Empress Genmei

Empress Genmei

¶Empress Genmei's childhood name was Ahe. She was the fourth daughter of Emperor Tenji, and her mother was Mei-no-Iratsume.

¶She married Okamiya-no-sumeramikoto — Prince Kusakabe, who received that posthumous title — and bore the two sovereigns Emperor Monmu and Empress Genshō.

¶In the eleventh month of the third year of Keiun, Emperor Monmu fell ill and asked her to ascend the throne, but she declined firmly out of modesty.

¶In the sixth month of the fourth year, Emperor Monmu died. On the twenty-fourth day, the day Kanoe-tora, the empress came forth to the Eastern Tower, summoned the ministers of the eight ministries and the captains and commanders of the five guard headquarters, and told them that, in accordance with the late emperor's final testament, she would administer the government in his stead. In autumn, on the fifth day of the seventh month, the day Kanoe-ne, rites were performed at the Ōuchi mausoleum, the tomb of Emperor Monmu. On the sixth day, the day Kanoto-ushi, envoys were sent to the Dazaifu to confer rank on the people of the southern islands, and gifts were bestowed on them, each in varying amounts (Note: the two entries for the days Kanoe-ne and Kanoto-ushi were, in the original text, misplaced out of order beneath the entry for the day Mizunoe-ne below; this has now been corrected).

¶On the seventeenth day, the day Mizunoe-ne, she ascended the imperial throne at the Daigokuden, the Hall of State (Note: the Gukanshō and the Rekidai Kōki give this as the fifteenth day of the sixth month; this was probably the day she received the late emperor's final testament, which was perhaps mistaken for the day of her enthronement). She was forty-seven years of age at the time (Note: her age follows this work's own statement that she died at the age of sixty-one. The Mizukagami gives thirty-six, and the Ichidai Yōki forty-nine, but both are mistaken). The Director of the Great Council of State, Prince Hozumi, and the Minister of the Right, Isonokami-no-Maro, both remained in office as before (Note: this follows the Kugyō Bunin). On this day, an edict was issued: "Let a general amnesty be proclaimed throughout the realm, and cloth and millet be bestowed on the aged. This year's tribute of the capital, the home provinces, and the provinces under the jurisdiction of the Dazaifu, and this year's rice-field tax of the provinces, are remitted." On the twenty-first day, the day Hinoe-tatsu, a Bureau of the Palace Guards' Attendants, jutō toneriryō, was established for the first time.

¶In winter, on the second day of the eleventh month, the day Hinoe-saru, relief was given to Shima province. On the twentieth day, the day Kinoe-tora, Emperor Monmu was buried. On the first day of the twelfth month, the day Kinoto-ushi, there was a solar eclipse. On the fourth day, the day Tsuchinoe-tatsu, epidemic disease had spread in Iyo province, and medicine was provided.

¶On the twenty-seventh day, the day Kanoto-u, an edict was issued: "In the way of governing, ceremony comes first. Without ceremony, speech grows disordered, and when speech grows disordered, meaning is lost. In a former year an edict ordered that the rite of prostration, kifuku, be abolished, and ever since, the offices within and without the capital have all lost their solemnity. There is no ceremony in advancing and withdrawing, and no due measure in answering and responding. This is entirely because the officials have grown careless and have themselves forgotten the forms of propriety. Henceforth strict censure is to be applied, this corrupt practice corrected, and a return made to simple and honest custom."

¶In the first year of Wadō, the year Tsuchinoe-saru, in spring, on the eleventh day of the first month, the day Kinoto-mi, Chichibu District in Musashi province presented niiakagane — native copper requiring no smelting. An edict was proclaimed changing the era name, and a general amnesty was granted throughout the realm. To the aged among the common people, three koku of millet were bestowed on those a hundred years of age or more, two koku on those ninety or more, and one koku on those eighty or more. Filial sons, obedient grandchildren, righteous husbands, and chaste wives had honors posted at their gates, monryo, and were granted generous remission of labor dues for three years. Widowers and widows, kanka, and the solitary who had no kin to rely on, keidoku, and who could not support themselves, were each given one koku of millet, and gifts were also bestowed on the hundred officials, each according to standing. The district officials of the provinces each had their rank advanced one grade, save that this did not apply to those already of Senior Sixth Rank Upper or above. This year's labor-tax of Musashi province, and the tribute of Chichibu District itself, were remitted. Shihon Prince Shiki was raised to Sanbon, and Isonokami-no-Maro and Fujiwara-no-Fuhito, of Junior Second Rank, and those below them, each had their rank advanced.

¶On the eleventh day of the second month, the day Kinoe-inu, a Bureau for the Promotion of Coinage, saijusenshi, was established for the first time. On the fifteenth day, the day Tsuchinoe-tora, an edict was issued: "We reverently serve High Heaven and rule over the realm, yet place Ourself, with but shallow and scant virtue, in the exalted seat of the Purple Palace, shikyū. We have always considered that those who build a thing labor over it, while those who dwell in it afterward enjoy ease, and that the moving of the capital need not necessarily be discussed in haste. Yet the princes and ministers all say: 'From antiquity down to recent times, rulers have measured the sun and observed the stars to lay the foundations of their palaces, divined the age and surveyed the land to build the cities of sovereigns. When the foundation that fixes a capital is made firm for all time, the great and boundless work of the realm rests upon it.' The counsel of the many is not easily set aside, and their words and feelings are truly earnest. Moreover, the capital is the seat of the hundred officials and the place to which all within the four seas look. How could We alone indulge Our own ease? If it is truly to the benefit of the myriad people, We cannot set Ourself against it. Of old, the kings of Yin moved their capital five times and thereby earned the name of a restored dynasty; the lords of Zhou fixed their capital three times and thereby gained the title of a realm at peace. Now the land of Heijō accords in its omens with the sacred beasts of the four directions, is guarded on three sides by mountains, and is confirmed alike by tortoise-shell and milfoil divination. A capital city ought properly to be built there. As for the materials needed for its construction, let proposals be drawn up and submitted as the need for each arises. Bridges and roads are to be built only after the autumn harvest is in. Let this accord with the spirit of shirai — the people coming forward of their own will to labor, as children serve their parents — and let the people not be wearied or disturbed by it. As for what is fitting in matters of system and regulation, nothing further is to be added to this hereafter."

