Please cite as: Michael Watson, "Genpei Tales and the Nō," Premodern Japanese Studies Website, 2012. Retrieved from: http://www.meijigakuin.ac.jp/~pmjs/biblio/genpei-noh.html. Latest revision: 2016.10.01.
Genpei Tales and the Nō
Michael Watson, Meiji Gakuin University
Episodes from the Genpei 源平
War of 1180–1185 form the subject matter of a greater number of nō
plays than does any other period of Japanese history. The courtly
narratives of the Tales of Ise and the Tale of Genji figure prominently among literary sources for the nō stage, but plays based on characters or episodes from the Tale of the Heike (Heike monogatari) outnumber Ise and Genji plays by a large margin. Some thirty-four plays, well over a tenth of the modern performance repertoire (genkō yōkyoku 現行謡曲), are based on Heike monogatari, while many dozens more "Genpei"-related plays are to be found in the very large but still little explored corpus of bangai yōkyoku 番外謡曲 or "non-canonical" plays.
In some of the best known plays of the Genpei war, the spirit of a warrior re-enacts his death by his enemy's hand (Atsumori, Tadanori) or by his own (Kiyotsune, Yorimasa). While many Genpei plays do take the form of ghost plays (mugen nō) like these mentioned here, it is far from being the only plot available to dramatists. The great variety of content in Heike monogatari and
other war tales is reflected in the nō plays derived from them. Armed
conflicts between supporters of the Genji (Minamoto) and Heike (Taira)
loom large in relatively few of the twelve numbered books (maki, "scrolls") of Heike monogatari,
most notably in book seven with Kiso Yoshinaka's battles in Hokuriku,
book nine with the Heike defeat at Ichi-no-tani, and book eleven with
the Genji victories in Shikoku and Dan-no-ura.
Many of the nearly two hundred sections (shōdan) of the work
deal with other matters. Relatively few sections deal with female
characters, but all important episodes involving women have been
dramatized at one time or another, from the performer Giō in book one
to the former Empress Kenreimon'in in the Book of the Initiates ("Kanjō
no maki," the final volume of Heike monogatari). Nō dramatists also showed great interest in monks and others who had taken the tonsure, from Shunkan to Mongaku.
This webpage is designed to supplement the first book-length treatment of this subject:
Like Clouds or Mists: Studies and Translations of Nō Plays of the Genpei War, ed. Elizabeth Oyler and Michael Watson (Ithaca, NY: Cornell East Asia Series, 2013). In
drawing up the Appendix ("Nō Plays of the Genpei War, A Finding List"),
I found that it was possible to collect far more material than could
reasonably be included in the published volume. Appendix, Section B of Like Clouds or Mists is
thus a much abbreviated version of the list below, which provides plot
summaries and more detailed bibliographical information concerning
texts and translations for items included in the published text. The
list below includes many more entries and cross-references, including
more plays that are less directly related to the war tales and more
plays from the early modern period and later. In particular, this list
contains a fuller treatment of the
extensive "Yoshitsune cycle," the name given here for plays based on
stories of Minamoto no Yoshitsune and his retainers that are not
primarily derived from the war tales.
Known or conjectured sources are cited in the entries, but it may be
useful to list the principle sources. These can be roughly divided as
follows:
- Plays based on Hōgen monogatari 保元物語, a shorter war tale describing a failed revolt in 1156 (Hōgen no ran 保元の乱) that divided the Genji 源 氏 (Minamoto 源) family and strengthened the position of the Heike 平家 (Heiji 平 氏, Taira 平) family. The exiled Genji warrior Tametomo is the subject of two non-canonical (bangai) plays.
- Plays based on Heiji monogatari 平治物語, a shorter war tale describing a revolt in 1159 (Heiji no ran 平治の乱) that was crushed by Taira no Kiyomori 平清盛, the leader of the Heike family. In the modern repertoire, the only play based on the Heiji revolt is Tomonaga, but bangai examples include Akugenta, Higekiri, Kamata (two separate plays), Taki mōde, Yuki Yoritomo, and Zaimoku Yoshihira
- Plays based on Heike monogatari 平家物語 in its best known variant, the Kakuichi version (Kakuichi-bon, 覚一本). This variant for recitation (kataribon 語 本)
is the source of the majority of plays of all types, including many
based not on incidents from the Genpei war era as such but on
independent narratives appearing in the war tale by way of analogues or
digressions, such as older Japanese anecdotes (Akoya no matsu, Kōyō, Sagi) or Chinese history (Kan'yōkyū).
- Plays based on the Nagato variant (Nagato-bon 長門本), a version for reading (yomihon)
rather than recitation. As its final volume deals with the aftermath of
the Genpei war in more detail than the Kakuichi-bon, it is considered
the likely source of plays set in the immediate postbellum period such
as Morihisa and Kagekiyo.
- Plays based on Genpei jōsuiki 源平 盛衰記, a late variant of Heike monogatari in forty-eight volumes.
- Plays based on the "Book of the Swords" ("Tsurugi no maki" 剣巻), a narrative of famous swords, found in the Yashiro variant (Yashiro-bon 屋 代本) of Heike monogatari,
a variant for recitation as well as in later texts. A much abbreviated
version of the sword narrative is found in Kakuichi-bon 11.12 "Swords"
("Ken" 剣). The play Kanawa in the current repertoire is based on an episode in the Book of the Swords, as are non-canonical plays like Kusunagi and Rashōmon.
- Plays based on the "Yoshitsune cycle," traditional tales about Minamoto no Yoshitsune and his retainers found Gikeiki 義 経記 ("Account of Yoshitsune") or the Mai no hon 舞 の本, a collection of kōwakamai 幸若舞 "dance ballads." These narratives focus on the portions of his life either omitted or touched on only briefly in Heiji monogatari (in which Yoshitsune appears as an infant) or Heike monogatari. The cycle gives
romanicized accounts of his early years spent in Kurama temple and
elsewhere, of his flight from Daimotsu Bay via the Ataka barrier to the
far north where he dies at Koromogawa with his supporters. In plays
depicting his youth, Yoshitsune appears under the name of Ushiwakamaru 牛若丸 or Shanaō 遮 那王.
The "Yoshitsune cycle" includes plays centered around those close to
Yoshitsune including Shizuka (Shizuka-gozen), Satō Tadanobu, Musashibō
Benkei, Suzuki Saburō Shigeie and others.
To determine which textual variant served as the
principal source requires closer study. Some plays have no clear
source. In some cases, the playwright may have drawn on oral traditions
or textual versions that have not survived. Other cases suggest the
application of dramatic license in creating dramas involving invented
characters set in either a generic Genpei war background or a specific
battle or campaign. See, for example, the discussions of Shunnei and Matsushima.
In the list below, hypertext links provide bibliographical information about text editions and translations.
Entries list editions in order of publication. In citing editions, we
have not strived to be exhaustive. The focus is on the major texts
editions published from the 1960s onwards, with earlier editions cited
when few or no modern editions are available.
Entries refer to text editions by the abbreviations given in bold
below. This is followed by the standard abbreviated reference used in
Japanese nō scholarship. This list is in order of publication. English
translations are referred to by author date only. For further
information about Japanese editions and translations into English and
other Western languages, see "Noh translations: noh plays in
alphabetical order of the Japanese titles" (www.meijigakuin.ac.jp/~pmjs/biblio/noh-trans.html). - Kokumin【国民】 Furuya Chishin 古谷知新, ed. Yōkyoku zenshū 謡曲全集. 2 vols [上下]. Kokumin bunko kankōkai, 国民文庫刊行会,
1911. [Reference is only made to the second volume, which prints a
large number of bangai yōkyoku from two Edo collections, the
three-hundred play collection of Jōkyō 3 (1686) and the four-hundred
play play collection of Genroku 2 (1689).]
- Shinhyaku 【新百】 Sasaki Nobutsuna 佐佐木信綱, ed. Shin'yōkyoku hyakuban 新謡曲百番. Tokyo: Hakubunkan, 1912, reprint Kyoto: Rinsen shoten, 1987. [A scanned version of the entire text is available on the Diet Library website as part of the "Digital Library from the Meiji Era" (Kindai dejitaru raiburarī 近 代デジタルライブラリー.]
- KYS 【叢書】Haga Yaichi 芳 賀矢一 and Sakaki Nobutsuna 佐佐木信綱, eds. Kōchū Yōkyoku sōsho 校註謡曲叢書. Three vols. Hakubunkan: 1913-15; reprint Rinsen shoten: 1987.
- Meicho 【名著】 Nonomura Kaizō 野々村戒三, ed., Yōkyoku sanbyakugojūshū 謠 曲三百五十番集. Nihon meicho zenshū kankōkai, 1928. [This edition is the base text for the UTAHI collection of online electronic texts in EUC encoding.]
- Zensho 【全書】 Nogami Toyoichirō 野上豊一郎 and Tanaka Makoto, eds. Yōkyokushū 謡曲集, 3 vols. Nihon koten zensho 日 本古典全書. Asahi Shinbusha, 1949–1957.
- Taikan 【大観】 Sanari Kentarō 佐成謙太郎, ed. Yōkyoku taikan 謡 曲大観. 6 vols. Meiji Shoin, 1930–31.
- Bangai [番外] Tanaka Makoto 田中允編, ed. Bangai yōkyoku 番外謡曲. Koten bunko, vol. 33, 1950.
- Zokugai [続外] Tanaka Makoto, ed. Zoku Bangai yōkyoku 続番外謡曲. Koten bunko, vol. 57, 1952.
- NKBT 40, NKBT 41 【(旧)大系】Yokomichi Mario and Omote Akira, eds. Yōkyōkushū, 2 vols. [jō, ge]. Nihon Koten Bungaku Taikei [NKBT] 40-41. Iwanami shoten, 1960, 1963.
- MYS 【未刊】 Tanaka Makoto, ed. Mikan yōkyōshū 未刊謡曲集. 31 vols. Koten bunko, 1963–1978.
- MYSZ 【続外】 Tanaka Makoto, ed. Mikan yōkyōshū zokuhen 未刊謡曲集続編. 22 vols. Koten bunko, 1963–1978.
- NKBZ 33, NKBZ 34 【全集】 Koyama Hiroshi 小山弘志, Satō Kikuo 佐 藤喜久雄, Satō Ken’ichirō 佐藤喜久雄, eds. and trans. Yōkyokushū 謡曲集.
2 vols. Nihon Koten Bungaku Zenshū (Shōgakukan, 1973-75). [This edition
is superseded by SNKZ 58–59 but included as some users may have access
only to this edition. The pagination differs, as noted below.]
- SNKS【集成】Itō Masayoshi 伊 藤正義, ed. Yōkyōkushū 謡曲集. 3 vols. Shinchō Nihon Koten Shūsei 新潮古典集成. Shinchōsha, 1983-88. [Individual volumes in the SNKS series are not assigned numbers. For convenience, we refer to Yōkyokushū (jō) as SNKS (jō), Yōkyokushū (chū) as SNKS (chū), and Yōkyokushū (ge) as SNKS (ge).]
- SNKZ 58, SNKZ 59 【新編全集】 Koyama Hiroshi and Satō Ken'ichirō, ed. and trans., Yōkyōkushū 謡 曲集. 2 vols. Shinpen Nihon Koten Bungaku Zenshū (SNKBZ), vols. 58–59. Shōgakukan, 1997–1998.
- SNKT 57 【新大系】 Nishino Haruo 西野春雄, ed. Yōkyoku hyakuban 謡 曲百番. Vol. 57. Shin Nihon Koten Bungaku Taikei 新日 本古典文学大系. Iwanami shoten, 1998.
Page numbers have been added in many cases,
particularly when it may aid users of larger text editions. For
simplicity's sake, the first page only is given, e.g. NKBT 40:138f
refers to the text of "Akoya no matsu" found in Yōkyokushū jō, NKBT 40 (Iwanami shoten, 1959), 138–146.
The links marked [e-text] lead directly to an electronic text of
the play or to an online translation. Unless otherwise noted, texts
link to the UTAHI Hangyō bunko 半魚文庫 site. As explained elsewhere, these texts are based on the 1928 edition by Nonomiya Keizō (see Meicho
above). Depending on the browser used, you may need to make a manual
change of encoding to Japanese (EUC) to read the UTAHI e-texts. For
publications in English journals available to academic users through
JSTOR, I have added the Article Standard URL.
Entries typically consist of the following information.
- Single asterisk indicates a play thought to date from the Muromachi period.
- Reference has been made to the invaluable lists compiled by Nishino Haruo: (1) Kokinkyokumei ichiran 古今曲名一覧 in SNBT 57:699-729 and (2) Kokinyōkyoku ichiran 古今謡曲一覧 in pp. 1-50 of the appendix to Maruoka Kei, Kokin yōkyoku kedai 古今謡曲解題 (originally published 1919, republished with supplements by Nishino Haruo in 1984). Memo: many asterisks are missing, needs re-editing.
- Romanized
title of the play. When a play is known several names, the most widely
used title is chosen for the main entry. Some cross-references have
been provided.
- Titles in the current repertoire of at least two schools of noh performance are in blue CAPITALS.
Lower-case blue font used for plays that are only in the repertoire of
one school or have fallen out of the active repertoire. (The appendix in Like Clouds or Mists used
double asterisk to indicate plays in the current repertoire, but this
leaves the presumed date of composition unclear. As I re-edit this
page, I am replacing the double asterisk with the coloured fonts.)
- Title in Japanese. Modern forms of kanji have been used except where the traditional form is conventionally used in Heike or yōkyoku scholarship, such as Kiso written 木 曾 rather than 木曽. Variations are separated by a slash (e.g. 維盛/惟盛).
- "All
five schools" means that the play is performed by the Kanze, Hōshō,
Komparu, Kongō, and Kita schools. In the case of four or fewer schools,
the names are listed, with parentheses indicating that a play has
fallen out of the active repertoire of that school. Bangai yōkyoku are
so marked.
