A long time ago, families were different, and so was retirement. Check out this interesting system.
Masahige, Yohei, Hideaki
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Script
A: This was the first time I watched Rakugo. I really enjoyed the old-fashioned style comedians and storytellers.
B (Japanese): I’m glad you like it. Today’s story, Tegami-muhitsu is not so famous, but I like it. Tegami means letter and mihutsu means blank. The story is very simple. A man comes to see the village elder named Goinkyo and tries to have Goinkyo read his letter. But actually Goinkyo is also illiterate. Goinkyo tries in vain to read it in order not to reveal the fact.
A: Yeah. Anyway, who is Goinkyo?
B: Well, there was a retirement system called Inkyo in Japan a long time ago. Goinkyo is a person who had, as we say now, retired. But many of us don’t know very well about the details of Inkyo. Let’s take a look at the Japanese retirement system in the old days!
Narrator:
Inkyo is a Japanese retirement system which began in the medieval period, Muromachi, around the 16th century, and it had much to do with the Japanese feudal system.
In old Japan, occupations and households were tied together. Usually, all members of a family worked for the same business. Each family was like a small company. For example, a Samurai family would all work to keep the Samurai supported, or a family of merchants would all tend to sales. The leader of the house business is at the same time the head of the family.
So, when the head of a family stops working because of illness or aging, he must quit leading the family, too. This action was called Inkyo.
At that time, he gives an inheritance and the property to his children and becomes a Goinkyo, which meant a retired person.
Goinkyo helps and educates the new leader by giving advice or using his connections. And he enjoys his post-retirement life.
Inkyo functioned as retirement, family and education system.
A: Now I know what “Inkyo” is. A man who did Inkyo is like a chairman of a board, isn’t it?
B: You got it. The relation between Goinkyo and the owner of a house is similar to the one between president and chairman. So even now there are similar systems all over the world, but the Japanese system of Inkyo is abolished when the Japanese constitution was established. Inkyo no longer exists.
A: I see. By the way, the Goinkyo we saw in the story was very foolish.
B: There are a lot of novels and traditional entertainment about the Goinkyo, and some Goinkyo are clever and others are foolish. Old people generally thought Goinkyo should be intelligent to achieve their duties, so foolish “Goinkyo” often end up being the brunt of a joke.
A: I get why the story is very interesting. The next time I see some Rakugo, I want to watch out for the clever ones.
B: OK. I think you will be pleased because they are so cool!