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No other source has provided as much inspiration for Japanese tattooing as the adaptations of Chinese narrative. Shuihu zhuan.This will only happen from the 1820s onwardsBut in Japan, this narrative became known in 1728 and gradually gained strength.
Attributed to the writer Shi Nai'an, the chinese novel Shuihu Zhuan was written in the 14th century and is a story about the adventures of a band composed of one hundred and eight outlaws outside the law. romantic, honorable and righteous, who become legendary heroes for fighting against corruption.
The first Japanese translation was published in 1728.two weeks after the death of the renowned performer who made it, Okajima Kanzan (1674-1728), and brought only the first ten chapters of the original long narrative.
The title of the Chinese novel Shuihu Zhuan literally means "a story that happened at the water's edge". The Japanese translation of Okajima Kanzan receives the title of Chugi suikodenwhich in Spanish means "a story of loyalty that happened at the water's edge"..
Subsequently, the term Suikoden shall be used to refer to any narrative translated, adapted, or loosely inspired by the ancient Shuihu Zhuan.
The story of these 108 anti-heroes (some of them tattooed) acting against the government takes place in 12th century China, and its content is a mixture of folkloric narratives from oral tradition and real events, retold without much historical fidelity. Even so, it makes a great impact on the Japanese society increasingly dissatisfied with the empire of the time.
In the following years, 1728, when the first Japanese translation was made, the suikoden will continue to be translated, adapted and versioned, until being illustrated by Hokusai and Kuniyoshi in the following century, causing great impact on Japanese tattooing.