- Mugen nō indicates a dream or ghost play. No specific indication is made for genzaimono, "present time" or realistic plays.
- The
category of the play. Only plays in the repertoire have been formally
divided into the five categories (1 god, 2 warrior, 3 woman, 4
miscellaneous, 5 demon). For bangai yōkyoku, the indications are in
square parentheses, following the tentative suggestions by Nishino
Haruo, SNBT 57:699-729, and earlier in Maruoka Kei, Kokin yōkyoku kedai (1984) (Maruoka)
- Author (playwright), known or attributed.
- "Yoshitsune cycle" indicates a play about Yoshitsune and his retainers based on sources other than Heike variants.
- Brief plot summary. Relatively longer summaries are given for unusual plays.
- Alternative titles for the play.
- Possible source or sources of the play, preceded by an arrow (→). The name of the Kakuichi-bon episode is omitted when it is identical to the title of the play.
- Printed text, using the abbreviations given above. The reference is to volume number.
- Major English-language translations in “author date” format. NOTE: for recent publications, the short title has been added.
- NOTES (2016): italics were lost in reformating this page. To simplify editing, italics are omitted from commonly used terms: bangai yōkyoku, shite, waki, tsure....
List of Plays
* Adachi Shizuka
安達静. Bangai yōkyoku. [Third category.] Yoshitsune cycle. Captured in
the Yoshino mountains, Shizuka is brought to Kamakura and forced to
dance before Yoritomo. →Gikeiki; kōwakamai (ballad dance) Shizuka. Text: MYS 21.
* Aiju 愛寿 / Aiju Tadanobu 愛寿忠信.
Bangai yōkyoku. [Fourth category.] Yoshitsune cycle. Satō Tadanobu 佐藤忠信
returns to the capital from Yoshino and hides the house of his lover
Aiju, but is betrayed by another lover, Rikiju. After fighting against
the force sent to capture them, Tadanobu and Aiju take their own lives.
Text: KYS 1:1f; MYS 19.
** AKOGI 阿
漕. All five schools. Fourth category. The spirit of a fisherman appears
to a monk visiting Akogi Bay in Ise. →Genpei jōsuiki, book 8 (“Sanuki
no in no koto”). Text: SNKS (jō).
* Akoya no matsu 阿古屋松. Also known as Akoya 阿古屋.
Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Author: Zeami, possibly a revision
of an earlier work. The spirit of Fujiwara no Sanetaka実方 (d. 999)
appears to a monk. →Kojidan
古事談, book 2 (episode relating to Sanetaka); Genpei jōsuiki, book 7;
Kakuichi-bon 2.9. Text: NKBT 40:138f. There are two other plays on this
subject: MYS 8 (Akoya) and MYS 1, MYS 19 (Akoya no matsu). A version of
one passage survives as a performance piece (rangyoku). Kanze Sakon, Kanzeryū zoku hyakubanshū (Hinoki shoten: 1992), 1244–1245. Translation: Tyler 2013 (To Hallow Genji) as "The Akoya Pine."
* Akugenta 悪源太. Bangai yōkyoku.
Yoshitomo’s son Akugenta Yoshihira 義平 (shite) has taken refuge in
Ishiyama-dera, but chief monk (waki) betrays him to the Heike, and he
is captured by Nanba no Jirō Tsunetō →Heiji monogatari, Book 2 (Gakushūin-bon, SNKT 43) or Book 3 (Kotohira-bon, NKBT 31). Text: KYS 1:13f.; Kokumin 2:72–77.
Amida no mine 阿弥陀の嶺. Bangai yōkyoku. (Fifth category.) Also known as Shōgun no tsuka
将 軍塚. Mugen nō. Spirit of the “Awata no Kanpaku” 粟 田の関白 (Fujiwara
Michikane, d. 995) appears at the Shōgun no tsuka (“Mound of the
General”). →Nagato-bon 9; Genpei jōsuiki, Book 16; cf. Kakuichi 5.1
“Miyako utsuri.” Text: Tanaka,
Ariō 有王. Bangai yōkyoku. Another name for Fumi sōzu, MYS 7.
Ariō 有王. Shinsaku nō. Published
in 1926. In MYSZ 1:40f, Tanaka Makoto describes it as a sequel to the
play Shunkan ("genkōkyoku no Shunkan no gojitsutan"). Text MYSZ 1:228f.
Ashiya Benkei 蘆屋弁慶. Bangai yōkyoku. Yoshitsune cycle. Benkei (shite)
and Yoshitsune (kokata) leave Daimotsu Bay but storms drive them ashore
in Ashiya. Ashiya Saburō Mitsushige (waki) attacks them and is killed
by Benkei. →cf. Gikeiki, Book 4; Kakuichi 12.5 “Hōgan no miyako ochi.”
Text: KYS 1.
** ATAKA
安宅. All five schools. Fourth category. Possibly by Kanze Kojirō
Nobumitsu 信 光 (1424–1516). Yoshitsune cycle. Yoshitsune and Benkei
succeed in passing the Ataka barrier. Kakuichi-bon, book 12, describes
Yoshitsune’s flight from the capital, but the famous incident at the
Ataka Barrier was dramatized first in the kōwakamai works Togashi and
Oisagashi. Text: NKBT 41:168f; SNKS [1]:45f; NKBZ 34:301f; SNKZ
59:354f; SNKT 57:133f. Translations include: NGS (III) 1960; Yasuda
1971 (1989); Chambers in Shirane 2007.
** ATSUMORI
敦盛. All five schools. Second category. Attributed to Zeami.
→Kakuichi-bon 9.16 "Atsumori no saigo" 敦盛最期. Text: NKBT 40:233f; NKBZ
33:223f; SNKZ 58:218f. Translations include: Waley 1921; Shimazaki 1987
(2/1); Yasuda 1989; Tyler 1992; Bethe and Emmert 1995; Brazell 1998;
Wilson 2006.
Biwa hiki びわ弾/琵琶弾. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Major Counselor Fujiwara no Moronaga (waki)
is exiled to Atsuta Shrine in Owari. When he performs on the biwa, the
shrine deity (shite) is moved, and foretells his return from exile.
→Kakuichi-bon 3.16 “Daijin ruzai.” Moronaga returns to the capital
after a pardon. Kakuichi-bon 6.11 “Shiwagare goe.” See Genjō for an
earlier play about Moronaga. Text: ****
Butsuriki Kagekiyo 仏力景清. Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Text: ****
Chikubushima Tsunemasa 竹生島経正.
Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Taira no Tsunemasa (shite) makes a
pilgrimage to Chikubushima, an island in Lake Biwa. After the head
priest (waki) tells him the history of the island, Tsunemasa plays the
biwa and prays to Benzaiten. An early modern work. →Genpei jōsuiki,
Book 28; Kakuichi-bon 7.3 “Chikubushima.” Text: MYS 20. ⇒The play
Chikubushima in the current repertoire deals with legends of the island
and not with Tsunemasa’s visit.
*Chōbyōe no jō 長兵衛尉. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) The household of Prince Mochihito receives
a warning from Yorimasa that warriors are coming to arrest the Prince.
Nobutsura (shite) helps the Prince (tsure) to escape. Etchū no Zenji
Moritoshi (waki), the leader of the arresting party, arrives to find
only Nobutsura, who fights bravely before being taken captive.
→Kakuichi-bon 4.5 “Nobutsura.” Text: KYS 2; Kokumin 2:169–71; MYSZ 9
(variants Chōbyōe 長兵衛 and Nobutsura 信連). ⇒For a different dramatization
of the same episode see Nobutsura kassen.
** DAIBUTSU KUYŌ
大仏供養. (“The Dedication Rite for the Great Buddha”). All five schools.
Known as Nara mōde 奈良詣 (“Pilgrimage to Nara”) in the Komparu school.
Fourth category. Akushichibyōe Kagekiyo (shite) fails in his attempt to
assassinate Yoritomo (tsure) in Nara. A post-Genpei war incident
related to a kōwakamai piece. Text: KYS 2; Taikan 3:1743f. ⇒A brief
account in Nagato-bon, Book 20, relates how Kagekiyo surrendered at the
dedication rite on 1197.3.7 (Kenkyū 7) and was put to death. No mention
is made of any assassination attempt. The Engyō-bon version is similar,
while the Yashiro-bon describes him as being captured in Kamakura. For
the tradition that Kagekiyo was exiled, see Kagekiyo.
*Daifu 内府. (“The Palace
Minister”). Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Taira no Shigemori
(shite) admonishes his father Kiyomori (waki) for his treatment of
Retired Emperor Go-Shirakawa. →Kakuichi-bon 2.6 "Kyōkunjō" 教 訓状. Text:
KYS 2:416f; MYS 22 (Komatsu kyōkun 小 松教訓); MYSZ 5 (Shigemori 重盛); MYSZ
9 {check name}.
**EBIRA 箙 (“The Quiver”); Ebira
no ume 箙の梅. All five schools. Second category. Spirit of Kajiwara
Kagesue 梶原景 季 describes the battle at Ikuta Wood→Nagato-bon 16. No
parallel in Kakuichi-bon, book 9. Text: KYS 1:296f; ; Taikan 1; Zensho
[3]:135f. Translations include: William Ritchie Wilson, "Two Shuramono
Ebira and Michimori," Monumenta Nipponica Vol. 24, No. 4 (1969),
415–465 [JSTOR].
**EBOSHI ORI
烏帽子折. All schools except Komparu. Fifth category. Author: Miyamasu.
Yoshitsune cycle. The young Yoshitsune, Ushiwaka (kokata), has fled
Kurama and is traveling to the north with the merchant Kitsuji (waki).
An eboshi hat maker (maejite) helps Ushiwaka perform the coming-of-age
ceremony. When bandits attack the party, Ushiwaka kills their leader
Akasaka Chōhan (nochijite). Text: KYS 3; Taikan 1; NKBT 41:78f; MYS 21.
Translation: Waley 1921 [e-text]; Shimazaki 1998 ["The Eboshi Maker"].
French translation: Sieffert 1979 (II), 230ff ("Le pliage de
l'éboshi").
*Ennen Nasu Yoichi 延年那須与一. Bangai yōkyoku. →Kakuichi-bon 11.4. Text: MYS 2. See Nasu no Yoichi.
**Fue no maki 笛の巻. Kanze
school. Fourth category. Yoshitsune cycle. In part one, Tokiwa gozen
hears from a retainer that her son Ushiwaka, the future Yoshitsune, is
neglecting his studies in Kurama Temple and paying nightly visits to
the city. She scolds Ushiwaka, who promises to return to the temple the
next day. In part two, Ushiwaka decides to pay one last visit to Gojō
Bridge where he fights with Musashibō Benkei. Defeated, Benkei swears
allegiance to him.→Gikeiki, Book 3. Text: Taikan 4. ⇒The first part
resembles Hashi Benkei no mae, while the second part is identical to
the latter half of Hashi Benkei.
* FUJITO
藤戸. All five schools. Mugen nō. Fourth category. In the battle of
Fujito (1184.11.26), Sasaki Moritsuna leads the Genji forces to victory
by showing them the way across a shallow inlet of the sea—information
he obtained from a fisherman he afterwards killed. The play is set
after the war when Sasaki (waki), rewarded with land in the area,
returns to Kojima in Bizen. He is confronted first with the fisherman’s
grieving mother (maejite) and then with deceased man’s spirit
(nochijite). →Kakuichi-bon 10.14. Text: NKBZ 34:188f; SNKS [3]:169f;
SNKZ 59:XXXf; SNKT 57:236f. Translations include: Wilson 1974; Bethe
and Emmert 1992 (with a translation and afterword by Royall Tyler).
Fukui Takaguchi 福井滝口. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) To avenge the high-handed behavior of Taira
no Munemori, Watanabe no Kiō (shite) and his retainer Fukui Takiguchi
(waki) steal his horse Nanryō, cut off its tail, and brand it with the
name Munemori. They then ride off to join Minamoto no Yoritomo in
Miidera. →Kakuichi-bon 4.6 “Kiō.” Text: Shinhyaku.
Fumi sōzu 文僧都. Bangai yōkyoku.
Shunkan (shite) and Ariō (waki). In the first half, Ariō (waki) travels
to Kigaigashima, bringing a letter to Shunkan from his daughter. In the
second half, set after Shunkan’s death, his spirit appears to Ariō.
Also known as Kikaigashima 鬼界嶋 or Ariō 有王. →Kakuichi-bon 3.8 "Ariō" 有
王; 3.9 "Sōzu shikyo." Text: MYS 7.
* FUNA BENKEI
舟弁慶 (船 弁慶). All five schools. Fifth category. Author: Kanze Nobumitsu 信
光 (1424–1516). →Gikeiki, book 4, cf. Kakuichi-bon 12.5 "Hōgan no miyako
ochi" 判官都落. Text: NKBT 41:150f; NKBZ 34:430f; SNKS [3]:201f; SNKZ
59:486f; SNKT 57:346f. Translations include: Sansom 1911, NGS I 1955;
Yasuda 1989; Tyler 1992.
Futari Giō 二人祇王. Kita school. See entry for Giō 祇王.
FUTARI SHIZUKA 二
人静(ふたりしづか). Kanze, Komparu, Kongō, Kita schools. Third category.
Yoshitsune cycle. The spirit of Shizuka (maejite) in the guise of a
villager approaches women who are picking flowers for a shrine in
Yoshino. Asking for prayers to be said for her, she suddenly
disappears. As one of the women (tsure) repeats her words, she is
possessed by the spirit of Shizuka, and begins to tell the story of
Yoshitsune’s flight. The first Shizuka (nochite) returns. Together they
recount the story of Yoshitsune’s flight to Yoshino and death in
Koromogawa. Text: Meicho [e-text]; NKBT 41:332f; NKBZ 33:314f; SNKZ
58:361f; SNKT 57:398f. Translations include Jacqueline Mueller, "The
Two Shizukas: Zeami's Futari Shizuka," Monumenta Nipponica 36:3
(Autumn, 1981), 285-298 [JSTOR]; Shimazaki 1987 (3/3).
