The aristocracy during the Kofun Period lived lavish lives.
Thanks to constant contact with the Korean Peninsula, the elites embraced Chinese and
Korean culture.
We know this because they kept stuffing shiny objects from the mainland into their tombs:
iron armor and swords, and all kinds of silver and gold luxury items.
The Kofun Period lasted from 250 AD to 538.
By the beginning of the Kofun, Rome was already past its prime and had started declining.
We were also smack dab in the middle of China’s Three Kingdoms Period, when the states of
Wei, Shu, and Wu were having a...civil debate.
At the end of the Kofun, the Western Roman Empire had already fallen, and we were in
the reign of Emperor Justinian the Great of the Eastern Roman Empire.
We were also in China’s Northern and Southern Dynasties period.
When studying history, we tend to focus on what the well-off did.
Political games by the elites are fascinating, but it’s easy to forget about the common
folk.
So let’s put those rich bastards aside and talk about the regular people.
Unlike the elites, the common folk lived simple lives of farming and fishing.
They had massive irrigation projects at the time, resulting in an agricultural explosion
of terroristic proportions.
This was thanks in large part to immigrants who arrived from the Korean Peninsula and
brought over kickass irrigation and farming techniques.
Protecting crop fields was of critical importance and crop field vandals saw swift justice.
Destroying the banks of fields or interfering with people’s fields meant a world of hurt
for you.
People had harsh punishments in general, not just for farming-related crimes.
Flogging and banishment were common.
Serious crimes like adultery, arson, and murder meant death for the perpetrator.
One lovely method of execution involved sawing off the head with a stretched bow string,
which was uncomfortable.
Like other primitive societies, to resolve disputes, people during the Kofun Period had...interesting
methods to determine guilt or innocence.
These methods usually involved the accused contemplating the benefits of
dying right frickin NOW.
This type of abuse is called trial by ordeal, or trial by
ow wtf.
For example, when two people had a dispute they couldn’t resolve privately, the community
used the boiling rocks system.
They put some rocks in boiling water and had the two people reach into the BOILING WATER
and pick out rocks.
The side that burned the most was the most guilty.
They also had the snake-in-a-pot system, where they had a snake-in-a-pot and the accused
had to reach in and catch the snake hiding within.
If he was bitten, he was guilty, because really, would an innocent person get bitten by a snake?
I don’t think so.
These trials by ordeal should really be called “Uh Yeah, You’re Guilty” and they seem
ludicrous to us now, but remember that it was a society where everyone believed that
spirits were everywhere and affected the world.
If you were innocent, then surely your kami fam would have protected you, especially if
you prayed to them.
The ancient Japanese practiced slavery.
Enemies captured in war became slaves, although their children could be freed.
People often became indentured servants to pay off a debt.
Young girls, and sometimes boys, were frequently sold into prostitution.
They could gain freedom by paying off their original price, plus some additional amount.
The Yamato rulers began shifting their roles toward more secular and military responsibilities
rather than kami worship.
However, religion and worship remained a major part of people’s lives.
Before the Yamato appeared and started unifying Japan, the numerous clans and communities
had their own kami and their own unique beliefs.
The Yamato’s influence lifted their ancestral kami, the Sun Goddess Amaterasu, above the
rest and she became the main kami of the land.
This Sun cult spread and eventually everyone agreed that the Sun Goddess was pretty cool
and that she stood above their old kami.
We see the concept of purity really take off in this period.
The Yamato court sent officials to communities to ensure they observed religious taboos,
and to recite prayers to cleanse the communities.
If you remember, in the previous period, the Yayoi sacrificed animals like deer during
worship.
They put a stop to that in the Kofun Period because blood was impure.
Instead, they offered fruits and vegetables.
It was taboo to skin an animal alive or even to skin it butt-first.
You should never start butt first.
The obsession with cleanliness and purity bled into their moral views.
The ancient Japanese didn’t have Christian notions of good and evil like those in the West.
Instead, they thought in terms of pure and impure.
Their morality also did not operate on a sense of guilt.
The main driving force was shame.
It was shameful to be impure, so they strove to maintain purity.
Anything pleasant or beautiful was considered pure.
Albinos and people with tumors and warts and deformities were impure.
Interestingly, you know what was considered pure?
Poop.
At first you’re like, whaat, but remember that they had an agricultural society.
Things like poop, ash, and plant waste were good because they made fertilizer.
There was even a kami of the bathroom, I’m not even lying, and it was connected to wealth.
People prayed to the bathroom kami for financial success.
Due to the constant wars, clan solidarity was encouraged.
People completely submitted to their clan chieftain and respected bravery in battle.
We see signs of this in Shinto, where people worship weapons like swords and spears, which
are the physical embodiments of kami.
People worshipped in natural places like clearings marked off by fences or trees.
Shinto shrines would later replace these worship places.
We see primitive archways around mound tombs at this time, likely precursors to the torii
archways over entrances to Shinto shrines.
The roles of women and ideas of sexuality in this period were fascinating, but let’s
save that discussion for next time.
Hiii!
So I’ve been asked if I had any book recommendations, and I do!
It’s this one.
It’s called Premodern Japan, Second Edition, by Mikiso Hane and Louis Perez.
Now I’ve been using this as a source and it’s excellent.
It covers everything from before the Meiji Restoration.
It’s clear, concise, and the second edition was published just a couple years ago so it’s
updated with all the new information.
If you were to buy one book, I recommend this one.
Link in the description.
If you buy, I get a little commission and it helps the channel.
Byeeee!