Suiko (554–628)

Japanese empress, the first woman sovereign of Japan, who established Buddhism as the religion of Japanese rulers and initiated steps to centralize the state under imperial rule. Name variations: Suikotenno. Pronunciation: Sue-e-koe. Reigned from 592 to 628; born in Asuka Village, Japan, in 554; died in Nara, Japan, in 628; daughter of Emperor Kimmei and a woman from the politically powerful Soga family; sister of Emperor Yomei; empress-consort to her half-brother Emperor Bidatsu.

Suiko ascended to the throne of Japan following a period of political and religious conflicts in which her predecessor had been killed. Conservatives continued to champion the Shintō religion, while progressives, including her mother's family, the prominent Soga, promoted Buddhism. Because of her lineage (daughter of Emperor Kommei, widow of her own half-brother, Emperor Bidatsu, and full-blooded sister of Emperor Yomei), it was hoped that Suiko could reconcile the opposing factions. Initially, she declined, but counselors persuaded her to accept the role of sumer amikoto (the one who controls soothsaying). Suiko appeased both religious groups by simultaneously serving Shintō and Buddhist deities. The historical chronicle, the Nihongi, describes her as beautiful, as well as progressive in her thinking, commanding the respect and affection of the government counselors.

Suiko's reign was marked by a number of historically significant developments. She was a devout Buddhist, and her reign was a golden period for the establishment of Buddhist temples and the creation of Buddhist-inspired art. While the more secular aspects of imperial rule were entrusted to her nephew, Prince Shōtoku Taishi, Suiko nevertheless mustered troops, dispatched emissaries to foreign countries, and conducted diplomatic relations with neighboring sovereigns. Suiko was known to have been capable of overruling male government officials and demonstrated a capacity for discerning judgment.

Two of the most significant steps in centralizing the state under imperial rule were initiated during Suiko's reign. The first was the establishment of a system for recruiting and promoting government officials. Called the cap-ranking system, it enabled capable men of any social rank to enter government service. Also, the first written "constitution" in Japanese history was promulgated during the reign of Suiko. The Seventeen Article Constitution, a set of moral injunctions to be observed by government officials, established a government bureaucracy in the service of the sovereign. In 628, Suiko fell ill, and the chronicles assert that during a solar eclipse, she lost her sight and died shortly thereafter.

sources:

Aoki, Michiko Y. "Jitō Tennō: The Female Sovereign," in Heroic With Grace: Legendary Women of Japan. Chieko Mulhern, ed. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 1991, pp. 40–76.

Tsurumi, E. Patricia. "The Male Present Versus the Female Past: Historians and Japan's Ancient Female Emperors," in Bulletin of Concerned Asian Scholars. Vol. 14, no. 4, 1983, pp. 71–75.

Linda L. Johnson , Professor of History, Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota