Kototama Okagami: The 1940 Lectures of Yamakoshi Meisho – Lecture 2

LECTURE 2  TIME, SPACE AND WEAVING THE UNIVERSE

Preface

Okunomichi  on 2014.09.04 presented a brief overview, Kototama Researchers of the Modern Period. Kototama is the soul of words as well as the soul of things, and therefore the sacred power of speech. We have devoted several posts to this topic on this site and on Okunomichi, and they can be located through the SEARCH box. As promised long ago, we are now posting notes from the lectures of Yamakoshi Meisho (aka Yamakoshi Akimasa). From Okunomichi:

Yamakoshi Hiromichi (Koudo), Calligrapher to Emperor Meiji

Yamakoshi Akimasa (Meisho), Secretary and son of calligrapher Yamakoshi Hiromichi

Lecture 2

Vowels and consonants, space and time.  Vowels map out space, while consonants map out time. All together they form the universe, uchuu, where u represents vowels and space, and chuu represents consonants and time.

Waka by Empress Shoken. Among the many waka written by Empress Shoken is this.

Shikishima no     Yamato kotoba wo     tatenukini     

orushizu hata no     oto no saya kesa

Shikishima is the name for Nihon in traditional waka poetry. Orushizu hata is doing the weaving with the hata-ori weaving machine, and oto no saya is the beautiful sound of weaving. The empress implies that time and space are being created in harmony, and the country is doing well.

One hundred sounds of kototama.  There are one hundred sounds (syllables) when fifty sounds are reflected in the sacred mirror. There are various folktales about kototama. For example, the folk hero Momotaro has a name that refers to the one hundred (momo) sounds coming out. His grandparents are Isanagi and Isanami [says Yamakoshi]. In another tale, Urashimataro tells about the Chinese visitor who came seeking the elixir of immortality. When he opened the treasure box, only smoke appeared – because he did not understand kototama. [Doesn’t this imply that kototama is the secret of immortality?]

Yama symbol of eight spaces, kume symbol of nine squares.  The yama symbol is the square containing four intersecting lines, one pair forming a ‘+’ and the other pair an ‘x’. These lines divide the square into eight parts, each an isosceles right triangle. The name ‘ya ma’ comes from the indigenous words ya meaning eight and ma meaning spaces. It is equivalent to kume: ku, nine; me, eyes; these ‘eyes’ are the points at the eight ends of line segments plus the point in the center. Yama can also be represented as a square divided into nine equal smaller squares.

Yama symbol of eight spaces

[It is said that kume sennin immortals rode clouds around the universe. Sennin is written 仙人 and means immortal mountain wizard. The adjective kume may refer to wizards who understood kototama.]

Kume symbol of nine squares

The two lines that cross the yama square like a + is the symbol of the kami Kamimusubi. The other two lines that cross in an x form is the symbol of Takamimusubi. Both kami are needed to make sound and things.

The 9 father sounds (consonants) plus 5 mother sounds (vowels) together make 14 sounds, where 14 is toyo: to = 10 and yo = 4. [Toyo, as in Toyota, means excellent, bountiful. So the father and mother sounds together are excellent and denote prosperity.]

The joining of Kamimusubi and Takamimusubi is represented by the crossbeam as well as the the twisted rope shimenawa on a torii; it is a kuchinawa, a snake rope. These days it reminds us of the DNA helix.

Torii and shimenawa by Raggaeman

The Sound Chart: Amenominakanushi, Takamimusubi and Kamimusubi.  The Amanoiwato [the sacred iwa rock-cave] is the human mind. To understand this, just listening won’t do. You must open your mind. The word iwa is i no ha (where ‘i’ means 5 or 50, and ‘ha’ means breath). The 50 sounds are fundamental (hado no moto). ‘Hado’ means vibration, and ‘moto’ means base. All vibrations from the universe enter the brain, and the hundred kami appear. A kami is power; for example the kami of water is the power of water. When we have musubi, the kami are connecting.

Mythological Amaterasu emerging from the Amanoiwato rock cave

The sound U is the kami Amenominakanushi, which gives rise to the two kami Takamimusubi and Kamimusubi. Consider how U divides into A and WA.  A is akarui, light, Takamimusubi. WA is shadow, Kamimusubi. A is clear like fire, and positive; WA is hidden like water, and negative. So the single sound of U separates into WA-A, mizu-ho, water-fire. [Mizuho is also the name of a large financial corporation in Japan.]

Takamimusubi makes things come out – recall that the T sound is a coming out sound. Kamimusubi makes things by connecting. Both kami are needed! They are dual (opposite) energies of U. When U divides into WA and A, the properties of WA and A are as follows.

WA  –  A

Kamimusubi  –  Takamimusubi

water  –  fire

female  –  male

negative  –  positive

right  –  left

down  –  up

unseen  –  physical

black  –  white

heat  –  light

Futomani meaning.  Let us now discuss what happens when we put our hands together when we pray or clap. A is the thumb of the left hand, WA is that of the right hand. The digits of the left hand represent the sounds A TA KA SA HA; the right hand represents WA YA MA RA NA. When we put our hands together we have the pairs A-WA, TA-YA, etc. One clap is ten sounds; two claps are twenty = futo, fu = two, to = ten, and represents the kototama of futomani, the twenty mana. Futomani is the joining of Takamimusubi and Kamimusubi.

Thus uchuurei the universal spirit enters the human head. Kami is the principle of movement of kototama.

Editor’s note:  At the end of this lecture, Yamakoshi is describing the vibration of the universe as kototama. Vibration is movement, as in the above final statement. Or more precisely, the movement of kototama is the vibration of energy which we call by the name kami. Here, Yamakoshi is explaining his opening statements about Amanoiwato as the cave in the human brain, and opening the cave with kototama. He stated that kototama is the principle of every wisdom teaching. Do we see how he arrives at this conclusion?

