Tale of Heiji
Encyclopedia
The Tale of Heiji 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 an Imperial succession dispute, 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.
The original text is sometimes attributed to Hamuro Tokinaga, and is written in 36 chapters. As 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
.
The picture scroll version of the tale, called Heiji monogatari emaki or Heiji monogatari ekotoba, dates to the 13th century, and is generally attributed to Sumiyoshi Keion. 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 burning of the Night Attack on the Sanjō Palace
. The emaki scrolls are currently housed in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
in Boston, Massachusetts.
As in the Hōgen 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 military clan warriors third.
As in the Hōgen story, the narrative structure is divided in three distinct segments:
(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 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.
Epic poetry
An epic is a lengthy narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation. Oral poetry may qualify as an epic, and Albert Lord and Milman Parry have argued that classical epics were fundamentally an oral poetic form...
(gunki monogatari
Gunki monogatari
, or “war tales,” 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...
) detailing the events of the Heiji Rebellion
Heiji Rebellion
The was a short civil war fought in order to resolve a dispute about political power. The Heiji no ran encompassed clashes between rival subjects of the cloistered Emperor Go-Shirakawa of Japan in 1159. It was preceded by the Hōgen Rebellion in 1156...
of 1159-1160, in which samurai clan head Minamoto no Yoshitomo
Minamoto no Yoshitomo
was the head of the Minamoto clan and a general of the late Heian period of Japanese history. His son Minamoto no Yoritomo became shogun and founded the Kamakura Shogunate, the first shogunate in the history of Japan.-Hōgen Rebellion:...
attacked and besieged Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
, as part of an Imperial succession dispute, in which he was opposed by Taira no Kiyomori
Taira no Kiyomori
was a general of the late Heian period of Japan. He established the first samurai-dominated administrative government in the history of Japan.After the death of his father Taira no Tadamori in 1153, Kiyomori assumed control of the Taira clan and ambitiously entered the political realm in which he...
, head of the Taira clan
Taira clan
The was a major Japanese clan of samurai in historical Japan.In reference to Japanese history, along with Minamoto, Taira was a hereditary clan name bestowed by the emperors of the Heian Period to certain ex-members of the imperial family when they became subjects...
. The Tale, like most monogatari exists in three main forms: written, oral, and painted.
The original text is sometimes attributed to Hamuro Tokinaga, and is written in 36 chapters. As 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
Tale of Hogen
is a Japanese war chronicle or military tale 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...
, which relates the events of the closely related Hōgen Rebellion
Hogen Rebellion
The was a short civil war fought in order to resolve a dispute about Japanese Imperial succession. The dispute was also about the degree of control exercised by the Fujiwara clan who had become hereditary Imperial regents during the Heian period....
.
The picture scroll version of the tale, called Heiji monogatari emaki or Heiji monogatari ekotoba, dates to the 13th century, and is generally attributed to Sumiyoshi Keion. 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 burning of the Night Attack on the Sanjō Palace
Siege of Sanjo Palace
The Siege of the Sanjō Palace was the primary battle of the 1159 Heiji Rebellion. In early January of 1160, after Taira no Kiyomori left Kyoto on a family pilgrimage, Fujiwara no Nobuyori and Minamoto no Yoshitomo saw an opportunity to effect changes they sought in the government...
. The emaki scrolls are currently housed in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts, is one of the largest museums in the United States, attracting over one million visitors a year. It contains over 450,000 works of art, making it one of the most comprehensive collections in the Americas...
in Boston, Massachusetts.
Rivalries
The Tale of Heiji presents a conflict between old aristocratic and new military elites. 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 the Hōgen 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 military clan warriors third.
- 1st level rivalry—a conflict amongst emperors:
- Cloistered Emperor Go-ShirakawaEmperor Go-ShirakawaEmperor Go-Shirakawa was the 77th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession...
(後白河天皇), 1127–1192 - Emperor NijoEmperor NijoEmperor Nijō was the 78th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spaned the years from 1158 through 1165.- Genealogy :...
