Biographies CLXVIII: Foreign Peoples, Part X: Emishi (Second Half), Sushen, Jurchen, and Ryukyu

Sushen (Mishihase)

¶The Emishi, second half. In the eleventh year of Enryaku (792) in the reign of Emperor Kanmu, the emperor issued an edict: "We have heard that Nisannankō Awaso of the Emishi, moved by Our civilizing influence, wishes to come to court; his loyal purpose is truly welcome. The provincial governor is to send three hundred cavalry to escort him to the border and to receive him on his return, and is to take care above all to make a show of authority." Two fushū (submitted Emishi) of Mutsu were also granted Outer Junior Fifth Rank Lower (Note: following the Ruijū Kokushi and the Nihon Kiryaku), and in this way the Emishi were conciliated. Three ifu (submitted barbarians) were invited to the Chōdō, the Court of State, where a banquet was held and ranks were conferred upon them (Note: following the Ruijū Kokushi). In the thirteenth year of Enryaku (794), the Seii Taishōgun, Barbarian-Subduing Generalissimo, Ōtomo-no-Otomaro, inflicted a great defeat on the Emishi, killing 457 men and taking 150 prisoners, capturing eighty-five horses, and burning seventy-five settlements (Note: following the Nihon Kiryaku). In the eighteenth year (799), the stipends given to the mountain barbarians of Dewa were discontinued, and it was ordered that, without distinction between mountain barbarians and field barbarians, those with merit be selected and granted stipends. Four fushū of Mutsu secretly went back and forth to the enemy's territory, and so were seized and exiled to Tosa (Note: following the Nihon Kōki; the Nihon Kiryaku says five). In the nineteenth year (800), Sakanoue-no-Tamuramaro, Azechi, Inspector of Mutsu and Dewa, was ordered to supervise the submitted barbarians of the various provinces. In the twentieth year (801), the Seii Taishōgun Sakanoue-no-Tamuramaro attacked the Emishi and defeated them utterly (Note: following the Nihon Kiryaku); he pressed them as far as Hei village and swept away their lairs (Note: following the Nihon Kōki). In the twenty-first year (802), Tamuramaro was ordered to build Isawa Castle in Mutsu (Note: according to the Wamyōshō the Chinjufu, Garrison Headquarters, was located in Isawa district, and this is that place), and four thousand vagrants from the various provinces were moved there to guard it. The chieftains Tamo-no-Aterui and Bangu-no-More led more than five hundred of their kinsmen to surrender. Tamuramaro presented these two captives at the capital. Since the two were leaders of the bandits of the far interior and had repeatedly harried the frontier, the court deliberated and decided that they should be beheaded. Tamuramaro submitted a memorial: "Although these two were the ringleaders of the bandits, they have already placed themselves in our hands and submitted, and moreover they sincerely say, 'If we are granted special mercy and allowed to keep our lives, we will return to the Emishi lands ourselves and call the remaining kinsmen to surrender.'" But this request was not granted, and the two were beheaded in Kawachi. In the twenty-second year (803), Tamuramaro was sent to Mutsu to build Shiwa Castle (Note: following the Nihon Kiryaku). In the spring of the twenty-third year (804), a campaign against the Emishi was planned, and more than 14,300 koku of dried rice and more than 9,600 koku of rice were transported from Musashi, Kazusa, Shimōsa, Hitachi, Kōzuke, Shimotsuke, Mutsu, and other provinces to the Nakayama Stockade in Oda district, Mutsu. In summer, Mutsu submitted a memorial: "From Shiwa Castle to Isawa district is more than 160 ri, the mountains and valleys are steep and distant, and travel back and forth is inconvenient. We wish to establish a single post-station in case of emergency." This was granted. In winter, Dewa submitted a memorial: "More than forty years have passed since Akita Castle was established; the soil is poor and unsuited to the five grains. Moreover, it stands isolated in a northern corner, and no help can be hoped for from neighbors. We wish to abolish it permanently and take our stand at Kawabe Prefecture." By edict, Akita Castle was abolished and made a district, and its people were moved to Kawabe. In the winter of the first year of Kōnin (810) in the reign of Emperor Saga, Mutsu reported: "More than two hundred teki, northern barbarians, of Watarishima have landed at Kesen district. Since they do not belong to the jurisdiction of this province, we were going to send them back, but the teki said, 'It is now the cold season and it is hard to cross the sea. We wish to wait until next spring and then return to our home land.'" This was granted. In the spring of the second year (811), the Emishi of the two villages of Nisattai and Hei in Mutsu rose in revolt. An edict was issued to Fun'ya-no-Watamaro, Azechi of Mutsu and Dewa, Saeki-no-Mimimaro, Chinju Shōgun, Commander of the Garrison, and Mononobe-no-Taritsugu, Deputy Commander, and others, to raise 26,000 troops from Mutsu and Dewa and put down the rebels. At this time Ōtomo-no-Imahito, Governor of Dewa, recruited more than three hundred brave fushū, struck the rebels unawares through the snow, and put to death more than sixty remnants of the Nisattai. In summer, Fun'ya-no-Watamaro was made Seii Shōgun, and Ōtomo-no-Imahito, Saeki-no-Mimimaro, and Sakanoue-no-Takakai