From "Myotei Mondo" to "Ha Daiusu": life and faith of Fabian Fucan

Fabian Fucan (1565-1621) appears in historiography under various names. Unfortunately, the name given to him at birth is unknown. He was baptized by Jesuit missionaries and named Habian Fucan (ハビアン不干), gained fame in the West thanks to his translations of Japanese classical literature under the pseudonym Fabian Fucan (ファビアン不干). In Japanese sources, he appears under the names Habian Fucansai (不干斎巴鼻庵) or simply Fucansai (不斎), adapted to the characteristics of the Japanese language. Fucan is the author of unique religious texts that have had a significant impact on Japanese Christians. The study of these texts is very important, in the light of not only the presence in them of the peculiarity of the synthesis of Christianity and Japanese religious culture, but also the increased interest in the Christian age (1549-1630s) in Japan. The author of this article is trying to find out the reasons that prompted Fabian Fucan to abandon Christianity, as well as to show the presence of religious syncretism in his worldview. In addition, it turns out how the ideology of the Tokugawa shogunate influenced his life and work.