Notes on Some Minor Japanese Religious Practices

Notes on Some Minor Japanese Religious Practices Author(s): Basil Hall Chamberlain Source: The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, Vol. 22 (1893), pp. 355-370 Published by: Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2842134 . Accessed: 14/06/2014 16:30

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This content downloaded from 194.29.185.230 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 16:30:54 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions B. H. CHAMBERLAIN.-Minor Japanese ReligiomsPractices. 355 sacred number,with evident referenceto the cardinal points, whilstthe circledrawn by the swordsof the fourpriests, seems to be the originof the crosswithin the circleand of the Swastika which,in Asia as in America,symbolizes the cardiiialpoints and the path of the sun. The sacredwater taken fromwithin this circlewould appear also to be representedin the bowl placed in the centreof the Navajo sand-pictures,surrounded by sun- beams. The secondnotice is in a paper by Henry B. M'Dowell, on "A New Light on the Chinese,"which appeared in " Harper's Magazine" forDecember last, in whichis recordedthe beliefof the Chinese in colour,especially red, and mention is made of thecustom of erectinga dooror sun-gate in the middleof the roomon a child's birthday,through which he is carried by the priest,who goes throughthe same ceremonyat each pointof the compass,this ceremonvbeing repeated every birthdaytill the childis sixteen,evidently the multiple of thesacred number four. There is also a referenceto the Shinto religionof Japan,in whichit is said that pilgrimaaesare made to the shrineof Ise, wherewands, or harai,are procuredby everytrue believer. On arrivinghome these symbolsof growth are placed in the kama ama shelfof the gods.

NOTES on SOME MINOR JAPANESE PRELIGIOUS PRACTICES.*

By BASIL HALL CHAMBERLAIN.

[WITH PLATES XXIV, XXV.] [Read June 21st,1892.] STRAY notes pointingnowhere in particular can scarcelyever be muchto an investigator'staste. Far moreinteresting it is forhim to developsomne definite theory which he can illustrate and prove,at least to his own satisfaction,to write something whichhas, so to say, a beginning,a middle,and a logical end. Unfortunatelyfor me, fortunatelyperhaps for you, nly pil- ,rima(gesto manyscores of Japanese shrines,during the last nineteenyears, have left me with no particulartheories, but only withmany pleasant mlemories,and a miscellaneousassort- mentof paper charms and other objects of popular devotion, representativespecimens of whichare exhibitedhere to-night. Mr. Lafcadio Hearn, too,the mostconscientious of all present studentsof Japanese folk-lore,has kindlycontributed to the 1 The illustrationsare takenfrom objects presented by Mr. Chamberlainto the Pitt Rivers Museum at Oxford.

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littlecollection. He has contributedboth actual articlesand explanationsof the ideas connected with them, and much of what is here said must be looked on as restingon his high authority. Here, forinstance, are two little sections of bamboosent by him fromthe Shinto shrine of Yaegaki, in the proviniceof Izumo, whichskirts the coast of the Sea of Japan,a portionof the country,which, though classic grounidto the Japanese mythologist,is scarcelyever visitedby Europeans. The things themselvesare not much to look at, bus the followingletter, in whichthey came wrappedup, should make theminteresting in the eyes of all anthropologistsand studentsof folk-ways:- "These are fromYaegaki, but are not absolutelypeculiar to that place. The peasantsof Izumo carryofferings of sea- water in them fromthe coast to Yaegaki, and there attaclh themto the gratingsof the shrine,together with offeringsof seaweed. I am told a part of the water is drunk by them afterhaving been offered;but I am notquite sure if this is a genieralpractice. You maynotice there are two; one, I sup- pose,for Susa-no-o (the chiefdeity of thoseparts), the other for Inada-hime (his wife). I saw the same practice at the templeof Inasa, at Kitzuki,but there the waterwas carried in a gourd,or in a bottle. At Yaegaki the offeringsare not always of double, but commonlyof single bamboo water- vessels. There are a greatmany hanging there. On applica- tion yesterday,the priest detached these for me from the doorof the shrine." The next object is from the same part of the country,but Buddhist. It is called a hangi,or morevulgarly hanko, that is, a printing-block.Its use is stated by Mr. Hearn as follows: "'When a child dies, the motherprints with this a hundred copies of Jizo's imnage,and drops them into a streamwith the invocation,Namvu Jiz3, Dai Bosatsu [Hail! Oh! Jiz5, great Saint!], sometimesadding, in writingoni each paper,'for the sake of . . ."7 Jizo,be it explained-the SanscritKshitiyarbha -is the superhumanhelper of those that are in trouble,especially of dead children. His image is to be seeniin every part of Japan,loaded wit-hpebbles, which serve in the otherworld to relieve the labours of ilnfantswho have been robbed of their clothes by the hag namiedSh6zuka no Baba, and have been set by her to performthe endlesstask of piling up stoneson the banlkof the BuddhistStyx. A tinysymbol of devotion,to be seen scatteredall over the Izumnofields, is the little Nobori-perhaps one might translate the term by ' prayer-banner"in English-each of which typifiesthe grantingof a prayer. The nobori are specially

