Hara Joken: Difference between revisions
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'''Hara Joken''' (died 1582), also known as '''Joken | '''Hara Joken''' (died 1582), also known as '''Joken Hokkyō''' (lit. "[[wikt:法橋|High Priest]] Joken") and under the cryptonym of '''The Wise''', was the [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] [[Scholar|abbot]] and caretaker of [[Tōdai-ji]] and a former ''[[sōhei]]'' during the late [[Sengoku period]]. During [[Oda Nobunaga]]'s campaign to unite [[Japan]], Joken fought for his homeland against {{Wiki|Matsunaga Hisehide}} and was promised that the [[monk]]s would rule the land. After he led his monks in a {{Wiki|Siege of Shigisan|siege}} against Matsunaga's forces, the abbot and his monks were passed over in favor of [[Tsutsui Junkei]] as ''[[daimyō]].'' | ||
Upon his rise as | Upon his rise as Tōdai-ji's ranking priest, Joken conspired with and joined the [[Shinbakufu]], a secret organization established to bring former [[Shōgun]] [[Ashikaga Yoshiaki]] back into power. In return, he was garnered forces and worked to instigate turmoil between the [[Tsutsui clan|Tsutsui]] and [[Akiyama clan]]s. However, the [[Japanese Brotherhood of Assassins|Kakushiba ''ikki'']] members [[Fujibayashi Naoe]] and [[Yasuke]] investigated the tensions and thus discovered the abbot's role in stirring the clans' distrust of one another. Following his exposure, Joken made a last stand against the clans but ultimately met his demise at the hands of Naoe and Yasuke. | ||
==Biography== | ==Biography== | ||
===Time as a | |||
During | === Time as a sōhei === | ||
During Oda Nobunaga's unification campaign in 1577, he promised Joken and his fellow monks that they would rule [[Yamato]] province if they joined him against Matsunaga Hisehide's forces. During the {{Wiki|Siege of Shigisan|battle}}, the abbot even fought against Hisehide's son [[Matsunaga Kojiro|Kojiro]] and defeated him in combat. When Matsunaga fell, however, Nobunaga gifted the land to Tsutsui Junkei, much to Joken's ire.<ref name="Temple Stories">''[[Assassin's Creed: Shadows]]'' – [[Temple Stories]]</ref> Within a matter of years, he rose in status to become the province's abbot but still harbored resentment towards Nobunaga.<ref name="Darkness Falls">''[[Assassin's Creed: Shadows]]'' – [[Darkness Falls]]</ref> | |||
===Joining the Shinbakufu=== | ===Joining the Shinbakufu=== | ||
Still upset being overlooked, Joken soon joined the Shinbakufu, which in return, aided in his efforts to create chaos between | Still upset being overlooked, Joken soon joined the Shinbakufu, which in return, aided in his efforts to create chaos between Junkei and [[Akiyama Ayako]]. As one of its leaders, he took on the role as "The Wise" and took part in regaining the [[Imperial Regalia of Japan|Imperial Regalia]] from the [[Japanese Brotherhood of Assassins|Kakushiba ''ikki'']].<ref name="Darkness Falls"/> | ||
In September 1581, Joken joined his fellow Shinbakufu members during Nobunaga's [[Tenshō Iga War|invasion]] of [[Iga]] to find the regalia's jewel, the | In September 1581, Joken joined his fellow Shinbakufu members during Nobunaga's [[Tenshō Iga War|invasion]] of [[Iga]] to find the regalia's jewel, the ''{{Wiki|Magatama|Yasakani no Magatama}}''. Using the invasion to mask their efforts, their member [[Ido Yoshihiro]] recovered the jewel and awaited the group's arrival at [[Katano Castle]]. However, the young ''[[ninja|kunoichi]]'' [[Fujibayashi Naoe]] managed to infiltrate the castle, assassinated Yoshihiro, and recover the jewel in its box.<ref name="The Onyro Samurai">''[[Assassin's Creed: Shadows]]'' – [[The Onryo Samurai]]</ref> | ||
Naoe ran home with the box, only for [[Yaita Wakasa]] to shoot her and [[Wada Koretake]] to then cripple her right leg. While Wakasa and Koretake argued over taking the box, Naoe's father and Kakushiba ''ikki'' member [[Fujibayashi Nagato|Nagato]] came and attacked them, pushing them back. However, Joken and the Shinbakufu arrived with their leader, "[[Ashikaga Yoshiaki|The Horseman]]", and stood against the pair. Making a last stand, Nagato charged them, only to fall and die at their hands. With the box recovered, the Shinbakufu left the Fujibayashis to die while they each returned to their respective lands.<ref name="The Onyro Samurai"/> | |||
