Taiko

by Eiji Yoshikawa

What if the bird will not sing? Nobunaga answers, “Kill it!” Hideyoshi answers, “Make it want to sing.” Ieyasu answers, “Wait.”

“A samurai does not work just for the sake of a meal. He is not a slave to food. He lives for his calling, for duty and service. Food is something extra, a blessing from heaven. Don’t become the kind of man who, in pursuit of his next meal, spends his life in confusion.”

When he had a task to perform, he did it: if he was to sweep the garden, he swept it; if he was to stand guard, he stood guard. He did a thorough job, whatever it was. Unlike other men, he was able to find pleasure in any job that he was given, but this was not simply because he was born poor. Rather, he saw the work at hand as a preparation for the next task. He was convinced that this was the way he would one day realize his ambitions.

“I want to do things, but unless I do them, talking about them will only sound like boasting. And if I talked about them out loud, you’d all just laugh.”

Whenever Hiyoshi wanted to work, he would stop at a building site and offer his services to the carpenters or laborers; if he saw a person pulling a heavy cart, he would push from behind; if he saw a dirty doorway, he would ask if he could borrow a broom to sweep it.

He was not ashamed of his way of life, because he did not humble himself like an animal. He worked for the world, and believed that heaven would give him what he needed.

Each and every province had its own character, and in each one there was both appearance and reality. Even a province that seemed weak on the surface could have hidden strengths. Conversely, provinces that looked strong—like Mino and Suruga—might be rotten from within.

“I’ve never been so happy.” She repeated this several times, the tears freshening with each word Tokichiro spoke. He was very pleased to see how happy she was for him. Who else in the world could be so truly happy for him over such a trivial matter?

His scheme for remodeling the kitchens was approved by both the head cook and Nobunaga. He had a carpenter open a vent in the ceiling and cut a large window into the wall. The sewage system was also rebuilt following his plans. Morning and evening, the sun shone brightly into the kitchens of Kiyosu Castle, which for decades had been so dark that food was cooked by candlelight even at noon. A refreshing breeze also blew through. He expected the grumbling: “Food spoils easily.” “You can see the dust.”

“Is this business or personal?” “As I said, it’s a delicate matter, so it’s personal.” “If that’s the case, right now is inappropriate. I’m just back from an errand for His Lordship, and I don’t have time for a chat. Later.”

“There are three rules governing castle construction. The first is to build with speed and secrecy. The second is to build with unadorned strength. This means that ornament and beauty are fine, but only in peacetime. The third is constant preparedness, which means to be ready for attack despite the confusion of construction. The most frightening thing about construction is the possibility of creating a breach. The province might fall because of one small breach in a mud wall.”

It is untrue to state that labor is a thing of the body. If labor is not filled with the spirit, there’s no difference between the sweat of men and that of cows and horses.

Fragments of thoughts appear and disappear in the human mind, like an endless stream of tiny bubbles, so that one’s life is carved out instant by instant. Right up to the point of his death, a man’s words and actions are decided by this chain of fragments. Ideas that can destroy a man. A day in a man’s life is constructed according to whether he accepts or rejects these flashes of inspiration.

If Mataemon had been particularly practiced at tea, an admirable reader, or a man of exceptional taste, the invitation might have been natural. But in fact he had not noticed the chrysanthemums blooming on his own fence. He was quick to notice dust on a bow, but otherwise he was the kind of man who would happily trample chrysanthemums underfoot.

The water-pouring ceremony was an ancient custom in which the old friends of the bridegroom went uninvited to his father-in-law’s house. The bride’s family was obliged to receive them cordially, and the gate-crashers would then drag the groom out into the garden and douse him with water.

To be overly concerned at a time like this about appearing while still dressed in dirty travel clothes, and thus arranging one’s hair and clothes, cleaning away the sweat and smell, and only then coming into the lord’s presence, was liable to elicit a remark such as, “Did you go off flower viewing?”

The answer was to the point. There were retainers who, upon returning and giving their official report, would talk a long time about this or that, prattling on about what happened on the way, discussing all the minor details of the problem. As a result, it was difficult to get to the essential question: Did the errand go as planned or not? Nobunaga hated that, and when messengers gave their answers in nothing but digressions, an irritated expression would darken his face that even an outsider could have understood. “Get to the point!” he would caution.

Look at the husbands and wives who have passed years together. There are wives who have no idea what their husbands do. Such husbands lose an important incentive, and even a man who works for the sake of the nation or province is small, pitiful, and weak when he is at home. If only his wife is happy and interested in her husband’s work, he can go out on the battlefield in the morning with courage.

After he had been made governor of Sunomata, he had searched out men of ability to serve him. His way of handling men was not to employ them first and then make his judgment. If he trusted a man, he would immediately employ him, and then gradually put him to use. He had acted in the same way when he took a wife. He had an unusual talent for distinguishing true talent from mimicry.

Even though the country was in chaos, every military commander understood that he could not start a war without some reason, and that if he did, the battle would be lost in the end.

when Hideyoshi informed Nobunaga of what he had done, his lord’s only response was, “Is that so?” and he added no great praise. The look on Nobunaga’s face, however, indicated that he seemed to be thinking, You did too well—there is a limit to meritorious deeds.

A great man is not made simply by innate ability. Circumstances must give him the opportunity. These circumstances are often the malevolent conditions that surround a man and work on his character, almost as if they were trying to torture him. When his enemies have taken every form possible, both seen and unseen, and ally themselves to confront him with every hardship imaginable, he encounters the real test of greatness.

Shingen had stated clearly that to be one day late could mean disasters for an entire year,

A man would not make the most of his life if he did not think deeply about it. Nobunaga knew this about life: In the end, we die.