This content downloaded from 194.29.185.230 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 16:30:54 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Japanese-Religious Practices. 357 common in the neighbour'hoodof Shint6 temples. At the great temple of Izumo (Izumo 0- Yashiro) "they are," says Mr. Hearn," countless,making a white line round the base of the great buildings." Sometimesleaves of the sacred Sakakci tree((Cleyera japonica) are fastenedto the top of the prayerbanner. A far more showy object sent from Izumo by Mr. Hearn,but unfortunatelytoo unwieldyfor transportation to England, is the sh3ry5-bune,or " spirit-boat,"which is an elaborateconstruction of straw,shaped so as to forma straw modelof a boat and used in somniewhatvarious forms in different partsof Japan on the occasionof the Bon Mfatsuri,or Buddhist " Festival of the Dead." A short descriptionof the Nagasaki varietyof this custolmwill be found on page 381 of the 3rd Edition of Murray's "Handbook for Japan." In Izumo the custom differs. There the " spirit-boatsare launched only for thosewho have been drowned at sea, and the shapes of the shipsvary according to the kindof vessel in which the lost man or woman perished. They are launched every year for ten years after the death commemorated; and when the soul returnsyearly to visit the house,the ship is made ready,and a littlestick of incenseis lightedbefore launching it to take the b)elovedghost back again, a little stock of provisions,chiefly dango (a sort of rice-cake), being placed upon it on small earthenwaresaucers." The posthumousBuddhist names of the dead is writtenupon the sail. Then these boats are launched. not at nightas elsewhere,but in the day-time." Of a more cheerfulsymbolism is the accompanyingsmall paper,wood, and clay representationof a unitedloving couple, one body,or rather one suit of clothes,with two heads (the latter unfortunatelybroken). It conies froin" the old Shinto shrineof Yaegaki, where lovers pray forhelp to Susa-no-oand his deified human spouse, in a grove which is very solemn, shadowy,and beautiful. All kinds of curious customs are obser-vedby the pilgrims,such as tyinga stripof paper,inscribed withthe niameof the beloved,round two twigs so as to press them together. But the tying must be done with only the thumband littlefinger of one hand." A practice followedby lovers,at anotherShint6 temple, is to throwlittle pellets intoa pond. If the newts at once rush to seize the pellet,the onmen is good,whereas if theydo not do so, the omenis bad. Apropos of these, one may perhaps menltionthe strips of paper whichpilgrims to Buddhistshrines chew into pellets and then spit out at the Ni-a, or gigantic images of the guardian deitiesof the temples. If the pellet sticks,the pilgrim'sprayer will be heard. If not,the prayerwill not be heard. 1 Japonice,Kawarake. 2 Japonice,Kaim,yo.

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Of miscellaneous minor religious practices,the name is legion. Such are the sprig,of holly stuck to a doorpost to keep out evil spirits,the imprintof a hand over the door or entranceto a house, and similarly the rude picture of a horse pasted up over house-doorsto avert small-pox. What may be the rationale of this I know not, having negleeted to ask, but Mr. Aston, in a private communication,suggests that the horse may be intended to hint to the evil spirit that the familyis abroad. Another curious practice is that of depositinlgon some mountain-topthe instrumelntwith which a crime has been committed. Till within a fewyears ago Nantai-zan,a high summit in the Nikk5 district,now the lhappyhunting-ground of "globe-trotters,"was littered with swordsthat had thus been offeredto the mountaingod. Or, leavingthe land for the sea, how touching,is the sailor's habit of scattering grains of rice on the waves as an offeringto Kompira,or some other deitywith power to still the billows. This practiceI had never heard spokenof, but I witnessedit a fewyears ago when taking junk fromVries Island, offEastern Japan,to returnto the mainland. Indeed tne onlysatisfactory wayto get at such thingsis to go out oneselfamong the common people, and live with them as a friend,not asking leading (uestions-for these create distrust,and oftentimesproduce false answers-but watching,while seeming not to watch,and behaving,as if all that goes on were both rational and already well-known,in fact a matter of course. The queer little practices,the quaint little odds and ends of inconsistelntbeliefs are simplyendless. For thinka momentof Shint5,Buddhism, Confucianism-one an ethnic cult,the second an ethical and Iiighlymetaphysical Indian creed,the third a Chinese system of philosophyand government. The Japanese have had for centuriesthese threeliving alongside of each other,interpelne- tratingeach other,believed in simultaneously,more or less, by the same people,not mutuallyexclusive, as theyought logically to be, and as they certainlywould have been in this earnest, disputatious,persecuting Europe of ours. Add to this the con- sideration that Buddhism was already centuries old and extremelycorrupt when introducedinto Japan,that it brought withit a whole museum of Chinese superstitionson the top of original Indian beliefs and practices,themselves the slowly accumulatedlegacy of a hoaryantiquity, andl no one can wonder at findingrealised in Japan the paradox of religionsindifference restingon wealth of superstitiouslore. These, togetherwith an accurate descriptionof Japanese religiouspractices at large,nmust be left to somieonehaving the knowledge and the patienceto writea foliotomne on the subject.