were made his deputy commanders to attack the rebels. An edict said: "It is long since the barbarians first disturbed the order of the realm, and although we have launched punitive expeditions, we have not yet rooted them out. The generals will now set out to attack them; as for the gunkan and gunsō, military inspectors and sergeants, select and appoint them and report to Us. As for any who violate military law, detain them and request a ruling; from the rank of unit commander downward, judge them according to the law. The safety or peril of the state hangs upon this one undertaking. Let the generals exert themselves." At this time dried rice, salt, and weapons were not sufficient, and for more than ten days the army could not set out. In autumn, Watamaro and the others submitted a memorial: "At first we thought to entrust one thousand submitted troops to Kimikobe-no-Oyashibe and others and have them attack Hei village. But the submitted barbarians of that village are very numerous, and if we meet them with a small force, we may miss our chance. We therefore wish to raise one thousand submitted troops from each of the two provinces of Mutsu and Dewa, wait until the eighth or ninth month, deploy our forces to left and right, and attack in a fierce assault from front and rear." The emperor replied by edict: "Consult carefully with your deputy commanders and the provincial governors. The great affairs of the state must not be planned lightly." Dewa submitted a report: "The surrendered fushū Kimikobe-no-Tsuruki states: 'We have long-standing grudges against Ikako and the others, Emishi of Nisattai village. Ikako and his men are now drilling soldiers and assembling their following at Tsumo village, and are trying to entice the Emishi of Hei village to attack us. If we are given provisions, we wish to lead the assault as the vanguard.' We consider that to have bandits attack bandits is advantageous to the military affairs of the state. We have granted one hundred koku of rice and acceded to their request." This was approved. Fun'ya-no-Watamaro asked to send an additional 1,100 reinforcements, and this was permitted. In winter, Watamaro and the others divided their troops and advanced in four directions, struck straight at the bandits' lairs and wiped them out completely, and reported the circumstances in detail. An edict said: "The general's skill in directing the army and the merit of the soldiers' battle deeds are well understood from this result. Let the Emishi be transferred to the inner provinces (Chūgoku) as requested; let the fushū be kept in their own lands, and let them be taught and admonished with diligence, and not be burdened with excessive labor service." Now Emperor Kanmu had been troubled by the Emishi rebellion, and because successive reigns had been unable to pacify it, he sent Ōtomo-no-Otomaro and Sakanoue-no-Tamuramaro to attack them, and they had largely brought about peace. Yet the remnants still hid in the mountains and valleys and, watching for an opening, carried out raids. When Watamaro and his colleagues put the remnants to death, the troubles of the frontier at last subsided. The emperor greatly rewarded their achievement, and the deputy commanders and all below them were each advanced in rank. Watamaro submitted a memorial: "With a single stroke of the imperial army the bandits have been all but wholly destroyed. The garrison troops ought to be disbanded, so that the common people may be given lasting peace. However, the weapons and military provisions of the castles and stockades have not yet been moved and stored away. We humbly request that one thousand men be kept to serve as guards. Shiwa Castle has repeatedly suffered flood damage and should be moved to a more convenient site. We humbly request that two thousand men be kept to guard it, and that when the move is complete they be dismissed, leaving one thousand to serve as a permanent garrison. The troops were established, to begin with, to prepare for emergencies, and now that there are no remaining bandits there is no need to keep soldiers. But the guarding of the frontier cannot be suspended suddenly, so we humbly request that two thousand be kept and all the rest dismissed. From the fifth year of Hōki until this year is thirty-eight years; the common people are exhausted and have not yet been given rest. We humbly request that taxes be remitted for four years, and that the garrison troops be relieved in turn, with the remission rotated among them." All of this was granted (Note: following the Nihon Kōki). In the third year of Kōnin (812), the officials of the Chinjufu were fixed (Note: following the Nihon Kōki and the Ruijū Sandai Kyaku), and fuchō, chiefs of the submitted, were appointed in the various provinces (Note: following the Nihon Kōki and the Ruijū Kokushi). Three hundred and ninety-six field Emishi of Mutsu asked to change their surnames, become ordinary subjects, and bear taxes and labor service, and this was permitted. In the fifth year (814), Mutsu submitted a memorial: "The two castles of Isawa and Tokutan stand isolated beyond the frontier. The teki and fushū below the castles and in Tsugaru have ambitions that cannot be fathomed, and we must not relax our guard. We wish to store up dried rice and salt against emergencies." The request was approved (Note: following the Nihon Kōki).

