14 Mar 2016

HEIAN - hikyaku FOX legends

http://heianperiodjapan.blogspot.jp/2016/03/hikyaku-fox-legends.html

hikyaku fox legends

- BACK to the Daruma Museum -
. kitsune densetsu 狐 伝説 fox legends .
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Hikyakugitsune 飛脚狐 伝説 legends about fast fox messengers
狐飛脚 Kitsune Hikyaku


. hikyaku 飛脚 courier, messenger "flying legs" .
- Introduction -

Hikyaku were couriers or messengers, who transported currency, letters, packages, and the like. In the Edo period, the network of Hikyaku messengers expanded dramatically, and also became more organized and systematized.


source : fullusedbook.blog119.fc2.com

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. Inaba gogitsune 因幡五狐 / / 因幡の五狐 five foxes from Inaba, Tottori .

- - - - - The most famous of them is

Kyoozooboo 経蔵坊 The Fox Kyozobo
The fox is also called
Keizooboo 桂蔵坊 The Fox Keizobo
Hikyakugitsune, hikyaku kitsune 飛脚狐 the Fox messenger "with flying legs"



- source : blog.canpan.info/minnwa_tottori -

Kyozobo / Keizobo was an old fox that lived close to the Tottori castle. He could run to Edo and back in just two days and was famous for his speed. The Lord Ikeda 池田 of the Castle was very fond of him.
One day Keizobo was sent on a secret mission to Edo and passing 播磨国 Harima no Kuni (Hyogo), he passed a trap of a farmer, who had placed a delicious-smelling fried rat. Since he was on an urgent mission, he passed on. On his way back from Edo he was hungry and wanted to get the rat, but in turn got caught in the trap himself and was killed.
Lord Ikeda grieved about his friend and had the shrine 中坂神社 Nakazaka Jinja built in his honor.



He is venerated at the shrine 桂蔵坊を奉る中坂神社
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !


Now popular papermachee toys of Kyozobo of the fox are also made.




草枯れて狐の飛脚通りけり
kusa karete kitsune no hikyaku tori keri

withered plants -
the "fox with flying legs"
is passing by



source : seien0808 - 清苑


- quote -
THE FOX BETWEEN TWO WORLDS

Withered grasses;
A fox messenger
hurries by.


That makes no sense in a Western context. To us — at least traditionally — a fox is a rather sly and clever animal. In traditional Japan, however, a fox (kitsune) is a creature that lives between two worlds — ours and the "spirit" world. In Japan, foxes were believed to be able to take on human form, and woe to the young man who happened to become infatuated with a fox spirit! He would just fade and waste away like a shoot of grass withering, and would eventually die.

Buson has reflected this notion in the withered grasses of the autumn fields in his hokku. He sees the fox hurrying past not as just an ordinary animal, but rather as a courier passing swiftly with a message to deliver, involved in his task and giving no attention to the human. Buson regards the foxes as living their own lives in their own eerie society, separate from that of humans, but occasionally coming in contact with them.

This verse has a feeling that we in the West would associate with Halloween. It is far from the best kind of hokku, but it did exist, and it does have its effect.
- source : Hokku David -


Withered grasses
where a fox messenger on flying legs
passed through.

Tr. Yuki Sawa & Edith Marcombe Shiffert


In withered grass
a fox carrying messages
passes by

Tr. Allan Persinger


. Yosa Buson 与謝蕪村 and Fox Haiku .

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- - - - - ABC List of the prefectures :


.................................................................. Akita 秋田県 ....................................................................
秋田市 Akita town


source : 二〇世紀ひみつ基地


Yojiroo 與治郎狐 / 与次郎狐 The Fox Yojiro


source : xxx

与次郎稲荷神社 Shrine Yojiro Inari Jinja



- quote -
Yojiro, the fox in a Harrinets shirt and Yojiro-Inari-Jinja Shrine



... a manga-like concrete statue of a grinning fox that someone had clad in a red t-shirt of the local basketball team, called the Harrinets. The story behind the fox statue is a sad one. The story goes that 佐竹義宜 Lord Satake Yoshinobu, who built Akita Castle, constructed it on land that was the home of foxes. Yojiro, a three-hundred-year-old fox, approached the lord and asked that some land be left for the foxes. The lord agreed. In gratitude, Yojiro offered to serve as a messenger. He carried messages across the country much faster than any of the lord's human messengers, who later killed the fox out of jealousy.

It is said that the body of Yojiro is enshrined in the Yojiro-Inari-Jinja Shrine, which was later built on the castle grounds. This small shrine is one of the most attractive fox-related shrines in Japan. Inari is one of Shinto's eight million gods, and Inari sometimes took the form of a fox. Pairs of male and female fox statues line the walkway to the shrine. Visitors will walk beneath red Japanese gates while passing under the stares of the foxes who make sure that they behave respectfully. Unique to this particular shrine, some of the vixen statues come with kits, or baby foxes. The shrine is within Senshu Park.
- source : japanvisitor.com/ -

Yojiro has become one mascot of Akita.
There is now also a store that sells stamps with this manga-like figure.


source : nakedpou.blog17.fc2.com/category48
与次郎バーガーの消しゴムハンコ

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湯沢市 Yuzawa

The owner of a tea stall in 雄勝町 Ogatsu was suspicious about the two fast messengers from Lord Satake, おさいんぱたのよじゅうろう Osainbata no Yojuro and さかえのよじ兵衛 Sakae no Yojihei. He put out some poisoned Abura-age Tofu, and when the two passed by and ate them, they became ill and died. When they dropped dead, the human bodies of the messengers turned into foxes.


.................................................................. Nara 奈良県 ....................................................................
大和国宇多郡 / 宇陀郡 Yamano no Kuni, Udagun


source : youkaitama.seesaa.net/article

Gengoroogitsune 源五郎狐 The Fox Gengoro
and his wife Kojoroogitsune 小女郎狐 Kojorogitsune

He was as strong as three people and worked hard, helping the farmers. They all relied on him, but nobody knew where he had come from.
He could run as a messenger to Edo and back in just seven or eight days, a trip that took a human messenger 10 days just to go there.
One day he was asked to run as a messenger, took the box with letters and run off. But near 小夜中山 Nakayama he was killed by a dog. From the box hanging around his neck people found out who he was and delivered the message.
In 伊賀国上野 Igaland, at the temple 広禅寺 in Ueno there lives his wife, Kojorogitsune, who worked as a helper in the temple since she was about 12 years old. She helped with cleaning and sometimes went to the village to buy vegetables and Toku. The children in the village knew her well and often yelled after her - こじょろ、こじょろ little whore, little whore.
But after the death of Gengoro, she soon also disappeared from the temple.

. Nakayama 佐夜の中山 Sayo no Nakayama .
A dangerous pass of the Tokaido Road in Shizuoka.

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生駒郡 Ikoma district

When the modern postal service started in the early Meiji period, people called it the
"fox messenger with flying legs" お狐さんの飛脚の仕業.

