Matsuo Basho footsteps

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Matsuo Basho　松尾芭蕉　

Matsuo Basho visited many places of interest since the Heian period, especially on his travels written down in
Oku no Hosomichi.

. Matsuo Basho　松尾芭蕉 .
- Introduction -

Trying to collect them here.
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Oku no Hosomichi - 奥の細道 - おくのほそ道


. - - - Station 10 - Shirakawa no Seki 白川の関 - - - .
Waka by Fujiwara no Suemichi　藤原 季通　(Heian period, around 1158)


. - - - Station 13 - Shinobu no Sato 忍ぶの里 / 信夫 - - - .
Three seemingly unconnected objects - a large, moss-dappled rock, the Michinoku (Tohoku) kimono design of mottled ferns made famous in the Heian period (794 - 1185), and an impossible love story


. - - - Station 16 - Kasajima 笠嶋 - - - .
in memory of Toono chuujoo Sanekata 藤中将実方 Tono Chujo Sanekata
Fujiwara no Sanekata 藤原実方



. - - - Station 20 - Shiogama 塩釜 - - - .
Sue no matsuyama 末の松山
This is also an Uta makura. Among the Azuma Uta of the Kokinshu is: -- Another poem from Goshuishu by Kiyohara no Motosuke (One of the 36 poetic geniuses of the Heian period, he was also a skilled player of the koto. He was editor of the Gosen Waka Shu ((909-990)): --
Izumi no Saburo　泉三郎
Izumi no Saburo was the third son of Fujiwara no Hidehira (?-1187) who built the powerful Fujiwara presence at Hiraizumi in the late Heian period.
and Saigyo 　西行法師　
visiting the grave of Fujiwara Sanekata, a Heian period poet who was exiled in the North:



. - - - Station 23 - Hiraizumi 平泉　 - - - .
It was the home of the Hiraizumi Fujiwaras for about 100 years in the late Heian era.
The Golden Hall 光堂 at Chūson-ji 中尊寺 Chuson-Ji.



. - - - Station 25 - Obanazawa 尾花沢 - - - .
鈴木清風 Suzuki Seifu / (1651 - 1721) . Suzuki Michiyuu 鈴木道祐
残月軒清風
He was a dealer in safflowers (benibana), a speciality of the region. Their extract was an important ingredient in cosmetics and for dying cloths since the Heian period.



. - - - Station 37 - Natadera 那谷寺
and Yamanaka Onsen 山中温泉 Yamanaka Hot Spring - - - .
The name was changed to Natadera by the emperor Kazan, who ruled during the Heian Period. In his later years, Kazan often stayed at the temple, and designed the gardens to resemble the Fudaraku mountain of the Pure Land on which lives Kannon Bosatsu.


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. Dōsojin 道祖神 Dosojin - Roadside Gods .
In the famous “Narrow Road to the North”Oku no Hosomichi　奥の細道, Matsuo Basho writes about the stone statues of the wayside gods.



. Genji Monogatari 源氏物語　Tale of Genji .
Songs in the Garden: Poetry and Gardens in Ancient Japan



. hanagokoro, hana gokoro 花心 "flower-heart" .
that expression seems already been used in Heian poetry ... the heart of a lady in love, but also the heart changing as fast as cherry blossoms fall ...



. - hanami 花見 cherry-blossom viewing - .
Hanagaki Jinja 花垣神社 Hanagaki Shrine in Yono, Mie prefecture.
One day, Shoshi, a princess in the Heian period (794-1192) went through Hanagaki-jinja shrine.
一里はみな花守の子孫かや　
hitozato wa mina hanamori no shison kana
- - - Written in 1690 元禄3年春 at Hanagaki no sho 花垣の庄 in Mie, Yono. Basho age 47.




. - hototogisu 郭公 / ほととぎす - .
This is one of the classical season words, used in the poetry of the Heian period.
Basho sometimes uses the word and adds a new twist, closer to the normal life of the normal people of his Edo.
Basho uses the Chinese characters 郭公, which was common during the Heian period.



. - kami 神 Shinto deities - .
我も神のひさうや仰ぐ梅の花
ware mo kami no hisoo ya aogu ume no hana
- - - Kanke Kooshuu 菅家後集 Kanke Kōshū from the Heian period, about 903,
with poems of Sugawara no Michizane 菅原道真.



. Kigo and kidai 松尾芭蕉と季語（季題）- Jahreszeitenworte -.
Seasonal references were very important in the poetry of Japan since the Heian period. Manuals with collections of seasonal words grew as composing poetry moved on from the aristocracy to the townspeople of the Edo period.



. kiku 菊 and the Chrysanthemum Festival .
"When I left Nara it was time for the Chrysanthemums, but now as I reach Naniwa, it is time for the beginning of the autum moon."
During the night of yoizukiyo, on the second or third day of the full moon cycle, the sickle moon is out only for a short while in the early evening. Thus it was well loved by poets since the Heian period.
Basho had left Nara on the 9th day of the 9th lunar month (the Chrysanthemum Festival) (Now about October 23 / 24).
He passed the Kuragoshi Pass and the Ikoma Mountain range and arrived in Naniwa/Osaka at the Ikutama shrine 生玉神社　on the 10th day and the roads where still full of the fragrance of chrysanthemums.



. - Kiso　木曽 / 木曾 in Nagano - .
桟やまづ思ひ出づ馬迎へ
The Hanging Bridge at Kiso 木曽の架け橋　/ 木曽のかけはし　Kiso no Kakehashi
kakehashi ya mazu omoi-izu uma mukae
- - - This is an old custom since the Heian period, on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month.
An official from the court comes to pick up the horses (mukae, mukai) at Kirihara, from the various horse breeding regions. He comes up to this bridge to meet the horses and has them handed over to bring to the court.



. - Nara 奈良 ancient capital of Japan - .
There is also a waka by Ise no Oosuke - Taifu 伊勢大輔 a poet of the Heian period.