¶In the second year of Jōwa (835) in the reign of Emperor Ninmyō, it had earlier been forbidden for ifu to leave their borders, but in recent years there were frequent cases of them slipping into the capital. In this year, therefore, an official order was sent down rebuking the Azechi of Mutsu and Dewa, the provincial governors, the Chinjufu, and other officials. In the sixth year (839), Yoshimine-no-Kotsura, Governor of Mutsu, and Sōsa-no-Suemori, Chinju Shōgun, submitted a memorial: "In recent years portents of heaven and earth have appeared repeatedly and earthquakes have been frequent; the common people are startled and scattered, and cannot live in peace. Between Taga Castle and Isawa Castle foreign peoples abound, and those who draw the bow number several thousand. If a sudden alarm were to arise, it would be hard to defend against. We wish to raise one thousand soldiers, repair the defenses in advance, and let the people devote themselves to farming." By edict this was granted. In the seventh year (840), they submitted a further memorial: "The people of the interior say they are keeping the day of kōshin (Kanoe-Saru), and crowds press in and gather in throngs that cannot be restrained. Without the authority of the state, the alarmed and clamoring people cannot be calmed. We wish to call out auxiliary troops to settle men's hearts." This was granted (Note: following the Shoku Nihon Kōki). In the first year of Saikō (854) in the reign of Emperor Montoku, Mutsu, citing the previous year's poor harvest, asked to send two thousand auxiliary troops in order to prepare for unforeseen events. An imperial order said: "We permit the dispatch of one thousand, and let ten thousand of grain be distributed in relief to the submitted barbarians." In the second year of Saikō (855), the submitted barbarians of Mutsu fought and killed one another among their own kin; two thousand troops were raised to serve as an emergency guard, and ten thousand koku of grain were issued to relieve the people and the fushū (Note: following the Montoku Jitsuroku). In the eleventh year of Jōgan (869) in the reign of Emperor Seiwa, the ifu of the various provinces were moved to the Dazaifu to guard against Shiragi (Silla) raiders. In the twelfth year (870), the Daijōkan, Grand Council of State, sent a directive to Kazusa Province ordering that the Emishi kin be taught and admonished: "The reason the Emishi kin were dispersed and settled in the inner provinces was so that, should bandits appear, they would defend against them. Yet We now hear that the ifu of that province still harbor wild ambitions and have not yet been steeped in Chinese-style civilization; some set fire to the homes of the people, and some take up weapons and seize their goods. Gangs of bandits invariably arise from such as these. If we do not stop them now, what will the harm be in later days? Strive to restrain them. If any change their hearts and follow the civilizing influence of the throne, bestow upon them especially generous favor; those who will not reform their nature and who defy the instruction of the officials are to be driven back to the far interior, so that these rough men do not injure and harm good people."

¶In the spring of the second year of Gangyō (878) in the reign of Emperor Yōzei, the ifu of Dewa rose in revolt, set fire to Akita Castle, and attacked it. Fujiwara-no-Okiyo, Governor of Dewa, defended it with garrison troops, urged that troops be raised from the various districts as well, and sent a memorial by express rider. An imperial order said: "That barbarians should defy reason and burn down walled towns shows hearts as mad as dogs and sheep and natures given to violence. If we do not pursue and punish them, how can they be chastened? Weigh the matter carefully, raise picked troops, and seize them by the throat. But it is now the busy farming season and the people are at work in the fields; if many soldiers are moved, it will hinder their agricultural labor. The best use of arms is to make the enemy yield by strategy, and a good general, without fighting, skillfully lays his plans and gives peace to the people of the frontier." An order was also sent to Mutsu Province: "Drill your soldiers in advance and be ready for any sudden need." In summer, Ono-no-Haruizumi, Provisional Secretary of Dewa, and Fun'ya-no-Arifusa led troops into Akita Castle, but the rebels' strength grew ever greater; they burned every official building and private house to the north and south of the castle, killed people, and plundered their goods. At that time, after the famine of the previous year, the common people were impoverished, and the men recruited to fight all lacked spirit. Haruizumi, Arifusa, and the others fought the rebels but were outnumbered and could not prevail, and the rebels, pressing their advantage, at last burned Akita Castle. The weapons and military provisions that had been stored up over many years were turned to ashes in a moment. A further imperial directive was therefore sent to Mutsu, ordering: "Raise two thousand troops and hasten to the rescue." Fujiwara-no-Okiyo, Governor of Dewa, was holding the isolated castle, but no relief came; his troops were too few to meet attacks from every side, and he repeatedly sent memorials by express rider asking for help. Okiyo had earlier posted six hundred men at the narrow pass of Nōshiro, but when they reached Yakeyama more than a thousand rebel troops suddenly rose up behind the government force; they killed and plundered more than five hundred, and only fifty managed to escape. The houses of the common people were all burned. Directives were sent to Kōzuke, Shimotsuke, and Mutsu urging them to dispatch three thousand reinforcements without delay, and Mutsu was rebuked for not having gone to the rescue in good time. Thereupon Minamoto-no-Kyō, Governor of Mutsu, raised two thousand troops and set out to the relief, and at Okiyo's request sent a further five hundred, reporting this by express rider. He also asked: "The Emishi of this province may be stirred by the turmoil in the neighboring province to wolfish ambitions and scorpion-tailed malice. We wish to raise two thousand troops and have them guard the strategic places." This was granted. An imperial order then said: "That each time this province raises troops it reports by express rider merely startles the people and brings no real benefit. Hereafter the provinces of Kōzuke, Shimotsuke, Mutsu, and Dewa shall report through the post-stations, as provided in the edict of the thirteenth year of Enryaku (794)." At this time Fujiwara-no-Yasunori was made Provisional Governor of Dewa and placed in charge of military affairs in Dewa. While Yasunori had not yet arrived, Ono-no-Haruizumi and Fun'ya-no-Arifusa held the camp at Akita. Tomo-no-Sadamichi, Acting Senior Magistrate of Mogami district, and Tamatsukuri-no-Unamaro, a chieftain of the fushū, led 560 government soldiers to scout the rebels' position; on the road they met more than three hundred rebel soldiers, and Sadamichi was