Page 26 of 203

Myth Understanding

June 8, 2019 / John D. / 1 Comment

Our friend, the scholar Robert Wittkamp, has posted an illuminating paper on academia.edu posing the question, ‘Why does Nihon Shoki possess two books with myths but Kojiki only one’? (Click here to see the original paper. Last year he published a longer work on the subject in German: Robert F. Wittkamp, Arbeit am Text: Zur postmodernen Erforschung der Kojiki-Mythen, Gosenberg: Ostasienverlag 2018.)

Kagura featuring Ninigi no mikoto, who first descended from heaven to Japan

My initial reaction to Robert’s question was that the answer must be because Nihon Shoki (720) is a historical record of episodes with variant readings, whereas Kojiki (712) is a slimmed down propaganda piece to bolster the mythological roots of the imperial family. The former would obviously be longer than the latter.

However, Robert’s paper answers the question in a much more layered and informed manner. He begins by dividing the myths into two main groups: the southern line from South China, Polynesia and the Pacific, as against the Northern Line from Siberia, Korea and North China.

The southern line is horizontal and concerns the kuni tsu kami who inhabited Japan in early Yayoi times. Their origins lay overseas, hence there are sea myths with paradise somewhere beyond the horizon (one can read about them in Carmen Blacker’s Catalpa Bow).

The northern line, however, is vertical in orientation, with descent from ‘heaven’ (i.e. Korea) by ama tsu kami. This type of myth has roots in Siberian shamanism and looks upwards or downwards to origins. They are more recent in time, arriving as conquerors. To my surprise, Robert suggests this occurred in the fourth century when there was upheaval on the continent with sixteen kingdoms in northern China and a request by Paekche to help fight Koguryeo. (I would have presumed it happened much earlier than that, with the coming of the new Yayoi civilisation in the centuries around year 0.)

Chamberlain’s translation of The Kojiki was the first to open up the stories of Japanese mythology

As Robert notes, important to an understanding of Japan’s myths is the situation of the rulers who ordered their compilation (Tenmu and Jito). They ruled at a time before the title of tenno (emperor) was used and they aspired to greater authority, being dependent on the support of powerful families and feudal clans. (Though Robert doesn’t mention this, Temmu was a usurper and therefore on shaky ground in terms of legitimacy.) By showing ancestral alliances and subordination in the past, it was hoped that the myths would bolster the standing of the rulers.

A key episode in all this is the episode in the myths known as Tenson Korin, when the heavenly kami descended onto Japan. There exist six different versions of this event – one in Kojiki, the main version in Nihon Shoki togetther with four different variants.

Today it is generally assumed that Amaterasu gives the order to her grandson Ninigi-no-mikoto to spread the benefits of their civilisation to earth (a colonial rationale still used today by powerful countries to invade the weak). However, as Robert points out, three of the six extant versions feature Takami Musuhi as issuing the command (Nihon Shoki main version, plus variant 4 and 6). In these three versions it is Takami Musuhi who is the great ancestor of the imperial line. The names of descendants are different. (The usual reading is Takami Musubi, but Robert who is an expert in early Japanese texts prefers Musuhi.)

Ame no Uzume whose dance drew a curious Amaterasu from her cave

According to Robert, “Kojiki adds the elements of the two lines together. Consequently it can be described aa ‘ntegration type'”. Later it integrates too the Ise myths into the Amaterasu theme to make one overall narrative, fixing her as the great ancestral spirit. An intriguing conclusion to be drawn from this is that Kojiki may well have been a later compilation than Nihon Shoki, even though it was published eight years earlier.

The question about why Nihon Shoki has two books and Kojiki only one still remains, however. Here Robert suggests that the answer has to do with Nihon Shoki drawing a difference between the Takami Musuhi line in Book One and the Amaterasu line of Book Two. Kojiki on the other hand “tries to connect them and to create a single and coherent narrative.”

At the same time Kojiki puts much greater stress on promoting ties with distant clans away from the capital. The Izumo myths are an example. Robert goes into detailed statistics about the difference between the ancestral groups mentioned in the two books, and his conclusion is that, ‘The Kojiki puts much weight on the powerful groups around Yamato and demotes the muraji and banzo groups close to the Court”.

