Signs of the Times

The chaotic political developments in the latter part of the Heian period were transforming Japanese society in a manner inconceivable even for the main agents of the changes. The warrior class, never before a major force in shaping Japanese politics or culture, now became the prime mover. Unprecedented armed conflicts among the warrior clans, unlike localized power struggles at court, dragged even commoners into the fray. Military control led to the replacement not only of the political system but also of basic ways of life and outlook, creating a whole new array of values. It was a time of massive social upheaval; and for many, the world really seemed to be falling apart.

Contemporary literature, such as Hojoki (The Ten-Foot-Square Hut, 1212) by Kamo no Chomei (1155-1216) and Heike monogatari , reflected these convulsive currents. Ryojin hisho songs also capture the disturbing symptoms of the changing world, helping their readers understand what it was like to be part of history in the making. Unlike the prose chronicles, the contents of Ryojin hisho offer only a glimpse of the new signs and mood, but they do make it very clear that ominous and disturbing shifts were well under way.

What caught the attention of the Ryojin hisho poets most was the undeniable presence of warriors in Heian society. Their wealth, life-style, and power are viewed with mixed feelings of envy, wonder, and occasional derision. In one example, we find a survey of the kinds of diversions that warriors enjoyed. The song's speaker, obviously an outsider and not of the warrior class, is awestruck by the spectacles unfolding in the compounds of a warlord's mansion—the riches and power evident in the large number of horses and the garishness of the unusual entertainment:

RH 352

The acrobats (jushi ) described in the song were associated with sarugaku players. Their repertoire included juggling, gymnastics, and magical tricks; colorful costumes as well as superb performing skills contributed to their popular appeal.^[44] During the Heian period, acrobats were often invited to perform at the banquets of nobles. When the warriors began to gain power, the jushi became an essential part of their entertainment program as well.^[45] Another noteworthy sight is the male shaman dancer. Given the fact that miko were ordinarily women, a male shaman impersonating a female would be an aberration. Through the speaker, who may represent the collective attitude of the common people, the song expresses a sense of uneasiness tinted with wonder about the warriors and what they represent.

The impression that warriors make on their onlookers is also the subject of the next song, in catalog form, which uses the same formulaic expression we encountered in chapters 5 and 6, konomu mono . The detailed inventory of the splendid regalia and arms reveals a fascination with the warriors' physical appearance on the part of the speaker, who may be someone familiar with the taste and ways of the warriors:

The dark blue (kon ) was a color used for the outfits of low-ranking warriors and was consciously avoided by Heian aristocrats, never appearing in works such as Genji monogatari to describe the nobility's clothes.^[47] The fact that it tops the list in the present song clearly signifies a new aesthetic taste ushered in by the warrior class.

The power and spirited life of the rising military classes are suggested in the following song, undergirded by the playful suggestion that, to keep up with the times, one should join the warrior culture:

Some songs in Ryojin hisho confirm the indisputable arrival of warriors in Heian society by listing the Shinto shrines dedicated to the gods related to warfare. The following two companion pieces, for example, using the Osaka Barrier in Omi as the demarcation line, divide the Japanese country in two, east and west, and suggest how far the sphere of the warriors' activities and power had spread—to include virtually the whole of the country. The shrines, in a sense, embody the mythico-political history of Japan, which is replete with military expeditions and conquests. The first song enumerates warrior shrines in the east:

The main god of Kashima Shrine in Ibaraki Prefecture is Take mikazuchi no Mikoto, who helped Emperor Jinmu during his conquest of the Kumano region; his sword is a special object of veneration at the shrine.^[48] Katori Shrine in the same prefecture enshrines Futsu nushi no Mikoto, another god who helped Jinmu in his expedition through the Yamato basin. These two shrines, Kashima and Katori, were once the most powerful shrines in the eastern part of Japan.^[49] Located in Nagano Prefecture, the main divinity of Suwa no Miya Shrine is Take mina kata no Kami, who settled in Suwa after being defeated by Take mikazuchi no o no Kami.^[50] The Hira Myojin (Shirahige Shrine) in Shiga Prefecture venerates Saruta hiko no Okami, who, after serving as the vanguard of Ninigi no Mikoto on his descent to earth, settled in the Lake Biwa area.^[51] The song's Su Shrine is in fact Awa Shrine in Chiba Prefecture, where Ame no futotama no Mikoto, who served the Sun Goddess Amaterasu in controlling the Inbe (the Shinto

ceremonial lineage group), is worshiped.^[52] Otaka Myojin, or simply Otaka Shrine, is located nearby in Tai no Kuchi. ^[53] Yatsurugi, another name for the Atsuta Shrine in Nagoya, houses the sword that Yamato Takeru supposedly used during his expedition to the eastern region. ^[54] Tado no Miya, or Tado Shrine, in Mie Prefecture worships Amatsu hikone no Mikoto, a son of Amaterasu, and for this reason has a close relationship with the Ise Shrine. ^[55]