. - Nenbutsu 念仏 Amida Prayer - .
Basho wrote a haiku at the grave of
Minamoto no Tomonaga (源朝長) (1144–1160), a Minamoto clan samurai of the late Heian period.



. Ochazuke and Naracha 奈良茶 .
The origins of Ochazuke is still unknown. However, in Heian era, there was a meal called "yuzuke", which is a bowl of rice and hot water poured on top.


. Ono no Komachi 小野 小町 .
. meigetsu ya umi ni mukaeba nana Komachi .



. Saigyo 芭蕉と西行法師 Basho and Saigyo .


. Sayo no Nakayama 佐夜の中山 and Kinome tooge 木目峠 / 木ノ芽峠 Kinome Toge pass .
This pass had been crossed by many famous people since the Heian period., for example
西行 Saigyo, Taira no Koremori 平惟盛、Kiso Yoshinaka 木曽義仲、Shinran, 親鸞、Dogen 道元, Nitta Yoshisada 新田義貞, monk Rennyo 蓮如, the Asakura clan 朝倉一族, Oda Nobunaga 織田信長, Toyotomi Hideyoshi 豊臣秀吉 and many more.



. Taira no Atsumori 平敦盛 (1169 - 1184) .
Atsumori was famous for his flute playing. And a haiku by Matsuo Basho.




source :　andante.blog92.fc2
Komachi Tanabata Festival at Yuzawa Town

. - Tanabata 七夕 Star Festival - .
It has been celebrated since the Heian period in Japan, with the wish that young girls would become proficient in weaving and keeping a good home.



. - ume ga ka 梅が香 plum fragrance - .
ume, sometimes spelled mume　むめ, as it was called in the Heian period.
Basho makes use of both spellings.
Prunus mume, a kind of apricot tree.



. - utabukuro, uta fukuro 歌袋 song-pouch, bag to keep poetry - .
utabukuro are made of strong Japanese paper (danshi 檀紙), or cotton or other material.
Often called michinokugami 陸奥紙 because it was produced in Michinoku area (part of modern day Tohoku 東北) during the Heian period.




. - Yamashiro 山城 and Ide 井出 / 井手 - .
“Yamashiro” was formerly written with the characters meaning “mountain” (山) and “area” (代); in the 7th century, there were things built listing the name of the province with the characters for “mountain” and “ridge”/“back” (山背国). On 4 December 794 (8 Shimotsuki, 13th year of Enryaku), at the time of the christening of Heian-kyō, because of the resultant scenic beauty when Emperor Kammu made his castle utilizing the natural surroundings, the shiro was finally changed to “castle” (山城国).



. - yume 夢　dream - .
夢よりも現の鷹ぞ頼もしき　
yume yori mo utsutsu no taka zo tanomoshiki
- - - Basho is writing with respect to a waka in the Kokinshu poetry almanach of the Heian period.



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- quote -
Kazan Tennō 花山天皇 Kazan Tenno, Emperor Kazan
(January 26, 967 – February 8, 1008) was the 65th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.
Kazan's reign spanned the years from 984 through 986.
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !



月岡芳年 Tsukioka Yoshitoshi 「花山寺の月」


- quote -
In 984 Enyu Tenno abdicated in favor of Kazan Tenno and the next heir designated was one of Kaneie's grandsons. Kazan was the grandson of the deceased Fujiwara Koretada. Yoritada continued as regent. The change of ruler benefited Koretada's son Yoshichika, who now joined the rapid-promotion track. It may be easily seen that political struggles between the Fujiwara and others had all but ceased and now the competition was among the steadily increasing number of active Fujiwara lineages.

Kazan Tenno's favorite wife died in an advanced stage of pregnancy in 986 and the emperor became distraught and started to talk of abdicating and becoming a Buddhist monk.
. Japanese History / The Middle Heian Period .

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. Reference - Matsuo Basho Archives .

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Tsuta Onsen Aomori

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Tsuta Onsen 蔦温泉　Tsuta Hot Spring - Aomori
- - - - - 久安の湯 Kyuan no Yu

Aomori Prefecture, Towada, Oirase 奥瀬蔦野湯1


CLICK for more photos !

Tsuta Hot Spring is a lone "secret hot spring" in the 奥瀬 Oirase woods of Aomori.

It dates back to the time of
kyuuan 久安 Kyuan, from 1145.7.22 - 1151.1.26 in the Heian period.
The time of Emperor Konoe 近衛天皇.


- quote -
Tsuta Onsen is nestled deep in the southern part of the Hakkoda Mountains in Aomori Prefecture, embraced in the stillness of a Japanese beech forest.
Here, time in the forest passes slowly and serenely.
Time for a beech seedling to grow into a tree and for the tree to finally return to the earth.
Time for the rich forest to offer a rich source of water.
Time for the wet marshland to turn into a soft forest bed.
One minute in the city passes differently from a minute in a hot spring inn in the forest.
For now, turn away from the rush of daily life and enjoy the slow passage of time in the forest.

- Extensive English HP of the Hot Spring:
- source : tsutaonsen.com/en -

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Already known in the year Kyuan 3, 久安３年 - 1147
Mentioned in the literature as a small hut where people come to heal their illness.
It is "a place where tsuta grows in abundance.

木に絡むツタ植物が豊富にあったこと
- source : tsutaonsen.com/history -

久安の湯 Kyuan no Yu
This bath was renovated in 1990. In the olden days, the large baths at Japanese inns were used by both men and women at the same time. Now men and women take a bath at different times. This bath is popular for its cozy and traditional atmosphere. In the wash area is a tank in which freshwater fish of the area swim.

In the morning and after 9 in the evening for women.
From 13:00 to 20:00 by men.



source :　m-tune.co.jp/blog/porsche-paranoia

crane at the gables of the main entry - 蔦温泉 - 鶴

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Emperor Konoe 近衛天皇 Konoe Tennō
(June 16, 1139 – August 22, 1155)
was the 76th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.