Gendaiyū 源太夫. Komparu school. First category. →"Book of Swords"in Yashiro-bon and other variants. Text: KYS 1:707f; YTK.
GENJŌ 玄象. Kanze school name for Kenjō 絃上.
Genta 源太. Bangai yōkyoku. Also known as Genta Kagesue 源太景季. See entry for Ebira 箙.
Genzai Atsumori 現在敦盛. Bangai
yōkyoku. ( Fourth category.) Encounter between Kumagai Naozane (shite)
and Atsumori (tsure). → Kakuichi-bon 9.16 “Atsumori.” Text: MYS 1.
Genzai Ebira 現 在箙. Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Also known as Kagesue 景季or Ume Genta 梅 源太. Text: Shinhyaku.
Genzai Giō 現在祇王. Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Kiyomori (waki) demands that Giō (shite) returns to dance before him. Text: MYS 27.
Genzai Morihisa 現在盛久. Another name for Ikedori Morihisa 生 捕盛久.
Genzai Nue 現在鵺. Kongō school.
Fifth category. Minamoto no Yorimasa’s feat of archery with Yorimasa
(waki), I no Hayata (tsure), Minister (tsure). The nue monster (shite)
sings a brief passage. →Kakuichi-bon 4.15 “Nue” 鵼. Text: KYS 1:688f;
Kokumin 2.
Genzai Sadamori 現在実盛. Bangai yōkyoku. Text: KYS. Translated by Mae Smethurst in Like Clouds or Mists.
**Genzai Tadanori
(1) 現在忠度. Kongō school. Fourth category. As he flees the capital,
Tadanori (shite) visits Fujiwara no Shunzei (tsure). →Kakuichi-bon 7.16
“Tadanori no miyako ochi.” Text: MYSZ 3:50f. This version is an
abridgement of Genzai Tadanori (3), see entry below. There are two
bangai yōkyoku variants: MYS 1; MYS 17.
Genzai Tadanori (2) 現在忠則. Bangai yōkyoku. →Kakuichi-bon 9.14. Text: MYS 14.
Genzai Tadanori (3) 現在忠度. Bangai yōkyoku. →Kakuichi-bon 9.14. Text: MYS 1, 17.
Genzai Tomoe 現在巴. Bangai
yōkyoku, formerly performed by the Kongō school (Kongō haikyoku
金剛廃曲). Set in Awazu, Ōmi Province, with Tomoe (shite) and Kiso no
Yoshinaka (waki). →Kakuichi-bon 9.4 “Kiso no saigo.” Text: KYS 1. ⇒The
last recorded performance by the Kongō school was in 1882. The Kongo
text was revised and shortened from an older play known as Genzai Tomoe
or Konjō Tomoe 今生巴 (see entry below). Tanaka Makoto, “Yōkyoku nayose
ichiran,” Mikan yōkyokushū (zoku), vol. 20 (Koten bunko, 1997), 456.
Genzai Tsunemasa 現在経正. Bangai yōkyoku. Also known as Omuro Tsunemasa御室経正. →Kakuichi-bon 7.17 "Tsunemasa no miyako ochi." Text: KYS 3.
Genzai Yorimasa 現在頼政. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Yorimasa (shite) advises his son Nakatsuna
(waki) how to respond to Munemori’s demand for his horse. The last
section dramatizes their suicides in the Battle of Uji. →Kakuichi-bon
4.6 “Kiō”; 4.12 “Miya no gosaigo.”. Text: MYS 5.
** GIŌ 祇王. Kanze, Hōshō, Kongō, (Kita) schools. Known as Futari Giō 二人祇王 in Kita school. →Kakuichi-bon 1.6. Text: KYS 1:584f; YTK. Translated by Susan K. Matisoff in Oyler/Watson 2013.
Gion zata 祇園沙汰. Bangai yōkyoku.
When Tadamori accompanies the Retired Emperor on a visit to Gion
Shrine, the party meets what appears to be a monster. In reward for his
quick thinking, Tadamori receives the Gion Consort as his wife. →
Kakuichi-bon 6.10. MYS 4.
* Hase Rokudai 長谷六代 (2). Bangai yōkyoku. Also read Hatsuse Rokudai. →Kakuichi-bon 12.7 "Rokudai"; 12.8 "Hase Rokudai." Text: Hyōshaku.
Hase Rokudai 長谷六代 (2). See Rokudai no utai.
** HASHI BENKEI 橋
弁慶. All five schools. Fourth category. Yoshitsune cycle. Benkei (shite)
is defeated by the future Yoshitsune, Ushiwaka (kokata), at Gojō
Bridge. Benkei swears allegiance to him. →Gikeiki, Book 3. Text: KYS 3;
Taikan 4.
* Hashi Benkei no mae 橋 弁慶前.
Yoshitsune cycle. (Fourth category.) Ushiwaka’s mother hears that her
son is neglecting his studies at Kurama Temple, and going nightly to
Gojō Bridge and cutting down passers-by. She scolds him, then gives him
an ancient flute that belonged to Kōbō Daishi. Text: MYS 2. ⇒Similar to
the first half of Fue no maki, the play forms the prequel to Hashi
Benkei.
Hayauchi Mongaku はやうち文学. Bangai
yōkyoku. Hōjō Shirō Tokimasa (waki) tells Saitō Go (tsure) that he can
wait no longer for the pardon for Rokudai to arrive. As Rokudai is
about to be executed, Mongaku (shite) arrives with a pardon from
Yoritomo. →Kakuichi-bon 12.7 "Rokudai." Text: MYS 29.
Higekiri 髭切. Bangai yōkyoku.
The chōja or master of the post station in Ōhaka in Mino (shite)
presents the hereditary Minamoto sword Higekiri (Beard Cutter”) to
Kiyomori (waki). Kiyomori assembles the Heike to watch Higekiri being
tested against the hereditary Taira sword Kogarasu, “Little Crow.”
Other Japanese and Chinese famous swords are recalled. → Kakuichi-bon
11:12 "Ken'; "Book of Swords." Text: MYS 23; MYSZ 11 (variant). ⇒Ōhaka
逢墓 is the Aohaka 青墓 of Heiji monogatari. Defeated in the revolt,
Yoshitomo stops at the Aohaka post station before continuing in his
flight eastward (Book 2), followed afterwards by his third son
Yoritomo, who had become separated in the snow (see Yuki Yoritomo).
When Yoritomo takes refuge in Aohaka, he is taken prisoner (Book 3,
first section). The role of the chōja in the capture of Yoritomo and
his sword is mentioned neither in Heiji variants or this play, but
seems to be assumed in the latter, which ends with the chōja being
rewarded land in Mino.
Hirosawa hime 広沢姫. Bangai
yōkyoku. . A monk visiting Suma Bay meets the spirit of Hirosawa Hime,
the daughter of Taira no Norimori, who describes how she drowned
herself after the defeat at Ichi-no-tani. Text: MYS 30. ⇒The character
has not been traced, but her suicide may be modeled on Kozaishō’s.
Kakuichi-bon 9.19 “Kozaishō minage.” Passages are borrowed from Ebira,
Izutsu and Tadanori. MYS 30:13
Hōin mondō 法印問答. Bangai yōkyoku. →Kakuichi-bon 3.15. Text: MYS 20
Horo 母衣. Bangai yōkyoku. Also
known Nasu 那須, Horo Nasu 母衣那須. Text: Tanaka, Aokugai. →Kakuichi-bon
11.4 “Nasu no Yoichi.” ⇒ A number of different plays share the same or
similar names.
* HOTOKE HARA 仏原. Kanze, Kongō schools. →Kakuichi-bon 1.6. "Giō" 祇王. Text: SNKS [3]:227f; SNKT 57:429f. Translated by David Bialock in Like Clouds or Mists.
Ichi-no-tani senjin 一谷先陣. Bangai yōkyoku. →Kakuichi-bon 9.11. See entry for Nido no kake 二度の掛.
* Ichirai hōshi (Ichirai hosshi) 一
来法師 (1). Bangai yōkyoku. An episode in the battle of Uji Bridge:
Ichirai hōshi (shite), Prince Takakura (shite tsure) and the attacking
Heike forces (waki). Also known as Jōmyōbō浄妙坊, this work is included in
the collection of bangai yōkyoku published in 1698. →Kakuichi-bon 4.11.
Text: MYSZ 1:297. See entry for Jōmyōbō 浄妙坊.
* Ichirai hōshi 一来法師 (2).
Bangai yōkyoku. The rebel forces led by the unnamed waki (presumably
Yorimasa) have arrived at Uji. He introduces the warrior monk Jōmyōbō
(shite) to Prince Mochihito (kokata), and describes how Takiguchi no
Kiō stole Munemori’s horse. Promising to hold the bridge against the
approaching Heike forces, Jōmyōbō urges the Prince to flee to Nara. He
resists the enemy on the bridge until Ichirai hōshi leapfrogs over him
to fight in his stead. Jōmyōbō escapes in the direction of Nara. Tanaka
Makoto concluded that this play is the older of the two, identifying it
with the play titled Jōmyōbō known to have existed in the Muromachi
period. See Tanaka Makoto, Mikan yōkyokushū, zoku 1 (Koten bunko:
1987), 52–3.→ Kakuichi-bon 4.6 “Kiō,” 4.11 “Hashi gassen.” Text: MYSZ.
Ichiya Atsumori / Hitoyo Atsumori
一夜敦盛. Bangai yōkyoku. (Second category.) Renshō (formerly Kumagai
Naozane) encounters the spirit of Atsumori. An early modern work. →9.16
“Atsumori no saigo.” Text: MYS 25.
Ichiya Kagekiyo / Hitoyo Kagekiyo
一夜景清. Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Kagekiyo (waki) complains that
he cannot obtain permission to leave Kamakura to visit his home. After
praying to Kannon, he falls asleep, returning for “one night” (hitoyo)
with his mother (shite). Kagekiyo’s filial piety is also depicted in
*Daibutsu kuyō. Text: MYS 25.
** IKARI KAZUKI
碇潜. Kanze, Kongō schools. Also known as Hayatomo 早友. Authorship:
possibly Komparu Zenpō 金春禅鳳 (b. 1454). A monk visiting the site of
Dan-no-ura encounters the spirits of Taira no Noritsune, Tomomori, and
Nii no ama (The Nun of Second Rank, Kiyomori’s widow). → Kakuichi-bon
11.10 “Noto dono saigo,”11.9 “Sentei minage,” 11.11 “Naishidokoro no
miyako iri.” Text: KYS 1:121f; Taikan 1. Translated by J. Philip
Gabriel as "The Anchor Draping" in Brazell 1988.
*Ikedori Morihisa 生捕盛久. Bangai
yōkyoku. Fifth category. Morihisa (shite) has taken refuge in Nariaiji
Temple in Tamba, but he is captured by Tsuchiya no Saburō after the
chief priest (waki) informs on him. Text: Tanaka, Bangai.
Ikedori Suzuki 生捕鈴木. Bangai yōkyoku. See entry for Suzuki 鈴木.
** IKUTA ATSUMORI
生田敦盛. Kanze, Hōshō, Konparu, Kongō schools. Called Ikuta 生田 in the
Konparu school. Second category, genzai nō. Based on Ko-Atsumori no
emaki 小敦盛の絵巻, an otogizōshi concerning Atsumori’s orphan. →Kakuichi-bon
9.16. Text: KYS 1:139f; YKT 1; NKBT 41:338f. Translated by Lim Beng
Choo in Like Clouds or Mists. Earlier translations: Fenollosa/Pound
1916b; Waley 1921.
Ikuta Tadanori 生田忠度. Bangai
yōkyoku. Hida no zenji Mitsumori 飛騨の前司光盛 (waki) accompanies Tadanori’s
son to Ichi-no-tani to pray for his father. There they meet the armored
figure of Tadanori’s spirit (shite) and hear of his death in battle and
his suffering in the other world, at eternal war with the aśura.
→Kakuichi-bon 9.14 "Tadanori saigo." Text: SYH 16–20.
*Iōgashima 硫黄島 (1) (“Sulphur
Island”). Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) After the Kikaigashima
exiles Yasuyori (waki) and Naritsune (shite) spend the night in prayer,
a boat arrives with their pardon. →Kakuichi-bon 2.15 “Yasuyori notto,”
3.2 “Ashizuri.” Text: MYS 25. Iōgashima is an alternative name for two
other plays, Shunkan and Kikaigashima.
Iōzan 育王山. Bangai yōkyoku. The
messenger sent by Shigemori to Iōzan (Mount Yuwang) in China encounters
the Bodhisattva Idaten 韋駄天 (Skt. Skanda). →Kakuichi-bon 3.14 "Kane
watashi." Text: MYS 1, 21 (variant).
Ishibashiyama 石橋山. Bangai yōkyoku. See entry for Sanada 真田.
Ishiyama Yoshihira 石山義平. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Second category.) A monk in summer retreat at Ishiyama Temple
notices a man who brings flowers. He learns that it is the spirit of
Minamoto no Yoshihira (Akugenta). →Heiji monogatari. Text: Shinhyaku.
Itsukushima mōde 厳島詣. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) The pilgrimage of Emperor Takakura to the
shrine. →Kakuichi-bon 4.1 “Itsukushima gokō.” Text: MYS 8.
Jikken Sanemori 実検実盛. Bangai
yōkyoku. Genzaimono set in Kaga Province with Higuchi Jirō, Kiso no
Yoshinaka, Tezuka Tarō, and others. →Kakuichi-bon 7.8. Text: KYS.
Jōmyōbō 浄妙坊. Bangai yōkyoku.
Also known as Ichirai hōshi 一来法師. →Genpei jōsuiki 15, cf. Kakuichi-bon
4.11. Text: Kokumin; KYS 1:153f; MYSZ 1:293f.
** KAGEKIYO
景清. All five schools. Fourth category, ninjōmono 人情物. After the end of
the Genpei war, the Heike warrior Akushichibyōe Kagekiyo 悪七兵衛景清 has
been exiled to Hyūga in Kyushu. He has lost his eyesight and lives in
poverty. His daughter Hitomaru finds him, but he is reluctant to admit
who he is. He is finally persuaded to acknowledge her. He relates a
famous “neck guard” (shikoro 錣) incident from the battle of Yashima 八島.
→Kakuichi-bon 11.5 "Yumi nagashi" 弓流. Text: NKBT 41:418f; NKBZ 34:260f;
SNKS [1]:267f; SNKZ 59:312f; SNKT 57:533f. Translations include: Stopes
and Sakurai 1913; Fenollosa/Pound 1916a; Fenollosa/Pound 1916b; Waley
1921; NGS II 1959; Shimazaki 1998; Michael Emmerich in Conjunctions 38
(Spring 2002), 277–290.
*Kajiwara zaron 梶原座論. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) In Kamakura after the end of the Genpei
War, Kajiwara Kagetoki and his son Kagesue debate as to which of them
won greater honors at the battle of Ichi-no-tani. →Kakuichi-bon 9.11
“Nido no kake.” Text: Kokumin 2:23–26; KYS 2. Also known as Zaron 座論
and Zashikiron 座 敷論.
Kakumei 覚明. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) In a letter he wrote for the monks of Nara, the
scribe Kakumei (waki) referred to Kiyomori insultingly. Fleeing from
Kiyomori’s men, he is attacked by a party of Heike samurai. He kills
the leader Tada Jirō Naritsune, then throws away his armor, puts on his
monk’s robe and goes on his way. This incident is recalled in
Kakuichi-bon 7.5 “Ganjō.” Text: MYS 26.
Kamata 鎌田 (1). Bangai yōkyoku.
Mugen nō. (Second category.) The spirit of Kamata Hyōe Masakiyo
正清describes his death in 1160, after the Heiji Revolt. Possibly based
on kōwakamai piece Kamata. The name 鎌田 is read Kamada in Heiji
monogatari, where his death is described in the Kotobira-bon version
(NKBT 31), Book 2 (“Yoshitomo Utsumi gekō no koto”); kōwakamai piece
Kamata. Text: Shinhyaku 98–103
Kamata 鎌田 (2) . Bangai yōkyoku. Kamata Hyōe Masakiyo’s son is captured by Akushichibyōe Kagekiyo. Text: MYS 4.
*Kamei 亀 井. Bangai yōkyoku.
Mugen nō. (Second category). Yoshitsune cycle. A Kumano monk travels to
Koromogawa Fortress to mark the deathplace of his relatives Suzuki
Saburō Shigeie and Kamei no Rokurō with a stupa. He meets the spirit of
Kamei, who describes Yoshitsune’s final battle and their deaths. Text:
MYS 4.
** KANAWA
鉄輪. All five schools. Fourth category. Dramatizes story found in
"Tsurugi no maki" in Yashiro-bon Heike monogatari. Text: KYS 1:459f;
SNKS [1]:319f. Translations: Eileen Kato in Keene 1970 ("The Iron
Crown"); Shimazaki 1998 ("The Iron Tripod").
** KANEHIRA
兼平. All five schools. Second category. . A monk from Kiso comes to the
site of the Awazu battlefield, where he meets the spirit of
ImaiKanehira. →Kakuichi-bon 9.4. Text: SNKS [1]:329f; SNKT 57:360f.
Translations: Jones, Monumenta Nipponica 18 (1963), also in Keene 1970;
Shimazaki 1993 (2/2); Richard 2004 (online edition).
Kanjin Mongaku 勧進文学 (1). Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fifth category.) Collecting funds for the rebuilding of Takao
Temple, Mongaku (shite) interrupts a concert at Retired Emperor
Go-Shirakawa’s Toba Palace, and is arrested. As he is being transported
by boat to his place of exile to Izu, the boat encounters rough waters.
The ryūjin (Dragon God) appears and explains that his desire to show
respect to Mongaku has caused the high wind and waves. →Kakuichi-bon
5.8 “Kanjinchō,” 5.9 “Mongaku nagasare.” Text: MYS 9.
Kanjin Mongaku 勧進文学 (2). Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fifth category.) As Mongaku (waki) is being taken into exile,
a guard relates the story of how Mongaku disturbed the concert at the
Toba Palace. A dōshi or divine youth (maejite) appears to Mongaku,
later revealing himself as Kannon Bodhisattva (nochijite). He rescues
the travelers when they are in danger during the sea crossing
→Kakuichi-bon 5.8 “Kanjinchō,” 5.9 “Mongaku nagasare.” Text: MYS 4
Kan’yōkyū 咸陽宮 (often read
Kannyōkyū). Kanze, Hōshō, Kongō, Kita schools. Fourth category. The
story of the failed assassination attempt on the first Qin emperor is
also told in Keika (1) (2). →Kakuichi-bon 5.6. Text: YTK; SNKT 57:219f.
Kasa Sotaba 笠卒塔婆. Bangai yōkyoku. See entry for Shigehira 重衡 (1).
Katami Atsumori
筐敦盛. Bangai yōkyoku. After Atsumori’s death, Kumagai has Enya no Jūrō
(waki) deliver his flute and other “mementos” (katami) to Atsumori's
father Tsunemori (waki) and his mother (tsure). The messenger retells
the story of Atsumori's death. According to an episode in Genpei
jōsuiki 38, the parents receive Atsumori’s head. Text: KYS 1:433f.
*Katami Tomoe 筐巴. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Second category.) News of Kiso no Yoshinaka’s death is
brought to his wife (tsure) by one of his men (waki). Tomoe (shite)
arrives with “keepsakes” (katami), and protects the household against a
force sent by Yoritomo. Tomoe and Kiso’s wife escape safely.
→Kakuichi-bon 9.4 “Kiso no saigo.” Text: MYS 16.
*Katari Suzuki 語鈴木. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Yoshitsune cycle. Yoshitsune’s retainer
Suzuki Saburō Ieshige (shite) is visiting his mother when he hears that
Yoritomo has sent a large force to attack Yoshitsune in Takadachi. His
mother urges him to stay with her, but he counters by citing Indian and
Chinese precedents, as well as the example of his fellow retainer
Tsuginobu. On his way north, he is captured by Kajiwara Kajitoki and
brought before Yoritomo. Asked whether he will serve Yoritomo instead,
Suzuki pretends to agree. Later he escapes and continues on his way to
Yoshitsune. Text: KYS 1:440f.
Kawara Tarō 河原太郎. Bangai yōkyoku. Mugen nō. (Second category.) Spirit of Genji warrior Kawara Takanao Tarō 高直太郎 (shite)
appears to monk visiting Ichi-no-tani and describes how he fell in the
battle. →Kakuichi-bon 9.11 “Nido no kake.” Text: MYS 29.
Keika 荊軻 (1). Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) En no Dan Taishi (Prince Tan of Yen, tsure) asks
Keika (Ch. Jing Ke, waki) to undertake the assassination of the first
emperor of Qin.→Kakuichi-bon 5.6 “Kan’yōkyū.” Text: MYS 10.
Keika 荊軻 (2). Bangai yōkyoku.
Mugen nō. (Fourth category.) When the play opens, the would-be
assassins, Keika (Ch. Jing Ke) and Shibuyō (Ch. Qin Wuyang) have
already been executed. Their plot is recalled by the Qin minister
(waki) and the emperor himself (shite). When he inspects the two heads,
their spirits appear. →Kakuichi-bon 5.6 “Kan’yōkyū.” Text: Tanaka,
Bangai.
* KENJŌ 絃上. All
five schools. Fifth category. Called Genjō 玄象 in the Kanze school.
Fujiwara no Moronaga plans to go to
China to acquire the secret arts of the biwa, but is dissuaded by the
spirits of Emperor Murakami and his consort. The Dragon God appears,
presenting Moronaga with the biwa Shishimaru, one of the three famous
instruments sent from China. →Kakuichi-bon 7.18 "Seizan no sata." Text: KYS 1:702f; Taikan 2, Meicho, etc. Translation: Fenollosa/Pound (1916), as “Genjo.” Translation of Kanze text (Taikan) with introduction in Tyler 2013 (To Hallow Genji).
⇒The two other biwa are Genjō/Kenjō and Seizan. Both feature in Heike
monogatari, the direct source of this play. In Kakuichi 7.18 “Seizan no
sata,” the spirit of a drowned Chinese biwa master appears to Emperor
Murakami when he plays the biwa Kenjō. A significant political figure
of the Genpei period, Moronaga was famed for his musical talent. In
Kakuichi-bon 3.16 “Daijin ruzai,” his skill on the biwa moves the
myōjin of Atsuta Shrine. See also Biwa hiki.
Kesa gozen
袈裟御前. Bangai yōkyoku. Mugen nō. (Fourth category.) The spirit of Kesa
gozen appears to a Tennōji monk and tells how she died at the hands of
Endō Moritō. →Genpei jōsuiki, Book 18, cf. Kakuichi-bon 5.7 “Mongaku no
aragyō,” which refers to Moritō’s religious awakening but does not
explain the cause. Text: MYS 27.
Kikaigashima 鬼界島. Bangai
yōkyoku. Ariō (waki) travels to the island where Shunkan (shite) is
exiled. →Kakuichi-bon 3.8 “Ariō.” Text: MYS 4; MYS 18 (variant, also
known as Iōshima 硫黄島).
* Kikuō 菊王. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Second category.) Kikuō’s mother (shite) visits Yashima in Sanuki to
see where her son was killed and hears an account of the battle from a
local man (waki). →Kakuichi-bon 11.3 “Tsuginobu saigo.” Text: MYS 9.
Kinukazuki Tomoe 衣潜巴. Bangai
yōkyoku. A monk encounters a diving girl (ama) on the Kazusa shore.
Learning that he is from Kiso, she reveals herself as the spirit of
Tomoe and describes the death of Kiso Yoshinaka at Awazu. →Kakuichi-bon
9.4 "Kiso no saigo." Text: KYS 1:553f.
* KISO
木曽. Kanze school. Fourth category. →Kakuichi-bon 7.5 "Ganjo." Text: KYS
1:549f; YTK. Translated by Ivan Grail in Like Clouds or Mists.
Kiso ganjo 木曾願書. Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category). →Kakuichi-bon 7.5 “Ganjo.” Text: Hyōshaku 7.
Kiyofusa 清房. Bangai yōkyoku.
Mugen nō. (Second category.) A monk visiting Harima hears an account of
the battle of Muroyama from the spirit of Etchū Gorōzaemon Kiyofusa
(otherwise unknown), who fought in the service of Tada no Kurando
Yukitsuna. Penned in by Yoshitsune’s forces, Kiyofusa takes his own
life. No source has been traced for this work. Benkei did not help win
the battle of Muroyama by throwing a large boulder at the enemy. It was
in fact a defeat for the Genji under Yoshinaka, see Kakuichi-bon 8.7
“Muroyama.” Text: MYSZ 3.
Kiyoshige 清重. Bangai yōkyoku.
→Kiyoshige, a kōwakamai concerning Suruga Jirō Kiyoshige and Kajiwara
Kagetoki. Yoshitsune cycle. Text: KYS 1:566f; MYS 19.
* KIYOTSUNE 清
経. All five schools. Second category. Author: Zeami. →Kakuichi-bon 8.4
"Dazaifu ochi." Text: NKBT 40:239f; NKBZ 33:198f; SNKS [2]:15f; SNKZ
58:190f; SNKT 57:325f. Translations: NGS I 1955; Shimazaki 1987 (2/1);
Carolyn Morley in Like Clouds or Mists.
Koga no watari 古河の渡. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) A monk of the Byōdōin (waki) meets a
ferryman (shite) at the ford of Koga. Comparison with Tatsuzaki 竜崎 (see entry) suggests that the ferryman is the spirit of Minamoto no Yorimasa. Text: MYS 10.
* KOGŌ
小督. All five schools. →Kakuichi-bon 6.4. Text: KYS 1:728f; Taikan
2:1095f; Zensho [2]:286f. Translation: Watson 1998*; Shimazaki 1998
(4/2). *Michael Watson, “Modes of Reception: Heike Monogatari and the
Nō play Kogō,” Kokusaigaku kenkyū 16 (May 1997), 275–303.
*Kojijū 小侍従. Bangai yōkyoku.
Mugen nō. A monk traveling the country (waki) encounters the spirit of
Kojijū (shite). →Kakuichi-bon 5.2 “Tsukimi.” Text: Tanaka, Bangai.
Konjō Tomoe 今生巴. Bangai
yōkyoku. Genzaimono. (Fourth category.) Set in Awazu, Ōmi Province,
with Tomoe (shite), Kiso no Yoshinaka (waki), and Imai Kanehira
(tsure). A longer version of Genzai Tomoe, see entry. →Genpei jōsuiki,
Book 35; cf. Kakuichi-bon 9.4 “Kiso no saigo.” Text: KYS 1; Kokumin
2:54–57.
*Koremori 維盛 (惟盛). Bangai yōkyoku. Authorship: Motomasa. →Kakuichi-bon 10.12, 12.9. Text: KYS 1:796f; MYSZ 7.
*Kōya Atsumori 高野敦盛. Bangai yōkyoku. Also known as Renshō 蓮生. Kumagai Naozane has taken the tonsure and is now called Renshō (waki). Like Ikuta Atsumori,
the play imagines an encounter between the spirit of Atsumori, Renshō
and Atsumori’s son, who has been brought to Mount Kōya by Renshō. When
Renshō describes Atsumori’s death, his spirit appears. →Kakuichi-bon
9.16 “Atsumori.” Text: KYS 1:355f; MYSZ 4.