At the temple 洞泉寺 Tosen-Ji (Dosen-Ji) there is a small shrine called 源九郎稲荷社 Genkuro Inari Jinja
for the fox messenger 源九郎狐 Genkurogitsune.
The fox who bought a padded hood is also told here.
The famous children's song about
Yamato no Genkuro san やまとの源九郎さん comes from this fox.
The shrine is very small, but counted as one of the three most famous Inari shrines in Japan 日本三大稲荷.

白狐源九郎 The White Fox Genkuro

The shrine is named after Genkuro Minamoto Yoshitsune, one of the most popular persons in Japanese history.
This fox is also appearing in the story of 義経千本桜 Yoshitsune Senbon Sakura.

- quote -
..... Long ago in the Yamato area there lived a pair of old foxes that had lived there for a thousand years. One summer, to the consternation of all the farmers, there was a terrible drought throughout the district. They decided to capture the two foxes, and with the skins they made a drum which successfully brought them the much needed rain.
Ever since that time the drum has been preserved and treasured. The Tadanobu-fox explains that he is, in fact, a son of the foxes from whose skins the drum was made, the drum of which Shizuka now has possession. Immediately upon finishing his story, he changes from Tadanobu back into his true fox form. He tells her that because of his love for his parents, he has followed the drum everywhere.
Yoshitsune, who has been eavesdropping on the talk from behind a bamboo blind in the next room, is deeply moved by the fox's human-like devotion to and affection for his parents. .....
Sato Tadanobu (1161-1186)
- reference source : -



源九郎稲荷社 Genkuro Inari Jinja
On the first Sunday in April there is a festival where children in a procession wear the masks of a white fox.
- - - - - 忠臣狐伝説 - 佐藤忠信 Sato Tadanobu (1161-1186)
- - - - - 妖刀子狐丸 - legend about a serpent and a sword called 小狐丸 Kogitsunemaru.
- - - - - 元和の鎮火伝説 : 元和元年(1615年)、豊臣方大野治房による郡山城攻撃が行われた際城下も焼け、その中心へと火が迫ってきたのを見た洞泉寺住職天誉和尚が、源九郎狐に祈願をしたところ、突然大雨が降り大火を免れた。
- - - - - 綿帽子を買った狐伝説 - The fox who bought a padded hood

奈良県大和郡山市洞泉寺町15 / 15 Tōsenjichō, Yamatokōriyama-shi
- reference : wikipedia -

. Minamoto no Yoshitsune 源の義経 (1159 - 1189) .


.................................................................. Shimane 島根県 ....................................................................
簸川郡 Hikawa district

shirogitsune 白狐 white fox
There came a messenger from Edo, but he did not return.
The next day farmers found a white fox in a trap and soon knew this was the messenger.


.................................................................. Tokyo 東京都 ....................................................................

In the compound of 浅草観音 Asakusa Kannon there is a shrine for Yasuzaemon

Yasuzaemon Inari 弥惣左ヱ門稲荷.
A fox named 熊谷弥惣左ヱ門 Kumagaya Yasuzaemon got caught here in a trap and died. The shrine was erected in his honor.
also called
Kumagaya Inari 熊谷稲荷
There is a story about a samurai named 熊谷弥惣左ヱ門 / 熊谷安左衛門 from Kanazawa who once helped a fox, got fired for it from his Lord and became a Ronin, later turning up in Asakusa.

熊谷稲荷について The Story about Kumagaya Inari Shrine
この稲荷は、江戸中期に熊谷安左衛門が勧請した稲荷で、数ある稲荷とちがって、白狐を祀った稲荷で、江戸浅草の熊谷安左衛門の墓所のある本法寺と、青森弘前の津軽藩公が祀った二ヶ所だけの、極めて珍しい稲荷です。

もう一ヶ所の津軽の熊谷稲荷は、藩公が江戸へ参勤交代のさい、白狐があらわれて、不思議な霊験があったことで知られています。. . .
..... 本法寺と熊谷稲荷の由縁について
熊谷安左衛門稲荷は、当初安左衛門が居住していた、日本橋大伝馬町片町にあった屋敷神として崇めていたが、或る夜白狐が姿をあらわして、「この稲荷の御利 益を世に広めたいので、どうか浅草寺院内に小祠を建てて欲しい」と云って白狐が姿を消したと云われています。安左衛門は白狐のお告げを諒とし、寛文5年7 月24日、浅草寺の子院である法智院から智楽院に請願し、浅草寺裏門に一小祠を建立することができました。
このときはじめて熊谷安左衛門稲荷と称して、立願する人が多くなったと世に伝えられています。熊谷安左衛門は宝永4年9月死去し、その菩提寺は、浅草八軒 寺町の長瀧山本法寺にあり、その墓所もあることから、享保年間の頃、当長瀧山本法寺に勧請し、ますます霊験あらたかな御利益のある稲荷として、世間に知れ わたり、今日に至っています。 .....
東京都台東区寿町 本法寺 Honpoji Homepage
- reference : honpoji.web -

There is also a shrine in his honor in Aomori, Hirosaki 青森弘前.


- There is also a shrine with the same name in Yamagata, but no fox related to it.
- reference : kankou.yamagata -



.................................................................. Yamagata 山形県 .............................................................
天童市 Tendo town

Kitaroogitsune きたろう狐 / キタロウギツネ Kitaro the Fox
Once upon a time, there lived a fox called Kitaro in Tendo.
He shape-shifted into a human and became the messenger of the Lord of Yamagata.
Once he had to bring a letter to the Lord of Akita and run away almost in flight. On the way he passed a shop of Abura-age Tofu, where he stopped to eat some. The blacksmith of the village got suspicious and thought it might be a fox. So he fried a dead rat in oil and hooked it with a sharp nail. And indeed, the next morning he found the fox hooked to the bait and killed it.

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- reference : nichibun yokai database 妖怪データベース -



狐猿随筆

This book contains stories about the fox messengers
kitsune hikyaku no hanashi 狐飛脚の話. / キツネの飛脚
. Yanagita Kunio 柳田國男 .

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. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 - Introduction .

. kitsune densetsu 狐 伝説 fox legends .

. Hikyaku 飛脚 伝説 legends about fast messengers .

- Yookai 妖怪 Yokai Monsters of Japan -
- Introduction -

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神の留守狐の飛脚戻りけり
kami no rusu kitsune no hikyaku modorikeri

the gods are absent
and the fox messenger
comes back . . .


. Ochi Etsujin 越智越人 (1655 - 1739) .

. kami no rusu 神の留守 the Gods are absent .
- kigo for early winter -



source : 二〇世紀ひみつ基地

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. Join the friends on Facebook ! .

- #foxhikyakulegends #hikyakugitsune -
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HEIAN - hikyaku messenger legends

under construction

hikyaku legends

- BACK to the Daruma Museum -
. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 - Introduction .
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Hikyaku 飛脚 伝説 legends about fast messengers

. hikyaku 飛脚 courier, messenger "flying legs" .
- Introduction -

Hikyaku were couriers or messengers, who transported currency, letters, packages, and the like. In the Edo period, the network of Hikyaku messengers expanded dramatically, and also became more organized and systematized.



. Hikyakugitsune 飛脚狐 伝説 legends about fast fox messengers .
Akita, Kochi, Shimane, Tokyo, Tottori, Yamagata.