We have learned the true meaning of Isuzu and now we know why it is as fine a name for a car as for a river. We learn here the greater meaning of Futomani. This basic meaning of futomani as the twenty energies is part of the kototama teaching. The use of futomani to mean divination is an application of kototama knowledge to analyzing a situation and determining an optimal outcome in harmony with the universe. Yamakoshi does not go into it here, but it is well known in kototama circles that the numerals hi, fu, mi, yo, i,… (one, two, three, four, five,…) are themselves powerful kototama syllables. 

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Isanagi’s Rice Paddy Fields. Part Two. Motoake and Hutomani

Motoake

Preface

Below is Part Two of Beace’s post. Our Part One is the previous post. Editorial remarks are in square brackets. Otherwise, the remarks are Beace’s. Links have been updated 2022-06-20.

Motoake chart

This is a cosmic map called Motoake or the Motoake chart. It could be called a mandala unique to Japan. Furthermore, according to recent research, it seems that it was also involved in the formation of Wosite … that is, the characters of Wosite. Therefore, it seems that it was made at the time of the founding of the country, which is a very long time ago. Perhaps it is from the time of Isanami’s father, Toyoke Kami. This figure was also used for decision-making.

In the later years of the 8th generation Amakami Amateru, he himself compiled 128 wakas to help him make decisions by organizing the Motoake figure in an easy-to-understand manner. The document that explains and helps is one of the Woshite documents, Hutomani [Futomani]. However, I don’t think that the Hutomani method had the concept of fortune-telling that we think of now.

Hutomani method

The basis of this Hutomani method is Ameosiru; this means the understanding of the operation of the universe, namely a great level of wisdom. Therefore, I think that the number of people who could use the Motoake to apply Ameosiru was limited. This seems to have been a mystery to many. You must have the ability to understand and feel the cosmological principle of Amemioya at the same time, right?

Of course, without selflessness and miyabi [grace], the Truth would not be known. Toyoke, Amateru, Amanokoyane, Sarutahiko, … Tsuwamononusi, Kokotomusuhi (Amanokoyane’s grandfather and father) … They are the only ones I can think of now who would have the necessary wisdom. I’m sure there are others, but I’m still studying …

Antiquity of Wosite

The Wosite script has existed from its creation at least 4000-6000 BCE. It has a long history. On the other hand, Chinese characters are from the Yin Dynasty era, which was established around 1500 BCE. The hieroglyphs of ancient Egypt were established around 3000 BCE …

Maybe Wosite is the oldest character system in the world.

The Ying-Yang Five Elements Theory is an idea that was popular during the Warring States period (around 500 BCE) in China, and is based on a document for observed astronomical weather that was recorded around 650 BCE. By the way, it seems that neither is the history of the Maya so old, as it was made after or about the same time.

Editor’s Notes: The Wosite Five Energies seem to be similar to modern quantum mechanics.

Perhaps Beace is saying that all in the universe comes from the quantum void of modern physics, just as the seen world manifests out of unseen primordial energies of Wosite cosmology. Also, we have the well-known equivalence between energy and matter, E = m c2.

The Wosite civilization had its own calendar. [See our posts about the Wosite calendar,

https://iwakage.wordpress.com/2022/05/21/calendar-5-seasons-of-the-global-solar-calendar/,

https://woshiteworld.wordpress.com/2020/07/12/koyomi-calendar-part-1/,

https://woshiteworld.wordpress.com/2020/07/12/2612/,

https://woshiteworld.wordpress.com/2020/07/12/koyomi-calendar-part-3-kituwosane-system-of-time-and-space/,

https://woshiteworld.wordpress.com/2020/01/12/achi-jinja-and-the-solar-calendar-of-achihiko-omoikane/,

https://woshiteworld.wordpress.com/2019/11/28/megalithic-calendar-system/.]　　　　　　　
　　　　　　　　

Additional discussion by Beace

For the Amakami like Amateru, it became an important task to make use of their experience to teach the people as well as the next generation of young people.

Amateru-sama had a long life, so most of his life he was in this position of teaching especially to those who showed potential for becoming Amakami. So, while looking back on what he had done so far, he deepened his thoughts and developed them, just as Toyoke, his grandfather and beloved teacher did. He organized and wrote the history, culture, theology, and philosophy from the founding of the country. I think the collection was put together in a number of Wosite documents.

The Hutomani was one of the documents. The names of many of the now-lost humi [fumi, documents] (Misoginohumi, Miminoha, etc.) are mentioned in the literature, and I think they contributed to the writing of the Hotsuma Tsutae and the Mikasahumi for posterity .

Until then, to make the country rich and peaceful, the Amakami did his best. Perhaps it was just a legend or a convention, but it seems that he gradually wrote the treasured documents after he replaced Toyoke Kami as a teacher of wisdom.

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MIKASAHUMI PROLOGUE: The Three Sacred Treasures

The Prologue of the Mikasahumi is an aya entitled, Kuninazu ga Nobu (Kuninazu Speaks). Kuninazu is none other than Ōkasima, the second author of Mikasahumi. Ōkasima was the tenth generation descendant of the original author Amanokoyane. This Prologue was written by Ōtataneko, the second author of the Hotuma Tutaye. The Mikasahumi and the Hotuma Tutaye were revised by these two men and presented to Wosirowake (Keikō Tennō). 

The Prologue of the Mikasahumi explains what the Mikusa no kantakara Three Sacred Treasures are. Below is a list of the three humi treasured documents and their respective physical symbols. The Three Sacred Treasures today are only known as objects, their deep meanings having regrettably been lost over the ages.

