THE TEA-JARS OF TOKUGAWA IEYASU
徳川家康の茶壺
Tokugawa Ieyasu had eleven Tea-jars that he kept in the tower of his castle of Fushimi , near Kyoto , and over each of them he posted a guard of two men.
徳川家康は京都の近郊、伏見城の塔に十一個の茶壺を所有し二人の番を置き管理していました。
He appointed one Mitsui Yoshimasa to be captain of this ‘Tea Guard' and cautioned him to be extremely vigilant.
彼は三井義正と言うその内の一人に‘茶番'を任命し、彼に厳重に警備するように命じていました。
And that the men might not be tempted to relax, he supplied them with a canteen of their own and boards and men for the games of Go, Chess and Backgammon.
番兵達が気が抜けない様に、義正は彼らに食器類とお膳、そして西洋のチェスと双六的は碁を提供しました。
After a day or two he sent a messenger with orders that two of the jars should be brought to him.
二日後、家康の指示を携え男が来て、二つの茶壺をもって来るように伝えました。
Shortly after he himself appeared and inspected the guard, and after greeting them cordially he viewed the jars.
するとすぐ、彼自身が警備兵の所にやって来て慰労し茶壺をまじまじと見ました。
“But I gave eleven into your charge,” he said to Mitsui, “and there are only nine.
「そちに十一個の保管を命じたはずだが」っと三井に向かって言い「九つしかないではないか、
Where are the other two?”
残りの二つはどこじゃ？」
“I have just handed them over to the messenger your lordship sent,” was the answer.
「二つは殿のご命令通り使いの男に渡しましてござりまする」と三井は返事をしました。
“I appointed you to this position because you had already proved yourself a careful and devoted officer,” replied Ieyasu severely, “and if I had really intended the jars to be brought I should have given you orders to go with the messenger yourself.
「わしはそちの注意深さと役目の忠勤を見込んでこの仕事を任せたのじゃ」と家康はきつく言い、「もしわしが本当にこの茶壺を送ってほしいと思えば、そちに直接申し伝えるはず。」
It was extremely careless of you to hand them over to him in this way without any further inquiry.”
「今回、何の確認もせずに手放したのは完全に不注意であろう。」
Ieyasu had a famous Tea-jar called Dai Rosun or Great Luzon which he always used for the New Year Tea Ceremony, and this became a tradition in the family.
家康はＤａｉＲｏｓｕｎと言うとても有名な茶壺を持っていて、毎年の新年茶会で使い徳川家の伝統になっていました。
In the great conflagration of 1675, when the Castle of Edo was burnt, more than half of the treasures of the Shogun that were in the storehouses were destroyed, but fortunately this jar was in the Tea-room, and an ancestor of Ikeda Tango-no-kami, who was then an ordinary page, ran out with it and was able to save it, for which exploit he was promoted to be chief of the pages.
１６７５年に起きた大火の時、江戸城も燃えてしまい将軍宝物庫の宝も半分が消失してしまいました。しかし、幸運にもその茶壺は茶室にあって、池田丹後守の祖先である小姓が持って逃げ消失を免れ、後、彼はその功績によって小姓頭に出世しました。