Biographies CLXIII: Foreign Peoples, Part V: Baekje, Second Half

¶In the spring of the sixth year of Emperor Kinmei's reign (545), Kashiwade-no-Hasuhi was sent to Baekje (Kudara) as envoy. In the summer, King Myeong of Baekje sent the Naesol Gi-jun and the Sideok Chaju to Japan to present tribute. In the autumn, Baekje made a Buddhist image sixteen feet in height (jōroku, one jō and six shaku). King Myeong himself composed a vow, which read: "I have heard that to make an image of the Buddha sixteen feet tall brings merit of the greatest magnitude. Humbly I pray that the Emperor may attain surpassing virtue and goodness, that the lands the Emperor governs may likewise receive blessing and good fortune together, and that all living beings throughout the realm may without exception attain liberation. For this reason I reverently make this image."

¶In the seventh year (546), when the Nasol Iryeon of the Central Division and his party returned home to Baekje, they were given seventy good horses and ten ships. In the summer, the Nasol Yangyeopnye of the Central Division and others were sent to offer tribute.

¶In the eighth year (547), the Deoksol Jinmo Seonmun of the Front Division and the Nasol Gama and others were sent to ask for reinforcements. Dongseong Jaeon of the Lower Division came to court and took up the duty of palace guard (shukuei) in place of the Deoksol Mungu Mana. In the spring of the following year (548), Goguryeo (Kōkuri) besieged Majin Fortress, and so Jinmo Seonmun and his party took their leave and returned to Baekje. The emperor issued an edict saying: "Reinforcements will certainly be sent. You are to report this to your king with all haste." Before long the emperor sent an envoy and decreed: "Since the Deoksol Seonmun and his party returned home, how have matters stood in your country? We hear that your country is hard pressed by the Goguryeo bandits. You should take counsel together with Imna (Mimana) and defend against them." (Note: the original text places this edict in the sixth month, but judging from the wording of the edict, it appears to belong to the time after the Deoksol Seonmun and his party had returned home and before Yangyeopnye entered court.)

¶In the summer, the Hansol Yangyeopnye of the Central Division and others entered court and memorialized: "The Deoksol Seonmun and his party have arrived back, and having reverently received the gracious edict we cannot contain our joy. We have heard that during this spring's battle at Majin Fortress someone among the enemy said, 'This was brought on by Ara (Anra) and the Japanese Office.' I doubted this and have not yet believed it, but I could not leave its origin uninvestigated. I therefore summoned the officials in charge of affairs of Ara and of the Japanese Office, but they did not come. For that reason my doubt and fear have only grown. I humbly pray that the awe-inspiring Emperor (Note: the original text has a note saying that the barbarian states of the west call the emperor 'the Awesome Emperor,' and the same applies below) will halt for a while the dispatch of reinforcements and first examine where the truth lies." The emperor decreed: "We have read your memorial and understand it in detail. That Ara and the Japanese Office did not rescue a neighbouring country in its peril is a matter of regret to Us. As for the talk of dealings with Goguryeo, this was not Our command, and it must not be lightly believed. We trust that the king will open his heart and ease his spirit, remain calm, and not give way to deep doubt and fear. In accordance with Our earlier command, join forces with Imna, hold the frontier firmly, and check the enemy in the north. We shall send a suitable number of men to fill the vacant lands of Ara." In the winter, a fortress was built for Baekje at Deugisin.

¶In the tenth year (549), the Jangdeok Gu Gigo and the Deok Macha Mun returned home. The emperor issued an edict saying: "As for the matter that Yeonnasa (Note: Yeonnasa is probably Inasa, but it is left here as it stands in the original) and Mato are secretly in communication with Goguryeo, We shall have it investigated. As for the relief troops you requested, their dispatch will be suspended, as you asked."

¶In the eleventh year (550), the emperor sent an envoy to inquire about the war with Goguryeo (Note: the original text has a note citing the Kudara-ki to the effect that the Japanese envoy was Abita). The emperor decreed: "We have heard that the enemy in the north is fierce and violent, and We bestow thirty sets of arrows. We have also heard that the Nasol Mamu is a trusted and weighty minister of the king, who conveys the royal will to those below and ably assists the king. If the state is free of trouble and you wish to preserve the Miyake for ever and serve Us, then always send Mamu to court as your principal envoy." As the envoy was returning, six Goguryeo captives were presented; separately the Nasol Pi Gugeun of the Central Division and others were sent to present ten Goguryeo captives.

¶In the spring of the twelfth year (551), a thousand koku of wheat seed was bestowed on Baekje. In the autumn, King Myeong joined forces with the troops of Silla (Shiragi) and Imna and attacked Goguryeo. He took the territory of Hanseong, then advanced and seized the six districts of Pyongyang, recovering all of the former lands.