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nen 念
大塚理左衛門の息子常八が江戸で勤務していた。ある時小濱足軽が江戸に飛脚することになって、箱根の賽の河原にさしかかったところ、常八が乗掛馬に乗って 帰るに行き会わせた。小濱に帰ったのだと思い、後日江戸の家を訪ねて行くと常八は死んだという。念が残っているのだろう。


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shiryoo 死霊 soul of a dead person
飛脚が道中道連れになった女を殺し金を奪った。江戸からの帰り道、現場を通った時に悔恨して近所の寺へ奪った金を弔い料として預けた。しかし国へ帰ると飛脚は乱心し、女を殺したことなどを叫びながら舌を噛み切り死んだ。


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- - - - - ABC List of the prefectures :

.................................................................. Aichi 愛知県 ....................................................................
南設楽郡

yume 夢 dream
ある女が20歳のときの話(20年前)である。姉の病気が重くなり見舞に行こうと思っていた晩のこと、誰かが戸を叩くので声を掛けると、それは患っている はずの姉であった。中に招き入れたが、姉は黙って土間に立っているだけであった。そのとき、戸を激しく叩く音が聞こえたが、気づくと自分は床に寝ていた。 しかし、まだ戸が叩かれているので戸を開けると、飛脚が姉の訃報を知らせにきたのだった。


.................................................................. Aomori 青森県 ....................................................................
三戸郡 Sannohe district

medochi メドチ Kappa
九戸政実の飛脚に侍が書状を頼んだ。読んでみるとサンナイ岳のメドチにあてて「この男は紫けつだ」と書いてあったので、「この男に百両わたせ」と書き変えた。飛脚はメドチから百両騙し取った。


.................................................................. Ehime 愛媛県 ....................................................................
南宇和郡

nureonago, nure onago ヌレオナゴ
越の尻の山沿いの道で、長洲村の庄屋佐藤家へ行く飛脚がヌレオナゴに出合った。赤ん坊を抱かされたがその赤ん坊が石に変じ、捨てて逃げた為に追いかけられ た。ヌレオナゴの髪は釣針のようになっており、飛脚が飛び込んだ佐藤家の板戸には、その髪の毛でひっかいた跡がついていた。
.
昔、飛脚がヌレオナゴに出会い、赤ん坊を抱かされたが、石に変じたので投げ捨てて逃げた。追いかけてくるオナゴの髪の毛の先は釣り針のようになっており、飛脚が飛び込んだ佐藤家の板戸には髪の毛でひっかいた跡があったという。

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伊予郡 Iyo district

yamainu 山犬 mountain dog
大洲・松山間の飛脚、畑左衛門が深夜犬寄峠にさしかかり一匹の山犬を殺したところ、他の山犬が集まってきた。左衛門は松の木に登ったが山犬は互いに肩車で 乗り継ぎよじ登ってきた。左衛門は自分の刀の目抜きに鶏の名作があり、血潮の温みを得る時は精を得て歌うということを思い出し、刀に祈ると刀の先から鶏の 鳴き声がした。山犬は夜明けと勘違いして帰っていった。

.......................................................................
大洲市 Ozu town

yamaneko yamainu 山猫,山犬 Mountain Cat, Mountain Dog
銃の名手左衛門が、山猫の住む「入らずの森」を開拓した。山猫は手出しができずにいたが、ある日娘が一夜の宿を求めて来て、左衛門は共に暮らした。ある日 山犬に襲われた飛脚が「山猫の棟梁が左衛門のところに行っていなければ」と言うのを聞く。それが左衛門の耳にも入り、ついには正体を現した古猫をしとめ る。


.................................................................. Hyogo 兵庫県 ....................................................................
加西郡 Kasai district

neko no tani 猫の谷 Cat Valley
猫の谷は猫の声が聞こえると化け物が出るといわれていた。ある飛脚が頭に鍋を被った化け物に襲われ、刀で切りつけた。「紺屋の婆さんを呼んで来い」といわ れたのを不思議に思った飛脚が紺屋の婆さんを尋ねると頭に傷をして寝ているという。猫が婆さんを食って化けていると思った飛脚は逃げていくのを追いかけて 退治したといわれている。



.................................................................. Ibaraki Ibaragi 茨城県 ...............................................
水戸市 Mito

Seiemu don せいえむどん a cat
飛脚が木の上にいると、獣が集まり飛脚を倒す話を始めた。せいえむどんを呼ぼうという事になったが飛脚のほうが強かった。飛脚は村でせいえむどんを探すと、老婆の夫であった。正体は猫だと伝えると、老婆は怒ったが爺さんは以前にせいえむどんに食われていたのだ。


.................................................................. Ishikawa 石川県 ....................................................................

ookami 狼 wolf
用事があるので食べるのは後にしてくれと、狼と約束した飛脚であったが、約束通り往路では何も起こらず、復路で狼に食い殺された。
.
ある飛脚は御仏供様を食べたおかげで、狼に食べられず無事に帰宅できた。



.................................................................. Kagawa 香川県 .............................................................

Awaji アワジ Awaji pass
昔、阿波から来た爺が死んだとことにちなむアワジという名の峠がある。そこを飛脚が通りかかった際に、アワジなどどこにもいない、と口に出すとガサガサと音がして、「ここにおるぞー」と言ってアワジが出て来た。


.................................................................. Kagoshima 鹿児島県 .............................................................

Kappa 河童
ある青年がヒョイヒョイという河童の声を追いかけ、翌朝その付近を見ると道にたくさんの足型がついていた。また昔飛脚が走っているとヒョイヒョイと河童の声が聞こえ、幾百もの者が追いかけてきて、飛脚はほとんど失神状態になった。



.................................................................. Kanagawa 神奈川県 .............................................................
川崎市 Kawasaki town

mae o aruku dare ka 前を歩く誰か someone walking in front
川崎市の堰と久地との中間にオイリという山の根の川があり、飛脚がオイリ沿いの道を歩いていると、前に誰かが歩いていたが、曲がり道に来るとボチャンと飛び込んでしまい、飛脚はきゃあと言ってしまったという。


.................................................................. Kyoto 京都府 ....................................................................
南丹市

anajizoo, and Jizoo 穴地蔵 Jizo in a hole
穴地蔵は足痛に霊験があるといわれ、飛脚がこの前を通るときには必ず線香を供えた。また、小児の瘡にも効験があるお言われる。


.................................................................. Nara 奈良県 ....................................................................
大和郡山市

daija 大蛇 huge serpent
茶屋のこまのという娘が飛脚に恋をし、忍んで行った。飛脚は親の治病の願掛で女断していたので逃げ、淵の脇の松に登った。娘は水に映った姿を見て飛び込 み、大蛇となった。以来、飛脚を他人に取られるのを恐れ、女と見れば殺していた。あるとき駕籠に乗った花嫁が通ったら急に雨になった。駕籠かきが雨具を借 りに行っている間に、花嫁は消えていた。以来その橋を嫁取り橋といい、嫁入道中に通ってはいけないとしている。

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大和国宇多

Gengoroogitsune 源五郎狐,kojoroogitsune 小女郎狐 The Fox Gengoro
大和国宇多に人の手助けをする源五郎狐がいた。あるとき飛脚に頼まれ文箱を運んでいるとき山中で犬に殺された。伊賀国上野の広禅寺にその妻だと言われる小女郎狐というものがおり、寺の手伝いをしていた。延宝のころのことだがいつの間にかいなくなった。


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生駒郡

kitsune 狐 the Fox
明治初年に郵便がはじめて行われたとき、お狐さんの飛脚の仕業だといっていたという。この地にある洞泉寺境内にある源九郎稲荷社は人々の信仰があつかった。


.................................................................. Shizuoka ....................................................................

