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Rajas Pargaonkar
Japanese Civilization
October 2000

    No better statement could be made about the contrast between the Heian and Medieval periods of Japanese history; mannerism and poetry, hallmarks of the Heian, clung to the Japanese soil fast, only to be melted away by the turmoil and violence of the Medieval period. Despite their many differences and the rise of the Medieval era, the fire of the Heian was never truly extinguished by the torrent of the Kamakura period. We are provided ample proof of this by comparing some of the canonical works of Japanese literature, namely the Tale of Genji and The Pillow Book from the Heian, with The Tale of Heike for the Kamakura period. Looking closely in The Tale of Heike and at its characters, we find many ideological remnants of the Heian. By first establishing the ideologies of the Heian, we are provided with a means of locating Heian ideas that continued to linger in the Kamakura. Cross-analysis of the texts mentioned above provides ample information on not only how these two periods differed, but how the florid Heian continued a passive existence in the turbulent Kamakura period.

    The Kamakura and the Heian represented such strong polar opposites of ideology that one can scarcely believe that they are periods of the same people of the same country. The Heian was a dainty era, built upon the principles of a strong grasp of culture and manners, as opposed to the strong grip of a sword during the Kamakura. The cultural life of the country centered around the Emperor’s court. The nobles at court were totally care-free, with servants for their immediate needs, and lesser nobles to manage their estates. If one performs just a casual study of Sei Shoganon’s Pillow Book, one sees ample evidence of the duty less life of the Heian courtier.

    Sei Shonagon herself a middle-ranking court official still had ample time to write about such scintillating subjects as depressing things, hateful things, things that arouse a fond memory of the past, and other such banal topics. However, in her "treatise" on depressing things, we do see evidence of one of the few things that court nobles pained themselves on, poetry. According to Sei Shonagon, "One has written a letter, taking pains to make it as attractive as possible, and now one impatiently awaits the reply…". (Morris 21). The extent of mundane topics continues throughout The Pillow Book, ranging from palace cats to how oxen should have "very small foreheads" (Morris 33). Sei Shonagon was truly representative of a breed of Japanese who were the epitome of sloth and do-nothingness. In fact, if not for the voluminous poetry and manners of the Heian, one could say that aristocratic Japan spent the period from 794-1185 on its belly until it was roused from slumber by the Kamakura (McCullough 5). However, the poetry and manners were still an important part of Japanese life. To this end, analyzing the work of Lady Murasaki Shikibu becomes a necessity.

    A court noble herself, she was more than witness to the manners of the Heian, but an active participant. A woman of particular breeding, she was schooled in Japanese and Chinese, and was a formidable poet in both. However, she was not without her shortcomings, and from her personal diary, we learn that she was not the most skilled of koto players, "I remember how in the cool of the evening I used to play the koto to myself, rather badly; I was always worried lest someone were to hear me and realize that I was just adding to the sadness of it all!" (Bowring 133). Seeing as how courtiers were often judged by their skills, weakness in any artistic area would have been rather low brow. Lady Murasaki’s crowning achievement however, was her epic The Tale of Genji. In it, the best fictitional account of the life, love, and problems of the court nobles are illustrated. In the first chapter of The Tale of Genji, we bear witness to the relationship between the Emperor and Kiritsubo, his concubine. It is here we notice the nightly visitations by nobles to their mistresses and poetic correspondence between lovers. Deeper into The Tale of Genji, we are acquainted with the many loves of the protagonist Genji. Aside from being representative literature, The Tale of Genji gives a rare and unparalleled insight into Heian ideas. Alas, the delicacy of the Heian was destined to be turned over by changes in the sociopolitical landscape of Japan in the Kamakura.

    The lesser nobles, whose responsibility it was to maintain the estates of absentee nobles, soon grew discontent, raised armies, and took control themselves. Slowly but surely, the court began to lose power as military families such as the Taira and Minamoto came to power. As the court lost power, so did many of the old Heian ideas. In their stead came ideas of loyalty to one’s Lord, the concept of Bushido, and a general vigor which took hold of Japan, almost offsetting the relaxed pace of the Heian. Soon, as the court faded into almost total obscurity, a violent clash would take place between two powerful families, the Minamoto and Taira, for control of most of Japan. It is here most would assume that the flame of the Heian was extinguished, but that is far from the truth.

    After the initial success of the Taira in war against the Minamoto, the Taira themselves took up residence in the court capital. Here, they became engrossed in the ideas of Heian taste and culture. In fact, reading the Heike Monogatari, one finds plenty examples of the "softening" of the Taira. Reading in the ninth chapter of The Tale of Heike, we learn that the Taira soldiers’ mood’s in 1184 was fairly complacent. In fact, "the Heike felt as though they were kankucho birds trapped in eternal ice. They indulged in long, pathetic reminiscences about life in the capital, and tried to while away the interminable days with memories of how the willows on the east and west banks did not put forth leaves at the same pace…" (Course Pack, p. 50). This attention to such banal details is reminiscent of Sei Shonagon’s Pillow Book topics. It seems novel that the warlike Taira could be endeared to Heian fancies. As we continue through the ninth chapter of The Heike Monogatari we find more and more examples of Taira daintiness. In perhaps the most famous example, we find the Taira warrior, Atsumori, dressed like a court noble under his battle armor, "…with a lightly powdered face and blackened teeth…" (Course Pack, p.60). This is an extreme example of the assimilation of the Taira to certain ideals of the Heian. However, the Taira were not alone in their endearment to the Heian period. Their rivals the Minamoto themselves were also touched by the Heian. No greater a warrior than Yoshitsune himself was partially schooled in certain Heian skills, notably poetry. While on the run from Yoritomo, he recites the following lines to her on the spot:

Enviable indeed-
The homing goose
Cleaving the thick white clouds
On the Hokurikudo.

(McCullough 244)

    His wife was able to respond with a poem of her own at the moment as well. This poetic exchange is rather reminiscent of Genji exchanges between Yugao and his other lovers in The Tale of Genji. The fact that Yoshitsune, head general of the mighty Minamoto forces, architect of many famous victories, was able to recite poetry was a great indicator that the Heian period was not completely gone from the hearts and minds of the Japanese.

    Although the Kamakura came like the spring and melted away most of the ideas of Heian Japan, it is important to note that the ideals of the Heian did not totally die out in the Kamakura period. The gentle ideals of a passing era were appealing to those fierce warriors who were so well acquainted with the frailty of life; thus, did the Heian enjoy a prolonged existence throughout the early Kamakura period.
 
 

Bibliography

Bowring, Richard. Murasaki Shikibu: Her Diary and Poetic Memoirs. Princeton: Princeton
    University Press, 1982.

McCullough, Helen Craig. Yoshitsune: A Fifteenth-Century Japanese Chronicle.
    Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1966.

Morris, Ivan. The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon: Volume I. New York: Columbia
    University Press.