In late June 1582, following Nobunaga's [[Honnō-ji incident | In late June 1582, following Nobunaga's death in the [[Honnō-ji incident]], Joken resumed working on his plan to stir inner turmoil between Junkei and Ayako. Pretending to be an ally to Junkei, he influenced his lord by sowing distrust between both Junkei and Ayako.<ref name="A Chance Encounter">''[[Assassin's Creed: Shadows]]'' – [[A Chance Encounter]]</ref> Meanwhile, he also worked covertly with a group of agents, the [[Kurai Eikyou]], across the province and within the clans to manufacture fear and chaos amongst the locals.<ref name="Kurai Eikyou">''[[Assassin's Creed: Shadows]]'' – [[Kurai Eikyou (memory)|Kurai Eikyou]]</ref> | ||
While at Junkei's behest, Joken soon saw the arrival of Kakushiba ''ikki'' members Naoe and [[Yasuke]], who pretended to be a samurai with his servant visiting the province. They soon offered to help | While at Junkei's behest, Joken soon saw the arrival of the renewed Kakushiba ''ikki'' members Naoe and [[Yasuke]], who pretended to be a samurai with his servant visiting the province. They soon offered to help Junkei to escort their envoys while the lord agreed and dismissed him. Before leaving, he offered them to visit Tōdai-ji as he can show them around the [[temple]].<ref name="A Chance Encounter"/> | ||
Arriving at Tōdai-ji, Naoe and Yasuke arrived and met with Joken | Arriving at Tōdai-ji, Naoe and Yasuke arrived and met with Joken, who escorted them around the temple. Talking about his role, he informed them that he hoped to be a spiritual guide and resolve tensions, especially with the use of the temple's sacred texts. However, when he left to intend to some matters, leaving the duo to explore the temple, Joken soon found them looking among the temples' set of oddities, where he explained his own history with the Matsunaga clan and how he came close to death to Hisehide's son.<ref name="Temple Stories"/> | ||
During their conversation, the temple | During their conversation, Akiyama soldiers attacked the temple. Joken offered his life for them to stop, though Naoe and Yasuke managed to kill them. When Joken noted that a sacred scroll was taken, he accused the departing Akiyama of the theft and stated that he deserved death for not being watchful. Naoe and Yasuke persuaded him to await their investigation and Joken agreed, saying that his punishment should be at Junkei's hands at [[Koriyama Castle]]. When Joken arrived at the castle, he informed Junkei, who nearly declared war. While Joken tried to offer peace, Junkei rejected the claim. Fortunately, Naoe and Yasuke arrived with the scroll and promised to investigate the attack further before the peace talks. Joken thanked them before leaving for preparations at Kōfuku-ji.<ref name="Temple Stories"/> | ||
After their investigation at [[Katsuragi]] and [[Takatori Castle Ruins]], Naoe and Yasuke determined that an agent called [[The Messenger (monk)|The Messenger]] sent | After their investigation at [[Katsuragi]] and [[Takatori Castle Ruins]], Naoe and Yasuke determined that an agent called "[[The Messenger (monk)|The Messenger]]" had sent orders from his secret superior for [[bandit]]s to attack and loot shrines to provoke the local spirits' wraths towards the locals.<ref name="Kurai Eikyou"/><ref name="Restless Spirits">''[[Assassin's Creed: Shadows]]'' – [[Restless Spirits]]</ref> They later found themselves meeting Ayako and discovered that Tsutsui envoys were attacked by traitorous Akiyama [[soldiers]] paid by a masked warrior. After saving the remaining envoy, they later recovered an invitation to [[Uda Matsuyama Castle]], handed it to Ayako at [[Kasugataisha Shrine]], and assured her attendance at the peace talks.<ref name="The Lost Envoys">''[[Assassin's Creed: Shadows]]'' – [[The Lost Envoys]]</ref> | ||
====Death==== | ====Death==== | ||
At Kōfuku-ji, Joken supervised | At Kōfuku-ji, Joken supervised Junkei and Ayako's talks and called for an intermission right when Yasuke entered. Meanwhile, Joken's soldiers readied their plans to attack by having a hidden Akiyama soldier shoot at Junkei, starting a war between both clans. Fortunately, Naoe intervened and killed the shooter. However, Junkei and Ayako each accused the other for the attempted [[assassination]]. When the abbot tried to blame each leader, Yasuke threw his ''[[tantō]]'' at Joken, who caught it and revealed his true nature.<ref name="Darkness Falls"/> | ||
