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The Tale of the Heike
The Tale of the Heike is one of the masterworks of Japanese literature, ranking with The Tale of Genji in quality and prestige. This new translation is not only far more readable than earlier ones, it is also much more faithful to the content and style of the original. Intended for the general audience as well as the specialist, this edition is highly annotated.
489 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1219
About the author
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See also: Anonymous
* They are officially published under that name
* They are traditional stories not attributed to a specific author
* They are religious texts not generally attributed to a specific author
Books whose authorship is merely uncertain should be attributed to Unknown.
See also: Anonymous
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 130 reviews
March 20, 2021
(A depiction of a battle from the book)
Welcome everyone to my 300th goodreads review!
Wait, no, not quite right… how about this?
Perfection!
For my 300th I wanted to do something different, something classic... something big. Well, this fit all of them, but also hits my love for underrated books. This is the sort of thing that isn't really a big part of the western literary canon yet it is an extremely important piece.
Penguin describes The Tale of Heike as Japan’s Iliad… honestly I like it far better than I ever did the Iliad, and I find it a much more ambitious project. The book is a poem, but it is also a history and collection of short stories. It tells of history, battles, drama and occasionally a small comedic moment. It is a book that has a bit of everything and is a fascinating read.
The opening is also now one of my favorites in all of literature:
"The Jetavana Temple bells
ring the passing of all things.
Twinned sal trees, white in full flower,
declare the great man's certain fall.
The arrogant do not long endure:
They are like a dream one night in spring.
The bold and brave perish in the end:
They are as dust before the wind."
Royall Tyler's translation is fairly easy to read and quite approachable. Please do not be put off by the book's size (700+ pages of main poem then notes after), it may take a bit to get into and yes, there are enough named characters that there is no shame in forgetting some, but the experience of this book is like no other that I can think of. I read it in a week. I'm not the fastest reader (I read as many books as I do by sheer stubbornness) and while I won't lie and say it was the easiest read, at no point did I find it a chore.
…
What else can I say? Honestly to a certain extent, this may have been a poor choice for my 300th review as I'm a bit in awe of this book. I don't know what else to say because the damn thing is pretty much perfect and you should just read it yourself rather than my review. So I'll just close this (not so) humble review with the following: it goes without saying that the book does not really need praise from me, yet praise it I still will. A full 5/5 stars and my highest recommendation for fans of classic lit, poetry, Japanese fiction or for anyone wanting something different.
March 3, 2018
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Principle Figures in the Tale
--The Tale of the Heike
Genealogies
Maps
Hours, Eras, and Emperors
Introduction
Principle Figures in the Tale
--The Tale of the Heike
Genealogies
Maps
Hours, Eras, and Emperors
February 10, 2021
If you like reading about brave and honorable warriors in a strange faraway land, you might like this -- just as you'd like some fantasies, even though this book is based on historical facts.
This is the Japanese version of Homer. We don't really know the original author, but we know the stories had been told by traveling storytellers, often to the tune of biwa (lute). (Like this) As such, the original text is polished over the years and has beautiful tension.
Just as Homer's Iliad, it starts with a salute -- this one to the Buddhism idea of impermanence.
Re: the English translation
Here are the opening lines and the corresponding English translations:
祇園精舎の鐘の聲、諸行無常の響き有り。 沙羅雙樹の花の色、盛者必衰の理を顯す。
驕れる者も久しからず、唯春の夜の夢の如し。 猛き者も遂には滅びぬ、偏に風の前の塵に同じ。
Gionshōja no kane no koe, Shogyōmujō no hibiki ari.
Sarasōju no hana no iro, Jōshahissui no kotowari o arawasu.
Ogoreru mono mo hisashikarazu, tada haru no yo no yume no gotoshi.
Takeki mono mo tsuini wa horobinu, hitoeni kaze no mae no chiri ni onaji.
Helen Craig McCullough's translation
The sound of the Gion Shōja bells echoes the impermanence of all things;
the color of the sāla flowers reveals the truth that the prosperous must decline.
The proud do not endure, they are like a dream on a spring night;
the mighty fall at last, they are as dust before the wind.
Royall Tyler translation
The Jetavana Temple bells
ring the passing of all things.
Twinned sal trees, white in full flower,
declare the great man's certain fall.
The arrogant do not long endure:
They are like a dream one night in spring.
The bold and brave perish in the end:
They are as dust before the wind.
Note the last (second last in Tyler translation) line. McCullough translates "tsuini" as "at last," which is correct in modern Japanese. However, the word meant "eventually; in the end" in classic Japanese, so Tyler has it right, and you can see how it makes sense.
Content
Although the book is about the rise and fall of the Taira clan (Heike), which ultimately loses to the Minamoto clan, and spends a lot of time depicting how leaders of both sides lived and fought, it is not only about the top dogs. For example, one of the most beloved story is about a warrior named Kumagai. He was from eastern Japan, so he fought for the Minamoto clan. In one of the battles, he finds himself chasing the retreating Taira warriors. He spots a horseman in an expensive suit of armor, and figures that must be a notable captain of Taira side. He shames the man on the horse for showing his back to his enemy. They have a duel. Kumagai wins, and, holding down his opponent, he removes his helmet to behead him.
Kumagai finds that his opponent is very young, no older than his own son.
It is one of those eerie moments when you find yourself alone with the enemy, while the battle is still going on just a distant away. Kumagai hesitates momentarily, but the young man urges him to go ahead; they fought a fair duel, and he lost. If he had won, he would have no problem killing his opponent. So what is this hesitation Kumagai is showing?
Kumagai's opponent is indeed a Taira prince (Atsumori). Kumagai is not happy with the large reward he receives, however. He now understands the nature of war, and life, and he becomes a monk.
People over the ages felt for the two, and the story is adapted to Noh play, etc. Here is the wiki entry, which includes English translation of some verses -- you can see its influence on Basho, etc.
Caution: As you see in the above example, parts of this book is extremely violent.
This is the Japanese version of Homer. We don't really know the original author, but we know the stories had been told by traveling storytellers, often to the tune of biwa (lute). (Like this) As such, the original text is polished over the years and has beautiful tension.
Just as Homer's Iliad, it starts with a salute -- this one to the Buddhism idea of impermanence.
Re: the English translation
Here are the opening lines and the corresponding English translations:
祇園精舎の鐘の聲、諸行無常の響き有り。 沙羅雙樹の花の色、盛者必衰の理を顯す。
驕れる者も久しからず、唯春の夜の夢の如し。 猛き者も遂には滅びぬ、偏に風の前の塵に同じ。
Gionshōja no kane no koe, Shogyōmujō no hibiki ari.
Sarasōju no hana no iro, Jōshahissui no kotowari o arawasu.
Ogoreru mono mo hisashikarazu, tada haru no yo no yume no gotoshi.
Takeki mono mo tsuini wa horobinu, hitoeni kaze no mae no chiri ni onaji.
Helen Craig McCullough's translation
The sound of the Gion Shōja bells echoes the impermanence of all things;
the color of the sāla flowers reveals the truth that the prosperous must decline.
The proud do not endure, they are like a dream on a spring night;
the mighty fall at last, they are as dust before the wind.
Royall Tyler translation
The Jetavana Temple bells
ring the passing of all things.
Twinned sal trees, white in full flower,
declare the great man's certain fall.
The arrogant do not long endure:
They are like a dream one night in spring.
The bold and brave perish in the end:
They are as dust before the wind.
Note the last (second last in Tyler translation) line. McCullough translates "tsuini" as "at last," which is correct in modern Japanese. However, the word meant "eventually; in the end" in classic Japanese, so Tyler has it right, and you can see how it makes sense.
Content
Although the book is about the rise and fall of the Taira clan (Heike), which ultimately loses to the Minamoto clan, and spends a lot of time depicting how leaders of both sides lived and fought, it is not only about the top dogs. For example, one of the most beloved story is about a warrior named Kumagai. He was from eastern Japan, so he fought for the Minamoto clan. In one of the battles, he finds himself chasing the retreating Taira warriors. He spots a horseman in an expensive suit of armor, and figures that must be a notable captain of Taira side. He shames the man on the horse for showing his back to his enemy. They have a duel. Kumagai wins, and, holding down his opponent, he removes his helmet to behead him.
Kumagai finds that his opponent is very young, no older than his own son.
It is one of those eerie moments when you find yourself alone with the enemy, while the battle is still going on just a distant away. Kumagai hesitates momentarily, but the young man urges him to go ahead; they fought a fair duel, and he lost. If he had won, he would have no problem killing his opponent. So what is this hesitation Kumagai is showing?
Kumagai's opponent is indeed a Taira prince (Atsumori). Kumagai is not happy with the large reward he receives, however. He now understands the nature of war, and life, and he becomes a monk.
People over the ages felt for the two, and the story is adapted to Noh play, etc. Here is the wiki entry, which includes English translation of some verses -- you can see its influence on Basho, etc.
Caution: As you see in the above example, parts of this book is extremely violent.
November 28, 2019
"The arrogant do not long endure:
They are like a dream one night in spring.
The bold and brave perish in the end:
They are as dust before the wind. "
The epic account of the Genpei War. Animosity that had been building between the Taira and Minamoto clans ever since the end of the previous two conflicts leads to this, the war that sees the Taira, who had control over most of the important positions at the court, who previously wielded the power from behind the throne, reduced to nothing.