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Let us confineourselves to that single branch which the articles exhibited to-night chiefly illustrate, viz., pilg,rims' charms. Pilgrimages have been a recognised institution among Japanese Buddhists fromthe very earliest tinle3 of Japanese Buddhlism,the practicehaving already been in full forceamong the Buddhistsof China,and beforethat again in India. Sometimesit is a single shrinethat forms the attraction,eacl neighbourhoodgenerally having one or morewithin easy reaclh to which local piety ascribes almost unlimited sanctity. Anothervariety is the catena, or set of shrines,to visit which in properrotation constitutes one completepilgrimage. The two mostcelebrated of these greaterpilgrimages are what are termedthe" Thirty-three Places" (SaikokuSait-ju-san-ga Sho) and the " Eighty-eightPlaces" (Shilkoku Ifachi-jfu-hak-kctSho). The formerare thirty-threeshrines sacred to Kwannon, the Goddessof Mercy,which are scatteredover the provincesnear Kyoto. The latterare eighty-eightshrines in various parts of the island of Shikoku,founded by thegreat ninth century saint, K6bo Daishi. These two groups of shrines are also called by the curious name of Fuda-sho, that is, " Card Places," because the pilgrimsleave their cards with their name and address at each shrine,pasting them up on the doors or pillars of the temple. Just as a specimen of such Japanese religious tales, the storyof the originof the " Thirty-threePlaces" may here be given:-Legend traces the institutionof these "Thirty-three Places" to Tokudo Sh6nin, a famous Buddhist abbot of the eighth century. This holy man, having suddenly died, was receivedby two emissariesof Yama, the god or regent of the underworld,and conducted to the latter's iron castle that glitterswith gold and silverand with pearls and everykind of preciousstones. The god,himself resplendent as a jewel and beaming with smiles, received the dead abbot with distinguishedattention, and forthwithrevealed to him the existenceof three-and-thirty places specially cared for by the Goddess of Mercy,saviour of the world (Guse Kwan-ze-on),who had thus divided herself into manybodies, wishing to succour each of mankind in the way best suited to his particularspiritual antecedents. But alas! none yet knew of the existenceof these shrines; so men wenton doingevil ratherthan good,and kept falling into hell as plentifullyas the rain drops in a furious summershower, whereas a single pilgrimageto the " Three-and-ThirtyPlaces." would cause the pilgrimito radiate light fromthe soles of his feet,and give him strengthto stamp all the one hundred and

This content downloaded from 194.29.185.230 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 16:30:54 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 360 B. H. CHAMBERLAIN.-NOteson somel Minor thirty-sixhells into fragments. " Should anyoneperadventure fall into hell that has accomplishedthe pilgrimage,"said Yama, "I, myself,will exchangewith him,and sufferin his stead,as a tellerof false tales. Here, therefore,is a list of the Three- and-ThirtyPlaces. Carryit back to the world of the livinag, and do the needfulin the matter. It was forthis purposethat I sent for thee hither." Tokudo thanked the regent of the underworldfor his kindness,but remarkedthat mortals had grownsceptical in theselatter days, and would ask for a sign to accredithis embassage. ThereuponYama gave him his own jewelled seal, and the abbot was led back by the same two attendantsas beforeto the sinfulworld. Now what had happenedthere was, that though he had laini as dead forthree days and threenights, his body had not grown cold. His disciplestherefore had refrainiedfrom burying him, thinkingthat he mightpossibly be restoredto life. When he did awake fromthe trance,there, grasped in his righthand, was the seal, which the regent of the underworldhad given him. Then he told his disciples all that had happened,and he and theystarted off on a roundof the Three-and-ThirtyPlaces, as the firstpilgrims to thoseholy shrines; and as the oldest templein Japan dedicatedto theMerciful Goddess was thatof Nakayama- dera in Setsu,which the Prince ShotokuTaishi had had built, theyvisited that first. There also did he leave the jewelled seal in a stone casket. So far the legend. The dress worn by the pilgrimswho visit the Thirty-threeHoly Places is here shown (Plate XXIV, A), as also that wornby the pilgrimsto the Eighty-eightHoly Places of Shikoku(Plate XXIV, B). Differencesof detail dis- tinguishone costumefrom the other. Thus the pilgrimsto the Thirty-threePlaces wear roundtheir necks a neckllaceformed of wooden tickets,each of which is inscribedwith the name of a shrineand the traditionalverse of poetrycelebrating the shrine. This sortof necklace is now going out of fashion in religious circles,and the diminutiveladle, or dipper,formerly carried as a receptaclefor alms,is no more seen; but the tataki-gane,or miniaturegong, is still used as an implementof religious worship, whichthe pilgrimsstrike in unison as theyslng. But by far the most importantitem in the costumeof the pilgrimsto the Thirty-threePlaces is the oizuru,a sort of coat, or should one rathercall it jacket ?-which is successivelystamped with the seal of each shrine. The threebreadths- of materialused in the sewingrof this holy garmenttypify the three great Buddhist deities-Amida, Kwannon, and Seishi. The garmentitself is always carefullypreserved after the returnhome, and when the ownerdies he is clad in it forburial.

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The pilgrimsto the Eighty-eightHoly Places of Shikoku are chieflyto be distinguishedby the shiri-tsube,a little cloth to sit on, which ancientlyformed part of the simpleluggage of all wayfarers,by thefuda basami,or double thin woodenboard servingto hold theirvisiting cards, and by a small strawsandal worn-of all extraordinaryplaces-at the back of the neck. It is intendedto symbolisethat great saint and wayfarer,Kobo Daishi, by whom the pilgrimagewas instituted. Perhaps the quaintestdetail of the costumeof both sets of pilgrimsis the inscriptionon the hat,which runs thus: lwo pilgrimstravelling in companyto such and such shrine.' Why should one hat have a referenceto two persons? The idea is that the pious pilgrimis never left alone. The great saint Kobo Daishi, or the Goddess of Mercy, as the case may be, travelswith him along the stonypath, supporting his footsteps,encouraging, his religious fervour,guarding him fromevil all along the way. Thereforenot one only but twowalk underthat broad-brimmed hat on the road to Paradise. It may be asked what it is that the pilgrimssay whenper- formingtheir devotions. The formula-supposingthe Goddess of Mercyto be addressed-is Namnndai-ji dai-hi no Kwan-ze-on Bosatsu (" Hail! Bodhisattva,of great mercy and compassion, who regardestthe prayersof the world! ")-to which will be added some brief extemporeprayer or thanksgiving. Some- times a sutra,entitled the " Fumon-Bon,"is recited in Chinese and withoutbeing understood,somewhat after the fashion of an incantationor taiisman,or else a shorterChinese text,ell- titled" KwannonJnk-kn,,' or " The Ten Sentences of the Mer- ciful Goddess." But the most noteworthyfeature of the worshipof the pilgrimsto the Thirty-threeShrines is the in- toningof the poem (Jap.,go eika) in honourof the shrine,there being one poem foreach of the Thirty-threeHoly Places. Japanese poems are distinguishedby extremebrevity, each consisting of but five lilies, which contain but thirty-one syllablesall told. The pilgrim'shymns formnio exception to this rule. Here are two or three specimenisfrom the cycle of the Thirty-threePlaces:-

Fudaraku ya Kishi ut.sunami wa Mikucma-no no NA CHII no mi-yamani Hibiku taki tsu se !

I In Japaneseit runsthus forthe Thirty-threeShrines, Saikoklu San-jft-san Sho digy5 ni-nin; and forthe Eighty-eightShrines, Shikokcu Hachi-ju-hak-ka Sho d#gy6ni-nin.

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Furu-satozo Hfaru-baru&koko ni KIMII-DERA Hana no minyakomo Chikakunaruran. Chicli haha no Megumimoffulkaki KOKA WA-DERIA Hotoke no chikai Tanomoshikikana. The first of these Lilliputian hyinns commemoratesthe mountain shrine of Nachi and the beautifullyre-echoing waterfallhard by,which is the loftiestin Japan,and compares them to Fudaraku-zan,a paradise to the south of this world, wheredwells the Goddess of Mercy in a gold palace built on greatcrystal rocks. The secondhymn, in honourof the shrine of Kimii, may be renderedthuis, though an untranslatableplay upon wordsis lost:- "Hither fromafar To the templeof Kimii Have I come to gaze on my nativeplace. The flowerycity, too, Must be near at hand." On this the commentatorquaintly remarks: "This poem may be thoughtto nmeanwhat it says, but it does not." And he goes onito explain that the " native place " or " home" of the poet really signiifiesthe originallyvirtuous heart of Buddhist imian,from which he has wandered into paths of sin, but that prayer at the holy shrine of Kimii will lead him back near again, not in deed, to the earthlymetropolis, Ky6to, but to that heavenly city which is Paradise. The third poenmis easier. It says (also neglectinga play upon words, for the Japanese are inveteratepunsters even on the gravestoccasion): "How trustworthy Is the promiseof the Buddha Of the templeof Kokawa, Rich in the lovingkindness Of our Father and our Mother." The " Father," it should be explained, is Shaka Muni (Cakya Muni, he whom Europeans generallycall " Buddha "), the " Mother" is Amida, the impersonlationof endlesslight, the Buddha here speciallymentioned is Kwannon,the Goddess of Mercy. I am not aware that any Japanese religiouspoetry has ever beforebeen renderedinto English. These examplesmay suffice to show that brief as the hymns may be, theyare not easy to translate offhand; neitheris it likely that European taste wouldmuch appreciatean extensivecollection of them.

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The chiefcare of pilgrimsto all shrinesafter perforining their shortdevotions, is to purchasecharms to carryhome withthem, an arrangementwhich also serves the purposeof helping to supportthe priests. Such charmsare chieflyof two kinids-the o fuda, whichmay be eithera thinlong, wooden board, or a thin lolngstrip of paper,with an inscription,and sometimesa picture. and themarmori, which is eithera small editionof the o fuda, or else a tiny image. Occasionally the o fuda is mounted as a liangingscroll (kakemono); occasionally, too, the mamoritakes the shape of a little screen,and is made of damask instead of paper. The distinctionbetween the two is merelyone of popular terminology,and does not rest on any fundamentaldiversity of use or meaning,;and the English word " charm" will cover the significanceof both. Small charms are worn in little em- broideredor damaskbags to protectthe wearerfrom danger of fire,inundation, pestilence, the pangs of childbirth,etc. Hence the Japanesename imamori,which means literally" safeguard," "protection." Charms are also stuck up over doorways, similarlyto guard the whole householdfrom evil of various sorts,more particularly from such as comes fromthe north-east, whichis the most dreaded of the eightpoints of the compass. The largercharms are set up on the familyaltar, surrounded by otherreligious furniture. Some charmsare put to morecurious purposes. Here forinstanice, is a small one fromthe temple of Suiten-guin T6kyoinscribed with the Japanesevariety of some Devanho,aricharacters, which are used as an incantation. Sick people cut out these characters,and roll them into pills wlhich theyswallow downby the help of fresh-drawnwater, whereupon anythingthat may be lyingheavy on theirstomachs is vomited up, or othersuitable results are produced. This charmhas also the powerto preservevoyagers from shipwreck. The accompanyingcharms from the large and popular Buddhist temple of Asakusa, in Tokyo,may serve as typical specimensof those sold at hundredsof shrinesall overthe land. 1 boughtthem on the spot in Decemberlast, just beforestarting forEurope, so that nothingcould well be mnoreup to date. I. Little paper charms(marnori) are to preservethe wearer respectivelyfrom lightning, pestilence, sickness, fire, drowning,thieves, insects (that is, insects inside the body, for popular Japanese superstitionagrees with modernEuropean science in ascribingmany diseases to milnuteanimal life),pollution, death by the sword, perilson the way, and perilsin childibirth,while one is a generalluck-bringer. Each containsa littleChinese text fromthe " Fumton-Bon,"already mentioned,but

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this is neverread, for customn forbids the opening of a charm. II. Charmsin the shape of picturesof Kwannon,the chief deity of the place, are called o miei, that is, freely translated,"holy pictures." The paper ones are by farthe commonestform, costing, as they do muchless thanthose that are shrine-shaped. Notice the sacred lotus-flower,the favouriteenmblem of Buddhism,whicn thegoddess holds in herhand. Accordingto a favourite Buddhist saying,the virtuousman dwelling,in this wickedworld mnaybe likenedto a lotus-flowergrowilng out of the muck. A little kakemono,or scroll,is an o miei mountedso as to be convenientfor hanging up in a familyaltar. The art may not be muchto boast of, but thenthe little scroll-mountingand all-costs but tencents, say three-penicehalfpenny of Englishmoney. The whole collectionof Asakusa charnmsdid not come to threeshillings. TII. A kado-fuda,that is, a stripof paperfor pasting up over the entranceto a house. The Chinese text on it is a prayerfor prosperity. IV. A little arrow-head-shaped parcel of ricethat has been offeredto the goddess. The Japanese call it o semn- mai, and eat it withreverence. Otherholy meats and drinks partaken of by the faithfulare the o ktzunotsu (cakes or vegetables),the o chato(tea), and the o kzu,i, also called o mizu (water). All these things are the remainsof the daily offeringsmade by-thepriests, as part of theirmorning service. Some of themare used by the faithfulfor other purposes than eating or drink- ing. For instance,a person afflictedwith bad eyes will bathe themwith the holy tea,-and as weak tea is an excellenttonic to weak eyes,it may be supposed that manycures are thus effected. V. A colouredstrip, made in imitationof a temple flag and wornby pregnantwolmeni inside their sash to guard themduring the pangs of childbirth. VI. Cheap reprints of Chinese scriptureswith Japanese transliteration(not translation), and in one case a com- mentaryin Japanese.

