Shinto

By a natural transition imi is also used in the sense of sacred, holy. An imi-dono is a building in which purity is observed. Sacred (imi) axes and mattocks were used in some ceremonies. The Sun-Goddess was in her sacred weaving-hall when Susa no wo outraged her by flinging the hide of a horse into it. A modern derivative of imi, namely, imeimashī, is the nearest Japanese equivalent for "Hang it!" Compare the two meanings of the French sacré.

Mourning is also called imi, perhaps in the passive sense of something to be avoided in connexion with the service of the Gods.

The following story illustrates the danger of appearing before the Gods while in a state of impurity. In 463 the Mikado Yūriaku desired to see the form of the deity of Mimuro, and ordered one of his Ministers to fetch the God. The Minister brought him before the Mikado in the form of a great serpent. But the Mikado had not practised religious abstinence, and when the God showed his displeasure by rolling his thunder and showing his fiery eyeballs, the Mikado covered his eyes and fled into the interior of the palace.

Fire-drill. – In order to avoid the risk of using unclean fire in the great Shinto ceremonies, it was the custom at the shrines of Idzumo, Ise, Kasuga, Kamo, and perhaps other places, to make fire afresh on each occasion by means of the fire-drill. Even when not produced in this way, the sacrificial fire was called kiri-bi or drill-fire. A description of the Japanese form of the fire-drill will be found in a paper by Sir Ernest Satow, T. A. S. J., vol. vi. pt. ii. p. 223, and a good specimen from Idzumo itself may be seen in the Oxford University Museum. Dr. Tylor, in his 'Early History of Mankind,' has shown how universally this method of producing fire has been employed. It is a natural development of the savage plan of rubbing two sticks together, and no doubt originated independently in many places. It is therefore unnecessary to assume that the Japanese fire-drill was borrowed from India, where it is used for sacred purposes, or even from nearer China, where it is also known. It is frequently mentioned in the old Japanese traditions. The Kojiki says that the God Kushiyadama was appointed steward for the service of Ohonamochi (the God of Idzumo), in which capacity he recited prayers, made a fire-drill, and drilled out fire wherewith to cook the heavenly august banquet of fish for the deity.208 The priests of Idzumo have always used pure fire produced in this way, and pure water from a special well called the Ama no mana-wi (true well of Heaven). At the present day, when the office is transmitted from one high priest to his successor, they proceed to the "Shrine of the Great Precinct," where the ceremony of "divine fire" and "divine water" is held. The original fire-drill, given by Ama-terasu to Ame no hohi and preserved as the chief treasure of the shrine, is carried in a bag slung round the neck of the chief priest, who solemnly delivers it over to his successor. This ceremony is called hi-tsugi (fire-continuance). It is curious that the same term (hitsugi) is constantly used of the succession to the Mikado's throne, and that the delivery of the sun-mirror formed part of the ceremony used on his accession. Hi means either sun or fire.

The old fire-drill was worshipped every New Year's day at Idzumo at a festival called hi no matsuri (fire or sun-festival). A fire-drill was among the objects carried in procession at the Ohonihe, or coronation ceremony, and was used to produce the fire used for cooking the sacred rice offered on this occasion.

A modern Japanese writer, describing a festival celebrated at Gion in Kiôto on the last day of the year, says: "A big bonfire burns within the precincts of the shrine. It has been kindled from a year-old flame tended in a lamp under the eaves of the sacred building, and people come there to light a taper, which, burning before the household altar, shall be the beacon of domestic prosperity. At 2 a. m. the Festival of Pine Shavings takes place. A Shinto priest reads a ritual. His colleagues obtain a spark by the friction of two pieces of wood, and set fire to a quantity of shavings packed into a large iron lamp. These charred fragments of pine wood the worshippers receive and carry away as amulets against plague and pestilence."