His cover exposed, Joken's men rallied behind him as he ordered them to kill everyone, starting with Yasuke. While he fled, Yasuke and the clan's forces managed to kill Joken's soldiers. Soon, Naoe and Yasuke followed Joken and found him kneeling at a small shrine. There, Joken wielded his ''[[katana]]'' and dueled them, exclaiming that Nobunaga betrayed him by denying his rightful rule of Yamato, but he could not match their combat skill and was defeated. When he was [[Interrogation|interrogated]] about the box, Joken deflected the question, stating that he would like to die. In his final moments, he experienced an {{Wiki|auditory hallucination}} of wooden clappers and believed it was a sign from Kojiro to hasten him to the afterlife, before succumbing to his wounds. Afterwards, Naoe and Yasuke recovered the ''[[kusarigama]]'' [[Winds of War]]<ref name="Darkness Falls"/> and a full [[tea]] {{Wiki|Japanese tea utensils|set}} from his personal effects.<ref name="Tea Bowls for Rikyu">''[[Assassin's Creed: Shadows]]'' – [[Tea Bowls for Rikyu]]</ref> | |||
==Gallery== | ==Gallery== | ||
| Line 55: | Line 56: | ||
[[Category:Individuals]] | [[Category:Individuals]] | ||
[[Category:Japanese]] | [[Category:Japanese]] | ||
[[Category:Priests]] | |||
[[Category:Monks]] | [[Category:Monks]] | ||
[[Category: | [[Category:Shinbakufu]] | ||
[[Category:Abbots]] | [[Category:Abbots]] | ||
[[Category:Templar allies]] | [[Category:Templar allies]] | ||
Revision as of 06:55, 23 September 2025
Hara Joken (died 1582), also known as Joken Hokkyō (lit. "High Priest Joken") and under the cryptonym of The Wise, was the Buddhist abbot and caretaker of Tōdai-ji and a former sōhei during the late Sengoku period. During Oda Nobunaga's campaign to unite Japan, Joken fought for his homeland against Matsunaga Hisehide and was promised that the monks would rule the land. After he led his monks in a siege against Matsunaga's forces, the abbot and his monks were passed over in favor of Tsutsui Junkei as daimyō.
Upon his rise as Tōdai-ji's ranking priest, Joken conspired with and joined the Shinbakufu, a secret organization established to bring former Shōgun Ashikaga Yoshiaki back into power. In return, he was garnered forces and worked to instigate turmoil between the Tsutsui and Akiyama clans. However, the Kakushiba ikki members Fujibayashi Naoe and Yasuke investigated the tensions and thus discovered the abbot's role in stirring the clans' distrust of one another. Following his exposure, Joken made a last stand against the clans but ultimately met his demise at the hands of Naoe and Yasuke.
Biography
Time as a sōhei
During Oda Nobunaga's unification campaign in 1577, he promised Joken and his fellow monks that they would rule Yamato province if they joined him against Matsunaga Hisehide's forces. During the battle, the abbot even fought against Hisehide's son Kojiro and defeated him in combat. When Matsunaga fell, however, Nobunaga gifted the land to Tsutsui Junkei, much to Joken's ire.[1] Within a matter of years, he rose in status to become the province's abbot but still harbored resentment towards Nobunaga.[2]
Joining the Shinbakufu
Still upset being overlooked, Joken soon joined the Shinbakufu, which in return, aided in his efforts to create chaos between Junkei and Akiyama Ayako. As one of its leaders, he took on the role as "The Wise" and took part in regaining the Imperial Regalia from the Kakushiba ikki.[2]
In September 1581, Joken joined his fellow Shinbakufu members during Nobunaga's invasion of Iga to find the regalia's jewel, the Yasakani no Magatama. Using the invasion to mask their efforts, their member Ido Yoshihiro recovered the jewel and awaited the group's arrival at Katano Castle. However, the young kunoichi Fujibayashi Naoe managed to infiltrate the castle, assassinated Yoshihiro, and recover the jewel in its box.[3]
Naoe ran home with the box, only for Yaita Wakasa to shoot her and Wada Koretake to then cripple her right leg. While Wakasa and Koretake argued over taking the box, Naoe's father and Kakushiba ikki member Nagato came and attacked them, pushing them back. However, Joken and the Shinbakufu arrived with their leader, "The Horseman", and stood against the pair. Making a last stand, Nagato charged them, only to fall and die at their hands. With the box recovered, the Shinbakufu left the Fujibayashis to die while they each returned to their respective lands.[3]
In late June 1582, following Nobunaga's death in the Honnō-ji incident, Joken resumed working on his plan to stir inner turmoil between Junkei and Ayako. Pretending to be an ally to Junkei, he influenced his lord by sowing distrust between both Junkei and Ayako.[4] Meanwhile, he also worked covertly with a group of agents, the Kurai Eikyou, across the province and within the clans to manufacture fear and chaos amongst the locals.[5]
