Imagawa Ryoshun’s Nantaiheiki: Edited with Translation and Commentary. Part 1–2

Abstract

The article contains a description, typological characteristics, Russian translation and comments on the Nantaiheiki (Critisism of the Cronicle of Great Peace). Nantaiheiki was written in February 1402 by the Japanese politician and warlord Imagawa Ryoshun. Until now, it has not become an object of study in domestic oriental studies and has no Russian translation. The article analyzes the reasons for writing the manuscript and the goals pursued by its author. The translation of the text allows us to conclude that the Imagawa Ryoshun’s manuscript can be attributed to the medieval genre of family instructions for the military class (kakun, kaho), although it has some features that are not typical for them. Based on the translation, the author singles out three semantic parts in the manuscript: 1) information from the history of the Imagawa and Ashikaga families; 2) a description of the shortcomings of the Cronicle of Great Peace; 3) an explanation of the situation with Ryoshun’s participation in the rebellion of 1399–1400. A comparison of Imagawa’s comments with existing versions of the Taiheiki shows discrepancies in the description of details and allows us to assert that after his death the manuscript was repeatedly rewritten and supplemented. The article concludes that Nantaiheiki contains a reliable description of some fragments of the Imagawa family history and is of interest from the point of view of argumentation and moral assessments of the actions committed by the author himself and his contemporaries. However, it cannot be in any way considered as complete or reliable source representing the main events of the middle and second half of the 14th century.

Keywords:

Nantaiheiki, Imagawa Ryoshun, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, Ouchi Yoshihiro, Oei Disturbance