A Japanese book written two centuries ago informs us that sticks resembling the wands used for offerings at the purification ceremony were part shaven and set up in bundles at the four corners of the Gion shrine on the last day of the year. The priests, after prayers were recited, broke up the bundles and set fire to the sticks, which the people then carried home to light their household fires with for the New Year.209 The object of this ceremony was to avert pestilence. There is here a striking resemblance to the Christian practice mentioned by M. D'Alviella: "The fire which the clergy, on the dawn of Easter, had struck from the flint and steel, served to rekindle the fires of individuals which had all been previously extinguished." The use of such fire to prevent pestilence may also be illustrated from European customs. The need-fire, made by striking flints or by the fire-drill, and used to rekindle all household fires, is one of numerous examples.210

Removal of Impurity. Lustration. – With every precaution, it is not always possible to avoid the pollution of dirt, disease, and sin. In order, therefore, to do away with the offence to the Gods arising from such impure conditions, various expedients are resorted to. The most natural and universal of these is washing or lustration.211 The Chinese notices of ancient Japan already quoted from inform us that the Japanese, after the ten days' mourning was concluded, all went into the river and washed. Hirata says that even at the present day, when mourning is over, people go to the bank of a stream or to the sea-beach and cleanse themselves. The mythical account of Izanagi's washing in the sea in order to remove the pollutions of Yomi has been given above. In a fourteenth-century work entitled Kemmu nenchiu giōgi, the ablutions of the Mikado previous to the ceremony of Shingonjiki are described with great minuteness; and if this preliminary is usually passed over in descriptions of Shinto ceremonies, the reason no doubt is that it was too well known to require special mention.

Clean garments were put on at the same time. Both the Japanese words for the purification ceremony show by their derivation that washing was originally its cardinal feature. Misogi means "body-sprinkling," and harahi is probably the same word as arahi, "wash."212 Penitence is not one of the old Shinto means of purification.

Salt. – In Japan, as in other countries, the antiseptic quality of salt has led to its religious use as a symbol for, and means of, purification. In a modern harahi ceremony the priest purifies the himorogi with salt water. At the entrances to theatres at the present day a saucer of salt is placed on a table in order to keep out evil influences. The kaname-ishi, or pivot stones of the earth,213 are covered with salt, which is then rubbed on a diseased part in order to obtain relief. "A housewife will not buy salt at night. When obtained in the daytime, a portion of it must first be thrown into the fire to ward off all danger, and especially to prevent quarrelling in the family. It is also used to scatter round the threshold and in the house after a funeral for purificatory purposes."214

Spitting. – Spitting, or the ejection from the mouth of any disagreeable substance, is naturally used by analogy as a symbol of dislike and disgust when other senses or feelings than that of taste are offended. The modern writer Fukuzawa tells us that when he left his home for the first time he spat in order to show his disgust with the narrowness and poverty of his life there.215 Spitting as a means of symbolical purification is a further corollary from the natural function of this act. In the Izanagi myth a God of the Spittle (Haya-tama no wo) is the result of that deity's spitting during the ceremony of divorce. The "spittle" deity is here associated with another God, who is styled a God of Purification. A commentator on this passage says that "at the present day spitting is essential in the purification ceremony." The ritual, however, does not mention it. Another writer adds that "this is the reason why at the present day people spit when they see anything impure." In the myth of Susa no wo spittle is mentioned along with the nails of the fingers and toes and nose-mucus among the materials for expiatory offerings. When Hohodemi is recommended to "spit thrice" before giving back the lost fish-hook to his brother, a magical effect is probably intended, such as to convey to him any impurity which may have become attached to his own person. Rinsing the mouth as a purifying ceremony before pronouncing an oath is mentioned in the Nihongi.216

Breathing on. – Ritual impurity may also be conveyed away by the breath. The origin of this practice is the sudden expulsion of air from the mouth when some offensive odour or vapour has found an entrance. This instinctive action217 is represented onomatopoetically in English by Pooh! Faugh! Pshaw! and in other languages by similar words, which have come to express not only physical repulsion, but dislike and contempt generally.