The next song lists warrior shrines in the west, beginning in the Chugoku area:

Ippon Chusan is in fact Kibitsu Shrine, located on Mount Chusan in Okayama Prefecture, where the general Okibitsu hiko no Mikoto pacified provincial disturbances during the reign of Emperor Sujin (r. 97-30 B. C.).^[56] Next, the song makes due note of Itsukushima Shrine, the tutelary shrine of the Taira clan. To the east, in Himeji in Hyogo Prefecture, the Hiromine Shrine worships Susano o no Mikoto as its main god,^[57] while Sosanjo (the Idatehyoju Shrine) has two warrior gods: Idategami (the god of arrow and shield) and Hyojugami (the god of arms).^[58] Iwaya is Iwaya Shrine, also located in Hyogo Prefecture, whose main divinities are Izanami and Susano o no Mikoto.^[59] The next two shrines, Sumiyoshi and Nishi no Miya (Hirota Shrine), likewise in Hyogo Prefecture, are grouped together as centers of veneration for the gods who assisted Empress Jingu (r. 201-69) on her legendary expedition to Korea.^[60]

Different from the preceding songs, the following one dwells specifically on an individual warrior's achievement; he is Minamoto Yoshiie (1039-1106), popularly known as Hachiman Taro.^[61] The eldest son of Yoriyoshi, Yoshiie fought with his father in the Early Nine Years War (1051-62), which marked the beginning of the Minamoto ascendancy in the eastern provinces. He also became a hero in another war, the Later Three Years War (1083-87), crushing the rebellion of Kiyohara Iehira (d.

1087).^[62] In the present song, the allusion to the eagle exalts both Yoshiie's military prowess and the Minamoto's increasing prominence:

The Hogen Disturbance was not only the tragedy of the imperial family but also a turning point in Japanese history.^[63] Its victim, Emperor Sutoku, seems especially to have impressed himself on the popular mind, as his destiny was so extraordinary and appalling. The next song, which is considered to allude to Sutoku, uses a warped pine tree to convey his consuming grief in Sanuki, the place of his exile:

Notice the play on the word naosu (to straighten), which is found in both naoshirna (straight island) and naosazaruran (seems unable to be straight-ened). The imagery is a metaphor for the depth and intensity of Sutoku's unredressable grudge against his brother, Go-Shirakawa—ironically the recorder of the song.

Signs of the changing times were found not only in sensational events involving the highborn, but also in the lives of the commoners. The troubled state of the country and apprehension about its future are ex-pressed in the following song about a young man drafted into the army. Scenes such as this were likely all too common as the country found itself swept into the Genpei War:

The Inari shrines in general were associated with rice cultivation, and the one at Fushimi, mentioned here, was the center of such shrines—the core of the life of farmers. If the son of the shrine priest were drafted, especially the eldest one who would continue the priestly line, the situation in the capital must have been grave indeed. The fact that he was taken away at dawn makes the situation all the more fearful and ominous.

The civil war, which necessitated moving soldiers from one region to another, provided the Heian residents with opportunities to learn about manners and customs other than their own. But the cultures outside the capital—especially those to the east—were usually perceived as unpalatable or even obiectionable and thus often became the object of derision. The two following songs betray this attitude of disdain. In the first one, contempt for the reprehensible behavior of a common soldier from the east (Azuma) is highlighted, focusing on his violation of the basics of marriage protocol:

The dark blue (kon ) color of the man's cloak and the man's proposal of marriage in exchange for a mean article of clothing convey the scandalized feelings of the ceremonious Heian capital residents and their sense of outrage not just at boorish easterners but at warriors in general.