¶In the summer of the thirteenth year (552), Baekje, Gaya (Kara) and Ara sent the Deoksol Mongnye Geundon of the Central Division and others to court, who memorialized: "Silla has established friendship and joined plans with Goguryeo and intends to destroy the various barbarian states. We have therefore been sent to request reinforcements, with respect." In the winter, King Myeong sent the Dalsol Nurisachigye of the Western Division, of the Hui clan, and others to present a gilt-bronze image of Shakyamuni Buddha, banners and canopies, and sutras and treatises, and sent with them a memorial praising the spread of the Buddhist Law and the merit of worship, which read: "This Law is the most excellent of all laws. It is hard to understand and hard to enter into by enlightenment; even the Duke of Zhou and Confucius could not know it. This Law can produce the fruits of blessing and virtue, immeasurable and boundless, and at last brings to perfection the unsurpassed bodhi. It is like a man who holds a wish-fulfilling jewel in his bosom: whatever he uses it for is granted as he wills. This wondrous treasure of the Law is just the same; whatever is prayed and wished for is fulfilled without fail. Moreover this Law arose far off in Tenjiku (India) and has reached even the Three Han, where it is received and upheld according to its teaching and is honoured everywhere. Your subject Myeong, king of Baekje, respectfully sends his vassals Nurisachigye and Nobuksachi to offer and transmit it to your imperial state, so that it may be spread throughout the home provinces. As the Buddha foretold, my Buddha's Law will flow and pass to the east." The emperor consulted his ministers one after another. The Ōmuraji Mononobe-no-Okoshi and Nakatomi-no-Kamako memorialized: "This is the deity of a foreign land and ought not to be worshipped." The image was therefore thrown into the Horie canal at Naniwa. In this year, Baekje abandoned Hanseong and Pyongyang.

¶In the spring of the fourteenth year (553), the Deoksol Shinano-no-Shisake of the Upper Division and others were sent to seek relief, and the Hansol Mongnye Geumdon of the Central Division and others, who had come to court earlier, took their leave and returned to Baekje. (Note: Mongnye Geumdon entered court in the thirteenth year and was then styled Deoksol, yet on his return this year he is written Hansol, which is doubtful. According to the Samguk Sagi, Deoksol is a rank of the fourth grade and Hansol of the fifth. There must certainly be an error in the original text.) In the summer, the Uchitsuomi (Note: the original text lacks his name) was sent to bestow on King Myeong two good horses, two ships, fifty bows and fifty sets of arrows. By rescript the emperor said: "As for the number of reinforcements, it shall be wholly as the king requests." He further commanded: "Of the physicians, diviners and calendar masters who are due to be relieved, let them be replaced by being sent with the returning envoys; let books of divination, calendar books and medicinal herbs be sent along as well." In the autumn, the Nasol Shinano-no-Shiragi of the Upper Division and the Godeok Munhyu Daesan of the Lower Division and others were sent with a memorial, which read: "Last year we deliberated together and sent the Uchitsuomi, the Deoksol Chaju and the grandees of Imna to report on the situation of the Miyake beyond the sea. We awaited the gracious edict as spring grasses look up to a kindly rain. This year, suddenly, we have heard that Silla, in secret understanding with Goguryeo, is saying: 'Baekje and Imna are constantly bringing tribute to Japan. They are surely asking for troops in order to attack our country. Before the Japanese troops have set out, it would be best for us to strike first, seize Ara, and cut off the road to Japan.' Having heard this plot we are deeply alarmed, and so we send a messenger in haste to report. We humbly pray that Heaven's compassion will take pity on us and speedily rescue the Miyake lands beyond the sea. As for the clothing and provisions the army will need, we shall supply them ourselves. Moreover, the barbarian states beyond the sea are extremely short of bows and horses, and from of old until now have all depended on the imperial storehouses for their supply. Now that a powerful enemy has grown strong, we humbly request that these be bestowed so that arms may be prepared." They further memorialized: "Ikuha-no-Omi came, bearing the Emperor's command, to console our barbarian state. Day and night without slackening he laboured and devoted himself to all manner of affairs. Because of this, the barbarian states beyond the sea all praised his good government and hoped that he would long govern them, but unhappily he has died, and we grieve deeply for him. We humbly pray that Heaven's compassion will quickly send his successor, to be the pacifier of Imna."

¶In the winter, Prince Yeochang of Baekje led the troops of the kingdom to attack Goguryeo. While the army was encamped at night at Baekhapya, a Goguryeo ambush suddenly appeared and abruptly beat its drums. Yeochang was greatly alarmed, but beat his own drums in answer and held his stockade firmly all night long. At dawn the Goguryeo troops were deployed in lines across the broad plain, and five splendidly dressed mounted warriors rode up abreast and called out: "We are told by the young men that travellers are sleeping in the open field; how could we fail to come out to greet and comfort them? Our king has ordered his servant to come and console your attendants. We respectfully ask your honoured name, age and rank." Yeochang answered: "My surname is the same as yours (that of the Baekje royal house), my rank is Hansol, and I am twenty-nine years old." Yeochang asked the same of them in turn. Then they set up markers and joined battle. The Baekje troops thrust a Goguryeo champion from his horse with a spear, cut off his head, and displayed it on the spear to their own men. The Goguryeo general was greatly enraged, but Baekje pressed its advantage and quickened the drumbeat, its morale rising ever higher, and at last utterly defeated the Goguryeo army. The Goguryeo king, Go Pyeong-seong, fled to Dongseongsan. (Note: following the Nihon Shoki. The name of the Goguryeo king is from the Dongguk Tonggam.)

