( Kana-Tehon-Chushingura ) FOURTH ACT Scene o f Enya' s Mansion, O gigayatsu - - (O gigayatsu -Yakata-N o-b a)

Transcription

1 S H O C H I K U Kabuki P la y "THE STORY OF THE FAITHFUL RETAINERS" ( Kana-Tehon-Chushingura ) FOURTH ACT Scene o f Enya' s Mansion, O gigayatsu - - (O gigayatsu -Yakata-N o-b a) To be p resen ted by a l l the Kabuk i A cto rs a t t he Tokyo Th eater from November to to November, ' 4 7. R evised

2 DRAMATIS PERSONAE: Lady Kaoyo Waiting-Maids Takasada Hangan En ya Umenojo Ishido Jirozaemon Yakushiji Yuranosuke Oboshi Rikiya Oboshi Goemon Hara A B C D E F Numbers of Warriors Kudayu Ono.

3 2 The stage represents Enya s residence at Ogiga- yatsu. With the tick of a clock, the curtain rises. "Owing to Hangan Enya s domiciliary confinement, all the doors of his mansion at Ogiyagayatsu are closed and he is prohibited from going out of his house under strict surveillance." (Just then a voice is heard in the drop-curtain over there. ) Voice: Here come the messengers of the Shogun! Thereupon Kudayu Ono and Goemon Hara meet the messengers.) "No sooner both of them meet the messengers than do the messengers of the Shogun, Umenojo Ishido and Moronao's right-hand man Jirozaemon Yakushiji, come in." (Over there Umenojo Ishido with thick Japanese paper for ceremonial use in his breast-pocket calmly comes out. Following himjirozaemonalso wearing the ceremonial dress and swords comesin.both of them make a bow on the stage-passage and go to the right.) "Without making a bow, they take seats in the places of honor. Just at the moment Hangan Enya comes composedly out of the inner room." Just then Hangan Enya wearing a Japanese coat comes out of the inner room and sits at a proper place.)

4 3 Hangan: Hello, Ishido-dono, thank you for having come here as a messenger of the Shogun. First of all, I l l let them make ready for rice-wine and distract myself from my resentment by exchanging cups with you. Make ready for a Jir o : banquet. Oh, i t s a swell idea. also drink with you. I, Yakushiji, w ill However, when you are told of the mandate of the Shogun by us, you won t feel like drinking, I should think. "He scoffs at Hangan when Umenojo opens his mouth." Ishido: Now you shall know in detail what we ve come here as messengers of the Shogun to-day for. "He takes the paper out of his pocket and opens it when Hangan sits upright and listens to him read it." (Thereupon Hangan falls prostrate on the le ft. Ishido takes the paper out of his pocket and opens i t. ) This time Takasada Hangan hurt Steward Moronao Kono out of his personal hatred and threw the palace into confusion. Because of his crime he shall forfeit his land

5 4 and commit harakiri (disembowel himself.) "Hearing the order, Hangan s lady and his followers present get astonished and exchange glances with one another in blank amazement. However, Hangan seems composed." Now I quite understand the mandate of the Shogun. Well, I want you to make yourselves quite at home and have adrink for diversion. Make ready for a banquet. Jiro: Tut, tut, Hangan-dono! Hold your tongue! Because of the crime you ought to be hanged, but thanks to the Shogun s benevolence you re ordered to perform "harakiri", so you should appreciate it and get yourself ready for it at once. On the contrary, however, you are wearing a fashionable long Japanese coat. Are you intoxicated or have you lost your senses? Your attitude toward Ishod- dono and me Yakushij i -----, messengers of the Shogun, is very rude. "He reproves Hangan, who smiles." I, Hangan, am not intoxicated nor have I lost my senses. To-day I ve expected the coming of the messengers of the Shogun and resigned myself to the fate. I ' l l let you see my firm determination.

6 - 5 - "So saying, he throws off his swords and Japanese coat when his grave-clothes with white sleeves and no family crest are seen. A ll of them get astonished to see the clothes. Yakushiji feels bashful and gets nonplussed. Umenojo draws close to Hangan." Ishi I understand your determination and mind. I shall listen to you ifyou have anything to say. Thank you for your kindness, but I've nothing to speak to you at this moment. I only regret to say that I was held back by a man named Kakogawa and failed in my attempt. Please understand my mortification. (He looks over there and expresses his mort ific a t ion.) "So saying in an angry voice, he strikes the screen of the next room." (Just then on the le ft is heard a warrior s voice.) W arriors: Goemon-dono, Goemon-dono, we, a l l o f h i s r e t a i n e r s would like to see our master before he passes away. I Please te ll him of our wish. All: Please te ll him of our wish. "All the members of the house voice their wish unanimously, so Goemon speaks to Hangan." Goe: Behave yourselves in presence of the messengers o f the Shogun. You heard them, my lord. They want to

