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Benkei was said to have wandered around Kyoto every night on a personal quest to take 1000 swords from samurai warriors, whom he believed were arrogant and unworthy. After collecting 999 swords through duels and looking for his final prize, he met a young man playing a flute at
Gojotenjin Shrine in
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decided to shoot and kill Benkei with arrows instead. Long after the battle should have been over, the soldiers noticed that the arrow-riddled, wound-covered Benkei was still standing. When the soldiers dared to cross the bridge and take a closer look, the heroic warrior fell to the ground, having
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Atago-do, now called Benkei-do, features a statue of Benkei six feet two inches in height in the posture he stood in when he died at
Koromogawa. It was built in the era of Shotoku (1711–1716), replacing an older monument. In olden times the Benkei-do was at the foot of Chusonji hill until it was
329:) on his own, Benkei stood guard on the bridge in front of the main gate to protect Yoshitsune. It is said that the soldiers were afraid to cross the bridge to confront him, and that all who did met a swift death at the hands of the gigantic man, who killed in excess of 300 trained soldiers.
114:—all sources from around a century or more after Benkei's life. These sources generally only indicate Benkei was one of Yoshitsune's retainers and was a thin monk, although they do indicate Yoshitsune was aided and protected by a band of rogueish
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Stories about Benkei's birth vary considerably. One tells how his father was the head of a temple shrine who had raped his mother, the daughter of a blacksmith. Another sees him as the offspring of a temple god. Many give him the attributes of a
290:. Some sources claim that the fight took place not at the Gojo Bridge, but instead at Matsubara Bridge. Not long after the duel, Benkei, frustrated and looking for revenge, waited for Yoshitsune at the Buddhist temple of
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Saito
Musashi-bo Benkei : tales of the wars of the Gempei, being the story of the lives and adventures of Iyo-no-Kami Minamoto Kuro Yoshitsune and Saito Musashi-bo Benkei the warrior monk
130:, an even later 14th-century work. As no contemporary records of Benkei are extant, it is difficult to know which elements of the stories are historical and which are embellished.
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woodcut print – "Ushiwaka and Benki duelling on Gojo Bridge" or "Gojo Bridge, an episode from the Life of
Yoshitsune, Chronicles of Yoshitsune" by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839–1892)
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of Japan. During this period, monasteries were not only important centers of administration and culture, but also military powers in their own right, similar to the
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after he fled the capital—perhaps the historical core of the Benkei legend. Many of the detailed anecdotes and stories of Benkei are from the
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Benkei armed himself with seven weapons, and is often depicted carrying these on his back. In addition to his sword, he carried a broad axe (
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Kyoto. The much shorter man supposedly carried a gilded sword around his waist. Instead of dueling at the shrine itself, the two walked to
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At the age of seventeen, Benkei was said to have been 2 metres (6.6 ft) tall. At this point, he left the monasteries, and became a
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works themed on
Oniwakamaru and his adventures. He is said to have defeated 200 men in each battle he was personally involved in.
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89:, also known as Ushiwakamaru. He is commonly depicted as a man of great strength and loyalty, and a popular subject of
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and Benkei defending themselves in their boat during a storm created by the ghosts of conquered Taira warriors
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in the city where the bigger Benkei ultimately lost to the smaller warrior, who happened to be
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Benkei chose to join the monastic establishment at an early age and traveled widely among the
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From 1185 until his death in 1189, Benkei accompanied
Yoshitsune as an outlaw.
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The Heike Story: A Modern
Translation of the Classic Tale of Love and War
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The Heike Story: A Modern
Translation of the Classic Tale of Love and War
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The Heike Story: A Modern
Translation of the Classic Tale of Love and War
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The Heike Story: A Modern
Translation of the Classic Tale of Love and War
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died standing upright. This is known as the "Standing Death of Benkei" (
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Realizing that close combat would mean suicide, the warriors following
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In the end, Benkei and Yoshitsune were encircled in the castle of
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showcased in many ancient and modern literature and productions.
294:, where he lost yet again. Henceforth, he became Yoshitsune's
596:
Ribner, Susan, Richard Chin and Melanie Gaines Arwin. (1978).
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demolished. The ruins and a single pine tree still remain.
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Grunwald Center for the Graphic Arts, UCLA Hammer Museum:
81:. Benkei led a varied life, first becoming a monk, then a
583:. Yokohama: Yokohama: J.S. De Benneville. p. 444.