Mikasa-humi            Kagami         

Hotuma-humi          Tsurugi            

Hutomani         Magatama        

Recall that the Mikasahumi (Mikasafumi) was written to teach the Miti (Way of Heaven). The Hotuma Tutaye (Hotsuma Tsutae) was written to show the proper way to preserve order in the land. Hutomani (Futomani) was edited by Amateru for decision-making following natural principles.

The Mikasahumi was first written by Amanokoyane and updated by Ōkasima who lived at his miya at the foot of Mikasayama in Nara. It is now the grand Kasuga Taisha. The revised Mikasahumi was presented to Wosirowake Keiko Tenno.

Hotuma Tutaye was presented by Ōtataneko to Wosirowake. Wosirowake announced:  “Now we have mikusa no miti (three paths of wisdom) and we are happy. Both Kasima and Tataneko honor their ancestors and all descendants will prosper.”

                                                (10818)                         Amateru kami no  

                                                yata kagami                   tukuri mikusa no  

                                                kantakara                      Ameno mimako ni  

                                                to o sazuke                    yamato wosamuru   

                                                mikagami ha                 koyane ni saguru   

                                                kami no mune                hoko no minamoto

                                                woko no kami  

                                                (10824)                        sikare to miti mo

                                                moro iye ni                    tukasa tagae ha

                                                hotuma humi                 arawasu toki ni

                                                atuta kami                     tugete kimi ni ha

                                                kagumi hata                  wosase tamae ha

                                                kagami tomi                  humoto yasiro no

                                                humi sasagu    

                                                (10830)                        ware mo akure ha

                                                mikoto nori                   mikusa no miti no

                                                sona warite                   sati yeru ima to

                                                notamae ha                   onoono miwoya

                                                maturu hesi                   hosue sakaeru

                                                sono miti ha                  mikasa humi naru

                                                amaterasu                     kami yori saguku

                                                mitinoku no                   humi uyamaiete

                                                tomo ni sasakeru.

The Prologue closes with the inscription by the author:

“I, Ōmiwa no Tataneko, age 234 years, humbly present this edition.”

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New Edition of Mikasahumi – Hutomani

We gave a brief review of Mikasahumi – Hutomani previously here. It was the 1999 edition of Matsumoto and Ikeda. There is an updated edition of 2012 and 2017 on Japanese Amazon. This time the author is Ikeda alone. (Oftentimes, the spellings are Mikasafumi and Futomani.) The new edition gives the same preface and exposition by Matsumoto, followed by the Mikasahumi of Yasutoshi Waniko. Let us give the revised contents here, beginning with the Yasutoshi Waniko.

MIKASAHUMI of Yasutoshi Waniko, p11

MIKASAHUMI Quotations, p89

TOSIUTI NI NASUKOTO NO AYA of KAKUNOHUMI, from Fusen, p115

HUTOMANI, p125

POSTCRIPT by Ikeda, 1999, p259

POSTCRIPT by Ikeda, 2012, p262

Therefore, the changes are in Quotations being moved up to p89 and Fusen moving to p115. The Fusen chapter has a new title with the old text. The new title is a clearer description of the text, the Tosiuti ni Nasukoto no Aya, which he attributes to a part of Kakunohumi (Kagu no Fumi). In another book, Ikeda includes it as part of the Mikasahumi, which is not a contradiction since it is believed that the Kakunohumi makes up part of Mikasahumi.

There were 64 chapters in Mikasahumi, but the majority have been lost through the ages. What we have today is the prologue, Kuninazu ga Nobu and 10 ayas, of which Tosiuti ni Nasukoto no Aya is one.

The greatest change in the updated edition is that the Hutomani chapter is expanded by 24 pages due to its more detailed notes.

WoshiteWorld

The Mikasahumi is not as well known as the Hotuma Tutaye. It is especially rarely described in English. We will start to post our interpretations of important Mikasahumi ayas soon.

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Annotated Mikasahumi and Hutomani, by Yoshinosuke Matsumoto

Mikasahumi Hutomani by Yoshinosuke Matsumoto

Editors Note:  This article is about the book, Annotated Mikasahumi and Hutomani, by Yoshinosuke Matsumoto, editorial supervisor, and Mitsuru Ikeda, editor; published 1999 by Tenbosha (Tenbou Company); in Japanese:ミカサフミ・フトマニ Mikasahumi – Hutomani , 松本 善之助 (監修), 池田 満 , Matsumoto Yoshinosuke (author), Ikeda Mitsuru (series editor), 1999. We have translated the first ten pages into English.

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Preface

Mikasahumi and Hutomani were edited long before kanji was introduced to Japan. Both books are very precious because they explain basic ideas of how the country of Japan was established.

It is unfortunate that not all volumes of Mikasahumi were found. Seven more chapters existed around the middle of the Edo era. However, time just flew while trying to find them. Of course, the books we have already found give us great value without doubt. This is why it took twenty-seven years before publishing these two books. This time we are publishing not only the remaining volumes of Mikasahumi, but also selected quotations from them. We wished to find all volumes of Mikasahumi, but we could publish only those quotations from what we had.

I would like to thank Mr. Naohiro Nonomura who loaned us the precious original copies of Mikasahumi and Hutomani. I also wish to thank Daigu Library of Ryukoku University who repaired the books and conducted difficult searches. I also send heartfelt gratitude to Mr. Akiyoshi Karasawa of Tenbosha who agreed to publish these books which are probably difficult to sell although very precious.

September 1, Heisei 11 (1999) by Matsumoto Yoshinosuke

These three books: Hotuma Tutaye, Mikasahumi, and Hutomani comprise the extant documents written in ancient Japanese Wosite.

