The doboshu were a body of Ji-sect attendants serving the shogunal house, responsible for the arts and for practical management. Figures bearing the -ami name — Noami, Geiami, Soami, Zen'ami — are the representative examples. They were involved in the organisation of tea, shoin display, ink painting, linked verse, and gardens.
Origins
The institution derives from Ji-sect monks becoming attendants of the shogunal house in the Kamakura period. As ordained figures they occupied a position transcending social rank, and from it they took charge of the arts — a distinctive arrangement with no close parallel.
Legacy
The shoin display the doboshu codified is the prototype of modern alcove and shelf display. Objects said to be to doboshu taste rank among the Higashiyama treasures.
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