Japanese Warlord Played a Mean Game of Kickball

Oda Nobunaga, one of the most feared and powerful warlords in Japanese history, liked a good game of kickball. "Kickball?" you say. "Did it even exist 450 years ago?" Well, apparently it did.

Oda Nobunaga 1534-1582

According to the book, Japonius Tyrannus, kickball had been an aristocratic pastime since the late Heian period (794-1185) and surprisingly Nobunaga, a passionate falconer and sumo fan, displayed an interest in this surprisingly ceremonial sport.

Nobunaga actively involved himself with the court such as in 1575 when he organized a match between leading court nobles at the grounds of the temple Shokokuji. Nobunaga used these matches as well as the Tea Ceremony to establish or strengthen political bonds, or to associate with people from outside the warrior class: with merchants in the case of tea, and with nobles in the case of kickball.

The kickball matches also allowed Nobunaga to famliarize himself with the various court nobles. At the time, one of the players, Asukai Masanori (1520-94), served as Crown Prince Sanehito's special envoy to Nobunaga. The Asukai family had earned a dominant position as 'masters of kickball' in the Muromachi period (1336 to 1573), thanks to the sponsorship of successive emperors and the Ashikaga shoguns. Nobunaga continued this shogunal sponsorship of the Asukai, even calling himself Masanori's 'kickball pupil' on one occasion.

I think it would have been pretty cool to have played kickball with the great warlord Nobunaga. I would be careful to always let him win of course.

As Toranosuke correctly pointed out below in his comment, the sport is not like today's version of kickball. The ancient sport is called kemari and is more like the game of hackysack or juggling a soccer ball. There were varying numbers of players, between 2 and 12, and the ball was passed between players. There was no tackling or vying for the ball and the game was not competitive apparently but was more dignified and ceremonious however it did (and does) require a great amount of skill.

The Origin of Za in Japan

Did you know that trade guilds in Japan originated as early as the twelfth century or earlier. Trade guilds derived from an early form of association called a za which means a seat and probably signified a place reserved at ceremonies or a market for a group of persons having the same interest. Early za were social groups that developed into occupational groups such as dancers, musicians, and other entertainers that performed for court nobles, powerful religious institutions, or manorial lords. This custom actually has persisted into modern times such as a company of actors, the Kabuki-za.

By the fifteenth century some mercantile za were organized by market rather than just commodity for example in certain towns. However, in the bigger cities such as Kyoto the za still tended to be organized by specific commodity and were usually concentrated in a special quarter of the city. This can still be seen today in certain cities in modern Japan such as the Zaimoku-za (timber merchants) quarter of Kamakura or the famous Gin-za (silver merchants) of Tokyo.

In their earlier forms, these organizations were not independent but were subordinate to a monastery, shrine, or a manor lord for which they served. But eventually these traders began to form quasi-independent za not only for their own protection but to increase their power and their profits. With this increasing power, many za began to have a monopolistic character by preventing competitors from obtaining raw materials within a certain area. A very powerful early za were the salt dealers of the Yamato province which controlled the salt wholesalers, retailers, and pedlars of the entire province. Eventually by the fifteenth century the za made powerful enemies by abusing their privileges and were forced to give way to other forms of mercantile organization such as "free" markets and guilds established by Oda Nobunaga.

Another famous za that I am sure most of you are familiar that has survived into modern Japan is the Yaku-za. This modern za has interests in many kinds of businesses and trades.

By the 18th and 19th centuries, the trade guilds and associations were transformed into more modern forms of business with the growth of the zaibatsu and keiretsu monopolies of the 20th century.

Reference:

Sansom, George (1961). A History of Japan: 1334-1615.

Japanese castle ramparts constructed in California

I came across this website today called Stoneworld.com that has an interesting story regarding the construction of replica Japanese castle stone ramparts at a park here in California. The stone ramparts were constructed in January of this year in Ventura, a small city of about 100,000 people 2 hours north of Los Angeles. Master stonemasons came from Japan to California to supervise their North American counterparts in the construction of a traditional Japanese structure — castle ramparts — using ancient but still viable techniques.