It is not for everybody, if you enjoy japanese history, epic poetry and don't mind a huge cast of characters, then you'll probably enjoy this work, otherwise, you might struggle a bit. There are many references to previous historical events, both chinese and japanese, tidbits of japanese shinto folklore, buddhism, etc (luckily the annotations are there).
If I had to name a book similar to the Tale of The Heike it would have to be Romance of The Three Kingdoms. If you have read that and enjoyed it, you'll love this. The way Tyler presents the text, dividing it between the chanted sections, speeches and the songs really brings it to life.
They are like a dream one night in spring.
The bold and brave perish in the end:
They are as dust before the wind. "
The epic account of the Genpei War. Animosity that had been building between the Taira and Minamoto clans ever since the end of the previous two conflicts leads to this, the war that sees the Taira, who had control over most of the important positions at the court, who previously wielded the power from behind the throne, reduced to nothing.
It is not for everybody, if you enjoy japanese history, epic poetry and don't mind a huge cast of characters, then you'll probably enjoy this work, otherwise, you might struggle a bit. There are many references to previous historical events, both chinese and japanese, tidbits of japanese shinto folklore, buddhism, etc (luckily the annotations are there).
If I had to name a book similar to the Tale of The Heike it would have to be Romance of The Three Kingdoms. If you have read that and enjoyed it, you'll love this. The way Tyler presents the text, dividing it between the chanted sections, speeches and the songs really brings it to life.
August 13, 2015
PREFACE: Since around two weeks ago I’ve enjoyed watching a YouTube series of the NHK Taiga Drama entitled “Yoshitsune” with English subtitles; therefore, we can follow all episodes conveniently and subsequently by visiting the first one at:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_F_rg... I hope watching the series should help us better understand the story and enjoy reading the story more.
Reading "The Tale of Heike" translated by Professor Royall Tyler was nearly inconceivable to me since I hoped to read its translated version in prose like his "The Tale of Genji" (Penguin 2003) in which I enjoyed reading, taking notes, admiring the illustrations, etc. A reason was that I had read Professor A.L. Sadler's "Tales of the Heike" (Tuttle 1972) and enjoyed reading his wonderful prose and 21 illustrative reproductions dated back to 1699 and 1736, therefore, I was a bit disappointed when I leafed through this hardcover because, from Book One-Book Twelve + The Initiates' Book, all are in verse. However I decided to have a copy and thought this might challenge me with another way of reading experience; as far as I know, this masterpiece was initially and essentially written to perform on stage, to read it is secondary.
We may wonder on its episodic stories and importance as "related to the rise and fall of the Taira clan in twelfth-century Kyoto" (back cover: Sadler), this should suffice in the meantime, that is, "The Heike's descriptions of battle resonated for centuries as a model for warrior behavior, and yet its enduring appeal stems from its illumination of arrogance, pathos, bravery, cowardice, love, and renunciation." (back cover: Tyler)
There are 192 numbered titles/episodes in this formidable 13-book epic, possibly second to "The Tale of Genji", so there are too many characters, battles, defeats, etc. for its readers to remember or even recall without confusion. It is no wonder that its literary stature has been rightly compared to "The Iliad" by Homer since both describe their conflicts, campaigns, victories, etc. essential to impress and instruct their posterity and the world in this 21st century and beyond to learn from their mistakes and glory.
My review approach to this book is that I would mention briefly one or two episodes that I found uniquely moving as well as exemplary, worth reflecting and possibly applying in this contemporary world. First, it's about Gio (No. 6, Book One), a shirabyoshi dancer and her sister, Ginyo, who has worked in a residence of Lord Kiyomori's successfully for three years. Then, another rival young dancer named Hotoke Gozen decides to work under the Lord who, after a tough decision, accepts her. A bitter conflict ensues till Gio, Ginyo and, Toji their mother decide to leave and renounce the world by shaving their heads to be Buddhist nuns living in a hut far away amidst wild mountainous region. Conscience stricken, Hotoke reflects "Pleasure and riches are vanity" (p. 25) and gives a verdict to herself that it is her fault so she also decides to leave, surprisingly, for the three nuns to plead guilty and requests their permission for her to become a nun too. The following excerpt is how Gio replies, and the story ends:
"...
You nursed no grudge or sorrow. In only your seventeenth year,
you have mastered aversion to this polluted world and longing for the Pure Land.
That, to me, is powerful aspiration indeed.
Welcome, then, friend and guide in the Teaching!
Come, let us all pray together!"
The four of them, confined in retreat,
decked the altar morning and evening
with offerings of incense and flowers,
praying with single-minded devotion
until each in her time reached her goal,
... (p. 28)
At that time, I think, formal schooling was nearly out of the question and I wonder how they studied and learned to be such well-educated ladies; their unique, deep-rooted culture was so powerful that they were wise, forgivable and compassionate, even to her outstanding rival like Hotoke Gozon. [You may read her story, Sadler text, on pages 28-41]
Second, it is interesting, I think, to note that this book "The Tale of the Heike" has been gloriously and honorably entitled to the vanquished, not the victor or else it would be repetitive to the prior famous romance Heian epic "The Tale of Genji" by Lady Murasaki Shikibu. The following episode is the one that deals with a Heike intrepid warrior whose deeds and valor second to none has been narrated famously. There was a Heike warrior named Sanemori (No. 8, Book Seven) having worn "a red brocade hitatare robe, green-laced armour, a helmet with spreading horns, and a gold-fitted sword" (p. 369) accepts a fight with Tezuka for a special reason without revealing his name and ends up being beheaded due to his old age. And this excerpt discloses about him:
...
So Higuchi was summoned.
Higuchi took one look and exclaimed, "How awful! Yes, this is Sanemori."
"But if it is," said Yoshinaka, "at over seventy his hair should be white.
How could his hair and beard be black?'
Weeping copiously, Higuchi replied,
"I can explain this, and I will,
...
I often heard Sanemori say,
'If I go again to war
after passing my sixtieth year,
I will dye my beard and hair black,
so as to look like a young man.
You see, it would be undignified
for an old man to seek to best
the young in battle, and besides,
it would hurt an old warrior so
to be ridiculed and despised.'
So that is what he must have done.
Have his head washed, then, and see."
It seemed likely that Higuchi was right.
Yoshinaka had the head washed,
and indeed the hair turned white.
... (p. 370)
Possibly equally moving, this is how Sanemori has requested his Lord Munemori before joining the battle
...
"I know that I am far from alone in this, my lord.
But at any rate I feel acutely in my old age the shame
of having set out of the east a few years ago,
only to flee back to the capital from Kanbara in Suruga
without shooting a single arrow, at the mere whirring of waterbirds' wings
Now duty calls me to the north, where I mean to die in battle.
Although originally from the province of Echizen,
more recently I settled, in your service, on you Nagai estate in Musashi.
Now, a saying urges a man to return home wearing brocade.
Please grant me leave to wear a brocade hitatare."
"Well said!" Lord Munemori replied. He gave the permission requested.
... (p. 371)
Therefore, his name and valor would be recorded and read admiringly in Japanese history for ever [You may read his story, Sadler text, on pages 123-126]. For all of that, I didn't mean this is an easy reading book, some parts are all right but some are mysteriously tough that need one's reflection or research, and if possible, in some exceptional cases, need one's consultation with Professor Tyler himslef (I'm sorry I don't know how to contact him or if he is available for his Heike readers). Ultimately, those who can gain access to its original and can read its ancient Japanese texts should better understand this translation due to their scholarship. One of my queries is that, as for the word "horse" (passim), why doesn't it have an 's' denoting its plural form? I can't help wondering if it's due to the spelling notification/correction before printing. For instance:
'"Six thousand horse." (p. 464)
The Heike side had stationed over three thousand horse. (p. 480)
"Surely no more than a thousand horse." (p. 586) etc.
In brief, I think this book is worth reading since it is more readable than "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" (Tuttle 1975) translated from Chinese as well as the ones by various scholars because we can follow its story line by line, paragraph by paragraph in italics clearly indicated as poems, speeches, letters, etc. supplemented by black-and-white illustrations drawn by Teisai Hokuba from a retelling of the tale 'Heike monogatari zue' published in Edo in 1829 and 1849 (p. xi). Possibly we may read any number in any book we prefer and take it as a unique history and culture foundation book on Japan.
Reading "The Tale of Heike" translated by Professor Royall Tyler was nearly inconceivable to me since I hoped to read its translated version in prose like his "The Tale of Genji" (Penguin 2003) in which I enjoyed reading, taking notes, admiring the illustrations, etc. A reason was that I had read Professor A.L. Sadler's "Tales of the Heike" (Tuttle 1972) and enjoyed reading his wonderful prose and 21 illustrative reproductions dated back to 1699 and 1736, therefore, I was a bit disappointed when I leafed through this hardcover because, from Book One-Book Twelve + The Initiates' Book, all are in verse. However I decided to have a copy and thought this might challenge me with another way of reading experience; as far as I know, this masterpiece was initially and essentially written to perform on stage, to read it is secondary.
