Jippensha Ikku

How to Become a Taoist Immortal Jippensha Ikku

An Edo Era Manga originally published in 1800. This is a humorous story about a group of retired men and women who encounter a Taoist Immortal. They request to become students so they too may live forever. Ikku, the author, was a prolific writer who published 20 Edo Manga a year, in addition to other works. His sarcastic and ironic takes on contemporary society garnered him many fans and he is said to have been the first author in Japan to make a living solely on writing. Edo Manga were popular with the highly literate Edo townspeople and Samurai as well and continued to be published until the end of the 19th century.