4. Kumano Shrine is actually a grouping of three shrines on separate mountains in Kii Province. The shrines and their surroundings became an important site for both Shinto and Buddhism during the late Heian period and an important pilgrimage destination from the late Heian period until the present.
5. Rokuhara, an area in Kyoto east of the Kamo River across Fifth to Seventh Avenues, was where the Taira situated their family’s headquarters.
6. Pines, turtles, and cranes are symbols of longevity.
7. This is an allusion to Ariwara Narihira’s death poem, which appears in both the Kokinshū (no. 861) and the final section of The Tales of Ise: “Although I have often heard of the path each must take in the end, I never thought it would come so soon.”
8. The Five Deadly Sins are killing one’s father, killing one’s mother, killing a Buddhist saint (arhat), injuring the body of a buddha, and harming the Buddhist ecclesiastical community.
9. Saga is an area to the immediate west of the capital.
10. The lovers, two stars known as the Herd Boy and the Weaving Maiden, are permitted to meet on only one night a year, when the Herd Boy crosses the River of Heaven, or the
KENREIMON’IN (Taira): daughter of Kiyomori; eventually gives birth to Emperor Takakura’s child, the future Emperor Antoku.
KIYOMORI (Taira): Taira clan head.
NARICHIKA (Fujiwara): courtier favored by Retired Emperor
GOSHIRAKAWA and principal Shishi-no-tani conspirator; executed by Kiyomori.
NARITSUNE (Fujiwara): son of Narichika; exiled for his father’s involvement in the Shishi-no-tani conspiracy.
NORIMORI (Taira): son of Tadamori, brother of Kiyomori, and father-in-law of Naritsune; intervenes on Naritsune’s behalf.
SAIKŌ: Shishi-no-tani conspirator; executed by Kiyomori.
SHUNKAN: bishop, high official at the Hosshō-ji temple, and Shishi-no-tani conspirator; exiled and never pardoned.
YASUYORI (Taira): minor member of the Taira clan and Shishi-no-tani conspirator.
The head abbot of Mount Hiei has been exiled by the court as punishment for the attack by the warrior monks. The monks are outraged at this unprecedented action and retaliate by recapturing their abbot on his way to his place of banishment. There is a rumor that Retired Emperor GoShirakawa is gathering troops to punish the temple center, but one of the lesser conspirators in the Shishi-no-tani plot mistakenly believes that the troops are moving against the Taira and reveals the plot to Kiyomori. Kiyomori arrests and then angrily executes Saikō, one of the conspirators. After Shigemori and Norimori intervene, Kiyomori agrees to the lesser punishment of banishment for the others.
The Admonition (2:6)
The lay priest and prime minister, Kiyomori, thus had a large number of persons arrested because of their involvement in the plot against him, but it still appeared that his mind was not at ease. Wearing a black-laced stomach guard with a tight-fitting silver-trimmed breastplate over a battle robe of red brocade, he carried under his arm a short halberd with a silver snake-coil handle, a weapon he kept constantly by his side even when he slept. (Some years earlier, when he was governor of Aki and visited the Itsukushima Shrine, the deity of the shrine, Daimyōjin, had spoken to him in a dream and presented him with the halberd.) As Kiyomori entered the corridor leading to the middle gate of his mansion, his face bore a darkly forbidding expression. He sent for Sadayoshi, the governor of Chikugo, who presently appeared, wearing a suit of armor with crimson lacing over a dark orange battle robe, and made his obeisance.
“Sadayoshi, tell me what you think!” said Kiyomori after a pause…. “Already I have several times put my life in jeopardy for the sake of Retired Emperor GoShirakawa. Whatever others may have told him, he should have remained faithful to the members of our family at least to the seventh generation!
“And yet, heeding the words of a worthless scoundrel like Narichika and that baseborn wretch Saikō, what does he do but plot to bring about the downfall of our entire clan! That was a terrible thing for him to do! In the future, if people should choose to speak slanderously of us, I suppose he will issue an edict calling for the destruction of our house. And once we’ve been branded enemies of the state, it will be too late to do a thing about it!