We may wonder on its episodic stories and importance as "related to the rise and fall of the Taira clan in twelfth-century Kyoto" (back cover: Sadler), this should suffice in the meantime, that is, "The Heike's descriptions of battle resonated for centuries as a model for warrior behavior, and yet its enduring appeal stems from its illumination of arrogance, pathos, bravery, cowardice, love, and renunciation." (back cover: Tyler)
There are 192 numbered titles/episodes in this formidable 13-book epic, possibly second to "The Tale of Genji", so there are too many characters, battles, defeats, etc. for its readers to remember or even recall without confusion. It is no wonder that its literary stature has been rightly compared to "The Iliad" by Homer since both describe their conflicts, campaigns, victories, etc. essential to impress and instruct their posterity and the world in this 21st century and beyond to learn from their mistakes and glory.
My review approach to this book is that I would mention briefly one or two episodes that I found uniquely moving as well as exemplary, worth reflecting and possibly applying in this contemporary world. First, it's about Gio (No. 6, Book One), a shirabyoshi dancer and her sister, Ginyo, who has worked in a residence of Lord Kiyomori's successfully for three years. Then, another rival young dancer named Hotoke Gozen decides to work under the Lord who, after a tough decision, accepts her. A bitter conflict ensues till Gio, Ginyo and, Toji their mother decide to leave and renounce the world by shaving their heads to be Buddhist nuns living in a hut far away amidst wild mountainous region. Conscience stricken, Hotoke reflects "Pleasure and riches are vanity" (p. 25) and gives a verdict to herself that it is her fault so she also decides to leave, surprisingly, for the three nuns to plead guilty and requests their permission for her to become a nun too. The following excerpt is how Gio replies, and the story ends:
"...
You nursed no grudge or sorrow. In only your seventeenth year,
you have mastered aversion to this polluted world and longing for the Pure Land.
That, to me, is powerful aspiration indeed.
Welcome, then, friend and guide in the Teaching!
Come, let us all pray together!"
The four of them, confined in retreat,
decked the altar morning and evening
with offerings of incense and flowers,
praying with single-minded devotion
until each in her time reached her goal,
... (p. 28)
At that time, I think, formal schooling was nearly out of the question and I wonder how they studied and learned to be such well-educated ladies; their unique, deep-rooted culture was so powerful that they were wise, forgivable and compassionate, even to her outstanding rival like Hotoke Gozon. [You may read her story, Sadler text, on pages 28-41]
Second, it is interesting, I think, to note that this book "The Tale of the Heike" has been gloriously and honorably entitled to the vanquished, not the victor or else it would be repetitive to the prior famous romance Heian epic "The Tale of Genji" by Lady Murasaki Shikibu. The following episode is the one that deals with a Heike intrepid warrior whose deeds and valor second to none has been narrated famously. There was a Heike warrior named Sanemori (No. 8, Book Seven) having worn "a red brocade hitatare robe, green-laced armour, a helmet with spreading horns, and a gold-fitted sword" (p. 369) accepts a fight with Tezuka for a special reason without revealing his name and ends up being beheaded due to his old age. And this excerpt discloses about him:
...
So Higuchi was summoned.
Higuchi took one look and exclaimed, "How awful! Yes, this is Sanemori."
"But if it is," said Yoshinaka, "at over seventy his hair should be white.
How could his hair and beard be black?'
Weeping copiously, Higuchi replied,
"I can explain this, and I will,
...
I often heard Sanemori say,
'If I go again to war
after passing my sixtieth year,
I will dye my beard and hair black,
so as to look like a young man.
You see, it would be undignified
for an old man to seek to best
the young in battle, and besides,
it would hurt an old warrior so
to be ridiculed and despised.'
So that is what he must have done.
Have his head washed, then, and see."
It seemed likely that Higuchi was right.
Yoshinaka had the head washed,
and indeed the hair turned white.
... (p. 370)
Possibly equally moving, this is how Sanemori has requested his Lord Munemori before joining the battle
...
"I know that I am far from alone in this, my lord.
But at any rate I feel acutely in my old age the shame
of having set out of the east a few years ago,
only to flee back to the capital from Kanbara in Suruga
without shooting a single arrow, at the mere whirring of waterbirds' wings
Now duty calls me to the north, where I mean to die in battle.
Although originally from the province of Echizen,
more recently I settled, in your service, on you Nagai estate in Musashi.
Now, a saying urges a man to return home wearing brocade.
Please grant me leave to wear a brocade hitatare."
"Well said!" Lord Munemori replied. He gave the permission requested.
... (p. 371)
Therefore, his name and valor would be recorded and read admiringly in Japanese history for ever [You may read his story, Sadler text, on pages 123-126]. For all of that, I didn't mean this is an easy reading book, some parts are all right but some are mysteriously tough that need one's reflection or research, and if possible, in some exceptional cases, need one's consultation with Professor Tyler himslef (I'm sorry I don't know how to contact him or if he is available for his Heike readers). Ultimately, those who can gain access to its original and can read its ancient Japanese texts should better understand this translation due to their scholarship. One of my queries is that, as for the word "horse" (passim), why doesn't it have an 's' denoting its plural form? I can't help wondering if it's due to the spelling notification/correction before printing. For instance:
'"Six thousand horse." (p. 464)
The Heike side had stationed over three thousand horse. (p. 480)
"Surely no more than a thousand horse." (p. 586) etc.
In brief, I think this book is worth reading since it is more readable than "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" (Tuttle 1975) translated from Chinese as well as the ones by various scholars because we can follow its story line by line, paragraph by paragraph in italics clearly indicated as poems, speeches, letters, etc. supplemented by black-and-white illustrations drawn by Teisai Hokuba from a retelling of the tale 'Heike monogatari zue' published in Edo in 1829 and 1849 (p. xi). Possibly we may read any number in any book we prefer and take it as a unique history and culture foundation book on Japan.
April 23, 2019
Royall Tyler's new translation is magnificent: full of beauty and a strange and terrible glamour. The last chapter is one of the most moving passages in Japanese literature. But be prepared: The Tale of the Heike is not The Tale of Genji. The endless cruelty and violence is depressing; and the eventual victor, Minamoto no Yoritomo, is a heartless monster.
November 26, 2010
Many prefer the openings of Anna Karenina, Pride and Prejudice, or Moby-Dick, but my favorite is from the Tale of the Heike. There are more compelling translations but for all I know this one by Helen Craig McCullough is more accurate: "The sound of the Gion Shoja bells echoes the impermanence of all things; the color of the sala flowers reveals the truth that the prosperous must decline. The proud do not endure, they are like a dream on a spring night. The might fall at last, they are as dust before the wind." That said, the Tale of the Heike tells the story of two proud clans refusing to fall or blow away: the upstart Heike/Taira and the more august but temporarily weakened Minamoto/Genji (no discernible relation to the prince of Lady Murasaki's novel). For a culture that was so entranced by Buddhism, medieval Japan was deeply enamored of complicating things. Everyone had long complex names (most of them starting with Yori-, Yoshi- or Shige-, which makes following this epic more of a chore than it would otherwise be). There were even two Emperors -- they had developed a habit of retiring, presumably for religious purposes, but maintained a separate court and a following and, since the reigning Emperor was often enough a child, even a toddler, wielded as much power as the monarchs of the time could. For the period preceding this slice of history, the Fujiwara clan actually ran the nation. The Tale of the Heike starts with the Heike/Taira clan ascendant, with its chief, Kiyomori, the most powerful man in the nation, but hated by sizable factions apparently biding their time in the hills, apparently because of his humble roots and his habit of bestowing the best lands and titles on his relatives (the Japanese sense of the ornate extends to titles; there are Ministers of the Right and the Left; Dharma Seals; Chancellor-Novices; Assistant Directors of the Stables, Punishments Ministers...). Kiyomori's ablest son preceded him in death, and his remaining heirs lacked their father's political and military genius, so the Minamoto/Genji seized their moment. The heart of this bloody tale is in its incidents; the warrior who wants to spare a boy soldier's life who, realizing that the boy will die by someone's hand, proceeds with the killing so that the killer will be someone who prays for his victim; the Abbot Shunkan left alone on an island for plotting to overthrow Kiyomori, whose servant journeys to find him; the servant who weighs down the head of his dead master so that it won't be paraded (the final humiliation in these times). It was a world in which women were expected to take orders and pray for their husbands killed in battle, in which orders of monks quarreled over ritual slights and took arms over politics: Pure Land Buddhism in which one prays to the Buddha of Compassion and awaits the Buddha of the Future. It is worth remembering that Zen priests blessed the kamikazi pilots.
January 20, 2015
A magnificent modern translation of the rise and fall of the Taira (Heike) clan in 12th century Japan. The Heike and the Genji clans have always served the Emperor and the realm between the four seas, but with the Heike controlling a majority of the 66 provinces in Japan, a prominent, ambitious and influential Heike begins a reign of terror that lasts twenty years.
The Tale of the Heike is an epic poem that is a conglomeration of many different versions of the story that have been passed down through the oral traditions of the biwa hoshi, blind travelling performers of ritualistic precision. This translation by Royall Tyler contains passages of poetry, prose and oration to portray the various methods used in the different performances.
A mesmerizing tapestry of verifiable history and legend, The Tale of the Heike can be intimidating for the casusal reader with its long lists of "rosters" in court and battle, characters who have several different names, and large number of locales, but the excellent introduction to this work goes along way to allaying those intial fears. The patient reader will be richly rewarded.
