must take fruit of all kinds, and brew from it eight jars of sake, and I will kill the serpent for you.' The two Gods, in accordance with his instructions, prepared sake. When the time came for the child to be born, the serpent came indeed to the door, and was about to devour the child. But Sosa no wo no Mikoto addressed the serpent, and said:—'Thou art an Awful Deity. Can I dare to neglect to feast thee?' So he took the eight jars of sake, and poured one into each of its mouths. The serpent drank it up and fell asleep. Sosa no wo no Mikoto drew his sword and slew it. When he came to sever its tail, the edge of his sword was slightly notched. He split the tail open and examined it, when he found that inside it there was a sword. This sword is called Kusa-nagi no tsurugi. It is now in the village of Ayuchi, in the province (I. 55.) of Ohari. It is this Deity which is in the charge of the Hafuri[1] of Atsuta. The sword which slew the serpent is called Worochi no Ara-masa.[2] It is now at Isonokami.[3]
Afterwards the child who was born of Inada no Miya-nushi Susa no yatsu-mimi, namely Ina-gami Furu-kushi-nada-hime,[4] was removed to the upper waters of the river Hi, in the province of Idzumo, and brought up there. After this Sosa no wo no Mikoto made her his consort, and had by her a child, whose descendant in the sixth generation was Oho-na-muchi no Mikoto."
In one writing it is said:—"Sosa no wo no Mikoto wished to favour[5] Kushi-nada-hime, and asked her of Ashinadzuchi and Tenadzuchi,[6] who replied, saying:—'We pray thee first to slay the serpent, and thereafter it will be good that thou shouldst favour her. This serpent has rock-firs growing on each of its heads; on each of its sides there is a mountain; it is a very fearful beast. How wilt thou set about to slay it?' Sosa no wo no Mikoto thereupon devised a plan. He brewed a poisonous
Page:Nihongi by Aston.djvu/87
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56
Nihongi.