Akibayama no sanshakuboo 秋葉山の三尺坊
飛脚が三河岡崎あたりで大きな僧に白雲神社に届けるようにと額をあずかった。非凡な手蹟が胡麻火の灰でかかれ、裏には秋葉大権現の護符が貼ってあった。秋葉山の三尺坊様の仕業であるという。


.................................................................. Tochigi 栃木県 ....................................................................

nenriki 念力
成瀬隼人正は尾張で病気となり、一族の者に是非とも日光山に参詣したいと言ったが、重病故に許されなかった。しかし成瀬は忌日を待って身体を清め、一族に 暇乞いして息絶えた。その頃日光山にいた南光坊は、東照宮の廟前に成瀬が参詣に現れて、いまから世を去ると伝えたのに感動し、江戸に飛脚を建たて一族の者 に悔やみを言ったという。


.................................................................. Yamagata 山形県 .............................................................
天童市 Tendo town

kitaroogitsune きたろう狐 Kitaro the Fox
昔天童にきたろうという名の狐がいた。人に化けて山形の殿様に飛脚として仕え、秋田の殿様に手紙を運んだ。飛ぶように速かった。途中にあぶらげを売る店が あり、必ずそこに寄ってあぶらげを食べた。その様子から狐ではないかと怪しんだ農鍛冶屋が、ねずみを油で揚げて鉤に引っかけておくと翌朝きたろう狐が引っ かかっていた。


.................................................................. Yamanashi 山梨県 .............................................................
西八代郡

kasha 火車 fire chariot in 上九一色村
精進に寺がない時には竜華院まで坊様を頼みに行っていたが、その近くに火車という化物が住んでいた。葬式が出るたびに死体を食おうと狙っていた。ある時村 に葬式が出ると火車は飛脚に化けて竜華院にたのみに行ったが、坊様は見破り、施主に葬式を2回出し、最初の棺には石を入れておくよう指示した。最初の棺が 出ると空に黒雲が沸いて雲の中から火車が飛んできて棺をさらっていった。その隙に施主の家では2回目の葬式を出して骨を無事に寺に納めた。火車は「竜げん 坊主にだまされた」と叫んだという。

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- reference : nichibun yokai database 妖怪データベース -
33 to explore (29)

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. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 - Introduction .

- Yookai 妖怪 Yokai Monsters of Japan -
- Introduction -

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HEIAN - fox legends from Tottori

http://omamorifromjapan.blogspot.jp/2016/03/tottori-fox-legends.html

Tottori Fox Legends

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. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 - Introduction .
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Legends about foxes from Tottori 狐と伝説 kitsune densetsu

. Tottori Folk Art - 鳥取県  .
- Introduction -

. kitsune densetsu 狐伝説  fox legends .

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Inaba gogitsune 因幡五狐 / / 因幡の五狐 five foxes from Inaba:
経蔵坊 / おとん女郎 / しょろしょろ狐 / 恩志の狐 / 尾無し狐


source : seigensha.com/oton_collection

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Kyoozooboo 経蔵坊 The Fox Kyozobo
The fox is also called
Keizooboo 桂蔵坊 The Fox Keizobo
Hikyakugitsune, hikyaku kitsune 飛脚狐 the Fox messenger "with flying legs"



- source : blog.canpan.info/minnwa_tottori -

Kyozobo / Keizobo was an old fox that lived close to the Tottori castle. He could run to Edo and back in just two days and was famous for his speed. The Lord Ikeda 池田 of the Castle was very fond of him.
One day Keizobo was sent on a secret mission to Edo and passing 播磨国 Harima no Kuni (Hyogo), he passed a trap of a farmer, who had placed a delicious-smelling fried rat. Since he was on an urgent mission, he passed on. On his way back from Edo he was hungry and wanted to get the rat, but in turn got caught in the trap himself and was killed.
Lord Ikeda grieved about his friend and had the shrine 中坂神社 Nakazaka Jinja built in his honor.



He is venerated at the shrine 桂蔵坊を奉る中坂神社
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !


Now popular papermachee toys of Kyozobo of the fox are also made.




草枯れて狐の飛脚通りけり
kusa karete kitsune no hikyaku tori keri

withered plants -
the "fox with flying legs"
is passing by


. Yosa Buson 与謝蕪村 and Fox Haiku .
with more translations


source : seien0808 - 清苑


. hikyaku 飛脚 courier, messenger "flying legs" .
hikyaku are the express messengers of the Edo period.

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Oton Joroo おとん女郎 Oton Joro Fox Prostitute

In a legend from 若桜町 Wakasa, Yazu district, there is a legend from the 立見峠 Tatsumi Toge Pass.
A fox vixen was busy bringing up her children. She had brought her foxies to the oil store of 油屋宗兵衛 Aburaya Sobei and had them lick on the oil every day while Sobei was taking a nap.



To show her gratitude when the children had grown up, she transformed into a prostitute and sold her body to a brothel in Kyoto. The money she got went to the poor Sobei, who could finally enlarge his business and become prosperous.


CLICK for more photos of this famous fox !

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shoroshorogitsune しょろしょろ狐 Shorshoro Kitsune
柳茶屋のしょろしょろキツネ / ショロショロ狐

At the foot of Mount Techiyama シチ山 water drips out slowly, with the sound
shoro shoro ショロショロ. There lives a fox, transforming into a beautiful girl, cheating and betraying people. She looks like a white fox with a lantern.




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Onji no kitsune 恩志の狐 The Fox from Onji

Onji is a region in Iwami, Tottori, 鳥取県岩美郡岩美町.
On the way to Iwai onsen Iwai 岩井温泉 Hot Spring there lived a trickster old fox. He came out with a lantern, pretending to help people and leading them into the forest.
He is shown as a brown fox with a yellow lantern.

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onashigitsune, o nashi kitsune 尾無し狐 "fox without a tail"



At the pass of Mount Nagao 青谷の長尾の山 there lived an old fox, transforming into an old lady and playing pranks on people, often very unpleasant ones.

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In Tottori prefecture many legends are about people being bewitched by a fox
狐つき / 狐憑 / 狐付 kitsune tsuki
If someone suddenly shows symptoms of mental illness, they say he is bewitched by a fox.
Sometimes
a Yamabushi can perform rites of exorcism by rattling his sacred wand near the pillow of the bewitched person.

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智頭 Chizu district
Once a child was bewitched by a fox. The local priest came to her bedside and blew his ritual conch all night. But the child died in the morning.