Full of emotion, poltical intigue and intricacy, poetry created on the spot, deeds honorable and dishonorable, and the desire for life after death, this ultra-violent-to-the-extreme (I stopped trying to keep track of how many people had their heads cut off early on) narrative contains the soul of the Land of the Gods. You can see it's influence still today in the film, literature and social convention (the reverence for the cherry blossom is one of the most notable aspects of this work) of Japan.
This is one of the great reading experiences I've had in my life. I only wish I'd encountered it before I had lived in Japan.
The Tale of the Heike is an epic poem that is a conglomeration of many different versions of the story that have been passed down through the oral traditions of the biwa hoshi, blind travelling performers of ritualistic precision. This translation by Royall Tyler contains passages of poetry, prose and oration to portray the various methods used in the different performances.
A mesmerizing tapestry of verifiable history and legend, The Tale of the Heike can be intimidating for the casusal reader with its long lists of "rosters" in court and battle, characters who have several different names, and large number of locales, but the excellent introduction to this work goes along way to allaying those intial fears. The patient reader will be richly rewarded.
Full of emotion, poltical intigue and intricacy, poetry created on the spot, deeds honorable and dishonorable, and the desire for life after death, this ultra-violent-to-the-extreme (I stopped trying to keep track of how many people had their heads cut off early on) narrative contains the soul of the Land of the Gods. You can see it's influence still today in the film, literature and social convention (the reverence for the cherry blossom is one of the most notable aspects of this work) of Japan.
This is one of the great reading experiences I've had in my life. I only wish I'd encountered it before I had lived in Japan.
March 28, 2021
So spring fled, summer blazed,There's something about following an intermittent, yet longstanding commitment to reading texts that have managed to survive in one form or another for a minimum of half a millennium or so. Doing such has the tendency to rid other, more modern works of a certain measure of originality when one recognizes certain characters, plot points, or even entire narratives as having been worked in through reference that, in the case of such ancient pieces, must have been done out of a sense of homage (with the avoidance of copyright restrictions, in some cases, likely being a convenient bonus). Of course, having certain examples shoved down one's throat at far too early and/or in far too careless a fashion can put one off the bibliography of certain periods of certain civilizations, if not the entire exercise entirely. As such, had I not had the unusual experience of growing up as a minority, in many sense of the word, in a nation that that is the epitome of the artificiality of my kind's assumed majority in the world as a whole, I more than likely wouldn't have developed the breed of taste that led to my acquiring a copy of this when it first struck my eye, no hesitations in sight. The fact that I'm not one of those with a 50/100/etc page maximum for a work to win me over into a commitment to completing it is harder to trace, but it's a quality I appreciate nonetheless, for it took 687, yes, 687 pages to hit the section that won me over into appreciating this work on a truly honest level, and even that, as you can tell from my rating, comes with some caveats. So, a worthy work? Most assuredly. An absolute favorite on my end? Nah, but that's not really what matters here.
and autumn winds began to blow—
when, our eyes lifted heavenward
toward the meeting of the Stars,
we write down our fondest wish
on a mulberry-paper slip
slender as that lover's oar,
rowing across the celestial stream.
Transience? The flowers of spring,Having finished this, I acknowledge that my means of both comprehension and appreciation of this text are grounded in a variety of disparate and borderline irrelevant mediums, so I'll be the first to say that, if you're looking for the kind of review that should include a list of cited references (especially those that have a habit of flinging Euro/Neo Euro images willy nilly, as if that's any improvement over the kind of review that incorporates gifs) that will convince you to take on a borderline 800 year old 700+ page piece invoking a section of "medieval" history that most so-called "medievalists" will have little to no familiarity with, this isn't it. In contrast, the idiosyncratic toolkit that I used to grapple with this particular piece includes one "Western" oral epic, one "Eastern" monumental text, the oldest novel that's managed to its way down to us today thus far, two video games, and a certain preoccupation with what some would call 'identity politics', and while it's easy to say which aspects certain mainstream types would consider valid and which ones they'd put up their noses at, each and every one's a non-academic mess, and thus why I had to take my pleasure with this piecemeal.
so quickly scattered by the winds.
Life itself? The autumn moon
that slips so soon behind the clouds.
Paraded dead, paraded alive—At times, for the sake of my engagement, I would see through the lens of The Tale of Genji in focusing on not only the partially inherited cultural set up (TToG as written piece precedes the oral recountal of history, itself having occurred a century or so after TToG was composed, by a couple of centuries), but also the technique of breaking up the longer work into set narrative episodes involving heavy pathos, beautiful imagery relating to nature and/or culture, and no more than a few characters. Or, it happened through that of Three Kingdoms in riding out the long run of decades long shifts in territorial claim and powerful intrigue by tracking the evolution of certain major characters (TTotH was unfortunate enough in its choice of history that its most active participants were often the least developed and/or shortest lived). Even The Iliad came into play at times, with two warring sides built up through uncomfortably long lists of names, regular invocations of religious entities of immeasurable (although, in the case of TTotH, also infallible and, over time, became a part of the narrative's insufferably proselytizing tone, alongside aesthetic justifications for the class system) power, and brutal violence that had a tendency to wipe out 50-90% of the names that were just so comprehensively, if not longwindedly, listed out. Video games came in with the mention of Tomoe, "an archer of rare strength" and one of, if not the only, rare woman figure who doesn't serve much purpose other than to kill herself or become a nun for the rest of her days, who appears under the epithet 'Lightning Tomoe' in similar, if supernaturally charged, circumstances in the game Sekiro; as well as with the fact that the bulk of the narrative of Chapter 12 of Book 11 (aka, 11:12 of the Heike), eight-headed serpent defeated with the help of sake and all, serves as the major introductory plotline to the game Okami. Outside of that, there were some small set piece of verse that I liked well enough to excerpt in this review of mine, and some of the events are really quite tragic, even horrifying, although I doubt the latter epithet would have been applied by the original constructors of the tale. Then again, that seemingly tree-lined landscape in white that forms the background of my copy's front cover is composed entirely of skulls and the odd skeleton, so perhaps there was some recognition that this warfare, which by the end devolved entirely into genocidal infanticide, was, even when enacted by the 'rightful' ruler, something inhuman.
which meant the greater or lesser shame?
He whose fame had so resoundedOverall, this was a text that both didn't hold itself together well enough and stuck its nose out in a subjective fashion for stuck up reasons a tad too much for my tastes, and if it weren't for the last, practically stand alone "Initiates' Book" that, in structure as well as pathos, hearkened back so clearly to my beloved TToG, I wouldn't have left the text on as positive, even somewhat awe-inspired, a note as I ended up doing. I may have been more favorably disposed towards this if, previous to my read, I had freshened up my acquaintance with the strengths and foibles of the oral epic in comparison to the written by revisiting certain, far more familiar and culturally engrained texts that I had first encountered in my youth, but my reading schedules haven't yet achieved that kind of professional dedication to a single piece, and so long as there's so many diverse disparities across the sands of time and the bounds of enculturated compositions, I don't see myself doing so anytime soon. So, I parsed the text as best I could with what I remembered of certain texts that, despite the divides in centuries and continents, seemed akin enough for me to apply them here, as well as with a couple of unorthodox choices that, to be fair, are not at fault for having been born at so late a stage, and in such a technologically advanced a medium, as compared to its narrative forbearer. In the end, certain scenes and introductions will stay with me: some of them were glorified many a time by this edition's introduction and footnotes, while others are ones that I developed an appreciation for under my own power. I'm young enough to expect to see one or more iterations of this tale in the form of ever newer translations delivered in an ever more impressively contextualized and beautifully composed packages, and when twenty or so years have passed and I have churned through the numerical equivalent of the entirety of my current TBR, I'll likely be seduced into trying one or more of those newfangled versions in as much a manner as I was by this one. Until then, it's worth relating to you, reader, that you can find certain sections of this tale, orally delivered in the manner it was originally intended to be, recorded in videos on Youtube, as well as the fact that one performer, Hashimoto Toshi, has undertaken the goal of creating a recording of the piece of its entirety, despite the fact that her status as a woman has excluded her from much of the prestige bound up in The Tale of the Heike, from the highest states of enlightenment under Buddhism to the career of the biwa hōshi whose recountal of the tale throughout the centuries formed a vital backbone of both cultural significance and spiritual appeasement. As the overriding theme of this text is the transience of all in the face of the eternal, so to have the times changed into something that the first composers of TTotH would find barely recognizable and borderline incomprehensible. Indeed, the thirteenth and final portion of this text, the "Initiates' Book", ends with a dire admonishment that this text not be spread far and wide, and here it is being done, as it has in many other places on the Internet. It's not my favorite piece that emphasizes the "so it goes" of mortal existence, but it's too worthy a one in its own right to need my approval.
the whole length and breadth of Japan,
who had wielded colossal power,
Kiyomori, in an instant
floated as smoke into the sky
over the city, while the remains
mingled soon with the sands of the shore,
and all he had been returned to earth.
After my death a disciple of mine might forget this phrase or that, giving rise to a dispute on the subject; so, to forestall any disagreement, I have had this reference text written down. under no circumstances may it be given or even shown to anyone outside my line. Let no one but my direct disciples copy it, not even my associate teachers and their disciples. May whoever violates these injunctions suffer divine chastisement.