So farthe Asakusa charms. A littlered and gold imitation damaskbag is a charm-bag,such as childrenwear, that is to say that charms are put into it, and it is then tied to the child's waist,to preservethe wearer fromvarious ills, such as getting run over, falling into the water, &c. These crape under-

This content downloaded from 194.29.185.230 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 16:30:54 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions JapanteseReligious Practices. 365 sashes (d6-maki)are used by womnen,one or morecharms being inserted,and the crape tied round the waist under the other sash. Soinetimesi-moneyis carried in the same manner. Very commonforms of charms which do not happen to be incluidedin the littlecollection from the tenmpleof Asakusa are exemplifiedby these two boards-one fromItokuji, a Buddhist templein Toky5,the otherfrom the sacred mountain Oyama. The inscriptionon the formercertifies that the ceremoniyof lightingthe sacred Goma firein honourof the god Sud5 having been perfornmied,the worshipper's household will be at peace, his businessprosperous, and all ills avertedfrom him and his. The boardfrom Oyama, more terse,simply styles itselfa miemento of prayeroffered to the local deity. The printed paper which oftenreplaced the writtenboard is exemplifiedby the accom- panyingspecimen from Kinkwa-zan, the beautiful holy island of the north. Other charmnsare contained within it. The tiny carvedcharmis which are occasionallycarried on theperson may be illustratedby this little itnage of Kato Kiyomasa,a great warriorof the 16th century,celebrated as a persecutorof the Christians,and deifiedby the Nichiren seat of Buddhists. It was boughtat a templenear Kumamotoin SoutherniJapan in Decemberof last year. As to charmsof othertypes, and miscellaneousarticlds connected with minor superstitions. The plans of temples,both colouredand uncoloured,and thecheap prints,with pictures and text, illustrativeof pious legends,are particularlywidespread Each little districthas its sacredtree, its miraculouswell, or its wonder-workingoimage; and as printingis cheap in Japan,and almosteverybody can read,both pen and pencil are constantly pressedinto the serviceof local piety. Owingto tlheinterpretation of the two reliaions,Shinto and Buddhism,during many centuries, Shinto has come to adoptthe custom of pilgrilmlagesand charms on the Buddhistpattern. Shortlyafter the revolutionof 1868, large numbersof temples, which had till then been served by Buddhist priests, were handedover to the Shint5istsfor reasons into whichit is impos- sible to enterhere. In such cases alteratioiiswere made in the names of the deitiesinscribed on the charms and in some other (letails; but otherwvisethe charmsremained much as they had been before,as indeed did the ways of the pilgrims,who' being, mostlydrawn. from the humblest classes of society,and belonging to a race little given to religiousspeculations or disputes,remainedtrue to each favouriteshrine as to a fetish,regardless of changesin the templetheology anid ritual. The great Kompira pilgrimaYgeis a good instanceof this peculiarkind of conserva- tism subsisting,amidst inuiiovation.Kompira, situated in the VOL. XXII. 2B

This content downloaded from 194.29.185.230 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 16:30:54 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 366 B. H. CHAMBERLAIN.-Noteson SomeMinor island of Shikoku,is a shrinefor which sailors and travellers have a peculiardevotion. When I firstvisited it some seventeenyears ago, it was in Buddhisthands. On goingthere again last November,I found it Shinto; but the pilgrims'hostelries, the money-changers,and the charm-vendors,here driving as briska trade as ever, not nmorechanged,.than was the exquisiteview of the mountainsof Sanuki and the Inland Sea, that greets the travellerfrom the summit of the hill, up which the temple buildings extend. Here you see papercharms of the ordinarykind. Theybear the simple inscription,"A charm fromthe shrine of Kotohira" (anlotherpronunciation of 1Kompira). One or more of these lhaimsmay be insertedin the charm-box(fuda-bo6ko), of which this is a specimen. Perhaps you will think it tawdry; but rememberthe class of personswho buy such things. Charm-boxesare wrappedup in oil-paper forthe pilgrimsto hang roundtheir necks, and carryaway with them. The large red Chinese characterr, whichthe Japanesepronounce kin or kon,stands phonetically for the firstsyllable of the word Kom- pira. The long board wrappedup in oil-paper is anotheritem distinctiveof the Kompira and one or two neighbouringpil- grimag,es.The specimenhere exhibitedcomes from Hashikura- ji, an ancientshrine, and one fifteentmiles inland from Kompira among the mouiitains,in a districtscarcely ever visited by Europeans,where the rapids of the lovely Yoshino.gawa dash along at the footof a high cliff,which the temple dominates like a feudal castle. The two shrines,-Kompira and Hashi- kura-ji,-play into each other's hands, though the formerhas becomeShinto, while the latterhas remainedtrue to the Budd- hist faith. This scroll (kakernono),representing the god of Kompira,attended by a host of long-lnosedgoblins (tengu), was purchased by mieof the Abbot of Hashikura-ji in November last. Pious personshang up such scrollsin the alcove of their room. A catalogueof objectsso closelyresembling each other as do nmanyof these charms fromdifferent places, mustbe a tax on your patience, especially in conniectionwith numbers of un- familiar,geographical names. I would only crave your indul- gence fortwo moresets of holy objects-one fromIse, and one fromIzumo. Ise and Izumio,be it remarked,are the Mecca and Medina of the Shinto cult-the pure Shinto cult,unmixed with Buddhism. At Ise are worshippedthe Sun-GoddessAma- terasu, axicestressof the Mikados, and Toyo-uke-bime,the Goddess of Food. At Izuimo the chief object of worship is Onamuji,who would seem to have been originallya deityor monarchof the native race whom the earlyMikados, coming

