法隆寺聖霊会声明集

抄録

Horyuji shoryoe shomyo-shu. Manuscript in the collection of the Research Archives for Japanese Music, Ueno Gakuen College. Originally in the possession of Chuin no Joyo (see below). Manuscript, square in shape of accordian-fold type (oricho) measuring 11×11.3cm. Cover of brown paper, although only the back cover remains. First part of manuscript missing. Paper type hishi (kampishi). Text and neumes written in black ink on both sides of paper in a single hand, to which breath marks and other indications have been added in red ink. A sheet of paper has been added at the beginning of the manuscript to form the present cover, the lower left-hand corner of which has the inscription “Chuin/Joyo” in black ink. We may infer from this that the manuscript was already in its present condition at the time it was being used by Joyo. The original date of copying is not clear, but may date back to the Nambokucho period (late fourteenth century?). It has been surmised that Joyo (who, according to the Horyuji betto shidai, died at the age of 59 on the 3rd of August, Tembun 15th year [1546]) used this manuscript at the time when he first took part in the Shoryo service at the age of 16 in Bunki 3rd year (1503).
Underneath the opening title of the manuscript “Bonnon”, there is a small rectangular seal in vermillion reading “Horyuji” (size 1.8×0.9cm). At the end of the manuscript there is a large square seal in black ink (measuring 5.2×5.1cm) which has been erased so that it is now illegible, and within the outline of the seal in the lower left-hand corner the name “Chuin” is written in small characters.
The missing first section of the manuscript is likely to have contained the sections “Bai” and “Sange” since these usually precede the “Bonnon” section which forms the present opening of the manuscript. However, the identity of the material written of the reverse side of the missing section remains unclear, since the “Wasan” section at that point is complete. Other than the parts indicated as red in the typographical reprint of the manuscript (see pp 158-160), there are other indications such as breath marks in “Bonnon” and the last four columns of notation of “Shakujo”
It should be noted that the two Japanese kada “Rokudo enshu” and “Muni mangetsu” are found only in this collection and the Horyuji Kondo-bon. For details see the article in this volume by Takahashi Mito, “Horyuji shomyo kifuho no hensen ni tsuite” (“An historical study of the musical notation of the shomyo of Horyuji temple, Nara”).