7 - 6 - see you for the last time in this world. What do you say? Ha, no wonder they want to do so, but let them wait t i l l Yuranosuke comes here. Goe: Very well. "Goemon turns to the le ft." Goe: You heard him. Nobody can see him t i l l Yuranosuke Obashi-dono comes here from the native province. (Just then in the screen ) All Warriors: Well, then, can t we see him? Goe: A ll: No. Really? "The warriors keep silent in the room." (Hangan makes a sign to Goemon with the eye.) Goe: Please be ready. (On the le ft.) Warriors: Certainly. (From the le ft come out some warriors and place two mats, white cloth and salt. Goemon goes to the le ft and comes out with a trimmed mat. Hangan sits upright.) "According to the order, Rikiya places a sword for performing "harakiri' before his master." As in the words of the music from the right comes out Rikiya with a sword on a wooden stand; he

8 - 7 - places it before the messengers and with their nod replaces it before Hangan, who makes a sign to him so as to let him leave. Rikiya hesitates to leave when Hangan glares at him, so he reluctantly draws back to the l e f t. ) "Hangan composedly takes off his clothes and relaxes his attention." Rikiya, Rikiya. Rikiya:. Yes. How about Yuranosuke? Riki: He hasn't come here yet. ( Comes back to the formerplace. ) Hm. (Is lost in thought.) "He pulls up the wooden stand and takes up the sword." Rikiya, Rikiya. Riki: Yes. How about Yuranosuke; (Rikiya gets near him. ) Riki: He hasn t come here yet. Tell him that I'm sorry I shan't be able to see him before I join the majority. Riki: Very w ell. Wi l l you kindly hold an inquest over my body? "He grasps the sword in his le ft hand with the point downward and thrusts his a bdomen with it. Opening the screen on the corridor, Yuranosuke

9 8 Oboshi rushes in and as soon as he sees his master s condition, he falls prostrate. Following him, all the members of Hangan's family rush in." (Just then Hangan starts performing harakiri." Over there Yuranosuke comes running and falls prostrate on the stage-passage.) Simultaneously all the warriors come out of the le ft and stand in a line. Umenojo looks at Oboshi. Yaku : Are you his chief retainer Yuranosuke Oboshi in charge of his castle? Yuranosuke: Ishi: Yes, I am. Never mind. Come nearer. Yura: Thank you very much. (Yuranosuke seems to be in thought and comes to the left of the stage.) I, Yoshikane Yuranosuke Oboshi, have only just come. Yura: Yura: Yuranosuke! Yes. I ve long been waiting for you. Oh, I m glad I've seen you before you go to your long home. Oh, I m also satisfied to see you. I m sure you ve heard of the matter in detail. Y u ra : Yes. (Seems to be lost in thought.) How vexatious I am! I understand how you feel. Now I ve nothing particular to te ll you, but I hope you l l die manfully.

10 9 Oh, I know, "Hangan disembowels himself and breathes with difficulty." Come nearer to me, Yuranosuke. Very well. (Gets near him.) I l l give this sword to you. (Both of them are lost in deep thought. After all Yuranosuke expresses his understanding.) I see. See? "Hangan cuts off his blood-vessel with the blade, falls forward on his face with a thud and breathes his last. "Jirozaemon rises to his feet." Jiro: Now that Hangan has kicked the bucket, surrender this mansion to us right away. Ishi: Don t say such a thing, Yakushiji-dono. We must take it into consideration that he was a feudal lord. We mustn t be so impatient. We ll, everybody, I hope you w ill hold funeral services for him and leave here peacefully. I am in charge of examining his body and now that I ve seen him commit "harakiri", I l l tell this matter to the Shogun. (Puts the white fan and the thick Japanese paper on the dead body and comes down.)

11 Yuranosuke, I must condole with you on his death. If you have any business with me, come to my mansion. You must appreciate the Shogun's benevolence. "He bows to the warriors in silence and leaves." (Yuranosuke tries to let Rikiya see him off, Ishido goes over there.) Jiro: I, Yakushiji, w ill take a rest in the inner room while the dead body w i l be disposed of. Hey, Followers, throw out odds and ends before the gate. Don't let the new detached warriors filch Hangan's belongings. Show me into the room. I l l use the room for a while. "He stares round the mansion and enters a room." All: We must condole with you on his death. "He enters the room." (Yakushiji goes to the right.)

