KojikiShintoAncient Myth / ComparativeClassical Japanese / Chinese-style proseShareKojiki 31Basil Hall Chamberlain 1919 - EnglishMoreVersion - 1 availableBasil Hall Chamberlain 1919LanguageEnglishEspañol‹Kojiki 1Kojiki 2Kojiki 3Kojiki 4Kojiki 5Kojiki 6Kojiki 7Kojiki 8Kojiki 9Kojiki 10Kojiki 11Kojiki 12Kojiki 13Kojiki 14Kojiki 16Kojiki 17Kojiki 19Kojiki 20Kojiki 21Kojiki 22Kojiki 23Kojiki 24Kojiki 25Kojiki 26Kojiki 28Kojiki 29Kojiki 30Kojiki 31Kojiki 32Kojiki 33Kojiki 34Kojiki 35Kojiki 36Kojiki 37Kojiki 38Kojiki 39Kojiki 40Kojiki 41Kojiki 43Kojiki 44Kojiki 45Kojiki 46Kojiki 47Kojiki 48Kojiki 49Kojiki 50Kojiki 51Kojiki 52Kojiki 53Kojiki 105Kojiki 55Kojiki 56Kojiki 57Kojiki 58Kojiki 59Kojiki 60Kojiki 62Kojiki 63Kojiki 64Kojiki 65Kojiki 66Kojiki 67Kojiki 68Kojiki 69Kojiki 134Kojiki 71Kojiki 72Kojiki 143Kojiki 74Kojiki 75Kojiki 76Kojiki 77Kojiki 78Kojiki 79Kojiki 151Kojiki 154Kojiki 82Kojiki 83Kojiki 157Kojiki 85Kojiki 86Kojiki 87Kojiki 88Kojiki 162Kojiki 90Kojiki 91Kojiki 92Kojiki 93Kojiki 94Kojiki 95Kojiki 172Kojiki 97Kojiki 98Kojiki 99Kojiki 100Kojiki 101Kojiki 102Kojiki 103Kojiki 104Kojiki 107Kojiki 108Kojiki 109Kojiki 110Kojiki 111Kojiki 112Kojiki 113Kojiki 114Kojiki 115Kojiki 116Kojiki 117Kojiki 118Kojiki 119Kojiki 121Kojiki 205Kojiki 124Kojiki 125Kojiki 126Kojiki 127Kojiki 128Kojiki 130Kojiki 131Kojiki 132Kojiki 133Kojiki 135Kojiki 137Kojiki 138Kojiki 139Kojiki 142Kojiki 144Kojiki 145Kojiki 146Kojiki 147Kojiki 148Kojiki 240Kojiki 150Kojiki 153Kojiki 155Kojiki 156Kojiki 158Kojiki 160Kojiki 161Kojiki 163Kojiki 164Kojiki 165Kojiki 166Kojiki 167Kojiki 168Kojiki 169Kojiki 170Kojiki 171Kojiki 173Kojiki 174Kojiki 175Kojiki 176Kojiki 177Kojiki 178Kojiki 179Kojiki 180›Section XXXI: The Heavenly-young-princeKojiki 31ListenPlay this chapter in spoken English.Save chapterListen to chapter1Therefore the High-August-Producing-Wondrous-Deity and the Heaven-Shining-Great-August-Deity again asked all the Deities, saying. "The Deity Ame-no-ho-hi, whom we sent down to the Central Land of Reed-Plains, is long of bringing back a report. Which Deity were it best to send on a fresh mission?" Then the Deity Thought-Includer replied, saying: "The Heavenly-Young-Prince, son of the Deity Heaven's-Earth-Spirit should be sent." So they bestowed on him the Heavenly feathered arrows, and sent him. Thereupon the Heavenly-Young-Prince, descending to that land, at once wedded Princess Under-Shining, daughter of the Deity Master-of-the-Great-Land, and moreover, planning how he might gain [possession of] the land, for eight years brought back no report. So then the High-August-Producing-Wondrous-Deity and the Heaven-Shining-Great-August-Deity again asked all the Deities, [saying]: "The Heavenly-Young-Prince is long of bringing back a report. Which Deity shall we send on a fresh mission to enquire the cause of the Heavenly-Young-Prince's long tarrying?" Thereupon all the Deities and likewise the Deity Thought-Includer replied, saying: "The pheasant the Name-Crying-Female should be sent," upon which [the High-August-Producing-Wondrous-Deity and the Heaven-Shining-Great-August-Deity] charged [the pheasant], saying: "What thou shalt go and ask the Heavenly-Young-Prince is this: 2'The reason for which thou wast sent to the Central Land of Reed-Plains was to subdue and pacify the savage Deities of that land. Why for eight years bringest thou back no report?'" So then the Crying-Female, descending from Heaven, and perching on the multitudinous [-ly-branching] cassia-tree at the Heavenly-Young-Prince's gate, told him everything according to the mandate of the Heavenly Deities. Then the Heavenly-Spying-Woman, having heard the bird's words, spoke to the Heavenly-Young-Prince, saying: "The sound of this bird's cry is very bad. So thou shouldest shoot it to earth." On her [thus] urging him, the Heavenly-Young-Prince at