53･54･55 吉野五十七年（二･三･四）
（前略）
建武の中興に際して、弱冠十六歳でありながら、陸奥守に任ぜられたのは、北畠顕家
でありました。表面は陸奥守となっていますが、実は陸奥･出羽両国の鎮定を、その任務
としたのです。陸奥･出羽の両国と云えば、今の東北六県に当たり、範囲、極めて広大で
あり、遠く中央からかけ離れて、王化に浴する事少なく、北条氏滅亡の直後には、まだ
問題の多い地方であります。初め顕家は、之を御辞退申し上げましたが、後醍醐天皇は
、
「公家すでに一統しぬ。文武の道、二つなるべからず。昔は皇子皇孫、もしは執政の
大臣の子孫のみこそ、多くは軍の大将にもさされしか。今より武を兼ねて、藩屏（はん
ぺい）たるべし。」
と仰せられ、御みずから旗の銘を書いてたまわり、さまざまの武器をさえ与えられまし
たので、顕家は謹んでおうけ申し上げ、皇子義良親王をいただいて、任地へ下りました
。その出発に際しては、御前に召して勅語をたまわった上、特に御衣及び御馬を授けら
れました。任地は多賀城、即ち今の塩釜の近くですが、ここに赴任してより一年半、両
国は皆その威に靡き、その徳に服しましたので、建武元年のくれには、勲功の賞として
従二位を授けられました。十七歳の従二位も目覚ましい事ですが、翌年には十八歳で鎮
守府将軍を兼ねる事になりました。（中略）
同様に不思議なのは、北畠親房の運命です。親房はこの時四十六歳、先年その御輔導
申し上げた世良親王のおかくれを歎いて大納言の栄官を御辞退申し上げ、出家しまして
後の八年間、表面には立たなかったのでしたが、今や長男の顕家は戦死し、次男の顕信
は任地へ下れず、楠木も、新田も、中興の諸将大抵戦死して、賊の勢いのみ盛んである
のを見て、すでに出家の身でもあり、年も取っているののの、慨然として回復の計画を
立て、賊軍討伐の指揮をとるに至りました。
親房が先ず入ったのは、筑波山のふもと小田の城でした。賊軍の包囲を受けて奮戦し
ているうちに、翌年後醍醐天皇おかくれになり、義良親王御譲りを受けて御位につかせ
給うたとの連絡を受け、感慨に堪えずして筆を執り、神皇正統記を著しました。延元四
年の秋の事です。その翌年には、また職原抄を作りました。そのうちに賊将高師冬、し
きりに小田城に迫り、城主小田治久も之に通ずるに至りましたので、親房は興国二年十
一月、関の城へ移り、大宝その他の城と力を合わせて賊を防ぎましたが、その間に再び
神皇正統記を書き直しました。そして興国四年十一月、城陥るに及んで伊勢に帰り、吉
野へ参って、朝廷の中心に立ち、大政を御輔佐申し上げ、正平九年に六十二歳で亡くな
りました。
後村上天皇の御代、一時賊の勢い盛んで吉野の行宮（あんぐう）を焼くに至りました
が、朝廷が之に屈する事なく、足利の誘惑を退け、やがて一時足利高氏の降参を許して
、いわゆる北朝を廃し、京都を取り戻して、しばし御心をお慰め申し上げる事の出来ま
したのは、親房の雄大なる計画の現れでありましょう。
最も重大なのは、神皇正統記であります。それは一口に云えば、我が国の歴史を書か
れたものでありますが、ただ出来事を並べたと云うのでは無く、日本と云う国は、どう
して建設せられたのであるか、この国の理想は何であり、本質は何であるか、建国以来
二千年を通じて、その基底に流れている精神はいかなるものであるか、それを説いたも
のであります。親房は初め之を、まだ御年若くして情勢の最もむつかしい時に御位につ
かせ給うた後村上天皇、及びその側近にお仕えしている人々の参考に供したのでしょう
が、之を愛読して、以て心の支えとしているのが、吉野の朝臣のみでなく、関や大宝の
城を守って、賊軍と戦っている官軍の将士がまた、之を読んで感激しているのを知るに
及んで、更に手を入れて之を修訂したのでありました。即ち本書は、吉野の君臣にとっ
てだけで無く、ひろく各地の官軍将士にとりましても、心の支えであったのです。そし
てそれは吉野五十七年の間だけでなく、その後戦国の間にも、ひろく全国各地で、写さ
れもし、読まれもして、非常に珍重せられ、やがて江戸時代になりますと、すぐれたる
学者は、この書によって、日本国の本質を理解し、そしてそれが明治維新を導き出して
きたのです。一冊の書物が、一国の運命を担う事、往々にして人を驚かせます。ドイツ
のフィヒテ（Fichte）などもその一例ですが、我が国における神皇正統記などは、その
最も目覚ましい例です。
神皇正統記は、かように大切な書物ですから、ここに少し選び出して、掲げておきま
しょう。先ず後嵯峨天皇の条より。
「神は人を安くするを本誓とす。天下の万民は皆神物なり。君は尊くましませど、一
人を楽しましめ、万民を苦しむる事は、天も許さず、神も幸せぬいはれなれば、政の可
否に随ひて、御運の通塞あるべしとぞ覚え侍る。まして人臣としては、君をたふとみ、
民をあはれみ、天にせぐくまり、地にぬき足し、日月の照すを仰ぎても、心のきたなく
して光に当らざらん事をおぢ、雨露の施すを見ても、身のただしからずして恵に漏れん
事をかへりみるべし。朝夕に長田狭田の稲の種をくふも皇恩なり。昼夜に生井栄井の水
の流を呑むも神徳なり。是を思ひも入れず、あるに任せて欲をほしいままにし、私を先
