The Seven Tengu Scrolls: Evil and the Rhetoric of Legitimacy in Medieval Japanese Buddhism

Chapter 5. The Onjōji Scroll and the Question of Authorship

123 5 The Onjōji Scroll and the Question of Authorship Scholars have yet to provide a definite answer to the question, “Who wrote the Tengu zōshi?” Most agree with art historians Umezu Jirō and Ueno Kenji that the author must have come from or been affiliated in some way to Enryakuji .1 In his recent study of Zen and reformist groups affiliated with Zen, Harada Masatoshi speculates that the Tengu zōshi may have been created by a group of writers influenced by someone like Keisei, the early thirteenthcentury monk who studied at Onjōji and wrote the Hirasan kojin reitaku.2 I, too, suggest here and elsewhere that the author is closely affiliated with Onjōji.3 Takahashi Shūei, in his study of the Kanazawa Bunko text, identifies a strong esoteric element in the text.4 Furthermore, Tsuchiya Takahiro has revealed that Hen’yū, who is mentioned in contemporary sources as the author of the Shichi tengu-e, was a monk trained in the Shingon esoteric tradition (Tōmitsu).5 In my discussion of the authorship of the Tengu zōshi, I will focus on Onjōji. Located to the southeast of Mount Hiei, Onjōji is the headquarters of the Jimon faction of Tendai. Although not as powerful as Enryakuji of the Sanmon faction, the temple remains to this day one of the main centers of Tendai Buddhism. My reasons for choosing to concentrate on Onjōji are various. First, I wish to examine its dispute with Enryakuji in the assembly 124 reading the tengu zōshi scenes of the Tengu zōshi. Second, the Onjōji text is among the most detailed and elaborate of the extant Tengu zōshi texts. It strongly advocates the legitimacy and supremacy of Onjōji, and some interesting comparisons can be made when it is viewed alongside other contemporary sources. Together they provide insight into the discourse used by established Buddhist institutions to justify their position when disputes arose between temples. More specifically, we see a new development in the concept of ōbō buppō sōi (mutual dependence between the Law of the Sovereign and the Law of the Buddha), the dominant ideology supporting Buddhist institutions in the medieval period. Finally, the study of Onjōji and its claim to legitimacy will lead us directly to the larger issue of the authorship of the Tengu zōshi. Onjōji vs. Enryakuji: The Ordination Platform Dispute The Enryakuji and Onjōji assemblies are described in contemporary sources such as the Hōnen shōnin eden.6 An Enryakuji assembly is detailed in the Genpei jōsuiki: At the assembly of the three pagodas [santō sengi], three thousand monks gather in front of the Great Lecture Hall [daikōdō]. They cover their heads with torn robes and carry three-foot-long staffs called nyūdōjō, which they use to brush the dew off the grass as figure 5.1. Tengu zōshi, Enryakuji scroll (Tokyo National Museum), Monks’ Assembly at Enryakuji The Onjōji Scroll and the Question of Authorship 125 figure 5.2. Tengu zōshi, Onjōji scroll (Private Collection), Monks’ Assembly at Onjōji they make their way. The monks also carry small stones to sit on. One by one, they sit next to each other but cannot identify their disciples and colleagues. The monks pinch their noses to change their voices and announce: “Clergymen of the mountain, assemble !” Appeals are brought up and discussed. Those who agree shout “Mottomo, mottomo” [Indeed, indeed], and those who disagree shout “Iware nashi” [That is unfounded]. This is the rule of our mountain.7 ThisdescriptionroughlycorrespondstotheassembliesdepictedintheTengu zōshi (figures 5.1 and 5.2). Most of the monks wear hoods that indeed look like robes wrapped around their heads. Inscriptions summarize the discussions at hand, and the characters for “mottomo” float among the crowd. In the Enryakuji scroll, lay members are also present. They and lower-ranking monks wear armor and carry arms in case the debates turn violent. What is the meaning behind these assembly scenes? Contemporary viewers probably saw them as precursors to the violent protests and military displays that frequently followed. Upon reaching an agreement at an assembly, monks would often take violent action (gōso) or march to the capital with the symbols of their kami. Those from Kōfukuji would display a branch from the sacred tree (shinboku) of Kasuga Shrine, those from...