struck by a stray arrow and died. The rebels attacked again, but the government force held them off, fought, and defeated them, killing and capturing many. Unamaro crossed blades with the rebels and cut down two with his own hand, but in the end was killed in battle. The rebels placed an ambush in the grass and sent three fushū as envoys to propose: "If we are given the lands north of the Akita River, we will withdraw our troops." The government force saw through the trick, loosed a hundred or more lightly armed men to shoot at the ambushers, and killed the three. Fujiwara-no-Munoyuki, Provisional Assistant Governor of Dewa, together with Ono-no-Haruizumi and Fun'ya-no-Arifusa, encamped at the old castle of Akita and put the military provisions and weapons in order. Two thousand troops led by Fujiwara-no-Kajinaga, Ōryōshi (Military Commissioner) and Daijō (Senior Secretary) of Mutsu, together with the troops of the province itself, made a total of more than five thousand holding the castle. The rebel troops suddenly swept in and surrounded the castle; Munoyuki and the others sent out troops and fought back, but were defeated by the rebels. Arifusa fought with all his strength; an arrow struck his left leg, but he only roused his courage the more, fought to the death, and with his own hand cut down several men. But the government soldiers scattered and fled and no support came from behind, and Arifusa, unable to advance alone, withdrew. Fujiwara-no-Kajinaga, seeing how strong the rebels' force was, led his own two thousand men and went back to Mutsu by a side road. In the sixth month, Ono-no-Harukaze was made Chinju Shōgun, and an order was sent to Mutsu: "The rebels' rampage grows worse each day, yet the two thousand soldiers of that province, fearing the enemy and looking behind them, have fled back to their own province. There must be a proper way to cut off the enemy's momentum and win the victory. Yet the men of today, each sparing his own skin and with no heart to fight, have supplied the bandits with provisions and bowed before their violent power. How can the army of a sovereign be made to retreat like this and bring upon itself the shame of defeat? Let the soldiers who fled be rounded up anew and sent out again under men skilled in affairs. If any flee again, punish them according to military law." An order was also sent to the two circuits of Tōkaidō and Tōsandō: "Select picked troops and add them to the army." In autumn, Fujiwara-no-Yasunori arrived in Dewa and had Fun'ya-no-Arifusa and others lead more than six hundred soldiers to encamp south of the Akita River. At that time the places where the ifu had gathered and entrenched were Kamitsuno, Hinai, Sugibuchi, Nōshiro, Kawakita, Wakigi, Katakuchi, Ōkawa, Tsutsumi, Aneriki, Katakami, and Yakeoka, twelve villages in all, to which were added the three villages of Chisoigawa, Shimowake, and Sukegawa, where the naturalized fushū lived. Ogachi Castle, which the government forces held (Note: also written as "Ogachi" with other characters), stood in an especially vital place, and the rebel troops were just about to attack it. Yasunori released the grain stored in the granaries of the three districts of Ogachi, Hiraka, and Yamamoto, and gave relief to the fushū within those districts and in the three villages of Soegawa, Shimowake, and Sukegawa, thereby comforting and gladdening them. Then the fushū Fukae-no-Nekato, Tamatsukuri-no-Mutsukimaro, and others enticed and led more than two hundred fushū of the three villages, attacked the rebels' village by night, burned their houses, and killed eighty men. At this time rumors also spread through the army that the rebel fushū were in league with the ifu of Tsugaru. Yasunori reasoned that if the two sets of rebels were to join, the harm would be still more serious, and he requested that two thousand soldiers of the two provinces of Hitachi and Musashi be sent, to prepare for unforeseen events. An order was therefore sent to the various provinces: "Select brave troops in advance and train them." Before long more than three hundred rebel fushū came to Akita Castle and asked to surrender. Fun'ya-no-Arifusa and Fujiwara-no-Shigezane dismissed their mounted attendants, went in person to the rebel camp, and exchanged pledges to accept their surrender. Just then Sakanoue-no-Yoshikage, Provisional Assistant Governor of Mutsu, led more than two thousand troops from the Ryūka Road to Akita, deployed them in splendid array, and displayed their might to the rebels. Ono-no-Harukaze, acting on a separate imperial order, entered Kamitsuno, called in and soothed the rebel band, and seven rebel chieftains came and surrendered under Harukaze. The generals were ready to accept their surrender, but the fushū loyal to the court begged: "We serve and follow the state, and the rebel bands have long borne a grudge against us. If the rebels are not wiped out entirely now, they will certainly take revenge on us later. There are many houses that would become our enemies, and we cannot but fear them. Moreover, their manner in asking to surrender is careless and discourteous. We beg that you not grant their request." The surrendered fushū were therefore ordered to hand over the government weapons the rebels had seized, and the rebel fushū offered twenty-two suits of armor they had previously plundered. Kiyohara-no-Yoshimochi, Provisional Secretary of Dewa, and others thought the number of suits of armor handed over was suspiciously small, and doubted whether, the Emishi's feelings being impossible to fathom, they were not being deceived. Harukaze said: "I myself entered the rebels' land and know well that the rebels repent of their error. If we now suppress them and refuse to accept them, we shall not bring the matter to a good conclusion." Fujiwara-no-Yasunori followed his words and accepted them with reassurance. Before long, one hundred and three chieftains of the Emishi of Watarishima, leading three thousand of their kin, together with more than a hundred of the fushū of Tsugaru who had not sided with the rebels, came to Akita Castle and declared their sincere submission. In the spring of the following year, Fujiwara-no-Munoyuki, Fun'ya-no-Arifusa, and others were ordered to entertain the fushū and reward them for their service. An imperial order said: "Fukae-no-Mikado and Ōsake-no-Noritsukuri-no-Mutsukimaro, fushū of Dewa, and the others are all to be granted Outer Junior Fifth Rank Lower." Soon the soldiers of the provinces were disbanded, and the armor and weapons brought by the troops of Kōzuke and Shimotsuke were kept in Dewa (Note: following the Sandai Jitsuroku). In the fourth year of Tenki (1056) in the reign of Emperor Go-Reizei, Abe-no-Yoritoki, a fushū of Mutsu, rose in revolt. This affair is recounted in detail in the Biographies of Rebellious Retainers. In the third year of Eihō (1083) in the reign of Emperor Shirakawa, the Dewa fushū Kiyohara-no-Takehira and Kiyohara-no-Iehira rose in revolt. This affair appears in the Biography of Kiyohara-no-Takenori.

