said:—"Thou didst not contain thyself, but hast caused me shame: I will in my turn put thee to shame." So treading the Great Void, he ascended to Mount Mimoro. Hereupon Yamato-toto-hime no Mikoto looked up and had remorse. She flopped down on a seat and with a chopstick stabbed herself in the pudenda so that she died. She was buried at Oho-chi. Therefore the men of that time called her tomb the (V. 14.) Hashi no haka.[1] This tomb was made by men in the day-time, and by Gods at night. It was built of stones carried from Mount Oho-saka. Now the people standing close to each other passed the stones from hand to hand, and thus transported them from the mountain to the tomb. The men of that time made a song about this, saying:—
Winter, 10th month, 1st day. The Emperor gave command to his Ministers, saying:—"The rebels have now all yielded themselves to execution and there is peace in the home district.[4] But the savage tribes abroad[5] continue to be tumultuous. Let the generals of the four roads now make haste to set out." On the 22nd day, the four generals set out on their journeys simultaneously.
- ↑ The Chopstick Tomb.
- ↑ The great acclivity.
- ↑ The tombs of men of rank at this period of Japanese History consisted of a round mound of earth varying in size according to the station of the person interred, and containing a vault of megalithic stones, with an entrance gallery similar to those of the Imperial Misasagi, but of much smaller size. Many of these are still to be seen in Japan, especially in the provinces near Yamato. Of course it is utterly impossible to pass from hand to hand stones of the size used in constructing these tombs.
- ↑ The original is Kinai, more familiarly known as Gokinai, and comprising the provinces of Yamato, Yamashiro, Settsu, Kawachi, and Idzumi.
- ↑ Lit. outside the sea. This is a Chinese expression which must not be taken too literally. The Ainos may be referred to. But the whole passage seems inspired by recollections from Chinese literature, and is probably entirely fictitious.
