弁官の変質と律令太政官制
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概要
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Under the Ritsuryo 律令 regime of Japan, the Benkan 弁官 formed a part of the Daijokan 太政官 system. It was an independent department of the Daijokan, and had original offices named the Benkan-cho 弁官庁 and the Benkan-soshi 弁官曹司. The Daijokan in a narrow sense was composed of only the Kugyo 公卿, the Shonagon 少納言 and the Geki 外記 and did not include the Benkan. The function of the Benkan was controlling central and local government offices organized under the Daijokan system, such as Hassho 八省 and Kokushi 国司. These offices informed the Benkan of state affairs by making oral reports as well as documentary ones. The Benkan also orally inquired of the officials about state affairs, and gave them proper instructions. In this way, the Benkan could completely control any government office. But this means that the Daijokan system of Japan was an undeveloped bureaucracy in contrast with the government system of the Tang dynasty In the Tang, every government office divided its affairs between the officials, the chief chang-guan 長官, the vice chief tong-pan-guan 通判官 and the pan-guan 判官. The directions of these officials were recorded in the documents, and the inspector jian-gou-guan 検勾官 of every office supervised their management and took delivery of documents sent by other offices. In Japan, however, there was no such system; only the Benkan controlled and supervised the management of every office as thoroughly as possible. This is the reason why the Benkan was a department separated from the Daijokan in a narrow sense, a cabinet formulating policies. In the ninth century, as the government offices established by the Ritsuryo code declined in their function and new administrative organs came into existence in the Imperial Palace Dairi 内裏, the Benkan also changed in substance. In the begining of the ninth century, the Daijokan in a narrow sense began to perform its duty in the Dairi, not in its original offices, but the Benkan continued to use its own offices. During this century, the Ritsuryo government offices further declined, so the Benkan lost its ability to control them. In the end of the century, the Benkan only sorted out the documents presented by many offices in the Katanashi-dokoro 結政所, the new office of the Benkan located on the east side of the Dairi. At the almost same time, the new administrative organs Tokoro 所 were established in the Dairi, and some Ritsuryo government offices; which had close relations with the Dairi, were reorganized under the Dairi's direct control. Later, the Benkan was appointed chief of the Tokoro and the government offices with the Kugyo and Tenjobito 殿上人, and was called Betto 別当. The establishment of the Katanashi-dokoro means that the Benkan also began to perform its duty in the Dairi. Moreover, the Benkan formed the original format of command, Benkan-ni-kudasu-senji 下弁官宣旨, imitating the Geki-ni-kudasu-senji 下外記宣旨, the way by which the Daijokan in a narrow sense had given the offices commands in the Dairi since the begining of the ninth century. In this way the Benkan's independence from the Daijokan in a narrow sense was diminished. On the contrary, the Benkan became the secretary directly responsible to the Daijokan, carrying out various affairs under the command of the Shokei 上卿, the person in charge of daily affairs in the Daijokan. This is the original form of the Benkan during the Sekkan 摂関 period, that was born at the end of the ninth century. The history of the Benkan under the Ritsuryo regime shows us how the Daijokan system changed and was reorganized.
- 1991-11-20