A History of Japan: From Stone Age to Superpower (10 page)

The population had grown markedly through the Yamato period from the estimated two to three million at the end of the Yayoi period. Though small relative to China’s population of more than 60 million, the five million or so people in Japan at the end of the seventh century represented a huge figure compared to European populations of the time.
⁵⁴

Population growth seems to have progressed in waves. The birth rate was high but so too was the mortality rate, especially among infants. A major factor in this was the waves of epidemic disease such as smallpox transmitted through extensive contact with the continent, against which the insular Japanese had developed little or no immunity.
⁵⁵

Some idea of the helplessness of people in the face of the ravages of these diseases is seen in the poetry of Yamanoue Okura (ca 660–733). An official eventually elevated to the rank of minor aristocrat but of humble origin, Okura was one of the few poets before modern times to write of everyday life, including subjects shunned by other poets such as illness and poverty. Moreover, he was a true family man, one of the few ‘manager-officials’ ever recorded in Japan’s history to leave a function early and openly in order to spend time with his family.
⁵⁶
He is thus a valuable source of information on ‘real life’ around this point in history. He writes as follows on the death of his young son Furuhi.
⁵⁷

The seven treasures

Prized by man in this world –

What are they to me?

Furuhi, the dear white pearl

That was born to us,

With dawn would not leave our bed,

But, standing or lying,

Played and romped with us.

With the evening star,

Linking hands with us,

He would say

‘Come to bed, father and mother,

Let me sleep between you,

Like sweet daphne, triple-stalked.’

Such were his pretty words.

For good or ill

We should see him grow to manhood –

Or so we trusted,

As in a great ship.

Then, beyond all thought,

Blowing hard, a sudden crosswind

Of illness

Overwhelmed him.

Lacking skill and knowing no cure,

With white hemp I tied my sleeves,

Took my mirror in my hand

And, lifting up my eyes,

To the gods in heaven I prayed;

My brow laid on the ground,

I did reverence to the gods of the earth.

‘Be he ill or be he well,

It is in your power, O gods.’

Thus I clamoured in my prayers.

Yet no good came of it,

For he wasted away,

Each dawn spoke less,

Till his life was ended.

I stood, I jumped, I stamped,

I shrieked, I lay on the ground,

I beat my breast and wailed.

Yet the child I held so tight

Has flown beyond my clasp.

Is this the way of the world?

Though life for the ordinary person was far from easy, the Yamato state was in place, and the nation Japan had been formed. State-level societies are generally characterised by effective unification, by social stratification and differentiation of population categories, and by the legitimisation of power through a militia, criminal code, and legal constitution, with the ruler governing with the aid of written law.
⁵⁸
All of these requirements were in place by the end of the Kofun period. The modern name Nippon or Nihon (Source of the Sun) was also coming into use by the end of the period.
⁵⁹

This does not mean of course that everyone recognised the nation as such, for some of those geographically far removed from the Yamato power-base continued to consider themselves independent for some centuries to come.
⁶⁰
However, at least the structure was in place.

The imperial family was also well entrenched, for towards the end of the period Emperor Temmu commissioned the chronicles that would legitimise the imperial line by giving it a divine heritage. In fact, it became so well entrenched that it still survives today, the world’s longest imperial lineage.

It may seem strange that an imperial family that officially espoused Buddhism should legitimise itself through the gods of Shint
, but this is simply another example of Japanese pragmatism. To this day the Japanese continue to particularise religion, following one religion in one context and another religion in another context. This ‘pragmatic religiosity’, like the avoidance of moral distinction between good and evil that in other cultures is usually based on religious values, clearly has deep roots.

Table 1.1
   Key developments in the period ca 400
BC
–ca
AD
700

Table 1.2
   Key values and practices in the ancient period

Review of Part One

In Part One we have seen the development of civilisation in Japan from a primitive land of palaeolithic hunter-gatherers to a sophisticated court-centred state. The thousand or so years from around 400
BC
to around
AD
700 have been seen to be particularly important, spanning key developments such as those outlined in
Table 1.1
.

Many matters are still unclear, such as the nature and scale and date of Yayoi immigration. However, knowledge of ancient Japan is increasing. Many earlier assumptions are now known to be incorrect.

There is now recognition of the diversity and change within Japan’s ancient past. But there are also elements of continuity. The establishment of the Yamato imperial line, the world’s longest imperial lineage, provides a constant element through all succeeding historical periods until the present day. Certain policies and preferences, such as a desire to learn from others in order to strengthen oneself, and an avoidance of judgement as to good or evil, also have great bearing on present-day Japanese behaviour. These policies and behavioural patterns are based on values and practices summarised in
Table 1.2
.

We have seen, in short, the birth of a nation, a nation with distinct characteristics.

P
ART
T
WO

O
F
C
OURTIERS AND
W
ARRIORS:
E
ARLY AND
M
EDIEVAL
H
ISTORY
(710–1600)

2.1   Learning from the Chinese – within Limits: The Nara Period (710–794)

The Yamato state needed a capital. Without this its centralised system of control would have no real core. In the final stages of the Yamato period there had been a few attempts to establish a permanent capital,
¹
but these had all failed for one reason or another.

Then, in 710, the capital was moved to Heij
, better known now as Nara. Nara was modelled on the T’ang Chinese capital, Ch’ang-an. It was a similar rectangular grid pattern, but at 20 sq km was only about a quarter of Ch’ang-an’s area.

In less than a hundred years the capital was to move again. Nara proved not to be the hoped-for permanent site. Nevertheless, it represents the high point of the Japanese effort to learn from China. Physically, China’s influence was seen not only in the design of the city but also in grand buildings such as the T
daiji Temple – the largest wooden building in the world – and the huge bronze statue of Buddha it contained. In broader terms, the age of the Nara capital may have been brief, but it shows most clearly the workings of the
ritsury
and other Chinese-inspired political and legal reforms.