In Eijudō Hibino at Seventy-one (Toyokuni I), how is the Fuji-kō of the Print details elucidated?
Nishimuraya Yohachi is known to have been a member of the Fuji-kō, an Edo period cult centred around Mount Fuji. Founded by an ascetic named Hasegawa Kakugyō (1541-1646), the cult venerated the mountain as a female deity, and encouraged its members to climb it. In doing so, they would be reborn, "purified and... able to find happiness." The cult waned in the Meiji period, and, though it persists to this day, it has been subsumed into Shintō sects.The publisher's association with the Fuji-kō gives clues not only to imagery in his portrait, but also to his eagerness to participate in the production of Hokusai's series celebrating Mount Fuji.
Shintō Meiji period Hokusai Mount Fuji Edo period Nishimuraya Yohachi