Grasscutter Prologue 4

First Published:

• Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi

Dan-no-Ura

The Genpei War, the great civil war of Japan (1180-1185), gets its name from the Chinese readings of the names of the two rival clans, the Genji (Minamoto) and the Heike (Taira).

The Taira controlled the west and the imperial court while the Minamoto were dominant in the east. In 1156, the Minamoto declared a revolt against the Taira which was soon crushed. As a result, the Minamoto family was almost exterminated. A few boys escaped, however, and when they grew to manhood, set out to avenge their clan. In 1180, minor outbreaks developed into a full-scale civil war. The leader of the Minamoto clan was Yoritomo. The Taira leader, Imperial Grandfather Kiyomori, died of a fever in 1181 and was succeeded by his son, Munemori, an incompetent whose own mother revealed that he was not a true Taira but the son of an umbrella merchant.

In 1182, Yoritomo's cousin, Minamoto Kiso no Yoshinaka, conquered Kyoto and set himself as shogun or military ruler. This enraged Yoritomo, who sent his younger half-brother, Yoshitsune, to retake the capital. After his defeat, Yoshinaka escaped with his wife, Tomoe Gozen, and a few retainers. They were ambushed and legend has it that Yoshinaka took his own life but refused to let Tomoe die with him. She killed some of the attackers and fled to a temple to become a nun.

While their enemies were fighting amongst themselves, the Taira fled south, taking the eight-year-old emperor Antoku. Yoshitsune hounded them until they made their final stand at Dan-no-Ura.

Again, I've taken a lot of liberties for the sake of the story. I have depicted a few events out of sequence and, for the sake of space, combined the actions of several people into one character. There are also many conflicting accounts of the battle, such as its date and time and the age of the emperor. In the case of conflicting resources, I've either chosen that which was best for the narrative or that which is agreed upon by most scholars.

Seagoing warfare was very similar to fighting on land in that there was no maneuvering or much naval strategy involved. Ships were, for the most part, commandeered ferry or fishing boats whose main purpose was to get the armies into bow range and then sword reach. The number of boats actually involved in this battle vary greatly with researchers; anywhere from less than fourteen hundred to more than four thousand.

Keiko or Kei-Chan is fictitious as is her early-morning conversation with the emperor's grandmother. This sequence was invented to reveal a bit of the backstory.

Taira Munemori was the younger "son" of Kiyomori, but upon the death of his older, more capable brother, Shigemori, became the Taira heir. He and his son, Kiyomune, were captured at Dan-no-Ura and were later put to death at Shinowara.

My depiction of Taira Tomomori is a conglomeration of personages. True, he was a great general who defeated the Minamoto in three separate battles, but it was the imperial diviner, Harenobu, who accompanied Munemori and forecast the omen of the dolphins. I suggested that Tomomori, disgusted with his lord's cowardice, forced Munemori overboard; however, it was the fault of some unnamed soldiers who "accidentally" pushed him as he stood in shock and fear, at a loss as to what to do. Tomomori fought bravely, but after hearing of his lord's capture, donned a double set of armor and, with his uncle, jumped into the sea.

The defection of Lord Taguchi Shigeyoshi was not unexpected. His loyalty fell under suspicion after his son, who was captured by the Minamoto, came to side with them and urged his father to do so also. Shigeyoshi not only took his son's advice but chose the time most disastrous to the Taira to do so.

Emperor Antoku's age at the time of his death was somewhere between six and ten. I showed him as eight years because that seems to be the most consistent among researchers and eight is a significant number to the Japanese. As stated in The Tale of the Heike, translated by Hiroshi Kitagawa and Bruce Tsuchida (Japan: University of Tokyo Press, 1975), "The great serpent that was killed by Susano-o-no-Mikoto long ago at the upper part of the Higawa River must have borne a grudge because of the loss of the sword. Therefore with his eight heads and eight tails, he has entered into the eight-year-old emperor after eighty generations, and has taken the sword back to the depths of the sea." Antoku was succeeded by Emperor Go-Toba, his younger brother.

Yoshitsune is the most popular and most tragic of all the Japanese heroes. Always at his side was the warrior-monk Benkei, whom he had defeated in a duel and who had pledged eternal loyalty. Yoshitsune was twenty-one when he joined Yoritomo's rebellion, but his half-brother became increasingly jealous and wary of Yoshitsune, especially in light of the traitorous actions of their cousin, Yoshinaka. Soon after the triumph over the Taira, Yoshitsune became a hunted man and was forced to flee Yoritomo's assassins. He was finally cornered in the northern province, and, as Benkei gave his life to defend the stronghold, Yoshitsune killed his wife and children before committing suicide. He was thirty-one years old. However, according to legend, Yoshitsune did not die then. He escaped further north and is now honored by the aboriginal Ainu under the name "Gikyo-daimyo-jin." Others say that he made his way to Mongolia where Minamoto Yoshitsune (or "Genji-Kyo" in the Chinese reading) became Genghis Khan (1157-1226).

In 1192, Yoritomo was proclaimed Shogun and set about to form his own government. The Heian Period had ended and the Kamakura Era had begun. Military dominance of Japan would continue until the Meiji Restoration in 1868.

Bibliography:Prologues 1-4

My ultimate references for Japanese pre-history are: The Kojiki: Records of Ancient Matters, translated by Basil Hall Chamberlain (Boston: C.E. Tuttle & Co., 1981), and Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697, translated by William George Aston (Boston: C.E. Tuttle & Co., 1971).

