既生國竟更生神故①生神名
次生石土毗古②神[川石云伊波亦毗古③二字以音下效此也]
次生石巣比賣神
次生
次生天之吹④上男神
次生大屋毗古神
次生[訓風云⑤加耶訓木以音]
次生海神名
次生水戸神名
次妹速秋津比賣神[自至秋津比賣神并十神]⑥
此速秋津日子速秋津比賣二神囙河⑦海持別而生神名沫那藝神[那藝二字以音下效此]
次[那美二字以音下效此]
次頬那藝神
次
次[訓分云久麻理下效此]
次國之水分神
次天之久比奢⑧母智神[自久以下五字以音下效此]
次國之久比奢母智神[自沫那藝神至國之久比奢母智神并八神]
次生風神名志那都比⑨古神[此神名以音]
次生木神名[此神名以音]⑩
次生山神名大山上津見神
次生野神名鹿⑪屋野比賣神亦名謂野椎⑫神[自至野椎⑬并四神]
此二神囙山野持別而生神名天之狭⑭土神[訓土云豆知下效此]
次國之狭⑮土神
次天之狭⑯霧神
次國之狭⑰霧神
次
次國之闇戸神⑱
次[訓或云麻刀比下效此]
次[自天之狭土⑲神至并八神也]
次生神名鳥之石楠⑳舩神亦名謂天鳥舩
次生大冝都比賣神[訓神名以音]
次生火之夜藝速男神[夜藝二字以音也]亦名謂火之炫毗古神亦名謂[迦具二字以音]
【校異】
① 真「䚺」。道果本以下による。
② 真「吉」。道果本以下による。
③ 真「吉。道果本以下による。
④ 真「湏」。道果本以下による。
⑤ 真 ナシ。道・祥・春による。兼以下の卜部系諸本および寛「云耶」。
⑥ 真 大書で「自津比賣神并十神至秋」。道・祥・春以下による。兼・前・曼「自至秋津比賣神并十此神」、猪「此」左傍に「イ本无」朱書。寛・延・訓「自至秋津比賣神并十神」、校「自至速秋津比賣神并十神」。
⑦ 真「阿」。道果本以下による。
⑧ 真「大者」。道果本以下による。
⑨ 真「法」。道果本以下による。
⑩ 真 ナシ。◯符右傍書「次生木神名[此神名以音]」。
⑪ 真「麻」。道・祥・春による。兼以下の卜部系諸本および寛「麻鹿」。
⑫ 真「推」。道「桘」、祥・春「槌」。兼・前「推」。曼以下「椎」。猪左傍書「日本記作槌」。
⑬ 真「推」。道「桘」、祥・春「槌」。兼・前「推」。曼以下「椎」。
⑭ 真「使」。道果本以下による。
⑮ 真「侠」。道果本以下による。
⑯ 真「侠」。道果本以下による。
⑰ 真「侠」。道果本以下による。
⑱ 真 ナシ。道果本以下「國之闇戸神次」。道果本以下による。
⑲ 真「侠古」。道果本以下による。
⑳ 真「桶」。道果本以下による。
二神はすべて国生みを終えて、さらに神をお生みになった。そこでお生みになった神は、以下の神々を生む大事業の偉大さの象徴としての、名は。
次に土石の神格化の石土毗古神をお生みになった。
次に石や砂の神をお生みになり、
次に住居の出入り口の神大戸日別をお生みになり、
次に天井を葺く意のをお生みになり、
次に家屋の神大屋毗古神をお生みになった。
次に風の神をお生みになり、
次に海の神名はをお生みになり、
次に水の出入り口の神、
ついで女神をお生みになった。から秋津比売神まで合わせて十神である。
この速秋津日子・速秋津比売の神の二柱の神が河と海とを分担して生んだ水の状態を表す神の名は、
次に、
次に頰那芸神、
次に頰那美神、
次に水の分配を表す、
次に、
水汲みに関わる、
次に。からまで合わせて八神。
伊耶那岐・伊耶那美の二神は、次に風の神、名はをお生みになり、
次に木の神、名はをお生みになり、
次に山の神、名はをお生みになり、
次に野の神、名はをお生みになった。別名をという。からまで合わせて四神。
この・の二柱の神が、山と野とを分担して生んだ山野の情況を表す神の名は、、
次に。
次に、
次に、
次に、
次に、
次に、
次に。からまで合わせて八神である。
伊耶那岐・伊耶那美の二神が、次にお生みになった神の名は、別名は天鳥船という。
次に大冝都比売神をお生みになり、
次にをお生みになった。この神の別名は火之炫毗古神といい、もう一つの別名はという。
Once they had finished giving birth to the land, Izanaki and began to give birth to deities. The name of the [first] deity they bore is Ōkoto oshio no kami 大事忍男神.
Next they bore Iwatsuchibiko no kami 石土毗古神.
