33-590: The Tale of Heiji ( 平治物語 , Heiji monogatari ) is a Japanese war epic ( gunki monogatari ) detailing the events of the Heiji Rebellion of 1159–1160, in which samurai clan head Minamoto no Yoshitomo attacked and besieged Kyoto , as part of a dispute over political power in which he was opposed by Taira no Kiyomori , head of the Taira clan . The Tale, like most monogatari , exists in three main forms: written, oral, and painted. Around 33 variant texts exist. As
66-418: A number of complementary strategies for capturing, preserving and disseminating the essential elements of their commonly accepted national history – chronicles of sovereigns and events, biographies of eminent persons and personalities, and the military tale or gunki monogatari . This last form evolved from an interest in recording the activities of military conflicts in the late 12th century. The major battles,
99-515: A ritual component, as they were thought to restore order to society and pacify the angry souls of warriors killed in battle, but they also functioned as wayside entertainment. Historically, warrior tales have achieved much acclaim through their recitations accompanied by the lute, hence leading to the widespread misconception that gunki Monogatari were originally written for the exclusive purpose of memorization and recitation. However, comparisons of carefully preserved original manuscripts reveal that
132-450: A speech which included not merely his personal name and title, but also his familial connections and accomplishments. The gunki monogatari puts a great deal of emphasis on the warrior ethic . This moral system includes, first of all, loyalty to one's lord and being valiant in the face of certain death. This is manifest in the self-sacrificial spirit of Heike Monogatari's Sanemori , who despite his age, repeatedly turns back to engage
165-613: Is a Japanese war chronicle or military tale ( gunki monogatari ) which relates the events and prominent figures of the Hōgen Rebellion . This literary and historical classic is believed to have been completed in the Kamakura period ca. 1320. Its author or authors remain unknown. The events which are recounted in the Hōgen story become a prelude to the story which unfolds in Tale of Heiji . As in
198-535: Is a category of Japanese literature written primarily in the Kamakura and Muromachi periods that focus on wars and conflicts, especially the civil wars that took place between 1156 and 1568. Examples of this genre include the Hōgen Monogatari and the Heiji Monogatari . The most well known gunki monogatari is Heike Monogatari . Unlike their Heian counterparts such as Genji Monogatari , many of
231-507: Is a result of the text's oral transmission. The battle scenes themselves also reflect a connection with oral practices. For example, if we examine different versions of the Heike monogatari , we can see that earlier versions, such as the Shibu kassenjō , included only a general description of the battle itself, while later versions include individual warrior's actions. Furthermore, the later tales transform
264-428: Is claimed he wrote three important works (these two, plus the most famous Tale of Heike ), though the works most likely have separate authorship due to differences in theme and style. From wording in the oldest versions of the work ("not long ago"), those variants likely date from the early Kamakura period, with some claiming that the original version may have been written prior to 1177. The picture scroll version of
297-549: Is impossible because of the deterioration of Buddhist law on earth ( mappō ). Key Buddhist ideas in the gunki monogatari include karma , the idea that current circumstances are punishments or rewards for past actions, and impermanence, the idea that all things on this earth cannot last long. These themes appear overtly in short sermon -like interjections in the text. Heike monogatari , in particular, can be conceived of as one long sermon on Buddhism. Tale of H%C5%8Dgen The Tale of Hōgen ( 保元物語 , Hōgen monogatari )
330-486: Is that Heian literature takes the form of historical records while medieval tales truly fall under the category of monogatari . While both often focus around a sole warrior who caused a major societal disturbance, the medieval war tales have a unique focus on the personal thoughts and experiences of individual warriors. Heian literature focuses on the capital's view of provincial disturbances, but medieval war tales shift their perspective to focus on those actually involved with
363-450: Is the case with most other monogatari , the text has been rewritten and revised many times over the years, and developed into an oral tradition as well. Most often, the Tale of Heiji would be chanted as a continuation of the Tale of Hōgen , which relates the events of the closely related Hōgen Rebellion , with some attributing the original text (which is now lost) to Hamuro Tokinaga . Thus it