EXPOSITION

1. Synopsis of Mikasahumi

In ancient times, the eighth Amakami Amateru said,

            ware mukashi     amenomichi yeru     kagunohumi

“I learned Amenomichi by Kagunohumi long ago.” However, the Kagunohumi document has regretfully not been found. Therefore, it is difficult for us to understand the journey of Amateru’s mind. So, this introduction of Mikasahumi is important. People who want to understand its value need to know its contents.

The most important matter for the existence of a clan was to establish Ooyake [a principle of public administration]. This principle has lasted from the time when Amanokoyane also known as Kagaminotomi [Advisor of the Mirror] and his descendants served as priests of Ise Jingu or as Fujiwara ministers. We understand that Ooyake, which an ordinary person has difficulty in understanding, is the real purpose of existence for the Kagaminotomi. That is, Ooyake is the principle for which Kagaminotomi held responsibility. The eighth Amakami Amateru realized the depth of Amenomichi in Ooyake.

Mikasahumi, which Amanokoyane made sincere efforts to compose, fully explains the concept of Ooyake. It is the reason for the existence of Kagaminotomi. Therefore, we can trace the movement of Amateru’s mind through Mikasahumi.

Unfortunately, not all the volumes of Mikasahumi were found. Yoshinosuke Matsumoto Sensei and we students looked for them all over, but we had to publish this book based on what we found. It is still important to keep searching for the remaining chapters.

We confirm that Hotuma Tutaye and Mikasahumi were published at the same time and have the same world view becuase they have some of the same sentences. We left-lined the columns of the same sentences of Hotuma Tutaye and we also inserted annotations.

2. Synopsis of Hutomani

Hutomani is a book of poems used for decision-making. Its basic structure is Motoake, represented by a diagram of how the universe was created. Motoake represents the essence of the universe and it symbolizes every phenomenon in the world. Each poem in Hutomani is attached to one of 128 symbols of Motoake. Since all 128 poems in Hutomani currently exist, we can see how they understood the world. Words cannot express the value of the Hutomani we inherited.

Hutomani was compiled by the eighth Amakami, Amateru, when he retired and was in the last years of his life. This is the Hutomani which currently exists. However, in Hotuma Tutaye, only two of four examples of symbols (shichiri, akini, akoke, shihara) match the contents of poems in Hutomani. That is, akini (20-23) and akoke (20-52) have similar contents of poems seen in Hutomani. Interpretation of ancient times for shichiri (10-1) is seen in Hotuma Tutaye. A different interpretation of shihara (27-45) of Hutomani is written in Hotuma Tutaye.

After considering these things, we understand that the basic theory of Hutomani is based on the Motoake diagram, and the interpretation for each symbol changes depending on situations and times. Therefore, the method of Hutomani comes from the symbols in Motoake, namely Amenokokoro, and represent phenomena of the universe. The poems in Hutomani help us to interpret them.

3.  Transmission [of Documents]

a.  Nonomura Family  [Mikasahumi, Hotuma Tutaye]

Eight chapters of Mikasahumi and Nonomura Ryuzo’s Hutomani were kept in the mud-walled storehouse of an old family of beautiful Takashima town on the north-west coast of Biwa Lake. Three volumes consist of seven chapters entitled Shinsaizanshoki in kanji, owned by Mr. Nonomura Tadahiro. The latter is a descendant of Nonomura Ryuzo who lives in Takashima-cho, Takashima-gun, Shiga-ken. These were the most important copies of the first seven chapters of Mikasahumi. The seventh chapter had the keys to the basic theory of Ooyake.

Waniko Yasutoshi who copied these volumes lived around the middle of the Edo period. He copied Hotuma Tutaye and attached a kanji translation. He also copied Mikasahumi and added a kanji translation. We should not forget that we can read the first seven chapters of Mikasahumi and Hanimatsuri no Aya because of his accomplishment.

In Syuusinseidenki Denrai Yuishogaki, Waniko Yasutoshi was said to have used a common name, Ibo Yunoshin. It must have been some kind of fate that the late Ibo Kichibei and Ibo Takao (who lives at Nishimanngi, Azumigawa-machi, Takashima-gun, Shiga-ken) found all volumes of Hotuma Tutaye by Waniko in Heisei 4 (1992). We refer for details to the Hotuma Tutaye by Waniko (published by Shin-Jinbutsu Ourai Sha in Hesei 5).

Mr. Nonomura Tadahiro who owns the Mikasahumi by Waniko is a great-grand son of Nonomura Ryuzo who was a samurai retainer of Oomizo Han during the last period of the Edo era. The castle of Oomizo Han of Wakebe Clan of Nimangoku was a center of culture situated at the south end of the large Azumigawa Plain during the Edo era.

During the last period of the Edo era, the Keio period, all volumes of Hotuma Tutaye and the remaining volumes of Mikasahumi were found in Nishiyurugi-mura and turned in to the Oomizo Han, and were put in the charge of a temple-shrine. After the turbulent end of the Edo era and Meiji Ishin and the abolishment of the Oomizo Han, Nonomura Ryuzo became chief priest of Mio shrine. He is described as a healthy eighty-five year old man in Kondo Seisai Zenshu (Kokusho Kankokai, Meiji 38). All documents that belonged to Oomizo Han were transferred to Shiga-ken, but regarding the Wosite documents, Nonomura Ryuzo made copies, and the Hotuma Tutaye was given to the Hiyoshi Shrine of Nishimagi as an offering in Meiji 22. Of the remaining Wosite documents, a copy of Hutomani was handed down to Oomizo Naohiro, the current head of the Nonomura family. This copy of Hutomani is the oldest complete copy that we now have. Nonomura Ryuzo passed away before he could make a copy of Mikasahumi which was handed down to his descendants.

b.  Ogasawara Family  [Hutomani, Hotuma Tutaye]

The Ogasawara family in Uwajima, Shikoku, are well known to have kept the Hotuma Tutaye. They also had Hutomani handed down from their ancestor.