And here, brilliantly, Robert solves one of the most intriguing puzzles about the myths: why for many long centuries was the Kojik almost totally forgotten (interest was only revived by the historical work of the Kokugaku scholars in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries)?

The answer Robert suggests is that the Fujiwara clan, who rose to dominance after the publication of the myths, did not care for their relatively lowly level played by their ancestors in the myths. The book was therefore put to one side and neglected by nearly all save the imperial household.

The rock cave myth still continues today to play a vital role in Japanese culture and imperial legitimacy

Farming with Kami

June 4, 2019 / John D. / 0 Comments

With the arrival of rice came continental practices based on harmony (photos by John Dougill)

Farming with Kami, Shinto Spiritual Beings
by guest contributor, Sally Writes

Early Shinto was once centered around rice-planting agricultural festivals and reverence for life. As the religion evolved, the importance of rice agriculture remained and Shinto rituals still play a significant role in farming. Since planting and harvesting are the core values and building blocks of life, they can also develop a harmonious community if done correctly. If farmers had more awareness of Shinto values, they would ultimately become more harmonious with their land, crop, and life in general.

The Kami of the Land

The very concept of trying to create sustainable ways to farm fits Shinto philosophy. In Shinto, the Earth is occupied by various kami or spiritual beings. Kami can take the form of natural phenomena in the environment, such as mountains, trees, and rivers. Therefore, doing harm to any of these elements would ultimately do harm to the kami that inhabit or represent them. This leads to respect for the land and the use of sustainable techniques to minimize the damage done, so as to prevent the disruption of the kami’s peace.

Water as the gift of life

The Purity of Water

In Shinto, clean moving water has an important role in purity and purification. Clean water was used to cleanse the god Izanagi when he went to free his wife Izanami from the underworld. In agriculture, clean water has an important place as well. In aquaculture and hydroponic techniques, it is vital to have a clean source of water. Aquaculture thus provides a cycle of life that is impactful and fulfilling in both agricultural means as well as Shinto principles. The water provides elements needed for plants to grow. It also provides a home for the aquatic creatures that inhabit it. These creatures then provide natural ingredients, fertilizer, and nutrients to help plants grow. In return, the plants filter the water to provide aquaculture farms with a clean habitat. In this way aquaponics is a source of pure clean water that constantly moves between two different states, much as in the Shinto concept of purification and renewal.

The Use of Natural Pesticides

Shinto places a strong focus on harmony. This itself can be considered a cyclic concept, by which something constantly renews itself and exists perpetually. Ideally, farmers would like for environments to be in harmony so that all the plants and animals live together without one population overwhelming the other. One way to do this is to provide pest management. The sustainable and Shinto-style way of providing pest management is through the introduction of natural predators rather than pesticides. Pesticides can be poisonous and are an outside source that has to be reapplied and brought in from potentially environmentally harmful locations. Instead, investment in ladybugs and other natural predators of pests create an environment which can be kept in harmony, without the need for external intervention.

While Shinto may not have formal teaching, it makes a lot of sense when applied to the environment. Whether it’s to tell us the importance of water or to respect all of nature and live in harmony, it is rooted in the notion that the Earth is a special place for everyone and that we should not ruin it with unsustainable practices.

****************

For more by Sally Writes, see this piece on Shinto gardens or this piece on Onsen purification.

*****************

In The Sacred Balance: Rediscovering our place in nature, leading scientist and environmentalist, David Suzuki, claims that at some point in history mankind lost spiritual connection to the natural world and stopped seeing the spirit in the tree. Instead the tree became an object, something inanimate to be ravaged, chopped down and used for material ends. Nature was relegated to a resource, and the earth became a forum for humans to prove they were fitter to survive than any other species. Once food was a precious gift; now it’s a throw-away commodity. The animals that were our brothers and sisters are tortured, maimed and mutilated in factory farms. The conclusion Suzuki comes to is that we have to recover our reverence and respect for the world around us. We have to recover our connection to the spirit in the tree.