Konoe's reign spanned the years from 1142 through 1155.
Konoe was named heir shortly after he was born in 1139; and he was proclaimed emperor at the age of 3.



During Konoe's reign, the Enshō (Superiority of Duration) Temple was built.
After this, successive emperors no longer build Imperial-prayer temples.

Emperor Konoe's reign lasted for 13 years: 2 years in the nengō Kōji, 1 year in Ten'yō, 6 years in Kyūan, 3 years in Ninpei, and 2 years in Kyūju.

The years of Konoe's reign are more specifically identified by more than one era name or nengō.

Kōji (1142–1144)
Ten'yō (1144–1145)
Kyūan (1145–1151)
Ninpei (1151–1154)
Kyūju (1154–1156)


- - - Ten'yō gannen or Ten'yō 1,

Kyūan 1, in the 8th month (1145): The mother of former Emperor Sutoku (also known as "Taikenmon-In") died.

Kyūan 2, in the 2nd month (1146), Konoe visited Toba-no-Hōō.
Kyūan 2, in the 12th month (1146), Konoe joined in a celebration honoring Sesshō Fujiwara no Tadamichi (the regent) on his 58th birthday.[6] This event was important because, in each sexagenary cycle, the first and the fifty-eighth years were considered to be auspicious according to Chinese astrological principles.

Kyūan 4, in the 6th month (1148: The imperial palace was consumed by flames.

Kyūan 6, in the 1st month (1150): Konoe assumed the role of a mature adult; and he married Fujiwara-no Tokoku, who had been raised by Sadaijin Yorinaga. Tokoku was the daughter of Dainagon Taira-no Kiyomori. This bride became Kōkōgō (皇皇后) or first empress.

Kyūan 6, in the 3rd month (1150): Konoe married again, this time to "Feï-si," who had been raised by Sesshō Fujiwara-no Tadamichi. She was the daughter of Dainagon Fujiwara-no Koremichi. This bride became Chūgū (中宮) or second empress. Konoe was so very much enamoured of this second wife that he neglected his first wife, which caused discord in the kugyō, especially between Tadamichi and Yorinaga.
Kyūan 6, in the 12th month (1150): Sesshō Minamoto-no Tadamichi, resigns his position and is named Daijō Daijin. In this same month, Minamoto-no Yoshikane became head of the Ashikaga clan in Shimotsuke province.

- - - Ninpei 1

- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !

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. Eight famous old Hot Springs 八古湯 since the Heian Period .
- Introduction -




. tsuta 蔦 (つた) Japanese ivy .
Parthenocissus tricuspidata

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Dosojin, Dososhin Legends

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Doosojin 道祖神 Dosojin, Dososhin - Legends about Wayside Gods

Chimatagami 岐神, the Gods of the Crossroads, is said to represent the legendary gods of Old Japan, especially
Sarutahiko no Mikoto 猿田彦神 and his fair maiden,
Ame no Uzume no Mikoto 天鈿女 Ama no Uzume (O-Kame san).

Dosojin matsuri 道祖神祭り Dosojin Festival
Dondo-yaki, which is the burning of the New Year's gate decorations on Lunar New Year, is held in many parts of Japan.
In some regions it was celebrated on the 8th day of the 2nd lunar month.
It has fairly long history and is recorded as a courtly event at the imperial court by the nobility in Heian period.
Eating dumplings roasted in the fire will keep people healthy during the coming year.
Dosojin are also called
"Dorokujin 道禄神," "Sainokami 塞の神," or "Saenokami塞の神."
They are respected as a god which prevents disaster and is enshrined in the stone statues at the boundary between two villages or at a street corner.




In the famous “Narrow Road to the North”Oku no Hosomichi　奥の細道, Matsuo Basho writes about the stone statues of the wayside gods.

. Dōsojin 道祖神 Dosojin - Roadside Gods .
- Introduction -




. . . a man and a woman snuggled against each other, who are wearing the clothes of Heian period . . .
. Dooso Jinja 道祖神社 Doso Jinja "Shrine for the Wayside Deities".
Kyoto

. Sarutahiko densetsu 猿田彦伝説 Sarutahiko Legends .

. Ame no Uzume no Mikoto 天鈿女 Ama no Uzume .
お多福 O-Tafuku、お福 O-Fuku - Okame, Okamesan おかめ【お亀／阿亀】
is another name for O-Tafuku.

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Toono chuujoo Sanekata 藤中将実方 Tono Chujo Sanekata
Fujiwara no Sanekata 藤原実方
(? - 998)

A waka poet of the Heian period, during the reign of the Emperor Ichijo (986-1011).
He has one poem in the collection "100 poems from 100 poets".
Ogura Hyakunin Isshu Poems 小倉百人一首



Legend knows that he was quite a quarreler, and after an argument in the palace with Fujiwara Yukinari he was ordered in exile, as Governor of Mutsu province　陸奥の国.
One day he passed a small shrine of the wayside deities Dosojin 道祖神 of Kasajima without getting off his horse. As divine punishment he was thrown from his horse and died.

. Fujiwara no Sanekata Ason 藤原実方朝臣 .
(? - 998)

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- ABC list of the prefectures -


................................................ Aichi 愛知県 　...................................................
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北設楽郡 Kita-Shitara district 振草村 Furikusa village

. doorokugami どうろく神 Dorokugami, Doroku no Kami .
This Wayside Deity has only one leg.




................................................ Iwate 岩手県　...................................................
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平泉町 Hiraizumi

Dorokujin 道祖神

At the shrine for the Dosojin, 道祖神の宮, three is a huge stone in the form of a male symbol 男根様 Dankon Sama, about 50 cm high and 80 cm in diameter. But about 10 years ago, this stone was lost. Then a couple suddenly got a high fever and called out to "dig it out". They found the Dosojin stone at the river Koromogawa 衣川 and it was brought back.
Now people come here to pray for good health.




