Minamoto
no Yoshitsune is one of the most renowned characters in Japanese history[1]
and is celebrated both within and outside of Japan as one of the greatest
military generals of all time. He was the military commander of the Minamoto clan
during the Genpei War against their rivals, the Taira clan, from 1180 to 1184.
After being betrayed by his older brother Yoritomo (the political head of the
clan) Yoshitsune attempted a coup, eventually committing seppuku (ritual
suicide) after his final defeat at the battle of the Koromo River1. He was well known in Japan at the time as a
skilled swordsman as well as a master tactician and is revered today as a tragic
hero. In my research I have focussed on military, political and social
evidence, both historically and contemporarily. The most reliable source of
evidence is the Azuma Kagami, a document written by officials of the Kamakura
Bakufu, the government established by Yoshitsune's brother Yoritomo. This
therefore contains obvious bias in places so I have cross referenced with the Heike
Monogatari, an epic poem regarded as one of the greatest pieces of world
literature of all time, written in 1371 and detailing an exaggerated account of
the events leading up to and throughout the Genpei War. In an attempt to keep
this study from becoming filled with too much unsubstantiated exaggeration, I
have not used any information regarding his life before the reunion with
Yoritomo (which is mostly myth containing the divine intervention of bird
deities) within my study of his contemporary significance, instead choosing to
stick with the Azuma Kagami, the work of historians, and the Heike Monogatari
only when it runs parallel to the Azuma Kagami.
In terms
of Yoshitsune’s military significance, I will start with the legendary assault
on the fortress of Ichi-no-Tani, where he led a small force in a charge down the
side of a ravine in a scene that is described by the Heike Monogatari to ‘seem
all but superhuman - something for gods or demons, not men.[2]’
In this particular engagement we can see how he was military significant as he
had an understanding of military tactics that his predecessors and even
successors did not. He divided his forces into a large attacking force which
was essentially a diversion whilst he personally rode through the mountains
‘with the seventy-odd particularly brave warriors he had selected and set aside
from the rest’[3]
to find a route into the inner fort from above. This quote shows Yoshitsune as
unique within Japan as a leader who knew his men on a personal level, which was
strictly taboo in the rigid, feudal society at the time (although we must
remember that an epic poem such as this is likely to contain exaggeration).
This trait is shown time and time again, but is particularly prevalent within
this scene as he even goes as far as to ask his own men for suggestions as to
how to find their way through the mountains.[4]
This informal nature when addressing his men is undoubtedly something which
would have given him an advantage on the battlefield. His respect and knowledge
of his soldiers is perhaps most famously shown at the battle of Yashima where
Yoshitsune hand selected the young archer Nasu no Yoichi who successfully shot
down a fan atop a Taira ship, placed as a test of the fighting skill of the Minamoto
clan (in medieval Japan skill with a bow was given greater value than
swordsmanship).[5] Just prior to this scene he misled the Taira forces
by lighting campfires to the rear of their camp, fooling them into expecting a
land based attack so that the Taira would take to
Militarily
then, I would argue that Yoshitsune was very significant as a general within
the Genpei War as he led the armies of his brother to victory again and again
and never once suffered a defeat. His intelligent tactics outsmarted his
opponents and brought a complete turnaround to the state of the war, defeating
both his rival cousin Yoshinaka and the experienced generals of the Taira.
Yoshitsune's arrival and successful command of the Minamoto makes him a key
turning point in the war, leaving much for story tellers to admire and
exaggerate.
Politically
then, what role did Yoshitsune play during his life? In regards to personal political influence at
the time, Yoshitsune is terribly underappreciated. Of course his actions on the
field of battle led to many political changes, but since many of these occurred
after his death I shall tackle these in the historical significance section
later on. It seems to me that the colourful accomplishments on the battlefield
as well as the legends fabricated after his death surrounding his early life
have led to his political skill being overlooked. During the reign of the Kamakura
Bakufu (the government established after the Minamoto victory) samurai held the
power politically whilst the imperial court held the symbolic power.[6]
Yoshitsune would have therefore had plenty of political standing. He held
favour with the retired emperor Go-Shirakawa (or Shirakawa the second) whose
son was responsible for starting the war against the Taira in the first place.