¶On the twelfth day of the third month, the day Hinoe-uma, the Minister of the Right, Isonokami-no-Maro, was made Minister of the Left, and the Major Counselor, Fujiwara-no-Fuhito, was made Minister of the Right. On the twenty-seventh day, the day Kanoe-saru, a woman of Anpachi District in Mino gave birth to three children at once; rice and a wet nurse were bestowed on her. In summer, on the eleventh day of the fifth month, the day Mizunoe-tora, silver coins were put into circulation for the first time. On the twenty-ninth day, the day Kanoe-saru, Nagato province reported that sweet dew had fallen.

¶On the twenty-eighth day of the sixth month, the day Tsuchinoto-ushi, an edict ordered the temples of the capital to perform tenkyō — the reading aloud of sutras by turning their pages — and to pray for peace throughout the realm and the tranquility of the people (Note: according to the Nenjū Gyōji, an edict of the seventeenth day of the tenth month of this year states, "From this year on, the Great Perfection of Wisdom Sutra is to be read once a year," and this is said to mark the beginning of the Seasonal Palace Sutra Readings, Ki-no-Mi-Dokyō. The Ichidai Yōki states that the Seasonal Palace Sutra Readings were first held in the second month of this year. Since this work contains no such record, however, this is noted here for reference only).

¶In autumn, on the fourteenth day of the seventh month, the day Kinoe-tatsu, there were long rains and a great storm in Oki province. Envoys were sent to give relief. On the seventeenth day, the day Kinoto-mi, the empress summoned the hundred officials before her and consoled and encouraged them face to face. She issued this command: "We have heard it said that those who are loyal and upright and keep to the duties of a minister and a son will in the end receive glory and honor, while those who are greedy and wicked and lose the way of a minister will surely suffer disgrace and punishment. This is the constant principle of Heaven and earth, and the clear mirror of ruler and subject. Know this meaning, each of you, and keep to your own charge without slackening or neglect. Those who prove equal to the tasks of the time are without fail to be raised up and advanced, while those who throw the business of office into disorder and fail in it are without fail to be reported, with nothing hidden or concealed." Rank was accordingly advanced, and gifts were bestowed on the civil and military officials of the fifth rank and above. On the sixteenth day, the day Hinoe-uma, an edict bestowed millet on the monks and nuns of the capital and on the common people who were eighty years of age or older: two koku for those a hundred years of age or more, one koku and five to for those ninety or more, and one koku for those eighty or more (Note: in the original text this entry is placed after that for the day Kinoto-mi, with the dates out of proper order, but it is given here just as it stands in the original).

¶On the tenth day of the eighth month, the day Tsuchinoto-mi, copper coins were put into circulation for the first time. On the fourteenth day of the ninth month, the day Mizunoe-saru, the empress made a progress to Sugawara. On the twentieth day, the day Tsuchinoe-tora, she made a circuit of Heijō and observed the lay of the land there. On the twenty-second day, the day Kanoe-tatsu, she made a progress to the Okada detached palace in Yamashiro province. Gifts were bestowed, each according to standing, on the provincial governors and clerks, sakan, of the provinces through which she had passed, and on the district officials who had built the temporary palace, and the tribute of the common people there was remitted. On the twenty-seventh day, the day Kinoto-tori, she arrived at the Kasuga detached palace. This year's tribute of the two districts of Soegami and Soeshimo in Great Yamato province was remitted. On the twenty-eighth day, the day Hinoe-inu, the imperial carriage returned to the palace.

¶In winter, on the second day of the tenth month, the day Kanoe-tora, envoys were sent to present offerings, heihaku, to the Great Shrine — the Ise Grand Shrine — and to announce the building of the Heijō Palace. On the first day of the eleventh month, the day Tsuchinoto-hitsuji, there was a solar eclipse. On the seventh day, the day Kinoto-ushi, the people of Sugawara were resettled, and cloth and grain were given to them. On the twenty-first day, the day Tsuchinoto-u, the Daijōsai, the Great Thanksgiving Rite, was performed. On the fifth day of the twelfth month, the day Mizunoto-mi, the site of the Heijō Palace was stilled and consecrated with rites. In this year, epidemic disease spread in Yamashiro, Bizen, Tajima, Hōki, and Sanuki provinces, and medicine was provided (Note: the Ruijū Kokushi has the characters for "Bingo" following "Yamashiro").

¶In the second year, the year Tsuchinoto-tori, in spring, on the twenty-fifth day of the first month, the day Mizunoe-uma, the private minting of silver coin was forbidden. On the fifth day of the third month, the day Mizunoe-inu, the Major Controller of the Left, Kose-no-Maro, was made General for the Pacification of the East in Mutsu; the Senior Assistant Minister of Popular Affairs, Saeki-no-Iwayu, was made General for the Subjugation of the Emishi of Echigo; and the Director of the Bureau of the Treasury, Ki-no-Morohito, was made his deputy general. Troops were levied from Tōtōmi, Suruga, Kai, Shinano, Kōzuke, Echizen, and Etchū, to march out along both roads and subdue the Emishi. On the twenty-third day, the day Kanoe-tatsu, an Office for the Regulation of Sundry Goods, zōzatsumotsu hōyōshi, was established for the first time.

