Transcript tale_of_heike_lecture

A+
97%
68
A
93%
65
A-
90%
62
B+
87%
59
B
83%
56
B-
80%
53
C+
77%
50
C
73%
47
C-
70%
44
D+
67%
41
D
63%
38
D-
60%
35
Mean
49.21
C
Medium
54.5
B-
Mode
66
A
Standard D
eviation
14.93
Define the following terms:
Prose that mixes Japanese and Chinese
Wakan konkōbun
readings of characters and words
together
祇園精舎の
鐘の聲
盛者必衰の
Gion shōja no
kane no koe
Jōsha hissui no
諸行無常の
響あり
ことわりをあらはす
Shogyō mujō no
hibiki ari
kotowari wo arawasu
娑羅雙樹の
花の色
S(h)ara sōju no
hana no iro
Define the following terms:
Biwa hōshi
Biwa priest; an itinerant
singer/performer who recited TheTale of
the Heike
Define the following terms:
Heike biwa
The biwa used to recite the stories of the
Heike
Define the following terms:
Heikyoku
The sung version of the stories of the
Heike
According to Shirane, how did people treat works like the Tales of
the Hōgen and Heiji Distrubances?
They were treated as chronicles (ki 記)
That is, they were taken to be providing historical facts akin to
Nihon Shoki
In what ways were war tales transmitted? Which method of
transmission relates to the terms above?
Read text (yomi-mono)
Recited material (katari-mono)
How many books does the Heike have? Which half of the book do
the readings belong to?
13; 12 books plus an Initiates book that tells of the fate of
Kenreimon’in, the daughter of Kiyomori
Gion Shoja, The Burning of the Imperial Palace, Moon
Viewing, Strange Occurrences, the Burning of Nara, The Death
of Kiyomori all belong to the first half
The Death of Atsumori and Nasu no Yoichi belong the second
half
How is Nasu no Yoichi
performed?
Biwa plays--opening getting people’s attention
Singer(s) sings in up and down pattern with a note from
biwa to mark the end of phrase
Single singer sings the description of the boat in the up
and down pattern
Singer changes patterns when he describes the pole
being raised
Short biwa interlude
How is Nasu no Yoichi
performed?
Dialogue of the Yoshitsune-Sanetomo discussion is not
sung
Yoshitsune asking for proof onwards is sung
Final part of proof and Yoshitsune summoning Yoichi is
sung in same manner as pole being raised
Biwa solo closes section
How does The Tale of Heike
come into being?
The version we use now is one of the recited version of
the work: The Kakuichi version
It’s a katarimono that emerges from the Ichikata school
of reciters
There are other versions of the work
The Yasaka version (katarimono), Enkei version
(yomimono), and the Rise and Fall of the Genji and
Heike
Why focus on the Heike?
Buddhists tell the stories to provide rest for the Taira
As a historical record it provides a model of what
happens to those who abuse power
The Taira adopt court culture so they provide a
connection to the tsukuri monogatari like The Tale of
Genji
The Heike stories could also be used as part of a
sermon much like the stories in Konjaku monogatari
What role does Buddhism
play in the Heike?
A rival political power that challenges the power of
the court and the Taira family
A moral system that comments on the actions of both
the Minamoto and the Taira
A supernatural equalizer that merits out punishments
and rewards on the basis of karma
How do samurai behave in
the Heike?
They announce who they are (nanori)
They wear certain combinations of clothing and armor
They search out worthy opponents and high ranking
warriors
They take the heads of their opponents to earn rewards
They have a degree of empathy
Samurai commit murder which violates the major tenants
of Buddhism
Murder of Buddhist followers and destruction of Buddhist
temples are punished with divine retribution
In Buddhist terms samurai line up with asura
Asura are beings fixated on war and violence
People are reborn into asura when they are focused on
ego, force and violence