Sankichi Asabuki: Japan

Hojo Tokimune (1251-1284) took the post of regent at a difficult time and at an early age, Hojo Masamura (1205-1273) worked to bring about cooperation between the court at Kyoto and the bakufu at Kamakura through mediation. The bakufu mobilized a well-trained military force which still had the characteristics of a private army. In order to defeat the strong Mongol forces, the bakufu had to call for the help of bushi in the western district who had no feudal relations with the bakufu. Although the invaders were expelled, the bakufu could not gain enough out of the war to make contributions to the temples and shrines which had prayed for Japanese victory and to reward the bushi of the western district who had fought bravely in the war. Having been insuffi¬ ciently rewarded, there were many who were dis¬ contented with the bakufu. The result was that the bushi became poor, and the bakufu itself faced financial difficulties.

Another outcome of the war was that it fostered in the minds of the Japanese people a racial spirit, a consciousness of shinkoku (divine country). They thought that they won the war because the na¬ tional deities had supported the Japanese forces by making a kamikaze (divine wind) wreck the Mongolian ships. This idea appealed not only to the intellectuals but also appealed the bushi. As a result, they became aware of the existence of the nation, a wider world than that which they had known under their feudal lords.

The stability of the bushi society in the Kaa kura Era was maintained by a system in which many bushi who were small landowners were united as gokenin (lower samurai) of the shogun. With the development of the jit5 system, powerful bushi became powerful landlords by invading the territories of the kuge and by subjugating minor bushi. This tendency was accelerated by the fact that most of the bushi were impoverished after the Mongolian invasion. It was natural that large and powerful landlords had tried to escape the control of the Hojo. Eventually those who sided with the imperial court against the bakufu succeeded in achieving the restoration of the TennS rule in the Kemmu Era (Kemmu-no-ChOko).

It may seem strange that the rights of women were acknowledged in bushi society which was based on military dictatorship, but bushi society was in a sense a reemergence of rural society of earlier times when women enjoyed more equality. Nevertheless, a new form of married life in which husband and wife lived together was gradually taking the place of the older tsuma doi form in which husband and wife led separate lives.

Bushi life was far simpler than that of the nobles. They wore only plain hitatare or suikan and hakama with eboshi on their heads, and they were used to eating frugally. They were respected as reliable masters by their followers and servants. In such an atmosphere, great importance was attached to propriety and honor, and little value was placed on one’s own life. Loyalty and filial piety were esteemed as the highest qualities.

In the course of time, however, the military leaders felt the need to acquire more refinement and culture, and the civilization of Kyoto gradually began to flourish at Kamakura. During the age of the bushi neither great scholastic works nor literary masterpieces were produced, yet it was in these days that learning began to be diffused among the common people. It was the craving for learning that prompted  Sanetoki, nephew of regent Yasutoki, to establish a library at Kanazawa in the Musashi district.

As the bushi always had to be ready to fight, leaders and groups were the focal point of their society. The leaders and their families strengthened these bonds by establishing relations through mar¬ riage or adoption of heirs. A family was strongly united under a head, and the family property, as a rule, was divided among the children when the father died. After a woman was married, she could dispose of her allotted share freely without the consent of her husband. After the death of the husband, she could inherit his land and was permitted to exercise parental authority.

It may seem strange that the rights of women were acknowledged in bushi society which was based on military dictatorship, but bushi society was in a sense a reemergence of rural society of earlier times when women enjoyed more equality. Nevertheless, a new form of married life in which husband and wife lived together was gradually taking the place of the older tsuma doi form in which husband and wife led separate lives.

Although many of the leading gokenin stayed in Kamakura, others lived in their native regions where they became provincial leaders. They lived in houses called buke-zukuri {bushi-style architecture) which were designed for both practical usage and defence. Sons of bushi began to learn archery and horsemanship at the age of five or six, and when they reached the age of ten, each of them became an independent bushi and took part in the ceremony of gempuku (a coming-of-age ceremony). Games were limited to those of martial nature such as inu-bmono, yabusame, kasakake, sumo or hunting.

Bushi life was far simpler than that of the nobles. They wore only plain hitatare or suikan and hakama with eboshi on their heads, and they were used to eating frugally. They were respected as reliable masters by their followers and servants. In such an atmosphere, great importance was attached to propriety and honor, and little value was placed on one’s own life. Loyalty and filial piety were esteemed as the highest qualities.