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#1732852262604396-475: The Heiji story, multi-level and inter-related rivalries lead to war; and the main characters are presented in traditional status order: Emperors and former Emperors first, Fujiwara ministers second, and Minamoto clan warriors third. As in the Heiji story, the narrative structure is divided in three segments: The Japanese have developed a number of complementary strategies for capturing, preserving and disseminating
429-534: The Heike Monogatari , the most famous war tale, was originally written pseudo-historically to chronicle the battle between the Minamoto and Taira families. In formulating this tale, the author borrowed heavily from existing oral narratives as well as diaries and other historical records. Since the original record was written to be read, not recited, it had to be revised for recitation. The current authoritative copy of
462-443: The Hōgen story, multi-level and inter-related rivalries lead to war. Brown identified the following: However, Heiji is at its core a story about warriors and lower-ranking nobles. Go-Shirakawa is criticised for his failure to recognise and reward men of ability, both by promoting the incompetent Nobuyori and by not recognising the contribution of the valiant Yoshitomo. Meanwhile, the Minamoto fall, but would eventually rise, setting
495-558: The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston in Boston, Massachusetts . A digital reproduction of this scene is visible at http://digital.princeton.edu/heijiscroll/ Two western translations exist: a partial (about a third of the overall text) translation by Edwin O. Reischauer in 1951, using a composite of multiple variants, and a more recent complete translation of an older version of the text by Marisa Chalitpatanangune in 1987. The Tale of Heiji describes
528-514: The gunki monogatari ethic represents a sort of combination of the two. This is possible primarily because the form of Buddhism espoused by gunki monogatari is Amida Buddhism, which teaches that anyone who repents for their sins and calls on Amida Buddha can be reborn in his Western Paradise and achieve enlightenment from there. This belief allows warriors, even as they commit acts of violence , to call on Amida's name. Furthermore, pursuing enlightenment in this life, according to Amida Buddhism,
561-513: The Heike is a result of transcriptions of these oral recitations. The medieval war tales are written in a mix of Japanese and Chinese; the prose was Japanese but included numerous Chinese phrases, as opposed to mid-Heian warrior tales, which were composed in kanbun (Chinese prose). Although the texts are primarily written in prose, they also include occasional poems, usually waka . Another key difference between medieval war tales and their predecessors
594-557: The battlefield but condemned as unchivalrous if the enemy had already surrendered. The warrior ethic dictates a set course of action that warriors ought to pursue regardless of their personal sentiments or inclinations. An example of this is the classic battle between 'duty' and 'desire' which plays out in Atsumori's story in Heike Monogatari. Nevertheless, the aberrations between the actions of different characters in various versions of
627-402: The code of loyalty is echoed in the famous Atsumori-Naozane episode, where the exhortations of the warrior ethic outweigh Naozane's regret and forces his hand to kill. Besides prescribing the "right" moral code to pursue, warrior ethics also restrict and dictate warriors' actions on more superficial levels. For example, cutting off the heads of enemies as war trophies was considered the norm in
660-406: The enemy so as to protect the retreating Heike forces. This loyalty is firmly tied to the concept of personal honor; warriors would rather die and be praised posthumously than live on with a tainted name. The code of honor also rejects compassion when it conflicts with duty . This is illustrated in Heike monogatari when a young Genji warrior Yukishige turns on Takahashi and kills him despite
693-492: The essential elements of their commonly accepted national history – chronicles of sovereigns and events, biographies of eminent persons and personalities, and the military tale or gunki monogatari . This last form evolved from an interest in recording the activities of military conflicts in the late 12th century. The major battles, the small skirmishes and the individual contests—and the military figures who animate these accounts—have all been passed from generation to generation in
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#1732852262604726-411: The fact that the latter had just spared his life on account of Yushikige's youthful resemblance to his own son. While pity for a youthful enemy on account of fatherly affection is a common refrain in the plot of gunki monogatari , Yushikige's single-minded loyalty to his camp at the expense of compassion is arguably closer to the rigid concept of honor espoused by the warrior class. This rigid adherence to