................................................ Nagano 長野県 　...................................................
.......................................................................
東御市 Tomi city

. Getting pregnant after a prayer .




................................................ Yamanashi 山梨県　...................................................
.......................................................................
Nagano 三富村 Mitomi village

There is a black boulder seen as shintai 神体 the Dosojin deity itself. This stone is always warm.

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Nagano 丹波山村 Tabayama village

Doosojinba 道祖神場 Place for the Dosojin

In many parts of this region the Dondoyaki is celebrated on the place before the Dosojin statues.



On the 14th and 15th day of the first lunar month (now January) the villagers come together to grill mayudama dango マユダマの団子 rice dumplings in the form of silk cocoons and eat them when they are just a bit grilled. This prevents disease of the teeth and keeps villagers healthy during the year.
The ash from the fire is taken home and spread around the house to purify it and prevent poisonous snakes, illness and fire from reaching the house.

. silk　絹 kinu and related legends .

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source :　aotodaidai.exblog.jp

seppun 接吻道祖神 kissing Dosojin

The character 祖 indicates a penis in ancient Chinese characters, and the Dosojin are part of the the old fertility cults.

And the round shape of the surrounding stone of many statues is maybe a symbol of a placenta ?

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- reference : nichibun yokai database -
113 entries to collect

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. Dōsojin 道祖神 Dosojin - Roadside Gods .

. Japanese Legends - 伝説　民話　昔話 – ABC-List .

. minwa 民話　folktales / densetsu 伝説　Japanese Legends .
- Introduction -

- Yookai 妖怪 Yokai Monsters of Japan -
- Introduction -

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NARA - ABC Contents

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. ABC List of Contents - Heian .
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ABC List of Contents - Nara Period (710 to 794) 　奈良時代

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. Books about the Nara Period .

five-volume translation of Shoku Nihongi　続日本紀, 749-770
by Ross Bender

The Shoku Nihongi is an imperially commissioned Japanese history text. Completed in 797.

Volume 1　- The Edicts of the Last Empress, 749-770

Volume 2 - Nara Japan, 749-757:
A Study and Translation of Shoku Nihongi, Tenpyō Shōhō 1 – Tenpyō Hōji 1
... translation iof this segment of Shoku Nihongi, the official court chronicle of Japan’s eighth century. It includes Emperor Shōmu’s declaration before Rushana Buddha at Tōdaiji, Shōmu’s abdication and the accession of Empress Kōken, Hachiman’s entry into Nara, the death of Emperor Shōmu, and the suppression of the Tachibana Naramaro conspiracy.
at amazon com

Nara Japan, 764-766:
A Study and Translation of Shoku Nihongi, Tenpyō Hōji 8 -- Tenpyō Jingo 2

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. Persons of the Nara Period .

奈良時代の人物一覧 - List of the Emperors and Empresses

. 元明天皇……第43代天皇。Empress Genmei (661 - 721) .
元正天皇……第44代天皇。Empress Gensho (680 - 748)

聖武天皇……第45代天皇。Emperor Shomu (701 - 756)
- - - Moat Discovered in Japan Could Be Ancient Burial Mound (with portrait of Shomu)
- - - - source : www.newhistorian.com -

孝謙天皇……第46代天皇。Empress Koken (718 - 770) - first time
淳仁天皇……第47代天皇。Emperor Junnin (773 - 765)
称徳天皇……第48代天皇。Empress Koken (718 - 770) - second time
光仁天皇……第49代天皇。Emperor Konin (709 - 782)
桓武天皇……第50代天皇。Emperor Kanmu (737 - 806)
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More
- source : wikipedia -

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. Shrines of the Nara Period　神社 .

. Kasuga Taisha 春日大社 .


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. Temples of the Nara Period　寺 .

. Toodaiji 東大寺 Todai-Ji and the Daibutsu 大仏 . *


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- - - - - Keywords, terms, specialities - - - - -


. janjanbi じゃんじゃん火 / ジャンジャン火 Janjan fire legends .

. koma 独楽 spinning tops .
introduced in the Nara period via Goguryeo 高句麗 Goryeo (called Koma in Japanese).

. mingei　民芸 Nara Folk Art - 奈良県 .

. Persia and Nara 奈良時代 / ペルシャ人役人存在 .
New findings in October 2016

. Shoosooin, Shōsōin 正倉院 Shoso-In treasure house .
belongs to Tōdai-ji, Nara.


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. Legends and Tales from Japan　伝説 - Introduction .

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takenoko bamboo shoot legends

- BACK to the Daruma Museum -
. Japanese legends and tales 伝説　民話 昔話 - Introduction .
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Legends about bamboo shoots 筍 / 竹の子 伝説　takenoko densetsu

. Edo no takenoko 江戸の筍 bamboo shoots in Edo .
- Introduction -

The most famous legend about bamboo is



Taketori Monogatari 竹取物語 The Tale of the Bamboo cutter
also known as
. Kaguya Hime かぐや姫 Princess Kaguya, Shining Princess .

There is a famous picture scroll about it


CLICK for more photos !

Taketori Monogatari Emaki 竹取物語絵巻


- quote -
... a 10th-century Japanese folktale. It is considered the oldest extant Japanese prose narrative.
Taketori no Okina 竹取翁 The Old Man who Harvests Bamboo
... after she went back to Heaven
The parents became very sad and were soon put to bed sick. The officer returned to the Emperor with the items Kaguya-hime had given him as her last mortal act, and reported what had happened. The Emperor read her letter and was overcome with sadness. He asked his servants, "Which mountain is the closest place to Heaven?", to which one replied the Great Mountain of Suruga Province. The Emperor ordered his men to take the letter to the summit of the mountain and burn it, in the hope that his message would reach the distant princess.
The men were also commanded to burn the elixir of immortality since the Emperor did not wish to live forever without being able to see her. The legend has it that the word immortality (不死 fushi, or fuji) became the name of the mountain, Mount Fuji. It is also said that the kanji for the mountain, 富士山 (literally "Mountain Abounding with Warriors"), are derived from the Emperor's army ascending the slopes of the mountain to carry out his order. It is said that the smoke from the burning still rises to this day. (In the past, Mount Fuji was much more volcanically active.)
The protagonist Taketori no Okina,
given by name, appears in the earlier poetry collection Man'yōshū (c. 759; poem #3791). In it, he meets a group of women to whom he recites a poem. This indicates that there previously existed an image or tale revolving around a bamboo cutter and celestial or mystical women.
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !

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There are more legends and tales about bamboo shoots in various parts of Japan.
Many are about Kappa, the water goblin (with different names in various regions) and his problems with humans eating the bamboo shoots.

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oo takenoko 大筍 very large bamboo shoots
oo take 大竹 very large bamboo


source :　mi-na-to.com/takenoko

In the Genroku period (around 1690) in a certain temple the ground had swollen over night to almost a mountain. After another day a huge bamboo had begun to grow there. There was no bamboo grove near the temple, so this was quite strange. The bamboo grew until its diameter was almost one meter (3尺). People came from far and wide to have a look at it.
Later in the year, the bamboo was given to a guard as an alms and he made containers out of it.
Another ending tells of the head priest cutting the bamboo and sharing the huge cuts as containers with his villagers.

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Once upon a time
There lived a son of great filial piety 親孝行息子.
One day grandma said "I would love to eat some bamboo shoots!" He thought to himself:
"You know it is winter now and snow is falling, there are no bamboo shoots growing anywhere."
But since he was full of filial piety, he just went off to the mountain forest. He begun digging in the bamboo grove and suddenly found one bamboo shoot sprouting off the root.
So he cut that off and went back home.
Then he cooked the bamboo shoot and gave it to grandma to eat.
People say that the gods make an exception if the filial piety is truly felt.
- source : siran13tb -

Filial piety is a virtue highly praised in the teachings of Confucius
"Never disobey," said Confucius -- it is one of his several definitions of filial piety . . .
. Confucius 孔夫子, Kung Tzu, Kung Fu Tzu, Kung Fu Zi, .

This story has been taken up at Kabuki:
Honchô Nijûshikô 本朝二十不孝　Honcho Niju Shiko
Twenty-Four Examples of Filial Piety
. Legends about bamboo shoots 筍 / 竹の子 伝説　takenoko densetsu .



....................................................................... Chiba 千葉県

香取郡 Natori

futamatadake 二股竹 / 二股の筍 two-pronged, bifurcated bamboo shoot



In the year when the secret statue of Kannon Bosatsu is shown, two-pronged bamboo shoots are made as offerings. The homes where it grows make the offering and take care to grow more.
Once there was a family that did not want make an offering. But their only son got very ill and they decided to offer the precious bamboo to pray for his recovery.



....................................................................... Ehime 愛媛県

宇和島市 Uwajima town

enko ゑんこ / エンコ - Kappa

Once the owner of a boat had a meal of bamboo shoots. While he was enjoying his lunch, an えんこ Enko (local name of the Kappa) came along and wanted to eat some too.
The man told him to come back the next day for his treat. So the man grilled some bamboo sticks and offered them to the Kappa as lunch on the next day.
The Kappa took a bit and was quite surprized: "Whow, these humans here must have very strong teeth!"
And he escaped hastily, never to come back again.

. Legends - Kappa densetsu　河童伝説, Kappa minwa 河童民話 .
- Introduction -

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城辺町 Johen town

tanuki 狸 Tanuki badger

Once a grandpa who went to the forest to dig out bamboo shoots was bewitched by a Tanuki.
He was balancing up and down a log for hours and could not help it.
Then to get his revenge, one rainy evening, he pretended to be bewitched again, sat in the shade of a tree with his hair hangning down like a lady and waited for the Tanuki to show up. When the Tanuki came by, he killed him with his ax.

. The Japanese Tanuki racoon dog .



....................................................................... Fukuoka 福岡県

久留米市 Kurume

Kappa 河童 The Water Goblin

In Kurume people eat bamboo shoots for the Boy's Festival in May.
They also cook rice with the roots of bamboo and offer this at the shrine 水天宮 Suitengu.
Later this offering is floated down the river. This will make the local Kappe believe the people here are very hard and tough and difficult to chew, so he will not cause any water accidents.

. Kappa Legends from Kyushu 　河童伝説　- 九州 .

. tango no sekku　端午の節句 Boy's Festival .



....................................................................... Fukushima 福島県

gogatsu no sekku 五月の節句 Boy's Festival

For the seasonal Boy's Festival in May you have to eat yam (Dioscorea japonica) and bamboo shoots.
If you do not keep this custom, you will be turned into a 蛆 maggot.


. tango no sekku　端午の節句 Boy's Festival .

. uji 蛆 (うじ) maggot - Made, Fliegenmade .



....................................................................... Gifu 岐阜県

上宝村 Kamitakara village

yamaotoko, yama-otoko 山男 the "Mountain Man" monster
"kindly giant of the hills"


by 竹原春泉 Takehara Shunsen

Once a man from the village went to the forest to dig for bamboo shoots, but he was captured by the "Mountain Man" and never came back.

"Mountain Man" - a monster found in many parts of Japan.
He is usually half-naked and very hairy. He kidnappes people. If someone meets him in the forest and escapes, he usually gets ill. But gnerally the Mountain Man is a gentle monster, helps the woodworkers carry their loads in exchange for some food.
He is a hero of the 絵本百物語.
Legends from 静岡県, 新潟県, 神奈川県,青森県
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA - 山男 !

. Yamaotoko 山男と伝説 Legends about the "Mountain Man" .