Jurchen (Nüzhen)

¶Mishihase (Sushen) is also called Mohe (Note: following the Sui Shu). It lies three thousand ri from the district seat of Miyagi district in Mutsu, to the northwest of Taga Castle (Note: following the Taga Castle stele), and its land is for the most part close to the lands of the Emishi. In the fifth year of Emperor Kinmei's reign (544), a Mishihase ship came ashore at Minabe-no-saki on Sado Island and stayed for a long time without leaving. In spring and summer they caught fish for food. Their speech could not be understood, and the people of the island, taking them for demons or goblins, were afraid and would not approach them. The Mishihase plundered at will and then gradually moved on until they reached Segawa-no-ura, where they drank poisoned water, and nearly half of them died. Their bones lay heaped in a rock cave, and the common people called the place Shukushin-no-kuma, the Sushen Nook. In the fourth year of Emperor Saimei's reign (658), Abe-no-Hirafu (Note: the original text writes the name as 此羅夫), Governor of Koshi, attacked the Mishihase and returned, presenting two live brown bears and seventy bear pelts. In the fifth year of Saimei (659), Hirafu led a fleet of 180 ships against the Emishi and subdued them. Advancing further, he attacked the Mishihase and returned with forty-nine captives (Note: following the Nihon Shoki and a variant account in the same text). In the sixth year of Saimei (660), Abe-no-Hirafu led a fleet of two hundred ships, together with the Emishi of Mutsu, on a campaign against the Mishihase. More than one thousand Emishi of Watarishima had drawn up their camp on the seashore. Two of the Emishi, seeing Hirafu's army, cried out in a loud voice, "The Mishihase fleet has come!" Hirafu summoned the two and asked how many ships the Mishihase had and where they lay in hiding. The Emishi pointed it all out in detail and answered that there were more than twenty ships. Hirafu then called out to the Mishihase, but they did not respond. Hirafu piled brightly colored silks, weapons, and iron goods on the shore as bait to lure them in. The Mishihase drew up their ships in line, tied feathers to them as banners, and came rowing in. Two old Mishihase men got down from the ships and came to the piled-up silks; after gazing at them again and again, each took a single hitoe, an unlined robe, and put it on. Each also took one length of cloth in his hand, boarded the ship, and left. Before long they came back, took off the robes they had put on and changed back into their own clothes, set down the cloth, and left. Calls were sent after them, but they did not return. Their ships went as far as Herobe Island (Note: the commentary of the Nihon Shoki says it is another island of Watarishima) and sued for peace. Hirafu would not listen and so joined battle. Nōto-no-Umamitatsu was killed by the bandits, but the government army took all the bandits' wives and children captive. In this way the Mishihase army was defeated, and Hirafu brought back forty-seven prisoners. In the fifth year of Emperor Tenmu's reign (676), seven Mishihase came to court in the company of the Silla envoy Gim Cheong-pyeong. In the tenth year of Emperor Jitō's reign (696), Shirasu-eisō and other Mishihase were granted brocade robes and trousers, scarlet and dark blue ashiginu (coarse silk), and axes (Note: following the Nihon Shoki). In the fourth year of Yōrō (720) in the reign of Emperor Genshō, Moro-no-Kurao, Tsukasa of Tsugaru Harbor in Watarishima, was sent to Mohe to observe its climate and customs (Note: following the Shoku Nihongi). Now the Mohe had seven tribes. Two of them, called Sumo and Heishui, were both subject to Goguryeo. The Sumo Mohe took the clan name Da and later became Bohai. Bohai has a separate biography. The Heishui Mohe are those who later became the Jurchen (Note: following the Jin Shi).