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土師 Haji town
狐ツキを落すには小豆飯をサンダワラに載せて送り出す。また法者を依頼して信仰によって落す。狐ツキの家のハフに銃を撃てば落ちるという風習もあるが、今日では狐等の事は漸次減少している。

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日野郡 Hino district
jinko 人狐 トウビョウ
In 黒坂 人狐といって、家に狐を持ち込むなど、忌み嫌う例が少なくない。トウビョウ(蛇の一種)持等婚礼の妨げとなることがある。

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in 日野村 Hino village
ていたが、目下この迷信も殆ど跡を絶つに至った。

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気高郡 Ketaka district

in 鹿野町 Shikano village
狐つきの事はほとんど物語に過ぎない程度になっている。

in 美穂村 Miho village
精神異常の原因を呪詛や狐つき信じるものがいる。

in 青谷町 Aoyacho village
狐つきということがある。

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西伯郡 Saihaku district

in 和田村 - kohyoo 狐憑 / kitsune tsuki きつねつき bewitched by a fox
狐つきや、人狐もちとも呼び、地方的に信じられている。

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in 大山村 Oyama village
sawarimono サワリモノ is the local dialect for being bewitched by a fox.
This can be healed by performing special rituals. Now this type of illness is rare in the village.

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in 手間村 Temamura village
狐付きということがある。

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in 上長田村 Kaminagata village
狐つきが一般に流布している。

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in 大國村 Okunimura village
往々狐つきと称するものがあったが、近来ない。

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in 産名村
狐つきに関しては昔ほど甚だしくはないが、時々祈祷するものがいる。

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in 中山町 Nakayama village

tane no toosuke 種の藤助 Tane no Tosuke
The daughter of Tane no Tosuke was a fox. The fields of his family, who always helped the foxes, always brought rice grains (tane) and planted them in his fields, so he had a rich harvest.

- - - - -

Once a farmer helped a fox out of a trap and set him free. To show his gratitude the fox transformed into a woman, became his wife and brought great riches to the farmer. He became the elder of the village. Now the woman/fox thought she had done enough good for the farmer and disappeared back into the forest.

- - - - -

きれいな女の人が小川で手を洗っているところを、道連れになろうと手をひっぱった。右手が痛くなったので左手にもちかえてほしいと女の人が頼むので、言われた通りにすると木の枝をつかまされた。狐が化けていたのだという。

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散岐郡 Sanki district
狐つきは中流以下、全村で信じられている。消滅しつつある。

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東伯郡 Tohaku district

in 下北條村 Shimokitajo village
精神異常は狐の禍による。そのため狐の好む油揚、赤飯を供えれば全快するという。

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in 栄村 Eimura village
狐の穴をつけば狐がつく。

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in 成実村 Narumison village
狐のついたように信じる者が半数以上いる。

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鳥取市 Tottori town

Once there lived a young samurai in town, who was just as beautiful as the legendary poet
在原業平 Ariwara no Narihira. He made the girls pregnant in no time and children were born to him.
But they say he was a fox.

. Ariwara no Narihira 在原業平 (825 - 880) .

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o-haru お春 / お春狐 the fox O-Haru (Lady Spring)

Not long ago, O-Haru lived in Tottori town. Near the town office was a lodging, where she transformed into the Lady of the Hotel and cared for the travellers. She was a well-educated fox and could even perform the tea ceremony for the visitors. She also told them stories about Toyotomi Hideyoshi and his fight at Tottori castle.

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o-natsu お夏 / お夏狐 the fox O-Natsu (Lady Summer)

Once upon a time there lived a fox called O-Natsu near the Castle of Tottori. At the temple 興徳寺 Kotoku-Ji there lived a clever young monk who succeeded in swindling the fox out of her 宝物 special treasure. When the monk was not at home, the fox transformed into the shape of his mother and got the treasure back. So the young monk transformed into 諏訪明神 the deity from Suwa and got the treasure back again.
One day it became known to the monk that the lord was to pass the temple, but he soon realized it was a ruse of the O-Natsu. So finally he caught the fox and beat it to death.

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八頭郡 Yazu district

Kitsune and Tanuki having a bout comparing their prowess in shape-shifting
松堤に霊力のある狐と狸が住んでいた。ある時、狐は狸に化け合いの競争を持ちかけた。互いに得意の化け合いをすることになり、狸は大坊主になるのが得意 で、狐は殿の行列を見せるのが得意と言った。ある日、本当の殿の行列を見て、狸は狐が化けていると思い、自分も化けると言って大坊主になった所、行列の武 士に妖怪だ化物だと言われ斬られた。

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in 丹比村 Tanbi village

十年程前、六十才位の婆さんが村の者4,5名と弁当を持って近くの山に葺取りに行ったが、帰りに婆さんがいなくなった。手分けをして探したが、見つからな かった。村の人達は狐に弁当残りの魚の骨をはねられて、化かされてしまったに違いないと言っている。婆さんの死体は2,3ヶ月過ぎて、村から三里離れた山 奥で発見された。

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in 大村 Omura village

If farmers wear new straw-sandals in the evening, they will be cheated by a fox.

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那岐村 Nagi village

突然、精神に異状をきたして狂態を演じる。また、自分の知らないことや遠方の出来事などをしゃべる。ふだんは食べない肴や油あげを食べる。喜怒哀楽の定まらない状態を狐つきという。

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in 西郷村 Saigo village

If someone suddenly develops a high fever, they say he is bewitched by a fox.
Exorcism is performed at the shrine 梶並神社 Kajinami Jinja and the fox is lured away with rice and beans 小豆飯.

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in 池田村 Ikeda village

If someone shows symptoms of mental illness, or suddenly develops a high fever, they say he is bewitched by a fox and avoid him 忌避する.

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米子 Yonago town

If someone shows symptoms of mental illness, they say he is bewitched by a fox.

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- source : wikipedia -
鳥獣戯画に見る擬人化されたキツネ


. Reference 因幡五狐 .

- reference : nichibun yokai database -


. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 .
- Introduction -

- - - #foxlegends #kitsune #tottorifoxlegends - - - - -
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. Join the MINGEI group on facebook ! .  



. Regional Folk Toys from Japan .


. Tohoku after the BIG earthquake March 11, 2011

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EDO - Odenmacho district and hikyaku

http://edoflourishing.blogspot.jp/2015/10/odenmacho-district.html

Odenmacho district

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. Famous Places and Powerspots of Edo 江戸の名所 .
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Oodenmachoo, Ōdenma-chō 大伝馬町 Odenmacho district   
Ōtenma-chō 大てんま町 Ootenmacho / 御伝馬町

in Chuo-Cho ward 中央区 - 日本橋大伝馬町 Nihonbashi Odenmacho

Part of 伝馬町 Tenmacho, with the two sections,
Large 大伝馬町 Large and Small 小伝馬町 Kodenmacho.


CLICK for more photos !

The packhorse and messenger superintendent 馬込勘解由 Magome Kageyu from Mikawa (now Aichi) was the first to establish his business here. He welcomed Tokugawa Ieyasu in Edo and was given the privilege as superviser and head of the ward.
Many of his men from Mikawa made a living as horse keepers in Edo and made some extra money by dealing in cotton from Mikawa (momendana 木綿店). They lived mostly in the second district of Odenmacho.