Shinto thanksgiving festival for a successful harvest

“Yamato Jikara’ Shinto art

June 3, 2019 / John D. / 0 Comments

Contemporary artist Miwa Komatsu creates a new work during a live painting performance at the Cleveland Museum of Art on May 11 as part of the museum’s “Shinto: Discovery of the Divine in Japanese Art” exhibition, open through June 30. | TATSUYA AZUMA
The Cleveland Museum of Art in Cleveland, Ohio, presents the exhibition “Shinto: Discovery of the Divine in Japanese Art” through June 30. | TATSUYA AZUMI

Art | LIVE PAINTING AT CMA X The Japan Times

Artist Miwa Komatsu wows Cleveland audience with live painting performance at Shinto exhibition

by Chiho Iuchi May 31, 2019

Wearing a pure white hakama (wide-legged pants worn over a kimono), a young Japanese woman appears on stage in the glass-covered atrium of the Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA) in Cleveland, Ohio.

She bows to the audience, turns to the gilded folding screen that is still blank and touches it gently, then sits down cross-legged and bows deeply to the screen three times.

Miwa Komatsu sits cross-legged in front of a gilded folding screen on a stage at the Cleveland Museum of Art on May 11. | TATSUYA AZUMA

To music featuring the jingle of suzu (Shinto bells) and haunting female choir voices of the ancient-Japan-inspired “Reincarnation” song, she stands and begins painting.

Putting sumi ink on a brush, she makes broad strokes to draw two ovals in the middle of the screen, followed by a vertical axis in between and a dynamic arc in bold pink.

Audience members watched raptly at a live painting performance by contemporary artist Miwa Komatsu that took place earlier this month as part of the museum’s ongoing exhibition “Shinto: Discovery of the Divine in Japanese Art.”

“We often think of the involvement of a male priest as the main person for a Shinto omatsuri (festival), but I feel Komatsu-san is doing something that connects us back to what used to be a very prevalent tradition of women serving as oracles at shrines,” said Sinead Vilbar, curator of Japanese art at CMA.

Inspired by the 2006 acquisition of a wooden statue of a youthful Wakamiya kami (deity) by the Princeton University Art Museum while working as an assistant curator of Asian art there, Vilbar generated the idea of an exhibition on Shinto art and spent more than 10 years preparing to make it a reality.

It is believed that Shinto was born in Japan, evolving from an earlier form of religion that worshiped nature and one in which ancient people sensed the presence of sacred spirits. People venerated such spirits as kami. Since the arrival of Buddhism in Japan during the 6th century, the amalgamation of Shinto and Buddhism progressed throughout Japan’s history.

The exhibition presents religious art that flourished as a result of this unique fusion of kami veneration and Buddhist practices. With cooperation from the Nara National Museum, the exhibition brings together 125 works from museums in Japan and the U.S., as well as shrines and temples across Japan. On display are works of calligraphy, painting, sculpture, costume and decorative arts from the 10th through the 19th centuries, including treasures never before seen outside Japan and a significant number of works designated as Important Cultural Properties by the Japanese government. Among the highlights are wooden sculptures of seated Tenjin and gorgeous folding screens that depict various festivities.

Seated Tenjin, 1261. Kamakura period (1185–1333). Wood with pigments; h. 83.5 cm. Egara Tenjinsha, Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture. Important Cultural Property. | NARA NATIONAL MUSEUM — Seated Tenjin, 1261. Kamakura period (1185–1333). Wood with pigments; h. 83.5 cm. Egara Tenjinsha, Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture. Important Cultural Property. | Nara National Museum

In 2013, Vilbar had an opportunity to attend a sengu renovation event in Izumo Taisha shrine in Shimane Prefecture, one of Japan’s most revered and oldest Shinto shrines. She was impressed to learn that Komatsu had created a piece for the shrine. The painting “Shin-Fudoki” that Komatsu dedicated to the shrine in 2014 was a turning point in her career, as the powerful iridescent light that broke through the clouds at the shrine inspired her to use more colors.

