THE PROTOHISTORIC SOVEREIGNS
The 17th Sovereign, Richu A.D. 400-405
" 18th " Hansho " 406-411
" 19th " Inkyo " 412-453
" 20th " Anko " 454-456
" 21st " Yuryaku " 457-479
RICHU'S REIGN
THE prehistoric era may be said to terminate with the accession of
Richu. Thenceforth the lives and reigns of successive sovereigns
cease to extend to incredible lengths, and though the chronology
adopted by the writers of the Nihongi may not yet be implicitly
accepted, its general accuracy is not open to dispute. The era of the
five sovereigns standing at the head of this chapter--an era of
fifty-nine years--inherited as legacies from the immediate past: a
well-furnished treasury, a nation in the enjoyment of peace, a firmly
established throne, and a satisfactory state of foreign relations.
These comfortable conditions seem to have exercised demoralizing
influence. The bonds of discipline grew slack; fierce quarrels on
account of women involved fratricide among the princes of the blood,
and finally the life of an Emperor was sacrificed--the only instance
of such a catastrophe in Japanese history.
Immediately after Nintoku's death this evil state of affairs was
inaugurated by Prince Nakatsu, younger brother of the heir to the
throne, who had not yet assumed the sceptre. Sent by the Crown Prince
(Richu) to make arrangements for the latter's nuptials with the lady
Kuro, a daughter of the Takenouchi family, Nakatsu personified Richu,
debauched the girl, and to avoid the consequences of the act, sought
to take the life of the man he had betrayed. It does not redound to
the credit of the era that the debaucher found support and was
enabled to hold his own for a time, though his treachery ultimately
met with its merited fate. At this crisis of his life, Richu received
loyal assistance from a younger brother, and his gratitude induced
him to confer on the latter the title of Crown Prince. In thus
acting, Richu may have been influenced by the fact that the
alternative was to bequeath the throne to a baby, but none the less
he stands responsible for an innovation which greatly impaired the
stability of the succession. It should be noted, as illustrating the
influence of the Takenouchi family that, in spite of the shame she
had suffered, the lady Kuro became the Emperor's concubine. In fact,
among the four nobles who administered the affairs of the empire
during Richu's reign, not the least powerful were Heguri no Tsuku and
Soga no Machi. Moreover, Richu, as has been stated already, was a son
of Iwa, a lady of the same great family, and his two successors,
Hansho and Inkyo, were his brothers by the same mother.
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS
The annals of Richu's reign confirm a principle which received its
first illustration when the Emperor Keiko put to death for parricide
the daughter of a Kumaso chief, though she had betrayed her father in
the interest of Keiko himself. Similar deference to the spirit of
loyalty led to the execution of Sashihire in the time of Richu. A
retainer of the rebellious Prince Nakatsu, Sashihire, assassinated
that prince at the instance of Prince Mizuha, who promised large
reward. But after the deed had been accomplished, Heguri no Tsuku
advised his nephew, Mizuha, saying, "Sashihire has killed his own
lord for the sake of another, and although for us he has done a great
service, yet towards his own lord his conduct has been heartless in
the extreme." Sashihire was therefore put to death. That this
principle was always observed in Japan cannot be asserted, but that
it was always respected is certain.
In Richu's reign there is found the first clear proof that tattooing
was not practised in Japan for ornamental purposes. Tattooing is
first mentioned as a custom of the Yemishi when their country was
inspected by Takenouchi at Keiko's orders. But in Richu's time it was
employed to punish the muraji of Atsumi, who had joined the rebellion
of Prince Nakatsu. He was "inked" on the face. It appears also that
the same practice had hitherto been employed to distinguish
horse-keepers, but the custom was finally abandoned in deference to
an alleged revelation from Izanagi, the deity of Awaji, on the
occasion of a visit by Richu to that island. In the context of this
revelation it is noticeable that belief in the malign influence of
offended deities was gaining ground. Thus, on the occasion of the
sudden death of Princess Kuro, the voice of the wind was heard to
utter mysterious words in the "great void" immediately before the
coming of a messenger to announce the event, and the Emperor
attributed the calamity to the misconduct of an official who had
removed certain persons from serving at a shrine.