Kumade Hōgan 熊手判官. Bangai
yōkyoku. The story of the battle of Yashima and Yoshitsune’s lost bow.
The first half is largely identical to nō Yashima. →Kakuichi-bon 11.3
“Tsukinobu saigo,” 11.5 “Yumi nagashi.” Text: KYS 1; MYSZ 3 (three
variants).
Kumagai 熊がひ. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) A late kinsei work about Kumagai Naozane. →
Kakuichi-bon 9.16 “Atsumori.” Text: MYSZ 3.
*Kurama 鞍馬; Kurama Genji 鞍馬源氏.
Bangai yōkyoku. (Fifth category.) Yoshitsune cycle. The Great Tengu
(shite) comes to Kurama Temple, teaches military arts to Shanaō
(Yoshitsune), and foresees his victory over the Heike. →Gikeiki, Book
1. Text: MYS 1
Kurama hōgan 鞍馬判官. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Yoshitsune cycle. The Kurama tengu aid
Yoshitsune when he is attacked by forces sent by Yoritomo. →Gikeiki,
Book 1. Text: MYS 9.
**KURAMA TENGU
鞍馬天狗. All five schools. Fifth group. Attributed to Miyamasu. Disguised
as a priest, the Great Tengu meets Shanaō 沙那王 (Yoshitsune, kogata) in
Kurama, and promises to teach him the military arts so that he can
destroy the Heike. →Gikeiki, Book 1. Text: Text: Zensho [3]:297f; NKBT
41:69f; NKBZ 34:449f; SNKZ 59:506f. Translation: Renondeau 1926/1954
(in French).
*Kurikara otoshi 倶利伽羅. Bangai
yōkyoku. Akone-no-mae (maejite) is possessed by the spirit of Aoi
gozen, one of Kiso no Yoshinaka’s onna musha, women warriors. She tells
the story of the battle of Kurikara. →Kakuichi-bon 7.6; Genpei jōsuiki,
Book 29. Text: KYS 1; MYS 20 (variant titled Tachibori 太刀堀, “The
Unearthed Sword”). Also known as Aoi 葵 or Aoi Tomoe 葵巴 Based freely on
the account of Yoshinaka’s victory at Tonamiyama. →Genpei jōsuiki 29,
Kakuichi-bon 7. Text: KYS 1:642f; MYS 20. Translated by Michael Watson
in Like Clouds or Mists.
Kusakari Tadanori 草苅忠度. Bangai
yōkyoku. Mugen nō. (Second category). A Ninnaji monk comes to Suma Bay
where he meets a man cutting grass. This proves to be the spirit of
Tadanori, who describes his death. →Kakuichi-bon 9.14 “Tadanori saigo.”
Text: MYS 28.
** Kusanagi
草 薙. Hōshō school. (Fourth category.) On a visit to Atsuta in Owari,
the Hieizan Biship Eshin sees a man and a woman carrying a sword. They
tell him the story of Yamato Takeru’s “Grass Cutter” sword. →
Kakuichi-bon 11.12 (Ken) and Tsurugi no maki (“Book of the Swords”).
Text: KYS 1; Taikan.
Magakigashima 籬が島. Bangai
yōkyoku. Mugen nō. A monk from the east hears of the famous crossing of
the Uji river from the spirit of [Ashikaga] Matarō Tadatsuna.
→Kakuichi-bon 4.11 “Hashi gassen”; 4.12 “Miya no gosaigo.” Text: MYS
30.
Matsu yoi kojijū 松宵小侍従. Bangai yōkyoku. (Third category.) →Kakuichi-bon 5.2 “Tsukimi.” Text: MYSZ 13.
Matsuō dōji 松王どうじ. Bangai
yōkyoku. The spirit of the drowned “human pillar” Matsuō appears to
Kiyomori’s retainer Nanba Tsunetō. →Kakuichi-bon 6.8 “Tsukishima.”
Text: MYS 30.
** MICHIMORI 通 盛. All five schools. Mugen nō. The death of Taira no Michimori at Ichi-no-tani. Attributed to Iami 井阿弥 in Sarugaku dangi,
the play is thought to have been revised by Zeami. →Kakuichi-bon 9.9,
9.18, 9.19. Text: KYS 3;Taikan 5; NKBT 40:109f; SNKS [3]:279f; SNKT
57:421f. Translations include: William Ritchie Wilson, "Two Shuramono
Ebira and Michimori," Monumenta Nipponica Vol. 24, No. 4 (1969), 415–465 [JSTOR]; Shimazaki 1993 (2/2). French translations: Renondeau, France Asie, 167 (May-June, 1961); Sieffert 1979 (II).
Midai Tomoe 御台巴. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Tomoe gozen (shite) comes to defend
Yoshinaka’s wife [midai] (tsure) against warriors sent from Kamakura to
attack her residence. Episode is imagined to occur after Yoshinaka’s
death. →Kakuichi-bon 9.4 “Kiso no saigo.” Text: MYS 3:66–72.
Mikoshiburi 御輿振. Bangai yōkyoku. Yorimasa (shite), Goun (waki), Watanabe Tonō (tsure). →Kakuichi-bon 1.15 "Mikoshiburi." Text: MYS 3.
Mizushima Tarō 水島太郎. Bangai
yōkyoku. A monk from the capital travels to western Japan to Muro.
Seeing an ancient tomb, he remembers how in the Genpei War ("mukashi
Genpei no kassen no toki"), a certain "Mizushima Tarō" of Bizen fought
against "Saitō Somebody" ("Saitō no nanigashi") of Shinano. He is
suddenly greeted by a man (shite) who asks him to pray for Mizushima,
revealing himself as Mizushima before disappearing. As the monk prays,
he sees the figure of an armed warrior. The spirit of Mizushima thanks
him, and describes the daily and nightly battles he has waged after
falling into the Asura world of continuous battles (shuradō 修羅道).
Source unclear. A warrior by this name is not mentioned in the accounts
of battles either at Muroyama in Harima (Kakuichi-bon 8.9 "Muroyama")
or at Muro in Harima (Kakuichi-bon 10.14 "Fujito"). Text: MYS 30.
*Momiji 紅葉. Bangai yōkyoku. →Kakuichi-bon 6.2 “Kōyō” 紅葉. Text: KYS 3.
Mongaku 文覚. Bangai yōkyoku.
→Kakuichi-bon 12.8 "Hase Rokudai." Text: KYS 3.608f. An alternative
name for one of the following: (1) Rokudai 六代; (2) Takigomeri Mongaku
瀧籠文覚; (3) Saitō Go 斎藤五.
Mongaku nagashi 文学流 (1). Bangai
yōkyoku. Genzaimono dramatizing Mongaku’s sea journey to exile in Izu.
He summons the Dragon God (ryūjin), who calms the seas. Shorter than
the two plays entitled Kanjin Mongaku. →Kakuichi-bon 5.9 “Mongaku
nagasare.” Text: MYS 31.
*Mongaku Takigomori 文覚滝籠. See Takikomori Mongaku.
** MORIHISA
盛久. All five schools. Fourth category. Traditionally attributed to
Motomasa or Zeami. →Nagato-bon 20. Text: NKBT 40:413f; NKBZ 34:274f;
SNKS [3]:313f; SNKZ 59:316f; SNKT 57:421f. Translation by Shelley Quinn
in Like Clouds or Mists.
Moromori 師 盛. Bangai yōkyoku.
Spirit of Taira no Moromori appears to traveling monk visiting the site
of Ichi-no-tani. →Kakuichi-bon 9.18 “Ochiashi.” Text: MYS 14.
Muan Shōnin 無庵上人. Bangai
yōkyoku. Spirit of Yamabuki, Yoshinaka’s mistress and female warrior,
appears to a monk. →Kakuichi-bon 9.4 “Kiso no saigo.” Text: MYS 3.
*Nakatsuna 仲綱. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) The story of Yorimasa’s son Nakatsuna . The first
part dramatizes the story of how his horse was coveted by Munemori,
while the final part describes his suicide at the battle of Uji.
→Kakuichi-bon 4.6 “Kiō”; 4.12 “Miya no gosaigo.” Text: MYS 12.
Naoie 直家. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Second category.) The spirit of Kumagai Jirō Naozane’s son Kojirō
Naoie appears to a monk from Kurodani visiting the Yūkokuji 熊谷寺 in
Musashi. Naoie describes how his father and Hirayama attacked the Heike
stronghold at Ichi-no-tani. His father was later a victim of Kajiwara’s
slander, and took the tonsure. →Kakuichi-bon 9.10 “Ichi ni no kake.”
Text: MYS 29.
Nara mōde 奈良詣. Komparu school. See entry for Daibutsu kuyō 大仏供養.
*Naritsune 成経. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Second category.) Spirit of Fujiwara Narichika appears to his son
Naritsune, who visits his father’s place of exile on his return from
Kikaigashima. Naritsune recalls how he was exiled and put todeath. →
Kakuichi-bon 3.7 “Shōshō miyako gaeri”; 2.8 “Dainagon ruzai”; 2.9
“Akoya no matsu”; 2.10 “Dainagon no shikyo”; also Genpei jōsuiki, Books
16–17. Text: KYS 3.
Nasu 那須, Horo 母衣, Nasu Yoichi
那須与一 (1). Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Yoritomo (waki) presents
Nasu no Yoichi (shite) with a sword in recognition for his feat of
archery. Yoichi is asked to explain why the cape worn in combat to
protect a warrior’s back from arrows is called a horo 母衣 “mother’s
robe.” He tells the story of Zhang Liang 張郎 (here written 長郎, advisor
to the future Han Emperor, Gaozu 高祖) whose mother made such a cape for
him. →Kakuichi-bon 11.4 “Nasu no Yoichi.” Text: Tanaka, Zokugai
Nido no kake (1) 二度掛 / Saka otoshi 坂落 / Kajiwara nido no kake
梶 原二度懸. Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) In part one, Yoshitsune
(waki) learns from the hunter Washio (maejite) how to make the
Hiyodorigoe descent. Washio’s son Saburō (tsure) joins Yoshitsune, and
bids farewell to his father. Part two enacts a subsequent incident at
Ichi-no-tani: the successful rescue by Kajiwara Heizō Kagetoki (tsure)
of his son Kajiwara Genta Kagesue (nochijite) during their assault on
the Heike positions. →Kakuichi-bon 9.9 “Roba”; 9.11 “Nido no kake.”
Text: KYS 3.
Nido no kake (2) 二度のか け. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Kajiwara Heizō Kagetoki (waki) and his son
Kajiwara Genta Kagesue (shite) attack the Heike positions at
Ichi-no-tani. →Kakuichi-bon 9.11. Text: MYS 29.
*Nii no ama 二位尼 (“the Nun of Second Rank”) / Nii dono
二位殿. Bangai yōkyoku. (Second category.) The spirit of the Nun of Second
Rank, Kiyomori’s widow, appears to a monk from Kitayama and describes
her death in the battle of Dan-no-ura. →Kakuichi-bon 11.9 “Sentei
minage.” Text: MYS 13.
Ningyō 人形. Bangai yōkyoku. Genzaimono with Mongaku (shite) and Yoritomo (waki). Also known as Ningyō Mongaku 人形文覚. Possibly based on kōwakamai piece Mongaku. Cf. also Kakuichi-bon 5.10 “Fukuhara inzen.” Text: MYS 2, 13 (vaiant), 23.
*Nobutsura 信連. See Chōbyōe no jō.
Nobutsura kassen 信貫合戦. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Dewa no Hangan Mitsunaga (waki) comes to
arrest Prince Mochihito as a rebel, but is met by the Prince’s retainer
Nobutsura (shite), who is captured after putting up a brave fight. For
a more complex dramatization, see Chōbyōe no jō. →Kakuichi-bon 4.5 “Nobutsura.” Text: MYS 29.
*Noguchi Hōgan 野口判官. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Second category.) Yoshitsune cycle. The spirit of Yoshitsune
gives an account of his death at Koromogawa to a visiting monk.
→Gikeiki, Book 8. Text: KYS 3; MYSZ 10 (variant).
*Noriyori 範頼. Bangai yōkyoku.
Yoritomo (tsure), convinced of Yoshitsune’s treachery, sends Kajiwara
(waki) to question Noriyori (shite). Noriyori defends Yoshitsune
against the accusations, but is finally beheaded. →The account is based
on the Dainihonshi. See the account of Noriyori’s death in Kakuichi-bon
12.5 “Hōgan no miyako ochi.” Text: KYS 3; MYS 16; MYS 18; MYSZ 10 (two
variants).
Noritsune 教経. Bangai yōkyoku. (Second category.) Text: MYSZ 10. ⇒Noritsune is also a name for two other plays, Sentei and Shin’ichi.
** NUE
鵺. All five schools. Fourth category. A monk returning from Kumano
encounters a boatman in a vessel made of a hollowed tree. The boatman
reveals himself to be the spirit of the nue monster killed by Minamoto
no Yorimasa and set adrift in a log. →Kakuichi-bon 4.15 “Nue” 鵼. Text:
Zensho [3]:13f; NKBT 40:303f; NKBZ 34:392f; SNKS [3]:41f; SNKZ 59:445f;
SNKT 57. Translation: Tyler 1978 (as “Nightbird”); Yasuda 1989.
*Numa sagashi 沼捜. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fifth category.) Yoshitsune cycle. Benkei goes in search of
an arrow lost when Yoshitsune shot at a snake that appeared out of a
black cloud. Coming to a pond, he encounters a woman who relates how
the Yamada snake (Yamada no orochi) was born as Emperor Antoku out of
lingering attachment for the Sacred Sword (hōken), making startling
claims also about Yoritomo, Yoshitsune, and Kajiwara Kagetoki. Benkei
says a prayer and the evil spirit disappears. Text: Shinhyaku; MYS 23
(a shorter variant).
