Laws on Compassion for Living Beings

Timeline

1. 1685–1686Edo Castle · EdoIn 1685 the shogunate issued a series of notices requiring permits for firearms, exempting dogs and cats from restraint during the shogun's processions, restricting the use of strong-boned horses and birds in the shogunal kitchen, moving 'compassion for living beings' from individual prohibitions toward a recognizable policy direction.
2. 1687–1694Edo · EdoIn 1687 the abandonment of sick horses, children, and the ill was banned, and 'compassion for living beings' was communicated to the various domains; thereafter injuring dogs or killing living beings could be punished by distant exile or even death. The edicts escalated from Edo town notices into nationwide laws, tied to social policies such as foundling care.
3. 1695–1700Nakano dog house, Edo · NakanoFrom 1695 the shogunate opened large dog houses at Nakano and elsewhere, housing stray dogs and requiring townspeople to feed them, while penalties for harming dogs were further increased. Compassion for living beings thus became an urban institution subject to daily supervision, until it was swiftly revoked after Tsunayoshi's death in 1709.