<論説>唐代後半における宣と制勅の関係

Abstract

唐代において宣という言葉は、文書行政上さまざまな意味に使用された用語であるが、本稿が注目するのは「口頭で皇帝の意志を伝達する」行為に使用される場合である。唐代の政治意思形成の問題を考えたときに、宣に代表される口頭伝達が、文書行政を含む政策策定過程でどのような働きをしたのかが、十分検討に値する課題となってくるのである。宣が用いられた事柄には多岐にわたる内容が含まれるが、それらは皇帝の側から口頭で内意を示し、君臣間の意思疎通を図った働きかけであるという点で、共通する要素を持っていた。宣とは制勅の策定から執行まであらゆる過程に介在し、それによって事態の円滑な進行を可能とする作用をなすものであったといえよう。そして、唐から宋にかけての動きと関連付けたとき、王言の制において、こうした皇帝直接の言葉を要素とする方式が新たに確立してゆくことを展望することができるのである。

The word xuan was used in several senses under the scribal regime of the bureaucratic administration of the latter half of the Tang dynasty. In this article, however, I deal with the usage that connotes the sense of conveying an emperor's intentions orally. The act of conveying imperial intentions orally and how it functioned in the process of political decision making including within the scribal regime of the bureaucracy is an important problem. The author approaches the matter from standpoint of the meaning and functions of the xuan in conveying an emperor's intentions orally. Recent studies of the bureaucracy of the Tang have tended to pay increasing attention to terms used in documents and focus on their roles in the administrative process. This article should make a significant contribution to this trend. The main points of each section follow. In section one, the function of the xuan is examined from various points of view. The xuan was used for various matters, for example, in making important political decisions, in bestowing gifts on loyal followers, in directives for drafting imperial edicts, and so on. The people to whom xuan were issued also varied, ranging across the entire spectrum from bureaucrats to ordinary citizens, from a specific administrative office to a specific individual. We can, however, find a common characteristic amidst the variety of issues and recipients. It is the fact that in each case the emperor's intention was revealed orally. The emperor revealed his private intention through his associates, aiming to build mutual understanding among those involved in an issue. The xuan concerned matters that required common intentions shared by the emperor and his subjects. An exchange of views carried out through the xuan would become an opportunity for mutual understanding between the emperor and his subjects. By grasping the character of the xuan in this manner, we are able to understand how the oral communications of imperial intentions functioned in the process of political decision making. In section two, the place of the xuan in the political decision-making process and what relationship the xuan generally had with the imperial edict is examined. The author discusses the relationship between the xuan and imperial edict in terms of the operation of the scribal regime of the bureaucratic administration. Firstly, xuan were issued during the conference stage prior to the drafting of an imperial edicts. The meetings for the political decisions were often initiated and thereafter carried out by means of communications made through the xuan. Secondly, the xuan was used in the process of drafting the imperial edict, as well. The xuan was usually used to order the drafting of an imperial edict by a Hanlin academician, and it was also used to overturn any opposition from the Jishizhong. Thirdly, the xuan was used in processes of modification and notification after the drafting of an imperial edict, too. In other words, the xuan could be used widely during all stages of the political decision-making process. In this way, the emperor aimed at creating mutual understanding between the concerned departments. As a result, it became possible for matters to proceed smoothly. The oral conveying of imperial intentions through the xuan ran parallel to the working of the scribal bureaucracy. The act of drafting a written imperial edict by the scribal bureaucracy was supported by the mutual understanding created with orally issued xuan. At present, the author is focusing his attention on the appearance of the Hanlin-zhizhao within the imperial edict system. As the emperor was required to utter some imperial edicts in his own words from within the imperial court, Hanlin academicians were increasingly entrusted with their drafting, which resulted in the formation of the Hanlin-zhizhao. The xuan was also derived from the words spoken personally by the emperor. Some imperial edicts were based on written and some were based on oral communications. As the style of the Hanlin-zhizhao and the xuan developed, these genres that recorded the emperor's own words began to carry greater weight in the imperial edict system.