As a religious practice, breathing away impurity is exemplified by the custom of the Mikado breathing on certain aga mono (ransom-objects) of the harahi ceremony, thus communicating to them the pollutions of his own person. It is in order to avoid polluting the offerings by their breath that in some ceremonies the assistant priests cover their mouths with a white fillet and hold their arms outstretched. Even at the present day the stewards who prepare the Mikado's food cover their mouths with a white paper mask. The Nihongi states that when Izanagi washed in the sea in order to remove the pollutions of Yomi, he "blew out" and produced a number of deities, among which were the Great God of Remedy and the Great God of Offences. But the action of the Sun-Goddess and Susa no wo in producing children by crunching various objects and then "blowing away" the fragments, and of Izanagi's creation of the Wind-God by puffing away the mists, requires further explanation. These myths were probably the work of a person who had only a vague idea of the precise nature of the efficacy of this act, and regarded it simply as attended with some magical power. Spitting, primarily a mark of disgust, then practised with the object of purification, is finally done simply "for luck."

Ransom. – The notion of expiating ritual guilt by giving ransom (aga-mono) is familiar to the Japanese. The more intimately the objects offered are connected with the person of the offender, the more effectual is the sacrifice. Susa no wo is said to have expiated his offences by the loss of his hair and of his finger and toe nails. Among objects of ransom presented by the Mikado at purification ceremonies clothing is the most important. The Mikado was measured with great ceremony for suits of garments. Bamboo sticks were used for this purpose, which were broken to the required lengths. Hence the ceremony was called yo-ori (joint-break). The clothing when made was placed in a vase, and set before the Mikado by a Nakatomi woman. He breathed on it thrice, and then returned it to be taken away by the Urahe (diviners) and thrown into a stream. Other ransom offerings were human figures of iron, wood, or leather, and swords, which were similarly treated.

A special mi-aganahi no matsuri (august-ransom-celebration) was inaugurated in 814 for the sake of the Mikado, who was then ill. It was continued annually every sixth and twelfth month, the miko officiating.

In the thirteenth century the Onyōshi (diviners of the Chinese school) presented to the Mikado human figures in a box, inscribed with the place and name. The Mikado breathed on them, rubbed them on his person, and then returned them to the box.

The principle of ransom is illustrated in the present day by the custom of kata-shiro (form-token) or nade-mono (rub-thing). At a shrine of the Sea-Gods in Tokio a purification ceremony is performed twice a year. A few days before, the parishioners and other believers who wish to be purified go to the shrine and obtain from its official a katashiro, that is, a white paper cut into the shape of a garment. On this the person to be purified writes the year and month of his birth and his or her sex, and rubs it over his whole body. When he has thus transferred his impurities to the paper he returns it to the shrine. All the katashiro which are brought back are packed into two sheaths of reed and placed on a table of unbarked wood. They are then called harahi tsu mono, or things of purification. Finally they are put into a boat which is rowed out into the sea, and they are thrown away there.218 The bundles of reeds or rushes which are thrown into the sea at the shrine of Gion at Tsushima in Owari, to avert pestilence, probably represent human figures. It is said that wherever they float to, pestilence breaks out.

A more expeditious form of the same custom is when the katashiro or nademono are simply bought from the Kashima-fure, strolling vendors belonging to the shrine of Kashima, rubbed over the body, and cast into a stream. The object, however, is not so much the removal of ritual pollution as protection against disease. At the present day paper figures, called Ama-gatsu, are made to avert calamity from children. They are prepared before the birth of the child, and are worn up to the age of three. It is thought that evil spirits are diverted into these images from the infant. It is an obvious degradation of these practices when they are used merely to procure good luck instead of to remove impurities offensive to the Gods.

Chi no wa (Reed-ring). – In a modern form of the harahi ceremony there is a kind of purification which consists in passing three times through a large ring made of reeds (pp. 266, 267), holding in the hands hemp leaves and reeds, and repeating the verse: -

The sixth month'sSummer-passing-away-PurificationWho ever doethIs said to extend his lifeTo one thousand years.

Or, according to another version: -

To the end thatMy impure thoughtsMay be annihilated,These hemp leaves,Cutting with many a cut,I have performed purification.

The Shinto Miōmoku (1699) says that this ring represents the round of the universe. The same work adds that the object of the ceremony is to avert the dangers connected with the change of summer influences to those of autumn. But these explanations have a tincture of Chinese philosophy. The purification of the heart from evil thoughts is also a conception foreign to the older Shinto. The injunction to cleanse the inside of the cup and the platter belongs to a later stage of religious development.

