Read on Twitter
MIYAZAKI FOLKTALESDivine Descendants
Miyazaki Prefecture may not be the flashy Japan you're expecting, but it is the Japan I know and love.
It's also the magical birthplace of the Japanese God Emperor and my own magical Kingdom.
Here's the first tale in the book!l
The Supreme Goddess Amaterasu sent her son to govern the mortal world, arming him with the Magatama bead, the Mirror, and the Kusanagi.
These items are still central to Japanese folk religion and proper state Shinto.
It might be worth pausing to discuss the difference --
These items are still central to Japanese folk religion and proper state Shinto.
It might be worth pausing to discuss the difference --
Broadly speaking, Japanese conceptions of spirituality are highly syncratic -- they tend not to worry too much about the details and focus more on the performance of the ritual and an understanding of the moment in context.
It was a playground for a magician like me!
It was a playground for a magician like me!
Prince Ninigi descends on Mt. Takachiho or Takachiho City depending on who tells the story. Everyone agrees it's southern Kyushu where I lived.
The gorge seen here is where the Prince's mother his from the world and cast it into darkness til she decided to party.
The gorge seen here is where the Prince's mother his from the world and cast it into darkness til she decided to party.
He falls in love with the beautiful daughter of another god named Konohanasakuya (a very flowery name in Japanese!) but her father will only let him marry her if he agrees to marry her ugly older sister too -- Iwanaga.
Prince Ninigi refuses and just marries the pretty one.
Prince Ninigi refuses and just marries the pretty one.
Her father curses the Prince to a mortal life as a result, the two princesses becoming the Eternal and Ephemeral brides of the Emperor.
A beautiful life that would end for refusing an ugly wife..
A beautiful life that would end for refusing an ugly wife..
His wife falls pregnant immediately and he finds that to be a little suspicious so she figures a reasonable paternity test would be to have her give birth in a burning cabin.
It works out they're his and fun note!
The Mother of Our Kingdom lived there…
It works out they're his and fun note!
The Mother of Our Kingdom lived there…
There's a lot of subtext worth teasing out here: the importance of the mirror as a symbol of divine communication, the importance of the locations, and a whole slew of bits you can tease out much better in Japanese.
Next time we'll pick up on the triplets born!
Next time we'll pick up on the triplets born!