*Odamaki 小手巻. Bangai yōkyoku.
Genzaimono in two parts. Based on the setsuwa about the young woman
from Bungo whose lover proves to be a great snake (daija 大 蛇,
nochijite). →Kakuichi-bon 8.3 “Odamaki” 緒環. Text: KYS 3:653–5.
** OHARA GOKŌ 大
原御幸 (お はらごかう・おはらごこう). All five schools. Third category, genzai
katsuramono 現在鬘物. Retired Emperor Go-Shirakawa visits Kenreimon’in at
Jakkōin, who describes the death of her son and mother at Dan-no-ura.
Called Ohara gokō 小原御幸 in the Kita school. In either case, the first
vowel in Ohara is read short. →Kakuichi-bon Kanjō-no-maki 3, "Ōhara
gokō." Text: Meicho [e-text];
NKBZ 33:391f; SNKZ 58:420f. Translations include: Lombard 1928; ("An
Imperial Visit to Ohara"), 148-160; Carol Hochstedler in Keene 1970
("The Imperial Visit to Ohara"); Shimazaki 1987 (3/3); French versions
by Péri, BEFEO XI, 1913; Péri 1921; Péri 1944 ("La visite
impériale à Ohara"); German version by Steinilber-Oberlin 1929; Italian
version by Fulchignoni 1942 ("La visita a Ohara").
Ohara iri 大原入. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Third category.) A monk (waki) visits Jakkōin in Ōhara where he hears
from a village woman (maejite) about the pious life led there by
Kenreimon’in and her companions, Awa no naishi and Dainagon no suke.
The monk realizes that the woman must be the spirit of Awa no Naishi.
He then encounters the spirit of Kenreimon’in herself (nochijite).
→Kakuichi-bon K.2 “Ōhara iri.” Text: MYS 4.
Oikuma Suzuki 追熊鈴木. Bangai yōkyoku. Yoshitsune cycle. Capture of Yoshitsune’s retainer Suzuki Saburō Shigeie. Text: KYS 1:327f.
*Okazaki 岡崎. Bangai yōkyoku.
Yoshitsune cycle. Yoritomo’s retainer Okazaki (waki) has arrested
Yoshimizu (shite), the chief monk of Kimpusen, for aiding Yoshitsune to
escape. Yoshimizu is brought to the capital be executed, but through a
ruse he succeeds in killing Okazaki and escape back to Yoshino. Text:
KYS 3:557–9 (Yoshimizu 吉水).
Okkake Suzuki (1) 追駆鈴木. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Yoshitsune cycle. Yoshitsune’s retainer
Suzuki Saburō Shigeie (shite) is traveling in disguise when he is
recognized. He stands his ground against seventy of Yoritomo’s men
before being captured and taken to Kamakura. Text: KYS 1 (Oikuma Suzuki
追熊鈴木).
Okkake Suzuki (2) 追駆鈴木. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Yoshitsune cycle. Yoshitsune’s retainer
Suzuki Saburō Shigeie (shite) is away on a visit to his mother when he
hears that Yoritomo has sent an army to attack Yoshitsune. Suzuki
travels back north in yamabushi disguise but is recognized by Kajiwara
Kagetoki (waki) and captured after a fight. Text: MYS 21. For another
treatment of this episode, see Katari Suzuki.
*Omuro Tsunemasa 御室経正. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Taira no Tsunemasa (shite) visits Ninnaji
to bid farewell to the Abbot before he flees the capital. →Kakuichi-bon
7.17 “Tsunemasa no miyako ochi.” Text: KYS 3 (supplementary section,
pp. 1–6). Also known as Genzai Tsunemasa 御室経正.
Raigō 頼豪. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) Kakuichi-bon 3.6 describes how the Miidera priest
Raigō starves himself to death, but in the “read” variants (Engyō-bon,
Book 3; Nagato-bon, Book 6; Genpei jōsuiki, Book 10) he becomes a giant
rat. This is a key feature of this play: Retired Emperor Shirakawa’s
courtier (waki) sees the spirit of Raigō (shite) appear from the “Rat
Shrine” of Hieizan. Text: MYS 15.
**Rashōmon 羅生門. Kanze, Hōshō,
Kongō, Kita schools. Fifth category. Author: Kanze Nobumitsu. Story
appears in "Book of the Swords" in Yashiro-bon and other variants.
Text: NKBT 41:162f.
**Rō Giō
籠祇王. Kita school, but no longer in active repertoire. Fourth category.
Also known as Kogawa Giō 粉川祇王. Text: MYS 24. Translation: Michael
Watson in Like Clouds or Mists.
Rō Kagekiyo 籠景清. Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category). Text: MYS 3.
Rōba 老 馬. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category). Yoshitsune (waki) and Benkei (tsure) discuss how to
attack the Heike fortress at Ichi-no-tani from the rear. Kawagoe no
Kotarō (shite) gives advice about how to ride their horses down the
steep slope. The text does not bear close resemblance either to the
Kakuichi-bon “Saka otoshi” episode or to the corresponding section in
Genpei jōsuiki, Book 37. Kawagoe no Kotarō (Shigefusa) does not appear
at this point, though mentioned elsewhere in both texts as one of
Yoshitsune’s retainers. →Kakuichi-bon 9.12 “Saka otoshi.” Text: MYS 31.
Rokudai 六代. Bangai yōkyoku.
Rokudai (kokata) is saved by the intercession of Mongaku Shōnin
(shite). A long play with other parts played by Saitō Go, Saitō Roku,
Rokudai’s nurse, and Hōjō Tokimasa (waki). →Kakuichi-bon 12.7
“Rokudai.” Text: KYS 3.608–14 (Rokudai); MYS 24 (Rokudai Mongaku 六代文学);
MYSZ 19 (Muchi Mongaku 鞭文学).
*Rokudai no uta 六代の歌. Utai included in Zeami’s Go on. Also referred to as Utaimono Hase rokudai 謡物長谷六代 and Hase Rokudai [Hatsuse Rokudai] 長谷六代. →Kakuichi-bon 12.7 “Rokudai.” 12.8 “Hase Rokudai.” Text: Taikan 7. Translation by Tom Hare in Like Clouds or Mists.
** SAGI
鷺. All five schools. Fourth category. →based on anecdote about heron
obeying Emperor's command also found in Kakuichi-bon 5.5 "Chōteki
zoroe." Text: KYS 2; Taikan 2.
*Saijaku 西寂. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) Kōno no Shirō Michinobu (shite) avenges the death of
his father Michikiyo by killing Nuga no Nyūdō Saijaku (waki).
→Kakuichi-bon 6.6 “Hikyaku tōrai.” Text: KYS 2; Kokumin 2:87–89.
Sakurama 桜間. Bangai yōkyoku. →The account of the Battle of Katsura in
Genpei jōsuiki, book 42. Text: KYS.
*Saitō Go 斎藤五. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) Rokudai (kokata) is captured by Hōjō Tokimasa
(waki). Saitō Go and Saitō Roku (tsure), absent when he was taken,
catch up with Tokimasa’s party and are allowed to accompany Rokudai
once they are disarmed. They recall their father Sanemori’s death. Just
as Rokudai is about to be executed, Mongaku (shite) arrives with a
pardon from Yoritomo. →Kakuichi-bon 12.7 “Rokudai.” Text: Kokumin
2:530–9 (Saitō Go Rokudai); KYS 2 (Saitō Go Rokudai); MYSZ 5 (Saitō Go,
two variants).
Saka otoshi 坂落 (1). Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) During the final stages of the battle of
Ichi-no-tani, Yoshitsune (shite) sends a message to his half-brother
Noriyori, advising him to cease pursuit of the fleeing Heike. The play
ends with praise for their victory. The deaths of Tadanori
(Kakuichi-bon 9.14) and Atsumori (9.16) are mentioned, but the text
bears no close relation to any episode describing the last stages of
the battle, c.f. Kakuichi-bon 9.18 “Ochiashi.” Text: MYS 10.
Saka otoshi 坂落 (2). Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Text: MYS 27.
*Sakurama 桜間. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category). →Genpei jōsuiki, Book 42 (Battle of Katsura), cf.
Kakuichi-bon 11.1 “Katsuura Ōzakagoe.” Text: KYS 2.
*Sanada 真田. Bangai yōkyoku.
Also called Ishihashiyama 石橋山. Sanada Yoichi (shite) is slain by Matano
Gorō (waki) during the battle of Ishihashiyama in 1180. This early
defeat of Yoritomo is not mentioned in the Kakuichi-bon. →Genpei
jōsuiki 20. Text: KYS 2.
** SANEMORI
実盛 . All five schools. Second category. Author: Zeami. →Kakuichi-bon
7.8. Text: Meicho [e-text]; NKBT 40:265f; NKBZ 33:183f; SNKS [3]:105f;
SNKZ 58:174f; SNKT 57:615f. Translations include: NGS I 1955; Smethurst
1989. Translated by Mae Smethurst in Like Clouds or Mists. French
translations: Sieffert 1960; Godel/Kano 1994.
*Sasaki 佐々木. Bangai yōkyoku.
The story of how Yoritomo (tsure) gave a prize horse to Sasaki
Takatsuna (shite), rather than to Kajiwara Genda Kagesue (waki). Also
known as Surusumi Ikezuki 磨墨生食, the name of the horse, and Umakoi 馬乞, “Begging for a Horse.” →Genpei jōsuiki 23, cf. Kakuichi-bon 9.1 “Ikezuki no sata.” Text: KYS 2; Kokumin 2:178–81.
*Sekihara Yoichi 関原与市. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Yoshitsune cycle. As the young Yoshitsune,
Ushiwaka, procedes east through Mino, he is attacked by local warriors
led by Sekihara Yoichi. He defeats them and continues eastwards. →
kōwakamai, Kurama ide, (or Azuma kudari). See McCullough, Yoshitsune,
1966: 46–47. Text: KYS 2; Taikan 3.
** SENJU 千手. All five schools. Third category. Also known as Senju Shigehira 千手重衡. →Kakuichi-bon 10.7. Text: Meicho [e-text]; KYS 2; Zensho 1; Taikan 3; SNKS [2]:239f (Senju Shigehira); SNKT 57:114f (Senju).
*Sentei 先帝. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Second category.) A monk (waki) travels to the site of the battle of
Dan-no-ura with the nurse (tsure) of Taira no Noritsune, whose spirit
(shite) they encounter. →Kakuichi-bon 11.9 "Sentei minage." Text: MYS
2; MYSZ 7 (variant Noritsune 教経 [1] ). [Discussion in: Michael Watson,
“Spirits of the Drowned: Sea Journeys in Bangai Noh from the Genpei
War,” in Eiji Sekine, ed., Travel in Japanese Representational Culture:
its Past, Present, and Future, Proceedings of the Association for
Japanese Literary Studies, Vol. 8 (Summer 2007), 141–154.]
** SETTAI
接待. Kanze, Hōshō, Hongō, Kita schools. Fourth category. On their flight
to the north, Yoshitsune (tsure) and his retainers visit the house of
the Satō brothers, Tsuginobu and Tadanori, now both dead. Though all
disguised as yamabushi, they are recognized by the men’s mother. Benkei
(waki) describes the death of Tsuginobu in the battle of Yashima
(Kakuichi-bon 11.3 “Tsuginobu saigo”). Tsuginobu’s son Tsuruwaka
(kokata) decides to join Yoshitsune. →Gikeiki, Book 8. Possibly related
to kōwakamai piece Yashima no ikusa. Text: KYS 2; Taikan 3; Zensho
[2]:221f. Translation: NGS (II) 1959 (“Hospitality”).
Shibabune 柴舟. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Second category.) A traveling monk comes to the shore of Lake Biwa
where he boards a boat. The ferryman reveals himself as the spirit of
Nenoi no Kotarō who died in the Battle of Awazu. Cf. Kakuichi-bon 9.4
"Kiso no saigo," but this does not describe the death of Yoshinaka’s
retainer Nenoi at Awazu. Text: MYS 28.
** SHICHIKI OCHI
七騎落. All five schools. Fourth category. Dramatisation of incident in
the Eighth Month of 1180, early in the Genpei War. →Shibu gassenjō-bon
Heike monogatari; Genpei jōsuiki 22. Text: KYS 2; Taikan 3.
Translation: Smethurst 1998 ("Seven Warriors in Flight"); German
translations by Abe Hidenori ["Die Flucht der sieben Ritter,"
Ostasiatische Rundschau, 1928 {not seen}]; Weber-Schäfer 1961 ("Die
Flucht der Sieben").
Shiga Tadanori 志賀忠則. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Second category.) A traveling monk visiting Ōmi recalls the
anonymous Senzaishū poem about the ancient capital of Shiga. A local
person (maejite) tells him that the author was in fact Satsuma Governor
Tadanori. When Tadanori’s spirit (nochijite) returns in the second
half, they discuss poetry and Shunzei’s work as an editor. The play
ends a brief account of Tadanori’s death at Ichi-no-tani. →Kakuichi-bon
7.16 "Tadamori no miyako ochi"; 9.14 "Tadamori saigo". Text: Kokumin 2;
KYS 2; MYSZ 5 (two variants), MYSZ 21.
*Shigehira 重衡 (1) Bangai
yōkyoku. (Second category.) Also known as Kasa sotoba 笠卒都婆 or Shigehira
sakura 重衡桜. Sometimes attributed to Zeami. →Kakuichi-bon 11.19
“Shigehira no kirare.” Text: KYS 1; Kokumin 2:202–6; NKBT 41, MYSZ 5
(five variants). Translated by Paul Atkins in Like Clouds or Mists.
* Shigehira 重衡 (2). Bangai yōkyoku. (Third category.) See entry for Senju 千手.
Shigemori 重盛. Bangai yōkyoku. Also known as Shigemori kyōkun 重盛教訓 or Daifu 内府. See entry for Daifu.
