Motherhood in Antiquity by Dana Cooper & Claire Phelan

Author:Dana Cooper & Claire Phelan
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Springer International Publishing, Cham

Yet again, the abrupt end to Chûai’s life and reign reflects his insufficiency. Even as Chûai fails as ruler, his shortcomings ultimately work to highlight Jingû’s skill. In such an explicit comparison, Jingû demonstrates the characteristics of a capable and proficient ruler. Her competence shows not only in her ability to secure the throne for her unborn son, but also in all her actions before his birth and coming of age, regardless of her connection to Chûai.

Each of the examples above shows that the final moments of Chûai’s life and reign provide an extreme example of his inattentiveness, as well as its deadly consequences. Against the foil of Chûai’s hyperbolically negative example, Jingû’s accomplishments are striking. As if to magnify her success, the various versions of her legend depict Jingû as a figure who is attentive and receptive to an extreme that counteracts Chûai’s inattention. The auspicious results of her actions leading up to Chûai’s death show that she is receptive to the advice and wishes of kami, and she is receptive of the very spirit of kami, by becoming a medium for its message.

It is clear that there is some variation in the legends about Jingû during her time as consort to Chûai. But what is most consistent is that Jingû’s pregnancy is unfailingly announced during the oracle interaction, either before or after Chûai’s death. This continues the pattern of contrasting Chûai and Jingû as extreme opposites: just as Chûai’s unawareness had a dire consequence in the physical world, Jingû’s receptivity had the positive but equally extreme physical result of a pregnancy. It also precludes any potential political instability that would otherwise follow in the wake of a sovereign’s sudden and untimely death. Jingû’s effectiveness as a ruler justifies her taking the role of sovereign after Chûai, to be sure. But it is the fact of her nascent motherhood that necessitates it. Because Jingû carries a future heir, her responsibility for the continued succession of kingly rule becomes all the more compelling. And rather than await the succession of this unborn heir with another interim successor, an act that would jeopardize the kingly post by introducing a competing family line, Jingû steps into this role herself.

While this part of the narrative justifies Jingû’s transition to sovereign, it also emphasizes the transitory nature of her rule by effectively shifting the focus to her unborn son as the true object of success and effortless power. In many ways, this detracts from Jingû’s reputation, and perhaps anticipates her ultimate removal from the list of rulers. It will nonetheless become clear that her work as sovereign and as a mother was instrumental in solidifying Ôjin’s promising future and foundational for the apparent socio-political stability during the 70 years between Chûai’s death and Ôjin’s ascension to the throne.

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