They used nearly 400 tons of sandstone, a very common stone here in Southern California. This is different from the type of stone used in castle building in Japan which I believe is granite. If someone knows for sure the specific type of stone used in Japan, please let me know. The Japanese stonemasons used a traditional method of splitting the stones called mame-ya.

The article talks about Auchi castle, the magnificent castle built by the great warlord Oda Nobunaga at the height of his power. Azuchi was was of the grandest castles in Japanese history, rivaling or exceeding Osaka or Edo castle in grandeur. Oda Nobunaga is infamous for his destruction of the Buddhist temple complex on Mt. Hiei. The warrior monks from Mt. Hiei had long been a dangerous thorn in the side of Nobunaga. In 1571 Nobunaga dealt with the warrior monks in a most brutal way, laying waste to everything and everyone on Mt. Hiei, killing everyone who did not escape. However, Nobunaga did find something he truly appreciated on Mt. Hiei, very well built stone walls. The walls were apparently built by a community of stonemasons who lived at the foot of Mt. Hiei and known as the Anoh. The Anoh were originally brought from Korea to Japan in the 6th century and later it was the Anoh stonemasons who helped construct Nobunaga's Azuchi castle in 1579. Unfortunately for Nobunaga, he would be dead by 1582 and his beautiful castle burned to the ground after being completed only three years prior.

Azuchi Castle ruins

According the Stone World article, there still lives a family at the foot of Mt. Hiei who carry on the traditional way of stone working. Jyunji and Suminori Awata are father and son 14th and 15th generation stonemasons. The Awatas were even commissioned to help stabilize the stone rampart remains of Azuchi Castle according to the article. It was the Awata Construction Company that was incentive for the Ventura California project. The article has additional interesting information about the Awata's and their trade.

Samurai Skater

The Japanese figure skating champion Oda Nobunari has had a strong opening going into the Olympic season. He has won his two Grand Prix events - Trophée Bompard in mid October and Samsung Anycall Cup of China last weekend - with strong performances.

Some of you may recognize his family name.

Nobunari is the 17th descendant of famous Japanese warlord Oda Nobunaga and so has samurai blood in his veins. "Since at least him, all male descendants have the syllable 'Nobu' in their first name," the 2006 Four Continents Champion explained (actually Nobunaga's father Nobuhide also had this spelling).

Nobunari is considered to be one of the contenders at the upcoming Vancouver Olympics.

Goldenskate.com

Two Katen no Shiro trailers

Another Katen no Shiro teaser

Movie about Nobunaga's Azuchi castle

Here is a teaser for the movie Katen no Shiro which is about the construction of Japanese warlord Oda Nobunaga's (1534-82) grand and magnificent Azuchi castle. Apparently this movie was released on September 12th. Has anybody seen it?

From the teaser, it looks pretty amazing. I wish I could see it but I would need English subtitles. Who knows when that would happen. The well-known actor Toshiyuki Nishida plays a lead role in the film. Anybody familiar with Japanese television will recognize him. The movie website is here.

Azuchi castle was built by Nobunaga to be a symbol throughout Japan of his growing power. Azuchi was not the typical rugged and foreboding castle of the time but was built lavishly to impress. The castle was located near Kyoto and took three years and thousands of laborers and artists to build. It was completed in 1579 as Nobunaga was nearing the height of his power and with national hegemony within his sights. Unfortunately the castle was destroyed only three years later in 1582 by Nobunaga's assassin Akechi Mitsuhide (or possibly was burned by looting townspeople or another theory that it was burned by one of Nobunaga's sons).

Warlords and Tea Ceremonies

The art of the tea ceremony has a long history in Japan going back many hundreds of years and practiced among the cultured nobility and the imperial family. But did you know that the tea ceremony was extremely popular among some of the most feared warlords in Japanese history.

Probably the most feared warlord of them all was Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582) who had a great passion for the tea ceremony. Nobunaga did not just simply participate in the ceremonies but also had a great desire to collect the most incredible tea utensils, meibutsu, as well as how to use them expertly. Nobunaga received instruction in the art of tea from the greatest masters including Imai Sokyu, Tsuda Sogyu, and Sen no Rikyu.