Magome's daughter, O-Yuki お雪 was married to
. William Adams, the Miura Anjin (1564 - 1620) 三浦按針 .

denma 伝馬 horse messenger, packhorse relay service


source : ameblo.jp/tkyburabura


for hikyaku 飛脚 see below
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- quote
Odenmacho - Edo's Communications Center
Although most of the the people traveling on Japan's highways go on foot, or by kago (foot carriage), every now and then you can see people riding on horseback, or leading teams of pack horses laden with goods. Most of these horsemen move along the highway at a leisurely pace, only a bit faster than the people on foot, but every now and then, a rider will dash past with a cloud of dust, spurring his horse as fast as it can run. If you see one of these horses in downtown Edo, and follow it to its destination, chances are you will end up in the neighborhood of Odenmacho.

The horse messenger services in Odenmacho, Kodenmacho and Minami-denmacho are the nerve center of the Shogun's communications network. The official messenger services located in these three towns, supported by horse messengers stationed at each juku (lodging town) along the major highways, can deliver messages to all parts of the country in just a few days. The ability to communicate with all areas of the country by horse messenger allows the bakufu to provide much better administration and support to regional leaders than was possible in the past.

The horse messengers (denma) are essential to Japan's network of communications and transportation, and the three denmacho are the command center for this communications network. The word denmacho means "horse messenger town". When Edo was first built, this part of the city was set aside specifically for the horse messengers to live. As the bakufu (government) grew and developed, the functions of the horse messengers became more complicated, so the area was divided into three separate denmacho, each with its own functions.

The Shogun naturally tries to maintain as much control as possible over the messengers' activities, since communications are very important to the person who runs the country. Each juku is responsible for buying its own horses, feeding and taking good care of them, and supplying riders to carry the messages. However, the management of the lodging towns is handled by the bakufu. Each of the lodging towns has a leader who reports directly to officials in the three denmacho (horse messenger towns).

All three denmacho are located in the same area; just off the main highway and less than one kilometer from Nihonbashi bridge. Odenmacho and Minami-denmacho are responsible for communications and transportation issues along the five main highways of Japan. The riders and administrators in these two towns take turns doing the management and delivery work for half a month at a time. In the first half of the month, Odenmacho handles all official writs and messages from the government, while Minami-denmacho handles private messages. In the second half of the month, Minami-denmacho handles the official messages while Odenmacho delivers the private mail and parcels.

Kodenmacho, meanwhile, handles all matters related to local communications and transport within Edo and on the smaller roads close to the city. In addition to horses and riders, all of the denmacho also have foot messengers, known as hikyaku (literally "flying feet"). Kodenmacho relies on these men, more than the other two towns, because local messages do not necessarily need to be sent by horse to arrive there quickly.

The horse messengers at the three denmacho carry messages and parcels, just like the riders at each of the juku towns. However, their job is much harder because they have to handle traffic on all the main roads, instead of just one. Packages are carried from Odenmacho and Minami-denmacho to Shinagawa (on the Tokaido highway), Senju (on the Oshu Kaido), Itabashi (on the Nakasendo) or Takaido (on the Koshu Kaido). In addition, the denmacho do not have a specific number of horses that they are required to provide, but they ARE expected to deliver all messages when asked. This means that they have to have plenty of extra horses and riders, just in case they are needed. They may even be asked to provide riders to work temporarily at some of the juku in cases where the volume of messages is too great, or if horses and riders at the juku are sick or injured and can't work.

Since they are "not allowed" to run short of horses and riders, and have to be prepared for any emergency, the managers of the denmacho maintain large stables in the area between Odenmacho and Minami-denmacho. The long rows of stables, with their musty scent of horsehair and manure, face onto a large, grassy central square. Not only are the horses kept here; all of the riders live at the stables as well, when they are on duty. That way, they are always ready to quickly mount up and be on their way with a message. The central square is used as an exercise ground where horses can get some exercise even when there are no messages to be carried.

In addition to the main stables in the center of the city, the messenger services maintain their own horse pastures for spare horses in several other locations on the outskirts of Edo. These rural stables are mainly used for older horses, mares with young colts, and for horses that are sick, injured or just worn out from too much riding. They are also used as training centers, where young horses are trained to be denma (messenger horses). In an emergency, though, even these animals can be pressed into service.

Although their work is very tiring and strenuous, the messenger horses are well cared for. They are carefully groomed every day, and fed extremely well. Horses are considered extremely valuable, and therefore they are often cared for even better than the men who ride them.You can always find another person to be a rider, but it is hard to find a good, strong and reliable horse.

Some horses are bred and raised at ranches in the outskirts of Edo, but the best horses generally come from northern Japan, or from Shimosa and Kazusa -- the hilly provinces just to the east of Edo. The grassy hillsides in these areas are ideal for raising horses, and the animals grow up strong and swift. The horses raised in the suburbs tend to be weaker animals, and are generally used only for the short-distance messenger services in Kodenmacho

The messages sent by horse are usually written on a long strip of paper which is then folded up several times and sealed with wax. The sender then stamps their own private seal on the wax so that nobody can open the letter and read it without breaking the seal. This is a good way to ensure privacy. If the seal is broken when it arrives at its destination, it is obvious that one of the messengers must have broken the seal. Since each juku keeps careful records of who is working on which day, and what messages they carry, it would be fairly easy to figure out who the prime suspects are if a seal was ever broken. Fortunately, this is rarely necessary. The messengers are highly trained professionals, and they do their job well.

Usually, messages are collected for several hours before they are dispatched, usually at regular hours, two or three times a day. That way, each rider can carry many messages at once. However, in the case of urgent messages, the riders will immediately take the message and ride as fast as they can from juku to juku. Messages with the highest-priority can be carried from Edo to Kyoto or Osaka (about 450 kilometers) in 30 to 35 hours. Considering the many mountains and rivers that must be crossed, this is a remarkably fast communications system.
Messages can be sent round-trip to Kyoto in just three days.
- source : Edomatsu



Kimonoshop in Odenmacho / Hiroshige

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Nihonbashi Odenma-cho is derived from "Tenma", the horseback relay delivery by horses system in the Edo Era. There were a number of merchants in the town, cotton wholesalers in the Edo Era, and textile wholesalers after the World War II. Consequently, the town was prospered. We interviewed maestro. Katsutoshi Hamada was the 12th owner of "Edo-ya". Edo-ya was producing and selling hake and many brushes at Edo Shogunate in about 300 years in the town.
... The founder of Edoya was first trained in Kyoto, and then he or she started to craft hake makeup brushes for ladies. Also, he or she designed painting brush for the personal painters of the Shogun within the inner place of the Edo Shogunate. The Shogun family gave their shop a name "Edo-ya" in 1718, and they have been in business for about 300 years since then. After Meiji Era, they started to make western brushes to fit the lifestyle changes.
- source : tokyochuo.net/issue/traditional -

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bettara ichi べったら市 market selling bettara pickles
In the area of Odenma-cho and Torihatago-cho, close to Nihonbashi in Tokyo.
The freshly pickled radish of this year are sold.

The 20th of October was the day dedicated to the deity Ebisu and a market was held in his honor. Apart from Bettarazuke, salted salmon and pots were sold. But it soon changed to Asazuke and Takuanzuke as local specialities.