として公を忘るる心あるならば、世に久しき理侍らじ。」
次に後醍醐天皇の条より。
「およそ王土にはらまれ、忠をいたし命を捨つるは、人臣の道なり。必ずこれを身の
高名と思ふべきにあらず。しかれども後の人をはげまし、其の跡をあはれみて賞せらる
るは、君の御政なり。下として競ひ諍ひ申すべきものにあらぬにや。（中略）このごろ
のことわざには、一たび軍にかけあひ、或は家子郎従、節に死ぬる類あれば、我が功に
おきては日本国を給へ、もしは半国を給ひても足るべからずなど申すめる。実にさまで
思ふ事にあらじなれど、やがてこれより乱るる端ともなり、また朝威の軽がろしきも推
しはかるるものなり。”言語は君子の枢機なり”といへり。あからさまにも君をないが
しろにし、人におごることは、あるべからぬ事にこそ。先にもしるし侍りし如く、堅き
氷は霜を踏むよりいたる習なれば、乱臣賊子と云ふものは、その始、心言葉をつつしま
ざるより出で来るなり。世の中のおとろふると申すは、日月の光のかはるにもあらず、
草木の色のあらたまるにもあらじ。人の心の悪しくなりゆくを、末世とはいへるにや。
」
神皇正統記は、かような教が載せてあって、大切な書物ですから、是非皆さん読んで下さい。
次に職原抄は、我が国の官職制度を記されたものですが、これは非常にひろく読まれ
、写され、更に講義せられ、注釈せられたものです。それは当時の武士、大抵官職を誇
称したでしょう。たとえば楠木正行を攻めた賊軍、高師直は武蔵守、その弟師泰は越後
守、そして之に参加する者、甲斐守、駿河守、左京大夫、刑部大輔、判官、左衛門尉等
を称しています。賊軍でさえこの通りでしたから、武士と云う武士で、官職を誇称しな
い者は無かったでしょう。しかも彼等は、その官職がもともと何を意味するかをしらな
かったでしょう。そこで職原抄の講義を聴いて、その意味を理解し、また上下の序列を
知ろうとしてのでした。それがまた、大きな結果を生じましたのは、しらべて見れば一
切の官職は、天皇の授け給うものであり、将軍といえども天皇によって任免せられるも
のである事が分かってきたからであります。そして国民の大多数が気楽に自称している
左衛門、右衛門、左兵衛、右兵衛などが、実は皇居の護衛をその本務とするものである
事に気がついてきますと、そこに国民としての自覚が生じてきたのです。
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53･54･55 Fifty-seven Years of the Yoshino Court [2] [3] [4]
(an omission)
Kitabatake Akiie was appointed Governor of Mutsu (Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi and
Fukushima Prefectures) at the time of the Imperial Restoration of the Kenmu Era
(1334), even though he was only 16 years old. However, the governorship was a
formality; his actual duty was to bring peace to the areas of Mutsu and Dewa,
which correspond to the modern six prefectures of the north-eastern (Touhoku)
part of Honshuu Ialand of Japan. This is a vast strip of land remote from the
capital, where imperial influence scarcely, and immediately after the fall of the Houjou
clan, it was filled with unrest. At first, Kitabatake Akiie declined the
appointment, But Emperor Go-Daigo states:
"The country is already united under the court and no distinction should be made
between the military and the civil. In ancient times many princes and other
members of the imperial family, as well as descendants of the great courtier
families, took command of armies. These same people must once again take up
arms and become the bulwark of the court."
