The article deals with the problem of the relationship between the supreme power and nature in Japan of the VIII-X centuries. Based on the analysis of official chronicles and diary entries, the author considers the following issues: the emperor's responsibility for the course of natural processes and ritual measures of influence on nature. In order to bring nature into a safe and prosperous state, the emperor had to possess two basic qualities: virtue (toku) and humanity (nin). He realized these qualities in practical measures (assistance to victims) and ritual properties (prayers, amnesty), which were called upon by the desire to please Heaven, Shinto deities and Buddhas. This made the ancient Japanese state largely socially oriented. Keywords: ancient Japan, emperor, nature, natural disasters, virtue, humanity, Sky. There are two main aspects of relations between the supreme power and the world around it: relations with higher powers and relations with people (subjects, elites, estates, "society", representatives of other states, etc.). There are many works devoted to this topic. However, it seems to me that there is another, no less important aspect that becomes the subject of reflection to a lesser extent: the relationship between power and nature, the environment. In this case, we are referring not so much to practical relations (efforts to transform the natural environment) as to symbolic ones - the role and place of nature in the mental constructions of power. Consideration of these relations will allow us to better understand the mechanisms of the functioning of power, its discourse, and clarify the place of power in the system of relations between man and nature. The main source for this analysis is the materials of the Japanese official chronicles. VIII-X centuries - the time of the creation and flourishing of the centralized state, when Chinese managerial and ideological ideas took root on Japanese soil. State life was built in accordance with detailed le ... Read more