The Texts (III)
The compiler of the five-scroll kanabon
manuscript (consisting of Chinese kanji
characters and native Japanese syllabary) of the Enoshima Engi is unknown, according
to a local gazette, the Shinpen
Kamakura Shi (新編鎌倉志), composed in 1684, which says only the
illustrator is known (藤沢市史、第４巻, pg.
355). The Enoshima Ozoshi
(江島大草紙), a manuscript composed in 1754, claims it was composed by Kokei
(皇慶, 977-1049 AD), the author of the manabon
Chinese version translated on this website (藤沢市史、第４巻,
pg. 355).
A comparison of the one-scroll manabon
Chinese version with the five-scroll kanabon
version reveals that the manabon
version has a unity of style and simplicity that indicates it was
composed by a single person — Kokei, in this case. In contrast, the
five-scroll kanabon version
reads at times like a modern PR puff piece proclaiming the scenic
glories of Enoshima to wealthy pilgrims; at other times, it is simple
and unadorned. This diversity suggests that it is a compilation from
various sources, not the work of a single individual. Kure, for
example,
feels that in its present state, it is a Muromachi-era (1333-1467)
compilation, but that it incorporates late Heian-era (794-1195)
elements
(江島考, pgs. 52-53).
III. Reproduction of the Kamakura-era copy of the
scrolls from 江の島縁起絵巻.
Order is from right to left.
Back to Index Page