Next they bore Iwasuhime no kami 石巣比売神.
Next they bore Ōtohiwake no kami 大戸日別神.
Next they bore Ame no fukio no kami 天之吹男神.
Next they bore Ōyabiko no kami 大屋毗古神.
Next they bore Kazamotsuwake no oshio no kami 風木津別之忍男神.
Then they gave birth to the sea deity, whose name is Ōwatatsumi no kami 大綿津見神.
Next they bore the deity of the inlets, whose name is Haya akitsuhiko no kami 速秋津日子神,
and his sister-spouse Haya akitsuhime no kami 速秋津比賣神. Note: From Ōkoto oshio no kami to [Haya] Akitsuhime no kami, there are ten deities altogether.
These two deities, Haya akitsuhiko no kami and Haya akitsuhime no kami, divided between themselves charge of the rivers and the seas. The names of the deities [they] bore are no kami 沫那芸神;
next, no kami 沫那美神;
next, Tsuranagi no kami 頬那芸神;
next, Tsuranami no kami 頬那美神;
next, Ame no mikumari no kami 天之水分神;
next, Kuni no mikumari no kami 国之水分神;
next, Ame no kuhizamochi no kami 天之久比奢母智神;
next, Kuni no kuhizamochi no kami 国之久比奢母智神.Note: From no kami to Kuni no kuhizamochi no kami, there are eight deities altogether.
Next [Izanaki and Izanami] bore the deity of the wind, whose name is no kami 志那都比古神.
Then they gave birth to the deity of the trees, whose name is no kami 久々能智神.
Next they bore the deity of the mountains, whose name is no kami 大山津見神.
Next they bore the deity of the plains, whose name is no kami 鹿屋野比売神. This deity's other name is Notsuchi no kami 野椎神.Note: From no kami to Notsuchi [no kami], there are four deities altogether.
These two deities, no kami and Notsuchi no kami, divided between themselves charge of the mountains and the plains. The names of the deities [they] bore are Ame no sazuchi no kami 天之狭土神;
next Kuni no sazuchi no kami 国之狭土神;
next, Ame no sagiri no kami 天之狭霧神;
next, Kuni no sagiri no kami 国之狭霧神;
next, Ame no kurato no kami 天之闇戸神;
next, Kuni no kurato no kami 国之闇戸神;
next, Ōtomatoiko no kami 大戸或子神;
next, Ōtomatoime no kami 大戸或女神.Note: From Ame no sazuchi no kami to Ōtomatoime no kami, there are eight deities altogether.
Next [Izanaki and Izanami] gave birth to a deity whose name is Tori no iwakusufune no kami 鳥之石楠舩神. This deity's other name is Ama no torifune 天鳥舩.
Next they bore no kami 大冝都比売神.
Next they bore Hi no yagihayao no kami 火之夜芸速男神. This deity's other name is Hi no kakabiko no kami 火之炫毗古神. Yet another name is Hi no kagutsuchi no kami 火之迦具土神.
Ōkoto oshio no kami 大事忍男神
The name of this deity (“male deity of great accomplishment”) serves to signify the greatness of Izanaki and Izanami's deed in giving birth to the deities listed subsequently. holds that this deity corresponds to the deity Yomotsu kototoke no o 泉津事解之男, who appears in one of the Nihon shoki variants, and postulates that the name alludes to “the completion of a great deed.” Since Norinaga takes the morpheme oshi 忍 to be a eulogistic element equivalent to ōshi 大 (“great”), he sees this theonym as combining eulogizing terms.(1) Commentators differ on whether the “great deed” refers to the already complete “birth of the land” or the “birth of the deities” taken up in what follows. Nishimiya Kazutami argues that “one typical feature of the Kojiki's mode of expression is to present the conclusion first,” and he consequently understands the “great deed” as the upcoming “birth of the deities.” He also postulates that the morpheme oshi 忍 means osaetsukeru 押さえつける (“to press down,” “to hold down”) and takes it to be an eulogistic element conveying a powerful nature.(2)
Iwatsuchibiko no kami 石土毗古神 and Iwasuhime no kami 石巣比売神
The first name means “man of rocks and soil.” It represents a deification of the stones and soil that serve as the foundation for a house. Many authors consider the second name to be that of a female deity of sand and rocks, but Nishimiya Kazutami understands it as a deity of stone houses (or of houses strong as rocks). He infers this “dwelling” interpretation from the morpheme su 巣 (“nest”).(3) Many commentators consider the deities mentioned below to be divinities of house construction. Yamaguchi Yoshinori and Kōnoshi Takamitsu, however, argue that “in a context where deities representing natural phenomena are born subsequent to the ‘birth of the land’ in the form of islands, it is not appropriate to associate the deities that follow with houses or dwellings. It is more reasonable to consider them to be deities related to the natural environment.”(4) Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi thus take these two deities to signify the formation of the actual land of the islands whose birth was described in the previous chapter.
