◆ Jiang Feng, chief writer of "Japanese Overseas Chinese Daily".
Seeing the title of this article, readers may question, shouldn't "" be called "" instead of "" about the Three Kingdoms? What I want to say here is that although the popularity of China's "Three Kingdoms Story" runs through almost the evolution and development of Japanese history and society, the "Three Kingdoms" in modern Japanese perception is neither Luo Guanzhong's "Popular Romance of the Three Kingdoms" by Luo Guanzhong, one of China's four classical novels, nor "Three Kingdoms" by Chen Shou, one of China's twenty-four histories, but more the novel "Three Kingdoms" by Yoshikawa Eiji, who is known as a "national writer". In other words, many "Three Kingdoms fans" in Japan are chasing the Japanese rendition of the Three Kingdoms, which cannot be equated with the original work.
Here, I put it with a "" because I am reminded of another thing that many scholars talk about, that is, the joke told by the Japanese sinologist and translator Shosuke Tatema, who has translated masterpieces by famous Chinese artists such as Mao Dun and Lao She. Some readers once questioned his translation of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and criticized him for not respecting the original work. Because in the eyes of Japanese readers, the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" introduced by the translator is very different from Eiji Yoshikawa. Not to mention, this is really a bit of a "real and fake Monkey King" fun! "True" and "false" are actually clear at a glance.
Therefore, when the Chinese and the Japanese discuss the "Three Kingdoms" with great interest at the same time, there may be a fierce collision and mutual "disdain". But literature is different from anything else. Like the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", Eiji Yoshikawa has been reading it since he was a teenager until he wrote a novel that took Japan by storm. Regardless of the version, it is a good deed that "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" can take root, sprout and flourish in the hands of the Japanese! Being "recreated" by foreigners is the success of a culture going to sea, and the more the better. From the abundance of literary creations to the popular games developed by Koei Corporation, "Three Kingdoms" has become a "national character" in Japan. Some people prefer to use the term "common people" to emphasize the deep popular base of the "Three Kingdoms" in Japan. In multiple senses, there is a reason why Japan is a fan of the "Three Kingdoms".
Takeo Kuwabara, a well-known Japanese cultural critic who has won the Order of Culture, as a scholar of French literature, admits that he has read the "Three Kingdoms" more than 20 times, which undoubtedly reflects the profound influence of the "Three Kingdoms" on Japanese culture from one side. For the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", there are different translations circulating in Japan, aside from the creation of novels such as Eiji Yoshikawa, the more representative ones are Murakami Tobuyuki, Yukan Yoshio and so on. Regarding the processing attitude of Japanese scholars and translators, Kuwabara Takeo has a wonderful evaluation. He preached that Eiji Yoshikawa opposed omission and took the initiative to add his own explanations and ideas, so that readers could understand the gains and losses through reading; Murakami regarded the original work as a "cherry with mud", which could not be directly entered, so he chose to refine it; Yoshio Yukondate thought that the original work was like "a long slow train", so he took measures to speed up the speed.
In my opinion, although Japanese translators and writers have different backgrounds and naturally project distinctive characteristics, it is precisely because of the literary charm and profound literary stage of the "Three Kingdoms" that it provides the possibility of diversified interpretation, digestion and absorption, so that the Japanese nation, which has always been good at inclusiveness, has discovered the cultural value and space for transformation and recreation. This is the first reason why Japan has actively learned the history of the "Three Kingdoms" and China's "Three Kingdoms".
The well-known "Chrysanthemum and Knife", a "chrysanthemum" and a "knife", shows that Japan not only respects loyalty, benevolence and righteousness, but also is martial and warlike. In Japan's value and spiritual system, the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" undoubtedly gives a double reference and reference. Researchers have often compared Japan's Warring States period with China's "Three Kingdoms" period, which was characterized by heroes and waves. On one side are troubled times, heroes, heroes, and heroes, and on the other hand, heroes, loyal ministers, and strategists. For example, anyone interested in the history of Japan's samurai knows that Tokugawa Ieyasu's fierce general, Honda Tadakatsu, is known as the "Zhang Fei of Japan". Oda Nobunaga, who cherishes talents such as Liu Bei, finally took Takenaka Shigeji, who can be called a divine military division, into his command with the gift of three visits, so that future generations not only remember that Takenaka Shigeharu once hit his own history with the strategy of ambush on all sides, but also created a good story of "three visits to the thatched house" during the Warring States period of Japan.
Today, the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is still a major chapter in the cultural interaction between China and Japan. I still remember that in 2019, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the signing of the China-Japan Cultural Exchange Agreement, the Tokyo National Museum and the Chinese side jointly held a large-scale exhibition of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", which caused a sensation. In addition, if you go to Kobe in the Kansai region, you will also see the Three Kingdoms-themed pavilion with works by Yokoyama Mitsuki, the author of the manga "Three Kingdoms", which not only has ukiyo-e from the Edo period, but also a life-size statue of Kongmei, giving you the illusion of coming to a cultural and creative base of the Three Kingdoms in China. The "Confucianism" and "martial arts" outlined in the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" are highly consistent with what Japan admires, which is the second reason why Japan continues the popularity of the "Three Kingdoms".
Known as the "Kukai of the Edo Period", Okashima Kanzan, the "Tang Tongshi" of Nagasaki, compiled Japan's first Chinese conversational reader, "The Usurpation of Tang Dialect", which is also regarded as the prelude to the "China fever" in the Edo period. Luo Guanzhong's "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" quickly entered Japan with the craze. If it is said that Japan's acceptance and application of Chen Shou's "Three Kingdoms" is relatively orthodox, then for the Romance version of the Ming Dynasty, Japan's creation is more unrestrained, and the practical value of interpreting China to Japanese society is also more obvious.
According to research, it is generally believed that the first time Japan translated the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" of the Ming Dynasty in China was the Yoshitsu and Tsukido brothers of Tenryuji Temple in Kyoto. Surprisingly, this one is a hot sale that has lasted for a hundred years. It can be said that throughout the circulation of foreign literary works in Japan, there is no book that has endured as much as "Romance of the Three Kingdoms". Among them, it is very important to pay attention to the "usefulness" of the Three Kingdoms to Japan. What is particularly intriguing is that against the backdrop of Japan's war of aggression against China, Japan's enthusiasm for the "Three Kingdoms" has continued unabated, but there are many special factors. When Yoshio Yuki, one of the above-mentioned translators, was in charge of the republication of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" under the "First Shobo" under the wartime system, the "current situation" factor was clearly highlighted in the preface. He pointed out that the complex intrigues between the various characters in the work, as well as the blood-stained power struggle, are the entrance to understanding the real situation in China, and wrote in the context of Sino-Japanese relations at that time to "help understand a country like China". This adds support to my long-emphasized view that "Japan is attacking China with Chinese culture." In fact, even in the business world, "Three Kingdoms" is still regarded by many Japanese companies as a work of learning strategy, and they attach importance to taking the best and using it. The accuracy and purpose of Japan's reliance on the "Three Kingdoms" to understand Chinese society and the Chinese are still not concerned, but the obsession with the "Three Kingdoms" is indeed one of the cognitive manifestations of "knowing oneself and knowing one's opponent, and not being defeated in a hundred battles", which is the third reason.
Japan's enthusiasm for the "Three Kingdoms" certainly goes beyond literature. On the other hand, the Japanese people's knowledge and understanding of Japan should also find a carrier and "entrance" of "national character" that is both interesting and practical. (Written on June 27, 2024 in Chiba "Fengrakusai")