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Kojiki (Chamberlain, 1882)/Section 58

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Kojiki (1882)
by Ō no Yasumaro, translated by Basil Hall Chamberlain
Ō no Yasumaro4691904Kojiki1882Basil Hall Chamberlain

[Sect. LVIII.—Emperor Kō-shō.]

His Augustness Mi-ma-tsu-hiko-kawe-shine dwelt at the palace of Waki-no-kami in Kadzuraki,[1] and ruled the Empire. This Heavenly Sovereign wedded Her Augustness Princess Yoso-taho,[2] younger sister of Oki-tsu-yoso,[3] ancestor of the Chiefs of Wohari,[4] and begot august children: His Augustness Ame-oshi-tarashi-hiko,[5] and next His Augustness Oho-yamato-tarashi-hiko-kuni-oshi-bito[6] (two Deities). Now the younger brother, His Augustness Tarashi-hiko-kuni-oshi-bito [was he who afterwards] ruled the Empire. The elder brother His Augustness Ame-oshi-tarashi-hiko (was the ancestor of the Grandees of Kasuga,[7] the Grandees of Ohoyake,[8] the Grandees of Ahata,[9] the Grandees of Wonu,[10] the Grandees of Kaki-no-moto,[11] the Grandees of Ichihiwi,[12] the Grandees of Ohosaka,[13] the Grandees of Ana,[14] the Grandees of Taki,[15] the Grandees of Haguri,[16] the Grandees of Chita,[17] the Grandees of Muza,[18] the Grandees of Tsunuyama,[19] the Dukes of Ihitaka in Ise,[20] the Dukes of Ichishi,[21] and the Rulers of the Land of Chika-tsu-Afumi).[22]

The Heavenly Sovereign’s august years were ninety-three. His august mausolum is on Mount Hakata[23] at Waki-no-kami.


  1. In Yamato. The name of Waki-no-kami is of uncertain derivation. In the “Chronicles” the Emperor Kō-shō is said to have “dwelt at the palace of Ikegokoro at Waki-no-kami.” For Kadzuraki see Sect. LV, Note 1.
  2. Yoso-taho-bime-no-mikoto. Here written phonetically, this name appears in the “Chronicles” written with characters according to which the signification of “perfectly ornamented princess” should be attributed to it.
  3. The signification of this name is obscure, but it seems to be connected in some way with that of the other sister.
  4. Wohari no murazhi.
  5. I.e., “heavenly great perfect prince.”
  6. I.e., “great Yamato perfect prince, country great man.” This name appears in an abbreviated form in the next sentence.
  7. Kasuga no omi. Kasuga is a celebrated place in the province of Yamato. The name is of uncertain origin, though the “Catalogue of Family Names” gives a story referring it to Kasu-gaki (糟垣), i.e., “lees fence.” The curious combination of characters with which Kasuga is written,—春日,—may be traced to the Pillow-Word haru-hi no (春日之) which was not unnaturally prefixed to a name which so much resembled the Verb kasumu, “to be misty.”
  8. Ohoyake no omi. Ohoyake is a place in Yamato The name signifies “great granary.”
  9. Ahata no omi. Ahata is a place in Yamashiro. The name signifies “millet-field.”
  10. Wonu no omi. Wonu is a place in Afumi. The name signifies “little moor.”
  11. Kakinomoto-no-omi. Kaki-no-moto signifies “at the bottom of the persimmon-tree,” and the name is said by the compiler of the “Catalogue of Family Names” to have been granted to this family in allusion to a persimmon-tree which grew near their gate. This name was rendered illustrous in the eighth century by the poet Kakinomoto Hitomaro (see the present writer’s “Classical Poetry of the Japanese,” p. 217 et seq.).
  12. Ichihiwi no omi. Ichihiwi is in Yamato. The name may signify “oak-well.”
  13. Ohosaka no omi. Ohosaka is a place in Bingo. The name signifies “great hill, or pass.”
  14. Ana no omi. Ana is a department in Bingo. The name signifies “hole” or “cave.”
  15. Taki no omi. Taki is a district in Tamba. The name, which is a common one in Japan, means “waterfall.”
  16. Haguri no omi. Haguri is a district in Wohari. The signification of the name is obscure.
  17. Chita no omi. Chita is a district in Wohari. The signification of the name is obscure.
  18. Muza no omi. Muza is a district in Kadzusa. The name seems to be a corruption of the Chinese words 武射, “warlike archer.”
  19. Tsunuyama no omi. The family, the place, and the signification of the name are alike obscure.
  20. Ise no Ihitaka no kimi. Ihitaka is the name of a district, and is traced to the signification of “abundant rice.”
  21. Ichishi no kimi. Ichishi is a district in Ise. The signification of the name is obscure.
  22. Chika tsu Afumi no kuni-no-miyatsuko. For Chika-tsu-Afumi see Sect. XXIX, Note 20.
  23. In Yamato. The signification of the name is obscure.