¶In the fifteenth year (554), the Sideok Mongnye Mun-cha of the Central Division and others came to the Dazaifu in Tsukushi and asked how many troops would be sent. They said: "This year's war is more dangerous than before. We pray that the time of the army's departure may not be missed." The Uchitsuomi, Saeki-no-Muraji, bearing the imperial command, approved a thousand men, a hundred horses and forty ships. Before long the Hansol Samgwi of the Lower Division, a general, and the Nasol Mononobe-no-Karasu of the Upper Division and others were sent to ask for troops, and the Deoksol Dongseong Jamakgo came to take the place of Dongseong Jaeon. Dongseong Jaeon said: "The Master of the Five Classics, Wang Ryu-gwi, will replace the Godeok Ma Jeong-an, and the monk Damhye and eight others will replace the monk Dosim and six others." The Master of the Book of Changes, the Sideok Wang Do-ryang; the Master of the Calendar, the Godeok Wang Bo-son; the Master of Medicine, the Nasol Wang Yu-nyeonda; the herb-gatherers, the Sideok Ban Ryang-pung and the Godeok Jeong Yu-da; and the musicians, the Sideok Samgeun, the Gideok Gomasa, the Gideok Jinno and the Daedeok Jinda were all replaced as requested. In the summer, the Uchitsuomi led a naval force to help Baekje.

¶In the winter, King Myeong sent the Hansol Munsa Ganno of the Lower Division with a memorial, which read: "Your subject Myeong, king of Baekje, together with the ministers of the Japanese Office at Ara and the Gan-gi (hanki) of the states of Imna, memorialize: 'Silla is lawless; at one in heart with Goguryeo, it plots to destroy the Miyake beyond the sea.' We have felt alarm and dread, and have looked only for the arrival of the royal army (the Emperor's army). In the sixth month the Arishi-no-Omi (Note: Arishi-no-Omi is none other than the Uchitsuomi; the pronunciation of the country's name is the same) arrived leading an army. At this, high and low alike were greatly glad, and on the ninth day of the twelfth month we attacked Silla. I first commanded the Mononobe of the Eastern Marches, and had Makumu-no-Muraji lead the troops of the home division to attack Hamsan Fortress (Note: the Dongguk Tonggam writes it as Gwansan Fortress). Mononobe-no-Maki and Isaki of Tsukushi, who came with Arishi-no-Omi, were skilled at shooting fire arrows. By the grace of the Emperor's majesty, at the hour of the Rooster (about six in the evening) of that same day, we burned the fortress and took it. If Silla alone were our opponent, Arishi-no-Omi's army by itself would be enough. But if they join forces with Goguryeo, we fear it will be hard to carry the matter through. We humbly pray that all the armies in the island of Tsukushi be ordered to come as reinforcements, and then we shall have nothing to fear. As military affairs are now urgent, we send this report by a single swift ship. We respectfully present two bolts of fine brocade, one woollen rug, three hundred axes, and two male and five female Silla captives we have taken." (Note: following the Nihon Shoki.)

¶Yeochang, having already taken Hamsan Fortress, wished to press his advantage and destroy Silla. The aged senior ministers remonstrated: "Heaven is not yet on our side. We fear that disaster will fall upon us." Yeochang said: "You are old; why are you so timid? I am in the service of the great country (Wa). What is there to fear?" He thereupon advanced deep into Silla and built a stockade at Gudamura. King Myeong, concerned that Yeochang had long been toiling in the field, wished to go in person to console him. When Silla learned that King Myeong was coming himself, it at once sent out troops and surrounded him. The Baekje army was utterly defeated, and a Silla slave soldier (a lowly foot soldier) named Gudo (Note: the original text's note gives his other name as Gokchi, and the Dongguk Tonggam gives him as the subordinate general Go U-doryeok) met King Myeong. Gudo bowed twice and said: "I, Gudo, am a lowly slave, and Your Majesty is a lord of renown. Now I must have a lowly slave kill a lord of renown; I beg you to tell me the king's name, that I may keep it always in my heart and hand it down to later ages." King Myeong said: "It is not fitting that a king's head should fall to the hand of a slave." Gudo said: "By the law of our country, one who breaks a covenant, even if his head be that of a king, must fall to the hand of a slave." King Myeong sat down on a camp stool (koshō), looked up to heaven, sighed deeply and shed tears. He then unfastened the sword at his belt, gave it to Gudo, and was beheaded. (Note: following the Nihon Shoki and one account in the original text.) Silla buried his head with proper ceremony and sent the body back to Baekje. (Note: following one account in the Nihon Shoki. The original text says that Gudo dug a pit and buried it; here the other account is followed.)