On the stage at CMA, Komatsu applied acrylic paints, from pink, red, orange and yellow to green, blue, purple and white, directly from tubes or from bowls in which she mixed colors. Using a brush and her hands, she drew unexpected lines in various colors and sumi black, sometimes throwing the brush or the paint at the screen. As she moved from side to side, bending down at times and climbing a stepladder at others, the chaotic picture gradually developed into the figures of chimera-like divine spirits, incorporating falcons, deer, birds, dragons and a number of small komainu (guardian lion-dog).

Miwa Komatsu applies colorful acrylic paints on a gilded folding screen during a live painting performance on a stage at the Cleveland Museum of Art on May 11. | TATSUYA AZUMA

After inserting eyes in each of the initial two ovals, thereby investing the centerpiece with soul, Komatsu sat cross-legged and bowed deeply to the audience to end the performance.

Coming out of her trance-like state, yet still gasping for air, Komatsu delivered a short speech.

“Today I painted feeling the power of all of you, the power of the land of Cleveland, and the power of the artworks that the Cleveland Museum of Art houses,” she said.

In an interview with The Japan Times, Komatsu said that she goes on stage without any rough sketch in advance.

“For me, painting is meditating. In this sense, there is no difference whether it’s live on stage or alone in my studio,” she said. “But I understand that art lovers are so delighted to see an artist in person that I want to paint in front of them without hesitation or anxiety.”

Although it was her third live painting performance in the U.S., she had never performed at a museum as prestigious as CMA, which houses more than 61,000 works of art from around the world

“While painting on stage, I heard voices from the galleries of the museum,” Komatsu mentioned the artworks featuring divine creatures of different cultures from CMA’s collection. “With a sense of tension that I should properly respond to those divine spirits, I added many tiny komainu to my painting this time,” she said. Komatsu believes the komainu that guard the entrances of shrines reached Japan after a long journey of ancient cultural diffusion from the west.

Around 1,200 spectators attend a live painting performance by Miwa Komatsu in the atrium of the Cleveland Museum of Art on May 11. | TATSUYA AZUMA

According to the museum, the event attracted an audience of 1,235 CMA members, who followed the hour-long performance with their immediate impressions: “When she started out, it made no sense to me whatsoever, but as she started completing, it looked like she was painting a story of creation,” “It was intense and lively,” and “It was the first time we’ve ever seen something like that. It was just absolutely amazing that she was in a trance,” to mention a few.

“It was wonderful to connect the ancient traditions in the exhibition with the contemporary feel to understand the continuous thread for many centuries. Her way of painting was engaging, energetic and very fun as well,” said John Easley, deputy director and chief philanthropy officer at CMA.

His comment was followed by Marjorie Williams, senior leadership giving officer in the philanthropy division at CMA. “It was an extraordinary, spiritual art. It makes our audience understand that Shinto in Japan has a contemporary expression and inspires an artist like Miwa,” Williams said.

Miwa Komatsu speaks with audience members after her live painting performance at the Cleveland Museum of Art on May 11. | TATSUYA AZUMA

Still experiencing the whole story, Vilbar was looking at Komatsu, her hakama spattered with paint, who was friendly in posing for photos with the audience members that flocked around her and lined up for their turn in front of the painting.

“She has not yet finished her painting. She is still experiencing the energy that she created,” Vilbar said with a smile.

The exceptional work of art will be on display for the moment at the residence of Hiroyuki Fujita, honorary consul of Japan in Cleveland, to demonstrate “Yamato jikara” (Yamato power), an expression that Komatsu created, meaning the ability of fusing different elements, while venerating sacred spirits in nature, as seen in the Shinto tradition.

Contemporary artist Miwa Komatsu sits cross-legged and bows to the audience at the end of her live painting performance at the Cleveland Museum of Art on May 11. | TATSUYA AZUMA

The Thames and I (Naruhito)

May 29, 2019 / John D. / 0 Comments

You’re regarded as the high priest of Shinto and chief ritualist of the realm. Your grandfather was considered a living god. Your family line claims descent from the Sun Goddess and has ruled as emperor for 126 generations. With a pedigree like that, what kind of a memoir could you possibly write?

