To understand how Echizen City was once the gateway to a great nation and a center of the most advanced technology of its time, one must trace back to a single "great king".

This area was one of the "Koshinokuni" a large country stretching from present-day Tsuruga to Niigata. It was called "Echizen-no-kuni," the country in front of Echizen Province, as the gateway to Echizen Province, which opens toward the capital of the Yamato Imperial Court (the area spanning Nara and Osaka).

The ruler of this Echizen Province was Oto-no-O. This great king, whose name appears in the "Nihonshoki" (Chronicles of Japan), although it is shrouded in mystery, later went to the Yamato Imperial Court and became "Emperor Keitai".

The foundation of the "Nation building" he accomplished has been handed down from generation to generation in Echizen, and the people who carry on his spirit live on in this town.

Let's quickly follow in his footsteps and try to find out what exactly he left behind.

It is said that Keitai emperor, the ruler of Echizen Province, was taken by his mother, Furuhime, to Echizen, where his parents lived, to escape war. At that time, politics was centered on the emperor of the Yamato Imperial Court, and little by little the shape of the Japanese nation as a *Ritsuryo state was being created.

During many wars and unstable political conditions, he lived in Echizen and sometimes traveled to various regions to broaden his knowledge. How did he rule Echizen Province?

The first thing to be undertaken was a "flood control project". The Echizen Plain was dotted with large lakes and marshes, and was a major wetland area into which the Kuzuryu, Hino, and Asuwa Rivers flowed.
The king carried out flood control works by reclamation and land reclamation, and laid the foundation for infrastructure such as levees, water supply and drainage, which dramatically expanded rice production through rice cultivation and turned the region into a fertile soil that produces good crops.
The "Doo rice cakes" a traditional event that has continued for over 1,400 years at Okamoto Shrine in the Awatabe district of Echizen City, is said to have originated from an anecdote about a villager who offered rice cakes to express his gratitude to the Great King for repairing a river that causes flooding, and the Great King also gave rice cakes to the villagers, it is truly a telling achievement of the Great King.

The next step was to "encourage industry". In the Kawada and Imadate areas, where raw materials such as lacquer and gampi are available, the production of lacquerware and Washi paper had already begun, and these were further encouraged to become national industries.

It is interesting to note that the craftsmen were well known for their work, as the legend goes, "When they stopped in Ajimano, they were impressed by the beautiful workmanship of a broken crown repaired with lacquer by a local painter, who encouraged them to make their own lacquerware."
These industries were the cutting-edge technology of the time, and Echizen Province was an area of great importance because of its proximity to the capital.

He also actively engaged in "overseas trade". At that time, Baekje, Silla, Kara, and Rinna flourished on the Korean Peninsula, and among these, exchange with Baekje was particularly strong, and it is said that the roots of Echizen's traditional crafts can be found in Buyeo, the capital of Baekje.
An anecdote that reminds us of the relationship between Echizen and Baekje remains at Keraga Shozu, located in Sengodani Town, Echizen City. According to legend, this spring water is the sacred water that a princess of Baekje prayed to the gods and Buddha during a drought, and is still popular among the local people.

It is said that Otonoo, the ruler of Echizen Province, was taken by his mother, Furuhime, to Echizen, where his parents lived, to escape war. Why was he chosen as emperor?

Among the various reasons, I would like to raise two major ones.

One reason is in the genealogy of the male great manifestation. His father came from a prestigious family with connections to the emperor, and his mother was a member of a powerful family in Koshi Province. When Emperor Buretsu died in 506 without a successor, his political achievements in Echizen Province, in addition to his genealogy, were highly evaluated, and he was promoted by many powerful clans, including the Otomo and Mononobe clans that supported the Yamato regime, to take the throne at the age of over 50 at Kusuba Palace in Kawachi Province.