Also used for the prologues:

The Japanese: People of the Three Treasures by Robert Newman (?: Atheneum, 1964); History of the Japanese from the Earliest Times to the End of the Meiji Era by Capt. F. Brinkley, R.A. (New York: The Encyclopedia Britannica Co., 1915 - given to me by Bob Iwamasa) contained both records of prehistory and the Genpei Wars, as well as a photo of the Shrine at Ise and a statue of Emperor Jimmu, upon which I based the visuals of Susano-o); Japanese Mythology by Juliet Piggott (New York: Hamlyn Publishing Group, 1969); Ancient Tales and Folklore of Japan by Richard Gordon Smith (New York: Studio Editions, 1995); Gods of Myth and Stone by Michael Czaja (New York: John Weatherhill, Inc., 1974) went into detail on the creation myth and Susano-o with an analysis of each act and artifact; Green Willow and Other Japanese Fairy Tales by Grace James (New York: Avenel Books, 1987) contains stories on Susano-o and the land of Yomi; The Book of the Samurai: The Warrior Class of Japan by Stephen R. Turnbull (New York: Arco, 1982) has woodcut prints of Yamato-Dake using Kusanagi, as well as Emperor Antoku and his grandmother; Myths and Legends of Japan by F. Hadland Davis (New York: Dover Books, 1992); Myths & Legends Series: China & Japan by Donald A. Mackenzie (London: Bracken Books, 1985) is part of their myths and legends series; and Vanishing Peoples of the Earth (Washington: National Geographic Society, 1969) contains a section entitled "Mysterious Sky People: Japan's Dwindling Ainu" by Sister Mary Inez Hilger.

Photos of the Temple of Ise can be found in:

The Lesson of Japanese Architecture by Jiro Harada (New York: Dover Books, 1985) and Japanese Folkhouses by Norman F. Carver, Jr. (Kalamazoo: Documan Press, 1984), a gift from Sergio Aragonés. Stan Hirtle gave me a photocopy from The Creators: A History of Heroes of the Imagination, which chronicles the Japanese use of wood in building, particularly in the Temple of Ise, and which found its way into last issue's story notes.

The visuals for Yamato-Hime were based upon Shinto temple maidens found in Festivals of Japan and A Look into Japan, both published in 1985 by Japan Travel Bureau, Inc.

The History of the Genpei War:

The Tale of the Heike, translated by Hiroshi Kitagawa and Bruce T. Tsuchida (Japan: University of Tokyo Press, 1975); The Ten Foot Square Hut and Tales of the Heike, translated by A.L. Sadler (Boston: C.E. Tuttle & Co., 1985); Genpei by Hideo Takeda is an art book chronicling the history of the war; Of Nightingales That Weep by Katherine Paterson (New York: Harper Trophy, 1989) is a very enjoyable, well-researched, young-adults novel; Yoshitsune is a Japanese television docu-drama chronicling the life of this hero and helped with the visuals of my story.

Books that contain chapters on the war:

The Samurai: A Military History by Stephen R. Turnbull (New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1977) devotes chapters to the rivalry between the Minamoto and the Taira clans in detail; Samurai Warriors by Turnbull (New York: Blandford Press, 1987); The Samurai: Warriors of Medieval Japan 940-1600 by Anthony J. Bryant (London: Osprey Press, 1989) also has many photographs and paintings, including Yoshitsune's and Benkei's armor: and Arms and Armor of the Samurai: The History of Weaponry in Ancient Japan by I. Bottomley and A.P. Hopson (New York: Crescent Books, 1988).

Additional war-related sources:

Historical and Geographical Dictionary of Japan by E. Papinot (Boston: C.E. Tuttle & Co., 1984); Dictionary of Japanese Culture by Setsuko Kojima and Gene A. Crane (Torrance: Heian International, 1991); Bushido, The Way of the Warrior: A New Perspective on the Japanese Military Tradition by John Newman (Leicester: Magna Books, 1989); Battles of the Samurai by Turnbull (New York: Arms and Armor Press, 1987) has a chapter on the Battle of Kurikara during the early days of the war; and Samurai Warfare by Turnbull (New York: Arms and Armor Press, 1996) has a section on naval warfare.

The great sea-battle of Dan-No-Ura will begin with the dawn. Ama-Gozen the Emperor's grandmother, and Kei-chan exchange their thoughts and concerns as they stand on a Heike ship; Benkei the warrior-monk and Lord Yoshitsune have a similar exchange as they wait on a Genji ship for the battle to commence.

The Emperor's uncle Munemori watches the battle as the morning passes, but the tide turns, and the battle begins to go against the Heike. By battle's end, most of the Heike are dead, the Genji have the Star-hand Mirror and the sacred Jewel, but Grasscutter was lost with the young Emperor, and none have recovered the sword from Shimonoseki Strait.

But the leader of the Conspiracy of Eight has a plan...

Last change: 19. May 2003

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Usagi Yojimbo, including all prominent characters featured in the stories and the distinctive likenesses thereof are trademarks of Stan Sakai and Usagi Studios. Usagi Yojimbo is a registered trademark of Stan Sakai. Names, characters, places, and incidents featured in this publication either are the product of the authors imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons (living or dead), events, institutions, or locales, without satiric content, is coincidental.