Under the Council of State, eight ministries were placed in charge of actual administration, and in each ministry, the work was divided between agencies known as shiki, ryo, tsukasa, and tokoro.
太政官の下には、実際の行政を担当する八省が置かれ、更に各省の下に個々の事務を分掌する職・寮・司・所などの諸官庁が置かれた。