. bettarazuke (べったら漬) "sticky pickles" .
kigo for late autumn

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hikyaku 飛脚 courier, messenger "flying legs"



- quote -
Hikyaku were couriers or messengers active in the medieval and early modern periods, who transported currency, letters, packages, and the like. In the Edo period, the network of hikyaku messengers expanded dramatically, and also became more organized and systematized.

Sando hikyaku (三度飛脚) traveled the Tôkaidô three times a month, and were generally employed by shogunate officials in Osaka and Kyoto to communicate with the shogunate in Edo. The messengers made use of horses made ready at post towns along the way - in theory, three horses ready and available at any given time - to ensure they would always have a fresh horse and thus the ability to travel more quickly.

The same term, sando hikyaku, was also used to refer to an independent network of messengers (i.e. not working directly for the shogunate) who operated commercially in transporting messages and goods along the Tôkaidô, beginning around 1664. These commercial messengers were also known as jô bikyaku in Edo, and junban hikyaku in Kyoto, and operated out of roughly 86 establishments in Kyoto and at least nine in Osaka, with branch operations in Edo, and roughly twenty post-stations along the route.
A much smaller group of messenger operators, known as jôge hikyaku (上下飛脚) or rokkumi hikyaku (六組飛脚) were based in Edo, and specialized in transporting materials for provincial daimyô. The Kyoto/Osaka-based messengers soon expanded their business, establishing routes connecting those cities with Tanba and Harima provinces, and with major provincial cities such as Sendai, Nagasaki, Kanazawa, and Fukui. Each company ran on a different schedule, generally sending and receiving messengers three times every ten days; a manager called a sairyo oversaw operations and took responsibility for the safety of packages.

The shogunate also operated a network of messengers along all five major highways (the Gokaidô) called tsugi hikyaku (継 飛脚), to convey official messages to shogunate and daimyô domains. Horses were kept ready at stations called tsugitate, spaced roughly eight kilometers apart, for use by the messengers.

Some of the most powerful daimyô maintained their own messenger networks, called daimyô hikyaku or shichi-ri-hikyaku, as these networks generally had horses ready every seven ri (shichi-ri). The two most prominent daimyô who maintained such networks were the Gosanke Tokugawa branch families based in Wakayama and Nagoya. Messengers in the service of Wakayama han left Edo on the 5th, 15th, and 25th of each month, and left Wakayama on the 10th, 20th, and 30th.

All in all, the time it took to convey messages from Osaka to Edo or vice versa, across 500 km, settled into a standard of six days by the end of the 17th century; in the 18th century, as the economy boomed and road and river traffic increased, delays due to congestion and other factors increased as well, and what once took six days now more frequently took ten or twelve. Meanwhile, however, commercial messenger services sought ways to cut down their times, and soon haya hikyaku (quick messengers) were making the journey in five, four, or as little as three and a half days, gaining time by running at night, and by making stops at fewer stations. In the 19th century, messengers somehow managed to cut the time even further, making the journey in as little as two days. However, these super express services were quite expensive, costing as much as four, or even eight or nine ryô for three-and-a-half day delivery of a message.

- - - - - Continue reading :
- source : samurai-archives.com -

daimyoo hikyaku 大名飛脚 messenger of a Daimyo lord
hayabikyaku, haya hikyaku 早飛脚 quick messenger
joobikyaku, jô bikyaku 定飛脚 commercial messengers (Edo)
jooge hikyaku, jôge hikyaku 上下飛脚 small group of messengers
junban hikyaku 順番飛脚 commercial messengers (Kyoto)
rokkumi hikyaku 六組飛脚 group of six messengers
sando hikyaku 三度飛脚 messenger on the Tokaido
shichi-ri-hikyaku 七里飛脚 messenger running seven Ri
tsugi hikyaku 継飛脚 highway messengers



source : honnesia.doorblog.jp
photo of a Hikyaku, about 130 years old


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. Hikyakugitsune 飛脚狐 the Fox messenger "with flying legs" .
There have been quite a few in the service of local lords.


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- - - - - H A I K U and S E N R Y U - - - - -

菜の花の中に糞ひる飛脚哉
nanohana no naka ni fun hiru hikyaku kana

the fast messenger
shits in the middle
of a rapeseed field

Tr. Gabi Greve

. 夏目漱石 Natsume Soseki .


source : blog.goo.ne.jp/oyuse13 - 南伸坊 『笑う漱石』

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. Kobayashi Issa 小林一茶 .

夕立と加賀もぱっぱと飛にけり
yuudachi to kaga mo pappa to tobi ni keri

the cloudburst
and the Kaga messengers
flew right by


In the present hokku a cloudburst soaks the post road and the area around it, but it is a small storm apparently consisting of a single cloud, and it quickly moves on. Around the same time, a group of official fast couriers (hikyaku 飛脚, lit. "flying legs") from the big Kaga domain (Kaga no Chiyo's home) on the Japan Sea pass through on their way to Edo.

Tr. and comment by Chris Drake

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草枯れて狐の飛脚通りけり
kusa karete kitsune no hikyaku tori keri

. Yosa Buson 与謝蕪村 and Fox Haiku .

ゆく年の瀬田を廻るや金飛脚
yuku toshi no Seta o mawaru ya kane hikyaku

running round Seta
at the end of the year -
money messengers


蕪村 Yosa Buson

. Seta 瀬田 and the Big Bridge 瀬田の大橋 .


kanehikyaku, kane hikyaku かねびきゃく / 金飛脚 money-carrying messengers
between Edo and Osaka

- - - - - and the modern version



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よらで過ぐる京の飛脚や年の暮
正岡子規 Masaoka Shiki

市民今朝飛脚のように足くじく
阿部完市 Abe Kanichi (1928 - 2009)


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. Legends and Tales from Japan 伝説 - Introduction .

. Hikyaku 飛脚 伝説 legends about fast messengers .

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- - - To join me on facebook, click the image !

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. Edo bakufu 江戸幕府 The Edo Government and Administration .

. Famous Places and Powerspots of Edo 江戸の名所 .

. Doing Business in Edo - 商売 - Introduction .

. shokunin 職人 craftsman, craftsmen, artisan, Handwerker .

. senryu, senryū 川柳 Senryu poems in Edo .

. densetsu 伝説 Japanese Legends - Introduction .


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[ . BACK to WORLDKIGO . TOP . ]- - - - - #odenmacho #hikyaku #magomekageyu - - - -
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11 Mar 2016

PERSONEN - Ariwara no Narihira

http://wkdhaikutopics.blogspot.jp/2012/07/ariwara-no-narihira.html


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Ariwara no Narihira 在原業平
825 – ?July 9, 880 ?(May 28)



a Japanese waka poet and aristocrat. He was one of six waka poets referred in the preface in kana to Kokin Wakashū by Ki no Tsurayuki, and has been named as the hero of The Tales of Ise, whose hero was an anonym in itself but most of whose love affairs could be attributed to Narihira.

He was the fifth son of Prince Abo, a son of Emperor Heizei. His mother Princess Ito was a daughter of Emperor Kammu, so he was therefore linked to Emperor Kammu by both maternal and paternal lineage. Along with his other brothers, he was relegated to civilian life, receiving a new clan name, Ariwara.