Ōtohiwake no kami 大戸日別神
Some commentators consider the element to 戸 to mean “place” and thus to indicate a dwelling. Others interpret it according to the meaning of the graph as “door” and take it to indicate “the gate to a house.” The character hi 日 is generally held to be equivalent to hi 霊 (“spirit”). Further research is needed, however, to clarify whether the usage here should be interpreted to be the same as in the names “so-and-so-hiwake” 〇〇日別 seen in the preceding chapter or as something different.
Ame no fukio no kami 天之吹男神
The graph 吹 (fuku) is generally seen as standing in for the verb fuku 葺く (“to thatch”), which leads to the interpretation that the deity named here is associated with the thatching of roofs with kaya 茅 grass (Imperata cylindrica). Elsewhere in the Kojiki, however, the graph 吹 always conveys an association with “breath” or “wind,” and this is the only case in which it could be interpreted as a loan graph (shakuji 借字) with a different signification.
Ōyabiko no kami 大屋毘古神
The graph ya 屋 constitutes the core element of this name, but interpretation of the deity's character varies depending on whether ya is taken to mean “roof” (yane 屋根) or “house” (kaoku 家屋). The deity Yafune no mikoto 屋船命 who appears in the Ōtonohogai 大殿祭 norito liturgy for praying for the safety of the palace is said to be a deification of the imperial palace, and Ōyabiko no kami may be of a similar nature. Opinions diverge as to whether this deity is the same as the one of the same name from the land of Ki 木国 who subsequently appears in the story of Ōnamuchi.(5) Taniguchi Masahiro 谷口雅博 holds that as house construction is an essential element of the story of Ōnamuchi, the two Ōyabiko no kami can be identified as the same.(6)
Sendai kuji hongi 先代旧事本紀 (ninth century) gives the name Ōyabiko no kami 大屋彦神 as an alternative name of the deity 五十猛, an offspring of Susanoo. was indeed enshrined in Ki 紀伊 Province, and a connection might be seen in that subsequently in the Kojiki an Ōyabiko no kami is described as associated with the land of Ki. However, does not appear in the Kojiki, and the Ōyabiko no kami who figures in the present passage is described as an offspring of Izanaki and Izanami, so one probably should not mix the two narratives and think of and Ōyabiko no kami as the same.
Kazamotsuwake no oshio no kami 風木津別之忍男神
Kurano Kenji proposes interpreting this name as referring to holding a roof firm in order to prevent it from being blown away by the wind―in other words, as the name of a deity who supports roof structures.(7) Saigō Nobutsuna states that he does not really understand the meaning of this name, but continues, “If I were to venture an opinion, the name may be linked to that of the deities of the wind (kaze 風) and trees (ki 木) that are mentioned below. Or it may simply be meant to introduce (or echo) the particle tsu, which will appear in the names of the next deities, Ōwatatsumi no kami and Haya akitsuhiko no kami.”(8) Nishimiya Kazutami takes it to indicate “a man so full of male vigor as to hold out against the wind.” He thus sees it as a deification of the power to withstand the wind that secures a house's durability.(9)
All these commentators read this name as Kazamotsuwake no oshio no kami, but Kōnoshi Takamitsu and Yamaguchi Yoshinori hold that it should be read as Kazamokutsuwake. They state further that use of the graph 木 (with the on reading moku) may be intended to indicate that moku should be read as a single lexical unit that cannot be split into mo and ku. They provide a variety of evidence to show that this graph should be read as moku.(10) The problems surrounding this deity name arise from the reading gloss that accompanies it, namely “Read 風 as kaza; read 木 according to its on 音 [pronunciation]” (訓風云加耶訓木以音). This is the only instance in the Kojiki of a gloss directing that the graph ki (tree) be read according to its on (Chinese style) pronunciation (moku). The instruction suggests a need to reconsider the meaning of the term 訓 (“read as,” [usually interpreted to mean “read according to the Japanese pronunciation”]).(11) Tsutomu 西條勉 holds that this gloss may have been intended to indicate that the meaning “tree” of the graph 木 should be retained although the reading of it here should be purely phonetic. That is, it indicates that the character should be simultaneously interpreted according to its phonetic value and its meaning.(12)
“The sea deity, whose name is Ōwatatsumi no kami” 海神名大綿津見神
The morpheme wata means “sea,” tsu is a possessive particle, mi conveys the meaning of “divine spirit.” This deity is a counterpart to the mountain deity (see item “The deity of the mountains, whose name is no kami”).
“Deity of the inlets” (minato no kami 水戸神)
Minato conveys the sense of a portal where water flows in and out. The Kojiki transcribes minato in deity names as 水戸, but elsewhere, as in the toponym Onominato 男水門 in the land of Kii, it is rendered as 水門.(13) Judging from the transcription of the word hayasui no to 速吸門 (a strait with strong tidal currents), there seems to be a slight difference in nuance in use of the graphs 門 (port, gateway) and 戸 (door, shutter).(14) We will take up the implications of 戸 more fully below, in our analysis of the no kuni 黄泉国 episode.