¶In summer, on the first day of the fourth month, the day Hinoto-i (Note: the original text's character at this point is of uncertain meaning, and is probably an error for "the first day of the month," saku; it is nevertheless given here just as it stands), there was a solar eclipse. On the twentieth day of the fifth month, the day Kinoto-i, long rains damaged the young rice shoots in Kawachi, Settsu, Yamashiro, Izu, and Kai. On this day, Silla sent envoys bringing tribute. On the sixteenth day of the sixth month, the day Kanoto-ushi, envoys were sent to the home provinces to perform the u, a rite to pray for rain.

¶In autumn, on the first day of the seventh month, the day Kinoto-u, the provinces were ordered to transport weapons to the stockade of Dewa. On the thirteenth day, the day Hinoto-u, Echizen, Etchū, Echigo, and Sado were ordered to send a hundred ships to the office for the subjugation of the northern barbarians, seitekisho. On the second day of the eighth month, the day Kinoto-tori, silver coin was abolished, and copper coin alone put into circulation. On the twenty-fifth day, the day Tsuchinoe-saru, the General for the Subjugation of the Emishi, Saeki-no-Iwayu, and his deputy, Ki-no-Morohito, returned in triumph. On the twenty-eighth day, the day Kanoto-i, the empress made a progress to the Heijō Palace.

¶On the second day of the ninth month, the day Kinoto-u, the imperial carriage made a circuit to console the common people of the new capital, Heijō. On the fifth day, the day Tsuchinoe-uma, she returned from Heijō. On the twenty-sixth day, the day Tsuchinoto-u, the soldiers of Tōtōmi, Suruga, Kai, Hitachi, Shinano, Kōzuke, Mutsu, Echizen, Etchū, and Echigo who had served fifty days or more were granted remission of labor dues for one year. Envoys were sent to the two circuits of Tōkaidō and Tōsandō to inspect the barrier stations, kansen, and to make a circuit observing local custom. Provincial governors of meritorious record were commended, and fields, grain, and clothing were bestowed on them.

¶In winter, on the first day of the tenth month, the day Mizunoto-hitsuji, there was a solar eclipse. On the eleventh day, the day Mizunoto-mi, an imperial command was given to the office of the Heijō Palace: "Should any grave be disturbed by digging, it is at once to be reburied, and rites performed and wine poured in offering without exception." On the fourteenth day, the day Hinoe-saru, an ordinance was issued: "The common people of the home provinces and of Ōmi, without fear of the law, are sheltering and hiding vagrants and fugitive corvée laborers, and employing them privately. This is not only a matter of the common people making light of the law, but also of the provincial governors failing to impose discipline. Nothing does greater harm, public and private alike, than this. The matter is to be made known within the province's jurisdiction, and strict investigation and control applied." On the twenty-eighth day, the day Kanoe-inu, an edict was issued: "Of late, the moving of the capital and the changing of settlements have unsettled the common people. Though measures of pacification have been taken, they have not yet been set at ease. This year's rice-field tax and tribute should accordingly be remitted." On the fifth day of the twelfth month, the day Hinoto-i, the imperial carriage made a progress to the Heijō Palace. In this year, epidemic disease spread in Kazusa, Shimōsa, Etchū, and Kii, and medicine was given to relieve it. Oki province suffered famine, and relief was given.

¶In the third year, the year Kanoe-inu, in spring, on the twenty-ninth day of the first month, the day Kanoe-tatsu, Sonokimi-no-Hosomaro, a Hayato of Hyūga province, was granted Outer Junior Fifth Rank Lower by edict, in recognition of his merit in instructing and guiding a people of untamed custom and winning their submission to the civilizing rule of government. On the twenty-ninth day of the second month, the day Kanoe-inu, Wardens of the Mountains, shuzanko, were established for the first time, and the felling of trees was forbidden. On the tenth day of the third month, the day Kanoto-tori, the capital was moved to Heijō, and wards, bō, were established in the Left and Right Capitals (Note: the text from "and wards" onward follows the Mizukagami). The Minister of the Left, Isonokami-no-Maro, was left in charge of the old capital. In summer, on the first day of the fourth month, the day Kanoto-mi, there was a solar eclipse. On the twenty-second day, the day Mizunoe-tora, offerings, heihaku, were presented at the various shrines, and rain was prayed for at the famed mountains and rivers. In autumn, on the eighteenth day of the ninth month, the day Kinoto-ushi, silver coin was forbidden. In winter, on the first day of the tenth month, the day Tsuchinoe-tora, there was a solar eclipse. In this year, epidemic disease spread in Shinano province, and medicine was given to relieve it. Mikawa, Tōtōmi, and Mino suffered famine, and relief was given.

¶In the fourth year, the year Kanoto-i, in spring, on the second day of the first month, the day Hinoto-hitsuji, Capital Relay Stations, totei eki, were established for the first time. In summer, on the first day of the fourth month, the day Hinoe-ne, there was a solar eclipse. On the seventh day, the day Mizunoe-uma, rank was conferred by edict on forty-six civil and military officials who had passed their periodic evaluation (Note: this follows the Nenjū Gyōji and the Kuji Kongen. The practice of memorializing on advancement in rank, gikaisō, probably originates here, and so it is not recorded again hereafter).

