This episode we cover a wide variety of topics—mostly small accounts and stories from the latter part of the reign of Kashikiya Hime, aka Suiko Tennō. These include public works projects, international relations, expansion of the realm, and more.

Public Works Projects

A big part of any state is the projects that it does for its people. The ability to bring together and organize many people for the greater good to put together projects that the entire community needs, but no one person could reasonably do. So when we see the construction of ponds or highways, what I see is the Yamato state acting in that capacity.

It should be noted that these “ponds” are not necessarily small little bodies of water, like one might build in the back of their house. These could be sizeable constructions. An example is Sayama Pond (Sayama-ike) in the modern Ōsaka region. If you take a look at the photo, you can see that it is quite large, and it was repaired several times. The Nihon Shoki claims it was made by Mimaki Iribiko himself, i.e. Sujin Tennō, and it may be as old as the 4th century, though from what I could see, excavations around it have only dated material to the 7th century, so far—about the time that the ponds in our narrative are being built.

As for the highways, some of those you can still check out, today. Here’s a link to the Takeuchi Kaidō-Yokooji website (Japanese), which you can check out next time you are in the Ōsaka region: http://www.saikonokandou.com/

Yaku Island (Yakushima)

As I noted in the episode, Yaku Island is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, though in this case it is for its natural beauty rather than for its cultural significance. The ancient cedars and old growth forests of Yaku Island are truly impressive. As I noted, there are some excavations that have shown the island was populated, but I am not sure how much study has been done. We assume they were a Japonic speaking people, probably in contact with southern Kyūshū. That area of Kyūshū is also known as the origins of the Kumaso and Hayato people that are also mentioned in the Chronicles, and one of the reasons that I see contact with the people of Yakushima as possible indication that Kyūshū had been brought under Yamato authority by this time. We discussed, previously, the mention of the Dazai, up near modern Fukuoka, and so it would make sense that this outpost of the court was making formal contact with more people.

I have seen some suggestions that Yamato was also making alliances with the people of Yakushima in case of a possible attack by the Sui. I’m not sure how much I see that in the sources, but certainly the Sui were known to be expansionistic, pushing against the people of Southeast Asia as well as against Goguryeo. The Chronicles even note a loss against the latter, and so that may have prompted some thinking as to just what Yamato would do if the Sui dynasty tried to extend its reach across the seas.

Peaches and Plums

As noted in the episode, we are talking about momo and sumomo, not ume. Ume are probably more widely known in the west through things like umeshu, or “plum wine”. However, whereas Ume are Prunus mume; Japanese peaches, or Momo, are Prunus persica; and Japanese (or Chinese) plums, or sumomo, are Prunus salicina. As you can see, they are all in the same family, but even by the names we can tell that Japanese peaches and plums were seen as closer to one another, whereas the ume, which bloom much earlier, are often considered more of an “apricot”, though they are still known as “plums” in general parlance.

References

• McCallum, D. F. (2009). The Four Great Temples: Buddhist Art, Archaeology, and Icons of Seventy-Century Japan. University of Hawai’i Press. http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt6wqtwv

• Bentley, John. (2006). The Authenticity of Sendai Kuji Hongi: a New Examination of Texts, with a Translation and Commentary. ISBN-90-04-152253.

• Aston, W. G. (1972). Nihongi, chronicles of Japan from the earliest times to A.D. 697. London: Allen & Unwin. ISBN0-80480984-4

• Philippi, D. L. (1968). Kojiki. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. ISBN4-13-087004-1