🟣2 [History of Specification Changes] From Hideyoshi's Tea Boom to the Mincho Font. A Great 400-Year-Old Innovation Rhapsody That Threw the Front Lines into Chaos

The top of the company suddenly declares, 'From now on, it's the era of XX! We're adopting it immediately!' and the front lines fall into total chaos... This is a stomach-churning 'top-down storm' and 'sudden specification change' that every modern business person has experienced at least once.

Actually, this didn't just start recently. This time, set against the backdrop of places like Hagi in Yamaguchi Prefecture, I would like to follow the timeline of a history that is both tear-jerking and resilient, involving 'traditional craftsmanship' and the 'arrival of the latest trends' that occurred from the era of Hideyoshi to the Edo period, and the front-line artisans and middle managers who were tossed about by them.

1: It all starts with the 'word from above' (1590s~)

The origin of the matter lies in the era of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the ruler of the nation. At the time, 'Tea Ceremony (matcha)' popularized by Sen no Rikyu was not just a hobby, but a status symbol for daimyo and a highly sophisticated political tool.

'I want the finest matcha tea bowl!'

Behind the major event of Hideyoshi's dispatch of troops to Korea (Bunroku-Keicho Campaign), daimyo all brought back skilled potters from Korea to Japan. The Mori family was no exception. Mori Terumoto invited top engineers, the brothers Ri Shakko and Ri Kei, and finally launched a major project in Hagi around 1604. This was the start of 'Hagi-yaki'.

To satisfy their lord, the front-line artisans repeated blood-sweating research and development (R&D) day after day, from soil composition to glazes and how to spin the potter's wheel, establishing a brand with the ultimate wabi-sabi known as the 'Seven Changes of Hagi'.

At the time, due to the influence of Sen no Rikyu, the 'matcha' tea ceremony was a huge trend, and for daimyo, owning a top-class matcha tea bowl was as much of a status symbol as 'owning a private jet' is today. In other words, Hagi-yaki was a 'top-class matcha tea bowl project for the lord' that the Mori family launched with their prestige on the line.

2: The arrival of the 'Red Gate' instead of the Black Ships! A tumultuous foreign-affiliated package (1654)

While the Hagi-yaki front lines were perfecting their technology, saying 'Our ultimate matcha tea bowl is the best!', an unbelievable 'Black Ship' appeared in the port of Nagasaki. It was the super-influencer from China (Ming),Zen Master Ingen.

The 'Obaku Sect' he brought to Japan was not just a new religion. In modern terms, it was the 'latest lifestyle package' brought by the strongest foreign consulting firm. Among them, let's introduce two innovations that dramatically changed Japan's infrastructure.

3: The overwhelming UI/UX revolution 'Mincho font'

The first is the 'Mincho font', a font we use as a matter of course in computers and official documents. At the time, Japanese sutras and official documents were dominated by the soft 'Gyosho' (semi-cursive) and 'Sosho' (cursive) styles written with a brush. They were so calligraphic that, frankly, it was often impossible for amateurs to read what was written.

Zen Master Ingen and his followers brought in sutras in the 'Mincho font', which is easy for anyone to read and has a clear contrast in the thickness of vertical and horizontal lines, along with the latest 'woodblock printing' system. In modern terms, this is an all-company notification saying, 'From today, all official company documents must be created using this specified font and unified format!'

At first, Japanese monks and intellectuals who resisted, saying 'There is no warmth of the brush!' or 'There is no soul in the characters!', changed their tune once they used it, saying '...Wait? This is incredibly easy to read, and printing efficiency has skyrocketed, hasn't it?', and it immediately became the de facto standard for the Japanese publishing industry.

4: The ultimate agile development 'Kidney bean'

The second is the 'kidney bean' (ingen-mame), which is familiar on the dining table. It is famous that Zen Master Ingen is the origin of the name, but why did this bean spread so widely throughout Japan?

It was because kidney beans were a super high-cost-performance crop that 'grows quickly and can be harvested three times a year (also called the three-time bean)'. At the time, introducing new crops was a huge risk for farmers (the front lines). However, faced with the overwhelming merit of 'Just try sowing the seeds. It grows quickly and is full of nutrients!', the front lines immediately adopted it, saying 'Seriously? If that's the case, let's try it'.

It can be said to be the ultimate success story of 'agile development' or 'quick wins' (early success experiences) in modern business, where you produce results small and fast. The front lines always move based on 'whether it can actually be used or produce results' rather than logic.

5: "Sencha (tea brewed in a teapot)" and the cries of the front lines (1690s)

Now, let's return to Hagi. In 1691, the Obaku Zen temple "Toko-ji" was established in Hagi, and a bright red gate was built with a bang. (Introduced in the previous article)
And another disruptive innovation brought by the Obaku sect was "Sencha (tea brewed in a teapot)."

The lord must have said something like this: "I hear Sencha is quite the trend lately. Make me one of those 'kyusu' (teapots) using our Hagi ware!"

The Hagi ware craftsmen, who had spent nearly 80 years perfecting the "ultimate matcha bowl," were booing loudly.“What!? A teapot!? What's with that handle and spout! What happens to our aesthetic of wabi-sabi!”

The domain officials (middle managers) desperately tried to soothe these craftsmen.“I understand how you feel, I really do! But this is a project close to the lord's heart... please, get me a prototype by the end of the month!”

In every era, the dynamic remains the same: the top brass bringing in new trends, the proud technicians on the front lines, and the managers caught in the middle. Doesn't the interaction between these historical figures suddenly look like the scene from yesterday's meeting?

The strength to accept change and turn it into fuel

Even so, in the end, the craftsmen on the front lines grumbled while they worked, but they managed to create magnificent Hagi ware teapots and preserved that technique to the present day. Before we knew it, both the "Mincho font" and "green beans" had completely blended into our daily lives.

We, too, have days when we want to sigh, "Another spec change?" as new waves like "AI!" and "DX!" crash over us one after another. But the craftsmen of the past complained just the same, yet they eventually managed to combine the new with their own solid "foundation" to create the next era.

Thinking about it that way, there's no point in overthinking things and furrowing your brow. "Well, whatever! I'll just use everything I can—tradition and the latest trends—to make things interesting. I'm feeling good today, too!" It's best to just laugh it off and look forward.

In honor of the nameless craftsmen who lived resiliently while being tossed about by the times, and the managers of 400 years ago who kept the front lines running while popping stomach medicine. Tonight, let's toast with a nice cold beer and some green bean ohitashi as a snack!