The book in question was first produced in 2006 by the then Crown Prince Naruhito, now Emperor of Japan. This year it has been reissued as a paperback to coincide with his inauguration. It’s entitled, ‘The Thames and I: A Memoir of Two Years at Oxford‘ (Renaissance Books, 2019).

As the subtitle suggests, it’s an account of the Crown Prince’s time as a student at Merton College, where he spent two years studying 18th century navigation on the River Thames. It’s also a part-guide to Oxford, to the way the university works, and to the history of his college. There are cultural observations too on the English and the way the island country resembles but differs from Japan. In so doing, Naruhito gives one of the best overviews of English classical music I’ve seen (a special interest of his, since he plays the viola to a high standard).

Dreaming spires – Naruhito was in Merton College, with claims to being the university’s oldest

By far the most intriguing part of the book, however, are not the factual passages but those that offer insight into the crown prince’s lifestyle. We learn for instance that he is accompanied by two police guards, who take it in turn to watch over him and who act as cultural informant and language aide. They even play a part in helping with his research. As we know from Princess Di and films on the subject, bodyguards and the people they protect can strike up close friendships.

There are some amusing touches, and he confesses to several ‘blunders’ such as spilling coins across the floor.. He had never used a washing machine before and overfilled it with washing powder, so that soap suds flooded across the floor. But by the end of his stay he had mastered how to iron his own clothes. As you might expect, the writing is discrete and circumspect. At one point he meets a challenge to drink five cups of an alcoholic concoction, but he writes not a word about how he feels afterwards. In fact, there’s not a single person who could be offended by what he writes. He makes friends wherever he goes.

In many ways it’s an enchanted time, as if he’s escaped from the starightjacket of Kunaicho (Imperial Household) like the male equivalent of Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday. The people he meets are all kind and entertaining. He very much enjoys the conversations he has, with people in all stations of life. His tutors at Oxford are inordinately wise and helpful. When he goes abroad, he’s invited to stay in castles and palaces by European aristocracy. He enjoys his meetings with the royal family. He climbs the tallest mountains in Scotland, England and Wales. He travels extensively. And he even has time for study as he chases up ancient documents in obscure archives. As he explores the world of eighteenth century transport on The Thames, he learns to love the river that flows close by his college.

Through all this, Emperor Naruhito comes over as humble, modest, well-read and likeable. He’s very much an international figure and a man of his time, a modern monarch one might say. One can’t help feeling that he’s certainly not someone the ultra-right in Japan would choose to champion as their semi-divine national symbol. This struck me this week while watching the new emperor and Masako welcome with ease Trump and his wife to the imperial palace. It was Naruhito who was making the small talk. In English. Far from being overshadowed by the greater stature of his guest, he looked pleased at being able to entertain the most powerful man on earth.

But what of Shinto you might ask? I read the book with great interest, not only as a former citizen and author of guidebooks to Oxford, but as someone who thought there may be a mention or two to shed light on his attitude to his native religion. But there was not a word, not a suggestion even. There were passages about European cathedrals, but nothing about Ise or Izumo. There were observations on nature, the ascent of mountains, a lot about the River Thames, but nothing that indicated the vital role of such phenomena in the religious life of his native country. Not even an animistic hint. I found this odd, though perhaps it was because his focus was fixed so steadily on England. But surely someone brought up to be a symbol of his country must be imbued with awareness of a tradition that is so indelibly woven into the national culture? I confess to a touch of disappointment.

Notwithstanding that, the book is a charming read for anyone with the least interest in how Japan will fare in the coming era under this engaging figure. Let’s hope he has the strength of character to go with his undoubted sensitivity. In these troubled times he may well need it.

**************

The Main Hall of Jingu Kaikan fills up with an international audience to hear the talk by Oxford-educated Princess Akiko on what Shinto means to her

For insight into how the imperial family might regard Shinto, a talk by Princess Akiko (daughter of Prince Tomohito of Mikasa) at an Ise conference shed light on subject. You can read the whole report here, but let me quote an extract from my report of her speech….