This content downloaded from 194.29.185.230 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 16:30:54 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions JapaneseReligious Practices. 367 fromthe south-west,subdued. Susano-o,brother to the Sun- Goddess,is also much worshippedin that part of Japan. The Izumo pictures,which were sent to nmeby Mr. Lafcadio Hearn, are hung on that wall. Nos. I and 2 portraythe creationof the worldand the genealogiesof the gods. A devout Shintoist, well up in his "Kojiki," will understandthem as well as a Christiandoes a set of Bible pictures. No. 3 representsthe Seven Generationsof Heavenly Gods and the Five Generations of Earthly Gods (Ten-jin Shichi-Dai, Chi-jin Go-Dai). In No. 4 we see the Sun-Goddessand variousgods connectedwith agriculture. In Nos. 5 and 6 we have the legendof- Susano-o slayingthe Eight-headedSerpent of Izumo,the inscriptionon No. 5 being the celebratedverse commencingYa-kunio tatsv, wliichis looked on as the fountain-headof Japanese poetry. The remainingIzunio numbersare less classical. No. 7 gives a coloured representationof the sacred snake (PRyijin),which swimsashore in the tenthmoon of everyyear, near the temnple of Hino Misaki, as a messengerfrom Watazumi-no-Kami, the God of the Sea. Nos. 8 and 9 are fromthe same place, beiilg genaine charms(o mamnori),not mere sacred pictures(o miei) like the precedingnumbers. No. 8 representsthe serpentagain, while No. 9 is a charmpreservative of the healthof horses and cattle. Several sacred symbolsof the Shint6 religion,viz., the straw rope (shimenawa), the Cleyera tree (sakakli),and the gohei,or paper symbolsrepresenting the ancient offeringsof cloth. No. 10 has three deities,and underneaththem what is called the Kane no naru?ki, that is, the tree on which money grows- a sort of punningmorality; for the word ki means " tree,"and all sortsof virtueswhose names end in the same syllable,ki, are representedas branchesof this wealth-producing tree; forinstance, shojiki, "honesty;" shAimbyoki, "patience," &C.,&C. And now to end up by Ise, whichis the holiestof all Shinto shrines-holier even than Izumo itself,and so popularthat as miianyas 199,000 are said to have visited it on a single day. The articlesfrom there date fromMarch of last year,when I inade a pilgrimageto the place, and saw what little is allowed to be seen by eyes profane-for none but the priests an(d Imperial Personages are permitted to enter the two great temples dedicated respectivelyto the Sun-Goddess and the Goddess of Food. The woodencharms from Ise have a special name,o harai, whichseems to mean " clearance,"" purification," " expulsionof evil spirits;" and the peculiar sanctityattaching to themarises from the fact that theyare actuallyfragmerits of the templesthemselves. A veryancient rule prescribesthat the tenmplesshall be razed to the ground and reconstructed 2 B 2

This content downloaded from 194.29.185.230 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 16:30:54 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 368 B. H. CHAMBERLAIN.-Noteson someMinor every twentyyears in preciselythe same style, dowlnto the mintutestdetail. For this purpose two closely adjacent sites are providedfor each, and the constructionof the new temples is commencedon the vacant sites towards the close of the twentyyear period. When theyare finished,the ceremonyof Sengyo,or " Transferenceof the Sacred Emblems,"takes place, whereuponthe old temples are pulled down and cut up into myriadsof charims. The renovationlast took place in October, 1889. These simple looking charms,therefore, are actuallybits of the Sun-Goddess'stemple, as preciousrelics to devoutShintdists as would be to Christiansa fragmentof the True Cross, but fortunatelyvery much more easy of attainmentand more probablygenuine, seeing that a fresh and abundant supplyis forthcomingonice in everytwenty years. Not all that you see, lhowever,is the true temple wood. The originaland proper formof the o harai is a box made of otherwood containiniga splinterof the truewood. These tinyspecimens (iname o harai) are of the orthodoxbox shape; but these larger ones are reducedto twothin boardswith the splinterbetween them,as is easily perceptibleto the touceh. The change of formhas arisenfrom a desireon the pilgrim'spart to economisespace, a large box slunground the neck being no handy bit of luggage. The splinterin paper is, of course,a furthersimplification of the originalidea, so that we have here a line of developmentin three stages. These pieces of the true wood form,with rem- lants of the sacred offerings(this little packet contain.srice offeredon the altar of the Goddess of Food), are the Ise charmns properlyso called. Here, however,is a little silver medal inscribed with the name of the Sun-Goddess and doubtless capable of workingareat good to the wearer; though this particularform of charm is new,to the best of nmyknowledge, and traceable to European influence. Lastly, there are somne pictures and books sacred and semi-sacred. All the sacred pictures are modernin treatment,dating only from 1889 or 1890. No. 1 is the Sun-Goddess,mirror in hand, and with a niecklaceof the curious orinamentscalled mnaga-tama,that is, curved jewels, round her neck. No. 2 representsthe same divinepersonage attended by the Goddess of Food and by the firsthuiman Mikado, Jimimu Teiinn6, whose preseincein such a grolupwould of itself date the drawing(lown to quite modern times,for it is only duringthe presentreign that an attemiipt has been made by the authorities,both political and religious, to spread the respect-one mightalmcst say worship-of the I mperial House. No. 3-the Klakemono-has seven of the chief Shint5 deities, viz., the Sun-Goddess,the Creator aiid