Shirakawa, a popular figure in Japan at the time, issued Yoshitsune with the
title of Hōgan as well as giving him governorship of Iyo, a territory in the
south of Japan, as personal thanks for his victories against the Taira. This
shows that Yoshitsune was politically significant because his military feats
won him favour with the imperial court (favour which Yoritomo came to envy).[7]
He
certainly held favour within the imperial court then which would have granted
him political power on its own, however Yoshitsune was not afraid to use his
skills in oratory to get his way when he needed it. One example of this would
be the meeting with the imperial court in Kyoto after the battle of
Ichi-no-Tani, where he managed to convince Shirakawa to let him parade the
heads of the dead Taira generals through the streets of the capital, even after
the imperial advisors had warned him against it. He used both political and
personal arguments, reminding the court that the deceased were no longer
servants of the state but ‘the emperor's foes’ and that unless the march with
the heads was allowed, 'what warning hereafter will there be to deter
evildoers?'[8]
This proved to be very strong leverage. He demonstrated this political skill
again when he asked for imperial permission to lead a rebellion against his
brother Yoritomo. Yoshitsune cleverly issued a heartfelt application to the
imperial court explaining how Yoritomo has ‘never thought of rewarding me but
even stripped me of all the lands he (Shirakawa) had happened to allot to me.’
Craftier still, he issued this application at a time when Yoshitsune was the
only man in the city legally qualified to lead the police force, leaving the
imperial court to question ‘if he didn’t receive imperial permission and
resorted to violence, who did they have to order for their defence?’[9]
These
two scenarios show how Yoshitsune could use political skill to get his way and
how he was politically significant at the time, using his talents in speaking
to ensure that he got his way within the courtroom. Such skill would no doubt
have been useful for a general and certainly adds colour to the man that was
Yoshitsune.
To
measure Yoshitsune’s social impact I used two major items that showed that people
in Japan looked up to him and spoke about his achievements. The first is a
description of his funeral from the Azuma Kagami where his head was ‘placed in
a tub, immersed in sake, and carried on the shoulders of two men’ and ‘all
those who watched this are said to have wiped their tears, soaking their
sleeves.[10]’
This dramatic and heartfelt display, especially considering that it is the
words of Yoritomo's officials, shows how significant Yoshitsune was socially as
the people of Japan literally wept for the loss of their magnificent general. There
is also the diary entry of Kujo Kanezane, friend of Yoritomo and witness to the
changes in Japanese society as a result of the Genpei War, which describes him
hearing the news that Yoshitsune had been defeated: ‘Yoshitsune has left great
achievements; about this there is nothing to argue. In bravery, benevolence,
and justice, he is bound to leave a great name to posterity. In this he can
only be admired and praised.[11]’
Notice that even here, Kujo, a personal friend of the man who Yoshitsune rose
up against, praises his personal qualities as much as his military feats,
showing that socially, he was well respected and admired by the people of
Japan.
In
summary of his contemporary significance then, I believe that Yoshitsune certainly
played a role as a general as his tactics were strong enough to defeat the
experienced generals that his brother repeatedly pit him against. I believe
also that his political skill has been downplayed in favour of the more
‘interesting’ achievements on the battlefield and that his social impact must
have been truly great as even the close friend of his enemy was apparently willing
to accept that some of his personal traits were unmatched within Japan. All of
these factors show that he was contemporarily significant at first glance but
since very few reliable evidence exists we must remember that much of his
'history' is exaggeration. Although he may well have been significant
contemporarily as a military turning point, I believe it is over time that his
significance really starts to grow.