Ogasawara Michimasa encountered Hotuma Tutaye when he visited the west of the lake area during Bunka or Bunsei period of Edo era. He realized the importance of this document. He wanted to let the world know that it would supplement the Nihon Shoki by publishing Kamiyokan Shuushin Seiden (kept at the Kokuritsu Koubunshokan National Archive).

Ogasawara Nagahiro, a descendant of Michimasa, earnestly studied the Wosite documents. Nagahiro was assigned to be a priest at Akama shrine located at the Kanmon channel, and he copied all volumes of Hotuma Tutaye; he returned the old version of Hotuma Tutaye without translation in kanji to Takashima-gun. (They were damaged by mice and lost around Showa 10.) Nagahiro visited Takashima-gun with his strong passion and will, and he saw them when he was 74 years old. He knew that Wosite documents were true writings.

Ogasawara Nagatake was a nephew of Ogasawara Nagahiro. He is the one who really began a modern era search. He copied all volumes of Hotuma Tutaye, and he created a method of comparing these books. He also tried to ask Sasaki Nobutsuna to acknowledge Wosite documents. It is to his credit that Hotuma Tutaye is kept in the National Archives. He also left us a precious copy of Hutomani.

c.  Fusen  [Kasugayamaki, Mikasahumi, Hotuma Tutaye]

Fusen, a priest in Nara, left us the oldest Wosite documents which have been found so far. Considering that he was already quite elderly when he published Kasugayamaki in Anei 8 (1779), he was one of the earliest scholars who studied Wosite documents in our times, as far as we know. We are strongly interested in the sentences quoted from Wosite documents in his books, Kasugayamaki and Asahishinki. We really hope that the original Hotuma Tutaye and Mikasahumi which Fusen used will actually be found. Only Toshiuchi ni nasukoto no Aya was found, and we were able to publish the contents of this oldest Wosite document with the permission of Ryukoku University.

[End of p10]

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Toyouke Ōkami

Toyoke-sama.  Our beloved Toyoke-sama is also known as Toyoke Kami and Toyouke Ōkami 豊受大神. Toyoke-sama was arguably the greatest kami of Hotsuma. He is remembered as the father of Isanami and grandfather of Amateru. Amateru came to study with him when he was sixteen. Toyoke-sama imparted to the future Amakami of Yamato the wisdom of the ancestors known as the To-no-Wosite teachings of the Ame-naru Michi, the Way of Universe. 

The teaching is for all, and especially for leaders of society, to embody high principles of human behavior: honesty, integrity, and caring for the welfare of others.

Hutakami.  Toyoke’s daughter Isako became Isanami, spouse of Isanagi. The couple are known as Hutakami (Futakami), the kami couple of myth and legend. The Hutakami went throughout the land of Hinomoto teaching the Awa no Uta, the Song of Universe, containing all 48 of the syllables of Wosite language, promoting speech for improved communication and cooperation as well as for promoting good health and vitality.

Takamimusubi.  Toyoke was descended from Ta-no-Kunisatsuchi. Toyoke’s imina birth name was Tamakine. This means he was a man of tama spirit. We notice the many local words beginning with Ta. Tamakine became the fifth Takamimusubi in Hitakami which we now call Tohoku. Hi-taka-mi means to see the sun high in the sky. A remnant of Hitakami remains in the name of the major Tohoku river, Kitakami-gawa, whose old name was indeed Hitakami-gawa.

Taga.  The center of Hitakami was at Tagajo (Taka-jo), east of current Sendai. You can get there after a short train ride. You will be shown the remains of a former government center. There is still a large stone inscribed in more recent times, called the Keta-tsubo. On this rise may have been located the Yamate-miya of Toyoke. Nearby are several shrines named Taga Jinja. One of these, we believe, is the original shrine of Toyoke. This shrine spun off the Taga Taisha in Ōmi (now Shiga-ken). Why Ōmi? Ōmi was the center of Yamato under the care of Isanami and Isanagi.

We visited Taga Taisha. It is a large shrine that hosts a million devotees on New Year’s Hatsumode. By looking for the oldest part of the keidai precincts, we found Toyoke’s hokora next to Amateru’s.

Tanba.  Toyoke lived to a ripe age. When he was quite along in years, there was a disturbance in the region we call Kyotango in Kyoto-fu near the Japan Sea. Amateru asked Toyoke-sama to manage the situation from a base in Miyazu. Toyoke-sama transferred from Hitakami to Tanba and all went well and the people prospered. Toyoke-sama taught how to raise the five grains such as rice, wheat, and beans, and also how to raise silkworms for weaving.

When Toyoke-sama felt his lifeforce dwindling, he called for a tomb to be dug in the mountain of Kujigatake. He would prepare for his last breath. When Amateru heard about his grandfather, he rushed to his side. He entered Toyoke’s tomb and received the final teaching. Thus Amateru was initiated into the high level of wisdom. Then Amateru was sent out and the tomb sealed. The people were in such grief that Amateru stayed for a while to comfort them.

Toyoke’s tomb is said to be on Mt. Kujigatake (Kushi-gatake, also called Manai-gatake) where there is a manai spring. At the foot of Kujigatake is a shrine called Hinumanai Jinja. Toyoke Ōkami is the revered deity. The monument shown above mentions Five Grains. It is said that half-way up the mountain is an altar rock for the offering of five grains and other foods.

When Amateru himself came to the end of his life, he had a tomb built nearby. Amateru’s trusted friend, Sarutahiko, was the last to see Amateru in his tomb.