The chi no wa is subsequently flung into the water.

Another means of purification was to shake a gohei over the person or thing to be purified.

The virtue of set forms of speech in absolving from uncleanness is fully recognized in Shinto, as will be seen in the next chapter.

There were various forms of purification at various places for consecrating a new shrine, or new utensils for it, or for reconsecrating a place which had become unclean.

CHAPTER XII.

CEREMONIAL

Ceremonies are combinations for some specific purpose of the elements of worship described in the two preceding chapters.219

The Yengishiki is the chief authority for the following account of some of the more important ceremonies of Shinto. I have also availed myself freely of the results of Sir E. Satow's researches contained in vols. vii. and ix. of the T. A. S. J.

Ohonihe or Daijowe. – The Yengishiki places the Ohonihe in a class by itself, as much the most solemn and important festival of the Shinto religion. Oho means great, and nihe food offering. It was substantially a more elaborate and sumptuous Nihi-name (new-tasting), or festival of first fruits, performed soon after the accession of a Mikado to the throne, and, like our coronation ceremony, constituting the formal religious sanction of his sovereignty.

A modern Japanese writer explains its object as follows:

"Anciently the Mikado received the auspicious grain from the Gods of Heaven, and therewithal nourished the people. In the Daijowe (or Ohonihe) the Mikado, when the grain became ripe, joined unto him the people in sincere veneration, and, as in duty bound, made return to the Gods of Heaven. He thereafter partook of it along with the nation. Thus the people learnt that the grain which they eat is no other than the seed bestowed on them by the Gods of Heaven."

In so far as the motive of the Japanese worshipper is concerned, this is, I think, nearer the mark than Mr. Frazer's: "Primitive peoples are, as a rule, reluctant to taste the annual first-fruits of any crop until some ceremony has been performed which makes it safe and pious for them to do so. The reason of this reluctance appears to be that the first-fruits either are the property of, or actually contain, a divinity." It is gratitude rather than fear which animates the Japanese.

The preparations for the Ohonihe began months in advance. The first step was to designate by divination two provinces from which the rice used in the ceremony was to be provided. These were called respectively yuki and suki. The most probable meaning of the former term is "religious purity." Suki is said to mean next or subsidiary. The object of thus duplicating the offerings was, no doubt, that if any unnoticed irregularity or impurity occurred in one case, the error might not vitiate the whole proceedings. Officers called nuki-ho no tsukahi (messengers of the plucked-up ears) were then selected by divination. One of these was called the Inami no Urabe, or rice-fruit diviner, the other the Negi no Urabe, or prayer-diviner. These officers on arriving at the yuki or suki district performed a purification ceremony in presence of the local officials and people. The site of the inami-dono, or rice-fruit-hall, was then chosen by divination and marked out at the four corners by twigs of the sacred evergreen tree (sakaki) hung with tree-fibre.220 It was 160 feet square. Somewhat more than an acre of rice-field was next set apart, the owner being compensated by the authorities. Here two sakaki twigs hung with tree-fibre were planted, and a guard of four labourers was set over it. Divination was also used for the selection of a local staff of religious functionaries. It consisted of one Saka-tsu-ko, that is, sake-child or brewer-maiden, an unmarried girl of good family, with several other girls as assistants, an Inami no kimi, or rice-fruit-lord,221 a charcoal-burner, wood-cutters, &c. A choir of twenty male and female singers was also provided. Then the site of the Inami-dono was propitiated by prayer and offerings. A pure mattock and sickle were used in clearing the ground for the buildings, which comprised a shrine to the eight Gods Mi-toshi no Kami (august harvest deity), Taka mi musubi, Niha-taka-hi no Kami (courtyard-high-sun-deity), Mi ketsu no Kami (food-Goddess), Ohomiyanome no Kami, Koto-shiro-nushi, Asuha, and Hahigi.222 A "rice-fruit-store," an office for the envoys from Kiōto, and lodgings for the rice-fruit-lord and for the brewer-maiden and her assistants were built of unbarked wood and grass. The surrounding fence was made of brushwood and the gates consisted of hurdles.