Since
his death Yoshitsune has become the “most famous man in all of premodern
Japanese history.”[12]
The vast expanses of grey areas within his life’s story (consider that his life
is only accurately recorded for five years) as well as the romantic
exaggeration of certain feats by the Heike Monogatari has left story tellers plenty
of room to play with, and over the years legends have been created and spread
to the point now where it is difficult to remember what events within his life
are historical fact and which are the work of overzealous raconteurs.
Yoshitsune
affected the lives of many during his life, few more so than those within the
imperial court. His actions eventually led to the destruction of the imperial
court as a political force within Japan as the victory that he ensured in the
Genpei War led to the rise of his brother Yoritomo who went on to replace the
Insei system with his military shogunate.[13]
This was a momentous turning point in Japanese history as it was the moment
when power was moved from the hands of the imperial court to the samurai caste
(ironic then that the disestablishment of the Insei system by the Taira was the
spark that led to war in the first place and that the Minamoto fought at first
with the aim of restoring imperial power). The shogunate thenceforth became the
staple system of government, repressing and resisting rebellion in one way or
another until the Meiji restoration in 1868. This is significant as it shows
that Yoshitsune was involved in the establishment of the longest running system
of government in Japanese history. Yoshitsune could also be argued to be indirectly
responsible for the loss of the imperial court's symbolic power as at the
battle of Dan-no-ura the imperial sword, one of the three pieces of the
imperial regalia which gave the imperial courts their divine right to rule, was
lost to the sea.[14]
The
shogunate was perhaps most importantly in power during the attempted Mongol
invasions of Kublai Khan which were famously defeated in 1274 and 1281. These
battles marked the first time that Japanese soldiers had fought for their
country rather than their clan's interests and the successful defence led to
the Japanese coining the concept of 'kamikaze' or divine wind, declaring Japan
a divinely protected nation. This gave the Japanese a reason to stand together
as a nation for the first time and is an event looked back on by the Japanese
with pride. Without Yoshitsune's military success, Yoritomo would arguably never
have come to power, leading one to question how effective a Taira defence of
Japan would have been against the Mongols.[15]
So
Yoshitsune has remained significant politically throughout history. Does his
social significance compare? I would argue that Yoshitsune's social impact is where
his story gets most interesting as the tales of his exploits are well established
pieces of Japanese culture. Richard McKinnon asks, “who [within Japan] has not
heard of his spectacular feats at Mount Kurama or the Gojo bridge?”[16]
At Mount Kurama he is said to have been trained by the Tengu (mythical bird men
with demonic swordsmanship skills) to such a level of skill to be able to cut
leaves as they fell from a tree. The fact that this story even exists shows that
he is socially significant as many within Japan know the tale and some would
even consider it history. On top of this the tale is so well known that it is referenced
within Japanese and popular culture, showing how truly embedded these tales are
within the heritage of Japan. In the manga series “One Piece” for instance (the
world's best selling manga), one of the characters is shown to be able to catch
a leaf on his sword. This scene is a specific reference to the Yoshitsune story
and would have resonated as such amongst Japanese readers. I would go as far as
to say that Yoshitsune is today the equivalent of Robin Hood in the English
speaking world with tales of his adventures with his loyal companion Benkei
told as bedtime stories[17]
and used in video games such as Minamoto: Dawn of the Samurai where the player
plays as Yoshitsune himself.
Stories
of Yoshitsune also form a large part of the Ainu's culture. The indigenous Ainu
people were present long before the Yamato race immigrated and they revere
Yoshitsune as a deity, responsible for stealing their literature.[18]
This rather fantastical fable exists to explain why the Ainu have no written
work and is interesting as it is the first instance in which Yoshitsune became significant
to a group of people outside of the Yamato Japanese.
