wake."[1] It is he who was the first ancestor of the Kuzu[2] of Yoshino.
Then skirting the river, he proceeded westward, when there appeared another man, who had made a fish trap and was catching fish. On the Emperor making inquiry of him, he answered and said:—"Thy servant is the son of Nihe-motsu."[3] He it is who was the first ancestor of the U-kahi of Ata.[4]
9th month, 5th day. The Emperor ascended to the peak of (III. 16.) Mount Takakura in Uda, whence he had a prospect over all the land. On Kuni-mi[5] Hill there were descried eighty bandits. Moreover at the acclivity of Me-zaka[6] there was posted an army of women, and at the acclivity of Wo-zaka[7] there was stationed a force of men. At the acclivity of Sumi-zaka[8] was placed burning charcoal. This was the origin of the names Me-zaka, Wo-zaka and Sumi-zaka.
Again there was the army of Ye-shiki,[9] which covered all the village of Ihare. All the places occupied by the enemy[10] were strong positions, and therefore the roads were cut off and obstructed, so that there was no room for passage. The Emperor, indignant at this, made prayer on that night in person, and then fell asleep. The Heavenly Deity appeared to him in a dream, and instructed him, saying:—"Take earth from within the shrine[11] of the Heavenly Mount Kagu, and of it (III. 17.) make eighty Heavenly platters. Also make sacred jars[12] and therewith sacrifice to the Gods of Heaven and Earth. Moreover pronounce a solemn imprecation. If thou doest so, the
- ↑ Rock-push-divide.
- ↑ Kuzu were local chiefs. They are mentioned again in Ōjin's reign.
- ↑ Food-holder or purveyor.
- ↑ U-kahi means cormorant-keepers. Fishing with cormorants is still practised in Japan.
- ↑ Land-view.
- ↑ Women's acclivity.
- ↑ Men's acclivity. The terms Me-zaka and Wo-zaka are now applied to two roads or stairs leading up to the same place, one of which (the women's) is less precipitous than the other.
- ↑ Sumi-zaka means charcoal acclivity.
- ↑ Shiki the Elder.
- ↑ Lit. Robber-slaves or prisoners.
- ↑ A shrine, like a templum, might be merely a consecrated plot of ground. Kagu-yama is a mountain in Yamato.
- ↑ Idzube. The platters were for rice, the jars for sake. See Satow's "Rituals" in "J.A.S.T.," VII., ii., p. 109.