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Creatrix,Izanagi and Izanami,the Goddess of Food, Hachiman the God of War, the God Kasuga, and the God Saruta-biko. No. 4 representsthe antique treasuresbelonging to the Ise teinples. No. 5 is the sacred dance called Dai-dai Kagtra, and thispicture is truerthan the othersto earlytypes. No. 6 is a plan of both temples,together with other neighbouriilg scenes. No. 7 is an Almanac for the year 1891, forlong ages issued by the priests.No. 8 is a local guide-book-illustratedas such books always are in Japan. There are a few more miscellaneouscharms on this table; also oineof the fire-drillsof chamsecypariswood fromthe great Shintotemple of Izumo, which the enlightenedhigh priest, Mr. Senke,consented to part with, in orderthat the learned world of Europe might be able to insFect an example of this mostancient of Japanesereligious implements. But time presses,and patience has its limits. An attempt lhas been made this evening to skim along a portionof the outsideof a vast and complicatedsubject. To othersmust be leftthe task of completingthe survey,and the farmore difficult matterof solvingquestions relating to the history,developimlent, and significance of these minor Japanese religious practices. Somethinghas, indeed,already been accomplishedin this field of research,notably by Mr. E. M. Satow's elaborate papers on Shinat6,published in the " Transactionsof the Asiatic Societyof Japan." But the more popular Japanese superstitious and religiouspractices-especially the Buddhistones-have scarcely yet been explored,and caii only properlybe studiedin coiinec- tion with the Chinese and Korean popular Buddhism from whichthey spring.

DISCUSSION.

Mr. A. L. LEWIS said, with regard to the placing of the temples to the north-east of the towns, that any such reference to the north-eastin temples was generally thought to be connected with sun worship,but Prof. Chamberlain had connected this Japanese custom with fear of demons who inhabited the north-east. Was there any association of these demonswith the sun, or sun worship, or could Prof. Chamberlaingive any more informationabout them? Mr. N. Diosy, Hon. Secretary of the Japan Society, suggested that the situation of the great temples to the north-eastof Tokyo, that being the point of the compass from which the greatest danger was anticipated, might be traced to the early struggles between the Ainu and their Japanese conquerors (the ancestors of the present Emperor), who came fromthe south-west.

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As thep drove the natives before them, the north-eastwould naturallybecome the point of danger,from which nocturnal attacks of the enemy might be expected. Mr. DIOsy, alluding to Prof. Chamberlain's statement that the Japanese ascribed most diseases to the action of parasitical insects inhabitingthe human body, pointed out that Dr. Baelz, the great authority on the physical characteristics of the Japanese, had stated (as recorded in the " Mitteilungen" of the German Asiatic Society of Tokyo) that the bodies of the Japanese contained more worms and other internal parasites than those of Europeans, but Dr. Baelz added that they did not seem to do the Japanese mucl harm.

Mr. BEAUFORT remarked that when he was in Japan in 1869, he? chanced to arrive at Nagasahi on the day of the festival of the spirits of the dead. The town is situated at the head of an inlet of the sea inclosed in a basin rising abruptly from the edge of the water. OD the low hill sides were many tombs which at night on this occasion were illuminated with coloured paper lanterns,an(d produced an exceedingly picturesque appearance. On all the tombs were supplies of food for the entertainmentof the spirits. Next morningthe spirits were sent away in small vessels prepare(d for the purpose and supplied with food for the voyage. One of these small vessels was found next tlay a loilg way ouitat sea, still sailing along when Mr. Beaufort's steamerleft Nagasahi.

Explanationof Plates XXIV, XXV.

PLATE XXIV. A.-Pilgrimto the Thirty-threeHoly Places sacredto Kivannioii(Goddess of Mercy). B.-Pilgrimto theEighty-eight Holy Places of the Island of Shikoku.

PLATE XXV. Fig. 1.-Board charm" ittfuda" fromHokuji, Tokyo. Fig. 2.--Charmbox from temple of Kompira, showing manner of wrappingup forcarrying on breastby pilgrim. Fig. 3.--Tubesused by peasants of Izumo for carrving offerings ofsea-water to theshrine of Yaegaki. Fig. 4.-" Nobori,"or prayerbanner, planted round foundations of templeto signifythat a prayerhas been granted. Fig. 5.-Charmfrom Ise, fragmentof wood from temple of Sun Goddess(Ania terasu).

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