“Until these matters quiet down, I am considering moving the retired emperor to the Northern Palace in Toba or else bringing him here. What do you think of that? If I do that, the Northern Warriors, his personal guards, will probably shoot some arrows this way. You can pass the word along to our samurai to be prepared. I have finished performing services for the retired emperor! Saddle my horse and get out my full suit of armor!”
Police Lieutenant Morikuni raced by horse to the Komatsu mansion of Kiyomori’s son, the palace minister Shigemori. “Things have taken a crucial turn!” he reported.
Not even waiting to hear him out, Shigemori exclaimed, “I knew it—they’ve cut off Lord Narichika’s head!”
“No, not that,” replied Morikuni. “But the prime minister has put on full armor. And all his samurai are preparing for an immediate attack on the retired emperor’s Hōjū-ji residence. The prime minister says he is going to have the retired emperor placed in confinement in the Toba Palace, though I think his real intention is to banish him to Chinzei in Kyushu.”
Shigemori could scarcely believe this. And yet when he visited him this morning, Kiyomori had indeed seemed as though he might be capable of some such madness. Shigemori drove his carriage as fast as he could to Kiyomori’s Nishi-hachijō mansion.
Reaching the gate and getting out of his carriage, Shigemori entered to find his father attired in body armor. Several dozen high officials and courtiers of the Taira clan, all wearing various colored battle robes and dressed in different types of armor, were seated in two rows along the corridors leading to the middle gate. In addition, provincial officials, police officers, and other types of government officials overflowed the verandas and stood crowded together in the courtyard. Poles for banners had been passed around, horses’ girths tightened, helmet cords tied, and it appeared that the whole company was just about to set out on an attack. Shigemori seemed strangely out of place as he entered the hall wearing a cap, an informal robe, and loose, large-pattern trousers, the last making a soft rustling sound as he walked.
Kiyomori waited with eyes lowered. “Shigemori is going to give me one of his customary scoldings,” he thought to himself. “I will have to be stern with him!” But when he saw his son standing before him, his son who observed the Five Precepts of Buddhism1 and valued compassion above all, who never violated the Five Standards of Confucian behavior2 and was courteous and correct at all times, he felt ashamed to be confronting him in a suit of armor. Closing the partition slightly, he quickly threw a plain white monk’s robe over his armor. But the metal breastplate of the armor still showed a little under the clerical robe, and in an effort to hide it, he kept adjusting the lapels of the robe first this way and then that.
Shigemori sat down in the seat above that occupied by his younger brother, Munemori. Kiyomori said nothing, and Shigemori likewise sat in silence. After some time, Kiyomori remarked, “Narichika’s scheme to revolt was a matter of little importance. The whole thing was concocted by the retired emperor. Until the situation quiets down, I have decided to have the retired emperor moved to the Northern Palace at Toba or else bring him here. What would you say to such a move?”
Shigemori began to weep even before his father had finished speaking.
“What’s the matter with you?” Kiyomori asked in perplexity.
Wiping back his tears, Shigemori replied, “When I hear you say such things, I think that your fortunes must be coming to an end. They say that when a person’s fortunes are on the wane, he begins to think of doing evil. I can’t believe you are in your right mind when I see you this way! This land of ours may be no bigger than a millet seed, a far-off border region. Yet ever since it has been ruled by descendants of the Sun Goddess Amaterasu3 and the heirs of the au
gust Amanokoyane4 have aided them in ordering the state, donning armor has been deemed a violation of the code of decorum for one who has risen to the office of prime minister, has it not? And since you have taken clerical vows, how much worse this is in your case! To put aside your holy robes, symbols of the emancipation bestowed by the Buddhas of the past, present, and future, and to abruptly put on military dress and take up bow and arrow is not only to violate the Buddhist precepts and invite the punishment for an odious sin. It is likewise to turn against the Confucian virtues of benevolence, righteousness, decorum, wisdom, and sincerity. I am grieved to have to speak in this forthright manner, but I cannot hold back the feelings that are in my heart!
“In this world of ours, one has four debts: the debt to Heaven and Earth, the debt to one’s sovereign, the debt to one’s parents, and the debt to living beings as a whole. And of these four, the gravest is one’s debt to one’s ruler. As the saying goes, ‘Of all the lands under Heaven, [there are] none that are not the king’s.’5 Xu You washed his ears in the Ying River after being asked by the ruler to take office, and after admonishing their ruler, the brothers Boyi and Shuqi retired to pick ferns on Mount Shouyang. Yet unconventional as they were, even these worthy men understood that the rules of decorum forbid one to go against their sovereign’s command.