April 14, 2019
Das "Heike Monogatari" ist so etwas wie die Ilias Japans und genau wie die Ilias, ist es ein epischer Wälzer mit brillanten und lebhaften Schlachtenszenen, großem Drama und göttlicher Intervention. Wer sich für japanische Geschichte interessiert kommt an diesem Werk nicht vorbei und das ist auch gut so. Genau wie die Ilias hat es natürlich auch längen, die zu überblättern sind, wenn Genealogien aufgezählt werden und sich Kämpfer einander umständlich vorstellen. Eher vergleichbar dem peloponnesischen Krieg des Thukydides und nicht minder interessant sind die eingewobenen Briefwechsel, insbesondere die Diplomatie um mächtige und militante buddistische Orden zum Seitenwechsel zu gewinnen. Für mich als jemanden, der gern und regelmäßig Japan bereist war außerdem interessant, dass die Handlung sich durch zahlreiche Provinzen zieht und viele der Orte (insbesondere strategisch relevante Brücken, Furte, Berge und Buchten) auch heute recht unverändert sind. Überraschen war, dass dieses im 14. Jahrhundert verfasste und im 12 Jahrhundert angesiedelte Werk wesentlich fantastischer ausgestaltet ist, als die nüchternen und zum Teil unglaublichen modernen Werke der japanischen Literatur des 10. und 11. Jahrhunderts, wie z.B. das Kagero Niki oder das Kopfkissenbuch. Aber auch im Genji Monogatari kommt kein einziger Tengu vor und der Aberglaube beschränkt sich auf das Feld der Medizin.
Wenn es hier also nur 4 Sterne gibt, so liegt das an der Ausgabe. Die Neuübersetzung von Royall Tyler (die mit Abstand aktuellste am Markt) versucht die Rezitative besonders herauszuarbeiten. Meines Erachtens verliert sie dabei - wie originalgetreue Nachdichtungen der Ilias - an Lesbarkeit, ohne dass ein Verständnisgewinn dies ausgleicht. Der Profi liest das Original, der Laie genießt keine holprigen englischen Nachdichtungen des japanischen Versmaßes. Weiterhin hätte die Ausgabe von einem vernünftigen Personenverzeichnis (im Buch erscheinen mehr als 500 Personen) und wesentlich detaillierteren Fußnoten profitiert. Vielleicht bin ich insoweit aber auch einfach von der vorzüglichen Neuübersetzung des Kopfkissenbuchs der Sei Shonagon aus dem Manesse Verlag verwöhnt, die in jeder Hinsicht als vorbildlich gelten darf.
Wenn es hier also nur 4 Sterne gibt, so liegt das an der Ausgabe. Die Neuübersetzung von Royall Tyler (die mit Abstand aktuellste am Markt) versucht die Rezitative besonders herauszuarbeiten. Meines Erachtens verliert sie dabei - wie originalgetreue Nachdichtungen der Ilias - an Lesbarkeit, ohne dass ein Verständnisgewinn dies ausgleicht. Der Profi liest das Original, der Laie genießt keine holprigen englischen Nachdichtungen des japanischen Versmaßes. Weiterhin hätte die Ausgabe von einem vernünftigen Personenverzeichnis (im Buch erscheinen mehr als 500 Personen) und wesentlich detaillierteren Fußnoten profitiert. Vielleicht bin ich insoweit aber auch einfach von der vorzüglichen Neuübersetzung des Kopfkissenbuchs der Sei Shonagon aus dem Manesse Verlag verwöhnt, die in jeder Hinsicht als vorbildlich gelten darf.
October 2, 2016
Yes it took me 2 years to read this book, but it is impossible to read a book of this important historical magnificence and not give it 5 stars. And it is totally worth those 5 stars.
It is wonderful to lose oneself in this historical and fantastical place of myth and fable.
This is THE book from which all our current fascination with samurai legends spawn. What has been great is reading other related material about the characters as I reach them in this core text. Like watching Star Wars prequels along with the original trilogy, or the new one.
As huge a task as it was to journey through this material, it is a journey I will take again at least once. Yes, I've started re-reading it already. I hope it takes me another 2 years, because it is a place I really enjoy.
It is wonderful to lose oneself in this historical and fantastical place of myth and fable.
This is THE book from which all our current fascination with samurai legends spawn. What has been great is reading other related material about the characters as I reach them in this core text. Like watching Star Wars prequels along with the original trilogy, or the new one.
As huge a task as it was to journey through this material, it is a journey I will take again at least once. Yes, I've started re-reading it already. I hope it takes me another 2 years, because it is a place I really enjoy.
August 23, 2017
The background: Tale of the Heike was based on the Gempei War which was fought from 1180 to 1185, between the Heike (Taira) clan and the Gneji (Minamoto) clan. This cumulated in a final naval battle in the straits of Shimonoseki off the coast of Dan-no-Ura, where the Genji wiped out the Heike. Such a large loss of life and a complete change of power in a region always leaves ghosts behind, and Tale of the Heike is one. No one knows who composed it originally, but it was spread orally by the biwa hosi, or lute priests until it was finally dictated by Kakuichi in 1371 and written down. From there, the story became standardized and the epic spread.
The epic:
The Jetavana temple bells
ring the passing of all things.
Twinned sal trees, white in full flower,
declare the great man's certain fall.
The arrogant to do not endure: They
are like a dream one night in spring.
The bold and brave perish in the end:
They are as dust before the wind.
This is the opening song of the epic. Although you could call this a war story which details the quick rise and steady fall of a clan that sought a military takeover of Japan, it is also something more. The Heike Monogatari was written to be read aloud and sung over nightly installments; is a long and winding journey through triumph, defeat, religion, and myth.
It is clear in the very first lines that a main theme of the Tale of the Heike is the Buddhist concept of impermanence or transience, also known as mujō . But despite of (or because of?) this focus on impermanence and death, this work is also an early contributor to the myth of the warrior code (bushido). There are many instances of deaths (some honorable, some not), suicide, and one of the first instances of death by seppuku.
Royall Tyler does a wonderful job with the translation, moving from song to recitation with fluid ease.
(Image is a screenshot taken from one of Akira Kurosawa's films, Ran)
The epic:
The Jetavana temple bells
ring the passing of all things.
Twinned sal trees, white in full flower,
declare the great man's certain fall.
The arrogant to do not endure: They
are like a dream one night in spring.
The bold and brave perish in the end:
They are as dust before the wind.
This is the opening song of the epic. Although you could call this a war story which details the quick rise and steady fall of a clan that sought a military takeover of Japan, it is also something more. The Heike Monogatari was written to be read aloud and sung over nightly installments; is a long and winding journey through triumph, defeat, religion, and myth.
It is clear in the very first lines that a main theme of the Tale of the Heike is the Buddhist concept of impermanence or transience, also known as mujō . But despite of (or because of?) this focus on impermanence and death, this work is also an early contributor to the myth of the warrior code (bushido). There are many instances of deaths (some honorable, some not), suicide, and one of the first instances of death by seppuku.
Royall Tyler does a wonderful job with the translation, moving from song to recitation with fluid ease.
(Image is a screenshot taken from one of Akira Kurosawa's films, Ran)
February 5, 2020
Translation of an old Japanese tale about two warring clans, which in turn is a romanticized account of the historical Gempei War - think "The Iliad" versus the actual Trojan War. Like "The Iliad", characters are broadly drawn and events are depicted as moral judgments from the heavens.
+ conflicts! betrayals! fights to the death! desperate retreats! final stands!
+ the battles of Ichi-no-tani and Dan-no-ura
+ an epic, romantic sweep
+ a decisive ending to the story ("wait, i have to read the Odyssey to learn what happens to everyone? lame")
+ it all *actually* happened (more or less, maybe a little more "less" than "more"). there are actual shrines to these people in japan. there is a historical heft to this story!
+ supplied the names and backstories for half of my World of Warcraft characters (Kumagae!)
- i guess i understand why, kinda, but i wish that the Blizzard character naming filter wouldn't reject "Yoshitsune"
+ conflicts! betrayals! fights to the death! desperate retreats! final stands!
+ the battles of Ichi-no-tani and Dan-no-ura
+ an epic, romantic sweep
+ a decisive ending to the story ("wait, i have to read the Odyssey to learn what happens to everyone? lame")
+ it all *actually* happened (more or less, maybe a little more "less" than "more"). there are actual shrines to these people in japan. there is a historical heft to this story!
+ supplied the names and backstories for half of my World of Warcraft characters (Kumagae!)
- i guess i understand why, kinda, but i wish that the Blizzard character naming filter wouldn't reject "Yoshitsune"
January 10, 2017
Royall Tyler's translation conveys the tremendous range of this medieval classic, one of the central narratives in the Japanese tradition, and one of the world's great narratives of war. Three earlier translations were all in prose, but Tyler uses prose and two forms of verse, following closely the three ways in which the war tale was originally recited, chanted, and sung. The fall of the Heike family is a story that echoes throughout later Japanese culture--many noh plays are based on events from the tale. It deserves to be much better known by readers outside of Japan.
February 1, 2015
I did not think I would like this book as much as I did. Honestly, far more enjoyable than Homer.