Most probably identical with
. - Yamawaro, Yama-Waro やまわろ / ヤマワロ / 山童 "Child of the Mountain" .
- - - - - and his alter ego
Kappa　河童 "Child of the River"


....................................................................... Gunma 群馬県

勢多郡 Seta district

seri to takenoko 芹，筍，dropwort and bamboo shoots

Dropwort begins to grow in the fifth (lunar) month, bamboo shoots come out after the summer solstice (and Summer retreat for Buddhists 半夏 bange).
Plants that come out on the 11th day after the solstice (now this is the 2nd of July) are forbidden to eat.



....................................................................... Hiroshima 広島県

dokuro, sharekobe 髑髏 skull

One of the oldest books of yuurei ghost stories is the 日本霊異記 Nihon Ryoiki.
There is a story of the year 774 from Bingo no Kuni 寶龜９年備後國.
When people passd a bamboo grove after the sun has set, they will have pain in the eyes and even cry for a long time.
Examining the bamboo grove the villagers found a skull, through the eyes had grown a bamboo shoot. So they pulled it out and re-burried the skull. Later it came out of the grove to thank the villagers.

. Nihon Ryōiki 日本霊異記 Nihon Ryoiki - Record of Miraculous Events in Japan .
"Ghostly Strange Records from Japan" - is an early Heian period collection.

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呉市 Kure

enko エンコ Enko Kappa

One day a man was preparing a stone wall for his fields when a Kappa showed up and challenged him to a round of sumo wrestling. If the man lost, the Kappa would be allowed to suck the treasure out of his anus.
The man wrestled with all his might and full of fear, but the fight just went on and on. After some time they both got hungry and stopped for lunch. When the Kappa saw the man eat some bamboo shoots, he mistook it for the stem of bamboo and thought: "If the humans have such strong teeth to chew bamboo, they can easily chew me up . . . !" and he run away in fear, never to come back.

. enkoo, enkō 猿猴 Enko Kappa, "ape of the waters" .



....................................................................... Hyogo 兵庫県

At the shrine Hirota Jinja 廣田神社 / 広田神社
there is one bamboo shoot sprouting every year on the third day of the third month in the early morning.
One year it begun to sprout much later in the day and people were quite surprized, calling it almost a miracle.



....................................................................... Kagawa 香川県

三豊郡 Mitoyo district, 詫間町 Takuma village

People throw bamboo shoots and Sasa dango (Sasa mochi 笹餅) rice dumplings into the pond as offerings. Later when the children come to swim there, there will be no water accidents, because the local Kappa is too busy eating the offerings.

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yumemi 夢見 seeing a dream

A man on a pilgrimage to Konpira san in Shikoku had a dream on his way. He saw two bamboo shoots grow up rapidly to the hight of a human and begun to sing:
"We don't need a flute or drum . . . we long for our daddy!"
He got worried and hurried home. Here he found that his second wife had killed the two daughters from his first marriage.
In this region is is therefore a bad omen to see a dream with bamboo shoots.



....................................................................... Kagoshima 鹿児島県

熊毛郡 Kumage districe 上屋久町 Kamiyaku village

takenoko onjo 筍おんじょ　The old man and the bamboo shoots
onjo is the local dialect for an old man in Kagoshima.

Around the middle of June the Takeonjo are coming out.

When smelling a bamboo shoot, you can hear the sound of pokkii pokkii ポキッポキッ in the distance upstream.
Following this sound, you come to a road with three forks, where the Takeonjo is lingering.
If you ask him the way, he will not say a word but point to the mountain. You must be careful and walk back in just the opposite direction as he points to get out of the mountain forest.





....................................................................... Kumamoto 熊本県

yamawaro ヤマワロ Yamawaro Kappa

In the village of 七滝村 Nanataki the Yamawaro likes to eat bamboo shoots. He begins to bite into them from the side, so it is easily recognizable.
Once a man was preparing the path between his rice fields when a small child came along and told him there were many bamboo shoots that someone had pulled out. Nothing was to be seen but it must have been Yamawaro, thought the man hand hit the air with his hoe. Then he heard a sound in the water as if someone had jumped in.
But later this farmer became quite ill and had to stay in bed.


. Yamawaro, Yama-Waro やまわろ / ヤマワロ / 山童 .
"Child of the Mountain" -
- - - - - and his alter ego - Kappa　河童 "Child of the River"


....................................................................... Kyoto 京都府

綾部市 Ayabe town

One of the seven wonders on the seven days of January of the 志賀郷 Shiga district are the bamboo shoots of Shinoda Shrine 篠田神社の竹の子.


CLICK for more photos !

There is also a 竹の子祭り　Bamboo Shoot Festival a the shrine in February, to foretell the outcome of the harvest according to the size of the bamboo shoots. It shows the trust of the farmers in the growth of things and their relation to the deities.

志賀郷の七不思議。
正月１日に満開になる藤波神社の藤。
作物の豊凶などを占える阿須々伎神社の茗荷と、
篠田神社の竹の子。
正月２日に花を咲かせて耕作の豊凶を示す若宮神社の萩。
正月５日の朝に突然実をつけ、一日で熟す諏訪神社の柿。
正月６日に滴が落ちて日柄や水難を示す向田の里の滴松。
正月７日に風もないのに揺れて吉凶を知らせる向田の里の揺ぎ松。


かんあけやしのだのもりのこみちかな　
kan-ake ya shinoda no mori no komichi kana

end of the cold season -
the small path in the forest
of Shinoda shrine . . .

芳月 Yoshizuki

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北区 Kita ku

shi no yochoo 死の予兆 omens of death

If the birds sing in a long, sad voice, if the blossoms of udonge 優曇華 cluster fig tree begin to bloom in the garden, if a person gets black warts and spots on the skin (死黒子) this is all an omen of approaching death.
If a person sees a dream where his teeth fall out, or where bamboo shoots or mushrooms begin to grow wildly, this is an omen of approaching death.