“And how much truer is this in our case! You have risen to the position of prime minister, a height never so much as glimpsed by our forebears. And I, Shigemori, ignorant and untalented as all know me to be, have nevertheless attained the rank of palace minister. Moreover, more than half the nation’s provinces and districts are under the control of our clansmen, and we have a free hand in managing our country estates. The debt we owe the throne for such favors is truly extraordinary, is it not? If now, forgetting this vast debt we have incurred, we should even consider placing the retired emperor in confinement, a most culpable act, would we not be going against the divine will of the Sun Goddess Amaterasu and the bodhisattva Hachiman?6 Japan is the land of the gods, and the gods will countenance no such breach of propriety.
“The steps that the retired emperor has considered taking are not entirely unreasonable. It is quite true that for generations our family has tried to conquer enemies of the court and to calm any waves of unrest that arise in the area within the four seas. And in doing so we have displayed unparalleled loyalty to the throne. And yet to become overly puffed up by the praise we have received would mark us as lacking sensitivity to others.
“Prince Shōtoku’s Seventeen-Article Constitution states: ‘For all men have hearts, and each heart has its own leanings. Their right is our wrong, and our right is their wrong…. How can any one lay down a rule by which to distinguish right from wrong? For we are all, one with another, wise and foolish, like a ring that has no end. Therefore, although others give way to anger, let us, on the contrary, dread our own faults.’7
“However, the fortunes of our family have not run out, and the plot against us has come to light. And Lord Narichika, who was in consultation with the retired emperor, has already been taken into custody. Therefore, even if the retired emperor had had some questionable aim in mind, there now is no longer anything to fear. When crimes have been committed, you should see that appropriate punishment is handed out. Other than that, you need only keep the throne informed of the state of affairs. Strive to be even more loyal and circumspect in your service of the retired emperor; seek in your exercise of government to show even more compassion for the common people. Then the gods will surely protect you, and you will in no way contradict the buddhas’ unseen wishes. And when the gods and buddhas bestow their blessings and approval, the retired emperor will have to amend his thinking. Sovereign or subject—which has first claim on our allegiance? There can be no dispute, just as when choosing between reason and error, we cannot do other than follow reason.”
Signal Fires (2:7)
“And in this case,” Shigemori continued, “reason is on the side of the retired emperor. Therefore I must do what I can to protect the retired emperor’s residence at Hōjū-ji. Ever since I was first promoted to the fifth rank at court until I reached my current position of palace minister and commander in chief, every step in my advancement has been due to the kindness of the retired emperor. The debt I owe him is heavier than a thousand, ten thousand jewels, deeper than oncedyed or twice-dyed crimson. So I must go and shut myself up where he is. When I do so, probably a few samurai who are willing to fight on my behalf and risk their lives for me will respond to my summons and help me guard the retired emperor’s Hōjū-ji residence. But what dire and unforeseen events may follow thereafter!
“How lamentable—that in order to remain loyal in the service of my sovereign, I must thereby forget the debt I owe my own father, a debt that towers higher than the eighty-thousand-foot summit of Mount Sumeru!8 How painful—that if I disregarded the sin of unfilial conduct, I would have to be faithless to the ruler and become a traitor to him! Forward or backward, my way is blocked! Right or wrong—how am I to judge? Come, then—behead me at once! If you do, then I will not be able either to help defend the retired emperor or to take part in my father’s action against him….”
Such were the lengthy words he spoke as he wept into the sleeve of his robe. And all his clansmen, the callous along with the tenderhearted, wet the sleeves of their armor with tears.
After being addressed in this manner by the son in whom he put such trust, Kiyomori spoke in a much subdued tone. “No, no,” he said. “I had no such extreme measures in mind. I merely feared that some misunderstanding might arise if evil-minded men should get the ear of the retired emperor.”
“Even if a misunderstanding should arise,” Shigemori answered, “you must not think of taking action against the retired emperor!”