For a man of thirty-seven, the future would not be a long one. And for such a short time, his ambition was extraordinarily large. His ideals were limitless, and facing these ideals and overcoming the obstacles fulfilled him completely. Man, however, has an allotted span of life, and he could not help his feelings of regret.

In any period of history, a man on his way to ruin always holds on to the ludicrous illusion that he is not the one about to fall.

When other generals compared his behavior with their own solemn ways, there were some who judged him to be frivolous and indiscreet, but others saw him in a different light, saying, “He’s worthy of his rank. He hasn’t changed from what he was before, even though his stipend’s increased. First he was a servant, then a samurai, and then suddenly he was governing a castle. But he’s still the same. I imagine he’s going to earn an even larger domain.”

“Lord Nobunaga and his retainers are well versed in tea, but I’m a dullard by nature and don’t know the first thing about it. I only like the taste.”

Human beings possess both intellect and instinct, and they often contradict each other.

He’s not perfect. But then a tea bowl that is too perfect has no charm. Everyone has faults. When an ordinary person has vices, he becomes a source of trouble; but very few men have Hideyoshi’s abilities.

Just as the crimson of the setting sun is similar to the sun at dawn, no matter where one looked—whether at the colorful standard bearers and banners of each regiment, or at the massed armored cavalry that rode tightly around Katsuyori—there was no sign of decline.

“Life is worth living only when we have difficulties in front of us. Otherwise there’s no incentive.

“You’re a learned man, so perhaps you’ll know this. Among the castles in Japan right now, how many have donjons, and in which provinces are they?” “The castle of Satomi Yoshihiro, at Tateyama in the province of Awa, has a three-story donjon that can be seen from the sea. Also, at Yamaguchi in the province of Suo, Ouchi Yoshioki built a four-story donjon at his main castle. It is probably the most imposing in all of Japan.”

Those who truly heard this learned a great deal. There were those, however, who were taught, but never learned a thing.

‘There’s nothing more dangerous than a farmer rising up in the world, and you should get used to the fact that the envy and fault-finding of others comes from their own conceit. Don’t forget your past in Nakamura, and always be mindful of the favors your lord has bestowed on you.’”

the lie of a Buddhist priest is called expedient, and a revolt within a samurai clan is called strategy.

people obviously value free time and a peaceful frame of mind, but there’s no real benefit in becoming a so-called man of leisure; it’s an empty life. You, my lord, do not have an instant of peace between one worry and the next. So I suspect that it’s quite a marvelous medicine to have this sudden little moment of peace.

Yesterday’s conditions can hardly be thought of in terms of today’s, for time works its transfigurations moment by moment. Neither is it unreasonable to change one’s course of action. The reasons for which men have erred in their ambitions and lost their lives are as plentiful as mushrooms after a shower.

and it would not be right to kill someone whose arrival has been announced beforehand. It’s an agreement among warriors that one does not kill messengers.”

“Trivial matters are nothing but that,” he said. “Whenever they’re investigated, they’ll be cleared up.”

“Man’s wisdom obviously doesn’t exceed certain limits,”

“There’s no better medicine for the body or the mind than an occasional cleansing of the ch’i by walking through the hills and getting in touch with nature.

His decision was not a positive act of his own will, but rather a reaction to external circumstances. Men like to believe that they live and act according to their own wills, but the grim truth is that outside events actually stir them to action.

Mitsuhide wore black armor with light green threading under a white and silver brocade coat. His long sword and saddle were of exceptional workmanship. Today he appeared much younger than usual, but this was not true of Mitsuhide alone. When a man put on his armor, he was ageless. Even alongside a warrior of sixteen on his first campaign, an old man did not show or feel his age.

Rather, he fought with a fierce, burning spirit that would not simply give up and die. The ideal that he held in his breast as the great work of his life had not yet been even half-finished. It would be too mortifying to be defeated in the middle of the journey. There was just too much to be regretted if he died this morning. So he took another arrow and notched it to the string. He listened to the string hum again and again, seeming to loose his anger with each arrow. Finally the string became frayed and the bow was ready to break.

Ekei’s predictions were astoundingly accurate: twenty years ago, he had perceived Hideyoshi’s ability; ten years ago he had guessed Nobunaga’s fall. That night, however, there was no way he could have known how right he was going to be.

Hideyoshi was very good at sleeping. To fall asleep immediately, wherever the thought occurs to one, may seem like an easy ability to acquire, but it is, in fact, quite difficult. He had acquired this mysterious skill—so close to enlightenment—out of of necessity, and he had formulated it into as a sort of motto to follow, both to alleviate the pressure of the battlefield and to preserve his own health.

Hideyoshi had true ability. His talents were far more administrative than anything else. Hideyoshi knew that battle was not his main talent. But he understood clearly that if a man held high ideals but was defeated on the battlefield, great administrative works would not go forward. Thus he risked everything on a battle, and once he had started a campaign, he fought to the bitter end.

“Surely you must remember, Lord Katsuie, those days of eating, drinking, and singing until dawn. Friends will put their arms around each other’s shoulders, revealing things they wouldn’t even talk to their own brothers about. At the time, you think that person is the best friend you ever had, but later you both get involved in the real world and you have a lord or a wife and children. When you both look back at the feelings you had when you were living together in the barracks, you find that they’ve changed quite a bit. The way you see the world, the eyes with which you look at others—you’ve grown up. Your friend is not the same, and neither are you. The really true, pure, and devoted friends are the men we meet in the midst of adversity.”

“The closer you get to a large mountain, the less its great size can be perceived. When you start to climb, you will not understand its size at all. When you listen and then compare everyone’s comments, you can understand that most men will speak without having seen the entire mountain and, having seen only one peak or valley, will imagine they have seen everything. But they’ll really be doing nothing more than making judgments on the whole while having seen only one part.”