Haya akitsuhiko no kami 速秋津日子神 and Haya akitsuhime no kami 速秋津比賣神
Haya is a eulogistic element that conveys swiftness. It can be found in the names of other deities such as Haya susanoo in the Kojiki, or Haya surahime in the 大祓 great purification norito. Since Haya akitsuhiko and Haya akitsuhime are described as “deities of the inlets,” this eulogistic element is presumably intended to allude to the speed of the current. The morpheme aki 秋 may mean” bright” (aki 明き) or the act of opening (aki 開き), but this remains uncertain. Kanda Hideo and Ōta Yoshimaro see it as the release of flowing water,(15) whereas Nakajima Etsuji and others hold it to refer to the washing away of pollution.(16)
“Divided between themselves charge ... [and] bore” (mochiwakite umeru 持別而生)
This phrase means that the two deities divided responsibility between themselves, one as the deity of the rivers, and the other, as the deity of the sea. The Edo scholar Watarai Nobuyoshi 度会延佳 took the subject of the verb umu 生 (“give birth”) to be Haya akitsuhiko and Haya akitsuhime.(17) In contrast, held that Izanaki and gave birth to all the deities mentioned in this passage.(18)
Even today, opinions differ, related to the issue of the later reference to Izanaki and having given birth to thirty-five deities (see below). Nishimiya Kazutami argues that Haya akitsuhiko and Haya akitsuhime are certainly a male and a female deity, but, as nowhere is it stated that they entered into conjugal union, they cannot be the subject of the verb umitamaeru (“give birth”). According to Nishimiya, by dividing between themselves the management of their respective realms, Haya akitsuhiko and Haya akitsuhime facilitated Izanaki and continuing to give birth to the deities. He thus postulates that all the deities born in the “Giving Birth to the Deities” episode were the offspring of Izanaki and Izanami.(19) In contrast, Kōnoshi Takamitsu first argues that 持別而 should be read mochiwakete rather than mochiwakite. On this basis he asserts that Izanaki and are not the subject of the full phrase 持別而生. Rather, having taken charge of their respective realms, Haya akitsuhiko and Haya akitsuhime jointly produced the following deities as their offshoots (hasei shite itta 派生していった).(20)
Awanagi no kami 沫那芸神 and no kami 沫那美神
These are a male and a female deity of the spume forming on the surface of water. Along with the two following deities (Tsuranagi no kami and Tsuranami no kami), the names of these deities convey aspects of water. Two divergent theories exist about the morphology of these deity names. The first sees them as having a ternary structure consisting of the elements awa 泡 (“spume”) + the particle na + the gender suffixes gi (“man”) / mi (“woman”). The second postulates a binary structure of awa 泡 + nagi 凪 (“calm sea”) / nami 波 (“wave”).
Tsuranagi no kami 頬那芸神 and Tsuranami no kami 頬那美神
Almost all commentators consider the morpheme tsura (“face”) to allude to a water surface. As with the preceding no kami and no kami, opinions diverge regarding nagi and nami. Some interpret these as gender marks and others as meaning “calm sea” (nagi) or “wave” (nami). Nishimiya Kazutami argues that “in the context of Izanaki and giving birth to the deities, Tsuranagi was born on the land side of a river mouth and Tsuranami on the water side.”(21) Such a conclusion cannot be derived from the deity names themselves, however.
Ame no mikumari no kami 天之水分神 and Kuni no mikumari no kami 国之水分神
From on the element kumari has been interpreted as meaning “distribution” (kubari).(22) The Engi shiki jinmyōchō 延喜式神名帳 lists many examples of Mikumari shrines.(23) For Province, for instance it lists such shrines as located in 吉野 in district, Uda 宇太 in Uda 宇陀 district, Tsuge 都祁 in Yamanobe 山辺 district, and Katsuraki 葛木 in Katsurakinokami 葛上 district. They are located at important points for supplying water to the Nara basin, such as the sources of rivers in the surrounding mountains, and each enshrines the water deity Mikumari no kami.
Ame no kuhizamochi no kami 天之久比奢母智神 and Kuni no kuhizamochi no kami 国之久比奢母智神
Norinaga posits that kuhizamochi is a contraction of kumi hisago mochi 汲匏持 (“to draw [water],” “gourd,” and “to carry”).(24) holds that the deity Mikumari no kami causes water to spring forth and that these deities draw it to suitable spots, making it reach everywhere.(25) Saigō Nobutsuna takes mochi to be an honorific title similar to muchi / mochi in the name of the deity / Ōnamochi.(26) Nishimiya Kazutami understands hiza not as a gourd (hisago) but a ladle (hishaku 柄杓).(27)
“From no kami to Kuni no kuhizamochi no kami, there are eight deities altogether” 自沫那芸神至国之久比奢母智神并八神
The eight deities named in this passage are all related to water. The names of Mikumari no kami, Kuhizamochi no kami, and Haya akitsuhime no kami appear respectively in the norito for the rites to pray for a good crop (Kinensai) and protection from fire (Chinkasai 鎮火祭) and the norito for the great purification rites (Ōharae).
