Abstract
People's world view changed radically in 17th century Japan. In this paper, I describe this vicissitude as the process of rapid secularization from a Buddhist view of the world in the Medieval to the new worldview which denied the religious concepts and attached greater importance to the values in the mundane world. In this process, the idea of “kokoro” (mind and heart) emerged with great importance in the various genres of popular stories. “Kokoro” can be interpreted as a representation of the instance of the will to moral values, which is strictly separated from individual properties and desires, yet still tries to control them. 'The popular morality' (Yoshio Yasumaru) was formulated through this process. And furthermore this morality introduced not only universalistic moral values but also more popular values, such as economic profit and the present social orders. In this moral ideology, a human being is constructed as a subjectivated existence which disciplins himself and controls his social environment of his own volition. 17th century was the period when secularized world view and modern human figure as such were created.