Futomani.  Toyoke-sama is the author of the Futomani Motoake chart which was employed as an aid for teaching cosmology and as a guide for decision-making. Amateru complemented the Futomani by selecting its 128 waka. We wouldn’t be surprised if Toyoke-sama also organized the Wosite syllabary into the neat, logical system that it is.

Motoake chart from Julian-Way

The son of Toyoke-sama also attended the lessons with Amateru, and he became the sixth Takamimusubi.

ukesuteme     ne no kuni ni kite     tamakine ni …

Ukesuteme came to Ne no kuni to see Tamakine …   from Hotsuma Tsutae Aya 15

Another Kunisatsuchi, Ta’s brother, Ka-no-Kunisatsuchi, had gone to China, and he had a descendant named Ukesuteme. Ukesuteme came to Hitakami to study with Toyoke accompanied by the sister of Isanagi from the land of Ne. Shirayama-hime (Kokori-hime) and Ukesuteme both excelled in acquiring the wisdom of To.

ukesuteme korohin kimi to      tinami ai

After Ukesuteme returned to the Korohin mountains and married the ruler of Akagata, they had a son. Consequently, admired for her wisdom as for her nurturing, she became known as Nishi no Haha, Mother of the West. In China, the Mother of the West has the name Xi Wangmu. She is one of the Seven Immortals. In Taoist paintings she holds the Peach of Immortality in her hand. In the Wosite literature, it is written that she received peach branches from Toyoke-sama to plant in Korohin.

Alternate identities.  Another name for the kami of food is Ukanomitama. And Toyouke’s most popular identity is Inari, the kami of the rice fields. The Inari shrines are the most plentiful in Japan, grounded in folk religion. Inari devotees may not realize the connection with the sage of Hitakami.

Toyouke at Ise and Moto-Ise Shrines:  Probably due to Toyouke’s reknown as provider of Five Grains and foodstuffs, his name has morphed into the female Toyouke-hime no kami at the Geku Outer Shrine of Ise Jingu. And yet, the chigi of the honden is cut vertically in male sotosogi fashion! As it is at the Moto-Ise shrines Hinumanai Jinja and Manai Jinja Okumiya of Kono Jinja (below).

Remembering Toyoke-sama

Let us remember Toyoke-sama who served the people of Hinomoto during their critical developmental period. Toyoke-sama, the great sage, set society’s tone of compassion based on a deep connection with Universe.  And, in remembering Tamakine Toyoke-sama, we do not forget our own tama nature.

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Hutomani. Part 3. Ahara and Takamanohara

In the previous post on the Ahara waka, we connected the terms: ahara,   anohara,    takamanohara. The  a  in ahara and in anohara, as well as the  ama  in takamanohara have the meaning of Cosmos, where high kami dwell. Takamanohara may be deconstructed to be taka-ama-no-hara, where taka means high and hara means place.

The term Takamanohara is better known to readers of Japan’s creation myth. Isanami and Isanagi are the kami couple who create the eight islands of Japan while standing on the “floating bridge of heaven” in Takamanohara. This, of course, implies that Takamanohara is “Heaven”, and is often pronounced Takama-ga-hara. We would like to give another version of the creation story, the version taught by the Wosite documents.

To the present-day Japanese, Takamagahara – known in English as “High Plain of Heaven” with “ama” translated as “Heaven” – is a mythical place. This idea is based on Ki-Ki (the documents Kojiki and Nihon Shoki from the 8th century). The true history of Japan was changed by Ki-Ki. This is very unfortunate. In this Ki-Ki view, only “heavenly” kami dwell in Takamagahara which is separate from the world of people. Indeed, when this happened to the name, people were moving away from a deep connection with the kami.

Originally, Takamanohara (note the spelling) was a place of kami and people. It was referred to as if it were in Ama, Cosmos. The significance is that people and kami were in harmony with Ama, Cosmos. Takamanohara was a place on earth where people tried to live and make decisions in keeping with the way of the kami, with the way of Nature and Universe.

The name changed after the Woshite period and it picked up a voiced consonant (“ga”). A voiced consonant generally abbreviates the original meaning and gives a negative connotation to it. So “Takama-no-hara” in changing to “Takama-ga-hara” became limited in scope and in imagination, and it lost its pure aspect.

It is hoped that by exposing the nature of the Woshite world, we can show our readers the worldviews of the Woshite people. This Woshite worldview regarded humans in unity, or at least humans that intended to be in harmony, with the kami of Takamanohara and with all of Nature and Universe.

Please re-read Welcome to the World of Woshite regarding kami and Ama, http://wp.me/P6TKUT-3.

As you continue to read our articles, you will develop a clearer understanding of the World of Woshite. The World of Woshite was in harmony with the Way of Ama.

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Hutomani. Part 2. Ahara Waka

Here is an example of one of the 128 waka, the ahara (a-ha-ra) in the Hutomani anthology. In the above chart, it is the triplet of Anami 1 with Misohu pair (2) and it is outlined in red. This beautiful chart by S. Sakata was created especially for this article.

a no hara ha       kami no atumaru

hito no hara        situku ni waza no

miti zo umi keru

GLOSSARY

a-no-hara /amanohara /cosmic field where cosmic kami gather.  hito no hara /miya / the place where human kami leaders gather, the central figure being the Amakami.  atumaru / to gather.  kami /a human who possesses great ability and has earned high respect; also kami is a powerful cosmic force of nature.  situku /a beneficial dew of rain or light, flash of energy.  waza /technology, methods, law, ability.  miti / way, law.  umi / born, produced.

The Ahara verse

A-no-hara where cosmic kami gather,

and hito-no-hara where human kami gather,

receive beneficial drops of rain and a flash of energy.

Thus a way is born.

