『源平盛衰記』に現れた白山信仰 = The Hakusan Beliefs in The Genpei Jōsuiki

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This paper seeks to clarify the miraculous efficacy and significance of the Mount Hakusan Beliefs by analyzing how Mount Hakusan is depicted in The Genpei Jōsuiki, and what its role and position are.
First, in Volume 4 of The Genpei Jōsuiki, the monks of the Eight Temples and Three Shrines and the monks of the Three Temples and Four Shrines state, “As Japan's peerless sacred peak and the imperial court's sole deity,” indicating that Mount Hakusan was revered as Japan's most outstanding sacred mountain and accepted as the imperial court's sole deity, revealing how highly revered the Hakusan faith was. Furthermore, while the true nature of Saragū and Kinkengū—two of the Seven Shrines of Hakusan—was discussed, for the Hakusan monks, clad in armor and marching with the Saragū mikoshi at their head to Hieizan to protest the Hakusan Incident, it was necessary to emphasize the divine power of Hakusan Gongen to demonstrate its miraculous efficacy.
And, In Volume 4 of The Genpei Jōsuiki, the Sannō and Hakusan deities appear in the shrine priest's dream as Hayamatsu Myōjin, one of the three central shrines of the Hakusan Seven Shrines. This was depicted as a miraculous sign of Hakusan, described as “snow falling on all the white plains” with snow falling in an unseasonal time.
In Volume 29 of The Genpei Jōsuiki, prior to the Battle of Kurikara, Kiso Yoshinaka prayed to Hakusan before praying to Hachiman, the guardian deity of the Genji clan: “Fortunately, we are now near the foot of the sacred mountain, the foremost peak of the northern lands, the peerless deity of miraculous efficacy. If we were to present a prayer to the Myōri Gongen of Hakusan.” This indicates Yoshinaka recognized the Myōri Gongen of Hakusan as a deity of remarkable spiritual power. And in Volume 29, The Manifestation of the Hakusan Deity, following the description of the prayer offering to the Hakusan deity, a unique Hakusan Engi account is recorded. Since the purpose of offering prayers to Hakusan was to defeat the Heike clan, it was necessary to pray to the miraculously potent Hakusan. Thus, the miraculous power of Hakusan Myōri Gongen(the Eleven-Faced Kannon), the true form of Hakusan, was recorded. Consequently, in Volume 29, The Battle of Tonamiyama, Yoshinaka attributes the victory at the Battle of Kurikara to the efficacy of the prayer he offered at Hakusan, stating: “This victory was not solely due to Yoshinaka's strength, but entirely by the divine plan of the Hakusan Gongen, which brought about the downfall of the Taira clan.” This reveals that the Heike's defeat was understood as the result of the Hakusan Gongen's divine will. Yoshinaka then offered thanks for the great victory at Kurikara Valley, dedicating twenty saddle horses to Kengendō Shrine. The Genpei Jōsuiki even details the true nature of Kengendō Shrine, one of the Seven Shrines of Hakusan, emphasizing the divine power of Hakusan.
That is, Mount Hakusan—regarded as Japan's most sacred mountain by the monks of the Eight Temples, and accepted as the imperial court's sole deity—was symbolized for Minamoto no Yoshinaka as a miraculous deity. The divine power and miraculous efficacy of Mount Hakusan were harnessed for the respective purposes of the strong petition concerning the Hakusan Incident and the overthrow of the Taira clan. Thus, the role of Hakusan Beliefs in The Genpei Jōsuiki is significant.