12 13 "Yuranosuke sidles up to the body and puts the sword in his pocket." (Thereupon Yuranosuke takes away the fan, stretches Hangan's limbs, adjusts the wadded silk garment with Hangan's family crest on it, pushes away the ceremonial dress, strokes the hands, takes the sword, wraps it up with paper and puts it in his pocket.) "The lady who has cut off her black hair short comes out of a room tearfully so as to see her husband's body for the last time in this world." (During the "Joruri" or ballad-drama, from the right comes out Kaoyo with her hair cut short and clad in white, being nursed by a waiting-maid. F ollowing them, all the other waiting-maids clad in white come out and sit on the right. Kaoyo tries to get near Hangan' s body, but gives up doing so. Kaoyo: Yuranosuke, I hope you'll understand my mind. "Although she feels like crying, she keeps back her tears like a warrior's wife that she is." (She is in deep thought.) I ' l l t e ll you, lady.

13 I, Yuranosuke, must condole with you on his death t ogether with a ll the warriors. I, Yoshikane, have come up to the city from the native province and no sooner did I see him after a long time than I had to bid farewell to him for the last time in this world. You understand how I feel, don t you? (Is in deep thought with tears in his eyes and turns to Kudayu.) We haven't expected to meet such a disaster. I also understand how you feel. Well, Kudayu-dono, now that it has come to such a pretty pass, firs t of a ll, we l l have to send our dead lord's body to his family temple the Komyoji femple and hold funeral services for him. I hope you'll give us instructions about it, as you're the oldest of us all. Ku: Oh, no: since I'm an old man, I hope you'll give us instructions, Well, then, I ' l l do so. (Meanwhile, Rikiya draws near K aoyo on the right, whispers something with her and comes to Yuranosuke and Kudayu.) Riki: Lady Kaoyo wishes to see the lord s dead body to the temple.

14 l 5 Kuand Ku : We have no objection to her wish. She had better do so. Yu : T e ll her to do as she wishes. Well, f i r s t of a ll, we l l have to send our lo rd s dead body to his family temple the Komyoji Temple and hold funeral services for him. Well, I want six chief warriors including Hara to remain here and the othe r s to escort the dead body with the lady on the way to the temple. A l l : Goe : W arriors: Very w ell. Be ready for a palankeen. Certainly. "In less than no time there co mes a palankeen. A11 of them stand up, open the palankeen, and put their lord's dead body in i t., (Fr om the le f t a palankeen is brought by some warriors. A great many warriors stand up, surround the palankeen and put Hangan's dead body in it. A ll of them draw back. Yuranosuke puts Hangan s dead body in order, steps backs and fa lls prostrate. Just then Rikiya brings a desk for Buddhist scriptures with an incense-burner on it before Kaoyo, who burns incense. Rikiya puts the desk before the palankeen.)

15 16 Kudayu-dono, burn incense, please. (Kudayu makes a bow to Yuranosuke so as to urge the latter to burn incense ahead of him. After all Kudayu and Yuranosuke burn incense t ogether; Yuranosuke might burn incense ahead of Kudayu when necessary. Goemon comes forward.) Goe: Everybody! (all the warriors burn incense. Lastly, Goemon makes a bow to a ll of them and burns incense. Just then Kaoyo speaks to Yuranosuke.) Kao: Kao: Yuranosuke, come nearer. certainly. Just look at this. (Makes a sign to a waiting-maid with the eye and lets the waiting-maid bring her cut hair. Y uranosuke puts the hair in the palanquin and closes the door. Thereupon Yuranosuke makes a sign to them and lets them lif t the palanquin.) "The lady grieves over her husband's death when he consoles her." (The planquin is ready to start.) "The warriors start for the family temple with the palanquin." (The palanquin goes to the stage passage under the warriors guard.

16 17 Following the palanquin, Kaoyo goes away, accompanied by the waiting-maids and Rikiya.) "They go hurriedly. The others see off the hearse and take their seats when Kudayu Ono voices his opinion." (Afterwards Kudayu on the right, Yuranosuke in front, Godayu on the left and the chief warriors to the le ft take their seats.) Ku: Well, Mr. Oboshi, unexpectedly our lord had such a disaster. Man is mortal; we never meet but we part. I mat a loss what to do. Anyway we should look after our a ffa irs. F irst of all, everybody, I want you to voice your opinion and I, Kudayu, w ill agree to the best way to take, firs tly, Mr. Oboshi, w ill you kindly te ll me of your opinion? I should like to know your mind. (However, Yuranosuke keeps silent.) Ku: Indeed! As soon as you left the native province and came here, you had such a sudden misfortune, so no wonder you can t give me a prompt reply. Well, Chief Warrior Goemon-dono, what s your opinion? Goe: As fo r me, I should lik e to agree with

