The Rise and Fall of Go’s Brightest Stars
In Japan’s Genroku era, the world of Go reached its cultural peak. The country was at peace, the arts were thriving, and the shogunate had elevated Go to an elite national pursuit. This period, known as the “Genroku Golden Age,” saw the rise of not only powerful Go houses, but also their political influence and artistic prestige.
At the heart of it all was one man: Honinbo Dosaku.
He was more than just the strongest player of his time. Dosaku was a reformer who reshaped the game itself, replacing the brutal “kill-the-dragon” style of the Yasui house with a philosophy of shape, flow, and long-term strategy. His house, the Honinbo, became the pinnacle of Go learning. Students, patrons, and nobles all flocked to be part of it.
The House of Power
Under Dosaku’s leadership, the Honinbo house swelled with over thirty full-time disciples—professional Go players in training—and a long list of guest students that included scholars, writers, artists, and even government officials.
Among his core disciples were six young geniuses known across the Go world as the Six Heavenly Kings. Each one had the strength of a future champion. But the brightest star by far was a prodigy named Honinbo Doteki.
Doteki had reached 6-dan by the age of 13, a record still unmatched today. His rise was meteoric. By the time he turned sixteen, many believed he would become not only Dosaku’s heir, but perhaps the strongest player in Japan’s history.
But power breeds jealousy.
A Battle Within
It was expected that every Go house would appoint a successor. Everyone assumed Dosaku’s top disciple, Kuwabara Dosetsu, would inherit the title. He was older, experienced, and already carried himself like the next leader.
But Dosaku hesitated.
Dossetsu was only a year younger than Dosaku himself, and though his Go was formidable, his pride and harsh temper made him a divisive figure. Meanwhile, Doteki was young, modest, and impossibly talented. Dosaku began to shift his attention, openly favoring the teenager as the next in line.
Dosetsu saw it all.
Angry and humiliated, he issued a challenge: a head-to-head series of games to prove who deserved to succeed.
Dosaku tried to stop him. A fight like this would divide the house. It wasn’t a healthy competition—it was a civil war. But as the situation escalated, Dosaku knew something had to be done. And so, he found a third option.
A Masterstroke in Politics
Dosaku turned to his younger brother, Inoue Dousainseki, the head of the Inoue house. Dousainseki had been searching for a worthy successor and had come to Dosaku asking for help.
Instead of a minor student, Dosaku offered him Dosetsu.
It solved everything. Dosetsu would become the heir of another great house. Dousainseki would get an incredible player. And Dosaku could appoint Doteki without internal strife.
Everyone walked away satisfied—or at least quiet.
In 1690, at just 16 years old, Doteki was officially named the next head of the Honinbo house.
A Meteor Ascends
Doteki’s rise continued without pause.
He entered the Castle Games—the highest court competition—and won against the Yasui house’s top player. Soon, he was promoted to 7-dan. Even Dosaku himself found it difficult to defeat him.
There were games where they traded wins, each side barely edging the other out by a point. These matches weren’t just signs of talent—they were signs of transformation. Dosaku knew the future of Go was safe in Doteki’s hands.
And then, tragedy struck.
The Sky Falls
Doteki died suddenly at just 21 years old.
The Honinbo house was stunned. Dosaku was devastated. He wept openly and could hardly bear to face the board again.
But fate was not finished.
Within the next few years, Hoshiai Hasseki, Kumagai Honseki, and even Doteki’s chosen successor, Sayama Sakugen, also died—each in their early twenties. Four of the Six Heavenly Kings, gone in just a handful of years.
The Honinbo house, once overflowing with talent, was crumbling.
A Prophecy Remembered
Years earlier, a Chinese monk named Xinyue, who had fled to Japan during the fall of the Ming dynasty, had once seen a Go record of Dosaku’s play. Jokingly said it was from Japan’s third-best player, Xinyue laughed.
“No,” he said. “This must be your number one.”
Later, hearing of the incredible talent gathered under one house, Xinyue gave a quiet warning:
“Heaven has favored your house too much. Not all these stars will live to shine.”
No one listened.
But perhaps Xinyue wasn’t being mystical. He had studied medicine and philosophy. Maybe he simply understood something others didn’t: intense pressure, constant competition, and poor health would take their toll.
And they did.
Doteki, brilliant and beloved, worked himself to exhaustion. He hid symptoms. The others, sharing rooms and boards, unknowingly shared disease as well. Tuberculosis spread quickly, and in that age, it was a death sentence.
By the time anyone realized it, it was too late.
A Legacy Too Bright
Dosaku lived on—but he was never quite the same.
The brilliance of his school had become its own undoing. The Honinbo house would eventually recover, and Go would continue. But no generation would again see such a tragic concentration of genius.
For a brief, breathtaking moment, the future of Go was brighter than ever before.
And then, in a blink, it was gone.
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Copyright Notice
This English adaptation is based on Japanese Go Stories (《日本围棋故事》, 2016) by Xue Zhicheng (薛至诚).
For non-commercial use only: Shared for educational purposes under fair use.
Rights retained: All copyrights belong to the original author and cited sources.
Modifications: Minor narrative adjustments were made for readability; all historical content remains accurate.
No affiliation or endorsement: This work is independent and unaffiliated with the original author or publishers.
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References
Adapted from:
Xue Zhicheng (薛至诚), Japanese Go Stories (《日本围棋故事》), 2016.
Cited in original work:
Watanabe Hideo (渡辺英夫), Shin Zaigin Dansō (《新坐隱談叢》)
Watanabe Yoshimichi (渡部義通), Kodai Igo no Sekai (《古代囲碁の世界》)
Lin Yu (林裕), Weiqi Encyclopedia (《围棋百科辞典》)