February 16, 2015
Well, that was some light reading... there's way too much to review specifics. I loved the translation, I compared a few passages to the Sadler version and there was no comparison. However, for better or worse, reading Royall's translation and with his layout, I felt like I the 'Tale of Heike' was constantly in comparison to the Illiad. It had a more epic vibe to it then from skimming through Sadler's translation where it read a lot more like the 'Tale of Genji'. I do feel like it helped the flow of this volume, the 'tale of genji' was a hard bank of snow to plow through at times but I never really had that in this one.
I am picking up the Lotus Sutra's to read through, though for much of what I've read I feel it might have been better to have read them first, especially the Tale of Heike which is by far the most religious Buddhist piece I've read so far -- I a couple books on Buddhism in my Philosophy of the East class way back, so I'm fairly prepared -- it's just that the Lotus Sutra's themselves are the actual reference point and I'm pretty sure what I've read was not source materials.
The story itself floats in many directions, as in the vein of many of these. you could be in the middle of a battle, but then the name of someones sisters crops up, then you follow down a story of her parentage, how so and so knows her from this courtly meeting, and how her son's brother in law is now the guy you were originally reading in the battle scene and that is why he's important. It's simply a fact that all the Japanese literature I've read is like that. There is none of that modern contrivance of showing you something important now, referencing is a couple times, then bringing back it's importance at some critical juncture later on. Sorry to say, as a modern reader, a lot of the power of tale is lost that way. But, it's nothing new, most classics are like that -- I guess it just happens so much in the middle of critical moments I got tired of it.
All that being said it is an Epic in the truest sense of the word. It might better called the 'Tragedy of the Heike' - certainly if we had a Shakespearean retelling of it! By re-ordering details and starting with a solid "front story" then launching into the events without constant flashbacks this could be turned into an amazing modernized novel - that's just not the case with a lot of classical literature. And I give it 5 stars becuase, having done just that in my head, I have a vision of a movie Trilogy in my head the likes of "The Lord of the Rings" !!!
I am picking up the Lotus Sutra's to read through, though for much of what I've read I feel it might have been better to have read them first, especially the Tale of Heike which is by far the most religious Buddhist piece I've read so far -- I a couple books on Buddhism in my Philosophy of the East class way back, so I'm fairly prepared -- it's just that the Lotus Sutra's themselves are the actual reference point and I'm pretty sure what I've read was not source materials.
The story itself floats in many directions, as in the vein of many of these. you could be in the middle of a battle, but then the name of someones sisters crops up, then you follow down a story of her parentage, how so and so knows her from this courtly meeting, and how her son's brother in law is now the guy you were originally reading in the battle scene and that is why he's important. It's simply a fact that all the Japanese literature I've read is like that. There is none of that modern contrivance of showing you something important now, referencing is a couple times, then bringing back it's importance at some critical juncture later on. Sorry to say, as a modern reader, a lot of the power of tale is lost that way. But, it's nothing new, most classics are like that -- I guess it just happens so much in the middle of critical moments I got tired of it.
All that being said it is an Epic in the truest sense of the word. It might better called the 'Tragedy of the Heike' - certainly if we had a Shakespearean retelling of it! By re-ordering details and starting with a solid "front story" then launching into the events without constant flashbacks this could be turned into an amazing modernized novel - that's just not the case with a lot of classical literature. And I give it 5 stars becuase, having done just that in my head, I have a vision of a movie Trilogy in my head the likes of "The Lord of the Rings" !!!
October 25, 2010
I read this over a period of a few months, which is possible because the book is written in small sections, little set scenes that sit apart, but mesh with the whole. The individual bits were related orally by a class of blind poets known as biwa hoshi. There are some comparisons to be made to ancient western epics like the Iliad, including the vast number of characters and the detailed battle scenes, but the tone of the Heike is completely different.
The tale is generally about the fall of the Taira clan (also known as the Heike) to the ascendant Genji. The causes of the fall are not unique -- the corruption of the powerful, internecine squabbles, overweening pride and arrogance. But there is a philosophical veil covering the whole book that speaks most powerfully at the end, especially in the "Initiates' Chapter" -- the Buddhist precept that all is transitory. What is up today will be down tomorrow, and the karmic cycle should never be taken for granted. That is the Tale of the Heike in a nutshell.
The tale is generally about the fall of the Taira clan (also known as the Heike) to the ascendant Genji. The causes of the fall are not unique -- the corruption of the powerful, internecine squabbles, overweening pride and arrogance. But there is a philosophical veil covering the whole book that speaks most powerfully at the end, especially in the "Initiates' Chapter" -- the Buddhist precept that all is transitory. What is up today will be down tomorrow, and the karmic cycle should never be taken for granted. That is the Tale of the Heike in a nutshell.
November 13, 2019
"Durante la travesía no se veía ni oía nada que no evocara un profundo pesar. El humo de las algas que los pescadores hervían al caer la tarde, la ronca de los ciervos en la espesura de los montes al amanecer, el suave murmullo de las olas yendo y viniendo para morir lamiendo la playa, los rayos de luna haciendo brillar las mangas de los viajeros humedecidas por el llanto, el canto de los grillos que se escapaba de entre las sombras de las hierbas de los campos y que llegaba hasta los barcos envuelto en el silencio de la noche... Todo evocaba irresistiblemente pena, todo invitaba poderosamente a que las punzadas del dolor penetraran más hondo en el pecho de los viajeros."
June 11, 2022
OBRA MAESTRA
Ha sido terminar el libro y si hubiera llevado un kimono os aseguro que sus mangas estarían mojadas como la hierba por el rocío.
Decir que es una lectura imprescindible e ineludible es quedarme corta.
Rezuma belleza, lirismo, sabiduría… Una epopeya inolvidable.
«En el sonido de la campana del monasterio de Gion resuena la caducidad de todas las cosas. En el color siempre cambiante del arbusto shara se recuerda la ley terrenal de que toda toda gloria encuentra su fin. Como el sueño de una noche de primavera, así de fugaz es el poder del orgulloso. Como el polvo que dispersa el viento, así los fuertes desaparece de la faz de la tierra.»
Ha sido terminar el libro y si hubiera llevado un kimono os aseguro que sus mangas estarían mojadas como la hierba por el rocío.
Decir que es una lectura imprescindible e ineludible es quedarme corta.
Rezuma belleza, lirismo, sabiduría… Una epopeya inolvidable.
«En el sonido de la campana del monasterio de Gion resuena la caducidad de todas las cosas. En el color siempre cambiante del arbusto shara se recuerda la ley terrenal de que toda toda gloria encuentra su fin. Como el sueño de una noche de primavera, así de fugaz es el poder del orgulloso. Como el polvo que dispersa el viento, así los fuertes desaparece de la faz de la tierra.»
September 23, 2021
Re-read what I needed to for work. It's no Tale of Genji, but still a good time.
March 1, 2023
Where to begin....
What a phenomenal epic. I enjoyed every minute of it. I read the first half back in Spring of 2022, and I finished the second half in Spring of 2023. I was reading it critically with a focus on how Taira no Kiyomori, but the entire epic is poignant, moving, tragic, powerful, human, emotional, grand, and truly epic. I found myself constantly amazed at how trauma and grief and war is described, how many slight similarities to Greek and Roman epic, how powerfully I was impacted. I cried while finishing Book 11, because I felt so moved. I will definitely be rereading the Heike... it is such a great, long masterpiece that there are certainly things which I didn't notice at first. Having nearly a year in between probably didn't do me any favors either. This translation was amazing as well. It felt very easy for me to read. I would love to read other translations and editions as well. Hopefully someday I can read a modern Japanese translation. Honestly, I'm at a loss for words. I'm so glad that I was able to read the Heike monogatari after me years of studying East Asian Studies at my university... After all of my language, culture, history, and religion classes, I was able to notice and be moved by period-specific details that brought this epic to life. 5/5 stars, a true work of art.
What a phenomenal epic. I enjoyed every minute of it. I read the first half back in Spring of 2022, and I finished the second half in Spring of 2023. I was reading it critically with a focus on how Taira no Kiyomori, but the entire epic is poignant, moving, tragic, powerful, human, emotional, grand, and truly epic. I found myself constantly amazed at how trauma and grief and war is described, how many slight similarities to Greek and Roman epic, how powerfully I was impacted. I cried while finishing Book 11, because I felt so moved. I will definitely be rereading the Heike... it is such a great, long masterpiece that there are certainly things which I didn't notice at first. Having nearly a year in between probably didn't do me any favors either. This translation was amazing as well. It felt very easy for me to read. I would love to read other translations and editions as well. Hopefully someday I can read a modern Japanese translation. Honestly, I'm at a loss for words. I'm so glad that I was able to read the Heike monogatari after me years of studying East Asian Studies at my university... After all of my language, culture, history, and religion classes, I was able to notice and be moved by period-specific details that brought this epic to life. 5/5 stars, a true work of art.
June 24, 2022
This was a pretty great read.
I found it an interesting Japanese story leading up to that of the legendary, Bushido: The Soul of Japan. A Classic Essay on Samurai Ethics
Would recommend it if you are a fan of the ancient Japanese texts.
3.9/5
I found it an interesting Japanese story leading up to that of the legendary, Bushido: The Soul of Japan. A Classic Essay on Samurai Ethics
Would recommend it if you are a fan of the ancient Japanese texts.