The annals of this reign are noteworthy as containing the earliest
reference to the compilation of books. It is stated that in the year
A.D. 403 "local recorders were appointed for the first time in the
various provinces, who noted down statements and communicated the
writings of the four quarters." An eminent critic--Mr. W. G.
Aston--regards this as an anachronism, since the coming of the Korean
scholar, Wani (vide sup.), did not take place until the year 405,
which date probably preceded by many years the appointment of
recorders. But it has been shown above that the innovation due to
Wani was, not the art of writing, but, in all probability, a
knowledge of the Chinese classics.
Another institution established during this era was a treasury (A.D.
405), and the two learned Koreans who had come from Paikche (Kudara)
were appointed to keep the accounts. A work of later date than the
Chronicles or Records--the Shokuin-rei--says that in this treasury
were stored "gold and silver, jewels, precious utensils, brocade and
satin, saicenet, rugs and mattresses, and the rare objects sent as
tribute by the various barbarians."
HANSHO
The Emperor Hansho's short reign of five years is not remarkable for
anything except an indirect evidence that Chinese customs were
beginning to be adopted at the Japanese Court. In the earliest eras,
the ladies who enjoyed the sovereign's favour were classed simply as
"Empress" or "consort." But from the days of Hansho we find three
ranks of concubines.
INKYO
Inkyo was a younger brother of his predecessor, Hansho, as the latter
had been of Richu. No formal nomination of Inkyo as Prince Imperial
had taken place, and thus for the first time the sceptre was found
without any legalized heir or any son of the deceased sovereign to
take it. In these circumstances, the ministers held a council and
agreed to offer the throne to Inkyo, the elder of two surviving sons
of Nintoku. Inkyo was suffering from a disease supposed to be
incurable, and, distrusting his own competence, he persistently
refused to accept the responsibility. The incident responsible for
his ultimate consent was the intervention of a concubine, Onakatsu,
afterwards Empress. Under pretext of carrying water for the prince
she entered his chamber, and when he turned his back on her entreaty
that he would comply with the ministers' desire, she remained
standing in the bitter cold of a stormy day of January, until the
water, which she had spilled over her arm, became frozen and she fell
in a faint. Then the prince yielded. A year later envoys were sent to
seek medical assistance in Korea, which was evidently regarded as the
home of the healing science as well as of many other arts borrowed
from China. A physician arrived from Sinra, and Inkyo's malady was
cured.
In this reign took place a celebrated incident, already referred to,
when the lineage of the nobles was corrected by recourse to the
ordeal of boiling water. But a much larger space in the annals is
occupied with the story of an affair, important only as illustrating
the manners and customs of the time. From an early period it had been
usual that Japanese ladies on festive occasions should go through the
graceful performance of "woven paces and waving hands," which
constituted dancing, and, in the era now occupying our attention,
there prevailed in the highest circles a custom that the danseuse
should offer a maiden to the most honoured among the guests. One
winter's day, at the opening of a new palace, the Empress Onakatsu
danced to the music of the Emperor's lute. Onakatsu had a younger
sister, Oto, of extraordinary beauty, and the Emperor, fain to
possess the girl but fearful of offending the Empress, had planned
this dance so that Onakatsu, in compliance with the recognized usage,
might be constrained to place her sister at his disposal. It fell out
as Inkyo wished, but there then ensued a chapter of incidents in
which the dignity of the Crown fared ill. Again and again the
beautiful Oto refused to obey her sovereign's summons, and when at
length, by an unworthy ruse, she was induced to repair to the palace,
it was found impossible to make her an inmate of it in defiance of
the Empress' jealousy. She had to be housed elsewhere, and still the
Imperial lover was baffled, for he dared not brave the elder sister's
resentment by visiting the younger. Finally he took advantage of the
Empress' confinement to pay the long-deferred visit, but, on learning
of the event, the outraged wife set fire to the parturition house and
attempted to commit suicide. "Many years have passed," she is
recorded to have said to the Emperor, "since I first bound up my hair
and became thy companion in the inner palace. It is too cruel of
thee, O Emperor! Wherefore just on this night when I am in childbirth
and hanging between life and death, must thou go to Fujiwara?" Inkyo
had the grace to be "greatly shocked" and to "soothe the mind of the
Empress with explanations," but he did not mend his infidelity. At
Oto's request he built a residence for her at Chinu in the
neighbouring province of Kawachi, and thereafter the compilers of the
Chronicles, with fine irony, confine their record of three
consecutive years' events to a repetition of the single phrase, "the
Emperor made a progress to Chinu."