Another reason is the skill in "nation building" that Keitai emperor accomplished in Echizen Province. It is no exaggeration to say that he laid the foundation for Echizen Province through flood control projects, industrial promotion, and overseas trade, as evidenced by the fact that Echizen Province he ruled was later classified as a high-ranking "Jokoku" during the Ritsuryo Period (1467-1573).

Among them, the Noh dance "Hanagatami" written in the Muromachi period (1336-1573) and said to have been composed by Zeami, describes the encounter between Emperor Keitai and his lover Teruhi on the occasion of his accession to the throne, set in Ajimano. It is nothing but evidence that the people of the land passed down his image with great care until the Muromachi period (1336-1573), some 800 years after the king's death.

You can also feel the Echizen people's desire to protect him carefully here and there, such as "Kakyo Park" where the 600-year-old Usuzumi cherry tree depicted in "Hanagatami" is planted, and "Gokoujinzya" a shrine dedicated to Emperor Keitai and five other kings, which is said to have started when he established a study center and a library.

About 1,500 years after Emperor Keitai strove to create a new country, people are still trying to carry on his spirit in the Reiwa era.(2019~) Tannan Cable Television's president, Tokio Yoshida, who runs the "Koshinomiyako Club" said.

"I first became aware of Emperor Keitai when I traced the roots of traditional crafts through the production of this program. I actually visited the Baekje area and felt many connections with Echizen. This allowed me to understand the splendor and depth of Echizen from his point of view. It's a steady process of unraveling this kind of history and culture and may be different from fads. However, I believe that seeing the inner light of the land is the real 'tourism'."

Rather than chasing after immediate splendor, we focus on the true "light" that continues to take root in the land through the ages and is faintly lit in the depths of the community. This seems to overlap with the gaze that Emperor Keitai himself turned toward Echizen Province 1,500 years ago.

"It's a symbol of the peace that existed in the area that so many traditional crafts have been preserved" he said. "Many cultures have been eradicated by war. By walking around Echizen City with knowledge of the context and background of things that exist today, we can think about other countries. I want people to walk around the town slowly, thinking, 'Why is it continuing?'"

The story of Keitai Daioh, which has been passed down from generation to generation in Echizen City and other places, is a message to the future, "inherit the body (country)", which is implied in his name. It is up to us to decide how we will receive and pass on the beginning of the city of Echizen City and the time that people of that era have spent in Echizen City.

Text / Mikiyo Sato

＜Reference＞
"Koshinomiyako: 1500 Years of Ancient Romance" Tannan Cable Television, Local Culture Planning Office 2000
"Koshinomiyako 15000nen Monogatari" Koshinomiyako 15000nen Project Secretariat 2007
"Echizen City History and Culture Illustrated Book from the Perspective of Cultural Properties" Echizen City Board of Education, 2016
"The History of the Expedition of King Keitai" Date Kohji, Keibunsha 2020

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summary

According to the Chronicles of Japan, Emperor Keitai was the fifth descendant of the 15th Emperor Ojin, and was originally a powerful family in Echizen Province. He was not originally in a position to succeed to the throne, but when his distant relative, the 25th Emperor Takeyoshi, died without a successor, he was crowned by the Otomo and Mononobe clans, and in 507, at the end of the Kofun period, he ascended to the throne at the Camphor Palace in Kawachi. He ascended to the throne at the Camphor Palace in Kawachi Province in 507, at the end of the Kofun Period. Before his accession to the throne, he was known as King Wohodo (男大迹), and Anecdotes related to Echizen lacquerware remain from the time of the prince. There is an anecdote about Echizen lacquerware.

On one occasion, the prince ordered a painter from Katayama village (present-day Sabae City, Fukui Prefecture) to repair a broken crown. The lacquer craftsman repaired the crown with lacquer and presented a black lacquered bowl. The prince was so impressed by the magnificent workmanship that he encouraged lacquerware production in the Katayama community. This is said to be the beginning of today's Echizen lacquerware.

*Ritsuryo state：Systematic centralized state structure centered on the Emperor