Ryukyu (Ryūkyū)

¶The Jurchen (Nüzhen) dwelt on the old land of the Sushen, with the sea to the east and Goryeo adjoining them to the south. At first they were subject to Bohai and were still called the Heishui Mohe. When the Khitan destroyed Bohai, they became subject to the Khitan and changed their name to Jurchen. Those entered in the Khitan household registers were called "cooked Jurchen" (shu Nüzhen), and those not entered in the Khitan registers were called "raw Jurchen" (sheng Nüzhen). In their land are the Huntong River and the Changbai Mountains. The chief of the raw Jurchen lived among the Wanyan tribe and bore the clan name Wanyan. Their first ancestor was called Hanpu. Shilu, a great-great-grandson of Hanpu, began to govern to some degree by law, and thereby they gradually grew strong. He made his martial power shine upon the various tribes and was victorious wherever he went (Note: following the Jin Shi). The Jurchen had exchanged envoys with the Song through the generations. By this time they fought the Khitan and repeatedly defeated them (Note: following the Wenxian Tongkao). In their customs they were skilled at archery; their arrows were a little over one shaku long and had the power to pierce a shield and kill a man. When they went into battle, each man carried a shield, with the ge and spear-bearers in front, then swordsmen, then archers, in that order (Note: the Wenxian Tongkao likewise says that in the use of troops they stood the ge in the front rank and used what they called the "hard-army sword," that they added cudgels to the swords, and that the bows and arrows were placed to the rear. Since the Jurchen battle formation agrees with the account in this work, it is added here for reference). Their ships were more than ten hiro (fathoms) long, each fitted with thirty or forty oars and carrying fifty or sixty men. When they landed, twenty or thirty men would rush out brandishing blades, followed by seventy or eighty men wielding bows and arrows and carrying shields on their backs. Wherever they went they killed the old and weak, drove off the able-bodied men, and seized goods and provisions. Their speed in crossing mountains and fields was like the flight of a falcon (Note: the Wubeizhi likewise says that the Jurchen love to hunt at the gallop on horseback and that they climb up and down rock walls as if flying; this too agrees with the account in this work). Only the sound of the narikabura, the whistling arrow, did they fear. In the third month of the third year of Kannin (1019) in the reign of Emperor Go-Ichijō, the Jurchen fitted out more than fifty ships, attacked Goryeo, and plundered the people of the coast. They then burned Tsushima and killed or captured more than three hundred people. Tōharu (Note: his family name is not recorded), Governor of Tsushima, escaped and returned to the Dazaifu. The raiders next attacked Iki and killed nearly all of its inhabitants. Fujiwara-no-Masatada, Governor of Iki, was slain. In the fourth month the raiders entered Chikuzen and attacked Ito district. At that time the coastal lands were wide and the soldiers few, but Fujiwara-no-Takaie, Provisional Governor-General of the Dazaifu, reported the situation by express rider, raised troops, and drove them off. The next day the raiders plundered Nokonoshima and pressed on the Keigosho, the Guard Station. Takaie again sent troops to defend against them. The raiders withdrew to Nokonoshima. The next day the raiders attacked Hakata again, where there were no soldiers on guard. Taira-no-Tametada and Taira-no-Tamekata, holders of rank without office, hurried there from the Guard Station. It happened that the inhabitants of two islands had been captured and were aboard the raiders' ships. Directing the army of the Dazaifu, they called out, "Gallop your horses and shoot them!" and the Dazaifu troops shot at them with whistling arrows. The raiders took fright and withdrew. The raiders then tried to burn the Hakozaki Shrine, but one of them was shot dead by the Dazaifu soldiers. The raiders boarded their ships and returned to anchor at Nokonoshima, but just then a great wind blew for two days and they were at a loss whether to advance or retreat. Takaie seized the chance and sent out several tens of warships in pursuit. The raiders attacked Funakoshi-no-tsu as well, but the Dazaifu army drove them back. The raiders attacked Matsura district in Hizen, but Minamoto-no-Satoru, former Assistant Governor, drove them back. The raiders at last left and again attacked Goryeo, but this time they were thoroughly beaten by Goryeo and the dead and wounded were almost the whole force. Because this affair broke out without warning, more than a thousand people of Iki and Tsushima were killed or captured, together with several hundred head of cattle and horses. The pits of the silver mine on Tsushima were also burned and wrecked. At first it was not known in detail which raiders these were, and people called them "Toi" (Note: the character i is also written with another character, meaning "barbarian"). Only when a chōjō, an official note, was received from Goryeo was it first known that they were Jurchen (Note: following the Shōyūki). In this year the Jurchen sent envoys to the Song (Note: following the Wenxian Tongkao). More than a hundred years later Aguda first took the title of emperor and named his state Jin. Now Wugunai, the son of Shilu, was born in the first year of Jian (1021), gradually brought the various tribes into submission, and was given the title Jingzu. His son Helibo was skilled in the use of troops, his power grew ever greater, and he was given the title Shizu. When Shizu died his younger brother Polashu succeeded him; when Polashu died his younger brother Yingge succeeded; when Yingge died his nephew Wuyashu succeeded; and when Wuyashu died Aguda succeeded. Aguda was a son of Helibo and a younger brother of Wuyashu, and was given the title Taizu. When Taizu died his younger brother Wuqimai succeeded. In this way they destroyed the Liao and the Song and, with Bianjing as the boundary, came to possess half of the Song lands. After seven further generations they were destroyed by the Mongols (Note: following the Jin Shi).