It is not, perhaps, extravagant to surmise that the publicity
attending this sovereign's amours and the atmosphere of loose
morality thus created were in part responsible for a crime committed
by his elder son, the Crown Prince Karu. Marriage between children of
the same father had always been permitted in Japan provided the
mother was different, but marriage between children of the same
mother was incest. Prince Karu was guilty of this offence with his
sister, Oiratsume, and so severely did the nation judge him that he
was driven into exile and finally obliged to commit suicide. With
such records is the reign of Inkyo associated. It is perplexing that
the posthumous name chosen for him by historians should signify
"sincerely courteous." Incidentally, four facts present
themselves--that men wore wristbands and garters to which grelots
were attached; that a high value was set on pearls; that metal was
used for the construction of great men's gates, and that the first
earthquake is said to have been experienced in A.D. 416.
ANKO
The records of this sovereign's reign make a discreditable page of
Japanese history. Anko, having ascended the throne after an armed
contest with his elder brother, which ended in the latter's suicide,
desired to arrange a marriage between his younger brother, Ohatsuse,
and a sister of his uncle, Okusaka. He despatched Ne no Omi, a
trusted envoy, to confer with the latter, who gladly consented, and,
in token of approval, handed to Ne no Omi a richly jewelled coronet
for conveyance to the Emperor. But Ne no Omi, covetous of the gems,
secreted the coronet, and told the Emperor that Okusaka had rejected
the proposal with scorn. Anko took no steps to investigate the truth
of this statement. It has been already seen that such investigations
were not customary in those days. Soldiers were at once sent to
slaughter Okusaka; his wife, Nakashi, was taken to be the Emperor's
consort, and his sister, Hatahi, was married to Prince Ohatsuse.
Now, at the time of his death, Okusaka had a son, Mayuwa, seven years
old. One day, the Emperor, having drunk heavily, confessed to the
Empress, Nakashi, that he entertained some apprehension lest this boy
might one day seek to avenge his father's execution. The child
overheard this remark, and creeping to the side of his step-father,
who lay asleep with his head in Nakashi's lap, killed him with his
own sword. Such is the tale narrated in the Chronicles and the
Records. But its incredible features are salient. A deed of the kind
would never have been conceived or committed by a child, and the
Empress must have been a conniving party.
To what quarter, then, is the instigation to be traced? An answer
seems to be furnished by the conduct of Prince Ohatsuse. Between this
prince and the throne five lives intervened; those of the Emperor
Anko, of the latter's two brothers, Yatsuri no Shiro and Sakai no
Kuro, both older than Ohatsuse, and of two sons of the late Emperor
Richu, Ichinobe no Oshiwa and Mima. Every one of these was removed
from the scene in the space of a few days. Immediately after Anko's
assassination, Ohatsuse, simulating suspicion of his two elder
brothers, killed the o-omi, who refused to give them up. Ohatsuse
then turned his attention to his grand-uncles, the two sons of Richu.
He sent a military force to destroy one of them without any pretence
of cause; the other he invited to a hunting expedition and
treacherously shot. If Ohatsuse did not contrive the murder of Anko,
as he contrived the deaths of all others standing between himself and
the throne, a great injustice has been done to his memory.