....................................................................... Nagano 長野県

下伊那郡 Shimoina district

atama ga hageru 頭が禿げる to become bald

If bamboo is broken off and stolen you have to rub salt into the cut. Then the head of the person who stole the bamboo will become bald.



....................................................................... Niigata 新潟県

巻町 Maki town

Onca an old woman on her way to sell bamboo shoots lost her footing and fell near the end of the long slope. The almost went over the cliff, but someone (most probably お地蔵さま Jizo Bosatsu) grabbed the basket on her back and pulled her back to the road.



....................................................................... Shimane 島根県

隠岐郡 Oki district, 都万村 Tsuma village

Kawako カワコ / 川子 "The River Child" (Kappa)

During the 川子祭り Kawako Festival at 西郷町 Saigo village 西郷町 bamboo stems cut in rings is floated down the river and bamboo shoots are boiled for humans to eat.
So the Kappa in the river will think that the humnas have such strong teeth and will run away.

. kahaku, kawa no kami, kawako 河伯 River Deity, "river chief" .


....................................................................... Wakayama 和歌山県

中津村 Nakatsu village

goora ゴーラ　Gora Kappa

A child of five years went to go swimming to the river, but it fell down the embankment. He saw something like the face of a monkey near the sandy part of the river bed.
He brought some bamboo shoots and rolled them up and down on the embankment, then he saw the monkey-like creature run away.
This was a Gora, they say. (goora ゴーラ is the local dialect for Kappa.)


. Koora Booshi 「甲羅法師」Kora Boshi Kappa .


....................................................................... Yamagata 山形県

西村山郡 Nishimurayama district

鳥海山の筍，月山の筍 Bamboo shoots from Mount Chokaisan and Gassan

At 竜が岳 Mount Ryugatake there are some flat areas with just sand and stones. Legend knows that the Tengu mountain goblins come here to practise sumo wrestling. Once the wrestlers Chokaisan to Takenoko and Gassan no Takenoko fought the whole day but none could win. They spent some time in a hot spring but their backs hurt very much and they could not stand straight any more.



This is the reason why the bamboo shoots from both mountains are now bent.
The shoots are best harvested early in the morning and eaten in miso soup. They contain not so many bitter substances.


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source :　京都・左司馬の河童さん日記 - Kyoto
Kappa and Bamboo at shrine 大原野神社 Oharano Jinja.


- Reference in Japanese -

- Reference in English -

yokai database　妖怪データベース
- source : - - 筍 and 竹の子 -

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. . minwa 民話　folktales / densetsu 伝説　Japanese Legends . .
- Introduction -

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Silk Road Asian Highway

- BACK to the Daruma Museum -
. ABC List of Contents .
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Silk Road シルクロード　- Asian Highway アジアンハイウェイ
Maritime Silk Road 海のシルクロード

. kinu 絹　silk in Japanese culture .
- Introduction -

. Dunhuang 敦煌 Tonko Oasis and Buddhism .

A lot has been written about the importance of the Silk Road and Japanese culture.
Here I will concentrate on the Heian period . . . and the latest developments since 2015.

- quote -
The Silk Road or Silk Route - Seidenstrasse -



is a network of trade and cultural transmission routes that were central to cultural interaction through regions of the Asian continent connecting the West and East by merchants, pilgrims, monks, soldiers, nomads, and urban dwellers from China and India to the Mediterranean Sea during various periods of time.
- source : wikipedia -


- quote -
The Asian Highway (AH) project, also known as the Great Asian Highway,



is a cooperative project among countries in Asia and Europe and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), to improve the highway systems in Asia. It is one of the three pillars of the Asian Land Transport Infrastructure Development (ALTID) project, endorsed by the ESCAP commission at its 48th session in 1992, comprising Asian Highway, Trans-Asian Railway (TAR) and facilitation of land transport projects.
- source : wikipedia -


China’s New Silk Road initiative
- source : Japan Times, June 2015 - (fb)

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- quote -
One Belt, One Road (Chinese: 一带一路 also known as the Belt and Road Initiative; abbreviated OBOR)
is a development strategy and framework, proposed by People's Republic of China that focuses on connectivity and cooperation among countries primarily in Eurasia, which consists of two main components, the land-based "Silk Road Economic Belt" (SREB) and oceangoing "Maritime Silk Road" (MSR). The strategy underlines China's push to take a bigger role in global affairs, and its need to export China's production capacity in areas of overproduction such as steel manufacturing.
- source : wikipedia -


