bolition of private property
in persons and lands was destined to become the policy of the State,
but its foundations seem to have been laid in Shotoku's time. It
would be an error to suppose that the neglect of Shinto suggested by
the above code was by any means a distinct feature of the era, or
even a practice of the prince himself. Thus, an Imperial edict,
published in the year 607, enjoined that there must be no remissness
in the worship of the Kami, and that they should be sincerely
reverenced by all officials, In the sequel of this edict Prince
Shotoku himself, the o-omi, and a number of functionaries worshipped
the Kami of heaven and of earth. In fact, Shotoku, for all his
enthusiasm in the cause of Buddhism, seems to have shrunk from
anything like bigoted exclusiveness. He is quoted* as saying: "The
management of State affairs cannot be achieved unless it is based on
knowledge, and the sources of knowledge are Confucianism, Buddhism,
and Shinto."** He who inclines to one of these three, must study the
other two also; for what one knows seems reasonable, but that of
which one is ignorant appears unreasonable. Therefore an
administrator of public affairs should make himself acquainted with
all three and should not affect one only, for such partiality
signifies maladministration.

*In the Sankyo-ron.

**The order of this enumeration is significant.

DEATH OF SHOTOKU TAISHI

Prince Shotoku died in the year 621. The Records do not relate
anything of his illness: they say merely that he foresaw the day and
hour of his own death, and they say also that when the Buddhist
priest, Hyecha of Koma, who had instructed the prince in the "inner
doctrine," learned of his decease, he also announced his
determination to die on the same day of the same month in the
following year so as "to meet the prince in the Pure Land and,
together with him, pass through the metempsychosis of all living
creatures."

The last months of Shotoku's life were devoted to compiling, in
concert with the o-omi Umako, "a history of the Emperors; a history
of the country, and the original record of the omi, the muraji, the
tomo no miyatsuko, the kuni no miyatsuko, the 180 be, and the free
subjects." This, the first Japanese historical work, was completed in
the year 620. It was known afterwards as the Kujihongi, and
twenty-five years later (645) when--as will presently be seen--the
execution of the Soga chief took place, the book was partially
c