17 -18- Yuranosuke-dono in every respect. Ku: O h, d o y o u a g r e e w ith Y u r a n o s u k e - d o n o? I see. Well, young warriors, in such a case there is no discrimination between new retainers and old ones. Please tell me of your opinions frankly. A: Al l : Ku: We have come To a decision. Oh, do you mean to say that you l l fight with Ashikaga-dono' s troops sent against us and die fighting in the c a s tle in the castle? Hm, well said! You're faithful to the lord and just. We warriors should do so. I admire your courage. Now, Mr. Oboshi, w ill you please tell me of your intention? Yuranosuke-dono! Hey, Oboshi! "During the conference Yuranosuke has kept silence though." (Yuranosuke has been in deep thought.) What you ve said is reasonable, Kudayu-dono, but I, Yuranosuke, never think of killing myself to follow our dead Wel,then,what'syourintention?lord to the other world. Ku:

18 19 Yu : My in ten tion is th is: F irst of all, I'll su rren d er this castle to the messenger, ask his brother Nuinosuke-sama to take his Lady in and care for her, take out the public fund which the Lord has saved up to now, divide it equally among us including the footmen and young subordinate retainers and then w ill leave this castle. I, Yur anosuke, have no intention to serve two masters, so I l l lend farmers the balance of my stipend which I ve received from the lord up to now and the dividend which I mgoing to receive, get farms and make my descendants prosperous with the interest. With the purpose, first of a ll, I l l have to throw away swords and bow and arrow and use the abacus and weighing beam. Ku: Well, then, do you mean to say that you l l take out the public fund which the lord has saved, divide it among us, get farms and make your descendants prosperous with the interest? I t s a good idea. Oh, no, i t s a bad idea. You heard the young warriors just now, didn't you? They said they would f i ght with Ashikaga-dono s troops sent against us and die fighting in the

19 20 castle. E v en the young warriors said such a praiseworthy thing. S hame on you! You're the chief retainer in charge of the castle, but you said such a silly thing as you wou ld divide the public fund among us. You re a fiend, I should say. Without knowing that you're such a brute, the lord had been waiting for you immediately before he committed "harakiri, saying, "Hasn t Yuranosuke come yet? Hasn't Oboshi come yet? Although I, Kudayu, had waited on him day in day out, he didn't call for me at all and breathed his last. When I think how the lord fe lt, I, Kudayu, feels like crying. I t s a disgrace to me to be with such a brute as you. here right now. I l l leave Although you ve been the chief retainer in charge of the lord s castle with a high stipend, you're a brute, I should say. Unlike him, you young warriors are admirable. I, Kudayu, w ill also agree with you. If you have such a firm determination to carry it out, w ill you please come to

20 my mansion? Then I l l talk it over with you. I l l wait for your coming. See? Take it easy! Although I, Kudayu, am old, then I l l fight with Ashikaga-dono' s troops sent against us and perform a distinguished service. On the contrary, although he's the chief retainer in charge of the lord's castle, he said he would take out the public fund which the lord had saved and divide it equally even to the footmen and young subordinate retainers. (Goes to the stage passage. ) However, after I leave here, you might come to a decision that you would divide the money among you. In such a case, I won t disagree with you. Although I won't disagree with you, I won't agree to the equal division per head. You ought to divide it according to the amount of our stipend. S o far as the amount of our stipend is concerned, although you're the chief retainer in charge of the lord's c a s tle, y o u r s tip e n d is e q u a l to o n e th o u s a n d and five hundred "Koku" of rice (a koku corresponds to bushels. ) As for me, my stipend is equal to two thousand " koku".

21 That's why the difference is five hundred koku, you see. You shouldn't divide it equally including the footmen and young subordinate retainers. I have something more to say to you Although my son Sadakuro s t ill depends on me for living, by the. lord s special favor he has had two hundred "koku" of rice w o r t h ' s y e a r l y s t i p e n d. Therefore my stipend was equal to two thousand "koku" of rice while my son's, two hundred "koku" of rice they amount to two thousand and two hundred "koku" of rice, See? If you make a mistake in calculation, you'll smart for it, Oboshi. "He leaves his seat." Oh, how s illy! "He goes home" "The young warriors who have remained there go to the left or to the right." ( Kudayu goes to the gate in deep thought. The warriors surround Yuranosuke on both sides.) A: Well, Yuranosuke-dono, just now Kudayu-dono acted unlike him, didn't he? B: We would like to come to a decision according to your intention, as you were the chief retainer in charge of the lord s castle.