¶On the twenty-first day of the sixth month, the day Kinoto-hitsuji, an edict was issued: "Last year the long rains had already damaged the ears of wheat. This summer, drought has been especially severe, and the rice seedlings too have been all but ruined. Grieving for the common people, sōsei, We looked up to the River of Heaven, unkan — as in the old story of praying for rain — and have now received this bountiful rain. What auspicious sign could surpass it? Together with the people, We should rejoice in this blessing of Heaven's own heart." Gifts were accordingly bestowed on the civil and military officials, each according to standing. In the intercalary month, on the fourteenth day, the day Hinoto-mi, weavers of figured cloth, chōmonshi, were sent to the provinces for the first time, to teach the weaving of brocade and twill.

¶In autumn, on the first day of the seventh month, the day Kinoe-inu, an edict was issued: "It is now many years since the Code and the Penal Code were established and set in place. Yet only one or two of their provisions are carried out, and the rest go unobserved. This is entirely because the various offices are negligent and lack a heart of diligence and care. In the end, mere titles fill the roster while the actual business of government is idly neglected. Should there be any who conceal a violation and falsify their record of service, kōka, they are to be given a heavy sentence, with no pardon granted." On the fifth day, the day Tsuchinoe-tora, a woman of Sagaraka District in Yamashiro province gave birth to three sons at once; coarse silk, silk floss, cloth, rice, and a wet nurse were bestowed on her.

¶On the first day of the ninth month, the day Mizunoto-tori, there was a solar eclipse. On the second day, the day Kinoe-inu, an edict was issued: "Guardsmen, eji, were established to prepare against emergencies and to guard against the unforeseen. They must without fail be brave and sturdy men, fit to serve as soldiers, yet at present they are all feeble and weak, untrained in the martial arts, and bear the name alone to no real purpose. Should a crisis arise, how could they bear so critical a charge? Does not an old text itself say, 'To send the people into battle untaught is to abandon them'? Henceforth this matter is to be entrusted entirely to the chief officers, who are to select and inspect men who are brave and accomplished in arms, and to replace them every year." On the fourth day, the day Hinoe-ne, an imperial command was given: "We have heard of late that the corvée laborers of the provinces suffer under the construction of the capital, and that those who flee in succession cannot be stopped even by prohibition. The palace walls are not yet complete, and its defenses are not yet in readiness. A temporary garrison should be set up, and the armory strictly guarded." Isonokami-no-Toyoniwa, of Junior Fourth Rank Lower, and Ki-no-Ohito and Awata-no-Hitsuto, both of Junior Fifth Rank Lower, were accordingly made generals.

¶In winter, on the twenty-third day of the tenth month, the day Kinoe-ne, a system of stipends based on princely rank, honi, was established for the first time. On the twenty-second day of the eleventh month, the day Mizunoe-tatsu, an edict was issued: "The great tax grain, taizei, of the provinces is to be lent out over three years without interest being collected on it. Those who lend out their own private rice at interest, suiko, are not to charge interest exceeding half of the principal. Clothing and food are further to be bestowed on the common people of the home provinces who are eighty years of age or older, and on those who are alone and cannot support themselves." On the second day of the twelfth month, the day Mizunoe-tora, Tanba-no-Chitari, of Senior Shoi Upper rank, and seven others forged the outer seal, gein — the seal of the Council of State — and used it to grant rank to people privately; they were accordingly banished to Shinano. On the sixth day, the day Hinoe-uma, an edict was issued: "The princes and those below them, together with powerful and wealthy houses, have in many cases occupied the mountains and wastelands, hindering the people's livelihood. Henceforth strict prohibition is to be applied. If there is land that ought to be newly cultivated, this is to be reported to the provincial governor, and the disposition of the authorities awaited." In this year, Great Yamato and Sado suffered famine, and relief was given. Epidemic disease spread in Owari, and medicine was provided (Note: the Teiō Hennenki states that the Fujiwara Palace was destroyed by fire in this year, but since this work contains no such record, this is not adopted here).

¶In the fifth year, the year Mizunoe-ne, in spring, on the sixteenth day of the first month, the day Kinoto-tori, an edict was issued: "When the corvée laborers of the provinces make their way home, their provisions run out, and many starve by the roadside, in the end collapsing into ditches and ravines. The provincial governors should take pains to comfort and care for them, and to give them relief. Should any die, they are to be buried, and their names recorded and reported to their home registry." On the twenty-third day, the day Mizunoe-tatsu, the beacon-fire station on Mount Takayasu in Kawachi province was abolished, and beacon stations at Takami and at Kasuga in Great Yamato province were established for the first time, so that signals could be relayed to Heijō. On the twenty-eighth day, the day Hinoto-tori, Ō-no-Yasumaro, of Senior Fifth Rank Upper, presented the Kojiki (Note: the text from "the twenty-eighth day" onward follows the preface to the Kojiki).

¶On the nineteenth day of the second month, the day Tsuchinoe-uma, an edict commanded: "Coarse silk, silk floss, rice, and salt are to be bestowed on the aged, the widowers and widows, the solitary, and the aged monks and nuns of the capital and home provinces, each according to need." On the third day of the third month, the day Mizunoe-saru, the empress made a progress to the Kasugayama palace (Note: the text from "the third day" onward follows the Nenjū Gyōji). On the nineteenth day, the day Tsuchinoe-ne, Mino province presented a tree whose branches had grown joined together, and a white goose.

