[Sect. XLV.—Emperor Jim-mu (Part II.—The Cross-sword Sent Down from Heaven).]
So when His Augustness Kamu-yamato-ihare-biko made a progress round from thence, and reached the village of Kumanu,[1] a large bear came out of the mountain,[2] and forthwith disappeared into it. Then His Augustness Kamu-yamato-ihare-biko suddenly fainted away, and his august army likewise all fainted and fell prostrate. At this time Takakurazhi[3] (this is the name of a person)[4] of Kumanu came bearing one cross-sword[5] to the place where the august child of the Deity was lying prostrate, and presented it to him, upon which the august child of the Heavenly Deity forthwith rose up, and said: “How long I have slept!” So when he accepted the cross-sword, the savage Deities of the mountains of Kumanu all spontaneously fell cut down.[6] Then the whole august army, that had been bewildered and had fallen prostrate, awoke and rose up. So the august child of the Heavenly Deity asked him how
- ↑ This name signifies “bear-moor.” The name is now generally pronounced Kumano.
- ↑ Motowori ingenously conjectures the text of this passage 大熊髪出, which makes no sense, to be a copyist’s error for 大熊從山出, which gives the meaning rendered in the translation. The running hand form of 從山 might well be mistaken for that of the single character 髪. The editor of 1687 is less happy in his conjecture that the character intended may be 鰐, “crocodile.” This incident of the bear was thought important enough by the compiler for a mention of it to be inserted in his Preface. (See p. 5.)
- ↑ The signification of this name is not clear. Taking zhi as an apocopated nigori’ed form of the Postposition shita, we might suppose taka-kura-zhi to signify “under the high store-house” in allusion to the legend which forms the subject of this Section. There are, however, reasons for doubting this etymology (see Motowori’s Commentary, Vol. XVIII, p. 48). In the Preface we have simply Takakura, without the final syllable zhi; but the omission of zhi in that place is almost certainly to be accounted for on euphonic grounds.
- ↑ This note to the original is believed to be an interpolation.
- ↑ 横力. Motowori avers that the character 横, “cross,” has no importance, and should be neglected in reading. But this assertion seems gratuitous in the face of, for instance, such a Chinese location as 横磨劍. We may be justified, perhaps, in paying no special heed to the Numeral “one” in this place, which Motowori neglects in his kana reading of the text.
- ↑ I.e., they fell down cut to pieces before they had even been cut at with this wonderful sword.
