2021 Volume 17 Pages 88-100
This report reprints and introduces “Shokumotsu honzō yōka”(anthology of waka on medicinal foods) in the 1760 edition of Eitai chōhō-ki takara-gura. In the early Edo period, shokumotsu honzō-sho (herbals that focus on the beneficial effects of daily foods) were sometimes written in the form of poetry (waka): for example, Waka shokumotsu honzō. Previous studies have focused on the sources of this book or the differences among editions, and it was believed that such anthologies of waka were hardly created after the middle or late Edo period. However, by comparing the text of “Shokumotsu honzō yōka” with Waka shokumotsu honzō, I indicate that Eitai chōhō-ki takara-gura, which has seen several editions thereafter, includes the same or similar wakas of Waka shokumotsu honzō. This study reveals that herbals written in the form of waka are useful to understand the breadth of knowledge possessed by people in the Edo period about the medical benefits of daily foods.