(二条天皇), 1143–1165
- Cloistered Emperor Go-Shirakawa
- 2nd level rivalry—a conflict amongst kugeKugeThe was a Japanese aristocratic class that dominated the Japanese imperial court in Kyoto until the rise of the Shogunate in the 12th century at which point it was eclipsed by the daimyo...
aristocrats:- Fujiwara no MichinoriFujiwara no Michinori, also known as ', an aristocratic Confucian scholar and monk, was one of the chief advisors to Emperor Nijō, and one of the chief allies of Taira no Kiyomori, particularly during the Heiji Rebellion of 1159....
(藤原通憲), also known by priestly name, Shinzei (信西), 11__-1160 - Fujiwara no NobuyoriFujiwara no Nobuyoriwas one of the chief allies of Minamoto no Yoshitomo in the Heiji Rebellion of 1159. As a member of the Fujiwara clan, Nobuyori might have been in line to become regent, and he desired power, which he obtained for a short while following the Rebellion....
(藤原信頼), 1133–1159
- Fujiwara no Michinori
- 3rd level rivalry—a conflict amongst (and within) warrior clans:
- Taira no KiyomoriTaira no Kiyomoriwas a general of the late Heian period of Japan. He established the first samurai-dominated administrative government in the history of Japan.After the death of his father Taira no Tadamori in 1153, Kiyomori assumed control of the Taira clan and ambitiously entered the political realm in which he...
(平 清盛), 1118–1181 - Minamoto no YoshitomoMinamoto no Yoshitomowas the head of the Minamoto clan and a general of the late Heian period of Japanese history. His son Minamoto no Yoritomo became shogun and founded the Kamakura Shogunate, the first shogunate in the history of Japan.-Hōgen Rebellion:...
(源 義朝, 1123–1160
- Taira no Kiyomori
As in the Hōgen story, the narrative structure is divided in three distinct segments:
- Part 1 introduces origins of the conflicts.
- Part 2 retells the course of events.
- Part 3 enumerates the tragic consequences.
Monogatari historiography
The Japanese have developed 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, 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 monogatariTale of Hogen
is a Japanese war chronicle or military tale 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...
(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 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.
Further reading
- Brown, Delmer and Ichiro Ishida, eds. (1979). GukanshōGukanshois a historical and literary work about the history of Japan. Seven volumes in length, it was composed by Buddhist priest Jien of the Tendai sect c. 1220....
; "The Future and the Past: a translation and study of the 'Gukanshō,' an interpretive history of Japan written in 1219" translated from the Japanese and edited by Delmer M. Brown & Ichirō Ishida. Berkeley: University of California PressUniversity of California PressUniversity of California Press, also known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish books and papers for the faculty of the University of California, established 25 years earlier in 1868...
. ISBN 0-520-03460-0 - Frederic, Louis (2002). "Japan Encyclopedia." Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University PressHarvard University PressHarvard University Press is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. In 2005, it published 220 new titles. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. Its current director is William P...
.
See also
- Hōgen RebellionHogen RebellionThe was a short civil war fought in order to resolve a dispute about Japanese Imperial succession. The dispute was also about the degree of control exercised by the Fujiwara clan who had become hereditary Imperial regents during the Heian period....
, 1156- Tale of HōgenTale of Hogenis a Japanese war chronicle or military tale 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...
or Hōgen monogatariTale of Hogenis a Japanese war chronicle or military tale 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...
- Tale of Hōgen
- Heiji RebellionHeiji RebellionThe was a short civil war fought in order to resolve a dispute about political power. The Heiji no ran encompassed clashes between rival subjects of the cloistered Emperor Go-Shirakawa of Japan in 1159. It was preceded by the Hōgen Rebellion in 1156...
, 1159–1160 - Genpei WarGenpei WarThe was a conflict between the Taira and Minamoto clans during the late-Heian period of Japan. It resulted in the fall of the Taira clan and the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate under Minamoto Yoritomo in 1192....
, 1180–1185- Tale of Heike or Heike monogatari