LOYALTY
These shocking incidents are not without a relieving feature. They
furnished opportunities for the display of fine devotion. When Prince
Okusaka died for a crime of which he was wholly innocent, two of his
retainers, Naniwa no Hikaga, father and son, committed suicide in
vindication of his memory. When Prince Sakai no Kuro and Mayuwa took
refuge in the house of the o-omi Tsubura, the latter deliberately
chose death rather than surrender the fugitives. When Prince Kuro
perished, Nie-no-Sukune took the corpse in his arms and was burned
with it. When Prince Ichinobe no Oshiwa fell under the treacherous
arrow of Prince Ohatsuse, one of the former's servants embraced the
dead body and fell into such a paroxysm of grief that Ohatsuse
ordered him to be despatched. And during this reign of Yuryaku, when
Lord Otomo was killed in a fatal engagement with the Sinra troops, his
henchman, Tsumaro, crying, "My master has fallen; what avails that I
alone should remain unhurt?" threw himself into the ranks of the
enemy and perished. Loyalty to the death characterized the Japanese
in every age.
YURYAKU
This sovereign was the Ohatsuse of whose unscrupulous ambition so
much has just been heard. Some historians have described him as an
austere man, but few readers of his annals will be disposed to
endorse such a lenient verdict. He ordered that a girl, whose only
fault was misplaced affection, should have her four limbs stretched
on a tree and be roasted to death; he slew one of his stewards at a
hunt, because the man did not understand how to cut up the meat of an
animal; he removed a high official--Tasa, omi of Kibi--to a distant
post in order to possess himself of the man's wife (Waka), and he
arbitrarily and capriciously killed so many men and women that the
people called him the "Emperor of great wickedness." One act of
justice stands to his credit. The slanderer, Ne no Omi, who for the
sake of a jewelled coronet had caused the death of Prince Okusaka, as
related above, had the temerity to wear the coronet, sixteen years
subsequently, when he presided at a banquet given in honour of envoys
from China; and the beauty of the bauble having thus been noised
abroad, Ne no Omi was required to show it at the palace. It was
immediately recognized by the Empress, sister of the ill-starred
prince, and Ne no Omi, having confessed his crime, was put to death,
all the members of his uji being reduced to the rank of serfs. One
moiety of them was formed into a hereditary corporation which was
organized under the name of Okusakabe, in memory of Prince Okusaka.
ARTS AND CRAFTS
The reign of Yuryaku is partially saved from the reproach of selfish
despotism by the encouragement given to the arts and crafts. It has
already been related that the members of the Hata-uji, which had been
constituted originally with artisans from China, gradually became
dispersed throughout the provinces and were suffering some hardships
when Yuryaku issued orders for their reassembly and reorganization.
Subsequently the sovereign gave much encouragement to sericulture,
and, inspired doubtless by the legend of the Sun goddess, inaugurated
a custom which thereafter prevailed in Japan through all ages, the
cultivation of silkworms by the Empress herself. At a later date,
learning from a Korean handicraftsman (tebito)--whose name has been
handed down as Kwan-in Chiri--that Korea abounded in experts of
superior skill, Yuryaku commissioned this man to carry to the King of
Kudara (Paikche) an autograph letter asking for the services of
several of these experts. This request was complied with, and the
newcomers were assigned dwellings at the village of Tsuno in Yamato;*
but as the place proved unhealthy, they were afterwards distributed
among several localities.
*There were potters, saddlers, brocade-weavers, and interpreters.
It is also recorded that, about this time, there came from China a
man called An Kiko, a descendant of one of the Wu sovereigns. He
settled in Japan, and his son, Ryu afterwards--named Shinki--is
reputed to have been the first exponent of Chinese pictorial art in
Japan. In the year A.D. 470, there was another arrival of artisans,
this time from Wu (China), including weavers and clothiers. They
landed in the province of Settsu, and to commemorate their coming a
road called the "Kure-saka" (Wu acclivity) was constructed from that
port to the Shihatsu highway. The descendants of these immigrants
were organized into two hereditary corporations (be) of
silk-clothiers, the Asuka no Kinu-nui-be and the Ise no Kinu-nui-be.