“The wind deity, whose name is no kami” 風神志那都比古神
Norinaga suggests that the element shina may be equated with okinaga 息長 (“long breath”).(28) Kurano Kenji, on the other hand, argues that oki cannot become shi. Instead, taking as reference the Nihon shoki transcription of this name as 級長津彦命, Kurano posits that shina combines the element shi meaning “wind” with na (naga 長) meaning “long.”(29) Nakamura Hirotoshi holds that the element na means “hole” (ana 穴).(30) The graph 風 (“wind”) occurs two times in the Kojiki preface, eight times in the first volume, and two times in the second. Some of these examples associate the wind with sea travel.(31) Another instance indicates that the wind may have been believed to reach to the heavens.(32)
“The deity of the trees, whose name is no kami” 木神久々能智神
Norinaga holds that kuku has the same meaning as kuki 茎 (“stalk”).(33) Sakamoto Tarō 坂本太郎 and Ienaga Saburō 家永三郎, on the other hand, hypothesize that kuku is an ancient form of kiki 木木 (“trees”).(34) These two interpretations remain in competition with each other today. Saigō Nobutsuna, who adopts the “trees” theory, argues that “stalk” might be used in reference to grass and flowers, but that it cannot be applied to trees.(35) By contrast, Kurano Kenji seconds the “stalk” theory, noting that in poems 3406 and 3444 of the Man'yōshū, the graph 茎 (“stalk”) is phonetically transcribed as kuku. As he admits, however, a problem remains because these two poems belong to a particular type, the azuma uta 東歌, or “songs from the east.”(36) The norito for the Ōtonohogai rite to pray for the protection of the palace includes an explanatory note of the deity name Yafune kukunochi no mikoto 屋船久久遅命 that states “this [deity] is the spirit of the trees.” Judging from these points, the “trees” interpretation seems more plausible.
“The deity of the mountains, whose name is no kami” 山神名大山津見神
This name is homologous to that of the deity of the sea, Ōwatatsumi no kami. For watatsumi, see item "The sea deity,whose name is Ōwatatsumi no kami" above. A deity with the name appears in two subsequent myths of the Kojiki. Some commentators such as Kurano Kenji hold that the deity described in this passage is different from both the deity who appears in the legend of slaying an immense serpent with eight tails and eight heads (Yamata no orochi 八岐大蛇) and the deity who figures in the account of the descent of Ninigi.(37) However, there is no clear evidence to support such a conclusion. Following Ninigi's descent to earth the power of the deities of the mountains and seas is incorporated into the lineage of the heavenly deities and linked to the emperors through the marriage of and his descendants to the daughters of the mountain and sea deities. We thus should explore in that context the implications of the presentation here of the mountain and sea deities as the offspring of Izanaki and Izanami.
“The deity of the fields, no kami” 野神鹿屋野比売神
This deity is the deification of a plain where kaya (reeds used for thatching) grows.
Notsuchi no kami 野椎神
The name of this deity means the spirit of the fields. This deity has a strong relationship with both kaya (grasses) and the fields. In the Nihon shoki it is referred to as Kusanooya 草祖 (“the ancestor of the grass”).(38)
“From no kami to Notsuchi [no kami], there are four deities altogether” 自志那都比古神至野椎并四神
The four deities mentioned above represent elements closely related to human life―wind, trees, mountains, and plains.
