Writing Down My Rules Writing Down My Rules Writing Down My Rules I am an utterly fiendish shogun I have ruled Japan with an iron fist But I am getting older My son will become shogun when I die Only tough rules will keep him in power So I have decided to write them down to help him be as fiendish as me MY RULES MUST BE WRITTEN CLEARLY The royal scribes shuffle in bowing before me Their hands clasp lacquered writing boxes the suzuri-bako Each scribe picks up an ink stick He grinds it around a well made of traditional ink stone He adds water and dips in his fine weasel-hair brush Stop I shout One of the scribes is using a wolf-hair brush It will totally spoil the effect I feel quite faint My courtier sends for the doctor MY SUBJECTS MUST TELL ME THE TRUTH The doctor hurries in He is also my royal Buddhist priest I ask him how long I have got Will my rules be written before I die He tells me that my body is in chaos There is a bad spirit inside me Get it out I order He is very calm and recites sutras Buddhist texts Then he gives me some green tea Is that it My samurai guards drag the useless doctor away I INSIST ON THE BEST My new doctor is an expert in our traditional kampo medicine He tells me my blood is poor and gives me a drink of cinnamon and hoelen mushroom Then he says I must have needle treatment or acupuncture That’s better The doctor mentions I will need many long needles The scribes look pleased They care about me The doctor first burns a lot of moxi herb Its fumes waft over my body Then he picks up his needles Fabulous Maybe I will live long after all 6
The scribes have written my rules They put down their brushes The ink has dried on their sheets of finest washi bark paper I glow with pride My chief scribe collects the sheets The rules look amazing My work is done I hope my son will be grateful for them OR ELSE 7
How I Became Shogun How I Became Shogun I am the fearless military ruler of Japan I followed very strict rules to get to the top like all shoguns since the twelfth century Now I make the rules for everyone else I always wear expensive silk kimonos and carry a carved ivory fan and ceremonial dagger You cannot miss me It’s a hard life making rules as you can see Kyoto Edo NO OTHER RULER IS ALLOWED TO OVERPOWER ME My people fear me but I would like them to show some respect They often think more highly of the emperor than of ME This is because he is the cultural leader of Japan and a god The truth is he handed power down to me So I owe him which is very annoying 8 Nobody likes me See if I care
I FOLLOWED THE RULES TO BECOME SHOGUN I am the son of a mighty shogun I am also a warlord and a first-class warrior My family has run the country for many generations But we always have to keep an eye on other powerful families They might take over Of course a long time ago my ancestors overpowered a ruling family to install their own shogun I think that was fair After all we protect Japan from foreign invaders I’ll learn all Dad’s rules then we can take over I MUST NOT BE WEAK I have always been a ruthless disciplined and brave warrior skilled in strategy and cunning I follow the example of my hero Minamoto Yoritomo 1147-1199 the first shogun He improved the way that the country was run and increased Japan’s wealth Good organization across the whole land helped him stay in power This meant that shoguns could keep military control over Japan Very good news for ME Fiendish Fact File Shogun means a general who subdues barbarians Shoguns ruled Japan between the twelfth and nineteenth centuries The first shogun Minamoto Yoritomo ruled from 1192 to 1199 Oda Nobunaga 1534 1582 gained power by using European firearms He burned temples and killed innocent civilians Somehow I don’t think they’ll be returning THE EMPEROR MUST NOT RISE AGAINST ME It is very difficult for me to rule while the emperor sits in his palace in Kyoto City I watch him closely from my capital Edo in case he forms a powerful army Worse he could encourage another military commander to take the title shogun Terrifying 9