22 23 C: All: What s your i ntention, Yuranosuke-dono? Yuranosuke-dono, Yuranosuke-dono. (However, Yuranosuke keeps silent.) A: Let s carry it out as previously arranged. Come on, everybody. ( A l l of them go to the stage passage. Yuranosuke looks at them.) Wait a moment, everybody! Where are you going with a threatening A: look? Since it's an urgent matter, w e'll go to Kudayu-dono's mansion right away. B: C: D: E: In order to avenge our lord's death We l l fight with Ashikaga-dono s troops sent against u s, Fight with them with might and m ain, Display our fighting spirit with our swords, F: G: H: A l l : Fight bravely, Die fighting in the castle, And our glorious names w ill be recorded in history. That s our intention. Oh, you're too hot-blooded, everybody. We have no grudge against Ashikaga-dono, so shouldn't rebel against him. How did you understand Kudayu-dono's words just now?

23 Although he said he would die fighting in the castle, otherwise he asked me to divide the money according to the amount of our stipend, didn't he? If he should really have an intention to die fighting in the castle, he wouldn't care for money so much. If you should be cheated by his flattery and do such a reckless act, you would be laughed at by the daimyos, as they would think that Enya's retainers are thoughtle ss. Even if you die fighting now, our dead lord in his grave wouldn't be pleased with you. You mustn't fight with them. You should abstain from doing foolhardiness. Make haste, less speed. S ee? Your idea is s t ill premature. (Thereupon a ll of them come back to the stage.) A: All: By the way, Yuranosuke-dono , What s your intention? (Yuranosuke makes a sign to Hara Denemon with the eye. Denemon throws open the screen.) N ow, com e over h ere please.

24 (All of them draw nearer Yuranosuke, who suggests his mind to them in whispers.) "They talk with him in whispers then Jirozaemon comes out of the room.) Jiro: Now that you ve disposed of Hangan' s dead body, surrender this mansion to me right away. (All of them are in deep thought.) Goe: We ll, we should do so right away, but w e'll have to examine Hangan s belongings and hand them over to you as they were. Will you please give us some time to do so? Jiro: Goe: A l l : All: Do so quickly. (Goes to the right.) Well, Castellan. Hm, since the days of our ancestors Since the days of our forefathers Day in day out we ve worked assiduously I n this mansion, though. "They cast a backward glance at the mansion over and over again wistfully." The main stage represents the front gate of the mansion. With the sound of the drum announcing the time, the stage-settings are placed properly. "Having taken the lord s dead body to the temple, Rikiya and the warriors come back hurriedly one after another."

25 With the sound of running feet, over there Rikiya c omes running ahead of the warriors. F rom the gate come out the six chief warriors. Be quiet! No wonder you re impetuous out of your faithfulness to the lord, but you should keep your presence of mind. I ve something to talk with you, everybody. Wait a moment, please. Oh, you' re Rikiya. You must calm down. A l l : Bu t Now, leave here, everybody. Won't you agree to my advice in spite of my efforts? If you don t agree to my advice, I l l have to resort to my last measure. I l l commit "harakiri" on this spot so as to apologize to our dead lord for lack of my control over you. Mr. Hara, w ill you please assist me at harakiri (self-immolation)? All; Please don' t do such a reckless thing. Well, then, w ill you withdraw from here? A ll: Bu t Shall I commit "harakiri", then?

26 All: Now Now, now, now. Please withdraw from here now. "A Voice is heard from within the gate." Jiro: Now, now, my, Yakushiji's, my followers, laugh at the new detached warriors condition. Many Shadows: Warriors: Ha, ha, ha! We heard their laughter. Did you forget our lord's last words? Warriors: Bu t Leave here, leave here. "He glares at them." (A ll o f them start going. Yuranosuke remains there alone. Thereupon all of them go over there in deep thought. "Yuranosuke looks around, looks closely at the blood-stained point of the sword and sheds tears of mortification: Hangan's last words sink deep in Oboshi's heart. D ue to this motive Oboshi wi l l be recorded in history as a faithful retainer." (During this time, Yuranosuke takes the sword out of his pocket, expresses his mortification, puts it in his pocket again and goes to

27 28 the left dejectedly where he touches a paper-lantern, so he takes it up and puts it in his sleeve. W hen Yuranosuke starts going to the stage passage, the gate is thrown open. Thereupon Yuranosuke looks back on the stage passage and puts his hands on the floor dejectedly when the sound of the wooden clappers is heard. The curtain fa lls.