“These two deities, no kami and Notsuchi no kami” 此大山津見神至野椎神二神
The second deity is identified here not by the main name given above, no kami, but the alternative name of Notsuchi no kami. Norinaga notes that use of the alternative name for subsequent references to a deity is a common feature of the Kojiki.(39)
Ame no sagiri no kami 天之狭霧神 and Kuni no sagiri no kami 国之狭霧神
Norinaga takes sagiri to mean “the end of a slope” (saka no kagiri 坂の限り), and he interprets these deities as border deities.(40) Kurano Kenji holds that sa 狭 is a prefix and that kiri 霧 should be understood according to the graph's meaning of “fog,” “mist.”(41) If these deities are to be understood as having been produced through a division of charge over the fields and mountains, “fog” seems the most plausible interpretation. points out that fog arises from both fields and mountains and extends from heaven to earth.(42) The character combination 狭霧 occurs a total of nine times in the Kojiki. Apart from here and in the deity name Ame no sagiri no kami 天狭霧神 (in the lineage descended from Ōkuninushi),(43) it figures as the “misty spray” produced in the contest of oaths (ukei) between and Susanoo.(44)
Ame no kurato no kami 天之闇戸神 and Kuni no kurato no kami 国之闇戸神
Norinaga takes the morpheme to 戸 as “place” (tokoro 処) and kura 闇 to mean “valley” (tani 谷).(45) Ogihara Asao holds kura to mean “dark” (kurai 闇い) and to 戸 to be “place”; he interprets the combination as “a dark place between the mountains,” namely a valley. He argues as well that the sequence “mountain→field→earth→fog→valley” represented by the deities in this passage reflects an outlook rooted in the everyday life of the people of antiquity.(46) Kurano Kenji argues that the character 闇 here expresses the graph's innate meaning of “dark,” but at the same time conveys the meaning valley; it thus carries a double significance.(47)
The character 闇 occurs a total of ten times in the Kojiki. It appears in the deity names Kura okami no kami 闇淤加美神, Kura mitsuha no kami 闇御津羽神, and Kura yamatsumi no kami 闇山津見神, and in the human names Saho no ōkuramitome 沙本之大闇見戸売 (in the section on Emperor Kaika 開化). It also occurs in the section where conceals herself in a rock cave (iwayato 石屋戸), in the sentences “the whole of Takamanohara became dark, and the land of Ashihara was entirely dark” and “I thought that my concealing would as a matter of course bring darkness throughout the heavenly plain and that the land of Ashihara would be entirely dark as well.(48)
Ōtomatoiko no kami 大戸或子神 and Ōtomatoime no kami 大戸或女神
The graph 或 (“a certain,” “or”) is a substitute for 惑 (“bewilder,” “go astray”). Norinaga argues that “fog arising from the earth makes things dark, and thus people lose their way.” The name thus expresses the act of losing one's way because of a fog hanging over the fields.(49) Nakamura Hirotoshi suggests that the lineage of divinities born from the mountain and field deities may represent the turbulent air arising from a dark ravine cloaked in fog.(50) Two other deity names with the element 大戸 occur in the Kojiki: Ōtohiwake no kami 大戸日別神 (see item “Ōtohiwake no kami” above) and Ōhehime no kami 大戸比売神, which appears later in the list of the descendants of no kami 大年神. The text states of the latter that “this is the hearth (竈) deity worshiped by the multitudes.”(51) As one reading of the graph 竈 is he, the graph to 戸 can be read in this passage as he also.
The graph 或 occurs twelve times in the Kojiki. Apart from instances where it means “or, either,” in the section on Emperor Keikō it is used with the meaning “to daze,” “to confuse” in the phrase “Then, [the deity of Mount Ibuki] brought about a great ice storm that dazed Yamatotakeru.”(52) Referring to Jiyun 集韻 (a Chinese phonetic dictionary compiled in 1039), Onoda Mitsuo notes that the character 或 could be used as a substitute in pronunciation and meaning for 惑 (“to daze,” “to confuse”). According to him, the use of the character 或 with the sense “to daze” in the earliest extant manuscripts of Kojiki can be seen as preserving the text's original form.(53)
The text includes a gloss stating that “the character 或 should be read matohi” (訓或云麻刀比下效此). Yamaguchi Yoshinori makes the following observation about this gloss: “A considerable number of examples can be found in the Man'yōshū where the graph 惑 is used to transcribe the words matou or matowasu, suggesting that these were standard readings of this character [and that a gloss would not be required to indicate such a reading]. ... The most reasonable way to understand this gloss is to see it as intended to indicate that the graph should be read in the intransitive form matoi and not the transitive form matowashi. How we ultimately interpret the meaning of this theonym will vary depending on how we interpret the character 戸 that precedes 或, but overall it seems more plausible to think of this deity as an entity that causes humans to be confused rather than one that is itself confused. This circumstance means, however, that there was a substantial risk that people would adopt the transitive reading matowashi. Quite likely it was for this reason that the compilers included a gloss indicating that here 或 should be read as matoi.”(54)
Tori no iwakusufune no kami 鳥之石楠舩神, Ama no torifune 天鳥舩
These divinities represent a deification of ships. Tori no iwakusufune conveys the meaning of a ship (fune) that sails as fast as a bird (tori) and is made of camphor wood (kusu) that is as hard as a rock (iwa). As for the relationship between birds and ships, in antiquity, it is said, people thought of heaven and sea as a continuum and hence associated birds flying in the sky with ships sailing on the sea.