For Rikyu, this association meant fame and fortune, and for Nobunaga it brought qualification as a man of culture. Each used the other to increase his own prestige.

Nobunaga valued he's tea utensils immensely. A sign of how much Nobunaga valued his great general Toyotomi Hideyoshi is revealed after Nobunaga rewarded him with twelve of his famed tea pieces. On the first day of the sixth month of 1582, Oda Nobunaga held a grand tea party at the Honnoji temple in Kyoto, having brought with him several dozen of his most precious tea implements to show an assembly of leading nobles and lords of the land. But before the next day had dawned, Nobunaga was dead, the victim of one of his general's, Akechi Mitsuhide. Both Nobunaga and his meibutsu were devoured by the flames that destroyed the temple in which he was staying.

Source:

Warlords, Artists, and Commoners

Rikyu

Excellent movie. This movie is about Japan's most famous tea master, Sen no Rikyu. Rikyu lived at the end of the 16th century and the end of the turbulent period of war, sengoku jidai. Rikyu became the tea master to the powerful national unifiers Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi. But Rikyu was not just a tea master, he also gained political influence as the confidant and cultural mentor to Hideyoshi.

Rikyu's relationship with Hideyoshi is one of the epic stories in Japanese history with a tragic ending. If you are not familiar with this historical time period or Sen no Rikyu then the movie may not interest you. But if you do, then it is a good movie to watch.

Akira Kurosawa's Kagemusha

This weekend I watched Kurosawa's samurai classic Kagemusha. Kagemusha is about the fall of the great Takeda clan at the end of the warring states period. The great clan warlord Takeda Shingen, who was feared even by Oda Nobunaga, was killed in 1573. But the clan generals fearing that their enemies Tokugawa Ieyasu and Oda Nobunaga would take advantage of Shingen's death and attack the Takeda, decided to hide his death. They employed a double or shadow warrior which is what Kagemusha means.

It was interesting to watch this movie since I have been reading about this time period. I just finished reading the book by Stephen Turnbull about the battle of Nagashino which was the decisive battle that essentially destroyed the Takeda clan.

In the movie, the clan fooled both Nobunaga and Ieyasu by employing the double for almost three years. However, Shingen's son, Takeda Katsuyori, was impatient and tired of living in his father's shadow. Against the will of his late father and against the advice of his generals, Katsuyori marched his army into Ieyasu's domain and attacked Nagashino castle. Iyeasu and Nobunaga came to the aid of the castle with almost 40,000 soldiers, including 3,000 soldiers with matchlock firearms. The Takeda were famous for their mounted samurai but they were no match for Nobunaga's guns. The Takeda mounted samurai were annihilated. The battle of Nagashino was a turning point in samurai history where the gun completely changed how samurai warfare would be fought.

The final scenes of the movie were pretty grotesque as the extent of the slaughter was revealed. The movie is long but pretty good, especially if you like Japanese history.

Tenchijin: The Honnoji Incident

I just finished watching the Tenchijin Honnoji Incident episode. It was pretty intense. This taiga drama is the most intense and graphic of any I have seen, and that includes Shinsengumi which could have been much more violent but wasn't. I think the battle imagery in Tenchijin is pretty cool. The computer generated overview of the battles are pretty cool.

Nobunaga met his fate at the Honnoji temple. Too bad, I like Nobunaga. It would have been great to see him crush all his opponents and unify the country. I also like the actor that played the part of Oda Nobunaga. Interesting that the show implied that Nobunaga had a chance to ecape but chose to stay. My guess is that in reality, Mitsuhide would have had Honnoji completely surrounded preventing any chance of escape.

I liked the dream sequence where Uesugi Kenchin visits Nobunaga as Nobunaga is about to die where he tells him he does not have what it takes to be a good leader. Nobunaga does not have "tenchijin". I don't recall what tenchijin means. Can someone tell me again what is meant by "tenchijin?"

