112
“Ko-ji-ki,” or Records of Ancient Matters.
[Vol. XV.
drous Augustness[1] and His Augustness Heaven’s-Round-Eyes,[2] both[3] taking on their backs the Heavenly rock-quivers,[4] taking at their side the large mallet-headed swords,[5] taking in their hands the Heavenly vegetable-wax-tree bow,[6] and clasping under their arms the Heavenly true deer-arrows, stood in his august van in respectful attendance. So His Heavenly-Great-Wondrous-Augustness (is the ancestor of the Ohotomo Chieftains);[7] His Augustness Heaven’s-Round-Eyes (is the ancestor of the Kume Lords).[8] Thereupon he said: “This place is opposite to the land of Kara.[9] One comes straight across to the august Cape of
- ↑ Ame-no-oshi-hi no mikoto. The interpretation is only conjectural.
- ↑ Ama-tsu-kume no mikoto. The traditional origin of this curious name will be found below in the third and forth Songs of Sect. LI (see Notes 21 and 22 to to that Section), where the “sharp slit eyes” of this worthy are specially referred to. But Moribe seems to prove that kume is in reality not a personal name at all, but simply the old term for “army,” through a misconception of the original import of which has arisen the idea that Oho-kume and Oho-tomo were two distinct personages. The elaborate and interesting note on this subject in his “Examination of Difficult Words,” Vol. II, pp. 46–55 is well worth consulting. The only point in which the present writer differs from him is with regard to the etymology of the word kume, which Moribe connects with kumi, “a company,” and kumu, “a bravo,” whereas in the opinion of the former it is probably nothing more nor less than an ancient mispronunciation of the Chinese word chün (軍) modern Japanese gun, “army,” “troops.”
- ↑ The Auxiliary Numeral here used is that properly denoting human beings, not deities,—futari (二人), instead of futa-hashira (二柱).
- ↑ In Japanese ama no iha-yugi.
- ↑ This is the generally received interpretation of the obscure original term kabu-tsuchi (or kabu-tsutsui) no tachi, the parallel term ishi-tsutsui being understood to mean “a mallet-headed sword made of stone.” (Both names appear below in the Song at the end of Sect. XLVIII, Note 4). Moribe, however, in his “Idzu no Chi-waki,” rejecting the opinion that any part of the swords were made of stone, explains kabu-tsutsui in the sense of “broad-tempered” and ishi-tsutsui in that of “hard-tempered.”
- ↑ For the bows and arrows here mentioned see Sect. XXXI. Note 5.
- ↑ Ohotomo no murazhi, a common “gentile name” down to historical times. Oho-tomo means “numerous companies” or “large tribe,” in allusion, as Moribe supposes, to the force of which the personage here mentioned was the general.
- ↑ Kume no atahe. Conf. Note 7.
- ↑ Or Kan according to the Sinico-Japanese reading. We might render it in English by Korea. The Chinese character is 韓.