The talk by Princess Akiko raised the question of whether Shinto was a matter of belief or simply part of the Japanese way of life. With a doctorate in Japanese art history from Oxford University, she spoke of her impressions of living abroad. Japan was said to be proud of having four seasons, she noted, but Britain often had four seasons in one day. Moreover, whereas British water was good for black tea, Japanese water was good for green tea.

But what made the most impression on her was the British supermarkets had the same food throughout the year, which made her miss the seasonal nature of Japanese food. There was something in Japanese culture that was in tune with the changing seasons of nature. It had to do with an affinity for the deities living in rocks, waterfalls and trees, etc. It was, she suggested, difficult for foreigners to appreciate.

It was the pluralism of Japanese thinking that led to another aspect difficult for foreigners to comprehend. ‘Born Shinto, marry Christian, die Buddhist’ was an accepted path in Japan. Because of polytheism, it was easy for Japanese to accept any kind of deity as valid. She herself had felt power and refreshment from a rock at Suwa Shrine named after Susanoo no mikoto. And as a child, she had felt a sense of awe at the woods of Ise Jingu.

So what in the end was Shinto? ‘Pay respects and have gratitude to the kami,’ she had been told by a priest. It’s not a question of salvation or belief as in Abrahamic religions, but of simple things like saying itadakimasu before meals and gochisosama afterwards. For Japanese these aspects of daily life enrich their existence. There was little doubt this pertained to the imperial family too.

Tsunami shrine consolidation

May 20, 2019 / John D. / 0 Comments

(Photo courtesy Daily Mail)

Disaster-hit Fukushima shrines eye consolidation as key to survival

May 20, 2019 Kyodo in Japan Today

FUKUSHIMA

A plan has been forged to establish a new shrine in Fukushima Prefecture as a substitute for the many others that were damaged or made inaccessible by the 2011 quake-tsunami disaster and nuclear crisis, local authorities say.

The local branch of the Association of Shinto Shrines said they plan to build the new place of worship on the grounds of the tsunami-hit Hachiman Shrine by the end of March 2021. The shrine is located in the town of Futaba, one of the hosts of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, but it is in an area where radiation levels are relatively low.

At least 30 shrines in the prefecture remain badly damaged after the disasters and 44 are in areas where access is restricted due to high radiation levels. Representatives of each of the 74 affected shrines will decide whether to join the project or not. According to the Association of Shinto Shrines based in Tokyo, it is the first case in which a shrine is built to replace others that have been unable to operate due to a disaster.

The move, which is said will bring together deities worshipped at each shrine, is also intended to help preserve traditional performing arts and festivals associated with each community, it said. “The revival of the shrines that have served as local community hubs should offer solace to people affected by the calamities,” said Masahiro Tanji, who heads the Fukushima branch of the association.

A Shinto Torii gate sits atop a hill in Ishinomaki, where 3,700 drowned in the 2011 tsunami. Many fled to the hilltop to survive.

All Futaba’s residents continue to live outside the town following the nuclear crisis, one of the world’s worst ever, that resulted in three reactor core meltdowns. But the Hachiman Shrine, located in a coastal district of Nakano, was selected as a candidate site for the project because it experiences lower radiation levels and is located near the site of an envisioned memorial park Fukushima Prefecture is planning to build.

The town of Futaba hopes that an evacuation order for Nakano and some neighboring areas will be lifted in the spring of 2020, earlier than other parts of the municipality.

There are a total of 240 shrines within the 20 kilometer-radius of the Fukushima Daiichi plant, which was designated as a no-go zone soon after the nuclear crisis began. Of the 74 struggling shrines, not all are in the 20-km radius.

Many shrines have struggled in the wake of the disaster due to the displacement of parishioners and their inability to secure government reconstruction support due to the principle of separation of religion and government.

Their predicament led the shrines to come up with the consolidation plan and their chief priests agreed to go ahead with the project in June last year. While some parishioners have expressed sadness at the change, Hirohisa Takakura, the 57-year-old chief priest of Hachiman Shrine, said “there will be shrines that will rust away and be unsustainable” unless they act.

Takakura now makes a 90-minute journey from his residence to the shrine twice every month to clean the grounds. He remembers fondly how, before the disaster, the shrine would be crowded with local residents who gathered for the Bon festival dance, but he maintains the only solution is “to move forward.”