759-447: The historical bridge between the aristocratic government of the Heian period and the military government of medieval Japan. The Heiji story moves beyond from the comparatively simple narration template of the Hōgen monogatari towards a more complicated focus which suggests a need for more nuanced principles and more flexible policies which become more appropriate to desperate times. As in
792-425: The manner in which these battle scenes are conducted. Battle scenes commonly include descriptions of the warrior's clothing and armor , which is used both as a means of identifying the warrior and as a means of describing the warrior's personality. These descriptions were formulaic, but still effectively described the individual warrior's attributes. Another part of the warrior scenes was the hero announcing his name,
825-410: The medieval warrior tales have no identifiable authors and are generally composed by multiple people. The authors did not write the stories entirely from start to end but instead edited and re-wrote them multiple times. There were two forms in which gunki monogatari were transmitted: through yomimono (written texts) and through recitation by blind priests known as biwa hōshi . The oral practices had
858-548: The narrative formats of the Hōgen monogatari (1156), the Heiji monagatari (1159–1160), and the Heike monogatari (1180–1185). In each of these familiar monogatari , the central figures are popularly well known, the major events are generally understood, and the stakes as they were understood at the time are conventionally accepted as elements in the foundation of Japanese culture. The accuracy of each of these historical records has become
891-471: The small skirmishes and the individual contests—and the military figures who animate these accounts—have all been passed from generation to generation in the narrative formats of the Hōgen monogatari (1156), the Heiji monagatari (1159–1160), and the Heike monogatari (1180–1185). In each of these familiar monogatari , the central figures are popularly well known, the major events are generally understood, and
924-459: The stakes as they were understood at the time are conventionally accepted as elements in the foundation of Japanese culture. The accuracy of each of these historical records has become a compelling subject for further study; and some accounts have been shown to withstand close scrutiny, while other presumed “facts” have turned out to be inaccurate. Gunki monogatari Gunki monogatari ( 軍記物語 , Military chronicle-tale ) , or "war tales",
957-452: The story up as a counterpart of the Tale of Heike . The narrative structure differs in versions, between a simple chronological narration to a thematic one. Kiyomori is also portrayed differently in different versions of the text, in earlier versions as wise and compassionate, in later ones as wicked, cowardly and lustful. Other themes found in some versions are the importance of filial piety and religious faith. The Japanese have developed
990-552: The tale, called Heiji Monogatari Emaki or Heiji Monogatari Ekotoba , dates from the 13th century. It tells the tale in color on paper, on five scrolls. Each scroll begins and ends with a written portion of the tale, describing the events depicted in a single continuous painting across the length of the scroll. Perhaps the most famous scene of these five scrolls is the Night Attack on the Sanjō Palace . The emaki scrolls are now in
1023-461: The war tales betray differences in the way various editors and authors perceived the ideal warrior ethic; hence we must refrain from drawing definite conclusions about the fixed nature of the warrior ethic. The other chief value system that governs the ethic of gunki monogatari is Buddhism . First of all, it is important to note that Buddhism and the warrior ethic are not seen as necessarily opposed to each other. Despite their inherent differences,
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1056-464: The war, often sympathizing with the defeated warriors. The authors of gunki monogatari do not hesitate to sympathize with the warriors or moralize about their actions. The general form of the warrior narrative usually consists of three parts, describing respectively the causes of the war, the battles themselves, and the war's aftermath. The texts are generally episodic, broken up into numerous small tales often focusing on select incidents or warriors. This
1089-412: The warriors from human figures into idealized heroes who embody the warrior ethic. These later accounts are probably fictional, a result of the tendency of oral tales to use real people and events and integrate them with prescribed themes to create effective performances. Thus the warrior tales are a mixture of historical fact and dramatic fiction . We can also draw links between the oral traditions and
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