The way, of course, is the solution to a perplexing problem faced by the people. The way is also in harmony with the laws of Cosmos. This waka suggests a deep connection between the Takamanohara of the Cosmos and that on the earth.The human kami leaders gather at hito-no-hara on earth with the Amakami leader as do powerful cosmic kami who gather at A-no-hara cosmic place. The abilities of the people are increased with the benefits of rain and light from the sky.

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Hutomani. Part 1. Waka and Uranahi

This post expands the previous Post 6.1 on the topic of Motoake and Hutomani. These informative charts are by S. Sakata.

Motoake Cosmology

The Motoake chart was designed by Toyoke-sama to teach how the world and humans are created, according to the teaching of To no Wosite. Motoake, the great beginning is represented by this chart. In the central circle is the unseen Source, Amemiwoya.  Amemiwoya is surrounded by the ring of eight Akuta-Kami which govern space and time. Their names are: To, Ho, Ka, Mi, Ye, Hi, Ta, Me.

The next ring, colored in pink, contains the eight Anami-Kami. The two outer rings, colored yellow, each contain sixteen Misohu-Kami; there are 32 Misohu-Kami. There are a total of 48 Kami in this chart. Each of the 48 Kami is represented by a phoneme syllable sound and an ideogram Wosite character.

The Anami-Kami determine the first sounding of creation. Then the Misohu-Kami appear in pairs, and they set the tones. People in Wosite age sensed the power of sound and the voice in the energy of creation by these kami.

Motoake as Hutomani

Amateru Amakami studied with his grandfather Toyoke-sama and he learned the cosmology of this chart. Amateru lived a long life, and in his later years developed the use of the Motoake as the Hutomani process. In times of special trouble, the chart would be consulted for inspiration in coming to a solution.

The eight Anami-Kami work with sixteen pairs of Misohu-Kami. Let us explain. The Anami-Kami have a special order which is

a – i – hu – he – mo – wo – su – si.

We have numbered their sectors in the pink ring from 1 through 8. The people of the Wosite age sensed the power of the voice and the ideogram which shows it. The Anami-Kami are the first vocal sounds of creation. They work with the Misohu-Kami. The Misohu-Kami are paired, one in the third ring with its partner in the fourth ring. For example, the first pair might be labelled (1) ya-ma, outlined in red in the chart. The second pair (2): ha-ra, (3): ki-ni; (4): ti-ri, etc.

The sixteen triplets for  a  would be a-ya-ma, a-ha-ra, a-ki-ni, a-ti-ri, etc. The sixteen triplets for i  would be i-ya-ma, i-ha-ra, i-ki-ni, i-ti-ri, etc. There are 128 triplets (8 times 16). Even with only three syllables, these triplets give rise to images in people’s minds, recalling history and culture. People made waka poems of these triplet images and used them as proverbs. Amateru-Kami decided to collect 128 waka, one for each triplet. He put out a call for submssions of proverbs in waka form, and he selected 128 waka. The waka begin with the words ayama, ahara, akini, etc. We will show you one of these waka in a later article.

Hutomani as Waka Anthology and Uranahi Inspiration

Hutomani may thus be considered an anthology of waka. The waka were used in connection with the principle of Motoake, to assist in deciding upon a course of action to a troublesome situation, a solutiion that would be in harmony with Universe.

When we perform Wosite analysis on the word uranahi, we get the result shown in the chart below. u  is the dynamic, powerful movement that can create new forms of things; ra  is the powerful energy that will be radiated during the process;  na  is the energy that is gathered together in harmony and is collectively moved down to the receiver; and  hi  means that from this energy, inspiration and new ideas will be born.

Therefore, the common labels for Hutomani: “divination” or “fortune-telling” do not convey the true meaning of Hutomani. Hutomani was a process of finding inspiration for approaching the solution to a societal problem by considering the way of Universe.

Amateru-Kami was compiler and editor of the Hutomani document. He was ably assisted by the scholar Amanokoyane, his tsurugi-no-tomo. Amanokoyane was also long-lived so that the document contains much of the wisdom that both great men had gained over the years.

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1. Woshite Literature

Woshite Documents

There are only three documents extant in the Woshite corpus, even though many others are mentioned in the ones that we have. The three documents are the Mikasafumi, the Hotsuma Tsutae, and the Futomani. They are written in verse of five and seven syllables. Even today, Japanese poems, called waka, have five and seven syllables. In Woshite World, we study the Woshite written language and equip ourselves to read and understand the messages contained in these ancient documents. This is an introduction to the three documents. As you read this article, you will begin to become familiar with the Woshite World. There is much to learn, and it will be tough-going at first. But fascinating as well! Your understanding will grow as you keep studying with us.

A note about the Wosite society.  In Wosite times, wise and compassionate persons rose to leadership positions. They took on the responsibility to oversee the welfare of the people of the land. At the top was the Amakami, and he was assisted by his Tomi. Today, we may think they were rulers governing people, but it was not quite like that. They kept the best interests of the people in mind as they dealt with issues from time to time. They approached situations from the view of the Amenaru-miti teachings. In a particularly difficult situation they consulted the Hutomani for inspiration and guidance. Therefore, for the most part, their society lived in peace and sufficiency for a long period of time.

Sounds of Wosite.  Woshite in the old days was pronounced Wosite. You will learn how to pronounce Wosite syllables and words in later lessons. You will note some differences with contemporary Japanese, namely the syllables:  hu, ti, tu, si in Wosite versus fu, chi, tsu, shi in contemporary Japanese. We are writing Wosite words for English readers using Roman letters that are close to the way the Wosite language was spoken. In Wosite times, the H syllables were pronounced like fa, fi, fu, fe, fo. However, the F sound spoken by Japanese is very gentle and very similar to an H sound. This is unlike the Western F sound which is very fricative. Therefore, we will use the letter H. Later the sounds of language changed so that the syllable hu became sounded more like fu, as it is written now. So these days most people say and write Futomani. Here on these pages we will write it Hutomani. And instead of Mikasafumi we write Mikasahumi. Let us start using the Wosite spellings of words. At first, you may have encountered some Wosite words before in their modern soundings and will find the traditional way a bit strange.

