Essay: The Righteousness of Bishamonten

I think most men have one or two favorite Sengoku period warlords, and for me, it's Nagao Kagetora. That's the man who was hailed as the avatar of Bishamonten. He was also known as the Dragon of Echigo.

Since I was born in the Soshu region, the Hojo clan is more familiar to me, but it's a nuisance that the dishonorable term 'Odawara Hyojo' (Odawara deliberation) follows them around.

Speaking of that man from Echigo, his appeal surely lies in his deep sense of 'righteousness' (gi). However, in that Sengoku period where betrayal and usurping one's superior were everyday occurrences, living and dying by righteousness was, frankly, insane. It was an extremely unconventional way of life.

It was an era where today's ally became tomorrow's enemy, and even biological parents and children would casually kick each other down. Amidst all that, the behavior Kagetora displayed stood out in such a striking way.

Take, for example, the famous story of 'sending salt to one's enemy.' It is an anecdote that when his arch-rival Takeda Shingen was suffering from a lack of salt due to the Imagawa and Hojo clans cutting off his supply, Kagetora sent him salt at a fair price, saying, 'Battles should be decided by weapons and fists, not by cornering an opponent with rice and salt.'

Or consider how he took a great liking to a young man named Saburo, who had been sent as a hostage from the once-hostile Hojo family, and even bestowed upon him his own precious real name, 'Kagetora,' having him call himself 'Uesugi Kagetora.' For an average warlord, a hostage would be nothing more than a disposable pawn, yet he showed extraordinary compassion and righteousness there.

It is said that even Takeda Shingen of Kai, on his deathbed, left these words for his son Katsuyori: 'When I die, rely on Kenshin (Kagetora). He is a man of integrity, so he will not treat you poorly.' There is probably no other warlord before or since who was trusted so absolutely by an enemy. Of course, whether this story is historically accurate is debatable, but the story itself is quite something, isn't it?

Well, up to this point, it's just a beautiful story and a romantic heroic tale. But I find it impossible to think of the man Kagetora as merely a 'good person' or a 'good-natured man of integrity.'

Behind the 'righteousness' he displayed, there was an extremely calm and cold-blooded 'strategic objective.'

To begin with, Kagetora was a man who was incredibly strict when it came to domestic administration and protecting his own territory, and he actually brought prosperity to Echigo through trade. On the other hand, if Kawanakajima were to be defeated by the Takeda and Shinano were to fall completely into Takeda's hands, Echigo would suddenly become an undefended front line. If that happened, it would be directly exposed to the Takeda's ferocity. That is precisely why Kagetora had to clash with Shingen at Kawanakajima so many times.

The transport of salt to the Takeda was the same. If the Takeda were to self-destruct due to a salt shortage or surrender to the Imagawa or Hojo, then Echigo would end up in a direct, all-out confrontation with the powerful forces on the Pacific side. Having the Takeda of Kai as a breakwater, keeping them in a state of moderate balance with himself, was the most convenient situation for Echigo.

In other words, what we call the virtue of 'righteousness' is not something born from selfless kindness or self-sacrifice. It is a type of highly sophisticated diplomatic strategy that only emerges the moment mutual interests align perfectly. Because Kagetora understood this better than anyone, he carried out his strategy by holding up the grand cause of 'righteousness.' If one were to act for another's sake unconditionally, that would be 'compassion.'

And there is a reason why I have been calling this man 'Kagetora' instead of 'Kenshin.' The period when he became a monk and called himself 'Kenshin' was only a very small part of his later life. For the majority of his time, when he quelled internal rebellions, marched repeatedly into the Kanto and Shinano regions, and raced through the battlefield like a demon god, his name was 'Nagao Kagetora.' That is why, to me, the sound of 'Kagetora' feels more fitting.

I like sake from Niigata. I feel a strange connection to the fact that my favorite is the crisp, dry 'Koshi no Kagetora.'

I like to pour that 'Kagetora' into a sake cup, and as I let the sharp, cold, dry sake flow down my throat, I like to think about the way of life of that man who once raced through the land of Echigo between the gaps of righteousness and calculation.

According to what I've heard, after Kagetora finished his government duties, he would seclude himself in his room and drink a cup while licking salt and miso. I would have liked to share a cup with him there.

The End