¶In summer, on the thirteenth day of the fifth month, the day Kanoto-mi, an edict was issued: "The lending of the provinces' great tax grain for relief over three years was originally meant to relieve the people's want. Yet now the provincial governors, district officials, and village headmen use this as a pretext to twist the law, harming government and gnawing at the people more grievously than by any other means. Those who practice such deceitful gain are to be charged with a heavy offense, and no pardon granted." On the seventeenth day, the day Kinoto-tori, an edict was given to the clerks and above of the several offices, and to the provincial representatives at court, chōshūshi: "It is now many years since the laws were enacted, yet they remain unfamiliar with the Code and Penal Code, and errors and failings are frequent. Should there be any who violate the Code, they are to be sentenced according to the Penal Code. The Board of Censors is to make a circuit of inspection of the several offices three times each month and correct any irregularity. Should there be any dereliction of duty, a detailed report is to be forwarded to the Ministry of Civil Affairs. When a provincial governor is to memorialize on some matter, a man thoroughly versed in it is to be chosen as messenger, one able to answer and explain in response to questioning without hesitation. Should he fail to do so fully, the official in charge and the messenger alike are to be sentenced according to the same rule as above. Henceforth inspectors are to be sent out every year to examine the good and bad harvests of the provinces and the merits and faults of their government. The envoys are to keep an impartial heart and report at once without concealment; should anything come to light through questioning, the same sentence as before is to apply. In general, the provincial governors are each year to make a true record of their officials' merits, faults, conduct, and ability, and to forward it together with their report of service to the Ministry of Civil Affairs, which is to examine and verify it." In this month, epidemic disease spread in Suruga province, and medicine was provided.

¶On the seventh day of the sixth month, the day Kinoto-mi, there was an earthquake. In autumn, on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, the day Mizunoe-uma, Iga province presented a genko — a black fox. On the twenty-third day of the eighth month, the day Kanoe-saru, the empress made a progress to the fortress of Takayasu.

¶On the third day of the ninth month, the day Tsuchinoto-mi, an edict was issued: "We have heard that in years falling under the sign of the Rat, the grain does not ripen well, yet Heaven and earth have extended their protection, and this year has brought a great abundance. Moreover, the black fox presented by the governor of Iga very nearly accords with the highest class of auspicious omen. The men of old have said, 'No beauty among auspicious signs surpasses a bountiful year,' and also, 'When a sovereign's rule attains to great peace, a black fox appears.' We wish, together with the multitude, to rejoice and celebrate this happy occasion. Let a general amnesty be proclaimed throughout the realm; let the rank of the governor of Iga be advanced one grade; let the labor-tax of the district where the omen appeared be remitted, and the man who caught it be granted remission of labor dues for three years. Let this year's rice-field tax of the provinces, and the tribute of Great Yamato, Kawachi, and Yamashiro, be remitted." On the nineteenth day, the day Kinoto-tori, Michi-no-Obitona, of Junior Fifth Rank Lower, was made envoy to Silla.

¶On the twenty-third day, the day Tsuchinoto-ushi, the Council of State submitted this memorial: "To found a state and open up its borders is what martial achievement holds dear; to set up offices and comfort the people is what civil teaching honors. Of late the Emishi barbarians of the northern road, kateki, relying on distant and rugged terrain, have given themselves over wholly to reckless intent and repeatedly invaded the frontier. Since the government troops struck them like thunder, the fierce brigands have vanished like mist, the tribesmen of the barbarians have grown peaceful, and the emperor's own subjects are no longer troubled. We humbly ask that, taking advantage of this occasion, a province be established, officials appointed, and the people there pacified for all time." This memorial was granted, and Dewa province was thereupon established for the first time (Note: both the Ichidai Yōki and the Rekidai Kōki state that Izumo province was established for the first time in this month, but this is probably an error for "Dewa." The Ichidai Yōki also states that Dewa province was first established in the seventh month of the fourth year, but this too is mistaken).

¶In this year, the Takai Shrine was built in Usa District in Buzen province, and the great god Hachiman was enshrined there (Note: the text from "in this year" onward follows the Usa Takusenshū. On the building of the shrine, the various accounts differ among themselves. The Iwashimizu Hachiman Engi states that Emperor Nintoku sent an envoy to build a shrine at Mount Maki in Usa District, and that this was the Usa Hachiman Shrine; it also states that the divine spirit first manifested itself in the first month of the twelfth year of Emperor Kinmei's reign. These two statements within the same work contradict one another, and its account contains many errors, so it is not worth adopting. The Takusenshū and the Jinnō Shōtōki both state that in the second month of the thirty-second year of Emperor Kinmei's reign, the divine spirit first manifested itself at Hishigata Pond in Higo province and proclaimed itself the great god Hachiman, though neither records that a shrine was built there. The Takusenshū further states that in the first year of Jinki, in the reign of Emperor Shōmu, an envoy was sent to open up Mount Ogura and build a shrine hall, and that in the second year, in the first month, the divine seat was moved there, shrine households were dedicated, and the Miroku-ji temple and a bell tower were built. That bell tower and the Miroku-ji temple still stand at the Usa Shrine today. It may accordingly be taken as certain that the Takai Shrine was built in this year, the fifth year of Wadō, and that by the time of Emperor Shōmu it had been moved to Usa, the Takai Shrine thus becoming the Usa Shrine. This work, however, contains no clear statement of this, and it is only in the ninth year of Tenpyō that it first records the two shrines of Sumiyoshi and Hachiman in Tsukushi. For this reason, other works have been consulted, and the matter recorded here).

¶In the sixth year, the year Mizunoto-ushi, in spring, on the fourth day of the first month, the day Tsuchinoe-tatsu, Bizen province presented a white dove, Hōki province presented an auspicious melon, and the Office of the Left Capital presented a specimen of barnyard millet that had turned into rice. On the first day of the second month, the day Kinoe-uma, there was a solar eclipse. In summer, on the third day of the fourth month, the day Kinoto-hitsuji, five districts were separated from Tanba province to form Tango province; six districts were separated from Bizen province to form Mimasaka province; and four districts were separated from Hyūga province to form Ōsumi province. On the sixteenth day, the day Tsuchinoe-saru, new regulations, and standards of weights and measures, were promulgated throughout the realm.