¶At that time the Silla army had fallen suddenly upon Yeochang and surrounded him, and his soldiers were terrified and did not know what to do. The Tsukushi no Kuni no Miyatsuko was a master archer; he shot arrows like rain, and the brave Silla horsemen fell from their horses as they were struck. His arrows pierced through the front and rear bows of the saddles, and the other soldiers too all fell at the arrows' touch. The Silla troops surrounding Yeochang broke ranks, and Yeochang took advantage of the confusion to escape. He therefore praised the Miyatsuko and called him "Kuraji-no-Kimi." Silla pressed on, wishing to pursue and destroy Baekje. But one general said: "That must not be done. The Emperor of Japan already hates us deeply on account of the matter of Imna. All the more, if we now destroy even Baekje's Miyake, it will surely bring disaster on us later." The pursuit was therefore abandoned.

¶In the following year (555), Yeochang sent his younger brother Hye to court. The emperor heard for the first time that King Myeong had been killed in battle, grieved deeply, and sent an envoy to meet and console Prince Hye at the harbour. Kose-no-Omi asked Prince Hye: "Do you intend to remain, or to return?" Hye answered: "I rely on the court's pity for a ruined country and its lending us a part of its army, so that through the Emperor's majesty we may avenge our great enemy; that is my wish. Whether I stay or go I leave wholly to your command." Soga-no-Omi asked: "The king (King Myeong) was deeply versed in the way of Heaven and the principles of Earth, and his name was known in all quarters. We had thought that he would long preserve many blessings, rule the barbarian states of the west and serve the court. What fault has there been that has brought on this disaster?" Hye answered: "I am foolish by nature and dull in understanding, and I know nothing of great designs, still less of whence fortune and misfortune come." Soga-no-Omi went on to say to Hye: "In former times, in the reign of the Emperor Ōhatsuse (Emperor Yūryaku), your country was attacked by Goguryeo and its peril was greater than a pile of eggs. The Emperor commanded the Jingihaku to receive an oracle at the Shrine of the Deity, and sent him to save your country. Thereby your country was pacified and the state gained peace. The Emperor therefore commanded your country to worship that deity. That deity is the one who, in the far distant age when heaven and earth had just been parted and the plants and trees still spoke, came down from heaven and began to found this land. Now your country has cut off that worship and no longer holds the rites, and so disaster and disorder arise one after another and the state is in danger. If you repair the shrine now and offer the rites readily, your state will flourish again."

¶Yeochang said to his ministers: "I wish to leave the household life and cultivate the Buddhist way, to aid the posthumous blessing of my late father the king. What do you think?" His ministers remonstrated: "Silla and Goguryeo are both enemies with whom we cannot live under the same heaven. If the prince leaves the household life, who will avenge him, and who will wipe away the shame of the state? We ask to be allowed to fulfil the prince's wish by having the people of the country enter religious life in his stead." Yeochang agreed. Accordingly a hundred persons were ordained to pray for the repose of King Myeong.

¶In the seventeenth year (556), when Prince Hye returned home, he was given weapons and good horses to take with him. His attendants too were each given gifts according to rank. Hye and his party were moved and delighted, and Abe-no-Omi and Saeki-no-Muraji led the Tsukushi naval force to escort and see them off. Separately, an edict was issued to Hi-no-Kimi of Tsukushi (Note: the original text's note, citing the Kudara Hongi, says he was a son of the Tsukushi-no-Kimi and a younger brother of Hi-no-Naka-no-Kimi), ordering him to lead a thousand brave warriors to escort them as far as Mitetsu and to guard the strategic points.

¶In the spring of the eighteenth year (557), Yeochang succeeded to the throne. This was King Wideok (Note: the Dongguk Tonggam says Yeochang acceded in the very year King Seongmyeong was defeated and killed). In the twenty-third year (562), the Great General Ki-no-Omaro and the Deputy General Kawabe-no-Nie-no-Take attacked Silla. The Great General Ōtomo-no-Sadehiko led tens of thousands of troops to attack Goguryeo and also commanded Baekje to act in concert. Sadehiko broke the Goguryeo army, but Nie-no-Take attacked Silla, lost military discipline, and returned without achieving anything. (Note: following the Nihon Shoki.)

¶In the fourth year of Emperor Bidatsu's reign (575), Chang (King Wideok) sent an envoy to present tribute, in a quantity greater than usual. Kishi-no-Osada-no-Hiko was sent to Baekje to discuss the restoration of Imna.

¶In the sixth year (577), Ōwake-no-Kimi and Oguro-no-Kishi were sent to Baekje (Note: the original text has a note saying that one sent to the Three Han as the king's envoy styles himself Ōwake-no-Kimi, but his origin is not known; Oguro-no-Kishi's name is missing). In the winter, Ōwake-no-Kimi and his party returned. Chang sent with them sutras and treatises, and presented in addition a total of six persons: monks and nuns, an incantation master, a Buddha-image maker and a temple builder.

