugal but culturally rich socio-political order.