¶On the second day of the fifth month, the day Kinoe-ne, an ordinance was issued: "In naming the provinces, districts, and villages of the home provinces and the seven circuits, good characters of auspicious meaning are always to be used. The silver, copper, and pigments, and the plants, trees, birds, beasts, fish, and insects produced within each district are to be recorded in full detail by kind. The fertility or poorness of the land, its mountains, rivers, plains, and moors, the origin of its place names, and the old tales and unusual happenings handed down by its elders, are all to be set down in writing and submitted." (Note: the Ichidai Yōki and the Rekidai Kōki both state that fudoki, provincial gazetteers, were ordered compiled in the fifth month. The monk Sengaku's commentary on the Man'yōshū states that in this year an edict ordered the provinces to compile fudoki, and fixed that the names of districts, villages, hamlets, and settlements should as a rule use two characters; this probably refers to the same matter). On the seventh day, the day Tsuchinoto-mi, an ordinance was issued: "The senior and junior district officials are to hold their posts for life, as the limit of their term. This is not an office subject to rotation, yet there are unworthy provincial governors who, moved by favor or spite, treat right as wrong, force resignations without cause, and twist the law to remove officials from office. Henceforth such conduct is not to be permitted. Should a district official reach the age of seventy, with his strength failing and his mind grown dim, or be afflicted with a chronic illness that renders him unfit for the duties of the time, and should he ask leave to return to his fields to rest body and mind, this request should by rights be granted. He must without fail obtain a document in his own hand and submit it with a formal notice to the proper office, and only after awaiting its disposition should a successor be chosen to fill the post." On the twenty-fifth day, the day Hinoto-i, Yamashiro province was ordered to select and register fifty households of dairy-cattle keepers for the first time.

¶On the twenty-third day of the sixth month, the day Kinoto-u, the empress made a progress to the Mikanohara detached palace. On the twenty-sixth day, the day Tsuchinoe-uma, she returned to the palace.

¶In autumn, on the fifth day of the seventh month, the day Hinoe-tora, an edict was issued: "The bestowal of merit rank is properly reserved for those of actual achievement. Without treating the outstanding with special favor, how could abuses be corrected and men encouraged? The generals who subdued the Hayato rebels, and the one thousand two hundred and eighty-four officers and men of merit, should now be granted merit rank in accordance with their service." On the sixth day, the day Hinoto-u, a man of Uda District in Great Yamato province found a bronze bell in a field at Nagaoka and presented it; its shape differed from the ordinary, and its tone accorded with the musical pitches. On the tenth day of the eighth month, the day Kanoto-ushi, Michi-no-Obitona returned from Silla. On the twenty-fourth day, the day Kinoto-u, a great storm uprooted trees and tore roofs away.

¶On the nineteenth day of the ninth month, the day Tsuchinoto-u, an edict remitted the unrepaid rice and millet lent out, publicly and privately, before the fourth year of Wadō. In winter, on the eighth day of the tenth month, the day Tsuchinoe-inu, the portion of farmland that the temples had occupied in excess of the legal limit was confiscated. On the first day of the eleventh month, the day Kanoto-tori, Iga, Ise, Owari, Mikawa, and Dewa reported that a great storm had damaged the crops; their tribute and labor-tax were remitted. On the sixteenth day, the day Hinoe-ne, Great Yamato province presented an auspicious lotus, Ōmi province presented a tree whose branches had grown joined together, and Tajima province presented a white pheasant. On the sixteenth day of the twelfth month, the day Kinoto-mi, Ōmi province reported that an auspicious cloud had appeared, and Tanba province presented a white pheasant; a limited amnesty was granted to these two provinces alone. In this year, Great Yamato, Shima, and Ōsumi were afflicted, perhaps by epidemic disease, and medicine was provided. Sanuki suffered famine, and relief was given.

¶In the seventh year, the year Kinoe-tora, in spring, on the third day of the first month, the day Mizunoe-inu, two hundred additional stipend households were granted to each of Nihon Prince Naga, Prince Toneri, and Prince Niitabe, and to Sanbon Prince Shiki; a hundred households were added to the stipend of Prince Nagaya, of Junior Third Rank. The practice of paying the full rice-field tax of stipend households dates from this time. On the first day of the second month, the day Tsuchinoto-ushi, there was a solar eclipse. On the tenth day, the day Tsuchinoe-inu, Ki-no-Kiyohito, of Junior Sixth Rank Upper, and Miyake-no-Fujimaro, of Senior Eighth Rank Lower, were ordered by edict to compile a national history (Note: this work does not give the four characters for "Senior Eighth Rank Lower," but they have been supplied here from the Ruijū Kokushi and the Nihongi Ryaku). On the fourteenth day, the day Mizunoe-tora, envoys were sent to the seven circuits to examine and register prisoners. In the intercalary month, on the twentieth day, the day Tsuchinoto-u, the empress made a progress to the Mikanohara detached palace.