¶In the twelfth year (583), Kibi-no-Amabe-no-Hashima was sent to Baekje to summon Nichira. Chang, valuing Nichira's talents, was unwilling to send him readily. Hashima used Nichira's own plan and, with a stern countenance, proclaimed the imperial command and summoned Nichira. Chang became afraid and had the Eunsol Deogi, Yeonu, Ganuchi and Chamgwan, and the Deoksol Chagandeok, the steersman, escort Nichira. The emperor was greatly pleased. Contrary to the intentions of the Eunsol Chamgwan, Nichira spoke without reserve of the affairs of his own country. As they set out, Chamgwan secretly ordered Deogi and Yeonu to kill Nichira, and some days later they did so. The emperor was greatly angered, seized Deogi and the others and cast them into prison. On examination they all confessed their guilt. Deogi was therefore handed over to Nichira's kinsmen to be dealt with as they wished. The Eunsol Chamgwan met with violent winds and waves at sea; his ship drifted and was scattered, and Chamgwan was drowned.

¶In the first year of Emperor Sushun's reign (588), the Eunsol Susin and the Deoksol Gaemun and others came to present tribute, and also presented Buddhist relics, the monk Ryeongjo and five others, temple builders, a maker of roof-finials and tiles, and several painters.

¶In the fifth year of Empress Suiko's reign (597), Prince Asa presented tribute (Note: following the Nihon Shoki). In the sixth year (598), Chang (King Wideok) died. His second son Gimyeong acceded to the throne (Note: following the Dongguk Tonggam). In the seventh year (599), envoys were sent to present a camel and a donkey, two sheep, and one white pheasant (Note: following the Nihon Shoki). In this year Gimyeong died and was given the posthumous title King Hye. His eldest son Seon acceded to the throne. This was King Beop. In the eighth year (600), Seon died, and his son Jang acceded to the throne. This was King Mu (Note: following the Samguk Sagi and the Dongguk Tonggam). In the ninth year (601), Silla attacked Imna. Sakamoto-no-Nukate was sent, and an edict was issued to Baekje: "Save Imna." In the seventeenth year (609), eighty-five Baekje monks and laymen met with a violent storm and drifted ashore at Ashikita-no-tsu in Higo province. Naniwa-no-Tokumaro and Fune-no-Tatsu and others were sent to see them back to their own country.

¶In the twentieth year (612), a man of Baekje came to settle in Japan whose body and face were all mottled. Disliking his difference from other people, they were about to banish him to an island in the sea. The man said: "If you dislike my mottled skin, then surely mottled oxen and horses too cannot be used in your country? I have a small skill: I can make the forms of mountains." They therefore had him try making a figure of Mount Sumeru and a Kure bridge in the south garden. He was named Michi-no-Takumi, also called Shikimaro. There was also a man named Mimashi who excelled in Kure music, and young men were therefore made to learn it from him. In the twenty-third year (615), a Baekje envoy came to court in the company of Inugami-no-Mitasuki and the other members of the embassy to Tang.

¶In the second year of Emperor Jomei's reign (630), the Eunsol Soja and the Deoksol Mudeok were sent to present tribute. In the third year (631), Jang (King Mu) sent his son Prince Pung to the court as a hostage (Note: the original text says that Uija sent Prince Pungjang as a hostage, but according to the Dongguk Tonggam this year is the thirty-second year of King Jang (Mu)'s reign. Uija's accession took place in the thirteenth year of Jomei, so Uija in the original text is probably an error; it has therefore been corrected. As for "Pungjang," the Old Book of Tang, the Samguk Sagi and the Dongguk Tonggam write only "Pung"; the original text has mistakenly combined the names of King Jang of Baekje and Prince Pung into "Pungjang." This too has now been corrected). In the seventh year (635), the Dalsol Yu and others were sent to present tribute. In the tenth year (638) and the twelfth year (640) tribute was again presented (Note: following the Nihon Shoki). In this year (641) Jang (King Mu) died and his son Uija acceded to the throne (Note: following the Samguk Sagi and the Dongguk Tonggam).

¶In the spring of the first year of Empress Kōgyoku's reign (642), an envoy was sent to offer condolences on the death of Emperor Jomei. Azumi-no-Hirafu and others went to the guesthouse and asked about the state of Baekje. The envoy said: "The king of Baekje commanded me: 'We hear that Saeksang has been constantly behaving unlawfully at the court. On the day you return home, bring Saeksang back with you.' But the court did not permit it." (Note: the original text also gives, from an attendant who accompanied the condolence envoy: "Last year the Daejwapyeong Jijeok died. Also, Baekje people threw a Kunlun envoy into the sea. In the first month of this year the king's mother died. Also Gyogi, the son of the king's younger brother, together with his mother, his sister, four of his children, and more than forty well-known Naejwapyeong, were banished to an island in the sea." But in the passages below, Jijeok later enters court, and Gyogi too is summoned and comes to court. This attendant's account is doubtful, and it is unclear whether these events occurred after Jijeok's return home, were told by an attendant who came later, and were mistakenly entered here by the original text.) Kunikatsu-no-Kuina was sent as envoy to Baekje. Prince Gyogi was summoned and made to live in the house of Azumi-no-Yamashiro-no-Muraji (Note: the month in which Gyogi and Jijeok came to court is not known, and there may be an error in the original text, but the old text is kept here and not rashly altered).

