Jamato Takeru: Japanese hero between myth and history

Abstract

Yamato Takeru is one of the most famous Japanese heroes. He has a carefully chosen name, which connects him with the state of Yamato, the predecessor of today's Japan. He is characterized by all the features of a mythical hero: courage, strength and ingenuity, but mythological story includes also fairy-tale motifs such as a miraculous sword, helpers, disguise, falling in love, and finally, supernatural death due to encounter with a numinous force. The oldest variants of the myth about this fearless warrior we can find in the first Japanese historical chronicles (8th century). Adding certain elements to the common ground and combining them in accordance with their own narrative aspirations, these texts gave their own recognizable variants of the myth of Yamato Takeru, which were a clear reflection of the ideology of the time. Regardless of the differences, these variants describe the achievements of Yamato Takeru as a key turning point, because in that semi-historical time that is also the beginning of national consolidation. By "calming and subduing" western and Eastern countries, he contributed to increasing the territory under imperial rule and strengthening the authority of the Yamato court. In the following centuries, new variants of the myth about this hero were created on these bases. Some are focused on territorial conquests and spreading of the influence of the imperial government, while the miraculous events related to the Kusanagi sword were more important to the others. Recently, Yamato Takeru has been used, in the same way as the other national icons, to create and highlight Japanese national identity, especially when it came to inspiring the people to selflessly lay down their lives for the country and the emperor.