New Emperor Pledges to Retain Symbolic Role

In his first public remarks since ascending the Chrysanthemum Throne, Emperor Akihito pledged Monday to uphold Japan’s postwar constitution, which restricts him to a symbolic role, and lionized his late father, Hirohito, as a man of peace.

Akihito, 55, who became emperor upon Hirohito’s death Saturday, stood before about 300 political and civic leaders in a seven-minute official ceremony at the Imperial Palace and said he was “shrouded in sorrow and overwhelmed by the awesome responsibilities I undertake.”

The imperial audience was the second public ritual marking Akihito’s accession. On Saturday, Akihito received two of the three Imperial Regalia--a sword and a curved jewel--in a brief ritual. The third item, a sacred mirror representing his legendary ancestor, the Sun Goddess, is kept at a shrine in western Japan and will be seen by the emperor only after he completes nearly two years of rituals.

Altogether, there will be more than 60 rites and ceremonies to mourn the demise of Hirohito and celebrate Akihito’s enthronement. Nearly all are expected to be “private” functions of the Imperial Household because their religious nature raises constitutional questions about the separation of church and state.

Hirohito’s state funeral, scheduled for Feb. 24, will be conducted as a public event, with a “private” religious component carried out behind a curtain and out of sight of official guests, the government has announced.

Speaking in a firm, clear voice that was in marked contrast to the muted and frail tones of his late father, Akihito formally announced his accession to his subjects in Monday’s televised ceremony. He said he would carry on in the spirit of Hirohito, who “devoted himself unassumingly to the cause of peace on Earth.”

Hirohito, under Japan’s pre-World War II constitution, was commander in chief of the armed forces. He died Saturday of duodenal cancer at 87, after reigning for 62 years.

Later in the day, Akihito presided over a private ceremony in which members of the imperial family viewed the remains of Hirohito for the last time before his copper coffin was sealed. His body had been wrapped in a white robe and placed in the coffin--along with the eyepiece he used in his marine biology research--in an earlier ritual on Sunday.

A two-day period of mourning by the public was over and life had returned to normal by Monday. Television networks resumed commercial programming, and the New Year’s sumo wrestling tournament began after the cancellation of opening bouts Sunday.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange, which closed on news of Hirohito’s death Saturday, reopened Monday with bullish vigor. The Nikkei Dow average soared 468.85 points--its biggest gain in a year--to close at an all-time high of 30,678.39 points.