A torii gate following the tsunami and earthquake of March 11th 2011, in Okawa village near Ishinomaki

Shinto divination

May 17, 2019 / John D. / 0 Comments

Divination is an important part of shamanistic religions. Through the aid of unseen spirits, shamans claim ability to see into the future. In fossilised cases such as Shinto, where shamanistic possession is retained in symbolic form only, omikuji fortune telling at shrines is arranged according to set formula based on Daoism. There are however many other divination techniques in Shinto, some of which are specific to certain shrines. Firing arrows is a common technique.

Shooting arrows at targets is one way of knowing the divine will

In ancient times, however, Shinto practitioners used intuitive techniques based on tortoise shell (and also the shoulder bones of deer). The idea that in such animal parts the divine will could be discerned was imported from China via the Korean kingdom. The practice, known as kiboku, involves heating the shell and interpreting the pattern of cracks that appear, much like reading tea leaves.

News this week has concerned the last remaining use of this ancient divination, in conjunction with the imperial Daijosai rite which will be carried out in the autumn. In the article below, one can see how it has been used to decide the matter of which particular field should be used to supply the rice involved in what is considered Shinto’s supreme ritual.

Omikuji fortune slips are particularly popular with young women

*****************

Turtle-shell divination conducted at Imperial Palace in Tokyo ahead of key succession rite

Kyodo May 13, 2019

An imperial divination rite using turtle shells was held Monday to prepare for the most important ceremony to be performed by Emperor Naruhito upon his enthronement.

In the Saiden Tentei no Gi ritual at the Imperial Palace, diviners observed the cracks that appeared when turtle shells were heated in order to select two prefectures — Tochigi and Kyoto — that will supply crops for the upcoming Daijosai offering ceremony in mid-November.

The Daijosai is performed by a new emperor only once during his reign. The emperor will offer newly harvested rice to his imperial ancestors and the deities of heaven and earth, while also eating the rice himself, as well as praying for peace and abundant harvests for the country and its people.

“We are very surprised, but it is an honor that Tochigi rice has been chosen,” an official from the prefecture said.

The Imperial Household Agency said it had prepared the carapaces of three green sea turtles from the Ogasawara island chain in the Pacific, about 1,000 kilometers south of Tokyo, to create eight pieces for the divination rite — held for the first time in 29 years.

While the international trade of green turtles is banned under the Washington Convention, shells of the animals captured with special permission from the Ogasawara island chain were used in the ceremony, according to the agency.

The shells were shaped to measure 24 centimeters in length and 15 cm in width, with a thickness of 1 millimeter. Japanese bird cherry is customarily used as firewood in the rite. Other details of the ceremony, including how the cracks are assessed, are kept a secret.

The imperial household is said to have used turtle-shell divination, originally from China, more often in the past, for purposes such as deciding the dates of other imperial rites.

Ogaswara turtle (all photos by John Dougill)

But currently it is only used to designate the two prefectures that will provide rice for the Daijosai ceremony, according to the agency.

With the artisans who worked on preparing the turtle shells in the wake of the previous era change having either passed away or retired, the role went to Tokyo-based shell craftsman Takao Morita.

“I had to learn through trial and error as it was my first time (making them),” the 68-year-old said.

Morita received a request from the agency around March last year, after Emperor Emeritus Akihito, then emperor, indicated his desire to step down in a rare televised video message citing concern he might not be able to fulfill his official duties due to his advanced age.

Emperor Emeritus Akihito, 85, became the first Japanese monarch to abdicate in 202 years, giving way for his elder son Emperor Naruhito to succeed the Chrysanthemum Throne on May 1 this year.

Morita said he usually handles the shells of hawksbill turtles, which are about 40 cm in size, to manufacture glasses frames and decorative items. But the carapaces delivered to him from the agency were 1 meter long.

It was also his first time processing the bones underneath the shells, rather than the surface of the shells to which he is accustomed.

“It differed from my usual work, but I thought I could do it,” Morita said.

