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Japanese epic novel (yomihon) by Kyokutei Bakin

Nansō Satomi Hakkenden (南総里見八犬伝; 南總里見八犬傳), commonly known as Satomi Hakkenden (里見八犬伝) or simply Hakkenden (八犬伝), is a Japanese epic novel (yomihon) by Kyokutei Bakin, originally published over the course of twenty eight years (1814–42). Set in the Muromachi period, the story follows the adventures and mishaps of eight fictional warriors born across the Kantō region, who gradually discover their shared origin as "spirit children" of a Satomi princess and unite in Nansō as loyal defenders of her clan. The novel, consisting of 98 chapters printed in a total of 106 booklets, is considered the largest novel in the history of Japanese Literature. Bakin, in his 70s by the time the work was completed, had gone blind before finishing the tale, and dictated the final parts to his daughter in law Michi Tokimura. Along with Ueda Akinari's Ugetsu Monogatari, it is considered a masterpiece of gesaku literature, and one of the classics of Japanese historical fiction. Tale of Eight Dogs, or Biographies of Eight Dogs.

Hakkenden is a long, dense work told from multiple perspectives described by translator Glynne Walley as "huge and unwieldy, almost comically so". While the Shogenjikō Setsuyōshū attests the existence of a historical "Eight Dog Warriors" in service of the Satomi clan, their lives are not detailed, nor have they been found in any other known records of the time, making the veracity of their existence unclear. In the preface Bakin humorously claims that the true story of the Dog Warriors was revealed to him in a dream, but that he had forgotten most of the details by the time he wrote it down. The novel's inciting incident, where Satomi Yoshizane jokingly offers his daughter's hand in marriage to the family dog, is modelled after the tale of the dog Panhu from the Chinese In Search of the Supernatural, which is noted both by Bakin in the preface and by the characters in story.

Hakkenden's main themes are loyalty, clan honor, Bushido, Confucianism, and Buddhist philosophy. Bakin most frequently referred to Nansō Satomi Hakkenden's genre as Haishi (commonly translated as petty history, or people's history), a Chinese genre of vernacular historical fiction. Bakin often stated that the primary purpose of the novel was to encourage virtue and chastise vice, which was central to the novel's plots and character archetypes; likening himself to the authors of Haishi in that he used entertaining stories to entice less educated readers, who would, in turn, be taught morals through allegory. As a work of gesaku, however, the novel also contains tacit social commentary, and often plays with traditional concepts relating to gender and morality. Hakkenden translator Glynne Walley has argued that, while the novel's effort to teach morals is clearly present (as examined in his own treatise Good Dogs and in later installments products from other manufacturers such as cosmetics. Notably, in literary reformer Tsubouchi Shōyō's influential book Essence of the Novel, published 1885–1886, Bakin is lauded for both his style and his role in popularizing novels, but imitation of Bakin's work is cited as a widespread problem among novelists of the time. In the 20th century Hakkenden became a strong influence on manga works, particularly those based on adventure quests. For example it influenced Akira Toriyama's Dragon Ball (1984) and Rumiko Takahashi's Inuyasha (1996), which both have plots about the collection of magical crystals or crystal balls, the latter also starring a human/dog hybrid similar in origin to the Dog Warriors.

Yōma Ninpōchō (1986) is an arcade shooter game inspired by the 1983 Shin Satomi Hakkenden film. Idol Hakkenden (1989), a visual novel for the Famicom where eight idol singers assemble in a similar manner to the Dog Warriors. Makai Hakkenden Shada (1989), an action RPG for the PC Engine with gameplay similar to the Ys series, developed by Data East. Satomi Hakkenden (1989), a role playing game for the Famicom developed by Alpha Denshi and published by SNK. Shin Satomi Hakkenden: Hikari to Yami no Tatakai (1989), a role playing game for the Famicom developed by Micronics and published by Toei, based on the 1982 novel Shin Satomi Hakkenden and its film adaptation. It features the gimmick of allowing the player to start as any one of the Eight Dog Warriors in different locations across the map, with the goal of eventually uniting the entire party. Romancing SaGa (1992) features a nonlinear story of eight player characters who exist in the same world, the number being chosen in reference to the similar storytelling of Hakkenden. Ōkami (2006) features a story arc in which the player character is recruited by a woman named Fuse to collect the "Satomi Power Orbs" from eight trained dogs who serve her family.

A complete reprinting in ten volumes is available in the original Japanese, as well as various modern Japanese translations, most of them abridged. Only a few chapters have been translated into English, Chapter 25 by Donald Keene, and Chapters 12, 13, and 19 by Chris Drake. In 2021 the first volume of an intended complete consisting of the first fourteen chapters of the story (spanning the original Volume 1 and part of Volume 2). A second volume, His Master's Blade, was published.

Kyokutei Bakin (1819) "Shino and Hamaji". In Keene, Donald (Ed.) ([1955] 1960) Anthology of Japanese Literature: from the earliest era to the mid nineteenth century, pp. 423–428. New York, NY: Grove Press. Kyokutei Bakin (1819) "Fusehime at Toyama Cave," "Fusehime's Decision," "Shino in Otsuka Village," "Hamaji and Shino". Translated by Chris Drake in Haruo Shirane (Ed.) (2002) Early Modern Japanese Literature: An Anthology 1600–1900, pp. 885–909. New York: Columbia University Press.