Taira no Atsumori
Atsumori
in a woodblock printed book illustration by Kikuchi
Yōsai.
Taira no Atsumori
(平敦盛) (1169 – 1184)
was a samurai
famous for his early death in single combat. At the Battle of Ichi-no-Tani,
Atsumori engaged Kumagai Naozane, an ally of
the Minamoto, and was killed. Kumagai
had a son the same age as Atsumori. Kumagai's great remorse as told in the tale, coupled with
his taking of priestly vows, caused this otherwise unremarkable event to become
well-known for its tragedy.
The Death of Atsumori as
told in the Tales of the Heike
The legend, as told
in The Tales of the Heike, goes as follows.
The Heike were scattered by Yoshitsune's attack from the Ichi-no-Tani cliff. Kumagae no Jirō Naozane, while scanning
the beach for fleeing soldiers, spotted the young Atsumori
swimming towards the fleeing vessels. Kumagae beckons
Atsumori with his fan, taunting Atsumori
saying, "I see that you are a Commander-in-Chief. It is dishonorable to
show your back to an enemy. Return!"(316, t.
McCullough). The two grappled on the beach, but Kumagae
was too powerful. Kumagae knocks off Atsumori's helmet to deliver the finishing blow, only to be
struck by the beauty of the young noble. Atsumori was
"sixteen or seventeen years old, with a lightly powdered face and
blackened teeth--a boy just the age of Naozane's own
son..."(317, t. McCullough).
Kumagae, wishing to spare the boy, asks for Atsumori's name, but the child refuses. Atsumori
simply says that he is famous enough that Kumagae's
superiors will recognize his head when it is time to assign rewards. At that
moment, other Minamoto warriors arrived at the scene,
and Kumagae knows that if he doesn't kill Atsumori, the other warriors surely will. Kumagae reasons that it is better if he is the one to kill Atsumori, because he can offer prayers on his behalf for
the afterlife. Crying, Kumagae beheads the boy.
Searching the body for something to wrap the head in, he came across a bag
containing a flute. He realized that Atsumori must
have been one of the soldiers playing music before the battle and thought,
"There are tens of thousands of riders in our eastern armies, but I am
sure none of them has brought a flute to the battlefield. Those court nobles
are refined men!"(317, t. McCullough).
It is said that the
beheading of Atsumori is what led Kumagae
to take priestly vows and become a Buddhist monk.
The Atsumori narrative has easily become of the most beloved
characters in the Tales of the Heike, and the subject of many spin-offs,
including:
·
The Noh play, Atsumori, which follows Kumagae,
now known as the Buddhist priest Rensei, as he speaks
with and prays for the lost soul of Atsumori.
·
The Bunraku
puppet play, later adapted for Kabuki, Ichinotani Futuba Gunki
·
A
Narrative: Atsumori, which expands upon the Tales of the Heike version and
includes a section where Kumagae personally returns
the body of Atsumori to the Minamoto.
·
Little Atsumori,
the tale of the resulting plight of Atsumori's wife
and his yet unborn son.
·
The
lesser-known Kabuki
play Sakigake Genpei
Tsutsuji (otherwise called Ogiya
Kumagai, or Suma no Miyako
Genpei Tsutsuji), where
Atsumori hides his identity by dressing up as the
girl Kohagi and working in a fan shop.
Return to Gempei War