With the agency not giving any specific instructions, he looked through old documents to research the shells. He crafted the bones into elongated pentagons and carefully shaved the pieces with a machine, creating a number of prototypes.

This pigeon clearly feels there is something special about turtle shells

With Morita having to work on the special order at the same time as his usual business, he only fully began processing the shells from this year. He managed to deliver the final pieces to the agency in April amid a growing celebratory mood for the era change, but said he did not feel nervous undertaking the task.

“I worked carefully with each individual piece,” the craftsman said. “Although it was the same day-to-day operation, I felt a weight left my shoulders after they were delivered.”

The previous Saiden Tentei no Gi was held in 1990 after Emperor Emeritus Akihito was enthroned the year before. Akita and Oita prefectures were selected on that occasion.

Imperial rites are generally funded by the imperial family themselves. But the expenses linked to the turtle shells as well as payments for the rice to be harvested are covered by taxpayers as court expenses because they are part of a series of imperial succession events.

Some have questioned the significance of the fortune-telling tradition. “No one in this modern day believes that it can really determine (the prefectures),” wrote the late Shinobu Kobayashi, who served as a chamberlain for Emperor Hirohito, in his diary. Emperor Hirohito is known posthumously as Emperor Showa.

But Kobayashi also wrote that carrying out the traditional rite has a meaning in itself.

Turtle wash basins are a reminder that the amphibious creature held a special place in ancient religion because of its potency. In Hindu and Chinese mythology the cosmic turtle supports the entire world.

World Heritage Imperial Mounds

May 15, 2019 / John D. / 0 Comments

The Daisen burial mound is the largest one among those found in the Mozu area of Osaka Prefecture. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Burial mounds for emperors set to gain World Heritage listing

By MAYUMI UEDA/ May 14, 2019 Asahi Shimbun

UNESCO signaled its readiness May 13 to grant World Heritage status to a cluster of “kofun” burial mounds in Osaka Prefecture dating to the late fourth and fifth centuries.

Of the 49 mounds under consideration, 29 are thought to be those of emperors, empresses or other imperial family members.

UNESCO officials informed the government that the committee assessing candidate sites has recommended that the 49 burial mounds be added to the heritage list.

Entrance at the “Nintoku burial mound’ in Sakai, Osaka, considered the third biggest burial site in the world (Photo John Dougill)

The burial mounds in the Mozu and Furuichi areas of Osaka include the largest one in Japan and said to be for Emperor Nintoku.

The mounds being considered for inclusions were constructed in what is considered the high point of the Kofun period.

A key issue regarding the evaluation by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) was how experts would take into account the lack of extensive archaeological research into many of the burial mounds.

The Imperial Household Agency oversees the 29 burial mounds with links to past emperors and other imperial family members and has until now severely restricted research into the sites.

Initially, agency officials asked that the candidacy include the fact that one burial mound is for Nintoku.

Daisen mound, said by the Imperial Household Agency to be Nintoku’s burial tomb. It’s the largest burial mound in the world in terms of ground size. (Asahi)

However, archaeologists and historians pointed out that the naming should only include the locations where the burial mounds are found because of the paucity of scientific research that makes it impossible to conclusively state who was buried where.

The Daisen burial mound in Sakai believed built for Nintoku is the largest, measuring 486 meters in length.

Another site in the group up for UNESCO consideration is the Konda-Gobyoyama burial mound in Habikino, where Emperor Ojin is believed buried. That mound is 425 meters in length.

The 49 burial mounds come in all shapes and sizes. Some are in a moated keyhole design denoting someone of great importance was buried there, while others are shaped like a scallop shell, or circular and rectangular.

The Mozu area that now includes Sakai and the Furuichi area covering Habikino and Fujiidera were centers of politics and culture in ancient times.

The burial mounds are physical representations of the authority and social status of the individuals buried there, and thus serve as important evidence about early Japanese history.

The final decision for inclusion into UNESCO’s World Heritage list will be made at a World Heritage Committee meeting scheduled to start June 30 in Baku, Azerbaijan.

The Hashihaka burial mound near Sakurai in Nara Prefecture, said by some experts to be that of legendary third-century Empress Himiko