3.9/5
June 4, 2022
'De val van de Taira' heeft alles wat een goed epos een goed epos maakt:
- poëzie
- spanning
- uitgewerkte veldslagen
- pathetische speechen
- veel te veel namen
Heerlijk dus.
Also: Japanse vechtmonniken zijn zotten.
- poëzie
- spanning
- uitgewerkte veldslagen
- pathetische speechen
- veel te veel namen
Heerlijk dus.
Also: Japanse vechtmonniken zijn zotten.
September 28, 2014
The Tale of the Heike or the Heike Monogatari originated like the Iliad and Odyssey as a cycle of folk-tales sung by wandering blind minstrels called the biwa oshi (the biwa is a kind of lute and oshi is a Buddhist title meaning 'master of the doctrines' generally given to monks and itinerant holy men) recounting the rise to power of the Heike or Taira clan in the late 12th century and the bloody Genpei war which ended with their destruction and the establishment of Minamoto Yoritomo as the first Shogun.
Collected into its present form by an editor of genius called Kakiuchi between 1340 and 1371 and handed down to posterity by a guild dedicated to the performance of this work alone, the Heike has inspired countless traditional dramas, ballads and poems and in 20th century Japan has been used as the basis of best-selling novels, films, TV serials and comics.
Anyone who is familiar with both the later period of the Shogunate as popularised by the Samurai films of Kurosawa or the eponymous TV series or with the earlier period captured so perfectly in the Tale of Genji when Japan was ruled by a charmingly refined and effete court aristocracy, will find the Tale of the Heike a strange hybrid of the two with the warrior heroes of the feuding Heike and Genji clans dragging enemies from their saddles and twisting off their heads for later display but in the intervals between battle expressing their feelings with a refinement that belongs to the world of the Heian court.
While the fate of the Heike is largely decided on the battlefield, at this stage what they and their enemies are fighting for are still positions of power in a complex and faction-ridden imperial court with wonderfully silly titles like the Tango Gentleman-in-Waiting and rituals like the Imperial Assumption of the Trousers which seem to have wandered in from Monty Python.
The comic and supernatural elements in medieval Japanese literature are also well illustrated by such episodes as the attack of the Thrush Monsters (not a pleasant thought...) However while such incidents lighten the mood, the work as a whole is suffused with a haunting Buddhist melancholia which gets deeper and deeper as the hubris of the Heike clan brings them to closer to their tragic (and this being medieval Japan spectacularly bloody) fall - since reading this book I am continually reminded that like the Heike we too are still living in 'the latter days of the law' when all one can reasonably expect from the world is a long age of decline and decay where noble intentions only lead to tragedy and triumph is inevitably followed by disaster.
My main criticism of this edition is that in order to avoid the authorial voice being broken up by footnotes, 50 pages of 'reference material' are added at the end of the book which give us the emperor lists, family trees, chronology, maps and a glossary of terms to which you do have to occasionally refer to make sense of the action.
These are however sometimes just not detailed enough to be of much help - this is particularly true of the maps which do not allow you to follow the various journeys and campaigns properly (think of someone with only a vague idea of US history and geography trying to follow an account of the American Civil War with a couple of one page maps that only show the state boundaries and the immediate vicinity of Washington DC - it's not altogether impossible but could have been made easier).
In addition while it is precisely the host of minor characters who only appear a handful of times that you are most likely to forget and need to look up, only the most important characters (and not even all of those) are listed in the glossary and there is no index or bibliography at all - which is surprising in a scholarly book.
However these niggles aside the very lack of familiar referents and the unfamiliarity of its heroes and their world does give this book a mythic quality which seems far closer to the spirit of the Icelandic Sagas, Homer and the Nibelungenlied than the relatively late date at which they were collected suggests.
One of those rare things: a genuine classic of world literature waiting for your discovery.
Collected into its present form by an editor of genius called Kakiuchi between 1340 and 1371 and handed down to posterity by a guild dedicated to the performance of this work alone, the Heike has inspired countless traditional dramas, ballads and poems and in 20th century Japan has been used as the basis of best-selling novels, films, TV serials and comics.
Anyone who is familiar with both the later period of the Shogunate as popularised by the Samurai films of Kurosawa or the eponymous TV series or with the earlier period captured so perfectly in the Tale of Genji when Japan was ruled by a charmingly refined and effete court aristocracy, will find the Tale of the Heike a strange hybrid of the two with the warrior heroes of the feuding Heike and Genji clans dragging enemies from their saddles and twisting off their heads for later display but in the intervals between battle expressing their feelings with a refinement that belongs to the world of the Heian court.
While the fate of the Heike is largely decided on the battlefield, at this stage what they and their enemies are fighting for are still positions of power in a complex and faction-ridden imperial court with wonderfully silly titles like the Tango Gentleman-in-Waiting and rituals like the Imperial Assumption of the Trousers which seem to have wandered in from Monty Python.
The comic and supernatural elements in medieval Japanese literature are also well illustrated by such episodes as the attack of the Thrush Monsters (not a pleasant thought...) However while such incidents lighten the mood, the work as a whole is suffused with a haunting Buddhist melancholia which gets deeper and deeper as the hubris of the Heike clan brings them to closer to their tragic (and this being medieval Japan spectacularly bloody) fall - since reading this book I am continually reminded that like the Heike we too are still living in 'the latter days of the law' when all one can reasonably expect from the world is a long age of decline and decay where noble intentions only lead to tragedy and triumph is inevitably followed by disaster.
My main criticism of this edition is that in order to avoid the authorial voice being broken up by footnotes, 50 pages of 'reference material' are added at the end of the book which give us the emperor lists, family trees, chronology, maps and a glossary of terms to which you do have to occasionally refer to make sense of the action.
These are however sometimes just not detailed enough to be of much help - this is particularly true of the maps which do not allow you to follow the various journeys and campaigns properly (think of someone with only a vague idea of US history and geography trying to follow an account of the American Civil War with a couple of one page maps that only show the state boundaries and the immediate vicinity of Washington DC - it's not altogether impossible but could have been made easier).
In addition while it is precisely the host of minor characters who only appear a handful of times that you are most likely to forget and need to look up, only the most important characters (and not even all of those) are listed in the glossary and there is no index or bibliography at all - which is surprising in a scholarly book.
However these niggles aside the very lack of familiar referents and the unfamiliarity of its heroes and their world does give this book a mythic quality which seems far closer to the spirit of the Icelandic Sagas, Homer and the Nibelungenlied than the relatively late date at which they were collected suggests.
One of those rare things: a genuine classic of world literature waiting for your discovery.
March 7, 2011
Ask any reasonably well-read person outside Japan to name a literary work from that country and odds are they’ll first say “The Tale of Genji,” by Lady Murasaki Shikibu (not her “real” name, and a story unto itself) an account of one prince’s life at Court in the Heian Period (794-1185 AD). The second has to be “Tale of the Heike.” The main difference between the two is that “Genji” is a work of fiction, while the Heike Monogatari at least attempts to be a chronicle of actual events, the Genpei Wars that marked the end of the Heian period, Japan’s Golden Age.
The strife between the two leading military families of the time, the Taira and the Minamoto easily becomes the stuff of legend without very much embellishment, and anything more than a quick overview is far beyond the scope of this review. In short, while in theory the Emperor was the absolute ruler of Japan, in practice most of the power resided in the court bureaucrats (the Fujiwara), and the military families that defended the Emperor and carried out his commands (Minamoto, Taira, Hojou and many others). Toward the end of the Heian period, the power of the military families was in the ascendant, and the two most powerful, the Minamoto and the Taira, clashed to decide who would become the de-facto rulers of the country. After an epic struggle culminating in the Battle of Dan-No-Ura in 1185, the Taira (Heike) were utterly defeated, which lead directly to the Kamakura Period and the first bakufu, or military government of Japan, the Shogunate.
What we know today as “Tale of the Heike” was probably first recorded in the late 13th century, barely one hundred years from the events and people it describes, but there was also a strong oral component of the account, as told by the Hoshi, blind singers and storytellers who repeated the tale and others like it as entertainment, a tradition which lasted for centuries, thus turning the chronicles into the stuff of legend which, to a great degree, had already begun even before the war ended.
“The Tale of the Heike” is worth reading for its own sake, but as a writer interested in the period I can’t deny that at least part of my motivation for reading it was as research. I’m in no position to quibble with the accuracy of McCullough’s translation, except to say that it is very readable and does not get in the way of the story as story. I was a little put off by the references to samurai, a term that barely existed at the time of the Heike Monogatari, but that would be the way most warriors would be referred to by the time the story was written down, so even that is hardly worth a mention. In short, I greatly enjoyed reading this, and I’d recommended it to anyone with evan a passing interest in events that were to determine the course of Japanese history for the next eight hundred years.
The strife between the two leading military families of the time, the Taira and the Minamoto easily becomes the stuff of legend without very much embellishment, and anything more than a quick overview is far beyond the scope of this review. In short, while in theory the Emperor was the absolute ruler of Japan, in practice most of the power resided in the court bureaucrats (the Fujiwara), and the military families that defended the Emperor and carried out his commands (Minamoto, Taira, Hojou and many others). Toward the end of the Heian period, the power of the military families was in the ascendant, and the two most powerful, the Minamoto and the Taira, clashed to decide who would become the de-facto rulers of the country. After an epic struggle culminating in the Battle of Dan-No-Ura in 1185, the Taira (Heike) were utterly defeated, which lead directly to the Kamakura Period and the first bakufu, or military government of Japan, the Shogunate.