His
significance is not limited to medieval Japan and manga however, as he is even
present in more mainstream media. An example of this is the NHK television
drama 'Yoshitsune' which aired in 2005 and followed him from birth to death,
blending legend with fact to produce an award winning action drama.[19]
Over time his story has even evolved alongside the constantly changing Japanese
media. A fantastic example of this evolution is the film: 'The Men Who Tread on
the Tiger's Tail,' released in 1952 and based on a kabuki play from 1840, which
was itself based on a noh play from 1465, which tells of the escape of
Yoshitsune from his brother's warriors while also showcasing traditional
Japanese values. Interestingly enough, the film was finished in 1945 but was
prohibited from release by General Douglas McArthur (who led the American
occupation) for its portrayal of feudal values and was only released after the
treaty of San Francisco. This I feel is evidence for the way in which
Yoshitsune embodies the traditional Japanese morals and values that the
Americans were trying to stomp out and could explain why he has maintained his
status as a national hero since World War Two. It is also of note that he
appears to have maintained his significance through many different stages of
Japanese history, whether shogunate, autocracy or democracy.
Yoshitsune
has become such a large part of the Japanese mindset that many in Japan even
believe him to never have died but in fact to have successfully escaped to
mainland Asia to become Genghis Khan.[20]
I believe this idea (although almost completely unfounded) is key to
understanding modern Japan as it is interesting to note that (at least until
WW2), according to this theory, the only force that offered Japan any kind of
threat was itself Japanese (although the Romanovs may have disagreed). This
belief clearly showcases the unique brand of Japanese nationalism as the very
idea that something with no solid evidence could still be treated by some as
fact even today shows how strong the Japanese identity still is. Who better to
have as the protagonist of this story than Yoshitsune, the quintessential
Japanese hero?
In summary
then, I believe that although much of Yoshitsune's life story is myth and that
which is documented is mostly done so by an exaggerated poem, Yoshitsune is still
a significant character. Even though I personally believe that he was
significant contemporarily in the sense that he was a great military and
political force, I could make the same case for his brother Yoritomo, without
whom the shogunate would not have risen to power and Yoshitsune would never
have even arrived on the political scene. It is over time that I believe
Yoshitsune's significance has grown and it is today that it is at its height.
Whether due to the extensive exaggeration by poems such as the Heike Monogatari
or otherwise, Yoshitsune has been remembered. He has been remembered through
shrines at the Shirahata Jinja in Kamakura or through statues at the Gojo
Bridge and at Dan-no-ura, or even through cinema and television and manga and
children's stories. However it is that Yoshitsune has been remembered, or
whatever it even is about him that is being remembered, he has become an
underlying constant in the Japanese mind and a major part of Japanese culture
today, a culture which is everyday becoming a bigger player in the global
culture which has started to grow in recent years. Simply consider the fact
that I am even writing this essay as one more piece of evidence that Minamoto
no Yoshitsune is a significant figure in world history.
[1]
Stephen Turnbull - The Samurai Sourcebook - 60
[2]
Royall Tyler - The Tale of the Heike - 495
[3]
Hiroaki Sato - Legends of the Samurai - 29%
[4]
Royall Tyler - The Tale of the Heike - 483-484
[5]
Royall Tyler - The Tale of the Heike - 594-597
[6]
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/300531/Japan/23142/Medieval-Japan#toc23144
[7]
Hiroaki Sato - Legends of the Samurai - 31%
[8]
Royall Tyler - The Tale of the Heike - 522
[9]
Hiroaki Sato - Legends of the Samurai - 35%
[10]
Hiroaki Sato - Legends of the Samurai - 38%
[11]
Hiroaki Sato - Legends of the Samurai - 36%
[12]
Helen McCullough - Yoshitsune: A Fifteenth Century Chronicle - Page 5
[13]
Stephen Turnbull - The Samurai Sourcebook - 10
[14]
Royall Tyler - The Tale of the Heike - 620-625
[15]
Stephen Turnbull - The Samurai Sourcebook - 206
[16]
Richard McKinnon - The Journal of Asiatic studies, Vol. 27 - 149-150
[17]
Kazue Kyoichi - Minamoto no Yoshitsune no higeki - 1
[18]
John Batchelor - The Ainu of Japan - 115-116
[19]
'Yoshitsune' won the 2005 Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix Award for Best Drama
[20]
Richard Storry - A History of Modern Japan - 39
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