Meigetsuki, the diary of Fujiwara no Teika: Karoku 2.9 (1226).

• Author: Atkins, Paul S.
• Position: Critical essay

Fujiwara no Teika [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (also known as Sadaie; 1162-1241) was a courtier and poet of Japan's early medieval period, an era in which political and economic structures were shifting from a court-centered model to one in which power became concentrated in the hands of a military government. This transition, which occurred over a span of almost two centuries, has been typically portrayed as an unmitigated disaster to the aristocratic class as a whole, but Teika was one of a number of courtiers with close ties to military elites who benefited during this time. Within the context of Japanese literary history, Teika was a leading figure in a coterie of poets who revolutionized the use of imagery, allusion, and diction in the 31-syllable waka form, an effort that culminated in the compilation of the eighth imperial anthology of waka poetry, Shin kokin wakashu (or Shin Kokinshu; New Anthology of Ancient and Modern Poetry, ca. 1205).

For these two reasons--Teika's position at the nexus of the courtier and warrior classes at a pivotal moment, and his indispensable role in the creation, critique, and compilation of some of Japan's most highly regarded verse--his diary has great importance for scholars of Japanese political, social, and cultural history. Clear evidence for the diary's value is furnished by even a cursory glance through the corresponding volumes of the definitive chronology of premodern Japanese history, Dai Nihon shiryo (Historical Documents of Greater Japan, 1901-, 380+ vols.). The Meigetsuki is frequently cited as a source for significant events, and in many instances it is the only extant source. (1)

The diary is commonly known as Meigetsuki [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (Record of the Brilliant Moon); the Reizei family, Teika's most prominent surviving heirs, pronounce it "Meigekki," according to tradition. The Nijo branch of the Fujiwara line referred to the diary as Shokoki [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]. (2) No evidence exists that Teika used any of these names; he referred to it simply as "my foolish diary" (guki [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]), as conventional modesty dictated. Originally, the diary spanned a period from the Jisho era (1177-80) to the Ninji era (1240-42), ending some time before Teika's death on Ninji 2.8.20 (1241). (3) The earliest extant entry is from Jisho 4.2.5 (1180); the latest extant entry is from Tenpuku 1.12.29 (1233). About thirty percent of the entire diary has survived, much of it in the hand of Teika or his scribes. (4) The bulk of the autograph edition of the diary is in the possession of a foundation created by the Reizei family and has been designated a National Treasure by the Japanese government. (5)

From the late medieval period onward, powerful literati pressed the Reizei for access to the Meigetsuki in order to make copies. (The standard printed edition of Meigetsuki, originally published in 1911, noted the existence of several dozen premodern copies, of which twenty-six were consulted and seven used heavily in the preparation of the edition. (6)) Among these copies are the Keicho copy, believed to have been ordered by the retired shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543-1616) in 1614. (7) Such copies were especially useful when the Reizei autograph version was closely held, but they retain considerable value today, and a facsimile of the Tokudaiji copy was recently published. (8)

Much can be said about the various scrolls that collectively comprise the autograph version, but I will make only two essential points. First, the autograph version is itself a copy of earlier originals that were lost. That is, we do not have Teika's "diaries" in the sense of a set of scrolls that he wrote in every day. We have fair copies of those scrolls, which it is believed Teika was planning to edit into a final product that he could bequeath to his heirs as an indexed reference work (the original diaries are gone and it appears that Teika never completed the final version). Second, the term "autograph" is used loosely; there are a number of scrolls in the so-called "autograph" version that are clearly in a hand other than Teika's; these are believed to have been copied out by some of his retainers. This further prompts the possibility that even some of the scrolls that appear to be in Teika's hand were actually by a retainer who could imitate his handwriting with facility. (9) The question of which scrolls were actually copied by Teika himself remains unanswered. Nonetheless, the presence of verso documents, tell-tale ruled lines at the top and bottom of each page, and general similarities with Teika's handwriting allow us to determine whether any given scroll or fragment is authentic (i.e., produced in Teika's household or not).