The passage on the official post station (umaya 駅家) at Akashi 明石 included in an extant section (itsubun 逸文) of a variant of Harima no kuni fudoki 播磨国風土記 describes a ship made of a giant tree and named Hayatori 速鳥 (“fast bird”).(55) The Man'yōshū includes a poetic example of the superimposition of sky and sea in poem 1068: “Waves of clouds rise in the sky sea, and the moon vessel appears to paddle into the forest of stars and disappear” (ame no umi ni / kumo no namitachi / tsuki no fune / hoshi no hayashi ni kogikakuru miyu 天の海に雲の波たち月の船星の林に漕ぎ隠る見ゆ). According to Matsumae Takeshi, just as people worldwide envisioned the sun as being transported by a ship, they conceived the moon also as moving in a vessel.(56)
The main text of the fifth section of Nihon shoki's Age of the Gods volume states that when Izanaki and discarded Hiruko, the leech-child, they put him into a boat called Ama no iwakusufune 天磐櫲樟船. Further, the second variant of the same section states that immediately after having borne and no mikoto, Izanaki and bore Tori no iwakusufune 鳥磐櫲樟船, a boat in which they put Hiruko.(57) The theonym Ama no torifune 天鳥舩 does not appear in the Nihon shoki. In the Kojiki, when no kami 建御雷神 is subsequently dispatched to the land of Ashihara no nakatsukuni 葦原中国, he descends together with Ama no torifune.(58)
Ōgetsuhime no kami 大冝都比売神
The name appeared in the previous section narrating the birth of the land as an alternative name of the land of Awa. That should be considered different from the one named here, but this one should perhaps be identified with another deity of the same name who subsequently appears as a female deity killed by in the episode relating the origin of the five cereals (see section 20).
Hi no yagihayao no kami 火之夜芸速男神
Yagi 夜芸 perhaps can be understood as the same as yaki 焼き (“to burn”) and haya 速 (“swift”) as a fire's quick blazing momentum. Some commentators such as Nishimiya Kazutami thus take this divinity to be a male deity with a fire's quick blazing power.(59) Ogihara Asao proposes that the sequence “ship-food-fire” seen in this deity name and the previous two (Tori no iwakusufune and Ōgetsuhime) may reflect an association of ideas between foodstuffs (grains and drinking water) being transported in ships and then cooked on fire.(60)
Hi no kakabiko no kami 火之炫古神
This name means “fiery man who shines brightly.” Kaka 炫 conveys “shine brightly.” Today the verb meaning “to shine” is pronounced kagayaku, but until the Muromachi period the pronunciation was kakayaku. In its description of the village called Kaka 加賀 (Shimane 島根 district), the Izumo no kuni fudoki 出雲国風土記 states, “When [the maiden Kisakahime 支佐加比売] shot [an arrow] with a golden bow, a light shone brightly (hikari kakayakinu 光加加明也). Therefore, this is [called the village of] Kaka 加加).”(61) In Ancient Japanese, kaka was also pronounced kaku. This parallelism has led some commentators to argue that the kaku ya 加久矢 arrow that figures in the episode of “the treason of Ame no wakahiko 天の若日子” was a metallic arrow, or that the fruit of the perpetually blooming kaku 迦玖 tree that Emperor Suinin 垂仁 ordered Tajimamori 多遅摩毛理 to bring back from the eternal realm was the fruit of the Tachibana orange (Citrus tachibana), which shines like gold.(62) However, these inferences remain uncertain.
Hi no kagutsuchi no kami 火之迦具土神
Norinaga asserts that kagu 迦具 means kagayaku (“to shine”) and considers kaga, kage, and kagu all to be variants of the same word.(63) Kurano Kenji rejects Norinaga's view, noting that such an amalgamation would result in this deity name having the same meaning as the preceding Hi no kakabiko no kami, and that ancient texts contain no examples of the word kagu being used with the meaning kagayaku (“to shine”). Addressing the implications of the element kaguya in the name Kaguyahime カグヤ姫 (the heroine of the early Heian-period Taketori monogatari), he suggests that kagu here does not mean kagayaku but kanbashii 芳しい (“sweet-smelling”). He postulates that the kagu of the name carries this same meaning.(64) Nishimiya Kazutami takes the words kaga, kagi, kagu, and kage as meaning “a light (fire) that flickers (burns) dimly.” Since in the name Hi no kagutsuchi the element hi no 火之 (“a fire's”) precedes kagu, Nishimiya interprets it to mean “a fire that burns with a flickering light.” He holds that Hi no kakabiko can be distinguished from Hi no kagutsuchi in that the former conveys the spiritual power of illumination, whereas the latter conveys the power to burn.(65)
Endnotes
(1) Motoori Norinaga, Kojiki den, MNZ 9, p.204. For Koto takenoo, see Kojima et al., Nihon shoki, SNKBZ 2, pp.56–57n12. The editors read the name as Koto sakanoo.
(2) Nishimiya, Kojiki, pp.32n5, 332.
(3) Nishimiya, Kojiki, p.333.
(4) Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, p.38n13.
(5) See Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, pp.79–81.
(6) Taniguchi, “Ki no kuni no Ōyabiko no kami,” pp.53–58.
(7) Kurano, Kojiki zenchūshaku, vol.2, pp.171–72.