Shigemori abruptly rose from his seat and went to the middle gate. As he did so, he addressed the samurai there. “You all have heard what I said just now, have you not? I came here this morning in hopes of preventing any such action, but there was such a commotion that I returned to my own home. If you still intend to move against the retired emperor, then do so only after you have seen my head fall! Those in my party, let us be off!”
So saying, he returned to his Komatsu mansion….
After many warriors follow Shigemori’s call to arms, a chastened Kiyomori acquiesces to his son’s wishes and Shigemori sends his men home. After he tells the Chinese story of the “signal fires,” the narrator praises Shigemori for his actions. Narichika, whom the monks of Mount Hiei had cursed because of an incident involving one of his subordinates, is taken away to a miserable island off the coast of Bizen.
The Death of the Senior Counselor (2:10)
And so the Hosshō-ji9 administrator, Bishop Shunkan; the police commissioner, Yasuyori; and the Tanba lesser captain, Naritsune, three men in all, were banished to the island of Kikai-ga-shima off the southern coast of Satsuma.
The island is situated very far from the capital and can be reached only by a wearisome journey over the waves. In ordinary times no ships call there, and its inhabitants are few. A certain number of natives live there, but they scarcely resemble the people of our country, as they are as dark in color as oxen. They have hair all over their bodies and do not understand the words spoken to them.
The men wear no caps; the women do not let their hair hang down; and since neither have regular clothing, they hardly seem like human beings. Because nothing edible grows on the island, the people must depend first of all on what they can get by hunting and fishing. No farmers till the fields, and so rice and other grains are unknown; there are no groves of mulberry for feeding silkworms, hence no cloth is to be had.
In the middle of the island stands a tall mountain that continually sends forth flames. The area around it is rich in sulfur, and for this reason the island is often called Sulfur Island. Thunder constantly rumbles up and down the mountainside, and rain falls in torrents on the foothills. In such a place, one could hardly hope to survive for
even a day or an hour….
Although Narichika takes the tonsure, he is executed without ever being able to see his son Naritsune again. He has a final communication with his wife, who then becomes a nun to pray for him. The story of how Fujiwara Sanesada rose by praying at the shrine of the Taira tutelary deity at Itsukushima is held up in contrast to the fates of Narichika and the other conspirators. A fight breaks out between Mount Hiei and the Onjō-ji temple in Ōmi Province over the location of an esoteric Buddhist initiation ceremony for Retired Emperor GoShirakawa. The narrator wonders whether this and other similar incidents foreshadow the “latter age of the Buddhist law.”
Yasuyori’s Prayer (2:15)
The existence of the men exiled to Kikai-ga-shima is as precarious as dew on a leaf tip; their lives are worth little. Nevertheless, because the Taira minister Norimori, father-in-law of the Tanba lesser captain Naritsune, continued to send supplies of food and clothing from one of his properties, the estate of Kase in Hizen Province, both Shunkan and Yasuyori, as well as Naritsune, managed to stay alive.
Of these three, Yasuyori, when on his way into exile, had taken vows as a Buddhist priest at Murozumi in Suō, assuming the religious name Shōshō. He had long desired to take such a step, as he indicated in this poem:
A world only to be renounced in the end—
how hateful, that I did not cast it aside sooner!
In the past, the Tanba lesser captain Naritsune and the newly ordained priest Yasuyori had been devotees of the Kumano Shrine. “If only we could find a suitable place on this island to worship the three Kumano deities,” they complained. “We could offer prayers there for our return to the capital!”
Shunkan, who by nature had not a particle of religious feeling, showed no interest in their plans. But the other two, of one heart in their faith, began searching here and there around the island in hopes of finding a place that resembled the Kumano area. They found a wonderful spot of woodland and water, festooned here and there with tree leaves the color of crimson brocade or embroidery; of splendid cloud-topped peaks, seeming as though draped in various shades of blue green gauze; with the mountain scenery, the stands of trees far surpassing anything found elsewhere. Gazing south one could see a vast expanse of ocean, its waves deeply shrouded in clouds and mist, while to the north, from the soaring mountain crags, a hundred-foot waterfall came cascading down. The awesome thundering of its waters and the pine winds imparting an aura of holiness made it seem like the mountain waterfall of Nachi, the seat of one of the Kumano deities. They decided at once to call this place the mountain shrine of Nachi.
The Tales of the Heike Page 4