It is said that when the death of Emperor Tenmu made it impossible to practice this form of succession, the existence of Fukai-no-Joten/ Fukaijoten, which had been kept a secret, was revealed to the public, in order to block the movements of the imperial family members that ware not able to count on the support of the Fujiwara clan.
文武天皇の死によってこの方式での継承が困難になったとき、それまで他言されなかった不改常典を明かし、藤原氏の補佐がない皇族を牽制したとする。