I especially liked how Nobunaga visited Mitsuhide as Mitsuhide was dying and told him the same. I guess it means that both Hideyoshi and Ieyasu do have tenchijin. The show was accurate in regards to how Mitsuhide died. They showed Mitsuhide being killed by a group of peasants. According the book Japonius Tyrannus, after Hideyoshi's army crushed Mitsuhide's army after the Honnoji Incident, Mitsuhide tried to escape but was attacked and killed by local peasants. Later, Hideyoshi collected Mitsuhide's head and presented it to Nobunaga at his grave.

The Murder of Oda Nobunaga

Oda Nobunaga, the great Japanese warlord of the late Sengoku period, was assassinated by one of his vassal generals. That traitor was Akechi Mitsuhide. There are many theories as to why Mitsuhide turned on his lord. Some have said it was to eliminate an evil dictator, others say that Nobunaga repeatedly insulted Mitsuhide while others have theorized it was only due to Mitsuhide's own greed for power and his own desire to rule Nobunaga's state, the tenka, himself. My guess it is probably the latter, especially following the assassination, Mitsuhide worked to quickly consolidate his power.

Nobunaga had ordered several generals to lead their armies west to assist Toyotomi Hideyoshi who was fighting the powerful Mori clan. Mitsuhide was one of those generals. However, Mitsuhide defied Nobunaga's order and instead marched his army of 13,000 to Kyoto where Nobunaga was staying at the Buddhist temple Honnoji where he often stayed while visiting Kyoto. Nobunaga was killed by Mitsuhide's army at the temple called Honnoji and the assassination has since then been called the Honnoji incident. Mitsuhide's army then hunted down and killed Nobunaga's heir, his oldest son, Nobutada.

However, Mitsuhide would not have much time to consolidate his power. While other Nobunaga vassals hesitated and Tokugawa Ieyasu retreated to his domain for safety, Toyotomi Hideyoshi quickly and decisively marched his army from the west where he had been fighting the Mori clan. The two armies of Hideyoshi and Mitsuhide met at the Battle of Yamazaki where Hideyoshi crushed Mitsuhide's forces. Hideyoshi collected the head of Mitsuhide and presented it at the grave of Nobunaga.

In episode 17 of the NHK drama Tenchijin, the groundwork is laid for Nobunaga's assassination. At the end of the episode, Nobunaga is shown gravely insulting Mitsuhide in front of his other generals. Clearly the NHK drama is reinforcing the theory that Nobunaga insulted Mitsuhide.

What is very, very interesting is the last scene of episode 17 where Mitsuhide is having tea with Tokugawa Ieyasu following the incident with Nobunaga. Mitsuhide clearly implies that "something" should be done with Nobunaga. What is so interesting is that the drama makes it appear that Ieyasu knows exactly what Mitsuhide is referring to but he says nothing. In the several books I have read about this time period, including Japonius Tyrannus, there is no reference to Ieyasu meeting with Mitsuhide shortly before the assassination nor any evidence that Ieyasu knew anything about Mitsuhide's plans. Just an interesting observation about the show.

Japanese Warlord Plays Kickball

Oda Nobunaga, one of the most feared and powerful warlords in Japanese history, liked a good game of kickball. "Kickball?" you say. "Did it even exist 450 years ago?" Well, apparently it did.

According to the book, Japonius Tyrannus, kickball had been an aristocratic pastime since the late Heian period (794-1185) and surprisingly Nobunaga, a passionate hunter and sumo fan, displayed an interest in this rather static and ceremonial sport.

Nobunaga actively involved himself with the court such as in 1575 when he organised a match between leading nobles at the grounds of the temple Shokokuji. Nobunaga used these matches as well as the Tea Ceremony to establish or strengthen political bonds, or to associate with people from outside the warrior class: with merchants in the case of tea, and with nobles in the case of kickball.

The kickball matches also allowed Nobunaga to famliarize himself with the various court nobles. At the time, one of the players, Asukai Masanori (1520-94), served as Crown Prince Sanehito's special envoy to Nobunaga. The Asukai family had earned a dominant position as 'masters of kickball' in the Muromachi period (1336 to 1573), thanks to the sponsorship of successive emperors and the Ashikaga shoguns. Nobunaga continued this shogunal sponsorship of the Asukai, even calling himself Masanori's 'kickball pupil' on one occasion.