Offerings having been made to the eight Gods above mentioned, the diviners from Kiōto, accompanied by the local authorities and by the special staff of the inami-dono proceeded to the rice-field. The brewer-maiden plucked up the first ears. She was followed by the rice-fruit-lord and the people. Songs were sung during the operation. The first four sheaves were reserved for the offering of boiled rice to be made by the Mikado to the Gods. When all the rice was pulled up, it was carried in procession to the capital, with the four reserved sheaves in the place of honour and the rice-fruit-lord acting as guide. It arrived at Kiōto in the last decade of the ninth month.

Meanwhile a general purification of the whole country had been performed, and to prevent all possibility of error, repeated at a short interval. As soon as this formality was completed, offerings of cloth and of material for wearing apparel were sent to all the Gods. The following norito223 was read on this occasion: —

"He says: 'Hearken! all ye assembled kannushi and hafuri. I humbly declare in the presence of the sovran Gods, who, according to the command of the dear divine ancestor and dear divine ancestress who dwell in the Plain of High Heaven, bear sway as Heavenly Shrines and Earthly Shrines.'

"He says: 'To the end that on the middle day of the Hare of the 11th month of this year, the Sovran Grandchild224 may partake of the Great Food (ohonihe) as Heavenly Food, as Long Food, as Distant Food, I pray that ye sovran Gods will jointly undertake to bless his reign, to be firm and enduring, and give it happiness as a prosperous reign. Therefore, on behalf of the Sovran Grandchild, who will rule peacefully and serenely for one thousand autumns and five hundred autumns with festive ruddy countenance, do I set forth these fair offerings, namely, bright cloth, shining cloth, soft cloth, and rough cloth.

"'Hearken! all of you to this fulfilling of praises as the morning sun rises in glory.'

"He says: 'More especially would I enjoin on the kannushi and hafuri with all due ceremony to receive, take up, and present the offerings purely provided by the Imbe, hanging stout straps on weak shoulders.'"

A special embassy was sent to Ise, consisting of one Prince, one Nakatomi, one Imbe, and one Urabe.

In the third decade of the tenth month the Mikado went in state to a river-bank near Kioto and performed a ceremonial ablution (misogi).

For one month before the Ohonihe lesser abstinence (ara-imi) was enjoined, and for three days greater abstinence (ma-imi). Buddhist ceremonies, and the eating of impure food, were interdicted throughout the five home provinces. Purity of language225 was also necessary. During the three days of ma-imi, no official was allowed to do any work except that connected with the ceremony.

Special buildings were erected for the Ohonihe at Kitano, a suburb of Kiōto. After a purification ceremony, a site 480 feet square was marked out by twigs of sakaki hung with tree-fibre. On the arrival of the yuki and suki rice from the provinces, this site was propitiated. The Brewer-maidens then with a pure mattock turned the first sod and dug the holes for the four corner posts. The Urabe went to the mountain where the timber was to be cut, and worshipped the God of the mountain. The Brewer-maiden struck the first blow with a pure axe, and wood-cutters completed the work. Similar formalities were practised in cutting the grass for thatch and in digging wells.

The sacred enclosure (yu-niha) was divided into two sections, an inner and an outer, and contained numerous buildings, such as shrines to the eight Gods already mentioned, storehouses for the rice and other necessaries, lodgings for the Brewer-maidens and their assistants, kitchens, &c.

The site of the principal building, or Ohonihe no Miya, measured 214 feet by 150 feet. It was erected after the others and was in duplicate, one being for the yuki, the other for the suki. Each was forty feet long by sixteen feet wide. The roof-tree ran north and south. Undressed wood was used for the erection, which was covered by a roof of thatch. The floor was strewn with bundles of grass over which bamboo mats were placed. In the centre of the sleeping-chamber (the sanctum) several white tatami (thick mats) were laid down and upon them the Saka-makura, which was a cushion three feet broad by four feet long, for the use of the God or Gods.226 This was called the "Deity seat." The Mikado's seat was placed to the south of it.