¶In the summer, Gyogi had an audience with the emperor. The Ōomi Soga-no-Emishi entertained Gyogi and his party at his residence at Unebi, but Saeksang alone did not take part. Emishi gave Gyogi one horse and twenty ingots of iron. Gyogi's son died of illness, and Gyogi moved with his wife and children to his house at Kudara-no-Ōi, and sent men to bury the child at Ishikawa. In general, by the custom of Baekje, the dead are feared and shunned, and even among father and mother, brothers and husband and wife, none will attend the dead in person. Silla too is the same. In the seventh month, Gyogi and the Daejwapyeong Jijeok and others were entertained at court (Note: one account in the original text gives Jijeok and his son, a certain Deoksol, and the Eunsol Gunseon), and strong young men were made to wrestle. When the banquet ended, Jijeok withdrew and bowed before Gyogi's gate. The Baekje hostage the Dalsol Jangbok was granted the rank of Shōtoku. Those of the middle-guest rank and below were likewise granted ranks according to degree.

¶In the second year (643), the Dalsol Jasa and others and the Eunsol Gunseon were sent to present tribute. The court sent the grandees among the ministers to Naniwa to rebuke them that the tribute goods did not accord with custom. Jasa and the others replied: "We shall put them in order at once." Jasa was a son of the Dalsol Muja, who had formerly come to the court as a hostage (Note: the year in which Muja became a hostage is not known). In this year Yeo Pung, the crown prince of Baekje (Note: the original text lacks the character for "Jang"; it is clear that in the earlier passage the character was mistakenly added), released four combs of honeybees on Mount Miwa in an attempt to keep them, but they never multiplied. In the fourth year (645), an envoy was sent to present tribute (Note: following the Nihon Shoki).

¶In the first year of Taika under Emperor Kōtoku (645), the Jwapyeong Yeonbok and others presented tribute and also served as envoys bringing the tribute of Imna. The emperor issued an edict to Yeonbok and the others: "In former times Our distant imperial ancestors made the country of Baekje an inner Miyake (uchi-tsu-miyake) and attached Imna to Baekje. Afterwards Miwa-no-Kurikuma-no-Azumahito inspected the frontiers of Imna and recorded in detail in the maps and registers the products of the land and the sources of its tribute. Yet the present offerings are lacking in many respects. We therefore send them back. From now on, let the offerings state clearly the name of the province and district in which they were produced." He also issued a rescript summoning the wife and children of the Kibu Dalsol I… (part of the name is missing in the source). In the second, third and fourth years of Hakuchi (651, 652, 653; Note: the source reads "Hakuyū," evidently an error for Hakuchi) tribute was presented each time. In the autumn of the fifth year (654) tribute was presented. In the winter they came again to court to offer condolences on the death of Emperor Kōtoku (Note: following the Nihon Shoki. One account in the original text says that in this emperor's reign the Three Han presented tribute every year).

¶In the first year of Empress Saimei's reign (655), the Dalsol Yeo Ui-su of the Western Division and the Eunsol Jo Sin-in of the Eastern Division presented tribute, their party numbering over a hundred in all (Note: following one account of the Nihon Shoki). In the second year (656), an envoy was sent to present tribute. Saeki-no-Takunawa and Shōsenge Naniwa-no-Kunikatsu, the envoys to the Western Sea, returned from Baekje and presented one parrot. In the third year (657), Shōkage Azumi-no-Tsuratari and Shōsenge Tsu-no-Kuguru, the envoys to the Western Sea, returned from Baekje and presented one camel and two donkeys.

¶In the sixth year (660), Kim Chunchu, king of Silla, asked Tang for reinforcements and together they attacked Baekje (Note: given in the Nihon Shoki in one account, citing the Nihon Seiki of the Goguryeo monk Dōken). In the second year after Uija came to the throne (642), he was in high spirits and sent the general Yun-chung to attack and take Daeya Fortress of Silla. Kim Pum-seok, son-in-law of Kim Chunchu, and his wife and children all died on that occasion, and Chunchu's resentment went to the marrow of his bones. When King Jindeok of Silla died, Chunchu succeeded him on the throne and established warm relations with Tang. At that time Uija was allied with Goguryeo and repeatedly sent out troops to attack Silla. Kim Chunchu's resentment deepened all the more (Note: following the Samguk Sagi and the Dongguk Tonggam). At first Uija had a reputation for filial piety and good relations with his brothers, and was called the "Zengzi of Haedong" (Note: following the Old Book of Tang, the Samguk Sagi and the Dongguk Tonggam). But later he gradually abandoned himself to wine and women, and his consorts and courtesans seized the real power of government and put to death worthy and good ministers (Note: the annotation to the Nihon Shoki cites the Nihon Seiki of the monk Dōken. According to the Dongguk Tonggam, the king spent whole nights drunk with palace women and indulged in the pleasures of wine and women. When the Jwapyeong Seongchung remonstrated, Uija was angered and imprisoned him, and Seongchung starved himself to death). Strange portents also occurred in the country again and again (Note: following the Samguk Sagi and the Dongguk Tonggam). Azumi-no-Tsuratari, on returning from his mission to Baekje, said: "When we first arrived, Baekje had just returned from attacking Silla, and the war horses circled of their own accord around the Golden Hall of a temple, day and night without rest, stopping only a little when they grazed" (Note: following the Nihon Shoki).