I think it would have been pretty cool to have played kickball with the great warlord Nobunaga. I would be careful to always let him win of course.

Anybody watching Tenchijin?

Anybody watching the NHK drama Tenchijin? This is the current drama about the life of a samurai and his young lord of the Uesugi clan who he serves. It takes place at the end of the Warring States Period. I am watching it here in Los Angeles and we are currently on episode 16. I know those watching in Japan are a bit ahead so don't tell me what happens. However, I already am starting to know what is going to happen. That's because I am currently reading the book Japonius Tyrannus.

I am at the point in the book where I am now just passing roughly episode 16 of the TV show where Uesugi Kagekatsu has finally taken control of the Uesugi clan. In the book, I am now at the point where Oda Nobunaga with Tokugawa Ieyasu finally take head on the Takeda clan.

Nobunaga was actually disappointed with how Ieyasu fared against the Takeda. Not because Ieyasu failed but because it was too easy. Nobunaga was extremely disappointed with how easy the Takeda clan fell. Nobunaga wanted to personally crush the Takeda himself but Ieyasu defeated the Takeda too quickly.

On the TV show, Nobunaga is still a major player. But in the book, I am now starting the section that describes Nobunaga's murder in 1582 at the hands of one of his generals. This occurred just prior to Nobunaga beginning another major campaign against the powerful Mori clan of western Honshu. Nobunaga and Ieyasu also were planning to confront the Uesugi as well.

It will be interesting to see what happens after Nobunaga's death, both in the book and on the NHK show. I am interested to see how Hideyoshi assumed power rather than some of the other Nobunaga generals or Nobunaga's sons. I actually already have a biography of Hideyoshi that I will start immediately after finishing Japonius Tyrannus.

The drama Tenchijin is pretty good. But I do think there is a little too much crying and weeping going on among the young Uesugi samurai. Samurai shouldn't cry like they do.

Nobunaga's war against Shin Buddhists

The structure of the Shin Buddhist sect in Japan that we see today are a direct result of the actions of Oda Nobunaga 430 years ago.

Shin Buddhism is the dominate form of Buddhism in Japan today. Did you know that Shin Buddhism in Japan is split into an East or Higashi Honganji branch and a West or Nishi Hongwanji branch? Up until the late 16th century, the Shin sect was unified into one powerful sect of Buddhism. The Shin sect was one of the major power players in Japan at that time along with the powerful warlords. After Tokugawa Ieyasu's victory at the Battle of Segigahara, Ieyasu split the Shin sect in two in order to restrict their power.

What I did not know was that the East and West split actually began to happen in 1580 after Oda Nobunaga finally defeated the Shin Buddhist armies of the Ikko Ikki. Nobunaga's battles with the Ikko Ikki lasted for ten long years. The Ikko Ikki were led by their leader Kennyo who resided in the temple fortress Honganji near present day Osaka.

In 1580, after several years of resisting from their citadel stronghold Honganji, Kennyo finally realized that peace was the only way for their survival. Kennyo agreed to surrender the citadel to Nobunaga's forces. In May of 1580, Kennyo retreated from Honganji with a small party of followers a full three months before Nobunaga's deadline for surrender. During that time, Kennyo entrusted the Honganji to his son Kyonyo.

Kennyo was convinced that his Shin sect would be completely destroyed by Nobunaga if they continued to resist, but a rival group centered around Kyonyo were strongly opposed to vacating the Honganji temple fortress and were determined to make one final stand. Kyonyo and his followers were reluctant to hand over what had been hallowed ground and they distrusted Nobunaga. However, Nobunaga's army slowly squeezed Honganji, isolating it from the outside world, and gradually increased the military pressure on Kyonyo.

Finally, Kyonyo also realized the futility in resisting and surrendered in September of 1580. According to the book, Japonius Tyrannus, Kyonyo was heavily at odds with his father after these events. Kennyo disowned his son Kyonyo and appointed a younger son as his successor instead, causing a family rift that would ultimately lead to the division of the Honganji into a western and an eastern branch under Ieyasu. The eastern branch was led by Kyonyo while the western branch was led by Kennyo's third son Junnyo.