Shijū Shigehira 侍従重衡. Bangai yōkyoku. (Third category.) →Kakuichi-bon 10.7 "Senju no mae." Text: KYS 2.
Shikoku ochi 四国落. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Yoshitsune cycle. Brief play involving
Yoshitsune and Benkei. “Puerile” according to Tanaka Makoto. Text: MYS
27.
Shima no wakare 嶋 の別れ. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Naritsune and Yasuyori leave Kikaigashima,
leaving Shunkan behind. “Crudely depicted” according to Tanaka Makoto.
→Kakuichi-bon 3.2 “Ashizuri.” Text: MYS 28.
Shimizu kanja 清水冠者. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Kiso no Yoshinaka’s son Shimizu kanja
Yoshimoto (shite) is married to Yoritomo’s daughter. She tells Shimizu
that his father has been slain at Awazu and that his mother committed
suicide. She urges him to flee but the men sent by Yoritomo capture
Shimizu after a fight. →Kakuichi-bon 7.1 “Shimizu no kanja.” Text:
Shinhyaku 403–8. ⇒ The term kanja refers to a young man before genpuku
(coming of age). Heike variants state that Shimizu was eleven when sent
as a hostage to Yoritomo. His personal name is not mentioned in the
corresponding section of Genpei jōsuiki, Book 28. He is called
Yoshishige 義重 in the Kakuichi-bon, but Yoshimoto 義元 in this play, and
Yoshimoto 義基 in the Yashiro-bon and Engyō-bon variants of Heike monogatari and in Sonpi bunmyaku.
*Shin’ichi 真真都, Noritsune
教経 (2). Bangai yōkyoku. (Second category.) After the war ends, a biwa
hōshi called Shin’ichi (or Manaichi), invited to perform something from
“Heike,” recites incidents from the battles of Ichi-no-tani and
Dan-no-ura, culminating in the death of Noritsune. →Kakuichi-bon 11.10
“Noto dono saigo.” Text: MYS 11.
Shirahata 白旗. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Second category.) Yoshitsune cycle. As the heads of Yoshitsune and
Benkei are being taken to Kamakura, there is a strange occurance at
“White Flag” Shrine. Yoshitsune’s spirit describes his last battle and
suicide. →Gikeiki, Book 8. Text: MYS 16.
** SHŌZON
正尊. All five schools. Fourth category. Authorship attributed to Kanze
Nagatoshi 長俊. →Kakuichi-bon 12.9, or episodes concerning Tōsabō Shōzon
土佐坊正尊 (also called 昌俊 Shōshun) in Genpei jōsuiki and Gikeiki. Text: KYS 2; Meicho [etext]; Taikan 2; NKBT 41:304f.
** SHUNKAN 俊寛. All five schools. Fourth category. Called Kikaigashima
鬼界島 in the Kita school. Author unknown. Sometimes attributed to Zeami
but possibly Komparu Zenchiku or Motomasa. →Kakuichi-bon 3.2 "Ashizuri"
足摺. Text: Meicho [etext]; Taikan 3:142f; Zensho [2]:232f; NKBT 41:414f;
NKBZ 34:249f; SNKS [2]:159f; SNKZ 59:301f; SNKT 57:466f. Translation:
Waley 1921 (extract); Parker/Morikawa 1941; NGS (III) 1960; Kato in
Brazell 1998.
**SHUNNEI
(Shun'ei) 春栄. All five schools. Fourth category. Authorship: sometimes
attributed to Zeami. Dramatizes incident occuring after the battle of
Uji Bridge but with none of the details of the Kakuichi account of the
battle in book 4. If historically based, a different conflict entirely.
Possibly an invented plot. Text: Meicho [etext]; Zensho [2]:346f; NKBT
40:369f; SNKS [2]:143f. Translation: Smethurst 1998.
**SHUNZEI TADANORI
俊成忠度. Kanze, Hōshō, Kongō, Kita schools. Second category. Author: Naitō
Zaemon 内藤左衛門. →Kakuichi-bon 7.16 "Tadamori no miyako ochi" and 9.14
"Tadanori saigo." Text: KYS 2; Meicho [etext]; Taikan 3:1437f.
Translated by Stephen D. Miller and Patrick S. Donnelly in Like Clouds
or Mists.
Suzuki 鈴木. Bangai yōkyoku. Yoshitsune cycle, concerning Yoshitsune’s retainer Suzuki Shigeie. Text: Kokumin.
Tachibori 太刀堀. Bangai yōkyoku. See entry for Kurikara otoshi 倶利伽羅落.
** TADANOBU
忠 信. Kanze and Hōshō schools. Fourth category. Yoshitsune cycle.
Yoshitsune (tsure) and his retainers are attacked in the Yoshino
mountains, but Satō Tadanobu (shite) stays behind to delay attackers so
that the others can escape. He pretends to commit seppuku and escapes
in the direction of the capital. →Gikeiki, book 5. Text: KYS 2; Meicho [e-text]; Taikan 3:1891f; MYSZ 7.
** TADANORI
忠度 . All five schools. Second category. Author: Zeami. →Kakuichi-bon
7.16 “Tadamori no miyako ochi” and 9.14 “Tadanori saigo.” Text: KYS 2;
Meicho [e-text];
Taikan 3:1903f.; NKBT 40:241f; NKBZ 33:157f; SNKS [2]:293f; SNKZ
58:146f; SNKT 57:263f. Translations include: Sadler 1934; NGS II 1959;
Hare 1986; Shimazaki 1987 (2/1); Yasuda 1989; Tyler 1992; and French
version by Sieffert 1979 (I), 309f.
** Taisanpukun 泰
山府君. Kongō school. Fifth category. Author: Old work, possibly with
Zeami's revisions. The story of Kiyomori’s son-in-law, a Middle
Counselor nicknamed "Sakura Chūnagon" for his love of cherry blossoms.
→Genpei jōsuiki, Book 2 “Kiyomori sokujo no koto,” cf. Kakuichi-bon 1.
5 “Wagami no eiga.” Text: KYS 2; Taikan 3:1733f. The title has been
translated by Thomas Hare as “Archdemon Taisan.”
*Takadachi 高館. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Second category.) Yoshitsune cycle. A monk visiting Shinobu in Ōshū
meets Yoshitsune’s spirit who describes his death. According to Takaka
Makoto, the work is not directly related to the kōwakamai and kojorūri
pieces titled Takadachi. Text: Bangai; MYS 22.
Takadachi Benkei 高館弁慶. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Second category.) Yoshitsune cycle. Dramatization of the
death of Yoshitsune and Benkei (shite). Text: MYS 17.
*Takamura 篁. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) When Emperor Go-Toba is in exile on the island of
Oki, a boat comes bearing the spirit of the Heian poet, Ono no Takamura
小野篁. Go-Toba’s exile is
mentioned in connection with Mongaku’s banishment to the same island in
Kakuichi-bon 12.9 “Rokudai kirare.” Text: MYS 2; MYS 11 (Ono no
Takamura).
Taki Mongaku 滝文学. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fifth category.) Mongaku (waki) undergoes spiritual training
under the Nachi waterfall. An old man (shite) and woman (tsure)
collecting firewood see him sink beneath the water. They reveal
themselves as Fudō Myōō’s divine messengers, Kongara and Seitaka, and
save Mongaku. →Kakuichi-bon 5.7 “Mongaku no aragyō.” Text: MYS 2.
Takiguchi 滝口. Bangai yōkyoku. Also known as Yokobue 横笛. →Genpei jōsuiki, book 39; Kakuichi-bon 10.8 "Yokobue." Text: MYS 3.
*Takikomori Mongaku 滝籠文覚.
Bangai yōkyoku. (Fifth category.) After four days under the Nachi
waterfall, Mongaku (shite) faints. He is rescued by Fudō Myōō’s divine
messengers, Kongara and Seitaka (waki). →Kakuichi-bon 5.7 “Mongaku no
aragyō.” Text: KYS 2; Shinhyaku (Mongaku Takigomori).
*Tametomo 為朝 (1). Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) Chinzei Hachirō Tametomo (shite) has spent
ten years in exile in Izu Ōshima after his father Yoshitomo was
executed in the Hōgen Revolt. When Tametomo’s wife learns that
government forces have been sent to kill them, she takes her own life.
When the warriors of Kanō no suke Mochimitsu (waki) attack, Tametomo
slays many before committing suicide. →Hōgen monogatari, Book 3. Text:
MYS 23.
*Tametomo 為朝 (2). Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fifth category.) Chinzei Hachirō Tametomo (waki) is sailing
for Hachijōshima when he comes to an island of ogres. He captures the
ogre king 鬼王 (shite) and returns with him to the capital. →Hōgen
monogatari. Text: MYS 12. Tametomo is mentioned twice in Heike
monogatari, most notably in Kakuichi-bon 11.5 “Yumi nagashi” where
Yoshitsune recalls his uncle’s powerful bow.
** TAMURA
田村. All five schools. Second category. The military exploits of
Sakanoue no Tamuramaro (758–811) are summarized in Genpei jōsuiki, Book
27, “Daijōe en’in no koto.” In the Kakuichi-bon, his name is mentioned
only in passing (6.5 “Megurashibumi”). Text: NKBZ 33:119f; SNKS
[2]:329f; SNKZ 58:115f. Translations include Sadler 1934; NGS I 1955.
Tankai 湛海. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) Yoshitsune cycle. Hasabe Tankai (shite), Kiichi
Hōgen (waki), and the young Yoshitsune, Shanaō (kokata). →Gikeiki, Book
2. Text: KYS 2; MYSZ (two variants).
Tatara Shigehira 鑪重衡. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) In Kōfukuji in Nara, a new temple bell is
being cast to replace the one lost in the fire set by the Heike forces
led by Shigehira (1180.12). As the monk Shunjōbō Chōgen (waki) recalls
the destruction, the spirit of Shigehira appears. → Kakuichi-bon 5.14
“Nara enshō”; 11.19 “Shigehira no kirare.” Text: MYS 6.
Tatsuzaki 竜崎. Bangai yōkyoku.
(First category.) Monk from the Byōdōin in Uji visits Koga ford in
Shimozuke. A local man (maejite) points out a shrine for Minamoto
Yorimasa and explains its origins, before revealing himself as
Yorimasa’s spirit. In the second half, Yorimasa appears from the shrine
as a kami (nochijite). He describes events leading up to his death at
the Battle of Uji. Also known as Azuma Yorimasa 東頼政 →Kakuichi-bon 4.12
“Miya no gosaigo” (and earlier episodes). Text: MYS 6.
*Tokiwa 常磐. Bangai yōkyoku. (Third category.) Yoshitsune cycle. Text: MYSZ 10.
*Tokiwa mondō 常磐問答. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Third category.) Yoshitsune cycle. Ushiwaka’s mother Tokiwa
(shite) visits Kurama Temple. The monks try to prevent a woman from
entering the temple, but Ushiwaka’s teacher Tōkō-bō (waki) recognizes
her exceptional understanding of Buddhism. Text: MYS 6.
** TOMOAKIRA
知章. Kanze, Komparu, Kongō, Kita schools. Second category. The spirit of
Tomoakira appears to a monk visiting the battlesite of Ichi-no-tani. He
describes his death and its effect on his father Tomomori, whose life
he had saved. →Kakuichi-bon 9.17 “Tomoakira saigo.” Text: KYS 2; Meicho
[etext]; Taikan 4. Translation: Shimazaki 1993; Sieffert 1979, I:180f.
(French).
** TOMOE
巴. All five schools. The spirit of Tomoe appears to monks visiting the
site of Yoshinaka’s last battle in Ōmi. → Kakuichi-bon 9.4 “Kiso no
saigo”; Genpei jōsuiki, Book 35. Text: Meicho [etext]; NKBT 41:314f;
NKBZ 33:XXXf; SNKZ 58:232f. Translations include: Sadler 1934; NGS III
1960; Shimazaki 1993.
** TOMONAGA 朝
長. All five schools. Sometimes attributed to Kanze Motomasa. A monk
visits Aohaka in Mino to pray for Minamoto no Tomonaga. The spirit of
Tomonaga appears and describes how he died at the hand of his father
Yoshitomo after a wound made it impossible for him to continue on their
flight. →Heiji monogatari. Text: Meicho [etext]; Zensho 1:157f; NKBT
33:209f; SNKS [2]:411f; SNKZ 58:202f; SNKT 57:7f. Translation:
Shimazaki 1987.
**Tomotada 知忠. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) Attributed to Kanze Kojirō Nobumitsu. Taira no
Tomomori’s son Iga no Taiyu Tomotada (tsure) is hiding in the capital
with Ki no Jirobyōe Tamenori (shite), who adopted him as an infant
during the Genpei War. Together with Akushichibyōe Kagekiyo, they are
planning a revolt (muhon) in hopes of returning the Heike to power. As
they wait to hear from Kagekiyo, Tamenori recalls the rise and fall of
the Heike. The rebels learn that their stronghold is under attack by
Gotōbyōe Sanemoto (waki). They put up a stout defence but are
outnumbered. Tomotada commits seppuku and Tamenori is captured. In the
Nagato-bon Heike monogatari, Kagekiyo fights together with them and is
captured in this battle. He is not mentioned in the generally similar
Kakuichi-bon account. The prose narratives identify the leader of the
attacking forces as either Sanemoto’s son Motokiyo or grandson
Mototsuna, repectively, but agree on the date of the battle: 1196.10.7.
The final book of the Nagato-bon contains other “post-war” accounts
that were drawn upon for nō: see the entries for Kagekiyo and Morihisa.
→Kakuichi-bon 12.9 “Rokudai kirare”; Nagato-bon, Book 20. Text: MYS 6.
*Tōya 遠矢 (“Distant Arrows”).
Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) The battle at Dan-no-ura is preceded
by exchanges fired by Genji archer Asari Yoichi (waki) and Heike archer
Inoki Shirō Chikakiyo (shite). With Yoshitsune (tsure). →Kakuichi-bon
11.8; Genpei jōsuiki, Book 43. Text: KYS 2.