¶Now, when Abe-no-Yoritoki rose in revolt in Mutsu, fearing that he would in the end be defeated and destroyed, he conceived the idea of fleeing overseas with his whole clan and followers. First, together with his sons and younger kinsmen, some twenty persons in all, he boarded a single ship and set out to scout the lay of the land beforehand. In time they reached a sea harbor, where they found one great river and sailed up it. The broad plains were empty of any human figure, and the water was exceedingly wide and deep. Even after some thirty days of travel they still had not come to its ford. Suddenly they heard a sound of footfalls like the beating of waves; Yoritoki and his men, seized with fear, hid in the reeds and watched. A thousand and more riders, with crimson cloths bound about their foreheads (Note: the Music Treatise of the Jiu Tangshu says that the dancers of the Goryeo music tie crimson cloths about their foreheads. The Mohe were originally subject to Goryeo, so perhaps their customs came to be thus), stood gathered in crowds on the riverbank, calling something to one another. Whipping their horses, they plunged into the turbulent current, and the men on foot all clung to the horses and crossed. Yoritoki thought, "It must surely be a shallow place," and drew near to look, but could not see the bottom. Frightened, he turned back. Soon afterward Yoritoki died. Later, when Yoritoki's son Munetō had become a monk and was living in Tsukushi, he said to someone: "I once heard that the land of the Hu (Koku) lay far to the north of the Song. But having followed my late father to that place, I came to know that it is in truth not so very far from Mutsu" (Note: following the Konjaku Monogatari and the Uji Shūi Monogatari). I consider that this land of the Hu is none other than the Jurchen (Note: according to the Jin Shi, when Aguda campaigned against Huanglongfu, he came to the banks of the Huntong River but had no boats. Aguda rode a chebai horse (a reddish white) and crossed straight over, saying, "Advance in the direction my whip points!"; the various armies followed him, and the water reached only to the horses' bellies. Later, when boatmen were made to measure the place where he had crossed, it was too deep to reach the bottom. The Wubeizhi likewise says that they cross rivers by floating on their horses, using neither boats nor oars. I think the customs of the Jurchen were of this kind. Yoritoki's turning back fell precisely in the time of Helibo. That the Jurchen troops and horses were formidable and did not need boats or rafts to cross rivers is a tale worthy of belief. Moreover, on the map the Huntong River joins the Heilong River and empties into the sea, separated from the land of the Emishi by a single stretch of water only, and not very far from the Mutsu frontier. And that after ascending for several tens of days one still does not reach a ford holds true, among the rivers that flow into the northern sea, only of the Heilong and the Huntong. It is therefore evident that this was the land of the Jurchen).

¶The Kingdom of Ryukyu (Ryūkyū) was originally written "Ryūkyū" with other characters (Note: following the Genkō Shakusho and the Kagakushū. The Shōryōshū writes it "Ryūkyū" with yet another character, and Miyoshi-no-Kiyoyuki's Biography of the Monk Enchin writes it with still another; the writings vary, but here, following the Sui Shu, the form 流求 is fixed as the old name). It was later changed to the present characters (Note: following the Saitō Chikamoto Ki and the Shimazu Documents). It was also called Akonawa-jima (Note: following the Biography of the Monk Jianzhen by Ōmi-no-Mifune and the Enryaku Sōroku Shō), which was corrupted into "Okinawa" (Note: following the Nagatobon Heike Monogatari and the Map of the Kingdom of Ryukyu). Ryukyu lies among the islands of the sea (Note: following the Konjaku Monogatari and the Genkō Shakusho), narrow from east to west and long from north to south (Note: following the Map of the Kingdom of Ryukyu). It lies some two hundred ri south of Satsuma (Note: following the Nanpo Bunshū) and southwest of Tanegashima (Note: following the Biography of the Monk Jianzhen), and is close to such islands as Yaku (Note: also written with other characters), Amami, Tokan, Shigaki, Kumi, Erabu, and Kika (Note: also written "Kikai") (Note: following the Map of the Kingdom of Ryukyu. The names of these islands are written differently in the present day and in the main text, but here they are given in the forms used in the various national histories). Their custom is plunder, and the world calls it a land that eats men (Note: see the Biography of the Monk Enchin, the Konjaku Monogatari, the Genkō Shakusho, and the Shōryōshū. The Sui Shu says that the customs of the southern frontier differ somewhat, that when someone dies the people of his village eat him together, and also that they gather the dead and eat them in common, which accords with the main text). In China the islands of the southern seas were originally called collectively the "Southern Islands" (Nantō) (Note: following the Shoku Nihongi). Later the Southern Islands together with Shiraishi, Akoshiki, Kuroshima, Iō, and other islets were collectively called "Kikai-ga-shima," twelve islands in all (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki and the Nagatobon Heike Monogatari). Kikai is the same as Kika (Note: following the Map of the Kingdom of Ryukyu). Among the Ryukyuan people it is told that their first ancestor was the Tenson clan, called Amamiku (Note: following the Chūzan