37 The Hougen Rebellion [2] The Hougen Rebellion lasted only four to five hours, but the damage was tremendous; the traditional ethical and moral outlook on human behavior was severely shaken. First, the rebellion arose from a struggle between brothers: Retired Emperor Sutoku and Emperor Go-Shirakawa. Whatever the reasons, it wa regrettable that the Emperor, the younger brother, and the Retired Emperor, the elder brother should be at war. Second, the rebellion was also a atruggle between Fujiwara no Tadamichi, the elder brother, and Fujiwara no Yorinaga, the younger brother. The elder was Imperial Regent, and the younger was Minister of the Left. Yet the clan leadership was stripped from the elder and handed over to the younger. Their father played favorites, elevating Yorinaga and shutting out Tadamichi. This animosity among the Fujiwaras, along with antagonism in the imperial house, brought on a huge rebellion. Strife within the imperial house alone would not have resulted in war. Third, it was a military confrontation within the Genji (Minamoto) clan, between a father and a son, and an elder brother and a younger grother. Monamoto no Yoshitomo was already the head of the clan, with many vassals. Fewer men served his father Minamoto no Tameyoshi since he had passed on the clan leadership to his heir Yoshitomo. Yet the rest of his sons followed the father: Yorikata the fourth son, Yorinaka the fifth, Tamemune the sixth, Tamenari the seventh, and the eight son Tametomo defended the palace of the Retired Emperor and fought against th eldest brother Yoshitomo. Fourth, a similar situation existed within the Heike (Taira) clan. They were also divided into enemies and allies and fought accordingly. Taira no Tadamasa the Vice Director of the Right Horse Bureau, as a commander, guarded the Retired Emperor's palace served by his son Nagamori, Masatsuna, and so on. Taira no Kiyomori, however, was his nephew, so Nagamori and Masatsuna were his cousins, and yet they were matched as enemies. It was immoral enough to fight a war among blood relations such as fathers and sons, brothers, and uncles and nephews. But in addition a gross error was committed after the war. The court exiled Retired Emperor Sutoku to Sanuki Province (Kagawa Prefecture in Shikoku Island) immediately after the rebellion. Fujiwara no Yorinaga the Minister of the Left was shot by a stray arrow and died. His sons were banished - Kanenaga to Izumo Province (Shimane Prefecture), Moronaga to Tosa Province (Kouchi Prefecture in Shikoku Island), Takanaga to Izu Province (Shizuoka Prefecture / Metropolitan Toukyo), and Monk Hanchou to Aki Province (Hiroshima Prefecture). It was impossible to prevent the exile of all other aristrocrats who sided with Retired Emperor Sutoku, for it was a just punishment. The error lay in the brutal, unethical punishments inflicted on the warriors. Taira no Tadamasa and his son were arrested, and his nephew Taira no Kiyomori was ordered to decapitate them. Similarly Minamoto no Yoshitomo took the lives of his own father Minamoto no Tameyoshi and his younger broyhers, by decapitation. A warrior is naturally prepared for military defeat, arrest, and the ensuing execution. But to die at the hands of one's son, nephew, or cousin is unacceptable. The imperial commands ordering these acts were wrong, as were the executioners who obeyed the letter of the law. The most atrocious was Minamoto no Yoshitomo, who executed innocent young brothers: Otowaka Maru, age thirteen; Kamewaka Maru, eleven; Tsuruwaka Maru, nine; and Tennou Maru, who was seven, as well as his father and grown brothers. Monk Shinzei the Lesser Coundellor ordered these post-rebellion executions. Accordingly, Minamoto no Yoshitomo committed patricide and murdered his younger brothers. Similarly Taira no Kiyomori executed his uncle and cousins. They all had to pay for these extraordinary acts; retributions would be exacted, soon after. Thre years later, Monk Shinzei met his nemesis. For Minamoto no Yoshitomo, it happened four years later, and for Taira no Kiyomori, some twenty years later. (an omission) It was in the first year of Kounin era (810) that the rebellion of Fujiwara no Nakanari took place, during the reign of Emperor Saga. For 346 calender years, no capital punishments had been imposed on criminals by the court. This is roughly correct, putting aside the executions relating to rebellions by Taira no Masakado or Fujiwara no Sumitomo, or civil wars in the northern province. Generally, a criminal would be given a death sentence; then the case was taken to the imperial authority where the sentence was reduced to exile. For example, in the 5th year of Tenchou era (828) during the reign of Emperor Junna (r. 823-833), Ohnakatomi no Harutsugu murdered Prince Hagihara, yet he escaped death to be exiled to Izu Island. In the 9th year of Jouwa (842) during the reign of Emperor Ninmyou (r, 833-850), Tomo no Kowamine, Tachibana no Hayanari and others attempted an uprising, and they were given an imperial pardon and exiled to Oki Island, Izu Island and so on. Tomo no Yoshio and thirteen of his men set the Ohtemon-Gate on fire in the 8th year of Jougan era (866) during the reign of Emperor Seiwa (r. 858-876). They were to be beheaded, but by imperial pardon they were also sent into exile. There were numerous such cases, which became a characteristic of the Heian period, and of the nation as a whole. (an omission) Kitabatake Chikafusa (1283-1354) lamented in his writing, A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns (Jinnou Shoutouki, 14th century): "The strife from this time of Hougen on was surely a sign of the decline of the age." Furthemore, "In addition to being the chieftain of a warrior line that had long served the throne, Yoshitomo had performed with great distinction during the Hougen disturbance. Yet in having his father beheaded, he committed a most serious trangression, unknown from ancient times and without precedent in either China or Japan. Yoshitomo clearly went against the way of the son, which dictates that, even though he may be obliged to renounce his own achievements and relinquish high office and position, a son must at all costs seek to aid his father. How could it be expected that, having thus violated the dictates of filial piety, Yoshimoto would fulfill his promise as a warrior? It was the just reward of heaven that he perished as he did." And he concluded: "It is obvious that the reason order still has not been restored to the land after these many years is the continuing violation by people of the principles of proper conduct (meikou)." "Proper conduct" (meikou) means that lords, subjects, fathers, children, elder brothers, younger brothers, and so on all assume responsibilities befitting their status; to perform those responsibilities is the moral, just way to virtue. He argued that when they enter into dispute, to the extent of ultimately committing patricide, humanity was totally destroyed and anarchy would follow.

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