¶In summer, on the twenty-seventh day of the fifth month, the day Mizunoto-ushi, a woman of Tosa province gave birth to three children at once; grain and a wet nurse were bestowed on her. On the twenty-third day of the sixth month, the day Tsuchinoe-tora, an edict was issued: "Of late, yin and yang have fallen into disorder, and the order of the seasons has gone awry; although the plowing of the fields has begun, no bountiful rain has yet fallen. Let offerings be presented to the various shrines, and rain prayed for at the famed mountains and rivers, that timely rain may fall without harming the crops of the field and the mulberry." On the twenty-fifth day, the day Kanoe-tatsu, the empress's grandson — the future Emperor Shōmu — was installed as crown prince, and the ceremony of his coming of age was performed (Note: this work records only that the crown prince's coming of age was observed, and gives no text of his formal installation. The Annals of Emperor Shōmu, under the sixth month of this seventh year, state that he was "installed as crown prince," and both the Ichidai Yōki and the Rekidai Kōki likewise place this event on this day; this account accordingly follows them). On the twenty-eighth day, the day Mizunoto-hitsuji, a general amnesty was proclaimed throughout the realm. Grain was bestowed on the aged: five koku for those a hundred years of age or more, three koku for those ninety or more, and one koku for those eighty or more. Filial sons, obedient grandchildren, righteous husbands, and chaste wives had honors posted at their gates, and were granted remission of labor dues for life. Widowers and widows, the solitary, and those suffering from grave and chronic illness who could not support themselves, were given relief by the proper offices, each according to need.

¶In winter, on the first day of the tenth month, the day Kinoto-u, there was a great storm in Mino, Musashi, Shimotsuke, Hōki, Harima, and Iyo, and this year's rice-field tax and tribute were remitted there. On the twenty-sixth day of the twelfth month, the day Tsuchinoto-u, Silla sent tribute.

¶In the eighth year, the year Kinoto-u, in spring, on the first day of the first month, the day Kinoe-saru, the empress came forth to the Daigokuden. The crown prince paid homage at the New Year's audience for the first time. The Emishi of Mutsu and Dewa, and the people of the southern islands of Amami, Yaku, Tokan, Shigaki, and Kumi, came to court and presented local products as tribute. Drummers and fifers, and mounted troops, were drawn up before the Suzaku Gate. The placing of gongs and drums at the New Year's assembly dates from this occasion. On this day, an auspicious cloud appeared in the east. Tōtōmi province presented a white fox, and Tanba province presented a white dove. On the tenth day, the day Mizunoto-mi, in honor of the crown prince's first homage at the New Year's audience and the appearance of the auspicious cloud, an edict proclaimed a general amnesty throughout the realm, and the princes and the civil and military officials, within the court and without, each had their rank advanced. On the first day of the third month, the day Mizunoe-uma, the empress made a progress to the Mikanohara detached palace.

¶In summer, on the ninth day of the fourth month, the day Kanoe-saru, three households were assigned as caretakers to the Kushimi mausoleum, and four households to the Fushimi mausoleum. On the first day of the fifth month, the day Kanoto-mi, an instruction was given to the provincial representatives at court: "Many among the common people of the realm abandon their home registry to wander and settle in other lands, seeking to escape their labor dues. Those who remain more than three months in such a place are to be registered there under local household registration, made to pay tribute and labor-tax there, and made to follow the laws of that province. Moreover, it is good government in a province or district to comfort and guide the people, to encourage and require farming and sericulture, and, bearing a heart of loving care, to relieve them well from hunger and cold. For an official to stand in the public court while his heart looks only to his private house, obstructing and seizing from agriculture and encroaching upon and plundering the myriad people, is the greatest harm a state can suffer. Those who encourage industry, and whose people's means are abundant and sufficient, are to be ranked highest. Those who, though encouragement is given, still lack food and clothing, are to be ranked in the middle. Those whose fields lie waste, whose people suffer from hunger and cold, and among whom deaths occur as a result, are to be ranked lowest. Where ten or more fall into the lowest rank, the official then in office is to be dismissed. Moreover, the people — scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants — each have their own calling. That there are now those who lose their occupation and wander off is due to the provincial governors and district officials erring in the manner of their guidance. Where such cases occur, they are without fail to be openly punished. Henceforth inspectors are to be sent throughout the realm to observe local custom. Virtuous government is to be diligently and generously pursued, and made to reach every corner. The travel permits used by the common people of the provinces in their comings and goings should bear the seal of their home province." On the twelfth day, the day Mizunoe-tatsu, Hōki province reported that sweet dew had fallen.

¶On the fourteenth day, the day Kinoe-uma, an edict was issued: "In general, there is a set deadline for each province's transport of tribute and labor-tax goods. Yet now the provincial governors are negligent and miss these deadlines, in the end hindering the work of the fields. The people charged with transport are made to suffer hardship because of it. Henceforth, should such cases occur, they are to be charged with a heavy offense. Moreover, in shipping tribute and labor-tax goods by sea, the task is readily entrusted to ignorant and careless men, so that the goods are sometimes lost adrift, or in many cases damaged by damp. This arises from the provincial governors' failure to follow the established system. Henceforth, those who do not mend their ways are to be sentenced according to the gravity of the offense, and the value of the damaged goods collected at once from the provincial governor. Moreover, the use of weapons is a matter of long standing; it is by military virtue alone that the strong are subdued and the gentle brought to submission. At present the arms being made in the provinces of the six circuits are far from sturdy, and would be of little use should an emergency arise. Henceforth, a sample is to be submitted every year, and careful inspection made of it on the day the inspectors set out."

¶On the twenty-fifth day, the day Kinoto-mi, there was an earthquake in Tōtōmi province; a mountain collapsed, and the Aratama River was dammed up. On the twenty-sixth day, the day Hinoe-uma, there was an earthquake in Mikawa province. Forty-seven public granaries were destroyed, and many of the common people's houses collapsed as well. On the last day of the month, the day Kanoe-inu, a thousand households of well-to-do commoners from Sagami, Kazusa, Hitachi, Kōzuke, Musashi, and Shimotsuke were moved and settled in Mutsu.