(8) Saigō, Kojiki chūshaku, vol.1, p.135.
(9) Nishimiya, Kojiki, pp.32n5, 332.
(10) Kōnoshi and Yamaguchi, Kojiki chūkai, vol.2, pp.143–45. They hold that mo here should be read as a kō-type syllable according to the ancient phonological distinctions, that is to say, as mo, not mö.
(11) See Arashi, “‘Kun un’ ni tsuite no ikkōsatsu,” pp.24–34.
(12) Saijō, Kojiki no mojihō, pp.22–26.
(13) This occurs in the section on Emperor Jinmu; see Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, pp.144–45.
(14) According to Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, the description hayasui no to, which occurs in the section on Emperor Jinmu, refers to the Akashi strait 明石海峡, between the islands of Honshu and Awaji. Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, p.142n7.
(15) Kanda and Ōta, Kojiki, vol.1, p.183n10.
(16) Nakajima, Kojiki hyōshaku, p.42.
(17) Watarai Nobuyoshi, Kojiki, vol.1, fol.5b.
(18) Motoori Norinaga, Kojiki den, MNZ 9, p.208.
(19) Nishimiya, Kojiki, p.33n11.
(20) Kōnoshi and Yamaguchi, Kojiki chūkai, vol.2, pp.146–47.
(21) Nishimiya, Kojiki, p.335.
(22) Motoori Norinaga, Kojiki den, MNZ 9, pp.209–10.
(23) Volumes 9 and 10 of the tenth-century Engi shiki (Procedures of the Engi Era) consist of a comprehensive list of shrines throughout the country (TN).
(24) Motoori Norinaga, Kojiki den, MNZ 9, p.210.
(25) Yamada, Kojiki jōkan kōgi, pp.279–82.
(26) Saigō, Kojiki chūshaku, vol.1, p.139.
(27) Nishimiya, Kojiki, p.336.
(28) Motoori Norinaga, Kojiki den, MNZ 9, pp.210–11.
(29) Kurano, Kojiki zenchūshaku, vol.2, p.178.
(30) Nakamura, Shinpan Kojiki, p.29n6.
(31) As in the episode in which a favorable wind blows when Empress Jingū traverses the sea towards the country of Silla. Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, pp.246–47.
(32) As in the episode where the wind carries the wails of Ame no wakahiko's widow to the heavens. Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, pp.102–103.
(33) Motoori Norinaga, Kojiki den, MNZ 9, p.211.
(34) Sakamoto, Ienaga et al., Nihon shoki, NKBT 67, p.86n2.
(35) Saigō, Kojiki chūshaku, vol.1, p.140.
(36) Kurano, Kojiki zenchūshaku, vol.2, p.179. Azuma uta are held to reflect the popular language of the eastern regions and include many colloquial words that differ from the language associated with the region (TN).
(37) Kurano, Kojiki zenchūshaku, vol.2, p.180.
(38) Kojima et al., Nihon shoki, SNKBZ 2, pp.34–35.
(39) Motoori Norinaga, Kojiki den, MNZ 9, p.213.
(40) Motoori Norinaga, Kojiki den, MNZ 9, pp.213–14.
(41) Kurano, Kojiki zenchūshaku, vol.2, p.182.
(42) Yamada, Kojiki jōkan kōgi, pp.298–99.
(43) Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, pp.92–93.
(44) Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, pp.58–59.
(45) Motoori Norinaga, Kojiki den, MNZ 9, p.214.
(46) Ogihara, Kojiki, Jōdai kayō, NKBZ 1, p.59n18.
(47) Kurano, Kojiki zenchūshaku, vol.2, pp.182–83.
(48) Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, pp.62–63, 66–67.
(49) Motoori Norinaga, Kojiki den, MNZ 9, p.214.
(50) Nakamura, Shinpan Kojiki, p.29n10.
(51) Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, pp.96–97.
(52) Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, pp.230–31.
(53) Onoda, Kojiki, p.70.
(54) Kōnoshi and Yamaguchi, Kojiki chūkai, vol.2, p.148.
(55) Uegaki, Fudoki, SNKBZ 5, p.492.
(56) Matsumae, Nihon shinwa no shin kenkyū, pp.57–75.
(57) Kojima et al., Nihon shoki, SNKBZ 2, pp.36–37, 38–39.
(58) Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, pp.106–107.
(59) Nishimiya, Kojiki, p.340.
(60) Ogihara, Kojiki, Jōdai kayō, NKBZ 1, p.59n22.
(61) Uegaki, Fudoki, SNKBZ 5, pp.162–63.
(62) Yamaguchi and Kōnoshi, Kojiki, SNKBZ 1, pp.102–103, 210–11.
(63) Motoori Norinaga, Kojiki den, MNZ 9, p.217.
(64) Kurano, Kojiki zenchūshaku, vol.2, pp.185–88.
(65) Nishimiya, Kojiki, p.341.