Two years later (472), orders were issued for the cultivation of
mulberry trees in all suitable provinces, and at the same time the
previously reassembled members of the Hata-uji were once more
distributed to various localities with the object of widening their
sphere of instruction.
In the year 473 a very interesting event is recorded. The muraji of
the Hanishi was ordered to furnish craftsmen to manufacture "pure
utensils" for serving viands daily in the palace. These Hanishi are
first spoken of as having been employed at the suggestion of
Nomi-no-Sukune, in the days of the Emperor Suinin (A.D. 3), to make
clay substitutes for the human beings thitherto inhumed at the
sepulchres of notables. In response to this order the muraji summoned
his own tami-be (private hereditary corporation) then located at
seven villages in the provinces of Settsu, Yamashiro, Ise, Tamba,
Tajima, and Inaba. They were organized into the Nie no Hanishibe, or
hereditary corporation of potters of table-utensils. Ceramists had
previously come from Kudara (Paikche), and there can be no doubt that
some progress was made in the art from the fifth century onwards. But
there does not appear to be sufficient ground for a conclusion formed
by some historians that the "pure utensils" mentioned above were of
glazed pottery. The art of applying glaze to ceramic manufactures was
not discovered until a much later period.
RELATIONS WITH KOREA
When Yuryaku ascended the throne, Japan still enjoyed her original
friendship with Paikche (Kudara), whence ladies-in-waiting were sent
periodically to the Yamato Court. She also retained her military post
at Mimana (Imna) and kept a governor there, but her relations with
Shiragi (Sinra) were somewhat strained, owing to harsh treatment of
the latter's special envoys who had come to convey their sovereign's
condolences on the death of the Emperor Inkyo (453). From the time of
Yuryaku's accession, Shiragi ceased altogether to send the usual
gifts to the Emperor of Japan. In the year 463, Yuryaku, desiring to
possess himself of the wife of a high official, Tasa, sent him to be
governor of Mimana, and in his absence debauched the lady. Tasa,
learning how he had been dishonoured, raised the standard of revolt
and sought aid of the Shiragi people. Then Yuryaku, with
characteristic refinement of cruelty, ordered Tasa's son, Oto, to
lead a force against his father. Oto seemingly complied, but, on
reaching the peninsula, opened communication with his father, and it
was agreed that while Tasa should hold Imna, breaking off all
relations with Japan, Oto should adopt a similar course with regard
to Paikche. This plot was frustrated by Oto's wife, Kusu, a woman too
patriotic to connive at treason in any circumstances. She killed her
husband, and the Court of Yamato was informed of these events.
From that time, however, Japan's hold upon the peninsula was shaken.
Yuryaku sent four expeditions thither, but they accomplished nothing
permanent. The power of Koma in the north increased steadily, and it
had the support of China. Yuryaku's attempts to establish close
relations with the latter--the Sung were then on the throne--seem to
have been inspired by a desire to isolate Korea. He failed, and
ultimately Kudara was overrun by Koma, as will be seen by and by. It
is scarcely too much to say that Japan lost her paramount status in
Korea because of Yuryaku's illicit passion for the wife of one of his
subjects.
CHRONOLOGY
The first absolute agreement between the dates given in Japanese
history and those given in Korean occurs in this reign, namely, the
year A.D. 475. The severest critics therefore consent to admit the
trustworthiness of the Japanese annals from the third quarter of the
fifth century.
