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SHAMAN-QUEENS AND SACRAL PRINCESSES A Re-Examination of the “Golden Age” Narrative of Female Sacral Power in Ancient Japan Natalie Louise McKay ORCID: 0000-0002-2620-0372 Doctor of Philosophy – Arts October 2020 Asia Institute, Faculty of Arts, University of Melbourne School of Japanese History, Graduate School of Letters, University of Kyoto Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy – Arts 1 Abstract Among scholarship of ancient Japanese women’s history, a traditional narrative has formed in which the ancient period emerges as a “golden age” of female power, an age in which women – through magico-religious performance – occupied positions of authority that were later usurped by the coming of patriarchal value systems, surviving only in traces. Recent decades have seen revisions to this “golden age” narrative, proposing more complex models of how this ancient “power” may have been configured, and how it may have been eroded by changing gender norms. However, many core assumptions from the early “golden age” narrative persist throughout modern scholarship, such as the existence of contrapuntal male-female rule as a standard format of power across the archipelago, or the interpretation of later female positions of (sacral or monarchic) power as direct legacies of a more empowered age. This research thus performs a critical re-evaluation of the “golden age” narrative in its various incarnations, examining its arguments against images of women and female sacral performance from a variety of surviving contemporary texts. It also aims to bring to light new perspectives on the discourse, such as the overlooked consideration of regional diversity in ancient Japan, and the multiplicity encompassed within the concept of “power”. Through this work, it can be seen that, while modern scholarship has developed to encompass greater nuance and diversity, several threads of the “golden age” narrative persist into the modern day, contributing to the oversimplification and homogenisation of what in actuality appear as a complex range of relationships between women, religion, and power throughout ancient Japan. By identifying and challenging these points of homogenisation, we may come to a more nuanced and comprehensive understanding of women’s experiences in ancient Japan. 2 This is to certify that the thesis comprises only my original work except where indicated in the preface; due acknowledgement has been made in the text to all other material used; this thesis is 100,219 words in length, inclusive of footnotes, but exclusive of tables, maps, appendices, and bibliography. ………………………………………………………………. 3 I would like to acknowledge the help and support given to me by my supervisors, Dr. Claire Maree and Dr. Ikuko Nakane, in the writing of this thesis. I would also like to acknowledge the assistance provided by the input and feedback of Dr. Etsuko Toyoda, Dr. Anne McLaren, Prof. Shinji Yoshikawa, and Mr. Yūta Watanabe. I would also like to acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which I live and work, the Wurundjeri and Boon wurrung peoples of the Kulin nation, and pay my respects to Elders past and present. This research was funded through an Australian Postgraduate Award scholarship, carrying on into a Research Training Program scholarship, as well as a Monbukagakushō Scholarship. All translations are the author’s own unless otherwise specified. 4 Table of Contents CHAPTER 1: A RE-EXAMINATION OF THE “GOLDEN AGE” NARRATIVE .................................................. 8 1.1. Rationale ...................................................................................................................................... 9 1.2. Research Questions ................................................................................................................... 12 1.3. Structure of Thesis ..................................................................................................................... 13 1.4. A Few Notes on Sources............................................................................................................. 17 1.5. Notes on Language..................................................................................................................... 19 CHAPTER 2: AN INTRODUCTION TO THE “GOLDEN AGE” NARRATIVE ................................................. 25 2.1. Japanese Women’s History and the “Golden Age” Narrative ................................................... 28 2.1.1. The Beginnings of the “Golden Age” Narrative ................................................................... 28 2.1.2. The “Golden Age” Flourishing: Takamure and Yanagita .................................................... 34 2.1.3. The “Golden Age” in Modern Scholarship ........................................................................... 39 2.2. Methodology .............................................................................................................................. 44 2.2.1. History and Hermeneutics ................................................................................................... 44 2.2.2. Reading Texts in Context ..................................................................................................... 46 2.2.3. Reclaiming the Humanity of Historical Women .................................................................. 52 2.2.4. Ryukyu as Model for Ancient Japan .................................................................................... 55 2.2.5. Defining Power .................................................................................................................... 57 CHAPTER 3: WOMEN IN THE “GOLDEN AGE” ....................................................................................... 63 3.1. Reading Prehistoric Society ........................................................................................................ 64 3.1.1. Theories of Prehistoric Matrilineality .................................................................................. 64 3.1.2. Goddesses and Women ....................................................................................................... 73 3.2. Women and the Spiritual World ................................................................................................ 78 3.2.1. The Miko: Female Shamanism in Ancient Japan ................................................................. 79 3.2.2. The Gendering of Sacral Power ........................................................................................... 89 3.2.3. The Female Body as Source of Pollution ............................................................................. 95 CHAPTER 4: FEMALE RULERSHIP IN THE “GOLDEN AGE” ................................................................... 104 4.1. Himiko, Queen of Wa ............................................................................................................... 106 4.1.1. An Introduction to Himiko ................................................................................................. 106 5 4.1.2. Situating Himiko in History................................................................................................ 114 4.1.3. Himiko and Tensions of Power .......................................................................................... 121 4.2. Jingū, Empress-Regent ............................................................................................................. 126 4.2.1. An Introduction to Jingū .................................................................................................... 126 4.2.2. Situating Jingū in History................................................................................................... 131 4.2.3. Power and Gender in the Jingū Myth ................................................................................ 135 4.3. The Himehiko System ............................................................................................................... 143 4.3.1. An Introduction to the “Himehiko System” within the “Golden Age” Narrative .............. 143 4.3.2. Himehiko and Formats of Power in Kyushu ...................................................................... 147 4.3.3. Himehiko and Formats of Power in the Eastern Provinces ............................................... 155 4.3.4. Himehiko and Formats of Power in the Kinai ................................................................... 158 CHAPTER 5: WOMEN IN THE “SILVER AGE” ........................................................................................ 167 5.1. Centralisation and Gender: The Impact of Yamato Control .................................................... 169 5.1.1. The Process of Yamato Centralisation .............................................................................. 169 5.1.2. Confucianism, Patriarchy, and the End of the “Golden Age” ............................................ 174 5.2. Priestesses in the “Silver Age” ................................................................................................. 185 5.2.1. Ritsuryō and Religious Centralisation ............................................................................... 185 5.2.2. Priestesses and Power within Hegemonic Systems ........................................................... 187 5.2.3. Priestesses and Power: Beyond the Bureaucracy .............................................................. 191 5.3. Women, Religion, and Imperial Dominion: Tensions
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