Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters) · 112 of 191

[Sect. CV.—Emperor Ō-Jin (Part II.—He Divides the Inheritance Between His Three Sons)]

Hereupon the Heavenly Sovereign asked His Augustness Oho-yama-mori and His Augustness Oho-sazaki, saying: “Which think ye the dearer, an elder child or a younger child?” (The reason why the Heavenly Sovereign propounded this question was because it was his intention 1 to make Uji-no-waki-iratsuko rule the Empire). Then His Augustness Oho-yama-mori said: “The elder child is the dearer.” Next His Augustness Oho-sazaki, knowing the august feeling which made the Heavenly Sovereign deign to ask [the question], said: “The elder child, having already become a man, gives no trouble; but the younger child, not being yet a man, is the dearer.” Then the Heavenly Sovereign said: “My lord Sazaki’s words agree with my thoughts,” and forthwith ordained the division [of the inheritance] thus: His Augustness Oho-yama-mori to administer the government of the mountains and the sea, 2a His Augustness Oho-sazaki to take and deign to report on the government of the realm, 3 and Uji-no waki-iratsuko to rule the succession of Heaven’s sun. 4 So His Augustness Oho-sazaki was not disobedient to the Heavenly Sovereign’s commands. 5

Insight

Emperor Ōjin’s question to his three sons — ‘which think ye the dearer, an elder child or a younger child?’ — is a setup for one of the chronicle’s clearest political tests. He plans to give the empire to the youngest, Uji-no-waki-iratsuko, and is sounding out the elder two for their reaction. Solomon poses a structurally identical test in 1 Kings 3:16-28, asking the two claimant-mothers which would yield the disputed child to preserve its life; in both texts the king is using a small public question to expose private intent. The Mahabharata also pivots on similar tests — Yudhishthira’s famous responses to Yaksha-prashna at the lake. Ancient rulers, lacking modern intelligence networks, relied heavily on questions designed to make the answerer reveal his disposition without realizing he was being read. The Kojiki preserves the technique here in its simplest form.

Footnotes 303:1 p. 304 Literally, “heart.”

304:2a I.e., Motowori thinks, to have control over the guilds of foresters and fishermen.

304:3 I.e., to act as regent or minister.

304:4 I.e., to inherit the empire.—It will be remembered that the Japanese Emperors claim to descend from the Sun-Goddess.

304:5 This statement refers proleptically to the contrary course which was taken by the elder Oho-yama-mori.