¶On the fourth day of the sixth month, the day Kinoe-tora, Ihon Prince Naga died (Note: no record can be found of Prince Naga having been raised to the first rank before this; the old text is nevertheless followed here. See the Biographies of Princes for fuller detail). On the twelfth day, the day Mizunoe-inu, the Council of State submitted this memorial: "The movements of the heavenly bodies have lost their proper measure, and drought has now continued for a full month. We fear that the fields of the east cannot be plowed, and that the crops of the southern fields will be ruined. Of old, when the king of Zhou met with drought, he left behind the poem of the River of Heaven; when the emperor of Han prayed for rain, he issued an edict changing the era name. The sincerity of a sovereign is such as to move High Heaven itself. We humbly ask that offerings be presented and prayers offered at the various shrines." On the thirteenth day, the day Mizunoto-i, religious feasts were held at the two temples of Kōfukuji and Hōryūji, and envoys were sent by edict to present offerings at the various shrines and pray for rain at the famed mountains and rivers. Within a few days, a bountiful rain fell in a great torrent. The people of the time took this as a sign moved by the sovereign's sacred virtue. Stipends were accordingly bestowed on the hundred officials, each given gifts. This summer, Settsu, Shima, Musashi, Echizen, Tanba, Tango, and Kii suffered famine, and relief loans were given.

¶In autumn, on the first day of the seventh month, the day Kanoe-tatsu, there was a solar eclipse. On the tenth day, the day Tsuchinoto-ushi, there was an earthquake (Note: this work omits the character for "earthquake," but it has been supplied here from the Ruijū Kokushi). The empress made a progress to the Mikanohara detached palace. On the twenty-seventh day, the day Hinoe-uma (Note: the Kugyō Bunin gives this as the thirteenth day), Ihon Prince Hozumi, Director of the Great Council of State, died. On the twenty-eighth day of the eighth month, the day Hinoto-ushi, a man of the Left Capital presented an auspicious tortoise.

¶On the second day of the ninth month, the day Kanoe-tatsu, an edict was issued: "The way of Heaven governs the heavens, and civilized enlightenment rules the realm through it. The great treasure is called the throne, and the sovereign's exalted position accordingly rests in a place of honor. Of old, sovereigns who yielded their throne by cession sought out worthy men far and wide and tested them; sovereigns who rose through arms inherited and carried on an existing foundation. Both handed it down to their descendants and thereby made the royal succession flourish. We have ruled over the realm and nurtured the myriad people. Receiving the protection of High Heaven and relying on the blessings bequeathed by Our ancestors, the land within the seas lies peaceful and calm, and the realm is at rest. Yet Our anxious and reverent resolve has not relaxed from morning to night, and Our careful and watchful thought grows more cautious day by day; it is now nine years since We first took on the cares of government. Now Our vigor has begun to fail, and the approach of old age draws near. We deeply wish to seek a quiet leisure and to set Ourself at ease, as high and free as wind and cloud. To cast off its burdens and leave behind its dust is no different from stepping out of a pair of shoes. We wish to hand the sacred regalia to the crown prince, but his years are still few, and he has not yet left the women's quarters of the palace, while the business of state is manifold, with ten thousand matters arising in a single day. Ihon Princess Hitaka has long accorded with auspicious signs and has early shown a reputation for virtue. By nature generous and benevolent, calm and gentle, she is one whom the realm looks to with hope, and to whom the praises of the people already know to turn. We shall now hand over the imperial throne to the princess. Let the ministers and the hundred officials, one and all, reverently uphold this and fulfill Our wish." On this day, the throne was handed over to Princess Hitaka — Empress Genshō.

¶In the fifth month of the fifth year of Yōrō, she fell ill. On the seventh day of the twelfth month, the day Tsuchinoto-u, she died in the Chūanden (Note: the Mizukagami gives the fourth day. The Ichidai Yōki states that she took the tonsure on the fourth day and died shortly after. The Kōnendai Ryakki states that she had her hair cut off in the fifth month, but since this work contains no such record, it is not adopted here). She was sixty-one years of age.

¶In her final testament, she said to the Minister of the Right, Prince Nagaya, and to the Councillor, Fujiwara-no-Fusasaki: "We have heard that among all living things there is none without death. This is the fixed principle of Heaven and earth; how then could one grieve and mourn over it? Lavish burial ruins a household's fortunes, and heavy mourning robes injure the living. We take no pleasure in either. After We have died, let a pit be dug and the body cremated at Zōhōzan, Yōra-no-mine, in Soegami District in Great Yamato province. Let Our posthumous title be styled 'the sovereign who ruled the realm from the court of such-and-such province and district,' and let it be handed down to later ages. The emperor — Empress Genshō — is to carry on the general direction of government exactly as on an ordinary day. The princes, ministers, and civil and military officials are not to leave their posts without cause to follow the funeral carriage; each is to keep to his own office and attend to the business of government as usual. The officials in close attendance, and the five guard headquarters, are to apply themselves diligently to guard duty, and to be prepared against the unforeseen." She further decreed: "Everything needed for the funeral rites is to follow entirely the preceding command, with nothing lacking. The palanquin and hearse bearing the coffin are not to be carved or adorned with gold and jewels, nor painted and decorated in color. Simplicity and frugality are to be observed, and humility followed. The shape of the mound is not to involve digging into the earth; rather, a pit is to be made along the side of a hill, the thorns and brambles cleared to open the ground, and that place used as the burial site just as it is. Evergreen trees are to be planted, and an inscribed stone set up, and burial made at the Tsuki-no-Yama mausoleum." (Note: the Engishiki gives this as the Naho-yama Eastern Mausoleum).

¶She was given the posthumous name Yamatonekoamatsumiyo-Toyokuninarihime-no-Sumeramikoto. She was later given the posthumous title Empress Genmei.