Soul Summoning - Tamayobi

Shokonjujutsu is a type of magic used to summon the soul before and after death. In the belief in the soul, a person is alive only when the spirit and body are in harmony, and death is considered to occur when the soul separates from the body and does not return. Therefore, if the soul is summoned immediately after the person takes their last breath, there is a possibility that the soul will be revived. It is described in the ancient Chinese "Book of Rites," and in Japan, the diaries of nobles from the Muromachi period also contain many references to "soul summoning." Yobafu means to continue summoning. It was widely practiced throughout the country until the middle of the Meiji period. There are various types of rituals, such as summoning the soul by the bedside, climbing onto the roof, calling at the bottom of a well, and calling back the spirit that is moving away by facing west, and it is clear that the person is trying to summon the spirit that is moving towards the afterlife. It is said that the summoners can be close relatives or anyone present, and any number of people can be involved. However, the number of people who believed that calling someone's name could revive them has decreased, and the custom has continued to exist only in cases of women in childbirth, young people, or those who suddenly faint, or as a sign of respect for the dead or to notify neighbors. There is a story of a person who was revived near death that corresponds to this custom, in which a person was about to board a ferry across the Sanzu River when they heard a voice calling their name from behind, and then came to their senses and revived.

[Shoji Inoguchi]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

死の前後に行う招魂呪術(しょうこんじゅじゅつ)。霊魂信仰では霊肉そろって初めて人は生きており、霊魂が肉体から遊離してふたたび戻ってこない状態を死と考えた。したがって息を引き取った直後に霊魂を呼び戻せば、蘇(よみがえ)る可能性があるとされた。中国古代の『礼記(らいき)』に記述があり、日本でも室町時代の公家(くげ)の日記などにも「魂よばひ」が多く出ている。ヨバフは呼び続ける意。明治時代の中ごろまでは全国で広く行われていた。枕元(まくらもと)で呼ぶもの、屋根に登って呼ぶもの、井戸の底に向かって呼ぶもの、西方を向いて遠ざかる霊を呼び戻すものなどがあり、他界（あの世）に向かう霊を取り戻そうとしていることがわかる。呼ぶ人は近親者のほか、居合わせた人がだれでも幾人でもよいという。しかし、名前を呼ぶことで蘇生(そせい)させうると信じる人は少なくなり、産婦や若者や突然の気絶の場合に限り、あるいは死者への礼儀や近隣への通告の意味で存続してきた。死にかけて蘇生した人の話に、三途(さんず)の川の渡し舟に乗ろうとしたら、後ろから自分の名を呼ぶ声が聞こえ、はっと気づいて生き返ったなどという話が、この習俗と対応して語られている。

［井之口章次］

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