Oda Nobunaga and Tokugawa Ieyasu

The great warlords Oda Nobunaga and Tokugawa Ieyasu had a long and complicated alliance with each other until Nobunaga's assassination in 1582. Although Nobunaga was the senior and more powerful warlord during that time, their relationship was unique in that Ieyasu did not appear to act as a subordinate vassal to Nobunaga.

Nobunaga made peace with Ieyasu who was the new power in Mikawa province. It was a far-sighted alliance that secured Nobunaga's eastern flank which allowed him to concentrate on his conquests Mino, Nagashima, and Ise provinces and eventually his march on Kyoto. The alliance between Nobunaga and Ieyasu helped them in their efforts against other powerful warlords during that time such as Takeda Shingen and Uesugi Kenshin.

Although they both benefited from their relationship of cooperation, there was a dark side to the coalition between Nobunaga and Ieyasu. The most famous and shocking is that of the forced suicide of Ieyasu's first and formal wife, Lady Tsukiyama, together with their oldest son, Matsudaira Nobuyasu. Nobuyasu had married Nobunaga's eldest daughter Tokuhime in 1567. Initially, the marriage appears to have been a happy one, and the couple had two daughters.

However, tension between Nobuyasu and Tokuhime slowly mounted as years went by, apparently due to the intrigues of Nobuyasu's mother, Tsukiyama. The couple eventually ended up living in complete disharmony. In 1579, Tokuhime sent her father a letter accusing her husband and his mother of conspiring with the Takeda against the interests of the house of Oda. Nobunaga took the accusation very seriously, and drew a drastic but logical conclusion:

Ieyasu had to restore order to the house--which meant that Nobuyasu and Lady Tsukiyama had to die.

Ieyasu now faced an agonizing dilemma: either he sacrificed his wife and son, or, if he was not prepared to do so, put his partnership with Nobunaga on the line. The first option would be a great personal tragedy, but to take the latter course would jeopardize the further existence of the entire house of Tokugawa, and might undo everything he had achieved over the past two decades.

At the end of what must have been long and painful deliberations, Ieyasu condemned his eldest son and his first wife to death. Ieyasu, it seems, was prepared to pay a high price for his alliance with Nobunaga.

Japonius Tyrannus by Jeroen Lamers

Oda Nobunaga

I have just started reading a book about Oda Nobunaga. The book is called Japonius Tyrannus and is by Jeroen Lamers. So far through the first 40 pages, the book is pretty interesting. If you are not familiar with Oda Nobunaga, he was one of the most powerful warlords in Japanese history. He lived near the end of the sengoku era, the Warring States period (1467-1568) in Japan. Nobunaga is often called the first of the three great unifiers of Japan, the other two being Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu.

Nobunaga

Oda Nobunaga (1534-82), one of the best-known figures in Japanese history, dominated the political scene in Japan between 1568 and 1582 as he gradually conquered the country's central region and initiated a process of military and political unification. The book is a chronological narrative and provides a thorough analysis of his political and military career. Nobunaga is often considered to be a tyrant and a dictator. It appears that the book is attempting to reveal Nobunaga in a different light. However, there is little doubt that Nobunaga was a ruthless warlord.

Nobunaga laid the groundwork for national unification by conquering much of central Japan and by overthrowing the Ashikaga Shogun after Nobunaga marched his large army into Kyoto. Nobunaga was murdered by one of his generals in 1582 before he could complete his dream of unifying the nation. One of Nobunaga's other generals, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, avenged his lord by hunting down and killing his assassin. Hideyoshi then proceeded to take control and eventually achieved Nobunaga's goal of unifying all of Japan under his rule. Upon Hideyoshi's death, Ieyasu assumed power by defeating all other rivals and declaring himself shogun in 1603.

The end of the sengoku period is a very interesting time in Japanese history, maybe one of the most significant time periods. The end of over 100 years of civil wars led to 250 years of peace under the Tokugawa shoguns. Much of Japanese culture and ideas we see today were shaped by these events and the ensuing years of peace. Unfortunately I have not found many books on the three great unifiers, Nobunaga, Hideyoshi of Ieyasu. There are a few books and I plan on reading them next.