The Emperor then took a brush and wrote the inscription for the battle banner.
This and various weapons were given to Kitabatake Akiie, upon which he
accepted the appointment. With Prince Yoshinaga as the Imperial
Commander-in-Chief, he set out to the north. As he was about to leave, the
Emperor summoned him and gave him his own garment and a horse as a special
gift. His destination was Taga Castle located near Shiogama (in Miyagi
Prefecture).
After a year and a half, both provinces succumbed to his noble military and
civil rule. As a prize for this achievement, he, at age 17, was awarded the
Second Rank, Minor, in itself an impressive reward. Next year at age 18, he was
also appointed General of the Headquarters for Racification and Defence. (an
omission)
Equally wondrous was the fate of Kitabatake Chikafusa. He was then 46 years
old. Previously he was the tutor of the late Prince Yonaga. Mourning the death
of the Prince, Kitabatake Chikafusa declined the appointment to Major
Counseller and entered into religion, and for 8 years he retierd and did not
appear in public.
However, his eldest son Akiie had died in battle, and the second son Akinobu
was unable to report to his appointment in the north. The clan leaders of the
Kusunoki, Nawa, Nitta, and all other imperial loyalists who worked for the
Imperial Restoration of the Kenmu Era (1334) had died, while the rebels were
gaining strength. Seeing this, in spite of his religious convictions and
advanced age, Kitabatake Chikafusa resolutely assumed leadership again and set
out to restore imperial rule and punish the rebels.
First, Kitabatake Chikafusa entered into Oda Castle at the foot of Mt. Tsukuba
in Ibaraki Prefecture. In the next year, while fighting under siege, Emperor
Go-Daigo passed away. Informed that Prince Yoshinaga had ascended to the
throne to succeed his father, Kitabatake Chikafusa was so moved that he started
writing A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns (Jinnou Shoutouki). This was the
autumn of the 4th year of the Engen era (1339). In the following year, he wrote
An Abstract of the History of the Court Appointments (Shokugenshou).
Meanwhile, the rebel commander Kou no Morofuyu closed in on Oda Castle, and
the castleowner Oda Haruhisa sided with him. Kitabatake Chikafusa moved to Seki
Castle in the 11th month of the 2nd year of the Koukoku era (1341). Joining
armies with other castles such as Taihou Castle, he was again under siege. It
was during this time that he edited and revised A Chronicle of Gods and
Sovereigns (Jinnou Shoutouki).
In the 11th month of the 4th year of the Koukoku era (1343) his Seki Castle fell.
Thereupon Kitabatake Chikafusa returned to Ise, and reported to Mt.
Yoshino. He became the central figure in the Yoshino court, assisting the
Emperors. He passed away in the 9th year of the Shouhei era (1354) at age 62.
After the passing of Empweoe Go-Daigo, during the reign of Emperor
Go-Murakami, the rebels burned the temporary imperial headquarters at Yoshino
to the ground. But the imperial court would not give in and rejected the
proposals made by the Ashikaga clan. Eventually, Ashikaga Takauji was permitted
to surrender temporarily to the imperial court. The so-called "imperial
northern court" was abolished for a time, and Kyouto returned to imperial
hands, which reassured the Emperor for a while. All this must have been the
realization of the grand plan laid out by the late Kitabatake Chikafusa.
His writing, A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns (Jinnou Shoutouki) was most
valuable. In brief, this is a book on the history of Japan. It is not a
sequential list of events. It discussed questions such as: Why was Japan
created ? What is the essential character of this nation ? Since its
foundation, what was the spirit that remained constant for two thousand years
of fistory ? Kitabatake Chikafusa wrote this originally for the young Emperor
Go-Murakami who ascended to the throne in most difficult times. It was also
meant for his subjects who served alongside. However, the book was read not
just by the imperial subjects of the Yoshino court. The loyalists under siege
elsewhere, for instance at Seki Castle or Taihou Castle, were also greatly
inspired by this book. Kitabatake Chikafusa therefore edited and revised it,
and it raised and sustained the spirits of the people in the Yoshino court and
in other parts of the country. In the end, the book outlived the 57 years of
the Yoshino court. It was hand-copied and read widely during the ensuing
war-torn years, and was treasured by everyone.