While at Junkei's behest, Joken soon saw the arrival of the renewed Kakushiba ikki members Naoe and Yasuke, who pretended to be a samurai with his servant visiting the province. They soon offered to help Junkei to escort their envoys while the lord agreed and dismissed him. Before leaving, he offered them to visit Tōdai-ji as he can show them around the temple.[4]
Arriving at Tōdai-ji, Naoe and Yasuke arrived and met with Joken, who escorted them around the temple. Talking about his role, he informed them that he hoped to be a spiritual guide and resolve tensions, especially with the use of the temple's sacred texts. However, when he left to intend to some matters, leaving the duo to explore the temple, Joken soon found them looking among the temples' set of oddities, where he explained his own history with the Matsunaga clan and how he came close to death to Hisehide's son.[1]
During their conversation, Akiyama soldiers attacked the temple. Joken offered his life for them to stop, though Naoe and Yasuke managed to kill them. When Joken noted that a sacred scroll was taken, he accused the departing Akiyama of the theft and stated that he deserved death for not being watchful. Naoe and Yasuke persuaded him to await their investigation and Joken agreed, saying that his punishment should be at Junkei's hands at Koriyama Castle. When Joken arrived at the castle, he informed Junkei, who nearly declared war. While Joken tried to offer peace, Junkei rejected the claim. Fortunately, Naoe and Yasuke arrived with the scroll and promised to investigate the attack further before the peace talks. Joken thanked them before leaving for preparations at Kōfuku-ji.[1]
After their investigation at Katsuragi and Takatori Castle Ruins, Naoe and Yasuke determined that an agent called "The Messenger" had sent orders from his secret superior for bandits to attack and loot shrines to provoke the local spirits' wraths towards the locals.[5][6] They later found themselves meeting Ayako and discovered that Tsutsui envoys were attacked by traitorous Akiyama soldiers paid by a masked warrior. After saving the remaining envoy, they later recovered an invitation to Uda Matsuyama Castle, handed it to Ayako at Kasugataisha Shrine, and assured her attendance at the peace talks.[7]
Death
At Kōfuku-ji, Joken supervised Junkei and Ayako's talks and called for an intermission right when Yasuke entered. Meanwhile, Joken's soldiers readied their plans to attack by having a hidden Akiyama soldier shoot at Junkei, starting a war between both clans. Fortunately, Naoe intervened and killed the shooter. However, Junkei and Ayako each accused the other for the attempted assassination. When the abbot tried to blame each leader, Yasuke threw his tantō at Joken, who caught it and revealed his true nature.[2]
His cover exposed, Joken's men rallied behind him as he ordered them to kill everyone, starting with Yasuke. While he fled, Yasuke and the clan's forces managed to kill Joken's soldiers. Soon, Naoe and Yasuke followed Joken and found him kneeling at a small shrine. There, Joken wielded his katana and dueled them, exclaiming that Nobunaga betrayed him by denying his rightful rule of Yamato, but he could not match their combat skill and was defeated. When he was interrogated about the box, Joken deflected the question, stating that he would like to die. In his final moments, he experienced an auditory hallucination of wooden clappers and believed it was a sign from Kojiro to hasten him to the afterlife, before succumbing to his wounds. Afterwards, Naoe and Yasuke recovered the kusarigama Winds of War[2] and a full tea set from his personal effects.[8]
Gallery
-
Hara Joken
Appearances
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Assassin's Creed: Shadows – Temple Stories
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Assassin's Creed: Shadows – Darkness Falls
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Assassin's Creed: Shadows – The Onryo Samurai
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Assassin's Creed: Shadows – A Chance Encounter
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Assassin's Creed: Shadows – Kurai Eikyou
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Shadows – Restless Spirits
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Shadows – The Lost Envoys
- ↑ Assassin's Creed: Shadows – Tea Bowls for Rikyu