¶In the seventh month of this year, the Tang Great General Su Dingfang led a naval force and encamped at Bijin (Bisshi; Note: the Dongguk Tonggam writes Deokmuldo), and King Kim Chunchu of Silla led cavalry and infantry and encamped at Mount Nosuri; the two armies attacked from both sides for three days, and the fortress fell (Note: following one account of the Nihon Shoki). Su Dingfang took Uija, his wife Ongo, Crown Prince Yung and thirteen other members of the royal family, and the Daejwapyeong Sataek Cheonbok, Guk Byeonseong, Son Deung and others, and returned to Tang (Note: according to the Nihon Shoki, one account cites the book of Iki-no-Hakatoko).

¶In the ninth month, the Dalsol Samikakjong and others came to court and announced the disaster. The Eunsol Gwisil Boksin of Western Baekje held Mount Imsagi (Note: one account in the original text gives Mount Bugimseori), and the Dalsol Yeo Ja-sin (Note: "sin" was originally written "jin," but it has been corrected on the basis of the lower text of the original) held the Gumanori mountain fortress in the central capital (Note: one account in the original text gives Mount Tsutsukiru), gathering the scattered soldiers. Silla troops attacked them. At that time Boksin's soldiers had no weapons yet and all fought with clubs, but they heavily defeated the Silla army and seized all its arms and equipment. Their morale gradually rose, and at last they entered the royal city and held it, and many of the people of the country came over to them. In the winter, Boksin sent the Jwapyeong Gwiji and others to ask for reinforcements, presented more than a hundred Tang captives, and also asked that Prince Yeo Pung be welcomed, saying: "The Tang people and Silla have ravaged and thrown into chaos the territory of our country, overturned our state, and made both ruler and ministers captives. Yet Baekje, relying from afar on the Emperor's majesty, has further gathered righteous troops and been able to set up the country again. We humbly pray that you will receive Prince Yeo Pung and make him lord of our state."

¶The emperor then issued an edict: "We have heard that to ask for troops and seek rescue is an ancient custom. To support the endangered and continue what has been cut off is shown in the example of Duke Huan. Therefore, even if we must sleep with our weapons as pillows and endure hardship, we must certainly give aid. Now Baekje's home country has fallen into disorder and ruin; it has no one to rely on and no one to whom to appeal, and in its extremity has come back to us. We therefore command you, officers and men: advance together by every road, assemble all at once at Saroku like clouds gathering and thunder moving, destroy those whale-like monsters (the cruel ringleaders), and free them from that suffering as of being hung upside down. As for the prince Yeo Pung, let the office in charge prepare the proper ceremony and send him off at the proper time." The emperor went on progress to Tsukushi intending to dispatch reinforcements, and first visited the Naniwa Palace, where she ordered the repair of weapons. She also ordered Suruga province to build warships. When the ships were completed and were being hauled to the outskirts of Omi (written 続麻), in the middle of the night, for no reason, the bows and sterns of the ships turned round of their own accord to face the shore.

¶In the spring of the seventh year (661), the empress boarded ship and went west, and stayed at the temporary palace of Iwase. In the summer, Boksin of Baekje sent an envoy with a memorial asking to receive Prince Gyuhae (Note: the original text lacks any record that Gyuhae came to court). In the seventh month the empress died. The Crown Prince, in mourning dress, decided the military and political affairs beyond the sea. In the eighth month, the Front General Dai-kage Azumi-no-Hirafu and Shō-kage Kawabe-no-Momoe, and the Rear Generals Dai-kage Abe-no-Hikita-no-Hirafu, Daisenjō Mori-no-Ōishi and Daisenjō Mononobe-no-Kuma went to relieve Baekje (Note: following the Nihon Shoki). In the ninth month the Crown Prince granted the rank of Shokkan to Prince Pung of Baekje and gave him in marriage the younger sister of Ō-no-Komoshiki. Daisenge Sai-no-Ajimasa and Shōsenge Hata-no-Takutsu were made to lead more than five thousand troops and to escort Prince Pung and his uncle Chungseung and others (Note: following the Nihon Shoki and one account in the original text). Boksin came out to meet them, bowed and prostrated himself, and then handed the government of the country back to Pung.

¶In the year Mizunoe-Inu (662), the Jwapyeong Gwisil Boksin of Baekje was given a hundred thousand arrows, five hundred kin of thread, a thousand kin of floss silk, a thousand tan of cloth, a thousand tanned hides, and three thousand koku of rice seed, and Pung was separately given three hundred tan of cloth. In the fifth month of summer, the Great General Azumi-no-Hirafu and others, leading a hundred and seventy warships, set out after them. By edict Pung was installed as king of Baekje, and Boksin was given a gold-lettered patent (kinsaku, a writ of appointment) praising his labours. Pung and Boksin bowed to the ground and received the command, and the people were all moved and wept for joy. In the sixth month, the Dalsol Manji was sent to court to give thanks for the favour.

