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1; My personal impression this time of 'Chushingura'

'Kanadehon Chushingura' is a very popular kabuki play. This play has even a legend that it would make a hit regardless of any economical situation, even if it were presented in a serious economic depression. I have no idea if it made some economical effect this time, but there was the prime minister Koizumi Junichiro there as an audience when I went to Kabukiza Theater. This play has 10-act, and a very long story. I watched a part of this very long drama this time, and I will write about it.

Act-5 and 6 are an episode of Hayano Kanpei who is an ex-retainer of lord Enya. He couldn't become a member of the vendetta actually. However, he shows one of the typical persons as a lord-less retainer.

I expected Sadakuro's performance the best this time. Sadakuro who is a bad guy is killed by Kanpei at Act-5. When Sadakuro is killed, his blood drops from his mouth to his knee. He makes his black kimono short with a belt, so audiences can see his knee clearly. His knee is very white, and his red blood drops to it. Black kimono, white knee and red blood. . . It is very beautiful, isn't it? I have watched Hashinosuke's Sadakuro before, and he was very beautiful. However, Shinjiro performed as Sadakuro this time, and he looked just a robber, unfortunately. I think that a bad guy should be beautiful on the stage. The immoral aesthetics is a soul of kabuki.

I have dissatisfaction on Act-6. Kanpei killed Sadakuro who killed Yoichibei. Although it was his mistake, Kanpei stole the purse from Sadakuro after that, so he can't escape from his crime as a robber. Yagoro and Kazuemon think that Kanpei did a vendetta of his father-in-law Yoichibei at the result. But I think that it wasn't a vendetta, because Kanpei didn't kill Sadakuro intentionally. It was just a mistake. Kanpei has no suspicion to clear. So I can't accept this Act-6 regardless of any performance of actors. Sorry.

Hayano Kanpei is Kayano Sanpei in real. After his lord had done suicide, Sanpei's father forced him to serve to another lord. Sanpei would like to do the vendetta, so he was cornered, and he did suicide finally. So I think that Kanpei must have done suicide anyway.

Oboshi Yuranosuke who is the main character of 'Chushingura' appears on the stage first on Act-7 this time. Yuranosuke is planning the vendetta very carefully, but he makes a careless mistake when he reads a secret letter from Kaoyo-gozen who is a wife of lord Enya. Kichiemon performed as Yuranosuke, and I felt that Kichiemon could have done everything better than Yuranosuke. I have no idea if it is fortunate or unfortunate as an actor.

Okaru who Tamasaburo performed is very lovely. Tamasaburo is now the best kabuki actor who performs a noble woman or a prostitute. Every time he is the best on the stage, and I felt that he is the best geisha as Okaru this time.

I have nothing to say about Act-11. I think that everyone could enjoy the Japanese traditional fighting scene. At its ending, the 47 ex-retainers shouted their victory. When I watch that scene, I always recall that they are killed in the near future. Anyway, I hope that everyone knows that it was cruel at least.

2; 'Chushingura', as a real incident

This play is based to a historical incident that happened at Edo Castle in 1701, and it caused the famous vendetta in 1702. At that time, Japan had the Tokugawa Shogunate Government and there was the Imperial Court at the same time. Emperor sent an imperial messenger to the shogunate government every year, and Asano Takuminokami, lord of Ako, was in charge of seeing to the messenger's comfort and entertainment while he stayed in Edo (Tokyo) in 1701.

Kira Kozukenosuke was the most important lord who was in charge of the ritual matters of the shogunate government. Kira should have given advices to Asano, but Kira didn't take care of Asano. Moreover, Kira gave a harassing to Asano. Actually, nobody knows its real reason that Kira harassed Asano. However, that was enough that Asano tried to kill Kira at the Edo Castle.

March 14, 1701, Asano tried to kill Kira with his sword at the Edo Castle. But Asano couldn't kill Kira, because Kajikawa Yosobei, a retainer of a shogun, stopped him. Kira was given just a small wound on his forehead. Asano was restricted right away, and the shogunate government ordered him to do the ritual suicide, harakiri. The incident happened at 14:00, and Asano did the ritual suicide at 17:00 on the same day. It was very speedy. And Kira wasn't given any punishment then.

After that, Asano's feudal land Ako was forfeited, and all his retainers became lord-less retainers. Some of them planned the vendetta of their lord Asano, and Oishi Kuranosuke who was the chief retainer of Asano led them. That incident gave a strong impression to people at that time, and they expected the vendetta. The ex-retainers had been planning the vendetta secretly, and they did it in December 14, 1702.

The 47 ex-retainers attacked Kira's mansion at the snowy midnight. It was a surprise raid completely. There were about 40 retainers of Kira in order to guard their lord Kira at the mansion. As a result, 16 of them were killed, and 22 were wounded. If the 47 ex-retainers were the loyal retainers, the retainers of Kira were also the loyal retainers. Anyway, no ex-retainer was killed at the time. They searched for Kira, a person who had a small wound on his forehead that Asano gave to him. And they could kill Kira finally.

After they killed Kira, they brought his severed head to Sengakuji temple. Their lord Asano had been buried there. It was already next morning, and people applauded of them on the way to the temple. The shogunate government restricted them with respect. The 47 ex-retainers were divided to four groups, and were confined leniently at the four lords' mansion for two months. Each lord treated them well. The shogunate government made meetings many times. And the shogunate government decided to order all of them to do the ritual suicide. In February 4, 1703, the 47 ex-retainers had done the ritual suicide at the four lords' mansion.

