The Oritaku Shiha no Ki of Arai Hakuscki 1657 1725 was the first Japanese autobiography and is often singled out as the most outstanding As primary source material for the first half of the Tokugawa period it constitutes a unique historical supplement to the official records Presented here is a scholarly English translation of and commentary on this important work Originally published in 1980 The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print on demand technology to again make available previously out of print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905