Taihō Code

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The Taihō Code or Code of Taihō (大宝律令, Taihō-ritsuryō^?) was an administrative reorganization enacted in 702 in Japan, at the end of the Asuka period. It was historically one of the Ritsuryo-sei (律令制). Like many other developments in the country at the time, the Taihō Code was largely developed by Koreans who adapted the governmental system of China's Tang Dynasty for Japan.

The establishment of the Taihō Code was one of the first events to include Confucianism as a significant element in the Japanese code of ethics and government. The Code was furthemore revised during the Nara Period to accommodate Japanese traditions and practical necessities of administration. The revised edition was named Yōrō-ritsuryō (養老律令). However, for some elements of the Code, Chinese logic and morals were taken to extremes.

The Taihō Code contained only two major departures from the Tang model. First, government positions and class status was based on birth, as had always been the Japanese tradition, not talent, as was the Chinese way. Second, the Japanese rejected the Chinese concept of the "Mandate of Heaven," asserting that the Emperor's power comes from his imperial descent, not from his righteousness or fairness as a ruler.

The code is said to be inspired on the Code of Yonghui (永徽律令), enacted in 651.

1 Governmental Organization
2 Provincial Organization & Administration
3 Korean influence
4 Reference
5 See also

[edit] Governmental Organization

The Taihō Code established two branches of government: the Jingi-kan (神祇官, Department of Worship) and the Dajō-kan (太政官, Department of State). The Jingi-kan was the higher branch, taking precedence over the Dajō-kan and handling all spiritual, religious, or ritual matters. The Dajō-kan handled all secular, administrative matters.

The Jingi-kan, or Department of Worship, was responsible for annual festivals and official Court ceremonies such as coronations, as well as the upkeep of shrines, the discipline of shrine wardens, and the recording and observation of oracles and divinations. It is important to note that the department, though it governed all the Shinto shrines in the country, had no connection with Buddhism.

The Dajō-kan, or Department of State, handled all secular matters and was headed by the Great Council of State, which was presided over by the Dajō Daijin (太政大臣, Chancellor). The Ministers of the Left and Right (Sadaijin 左大臣 and Udaijin 右大臣 respectively), Controllers of the Left and Right (Sadaiben 左大弁 and Udaiben 右大弁), four Great Councillors (Dainagon 大納言) and three Minor Councillors (Shōnagon 少納言) made up the Council, and were responsible to the Dajō-daijin. The eight government Ministries were, in turn, responsible to the Controllers and Ministers of the Left and Right.

[edit] Provincial Organization & Administration

Map of provinces in 701–702

The country was divided into provinces called kuni (国), and the central government appointed administrative governors, kokushi (国司), divided into four levels (the Shitokan), kami, suke, jo and sakan to each province. The provinces were further divided into districts called gun (郡) or kōri, which were administered by locally appointed officials called gunji (郡司). These local officials were primarily responsible for keeping the peace, collecting taxes, recruiting labor for the corvée, and for keeping registers of population and land allotment. Within the districts' further subdivisions, local organization varied greatly, but often resembled the arrangement of a township of fifty or so homes led by a headman.

The number of provinces was not fixed, however. As new land became developed, new provinces came into being. At the time of the Code's enactment, there were sixty-six provinces comprising 592 districts.

[edit] Korean influence

According to some scholars^[1], eight of the nineteen members of the committee drafting the Taihō Code were from Korean immigrant families residing in Japan. When excluding the high aristocrats, who probably did little of the actual writing, about half of the authors of Japan's most comprehensive set of Chinese laws came from Korea. It is believed the Korean connection may have given the Japanese law codes their distinctive character. Furthermore, the idea of local administrative districts (hyō, kohori) and the tribute tax were based on Korean models. Even the system by which farmers divided arable land into uniform parcels (jōri sei) used the Korean foot (koma jaku) as its basic unit of measurement.