269:The moonlight fight between Yoshitsune and Benkei.
615:Kitagawa, Hiroshi and Bruce T. Tsuchida. (1975).
531:. Stanford University Press. pp. 317, 326.
477:Matsumoto; Nasu, Kana; Satoko (June 29, 2012).
444:Matsumoto; Nasu, Kana; Satoku (June 29, 2012).
179:—"demon/ogre child", and there are many famous
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172:
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558:. MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc. p. 83.
8:
495:: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
462:: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
452:. The Kyoto University of Foreign Studies.
96:The earliest records of Benkei are in the
419:. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. pp.
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392:. New York: New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
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77:) who lived in the latter years of the
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7:
701:Eiji Yoshikawa's Historical Fiction
479:"The Legend of Yoshitsune Minamoto"
446:"The Legend of Yoshitsune Minamoto"
771:Japanese warriors killed in battle
697:Yoshikawa Eiji Rekishi Jidai Bunko
30:For the Hungarian politician, see
25:
347:). Benkei died at the age of 34.
209:, a member of a sect of mountain
27:Japanese warrior monk (1155–1189)
786:People of Kamakura-period Japan
579:De Benneville, James S (1910).
555:The Samurai, A Military History
416:Handbook of Japanese Mythology
1:
781:People of Heian-period Japan
756:Heian period Buddhist clergy
679:. Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing.
517:pp. 535, 540, 654, 656, 669.
413:Ashkenazi, Michael (2003).
298:and fought with him in the
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552:Turnbull, Stephen (1977).
529:A History of Japan to 1334
253:), and a Japanese glaive (
29:
621:University of Tokyo Press
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60:, popularly known by the
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791:People of the Genpei War
388:Yoshikawa, Eiji (1956).
527:Sansom, George (1958).
200:, the half-moon spear.
79:Heian Period (794–1185)
766:Japanese warrior monks
617:The Tale of the Heike.
515:The Tale of the Heike,
284:Minamoto no Yoshitsune
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87:Minamoto no Yoshitsune
49:Saitō Musashibō Benkei
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18:Saito Musashibo Benkei
705:Shin Heike monogatari
288:Minamoto no Yoshitomo
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157:Benkei and Yoshitsune
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120:(warrior-monks) near
105:The Tale of the Heike
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362:Benkei on the Bridge
334:Minamoto no Yoritomo
237:), a wooden mallet (
188:Buddhist monasteries
345:Benkei no Tachi Ōjō
509:Kitagawa, Hiroshi
320:Koromogawa no tate
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247:), an iron staff (
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46:
776:Kabuki characters
761:Japanese folklore
662:Tuttle Publishing
598:The Martial Arts.
483:The Kyoto Project
450:The Kyoto Project
399:978-0-8048-1376-1
143:Utagawa Kuniyoshi
91:Japanese folklore
16:(Redirected from
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707:(新平家物語). Tokyo:
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58:, 1155–1189)
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751:1189 deaths
746:1155 births
369:Funa Benkei
286:, a son of
280:Gojo Bridge
271:Gojo Bridge
227:), a rake (
740:Categories
651:B0007BR0W8
637:. (1956).
600:New York:
591:References
304:Taira clan
300:Genpei War
241:), a saw (
147:Yoshitsune
134:Early life
122:Mount Hiei
108:, and the
41:Benkei by
660:. Tokyo:
653:(cloth).
206:yamabushi
709:Kodansha
687:(paper).
672:(paper).
513:(1975).
491:cite web
458:cite web
355:See also
296:retainer
292:Kiyomizu
255:naginata
244:nokogiri
235:nagigama
224:masakari
211:ascetics
197:naginata
69:Japanese
67:, was a
619:Tokyo:
421:124–125
326:seppuku
273:, Kyoto
250:tetsubō
239:hizuchi
181:ukiyo-e
168:Oniwaka
127:Gikeiki
62:mononym
55:西塔武蔵坊弁慶
715:
683:
668:
649:
627:
608:
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535:
511:et al.
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340:弁慶の立往生
261:Career
230:kumade
65:Benkei
376:Notes
313:Death
164:demon
117:sōhei
74:sōhei
713:ISBN
681:ISBN
666:ISBN
647:ASIN
625:ISBN
606:ISBN
560:ISBN
533:ISBN
497:link
464:link
425:ISBN
394:ISBN
711:.
257:).
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174:鬼若
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