Baigan Ishida

Ishida Baigan was a merchant who lived in Kyoto and philosopher who originated the moral-education movement called Shingaku ("Heart Learning"), which sought to popularize ethics among the common people.

The son of a farmer, Ishida began studying ethical doctrines in Kyoto as a young man while apprenticed to a merchant house. Eventually he became a teacher of business philosophy in Kyoto at the age of 44. It was his purpose in the movement that people maintain a harmony between busy work and spiritual enlightenment based on Shinto religion, to inspire merchants to be self-respectful and confident in their business and to raise them from the lowest class of society. After his death the movement grew into the most influential educational institution of the merchant class.