Following the end of the Onin War, the economy of Kyoto was in ruins but Yoshimasa imposed a tansen (surtax) and enslaved the population in order to proceed with the construction of his Higashiyama-dono villa while he indulged in such refined pursuits as calligraphy and the tea ceremony.
当時は応仁の乱が終わった直後で、京都の経済は疲弊していたが、義政は庶民に段銭（臨時の税）や夫役（ぶやく、労役）を課して東山殿の造営を進め、書画や茶の湯に親しむ風流な生活を送っていた。