Emperor Yamato Takeru

Japanese: 日本武尊 - やまとたけるのみこと

A prince of Emperor Keikō who plays an active role in the legends of the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, he is a representative hero of ancient Japanese legends. In the Kojiki, he is Yamato Takeru no Mikoto. His name is Ousu no Mikoto. Also known as Nihon no Dou-man and Yamato Oguna-o. In the Hitachi no Kuni Fudoki, he is also written as Yamato Takeru Emperor. According to the Kojiki, he was ordered by his father, the emperor, to admonish his twin brother Ousu no Mikoto, who had stopped coming to meals, so he killed him, wrapped him in a mat, and threw it away. The emperor, fearing his violent behavior, ordered him to defeat the Kumaso Takeru brothers, so he went to Kyushu after receiving clothing from his aunt Yamatohime at the Saigū in Ise, where he dressed as a woman and entered a banquet, stabbing the brothers to death, and was presented with the name Yamato Takeru by his younger brother. On his way back, he stopped off at Izumo (Shimane Prefecture) and befriended Izumo Takeru, lulling him into a false sense of security, before ambush-killing him. When he returned and reported the news, he was ordered to invade the eastern provinces again, so he went to Ise, where Yamatohime bestowed upon him the Kusanagi sword and a pouch, instructing him to open the pouch in case of emergency. After he was engaged to Miyazuhime in Owari (Aichi Prefecture), he was deceived by the kuni no miyatsuko in Sagami (Kanagawa Prefecture) and was surrounded by wildfires, but he used the Kusanagi sword to cut the surrounding grass and used a flint in the pouch to start a fire instead, escaping danger. When he was trying to cross the sea to the Boso Peninsula (Chiba Prefecture), he was obstructed by the god of crossing, and the ship was unable to move forward, so his wife, Ototachibanahime, drowned herself to calm the rough waves. On his way back from his eastern expedition, he lamented his empress's sacrifice by singing "Azuma haya" on the slopes of Ashigara, which became the origin of the name "Azuma" for the eastern provinces. After returning to Owari via Kai (Yamanashi Prefecture) and Shinano (Nagano Prefecture), he made a promise with Miyazuhime, despite the fact that the hem of his robe was stained with menstrual blood, and then left the Kusanagi sword with her and went to defeat a god on Mount Ibuki (the border between Shiga and Gifu Prefectures) with his bare hands. However, he was exposed to the god's poison and became seriously ill. He traveled in pain, supporting his heavy legs with a walking stick, and when he reached Nobono in Mie, he ran out of strength and died. His empress and children came from Yamato (Nara Prefecture), built a tomb for him, and tried to bury him while crying, but he transformed into an eight-shiroshirachidori and flew away, and his empress and children chased after him as hard as they could, and he ended up in Shiki in Kawachi (Minamikawachi District, Osaka Prefecture). So they built a tomb for Shiratori there and tried to enshrine him there, but he flew away again. In general, this kind of legend is clearly structured according to the typical pattern of heroic myths, and the similarity to Hercules in Greek mythology is particularly striking. Both of them had weak twin brothers, and the murder of their relatives (brother and son), the sneaking of their friendship partners (Izumotakeru and Iphitus), and the abnormal indulgence in the charms of their lovers (Miyazuhime and Iole) are important nodes in their histories. In the end, both were poisoned and died in great pain, and after receiving a funeral, they ascended to heaven. There is also a clear commonality in the role of the helper goddess (divine maiden) played by Yamatohime and Athena in both legends. In addition to being the co-shrine deity of Atsuta Shrine in Atsuta Ward, Nagoya City, she is also enshrined at Kusanagi Shrine in Shimizu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, and Yaizu Shrine in Yaizu City. <References> Atsuhiko Yoshida, "Yamato Takeru and Okuninushi"

(Atsuhiko Yoshida)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

『古事記』『日本書紀』の伝説で活躍する,景行天皇の皇子で,わが国の古代伝説の代表的英雄。『古事記』では倭建命(ヤマトタケルノミコト)。名は小碓命。別名,日本童男,倭男具那王。『常陸国風土記』では倭建天皇とも記す。『古事記』によれば,父の天皇から,食事に出てこなくなった,双子の兄の大碓命を諭せと命じられ,殺して筵に包み投げ捨ててしまう。乱暴を恐れた天皇に,熊曾建兄弟の討伐を命じられ,伊勢の斎宮で叔母の倭比売(ヤマトヒメ)から衣裳を賜って九州へいき,女装して宴席に入り,兄弟を刺し殺し,そのとき弟から,ヤマトタケルの名を献上された。帰途に出雲(島根県)に寄り,出雲建(イズモタケル)を,友誼を結び油断させておいて,騙し討ちにして殺す。帰って報告するとすぐにまた,東国の征伐を命じられ,伊勢にいき,ヤマトヒメから草薙剣と袋を授かり,危急のとき袋の口を開いてみよと教えられる。尾張(愛知県)で美夜受比売(ミヤズヒメ)と婚約したのち,相模(神奈川県)で国造に欺かれ,野火に囲まれるが,草薙剣で周囲の草を刈り,袋の中にあった火打ち石で,逆に火を燃やして難を逃れる。房総半島(千葉県)に向け海を渡ろうとして,渡の神に妨害され,船が進まなくなり,后の弟橘比売が入水して,荒波を鎮めた。東征を果たして帰途に足柄の坂で「吾妻はや」といって后の犠牲を嘆き,それが東国を「吾妻」と呼ぶ起源になった。甲斐(山梨県),信濃(長野県)を経て尾張に帰り,ミヤズヒメと,月経の血で衣の裾が汚れていたのにかまわず,契りを結んだのち,草薙剣を彼女のもとに置き,伊吹山(滋賀,岐阜両県の県境)の神を素手で退治しにいったが,その神の毒気にあてられて重病になり,重い足を杖で支え,苦しみながら旅をして,三重の能煩野まで辿り着いたところで力尽き息絶えた。大和(奈良県)から后たちと子たちがやってきて,御陵を造り,泣きながら葬ろうとしたが,尊は八尋白智鳥に化して飛び翔り,后たちと子たちが懸命に追っていくと,河内の志幾(大阪府南河内郡)に留まった。そこでその地に白鳥陵を作り,鎮座させようとしたが,再び天翔り去ったという。大略このような伝説は,全体が明らかに,典型的な英雄神話のパターンに則って構成されており,ギリシャ神話のヘラクレスとの類似は,ことに著しい。両者は共に,劣弱な双子の兄弟を持っているうえに,肉親(兄と実子)の殺害と,友誼を結んだ相手(イズモタケルとイピトス)に対する騙し討ちと,愛人(ミヤズヒメとイオレ)の色香への異常な耽溺が,それぞれの履歴の重要な結節点になっている。どちらも最後には毒に当たり非常に苦しんで死に,葬儀を受けたが昇天した。またヤマトヒメとアテナが両伝説で果たしている援助者の女神(神女)の役割にも,明らかに共通したところがあると思われるからだ。名古屋市の熱田区熱田神宮の相殿神であるほか,静岡県清水市の草薙神社や,焼津市の焼津神社などに祭られている。<参考文献>吉田敦彦『ヤマトタケルと大国主』

(吉田敦彦)

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