¶In the winter, Pung and his minister Boksin consulted together and decided to move from Juyu Fortress (Tsunu Fortress; Note: the Dongguk Tonggam writes Juyu as Juryu, and many place names differ from the original text) to Piseong. Hata-no-Takutsu remonstrated: "Piseong is close to the enemy's territory; an army could advance in a single night. If something unforeseen should happen, regret would be of no use." Pung and the others did not listen and at last moved to Piseong. In the spring of the following year (663), the Dalsol Gimsu was sent to present tribute. Silla troops burned four provinces in the south of Baekje and took fortresses such as Andeok (Note: the Dongguk Tonggam says they took the four fortresses of Georyeol, Geodok, Sapyeong and Deogan). As a result Piseong was ever nearer to the enemy and could no longer be held, and Pung returned to live in Juyu Fortress. Boksin sent an envoy to present the Tang captive Shoku-no-Shugen and others. In the third month, the Front General Kamitsukeno-no-Wakugo and Hashihito-no-Ōfuta, the Middle General Kose-no-Kamusaki and the interpreter Miwa-no-Nemaro, and the Rear General Abe-no-Hikita-no-Hirafu and Ōyake-no-Kamatsuka were sent, leading twenty-seven thousand troops, to attack Silla. In the sixth month of summer they took the two fortresses of Sabi and Nue (Note: following the Nihon Shoki).

¶At that time Boksin monopolised power, and he and Pung came to suspect one another (Note: following the Samguk Sagi and the Dongguk Tonggam). Someone slandered Boksin to Pung, and Pung believed it (Note: following the Shoku Nihongi). Inugami (Note: his name is missing) met Gyuhae at Seokseong, and Gyuhae there spoke of Boksin's crimes. Pung at once seized Boksin, pierced his palms with a leather thong and bound him, and asked his ministers: "Boksin is guilty. Should he be beheaded or not?" The Dalsol Jipdeuk said: "This rebel must not be let go." Boksin spat on Jipdeuk and cursed him, saying: "You rotten dog, you fool." Pung ordered strong young men to behead Boksin, and had his head pickled in salt.

¶In the autumn, Silla heard that Pung had killed Boksin, and at once plotted to invade and take Juyu. Pung said to his officers and men: "The Japanese general Iohara-no-Kimi is coming with more than ten thousand picked troops. I intend to go myself to Baekchon to console them. You are to hold the fortress firmly and wait." Before long Silla troops suddenly arrived and surrounded Juyu, and the Tang general Liu Renguei and others (Note: Liu Renguei's name is from the Tang Shu and the Dongguk Tonggam) lined up their ships at Baekchongang (Hakusukinoe; Note: the Old Book of Tang and the Dongguk Tonggam write it Baekgangku). The Japanese naval force, which had arrived first, fought the Tang army at a disadvantage. Because the generals rushed forward in competition for the lead, they were caught between the Tang forces on both sides. The imperial army was utterly defeated, and many were drowned. Hata-no-Takutsu looked up to heaven and gnashed his teeth, and after killing several dozen men he fell in battle. Pung fled to Goguryeo, and Juyu fell. The soldiers and people said to one another: "Juyu has fallen. There is now nothing to be done. The name of Baekje ends today." They then took leave of their wives and children and came to Jeorye Fortress to join the Japanese army. The Jwapyeong Yeo Ja-sin (Note: the Dongguk Tonggam says that Jisusin held Imjon Fortress, and probably this is the same man), and the Dalsol Mokso Gwija, Gokna Jinsu and Eongnye Boknyu, came with the royal army (the Wa army), and Baekje was at last destroyed.

¶In the year Kinoe-Ne (664), Seon-gwang (Zenkō; Note: the Shoku Nihongi writes Zenkō with different characters), son of King Uija of Baekje, and others were settled at Naniwa. In the year Kinoto-Ushi (665), in recognition of the services of the Jwapyeong Boksin in Baekje, the Dalsol Gwisil Jipsa was granted the rank of Shōkinge, and more than four hundred Baekje men and women were settled in Kamusaki District in Omi province.

¶In the first year of Emperor Tenji's reign (662), Mitsushibu was sent to present tribute (Note: the Old Book of Tang says that in the second year of Linde of Tang (665), Prince Yung of Baekje was sent back to his own country as Governor-General of Xiongjin. Yung, fearing that the people's hearts had turned away and scattered, fled back to Tang. In the Yifeng era (676-679) he was enfeoffed as Prince of Daifang, but, fearing the might of Silla, Yung was unable to enter his old country, took up residence in Goguryeo and ruled from there, and died there. Wu (Empress Wu Zetian) had his grandson Jing succeed to the throne. On present consideration, this Baekje envoy was probably sent by Yung and his party). In the second year (663), the Jwapyeong Yeo Ja-sin and the Jwapyeong Gwisil Jipsa, together with more than seven hundred men and women, were moved to Gamo District in Omi province. Yeo Ja-sin, Sataek Somyeong and those below them were each employed according to their talents. In the fourth year (665), Dae Gu-yong, Seon Ye-jin-ja and others of Baekje presented tribute one after another (Note: following the Nihon Shoki). The descendants of Seon-gwang served at court (Note: following the Shoku Nihongi).