- quote - Japan Times Jun 23, 2015 -
China's Indian Ocean strategy
Brahma Chellaney
NEW DELHI –
What are Chinese attack submarines doing in the Indian Ocean, far from China’s maritime backyard, in what is the furthest deployment of the Chinese Navy in 600 years? Two Chinese subs docked last fall at the new Chinese-built and -owned container terminal in Colombo, Sri Lanka. And recently a Chinese Yuan-class sub showed up at the Pakistani port city of Karachi.
The assertive way
China has gone about staking its territorial claims in the South and East China seas has obscured its growing interest in the Indian Ocean. This ocean has become the new global center of trade and energy flows, accounting for half the world’s container traffic and 70 percent of its petroleum shipments.
China’s newly released defense white paper, while outlining regional hegemony aspirations, has emphasized a greater focus on the seas, including an expanded naval role beyond its maritime backyard. The white paper says that, as part of China’s effort to establish itself as a major maritime power, its navy will shift focus from “offshore waters defense” to “open seas protection” — a move that helps explain its new focus on the Indian Ocean, with the Maritime Silk Road initiative at the vanguard of the Chinese grand strategy. To create a blue water force and expand its naval role, China is investing heavily in submarines and warships, and working on a second aircraft carrier.
President Xi Jinping’s pet project
is about expanding and securing maritime routes to the Middle East and beyond through the Indian Ocean, which is the bridge between Asia and Europe. Xi’s dual Silk Road initiatives — officially labeled the “One Belt, One Road” — constitute a westward strategic push to expand China’s power reach. Indeed, Xi’s Indian Ocean plans draw strength from his more assertive push for Chinese dominance in the South and East China seas.
The Chinese
maneuvering in the Indian Ocean — part of China’s larger plan to project power in the Middle East, Africa and Europe — aims to challenge America’s sway and chip away at India’s natural-geographic advantage. Xi has sought to carve out an important role for China in the Indian Ocean through his Maritime Silk Road initiative, while his overland Silk Road is designed to connect China with Central Asia, the Caspian Sea basin and Europe.
The common link
between the two mega Silk Road projects is Pakistan, which stands out for simultaneously being a client state of China, Saudi Arabia and the United States — a unique status.
During a visit to Pakistan in April,
Xi officially launched the project to connect China’s restive Xinjiang region with the warm waters of the Arabian Sea through a 3,000 km overland transportation corridor extending to the Chinese-built Pakistani port of Gwadar. This project makes Pakistan the central link between the maritime and overland Silk Roads. The Xi-launched corridor to Gwadar through Pakistan-held Kashmir — running in parallel to India’s Japanese-financed New Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor — will hook up the two Silk Roads.
Indeed,
a stable Pakistan has become so critical to the ever-increasing Chinese strategic investments in that country that Beijing has started brokering peace talks between the Pakistan-backed Afghan Taliban and Kabul. This effort has been undertaken with the backing not just of Pakistan but also of the U.S., thus underscoring the growing convergence of Chinese and American interests in the Afghanistan-Pakistan belt.
snip
The Maritime Silk Road initiative, with its emphasis on high-visibility infrastructure projects, targets key littoral states located along the great trade arteries. At a time of slowing economic growth in China, infrastructure exports are also designed to address the problem of overproduction at home.

By presenting commercial penetration as benevolent investment and credit as aid, Beijing is winning lucrative overseas contracts for its state-run companies, with the aim of turning economic weight into strategic clout. Through its Maritime Silk Road — a catchy new name for its “string of pearls” strategy — China is already challenging the existing balance of power in the Indian Ocean.
Beijing,
while seeking to co-opt strategically located states in an economic and security alliance led by it, is working specifically to acquire naval-access outposts through agreements for refueling, replenishment, crew rest and maintenance. Its efforts also involve gaining port projects along vital sea lanes of communication, securing new supplies of natural resources, and building energy and transportation corridors to China through Myanmar and Pakistan.
One example
of how China has sought to win influence in the Indian Ocean Rim is Sri Lanka. It signed major contracts with Sri Lanka’s now-ousted president, Mahinda Rajapaksa, to turn that country — located along major shipping lanes — into a major stop on the Chinese nautical “road.” The country’s new president, Maithripala Sirisena, said on the election-campaign trail earlier this year that the Chinese projects were ensnaring Sri Lanka in a debt tap, with the risk that “our country would become a colony and we would become slaves.”
- snip -
Beijing is also interested in leasing one of the 1,200 islands of the politically torn Maldives. Xi has toured several of the key countries in the Indian Ocean Rim that China is seeking to court, including the Maldives, Tanzania and Sri Lanka.
From China’s artificially created islands in the South China Sea
to its ongoing negotiations for a naval base in Djibouti, the maritime domain has become central to Xi’s great-power ambitions. Yet it is far from certain that he will be able to realize his strategic aims in the Indian Ocean Rim, given the lurking suspicions about China’s motives and the precarious security situation in some regional states.

One thing is clear though: China wants to be the leader, with its own alliances and multilateral institutions, not a “responsible stakeholder” in the U.S.-created architecture of global governance. It is building naval power to assert sovereignty over disputed areas and to project power in distant lands. Determined to take the sea route to secure global power status and challenge the U.S.-led order, China is likely to step up its strategic role in the Indian Ocean — the world’s new center of geopolitical gravity.
- source : Japan Times -

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The Silk Roads: A New History of the World
by Peter Frankopan (Author)

It was on the Silk Roads that East and West first encountered each other through trade and conquest, leading to the spread of ideas, cultures and religions. From the rise and fall of empires to the spread of Buddhism and the advent of Christianity and Islam, right up to the great wars of the twentieth century—this book shows how the fate of the West has always been inextricably linked to the East.

Peter Frankopan realigns our understanding of the world, pointing us eastward. He vividly re-creates the emergence of the first cities in Mesopotamia and the birth of empires in Persia, Rome and Constantinople, as well as the depredations by the Mongols, the transmission of the Black Death and the violent struggles over Western imperialism. Throughout the millennia, it was the appetite for foreign goods that brought East and West together, driving economies and the growth of nations.

From the Middle East and its political instability to China and its economic rise, the vast region stretching eastward from the Balkans across the steppe and South Asia has been thrust into the global spotlight in recent years. Frankopan teaches us that to understand what is at stake for the cities and nations built on these intricate trade routes, we must first understand their astounding pasts. Far more than a history of the Silk Roads, this book is truly a revelatory new history of the world, promising to destabilize notions of where we come from and where we are headed next.
- source : amazon com -

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Digital Silk Road Project
ディジタルシルクロード（DSR）プロジェクト
blog on Japan and Korea through the Silk Road music culture



日本と朝鮮に及んだシルクロード音楽文化
の正倉院」としての日本雅楽
- source : dsr.nii.ac.jp - - japankorea -

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Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books
国立情報学研究所 - ディジタル・シルクロード・プロジェクト
『東洋文庫所蔵』貴重書デジタルアーカイブ


Ser Marco Polo（マルコ=ポーロ卿）
- The main Index is here
- source : dsr.nii.ac.jp - - toyobunko -

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- Reference in Japanese -

- Reference in English - silk road Japan -

- Reference in English - maritime road -


. silk　絹 kinu and related legends .

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