TREASURIES
In the record of Richu's reign, brief mention has been made of the
establishment of a Government treasury. In early days, when religious
rites and administrative functions were not differentiated, articles
needed for both purposes were kept in the same store, under the
charge of the Imibe-uji. But as the Court grew richer, owing to
receipt of domestic taxes and foreign "tribute," the necessity of
establishing separate treasuries, was felt and a "domestic store"
(Uchi-kura) was formed during Richu's reign, the Koreans, Achi and
Wani, being appointed to keep the accounts. In Yuryaku's time a third
treasury had to be added, owing to greatly increased production of
textile fabrics and other manufactures. This was called the Okura, a
term still applied to the Imperial treasury, and there were thus
three stores, Okura, Uchi-kura, and Imi-kura. Soga no Machi was
placed in supreme charge of all three, and the power of the Soga
family grew proportionately.
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS
It is observable that at this epoch the sovereigns of Japan had not
yet begun to affect the sacred seclusion which, in later ages, became
characteristic of them. It is true that, after ascending the throne,
they no longer led their troops in war, though they did so as
Imperial princes. But in other respects they lived the lives of
ordinary men--joining in the chase, taking part in banquets, and
mixing freely with the people. As illustrating this last fact a
strange incident may be cited. One day the Emperor Yuryaku visited
the place where some carpenters were at work and observed that one of
them, Mane, in shaping timber with an axe, used a stone for ruler but
never touched it with the axe. "Dost thou never make a mistake and
strike the stone?" asked the monarch. "I never make a mistake,"
replied the carpenter. Then, to disturb the man's sang-froid, Yuryaku
caused the ladies-in-waiting (uneme) to dance, wearing only
waist-cloths. Mane watched the spectacle for a while, and on resuming
his work, his accuracy of aim was momentarily at fault. The Emperor
rebuked him for having made an unwarranted boast and handed him over
to the monono-be for execution. After the unfortunate man had been
led away, one of his comrades chanted an impromptu couplet lamenting
his fate, whereat the Emperor, relenting, bade a messenger gallop off
on "a black horse of Kai" to stay the execution. The mandate of mercy
arrived just in time, and when Mane's bonds were loosed, he, too,
improvised a verse:
"Black as the night
"Was the horse of Kai.
"Had they waited to
"Saddle him, my life were lost
"O, horse of Kai!"
The whole incident is full of instruction. A sovereign concerning
himself about trivialities as petty as this pretext on which he sends
a man to death; the shameful indignity put upon the ladies-in-waiting
to minister to a momentary whim; the composition of poetry by common
carpenters, and the ride for life on a horse which there is not time
to saddle. It is an instructive picture of the ways of Yuryaku's
Court.
In truth, this couplet-composing proclivity is one of the strangest
features of the Yamato race as portrayed in the pages of the Records
and the Chronicles. From the time when the fierce Kami, Susanoo, put
his thoughts into verse as he sought for a place to celebrate his
marriage, great crises and little crises in the careers of men and
women respectively inspire couplets. We find an Emperor addressing an
ode to a dragon-fly which avenges him on a gad-fly; we find a prince
reciting impromptu stanzas while he lays siege to the place whither
his brother has fled for refuge; we find a heartbroken lady singing a
verselet as for the last time she ties the garters of her lord going
to his death, and we find a sovereign corresponding in verse with his
consort whose consent to his own dishonour he seeks to win.
Yet in the lives of all these men and women of old, there are not
many other traces of corresponding refinement or romance. We are
constrained to conjecture that many of the verses quoted in the
Records and the Chronicles were fitted in after ages to the events
they commemorate. Another striking feature in the lives of these
early sovereigns is that while on the one hand their residences are
spoken of as muro, a term generally applied to dwellings partially
underground, on the other, we find more than one reference to high
towers. Thus Yuryaku is shown as "ordering commissioners to erect a
lofty pavilion in which he assumes the Imperial dignity," and the
Emperor Nintoku is represented as "ascending a lofty tower and
looking far and wide" on the occasion of his celebrated sympathy with
the people's poverty.
ENGRAVING: ANCIENT ACROBATIC PERFORMANCE
ENGRAVING: DAIRISAMA (KINO) AND OKUSAMA (QUEEN) OF THE FEAST OF THE
DOLLS