Although he belonged to the noblest lineage, his political life was not prominent, especially under the reign of Emperor Montoku. During the thirteen years of the Emperor's reign, Narihira was not raised to a higher rank within the court. This setback was supposedly caused by a scandal involving him and Fujiwara no Takako (藤原高子), an imperial consort or another royal lady.
Both love affairs were referred to in The Tales of Ise.

As a waka poet, his thirty waka were included in Kokin Wakashū. Traditionally he was considered the model for the hero of Tales of Ise, which contains many of his waka, although not all waka in it were his works and some of its episodes can hardly belong to his real life. Thanks to a reference to him in the preface of Kokin Wakashū he is listed as one of the Six best Waka poets and also one of the Thirty-six Poetry Immortals.

He has been traditionally regarded as the epitome of the beau homme in the Japanese culture. It is believed he was one of the men who inspired Murasaki Shikibu when she created Hikaru Genji, the hero of Genji Monogatari, especially in the aspects of her story concerning forbidden love between a high ranked woman and a member of the court.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !


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わらわべのふみあけたる築泥<ついじ>のくづれより通ひけり
When he visits his lady love, he had to climb over an old crumbling wall.


Parody of this event by Matsuo Basho:

猫の妻竃の崩れより通ひけり
. neko no tsuma hetsui no kuzure yori kayoi-keri .


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kigo for mid-summer

Narihira Ki 業平忌 (なりひらき) Narihira Memorial Dayi
Zaigo Ki 在五忌(ざいごき)Zaigo Memorial Day

zaigo implies that he was the fifth son.

It was the 28th day of the fifth lunar month.



flag at temple Futai-Ji in Nara 不退寺
His memorial day is celebrated here on May 28.


. Memorial Days of Famous People .



17 - Ariwara no Narihira Ason 在原業平朝臣
at Tatsutagawa 龍田川

. Ogura Hyakunin Isshu Poems 小倉百人一首 .


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断髪のえりあし青し業平忌
日野草城 「青芝」


早苗田にあやめ立ち添ふ業平忌

三河女と早苗取らうよ業平忌
松本たかし 「石魂」

source : kigosai.sub.jp


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業平の歌よりはじむ夏期講座
narihira no uta yori hajimu kaki kooza

starting with a waka
by Narihira
summer school


Ozawa Katsumi 小澤克己

source : Tr. Fay Aoyagi

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- - - - - His last verse (jisei)

ついに行く 道とはかねて 聞きしかど
昨日今日とは 思はざりしを


tsui ni yuku michi to wa kanete kikishikado
kino kyoo to wa omowazarishi


Upon this pathway,
I have long heard others say,
man sets forth at last -
yet I had not thought to go
so very soon as today.


Tr. Helen MacCullough
source : books.google.co.jp


I have always known
That at last I would
Take this road, but yesterday
I did not know that
it would be today.

Tr. ?
- Reference -

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梅雨入りや 業平朝臣 とむらわんか

the rainy season starts -
performing the memorial service
for Narihira-ason



般若寺の 石塔 夏の天を衝く

the stone stupa
of Hannya-temple is stabbing
the summer sky


Yesterday I visited Futai-ji 不退寺 and Hannya-ji.
Both are the small temples that sight-seeing tourists seldom visit.
Futai-ji is the temple of Ariwara-no-Narihira (825 - 880) who is famous for his beauty and one of the best 6 poets in Tanka world. He has been told as the hero of the famous classic romance "The story of Ise".

The Hannya-ji is an old temple built in AD 8c. This temple is featured in "the
Story of Heike" and "Taiheiki story". During the period of the Nothern and Southern Dynasties, this temple belonged to Southern Dynasty, thus this temple has many sad stories in its history.

- Shared by Naotaka Uematsu -
Haiku Culture Magazine, 2013


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Japanese Reference

在原業平

*****************************
Related words

***** Introducing Japanese Haiku Poets 


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. Legends and Tales from Japan 伝説 - Introduction .

Miyagi 宮城県 古川市 Furukawa town

Ono no Komachi zuka 小野小町塚 Mound for Ono no Komachi
Komachi lived here in Furukawa when she was old. She went to the Himuro Yakushi Temple 氷室薬師 one day and was found dead under the Torii gate in the evening.
Narihira visited the Yasoshima 八十島 "80 Islands" (many islands), which are said to be there. From her skull there was grass growing through the eyes, so he did not say 小野 Ono, but あなめあなめ aname aname.

秋風のふくにつけてもあなめあなめ 
をのとはいはしすゝき生けり


akikaze no fuku ni tsukete mo aname aname
ono to wa Iiaji susuki oikeri -

- quote -
Ariwara Narihira Imagining Skull of Ono-no Komachi
Ariwara no Narihira, a famous Japanese waka poet and aristocrat, is seen sitting on the floor by a window overlooking the garden. He fled the capital because of a love affair with Fujiwara no Takaiko and came to the east. He took lodging near the place where a famous poetess and a rare beauty of her time Ono no Komachi died. They both belonged to Rokkasen - the best-known six poets from the Heian period Japan. Alone and moody, he started imagining to see Japanese pampas grass growing through the eye-sockets of a skull in the garden. He thought it might be the skull of Ono-no Komachi crying.



Series title, Shinkei Sanju-roku Kaisen (Thirty-six New Ghost Stories) on the upper margin. A poem by Narihira to the cartouche in the upper right corner of the image
Akikaze-no Fuku-ni Tsuketemo Aname Aname
Ono towa Iwaji Susuki Oikeri - Narihira
The autumn wind blows, there is nothing more to say,
grass grows through the eye-sockets of the skull of Ono
(Narihira).
- source : japanesegallery.co.uk/default -


A poem by Fujiwara no Norikane

akikaze no fuku tabi goto ni aname aname
ono towa naraji susuku oikeri

the autumn wind
every time it blows
oh, how painful! how painful!
it will not become Ono / a little field
in which pampas grass grows.


Writing Margins: The Textual Construction of Gender in Heian and Kamakura Japan
Terry Kawashima
The image of Komachi as a speaking skull - aname aname
- source : books.google.co.jp -

宮城県大崎市古川南沢字氷室 Himuro Yakushi, at 村上寺

. Ono no Komachi 小野 小町 . (c. 825 — c. 900)


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Shizuoka town 静岡市

Meeting a demon
When Narihira travelled from Kyoto toward the East, he heard that Oni demons come out at the pass 宇津ノ谷の峠 Utsunoya.
So he performed some rituals to appease the demons at the Jizo Hall in 下野宇津宮素麺谷.
Jizo appeared dressed like a monk, transformed the demons into 10 small dumplings and ate them. People venerate the Jizo to our day.
This is also the origin of the speciality 十粒団子 / todango 十団子 "ten dumplings" from temple 慶竜寺.



Read the details of this legend about the 10 dumplings here:
. Utsunoya Tooge 宇津ノ谷 Utsunoya pass - Shizuoka .


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Tottori town 鳥取市

Once there lived a young samurai in town, who was just as beautiful as the legendary poet
在原業平 Ariwara no Narihira. He made the girls pregnant in no time and children were born to him.
But they say he was a fox.

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- reference : nichibun yokai database -
2 more to explore

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