Since the sixteenth century, when the element of wabi (austere, rustic beauty) was incorporated into the Japanese tea ceremony, Teika's poetry and calligraphy have been prized by generations of tea practitioners and calligraphic connoisseurs. Teika regarded his own handwriting as unsightly, but it is relatively legible and consistent, and the extreme difference in thickness between horizontal and vertical strokes makes it easily identifiable. Perhaps because it lacks the conventional virtues of roundedness, delicacy, and fluidity, it may seem to display aspects of the writer's stubborn personality and appear idiosyncratic. Combined with the author's own fame, these qualities made Teika's calligraphy extremely attractive to collectors, and a significant portion of the extant autograph version exists in the form of fragments cut from Meigetsuki and mounted on scrolls for display.

DESCRIPTION OF THE HARVARD SCROLL AND ITS PROVENANCE

The collection of the Harvard University Art Museums includes a one-month-long scroll of the autograph version, spanning the ninth month of the second year of the Karoku era (1226). It is the only portion of the autograph version known to be held outside Japan. The scroll is composed of eleven sheets of paper glued together end to end. The sheets are about one foot high and the entire length of the scroll is about ten feet. There are four lacunae where the scroll has been cut, a portion removed, and the ends rejoined. (10)

The scroll was donated to Harvard in 1977 by Mary Hyde (later Viscountess Eccles, 1912-2003). What is known about its earlier provenance may be summarized as follows. The scroll originally formed part of a longer scroll for the autumn of Karoku 2; i.e., the seventh, eighth, and ninth months. It is likely that this seasonal scroll had already left the possession of the Reizci before leyasu ordered the Keicho copy produced in 1614. Its whereabouts for the next three centuries or so are unknown, but after the Second World War it was offered for sale by the legendary antiquarian book dealer Sorimachi Shigeo (1901-91). Sorimachi stated that he purchased it from another dealer in 1950, and listed it twice in his printed sales catalogue without success. In the 1960s he at last sold it to Mary and Donald F. Hyde (1909-66), ardent American book collectors who were better known for their collection on English drama and Johnsoniana, yet built a small but impressive Japanese collection on the side with the help of Sorimachi and others. (11) The Hydes purchased it in autumn of 1963 for [yen] 1,800,000 (then worth $5,000). (12) Neither of the Hydes could read Chinese or Japanese; they bought the scroll because it was offered to them by Sorimachi, who understood their plans to build a small collection of high quality. Most of the Hyde collection was auctioned at Christie's in 1988 and much of it was repurchased by Sorimachi, but almost thirty tine pieces were donated to Harvard in the years before the auction, including the Meigetsuki scroll. (13)

Sorimachi also acquired the eighth month scroll around the same time as the ninth month scroll, so it is possible that the seasonal scroll remained intact until the twentieth century, and was then divided. (The seventh month scroll was destroyed during the Allied bombing of Tokyo in March, 1945.) It is probable that the fragments were taken out after the ninth month scroll left the possession of the Reizei, but it is also possible that verso documents were excised while the Reizei still owned it. (14)

The Harvard Meigetsuki is prominent in the annals of Meigetsuki research because of a serendipitous discovery about it made by the eminent scholar Tsuji Hikosaburo. Tsuji was viewing the Komonjo Otekagami, a two-volume album of handwriting samples of some of the most illustrious figures in Japanese history, when he noticed that several of the letters included in the album had been carefully cut off the back of sheets used to write the autograph version of the Meigetsuki (it is believed that Teika copied the Meigetsuki onto the hacks of old letters not only to save paper, but that the letters served as corroboratory material for the diary (15)). Tsuji identified which parts of the Meigetsuki the letters had been taken from, and even matched one letter to a fragment of the Karoku 2.9 scroll that was no longer part of the main scroll. (16)

The four lacunae are included and indicated in the translation below. Of the four, two were located or known by Tsuji, and the third has recently been offered for sale; of the fourth nothing is known. (17)

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

During the period covered by the translation, Teika was sixty-five years old (by the East Asian count; sixty-four by the Western). He held the court rank of Junior Second (the highest was Senior First; courtiers of Teika's class began at Junior Fifth) and the office of Minister of Popular Affairs, a government bureau that collected and preserved information about the provinces, including population records and tax data. By and large, however, Teika's own career was nearing its end, and his attention was focused on the advancement of his son and heir Tameie.

The political context within which...