That surprised raid of the 47 ex-retainers was a shocking incident for people at that time. People thought that society was peace enough to say that it was boring. They were interested in this incident, and they enjoyed it very much. Basically, I think that a revenge or a vendetta cause nothing better. But it was one of the methods to revive honor before. The shogunate government killed the ex-retainers, and that showed that the government thought that it was terrorism. However, people called those ex-retainers the 47 loyal retainers after this. This incident was made into many novels, movies, stage plays, and TV dramas. Maurice Begirt choreographed it for a ballet which title is 'The Kabuki'. 'Kanadehon Chushingura' is one of them. And this play's title 'Chushingura' has become meaning this incident after that.

In this play, Asano Takuminokami appears on the stage as Enya Hangan, and Kira Kozukenosuke appears on the stage as Kono Morono. Both of Enya and Morono were real persons in the 14th century. Morono is thought that he plotted the downfall of Enya. Morono loved Enya's wife the same as this play. And he asked Yoshida Kenko to write a love letter to Enya's wife. Yoshida Kenko is well known as an author of 'Essay in Idleness'. However, his love letter was refused. Morono got angry with Kenko, and he fired Kenko as a literary man of his clan. After that, Kenko confined himself, because he was disappointed of everything. There is a theory that Kenko wrote that essay when he confined himself.

Sometimes a very able person becomes a monk in Japan, because he is too reasonable for the practical society. Kenko was also one of them. Anyway, 'Essay of Idleness' is very interesting. Kenko criticized many gossips at that time. It is very fortunate that we can enjoy it.

3; 'Chushingura', as an intelligence war

Asano Takuminokami was a feudal lord of Ako. The population of Ako was about 20,000, and bushi/samurai, the warriors, were 5% of the population at that time, so there were about 1,000 bushi in Ako. And about 300 of them were called retainers that meant both of bureaucrats and professional soldiers. 47 of them had done the vendetta.

This incident was made into many movies, stage plays, and TV dramas, but the other ex-retainers weren't described well ordinary except the 47 ex-retainers. But it is impossible to think that the vendetta was planned by the 47 ex-retainers only. The other ex-retainers also must have been interested in the vendetta. If someone became a member of the vendetta, that meant he must die. Some of the ex-retainers could have had old parents, and some of them could have had many children who they should grow up. They had an individual reason that was serious enough not to become a member of the vendetta. And I think that they would have concerned to the vendetta by their own methods.

Oishi Kuranosuke, the chief retainer of Asano, thought that it was the most important matter to gather information about Kira and to keep the secret. They had gotten even the sketch plan of Kira's mansion. After Asano did the ritual suicide, Kira was cautious against the vendetta. But Kira didn't know when the ex-retainers of Asano intended to attack.

At that time, Tokugawa Tsunayoshi was the fifth shogun of the Tokugawa Shogunate Government, and he had an attendant Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu. Tsunayoshi was well known as a gay, and he had loved Yoshiyasu since he was a boy. Yoshiyasu had gotten power gradually, and he advised to Tsunayoshi to kill Asano right away, when that incident happened at Edo Castle. And many historical novels, and many guidebooks of Japanese history describe that Yoshiyasu had a secret intelligence organization. His agents must have been able, and they must have tried to know when the vendetta would be done.

In this play 'Kanadehon Chushingura', there is a spy Ono Kudayu. But there was no spy in the real history. The ex-retainers could keep the secret until that day. I think that it was its reason that the other 250 ex-retainers kept to silence. They must have never said what they had known. I'm sure that it isn't wrong to say that they had been fighting their intelligence war for a year and 9 months. People thought that the 47 ex-retainers were tragic persons. The vendetta was a difficult matter, but I think that it could have been more difficult to live as an ex-retainer also after that than the vendetta. Lord Asano was said to have loyal retainers, and I think that it was shown by the other 250 ex-retainers more obviously than the 47 ex-retainers.

4; Bushido, samurai spirit in 'Chushingura'

The population of bushi/samurai, the warriors, was 5% of sum of the population at that time. Before the Tokugawa Shogunate Government had started, bushi meant a combat officer as a professional soldier himself. However, after the society got peace, bushi became meaning both of a bureaucrat and a professional soldier. When someone said 'a retainer', it meant a bureaucrat usually, and it didn't mean always that he was a strong professional soldier. In Ako, it isn't wrong to say that almost retainers were local civil servants rather than soldiers. But they had to face to themselves as soldiers suddenly, when that incident had happened. I think that they must have been confused.

Commonly, bushido/samurai spirit means loyalty in order to obey a lord. But bushido in real means a strict moral of the ruling class. I think that it was also suitable to the moral of a civil servant. Each retainer of Asano was cornered to show his own bushido, and the 47 ex-retainers chose to die as a soldier. And most of the retainers chose to live. I think that both of them obeyed their own bushido. Basically, I think that a revenge or a vendetta cause nothing better. But it was one of the methods to revive honor before.

After the Meiji Restoration in 1868, the bushi class was abolished, and bushido has become not the moral of the ruling class anymore. After the bubble economy has burst, Japanese could have lost bushido as the moral to live again. I think that it was very unfortunate for Japanese. 'Kanadehon Chushingura' made me consider deeply what bushido is. If you were interested in bushido, I would recommended you to read 'BUSHIDO; The Soul of Japan' that was written by Nitobe Inazo. (2002,10,5)