In the course of time, however, the military leaders felt the need to acquire more refinement and culture, and the civilization of Kyoto gradu¬ ally began to flourish at Kamakura. During the age of the bushi neither great scholastic works nor literary masterpieces were produced, yet it was in these days that learning began to be diffused among the common people. It was the craving for learning that prompted H6j6 Sanetoki, (12241276), nephew of regent Yasutoki, to establish a library at Kanazawa in the Musashi district.

Poems in the Manyo style were composed by Sanetomo, the third shogun of the bakufu, and “Kinkai-shO” is an anthology of these poems. Of course the huge (court nobles) produced more liter¬ ary works than the buke (military clan). “Shin Kokin Waka-shQ” was compiled by Fujiwara-no Sadaie (1162-1241) and Fujiwara-no letaka (1158-1237). The main feature of this anthology is a religious sentimentality. Thereafter, however, poetry made no progress.

Books of fables such as “Kojidan,” “KokinChomon-shu” and “Jikkin-sh6” concerned mainly with the huge society of the previous era were also vrritten. Kamo-no-Chomei’s “H6j6-ki” was a book of essays on the uncertainty of human life based on the author’s experiences and observations on the vicissitudes of life in an age of fighting. “Gukan-sh6’’ was a book written by Jien, the head priest of the Tendai sect of Buddhism, in which he, perceiving the arrival of the age of bushi and the changeable social conditions, explained his belief that the world was degenerate and mutable.

War tales, such as “Hogen-Monogatari,” “HejiMonogatari” and “Gempei-Seisui-Ki,” were rep¬ resentative literary works showing the spirit of the age. These stories dwelt on the rise and fall of bushi society, the underlying idea being the transience of the world. This view wtis common to all classes from the end of the Heian Period to the Kamakura Period. It was based on ideas, current in Buddhist circles, that there would soon come a period when Buddhism would decline and all manner of evil would spread unchecked. Perhaps the degenera¬ tion of the Buddhists, the monk-soldiers and the oppression by the local bushi prompted these ideas. As a result, a new kind of Buddhism came into existence.

In the latter part of the twelfth century, Honen, a j6do sect priest, preached that any person, re¬ gardless of rank or profession, could die an easy and peaceful death by merely repeating the name of Buddha. This doctrine gained popularity rap¬ idly among all classes of people. After the death of Honen in 1212, his teachings were criticized bitterly by the Tendai sect as heresy. H6nen’s disciple, Shinran (1173-1262), extended the doc¬ trine, saying that since the mercy of Buddha (Amitabha) was so infinite the wicked would be saved, and that if people believed and chanted the name of Buddha, all the wicked deeds in their past life would be forgiven, and they would be able to die in peace. This teaching, called J6do-shin-sha (True j6do sect) or Ikkd-shQ, appealed to those who were seeking salvation. This doctrine taught that bushi, nobles, farmers, merchants, and fisher¬ men were all recognized as equals before Buddha.

Other sects were founded around this time, such as the Ji (Time) sect by Ippen and the Hokke (Lotus) sect by Nichiren. From this time on Bud¬ dhism penetrated deep into the spiritual life of the people.

In the Kamakura Period Zen doctrine, an im¬ port from China, was introduced into bushi society. The Zen sect taught that a man was able to return to the original spirit of Sakyamuni (Buddha) and attain enlightenment by sitting in meditation. Such disciplinary spiritualism was welcomed by the bushi, and strongly influenced Japanese thought. This idea of solving the problems of life and death by concentration is still a prominent feature in Oriental philosophy.

Such new trends in Buddhism were also reflected in temple construction. In reconstructing the Todaiji, which was burnt down during the battle between the Genji and the Heishi, the Tenjiku (Indian) style suitable for large buildings was used, and for temples of the Zen sect, such as the Enkakuji at Kamakura, the simple Kara-yo (Kara or Chinese style) was adopted. Both these styles were introduced from Sung China.

In sculpture, sturdy and vividly realistic meth¬ ods came into use, as in the statues of “Kongorikishi,” produced jointly by Unkei and Kaikei, at the South Gate of Todaiji. This realistic art seems to illustrate the spirit of the time more clearly than literature or religion. War stories and picture scrolls also appeared depicting the history of the temples and shrines or the lives of high priests.

The Onin Revolt

Imperial rule was restored as a result of Kemmuno-Chuko (restoration in the year of Kemmu) but it lasted for less than three years. This period was notable because insei, bakufu, and kampaku were not in existence during these three years. Kemmu-noChuko was the realization of a loyalist dream of restoring the imperial authority established at the time of the Taika Reform.

Sankichi Asabuki