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Hotuma Tutaye (Hotsuma Tsutae)

The Hotuma Tutaye, at age around 2,000 years, is the youngest of the three documents and is, fortunately, complete. Of course, what we have are copies of copies. Tutaye is a term meaning a document that imparts knowledge and wisdom for later generations. All forty chapters, called aya, have been found and can be read today. The Hotuma Tutaye is an epic history of the land of Hotuma, the events and developments as well as the people who were prime movers. It shows that they tried to live in harmony with Universe, and most of the time succeeded in doing so. It conveys the lessons learned so that future generations can benefit.

The original 28 ayas of Hotuma Tutaye were composed by Kushimikatama, the Oomononushi who wrote it for Ihawarehiko (now called Jinmu Tenno). Oo-Tataneko of the same blood relationship added to it 12 more ayas in the times of Woshirowake (Keikou Tenno), approximately 800 years later. Oo-tataneko was Turugi-tomi and a descendant of Sosano-o, and this lineage called the Oo-mononusi held the position of Turugi-tomi from genertion to generation. His duty was to maintain peace and order in the land according to the principles of Amenaru-miti. (The title of Turugi-tomi is also called Migi-no-tomi which translates fo Minister of the Right. However, at that time, the position was different from what Migi-no-tomi came to mean later.)

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Hutomani (Futomani)

The Hutomani was compiled by Amateru Amakami. In order to have the best document for use by the leaders of society, Amateru compiled 128 waka verses. He was in his last years of life. The Kagami-tomi Amano-koyane assisted. The Wosite original calls this document Moto ra tutaye no humi. A humi, like a tutaye, is a written document to convey wisdom of the elders to succeeding generations. The term Moto ra tutaye no humi refers to how the solution to a problem is found. It is based on applying the principles of creation of Ame-tuti Universe. The words, Hutomani and Motoake, also refer to the creation process. The teachings were vital to understanding the process of creation, and thus to deriving a solution. The creation of Universe is taught through the Motoake chart shown here, and details are given in Post 6.1 and other posts. Please search on Category Motoake.

Motoake chart depicts the forty-eight creation Kami as the ideograms of phonemes. What is the relationship of the Motoake Kami to waka? Waka poetry is made of the combination of sounds of two kinds of Kami and their effects. Waka has a connection with the energies of Universe and the solution of a problem. When a problem arose, one of these waka poems would be selected to assist in the solution. Regretfully, we do not know the selection rules.

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Mikasahumi (Mikasafumi)

Mikasahumi is an older Wosite narrative of which only around 14% has been discovered so far. The fragment that we have consists of approximately 10,000 Wosite characters. The contents include history similar to that of the later Hotuma Tutaye. They also describe important events more precisely than does the Hotuma Tutaye. The theme of Mikasahumi is how to keep Amenaru-miti, the Way of Cosmos, alive for daily life. It carefully analyzes the changes that take place seasonally. It formed the basis for festivals and other events that observe the seasonal changes and express thanks for their blessings.

This seasonality has been transmitted even to today’s matsuri/festivals of gratitude: New Year’s eve and New Year’s day, Nanakusa (rice porridge with seven herbs), Setsubun (the traditional end of the winter festival), the Hina-matsuri doll festival in the third month, the Aoi-matsuri in the fifth month, the Tanabata-matsuri star festival in the seventh month. This is also continued in the observances of Jichin-sai (ceremony of calming the ground prior to building construction) and of Shichi-go-san (for children 7-5-3 years of age), and others. The origins and the ideas of all these traditional festivals are written in the ancient Mikasahumi.

There’s even more. Mikasahumi describes how the size of Universe is determined by a certain measurement technique. More familiarly, there is a measure to use for everyday purposes.

We learn from Mikasahumi that those who took on the responsibility for the welfare of people operated in accordance to the Laws of Ama, the Universe. (It would not be fitting to call them rulers or governors.) These ideas from Universe form the basis of the academic study of Japanese tetsugaku (philosophy).

Mikasahumi was written by Oo-Kasima who held the position of Kagami-tomi. It is said that the first half of Mikasafumi was written by the first Kagami-tomi Amano-koyane. Amano-koyane was a great-great-grandson of Toyoke-sama. Kagami-tomi was a top leadership position according to Wosite tradition. After Amano-koyane, the position was inherited for many generations by members in the lineage of Toyoke-sama. Kagami-tomi’s duty was to keep alive the transmission of the Kagami tradition: the discernment of good and bad in pursuit of Amenaru-miti, the right Way, in running society for the sake of the people. The word, Kagami, comes from ka (good) ga (not good) mi (to see). Kagami-tomi held the important responsibility of upholding the principles of Kagami. (In those days, Kagami-tomi was also called Hidari-tomi, which can be literally translated as Minister of the Left. The title, Minister of the Left, has continued but has come to carry a different meaning for his role.)

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Wosite Literature

Wosite writing is found extant only in the three documents described above. Two primary characteristics of Wosite literature are:  (1) Writing and reading proceed from top to bottom, and from right to left. This is similar to traditional Japanese writing.  (2) Documents were written in columns of 5 and 7 ideograms each. When read aloud, these lines amount to verses with rhythms of 5 and 7 syllables.

You will see selections from the Wosite literature in following lessons.

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