Seikan, written by a Ryukyuan, as cited in the Qing work Zhongshan Chuanxin Lu). In the sixteenth year of Empress Suiko (608), Yang Guang, emperor of the Sui, sent the Cavalry Commandant Zhu Kuan across the sea to pacify Ryukyu, but Ryukyu would not submit. Zhu Kuan took one of their cloth cuirasses and returned. At that time an envoy of our court was staying in Sui, saw it, and said, "This is what the people of the land of Iyaku use" (Note: following the Sui Shu. "Iyaku" is the same as "Yaku," and the name is in common use today. Since Ryukyu and Yaku are not very far from each other, the cloth cuirasses they use were probably by chance the same). In the spring of the first year of Reiki (715) in the reign of Empress Genshō, people of the Southern Islands, Amami, Yaku, Tokan, Shigaki, Kumi, and others, came to court, and ranks were conferred on each according to his station (Note: following the Shoku Nihongi). In the winter of the fifth year of Tenpyō Shōhō (753) in the reign of Empress Kōken, the ambassador to Tang Fujiwara-no-Kiyokawa, together with the vice-ambassadors Ōtomo-no-Komaro and Kibi-no-Makibi, returned home on the same ship as the Tang monk Jianzhen (Ganjin) and his companions. Drifting on the ocean, they reached Akonawa-jima, waited more than ten days for a wind, and set out again when they got a south wind (Note: following the Biography of the Monk Jianzhen). In the autumn of the third year of Ninju (853) in the reign of Emperor Montoku, the monk Enchin boarded the ship of the Tang merchant Qin Lianghui to go to Tang, but met a typhoon on the way and was blown to Ryukyu. In the distance they saw several tens of men standing on the shore with ge and spears in their hands. The wind had just died, and they could not go anywhere. Qin Lianghui cried out in lament, "Are we not to be eaten by Ryukyu? What are we to do?" When Enchin prayed to the Buddha, a southeasterly wind at once rose, and they escaped the danger (Note: following the Biography of the Monk Enchin, the Konjaku Monogatari, and the Genkō Shakusho). In the third year of Chōtoku (997) in the reign of Emperor Ichijō, bandits of the Southern Barbarians (Nanban) raided the western frontier. In the following year the Dazaifu ordered Kika-jima to pursue and arrest the Southern Barbarian bandits (Note: following the Nihon Kiryaku). Now, in the Taihō and Wadō eras (701-715), the barbarians of the Southern Islands for the most part submitted to the realm, and tribute never ceased (Note: following the Shoku Nihongi). Afterward they repeatedly defected, and in the Chōkan and Jōan eras (1163-1175), of the twelve islands five were submitted and seven were not. Those that did not submit were the islands south of Kikai (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki and the Nagatobon Heike Monogatari). At this time a man of Satsuma named Ata-no-Gon-no-Kami Taira-no-Tadakage defied the imperial command and crossed the sea to Kikai-ga-shima. Taira-no-Iesada, Governor of Chikugo, was sent to attack him, but this was not carried out. In the fourth year of Bunji (1188) in the reign of Emperor Go-Toba, Minamoto-no-Yoritomo sent Amano-Tōkage and Utsunomiya-Nobufusa to attack Kikai-ga-shima and bring it to submission. Earlier, Kawabe-no-Michitsuna, a man of Satsuma, had defied Yoritomo's wishes and fled into hiding on the islands. Yoritomo also suspected that followers of Minamoto-no-Yoshitsune were hiding on these islands, and for that reason this expedition was made (Note: following the Azuma Kagami). Now, when Minamoto-no-Tametomo was in exile on Izu Ōshima, he raided the various islands, reached Oni-ga-shima, subjugated its people, carried one man back with him, and had them pay a hundred bolts of silk each year (Note: following the Hōgen Monogatari). The so-called Oni-ga-shima is likewise Ryukyu. It is said that later a son of Tametomo fled to this island and replaced the Tenson clan as king (Note: see the Nanpo Bunshū and the Zhongshan Chuanxin Lu. According to the Zhongshan Chuanxin Lu, Shunten was a descendant of the Japanese imperial line and a son of Chōkō, the Aji of Ōzato. He took the throne in the seventh year of Chunxi of the Song (1180), at the age of fifteen. The note in the Xu Hongjian Lu likewise cites the Seisoku-zu, written by a Ryukyuan, as saying that King Shunten was a son of Chōkō. The seventh year of Chunxi of the Song corresponds to the fourth year of Jishō. The account that he took the throne at fifteen agrees precisely with the statement in the Hōgen Monogatari that Tametomo's youngest son was five years old in the second year of Kaō (1170). Therefore the tale that Tametomo's descendants became kings of Ryukyu may not be wholly without foundation. It is added here for reference. The Chūzan Seifu says that King Shunten's surname was Minamoto and that his name was Sonton. His father was Chinzei Hachirō Lord Tametomo, and his mother was a sister of the Aji of Ōzato. He was born at a western garrison post in the second year of Qiandao of the Song (1166), took the throne in the fourteenth year of Chunxi of the Song, Hinoto-Hitsuji (1187), and died in the first year of Jiaxi of the Song, Hinoto-Tori (1237). He reigned fifty-one years and died at the age of seventy-two). When the Ashikaga clan held military power, the king of Ryukyu sent envoys to present local products as tribute. From then on he paid tribute at fixed times, and the Shimazu clan of Satsuma is said to have handled their reception (Note: following the Ashikaga-ke Naisho Hikitsuke, the Saitō Chikamoto Ki, the Nanpo Bunshū, and the Shimazu Documents).