once took the heavenly vegetable wax-tree bow and the heavenly deer-arrows bestowed on him by the Heavenly Deities, and shot the pheasant to death. Then the arrow, being shot up upside down through the pheasant's breast, reached the august place where the Heaven-Shining-Great-August-Deity and the High-Integrating-Deity were sitting in the bed of the Tranquil River of Heaven. This "High-integrating-Deity" is another name for the High-August-Producing-Wondrous-Deity. So, on the High-Integrating-Deity taking up the arrow and looking at it [he saw that] there was blood adhering to the feathers of the arrow. Thereupon the High-Integrating-Deity, saying: 3"This arrow is the arrow that was bestowed on the Heavenly-Young-Prince," showed it to all the Deities, and said: "If this be an arrow shot at the evil Deities by the Heavenly-Young-Prince in obedience to our command, let it not hit him. If he has a foul heart, let the Heavenly-Young-Prince perish by this arrow." With these words, the took the arrow and thrust it back down through the arrow's hole, so that it hit the Heavenly-Young-Prince on the top of his breast as he was sleeping on his couch, so that he died. (This is the origin of [the saying] Beware of a returning arrow. ) Moreover the pheasant returned not. So this is the origin of the modern proverb which speaks of 'the pheasant as sole messenger.' So the sound of the wailings of the Heavenly-Young-Prince's wife Princess Under-Shining, re-echoing in the wind, reached Heaven. So the Heavenly-Young-Prince's father, the Deity Heaven's-Earth-Spirit, and his wife and children who were in heaven, hearing it, came down with cries and lamentations, and at once built a mourning-house there, and made the wild goose of the river the head-hanging bearer the heron the broom-bearer, the kingfisher the person of the august food, the sparrow the pounding-woman, the pheasant the weeping woman; 4and, having thus arranged matters, they disported themselves for eight days and eight nights, At this time the Deity Ajishiki-taka-hiko-ne came and condoled on the mourning for the Heavenly-Young-Prince, whereupon the Heavenly-Young-Prince's father and wife who had come down from Heaven bewailed themselves, saying: "My child is not dead, no! My lord is not dead, no!" and with these words clung to his hands and feet, and bewailed themselves and lamented. The cause of their mistake was that the two Deities closely resembled each other in countenance: so therefore they made the mistake. Thereupon the Deity Ajishi-ki-taka-hiko-ne was very angry, and said: "It was only because he was my dear friend that I came to condole. Why should I be likened to an unclean dead person?"--and with these words he drew the ten-grasp sabre that was augustly girded on him, and cut down the mourning-house, and kicked away [the pieces] with his feet. This was on what is called Mount Mourning at the source of the River Awimi in the land of Minu. The great sword with which he cut [the mourning-house to pieces] was called by the name of Great-Blade-Mower, another name by which it was called being the Divine-Keen-Sabre. So when the Deity Aji-shiki-toba-hiko-ne flew away in his anger, his younger sister Her Augustness the High-Princess in order to reveal his august name, sang, saying: "Oh! 5'tis the Deity Aji-shiki-Taka-Hiko-Ne traversing two august valleys with the refulgence of august assembled hole-jewels, of the august assembled jewels worn round her neck by the Weaving Maiden in Heaven!" This Song is of a Rustic Style. ‹Previous chapterKojiki 30Next chapterKojiki 32›Similar passagesBy tradition and source labelFind similarCompare selectedCompare with similarAsk Deep ThoughtSelect passages to search for parallels.Tap any verse to select it, then compare selected passages or ask Deep Thought. Public domain in the United States