What we know today as “Tale of the Heike” was probably first recorded in the late 13th century, barely one hundred years from the events and people it describes, but there was also a strong oral component of the account, as told by the Hoshi, blind singers and storytellers who repeated the tale and others like it as entertainment, a tradition which lasted for centuries, thus turning the chronicles into the stuff of legend which, to a great degree, had already begun even before the war ended.
“The Tale of the Heike” is worth reading for its own sake, but as a writer interested in the period I can’t deny that at least part of my motivation for reading it was as research. I’m in no position to quibble with the accuracy of McCullough’s translation, except to say that it is very readable and does not get in the way of the story as story. I was a little put off by the references to samurai, a term that barely existed at the time of the Heike Monogatari, but that would be the way most warriors would be referred to by the time the story was written down, so even that is hardly worth a mention. In short, I greatly enjoyed reading this, and I’d recommended it to anyone with evan a passing interest in events that were to determine the course of Japanese history for the next eight hundred years.
September 25, 2012
El Cantar de Heike o Heike monogatari es la historia del final de una era, la denominada Heian (792-1185) en Japón. También es la historia de la rivalidad entre dos familias, los Heike y los Genji, por la lucha por el poder. Es también la narración de mil batallas sangrientas repletas de samurais-criados, de monjes guerreros y de emperadores-niños que se suicidan arrojándose al mar. Es una advertencia de lo que puede ocurrirle al hombre cuando se aleja de los preceptos del budismo. Es una epopeya, un cantar épico, un tratado religioso, uno poético y una elegía, todo al mismo tiempo. Es un escrito creado para ser cantado por los bonzos ciegos rodeado de repeticiones, genealogías, viajes en el tiempo, nostalgias del imperio chino y apuntes del apocalipsis.
Es imprescindible leer esta edición porque la introducción de Carlos Rubio es lo único que puede ayudarnos a encontrar un contexto a las 850 páginas. Además, también es traductor, lo que facilita la comprensión aun más. Es un texto cansino, denso, con muchos personajes con nombre, pero al mismo tiempo muy moderno. Si existe, aconsejaría la versión oral porque se compuso con ese fin. Los samurais cortan muchas cabezas a lo largo del Heike. A mí me impactaba tanto que yo me quedaba en la cabeza paseada como trofeo mientras el bonzo seguía con el emperador de China que viajó a aquella región y se entretuvo rezando en la orilla del mar. No es fácil, a veces me ha aburrido muchísimo, pero su valía literaria, histórica y cultural es innegable. Yo que soy aficionada a las series de televisión japonesas, entiendo ahora mucho mejor ciertos comportamientos que en su día me parecieron absurdos. En el Heike los hombres mojan las mangas de sus kimonos constantemente. Ocho siglos después lo siguen haciendo.
*Fragmento citado en el Heike monogatari de La Constitución de los Diecisiete Artículos del príncipe Shoutoku (año 604).
Es imprescindible leer esta edición porque la introducción de Carlos Rubio es lo único que puede ayudarnos a encontrar un contexto a las 850 páginas. Además, también es traductor, lo que facilita la comprensión aun más. Es un texto cansino, denso, con muchos personajes con nombre, pero al mismo tiempo muy moderno. Si existe, aconsejaría la versión oral porque se compuso con ese fin. Los samurais cortan muchas cabezas a lo largo del Heike. A mí me impactaba tanto que yo me quedaba en la cabeza paseada como trofeo mientras el bonzo seguía con el emperador de China que viajó a aquella región y se entretuvo rezando en la orilla del mar. No es fácil, a veces me ha aburrido muchísimo, pero su valía literaria, histórica y cultural es innegable. Yo que soy aficionada a las series de televisión japonesas, entiendo ahora mucho mejor ciertos comportamientos que en su día me parecieron absurdos. En el Heike los hombres mojan las mangas de sus kimonos constantemente. Ocho siglos después lo siguen haciendo.
Todo ser humano posee un corazón. Y cada corazón posee una forma de pensar. El otro acierta y yo me equivoco, o bien yo acierto y el otro se equivoca. Según esta alternancia, nadie puede establecer ninguna regla ni lógica de lo que es bueno y malo. O bien los dos pueden acertar o bien equivocarse. Es como un círculo; no hay un fin. Por eso, cuando el otro se enfada, uno tiene que condenarse a sí mismo.*
*Fragmento citado en el Heike monogatari de La Constitución de los Diecisiete Artículos del príncipe Shoutoku (año 604).
October 22, 2015
This is actually an abridgement of the much longer Tale of the Heike. The translator here chooses some of the best stories of this book (hence "tales" of the Heike), for readers who are perhaps a bit daunted by the length of the full story. As a person who loves mythology, especially epic, I had never heard of this book and wondered why it was never mentioned in several books of Japanese mythology that I have. Now I know why. Many of the more usual epics are filled with motifs way beyond the natural: superhuman heroes, gods and spirits that intercede, monster and giant slaying, and others. This classic really does not have any of that. It reads more like a historical fiction. The core of it is based in history, but the emphasis on human suffering, the evils of war, some great action sequences, and some heart wrenching drama concerning various characters lift this up and away from a mere telling of an historical event.
The story centers around two clans: the Minamoto and the Taira, or Heike. They have a severe falling out because the prime minister, a Taira, mistreats the retired emperor. Thus a war breaks out. In a nutshell that's the story. However, the devil is in the details! Many characters are introduced and they play a role on either the Taira side, or the Minamoto.
There is an important role that fortune plays in this book. How one's clan can find themselves at the height of power, only to suddenly fall because of foolish behavior.
Religion plays a big role too. There is a branch of Buddhism that was common at the time. The Buddha is called Amida Buddha, and he has a place called the "pure land". I don't know much of this, but many of the characters, after realizing that all things end in this world, hope that one day the Buddha will greet them in the pure land. (Hence expect many of the protagonists to become priests and nuns as the story moves along and more disasters happen).
The book reads well and Watson did a fine job in wetting my appetite for the full version.
But I'll abstain for now; as a critic of religion, there is just a tad too much of it here!
The story centers around two clans: the Minamoto and the Taira, or Heike. They have a severe falling out because the prime minister, a Taira, mistreats the retired emperor. Thus a war breaks out. In a nutshell that's the story. However, the devil is in the details! Many characters are introduced and they play a role on either the Taira side, or the Minamoto.
There is an important role that fortune plays in this book. How one's clan can find themselves at the height of power, only to suddenly fall because of foolish behavior.
Religion plays a big role too. There is a branch of Buddhism that was common at the time. The Buddha is called Amida Buddha, and he has a place called the "pure land". I don't know much of this, but many of the characters, after realizing that all things end in this world, hope that one day the Buddha will greet them in the pure land. (Hence expect many of the protagonists to become priests and nuns as the story moves along and more disasters happen).
The book reads well and Watson did a fine job in wetting my appetite for the full version.
But I'll abstain for now; as a critic of religion, there is just a tad too much of it here!
December 28, 2017
"The sound of the Gion shōja bells echoes the impermanence of all things
the color of the sōla flowers reveals the truth that the prosperous must decline.
The proud do not endure, they are like a dream on a spring night;
the mighty fall at last, they are as dust before the wind."
The Japanese Illiad: an epic story wrapped in ancient mythology, heroic battles, cunning politics and Buddhist religion about the war between the two greatest Japanese clans of the 12th century that ended the Heian period and started the Kamakura shogunate. Written somewhere in the 13th century and meant for singing and declamation by monks and poets, this beautiful translation retains its original poetic rhythm.
Absolute must-read for anyone interested in Japanese history.
the color of the sōla flowers reveals the truth that the prosperous must decline.
The proud do not endure, they are like a dream on a spring night;
the mighty fall at last, they are as dust before the wind."
The Japanese Illiad: an epic story wrapped in ancient mythology, heroic battles, cunning politics and Buddhist religion about the war between the two greatest Japanese clans of the 12th century that ended the Heian period and started the Kamakura shogunate. Written somewhere in the 13th century and meant for singing and declamation by monks and poets, this beautiful translation retains its original poetic rhythm.
Absolute must-read for anyone interested in Japanese history.
January 3, 2008
The japanese kamakura version of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire...much more lyrical, mystical, and hard-core. Also, historically, mostly imaginary. Poetry composed on the battlefield, over the bodies of the dead? Impossibly athletic acts of bravery and suicide? Yes.
I recommend getting a recording of a traditional musical re-telling of the battle of Dan-no-ura, the death of Atsumori, or another good juicily tragic section of the epic...the voice reaches a tremulous quaver of loss and sorrow, the crazy thread of the biwa rips through the air, and it's all pretty intense.
I recommend getting a recording of a traditional musical re-telling of the battle of Dan-no-ura, the death of Atsumori, or another good juicily tragic section of the epic...the voice reaches a tremulous quaver of loss and sorrow, the crazy thread of the biwa rips through the air, and it's all pretty intense.
July 23, 2019
A perfect epic of the conflict between the Taira and Minamoto clans for control of Japan during the Genpei War. Translated into world-class prose and verse by the genius who translated The Tale of Genji.
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