Tsuginobu 次信・ 継信 (1). Bangai yōkyoku. See Yashimadera.
Tsuginobu 次信 (2). Bangai
yōkyoku. (Second category.) Heike variants describe how Yoshitsune asks
a monk to read sutras after the death of Satō Saburō Tsuginobu at the
battle of Yashima in Sanuki. This play is set one hundred days after
Tsuginobu’s death. The same monk (waki), here called Myōken, is
preparing for a one-hundred-day service. A man from the Satō household
called Kojirō has brought Tsuginobu’s young son Tsuruwaka from Ōshū to
visit his father’s grave and recite a prayer (fujumon諷誦文). The spirit
of Tsuginobu appears and gives an account of his death. For other
treatments of Tsuginobu’s death, see the entries for Settai and
Yashimadera. →Kakuichi-bon 11.3 “Tsuginobu no saigo.” Text: Zokugai.
*Tsukijima 築島 (“The Artificial Island”); Hyōgo Tsukijima
兵庫築島. Bangai yōkyoku. (Fifth category.) Counselor Kunitsuna (waki) has
given orders to obtain thirty people to use as “human pillars”
(hitobashira) in the construction of an artificial island near
Fukuhara. Kiyomori with Giō and others watch as the prisoners are
placed in cages before being lowered into the water. A prisoner called
Kuniharu (maejite) is recognized by his long lost daughter and
son-in-law, who plead for his life. A young man called Matsuō kondei
松王健児 steps forward and offers himself in the place of all thirty
hostages. He is finally revealed to be Dainichi Nyorai (nochijite). In
Kakuichi-bon 6.8 “Tsukishima,” Kiyomori is opposed the idea of human
sacrifice. The lengthy play is based instead on a kōwakamai, Tsukishima, which gives an extended account of Kuniharu and his search for his daughter Meigetsu. Text: MYS 18.
Tsukimi 月見. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Third category.) Tokudaiji Sanesada (tsure) returns to the capital to
visit his sister Ōmiya. As he leaves, he urges a Chamberlain in his
service (waki) to express their regrets at parting by exchanging a poem
with Kojijū (shite), his sister’s lady-in-waiting. Several other plays
focus on the figure of Kojijū. →Kakuichi-bon 5.2. Text: KYS 2;
Shinhyaku. Related plays: Matsuyoi, Matsuyoi no Kojijū, Tsukimi ryūjin.
Tsukimi ryūjin 月見竜神. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fifth category.) Dragon god appears at Tokudaiji Sanesada’s
moon viewing.→Kakuichi-bon 5.2 “Tsukimi.” Text: MYS 29.
Tsukushi no urakaze つ くしの浦風.
Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) A monk from Higashiyama in the
capital comes to Naruto and encounters a spirit of an unnamed lady who
drowned at Dan-no-ura. →Kakuichi-bon, Book 11. Text: MYS 29.
* Tsujigaoka 躑躅岡. Bangai yōkyoku. (Second category.) Text: Bangai p56f.
** TSUNEMASA
経政. All five schools. Tsunemasa 経正 in the Kanze and Komparu schools.
Second category. After Tsunemasa’s death at Ichi-no-tani, the Ninnaji
Abbot instructs Gyōkei (waki) to put Tsunemasa’s biwa Seizan in front
of the altar. The spirit of Tsunemasa (shite) appears, describing his
death in battle and sufferings in the shura world. →Kakuichi-bon 7.17.
Text: Meicho [etext]; Taikan 3:2083f; Zensho [3]:132f (Tsunemasa 恒正);
NKBT 41:311f. Translations include Fenollosa/Pound 1916; Waley 1921;
Shimazaki 1987, Tyler 2013.
Tsunemori 経盛. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) Kumagai Naozane sends a messenger (waki) to Taira no
Tsunemori (shite) and his wife, bringing them objects belonging to
their dead son Atsumori. →Genpei jōsuiki, Book 38; cf. Kakuichi-bon
9.16 “Atsumori no saigo.” Text: MYS 2; MYS 20 (variant); MYSZ 9
(variant). Also called Katami okuri 形見送.
Tsurugaoka 鶴が岡; Tsurugaoka Shizuka
鶴岡静. Bangai yōkyoku. (Third category.) Yoshitsune cycle. Shizuka
(shite) is forced to dance before Yoritomo in Kamakura. →Gikeiki, Book
6; [kōwakamai] Shizuka. Text: KYS 2; Kokumin 2:106–8. Translation:
Watson 2005. [Michael Watson, “Yoritomo’s shrine by the sea: the
narrative function of place names in the bangai noh Tsurugaoka,” in
Paul S. Atkins, Davinder L. Bhowmik, and Edward Mack, eds., Landscapes Imagined and Remembered, Proceedings of the Association for Japanese Literary Studies, vol. 6 (Seattle: University of Washington, 2005), 61–75.]
Tsuruwaka 鶴若. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) Yoshitsune cycle. As Satō Tsugenobu (shite) and his
brother Tadanobu (tsure) set out to join Yoshitsune to fight the Heike,
they take leave of Tsugenobu’s son Tsuruwaka. →Gikeiki. Text: KYS 2.
Tsuruwaka plays a significant role in the canonical play Settai, set
after his father’s death.
Waka no uranami 和哥の浦なみ, 和歌の浦波.
Bangai yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) The Tamatsushima deity 玉津しまの神
appears to the Kikaigashima exile Yasuyori as he prays. →Kakuichi-bon
2.16 “Sotoba nagashi.” Text: MYS 31.
* Yagura Tadanobu B. 櫓忠信 乙. Bangai yōkyoku. (Second category.) [Add summary.] MYZ 15.
* Yamanaka Tokiwa 山中常磐. Bangai yōkyoku. (Second category.) [Add summary.] Bangai zoku, MYS 24.
** YASHIMA
八島. All five schools. Written Yashima 屋島 in the Kanze school. Also
known as Yoshitsune 義経. Second-category play, possibly by Zeami. Monk
visiting Yashima encounters spirit of Minamoto Yoshitsune (shite). Some
of the text appears also in Kumade Hōgan 熊手判官 (bangai yōkyoku).
→Kakuichi-bon 11.5 “Yumi nagashi.” Text: Meicho [etext]; NKBT 41:265f;
NKBZ 33:140f; SNKS [3]:328f; SKBZ 58:128f; SNKT 57:452f. Translations
include Ueda 1962; Tyler 1978a; Tyler 1992; Shimazaki 1993.
*Yashimadera 屋嶋寺. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Second category.) A monk visiting Sanuki encounters the
spirit of Tsuginobu. He describes his death in the battle of Yashima.
Also known as Tsuginobu 次信 (継信) (1). →Kakuichi-bon 11.3 “Tsuginobu no
saigo”; kōwakamai Yashima. Text: MYS 7.
Yasuyori 康頼. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fifth category.) A deity (gongen) appears to the Kikaigashima exiles
Yasuyori and Naritsune as they pray. →Kakuichi-bon 2.16 “Sotoba
nagashi.” Text: MYS 15:37f.
Yatsurugi 八剣. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fifth category.) →Kakuichi-bon 11.12 "Ken" 剣 and versions of the "Book
of Swords" ("Tsurugi no maki" 剣巻). Text: KYS 3, Taikan 4.
Yōka 楊賀. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) Reaching Yamazaki on the flight from the capital
(1183.7), Taira no Munemori (waki) learns that Hida Governor Kageie
(tsure) killed his child Yōka. Kageie explains that he did so to save
Yōka the fate of Kamada Masakiyo’s son, put to death after the Heiji
Revolt. Mumemori summons shrine kannagi (miko). One speaks as the
spirit of Yōka (shite), describing the efforts of his grandmother to
save him from death at his father’s hands. →Genpei jōsuiki, Book 31,
“Seizan no biwa Ryūsen takubaku no koto,” where Kageie laments that he
cannot bring Kagetaka’s three-year-old orphan with him on the flight
from the capital. He tries to entrust the unnamed child to his own aged
mother, but she protests at being left in charge of a great-grandson in
the midst of a war. Kakuichi-bon 7.9 “Genbō,” mentions how Kageie dies
of grief after losing his son Kagetaka in the Hokuriku campaign of
1183. Text: MYS 3, 24 (variant, Yōka 陽嘉).
Yokobue 横 笛 (1). Bangai
yōkyoku. (Third category.) Yokobue drowns herself. Later her spirit
appears to Takiguchi Tokiyori. Also known as Takiguchi 滝 口. →Genpei
jōsuiki, Book 39; Kakuichi-bon 10.8 “Yokobue.” Text: MYS 3.
Yokobue 横笛 (2). Bangai yōkyoku.
(Third category.) The spirit of Yokobue appears to a traveling monk.
Also known as Yūrei Yokobue幽 霊横笛. →Kakuichi-bon 10.8. Text: MYS 17.
** YORIMASA
頼政. All five schools. Second category. Death of Minamoto no Yorimasa at
the battle of Uji. Author: Zeami. →Kakuichi-bon 4.12 "Miya no gosaigo"
宮御最期. Text: NKBT 40:257f; NKBZ 33:169f; SNKS [3]:4415f; SNKZ 58:160f;
SNKT 57:39f. Translations: Tyler 1978b, Shimazaki 1993.
Yoshiakira 義 明. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Second category.) The spirit of Yoshinaka’s retainer Nenoi no Daiyata
根井の大弥太 appears to a traveling monk. →Kakuichi-bon 9.4 “Kiso no saigo.”
Text: MYS 31.
*Yoshimizu 吉 水. Yoshitsune cycle. See entry for *Okazaki.
**Yoshino Shizuka 吉 野 静 (芳野閑).
Kanze, Hōshō, Komparu, Kongō, (Kita) schools. Yoshitsune cycle. Shizuka
(shite) and Satō Tadanobu (waki) in Yoshino. →Gikeiki, Book 5. Text:
Meicho [e-text]; NKBT 40:89f. Translations: Terasaki in Brazell 1988
("Lady Shizuka in Yoshino"); Tyler 1978b ("Shizuka at Yoshino").
Yoshitsune A. 義経 甲.
* Yoshitsune B. 義経 乙. Bangai yōkyoku. (Second category). Text: Shinhyaku.
* Yoshitsune C. 義経 丙. Bangai yōkyoku. (Second category). Text: MYS 24.
Yoshitomo 義 朝. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Second category). Minamoto no Yoshitomo’s spirit appears to his wife
Tokiwa and describes how he was killed in Owari. →Heiji monogatari.
Text: MYS 15.
*Yuki Yoritomo 雪頼朝. Bangai
yōkyoku. (Fourth category.) A snowstorm separates the young Yoritomo
from his father Yoshitomo as they flee through Ōmi after their defeat
in the Heiji Revolt. An old man (shite) collecting food for his
cormorants gives shelter to Yoritomo and his retainers, brothers called
Genji and Genzō. The house is attacked by Ono no Jūrō Takatō, a local
warrior loyal to Kiyomori, but Yoritomo successfully escapes with the
brothers and the old man. An early Muromachi play. In its opening,
Yoritomo mentions Genji warriors like Sanemori, Hirayama, and Sasaki
later to play an important role in Heike monogatari. In Heiji
monogatari, the cormorant fisher hides Yoritomo when pursuers visit the
house, then disguises him as a woman and gives him a horse and saddle
to escape. →Heiji monogatari, Gakushūin-bon, Book 2, “Yoritomo
iketoraruru koto” (SNKB 43:237–8), Kotohira-bon, Book 3, “Yoritomo
Aohaka ni gechaku no koto” (NKBT 31:257–9). Text: MYS 3; MYS 15
(variant); MYS 19 (variant).
Yukiie 行家. Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) On orders of Yoritomo, Hitachi Jōmyō (waki) takes
Yukiie (shite) prisoner.→Nagato-bon 19. Text: KYS 3.511f; MYS 20.
Yūrei Yokobue 幽 霊横笛.Bangai yōkyoku. See Yokobue 横笛 (2)
** YUYA 熊野. All five schools.
Title written Yuya 湯谷 in the Kita school. Third-category play. Author:
sometimes attributed to Komparu Zenchiku or Kanze Motomasa. Munemori's
mistress Yuya (shite) asks to take leave from him in order to see her
mother. →Kakuichi-bon 10.6 "Kaidō kudari" 海道 下. Text: NKBT 41:376f;
NKBZ 33:376f; SNKS [3]:389 (湯谷); SNBZ 58:405f; SNKT 57:405f.
Translations include: P. G. O'Neill, "The Nō Plays Koi no Omoni and
Yuya," Monumenta Nipponica 10 (1954), 203–226 [JSTOR]; NGS II 1959;
Tyler 1978b; Shimazaki 1987.
*Zaimoku Yoshihira 材 木義平.
Bangai yōkyoku. (Second category). A monk visiting the capital meets
the spirit of Yoshihira, Minamoto Yoshitomo’s son, and hears about the
Heiji Revolt. →Heiji monogatari. Text: Shinhyaku.
*Zaron 座 論 (1). Also known as Zashikiron 座 敷論 and Kajiwara zaron 梶 原座論. See entry for latter.
*Zaron 座 論 (2). Bangai yōkyoku.
(Fourth category.) Yoritomo’s retainers debate who should sit where at
Tsurugaoka in Kamakura. Wada no Yoshimori (tsure) claims precedence for
his role at the battle of Ishibashiyama. Kajiwara Kagetoki (waki)
defends himself against the accusation of cowardice for using “reverse
oars.” Matters are resolved by the Toi no Jirō Sanehira (shite).
→Kakuichi-bon 11.1 “Sakaro”; Genpei jōsuiki, Book 20 “Ishibashi
gassen.” Text: MYS 27.
Zashikiron 座敷論. Also known as Zaron 座 敷論 and Kajiwara zaron 梶 原座論. See entry for latter.