In the second song, the strange customs of the east are on view as the speaker comments scornfully on the aberrant performances of male miko :

Yet even in the capital, things are not as they once were. New trends, not always desirable, prevail. And what happens in the capital, whether it be frivolous or serious, is interpreted as an index of the state of the nation as a whole. The following two companion songs detail the latest fashion vogue in the capital—the disturbing symptom of an age steeped in flimsy fads while serious political crises brew:

The basic feature of this list of trendy fashion items for men is the kowasozoku , meaning "stiffened costume." It emphasized an angular, hard look achieved by starching and padding the clothes.^[67] The result was a striking contrast to the naesozoku (softer costume), characterized by rounded and flowing lines, which had been popular among courtiers up to mid-Heian times. On the whole, the new men's fashion reflects a shift from the effusive taste of the aristocracy to the more stern, controlled, and action-oriented functionalism of the warrior class. These disturbing trends arise again in the second song, concerning women's fashion:

During the Heian period, it was customary for women to shave their natural eyebrows and draw on thick ones on the forehead. The fad laid out here, however, stresses a very thin line like a willow branch—obviously a new style.^[68] The meaning of shioyuki is unclear, but it may refer to courtesans.^[69] The Omi women are likely asobi or kugutsu who settled around the Setagawa River in the vicinity of Lake Biwa in Omi.^[70] "Women in male costumes" may be shirabyoshi , women who danced in men's clothing. On the whole, the fashionable items for women outlined here are marked by affectation and sham; those who wore such things would hardly have been considered commendable or of good breeding. The flourishing of various types of female entertainers is also notable. Most striking is the image in the last line of nuns armed with halberds parading through the streets of the capital, which certainly suggests great social unrest and insecurity.

In another song, the deteriorating situation of women during these times finds expression in the figure of a nun. Despite her assertion that she has respectable relatives (all male) to rely on, she is obviously in reduced circumstances. It is possible that songs such as these were originally beggars' songs:

Some Ryojin hisho songs register the conditions of hard-pressed families in the lower classes. In the following song—one of the longest in Ryojin hisho —we find a grievous protest raised against the calloushess of the elites in Heian society, through the lyric voice of a mother wailing about her broken family. The speaker of the poem, probably a female shaman at Wakamiya Shrine in the Iwashimizu Hachiman Shrine complex, pours out her woes to the kami she serves:^[72]

The old mother's acute sense of the wrongs inflicted on her family by the powerful represents a social indictment rarely seen in the poetry of the times.

Another indication in Ryojin hisho of the unstable social atmosphere that then prevailed was the depiction of gamblers. Although as a poetic topic gamblers have appeared in literary works from Man'yoshu on, they are featured six times in Ryojin hisho , which suggests their conspicuous presence at least among the singers of these songs.^[74] Their uprooted an marginal life-style comes to light in the following song, in which a mother prays for her son's success in gambling. Given that in the late Heian period the government took action to quash gambling as a socially disruptive activity, arresting bands of gamblers wholesale on the streets of the capital,^[75] the mother's concern takes on a compelling significance:

The following song deals with the hidden area of gamblers' practices and preferences, phrased in the familiar formula konomu mono , which we have seen used for the esoteric world of asobi, hijiri , and warriors as well. The list concerns dice playing; in addition, several skillful gamblers are named, likely by aliases:

In the next song, too, the gamblers mentioned are probably identified by aliases. Interestingly, most of their names have a Buddhist ring to them, representing another striking combination of sacred and profane in Ryojin hisho . While we cannot know whether these were assumed or real names, some contemporary sources suggest that priest-gamblers did exist during the Heian period; perhaps, then, the men named here belonged to such a group:^[78]

The names with definite links to Buddhism are Jizo, Kasen (the Japanese reading of Mahakatyayana, one of the Buddha's Four Great Disciples), Terashi (another reading of jishu , a temple secretary), Shimochi (a word meaning a new Buddhist convert), and Keisoku (the Japanese reading of Mount Kukkutapada, on which Mahakasyapa is supposedly to have entered into nirvanic meditation). The meaning of Mimizu is not clear, but it could be a variant of mikuzu , a scum on the water or an ugly person with a mean demeanor.^[79] The man identified as Shimochi may be a novice priest who has just had a religious awakening (hosshin ).^[80] In this subculture, the profane simply appropriates the sacred, which leads to a quality of wry humor.

The confused and decadent mood of the times comes into full view in the lament of a mother whose children seem to epitomize the moral lapses of the folk world depicted in Ryojin hisho :

A summary of late-Heian decadence and hedonism is presented in the following song, which is filled with jestful irreverence:

Thus the troubled yet gay mood of the period leaves its imprint in the songs of Ryojin hisho , telling that life may be painful, imperfect, and often irksome, but at the same time it remains energizing, exciting, and colorful.