During the Edo period (1603-1867), scholars were able to grasp the essential
character of the Japanese nation through this book, and this loyalist passion
eventually culminated in the Meiji Restoration of 1868. It is astonishing that
a single book can become the driving force of the destiny of a nation. A
similar illustration of this would be Fichre's writings in Germany. In Japan,
A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns (Jinnou Shoutouki) is a splendid example.
53･54･55a Fifty-seven Years of the Yoshino Court [2] [3] [4]
Because A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns (Jinnou Shoutouki) is an excellent
work, I will quote some parts here. The following was taken from the chapter of
Emperor Go-Saga (r. 1242-1246):
"The gods have pledged to succor the people, and in this sense the people of
the country all belong to the gods. Although the sovereign is sacred, heaven
will not permit and the gods will not favor having one person happy while the
people as a whole are caused to suffer. We can see, then, that the flourishing
or failure of an imperial reign depends on whether the conduct of government is
good or bad. How much more essential is it for the subject who serves the
throne both to revere his sovereign and to treat the people compassionately; to
bow down before neaven and walk softly on the earth; to look up at the shining
of the sun and the moon and, being aware of the impurity of his own heart, to
avoid exposing himself to that shining; and while observing the blessings of
nature in the rain and dew, to reflect upon his own unfitness to receive such
blessing.
The rice we daily eat is an imperial benefice, and the pure well water we
drink each day is a blessing from the gods. If one is not aware of this but
rather seeks only to satisfy his own cravings and, while forgetting the public
good, places self-interest first, he will not flourish long in this world."
Here is another excerpt from the chapter on Emperor Go-Daigo:
"It is the duty of the subject, born in this imperial land, to be loval to his
sovereign even to the point of sacrificing his life; he must not expect fame
and reward for such loyalty. The function of comforting and rewarding the
survivors of those killed in battle and of encouraging their descendants
belongs to the sovereign. It is totally imperor for there to be competition
below for reward on the part of the sovereign's subjects. - These days a popular
saying has it that if a warrior should enter into a single battle or suffer
the loss of a vassal he will demand that 'My reward should be all of Japan;
half the country will not be enough !' Of course, no one is really apt to make
such an absurd demand, yet the saying itself is a first step toward disorder
and is also an index to the weakening of imperial authority. It is said that
'words are the most valuable tool of the superior man (kunshi).' One should
not, even in jest, belittle one's lord or speak arrogantly to others. As I have
said before, the formation of solid ice begins when we first tread on frost.
Similarly, rebels and brigands get started in their evil ways through failure to be carefol
in thought and words. The decline of conditions in the world cannot be found in
variations in the shining of the sun and the moon nor in changes in the
coloring of plants and trees. The conditions of the later age arise from the
gradual nurturing of evil within people's hearts."
I strongly recommend A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns (Jinnou Shoutouki).
An Abstract of the History of the Court Appointments (Shokugenshou) is a
record of Japanese court appointments and duties. This was also widely read,
copied, and taught, because the warriors of the times exaggerated their court
appointments. For example, Kou no Moronao, the rebel who laid siege against
Kusunoki Masashige, called himself Governor of Musashi Province (Metropolatan
Toukyou, Saitama and Kanagawa Prefecture), and his younger brother Kou no
Moroyasu, Governor of Echigo Province (Fukui Prefecture). Their followers also
called themselfes Governor of Kai Province (Yamanashi Prefecture), Governor of
Suruga Province (Shizuoka Prefecture), Director-General of Left Capital,
Director-General of the Minidtry of Punishments, Lieutenant of the Ministry of
Messengers, or Lieutenant of the Gate Guards of the Left and so on. And these
were just the rebels. Of course other warriors must have been equally
pretentious,falsifying their court appointments. Furthermore, having no
experience in the imperial court in Kyouto, they must been ignorant of the
original duties of such appointments. By hearing the lectures on An Abstract of the
History of the Court Appointments (Shokugenshou), they tried to understand the
significance and ranring of the appointments. This study led to the discovery
that all appointments were made by the Emperor; even commanding major generals
were appointed or dismissed by the Emperor. They came to see that even
commonplace names such as Saemon, Uemon, Sahe-e or Uhe-e originally meant
"imperial guards" whose duty was to protect the Kyouto imperial palace. Knowing
this made them aware that they were actually all imperial subjects.
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少年日本史 (平泉澄)
The story of Japan （Hiraizumi Kiyoshi)
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