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51-401: No firm dates can be assigned to this emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 3 March 507 to 10 March 531. Keitai is considered to have ruled the country during the early 6th century, but there is a paucity of information about him. There is insufficient material available for further verification and study. Significant differences exist in the records of

102-458: A community where the kami , the emperor and the people lived in harmony. Norinaga's work was carried on in different directions by his disciple Hirata Atsutane and his rivals Fujitani Mitsue (1781–1849) and Tachibana Moribe (1768–1823), who each produced commentaries and treatises on the text. The Kojiki became once more the object of scholarly focus and discussion in the Meiji period with

153-500: A grandson of Ohi no Ōkimi, a great-grandson of Ohohoto no Ōkimi (brother to Emperor Ingyō 's consort), a great-great-grandson of Prince Wakanuke no Futamata, and a great-great-great-grandson of Emperor Ōjin. The genealogical trees of the Nihon Shoki have been lost, and the accuracy of its account of events remains unknown. This uncertainty raises arguable doubts about this emperor's genealogy. Although genealogical information in

204-565: A national epic like Beowulf is in the English-speaking world. During the 1920s and 30s, linguist Hashimoto Shinkichi studied the phonology of the Old Japanese language , and his conclusions were applied by scholars to the study of the text. The Kojiki continued to attract the attention of academics and other specialists in the post-war period, which saw the appearance of numerous editions, translations and commentaries on

255-463: A reappraisal of the Kojiki . Kokugaku scholars saw Japan's earliest writings as the repository of a uniquely superior Japanese identity that could be revived by recovering the ancient language they were written in; the Kojiki , by virtue of its antiquity, gained the status of a sacred text. The Kojiki came to be highly regarded that scholars such as Kada no Azumamaro and Kamo no Mabuchi – himself

306-470: A student of Azumamaro – produced annotated versions of it. The Kojiki received its most serious study and exposition in the hands of Motoori Norinaga , who obtained a copy of the Kan'ei printed edition in 1754. After meeting Mabuchi in 1763, Norinaga began to devote his efforts to an in-depth scholarly study of the text. A monumental 44-volume study of the Kojiki called Kojiki-den ( 古事記伝 , "Commentary on

357-411: A third wife, Nunakawahime ( 沼河比売 ) of Koshi . A tiny god riding on the waves of the sea in a bean-pod appears before Ōkuninushi. A god in the form of a scarecrow named Kuebiko ( 久延毘古 ) identifies the dwarf as Sukunabikona-no-Kami ( 少名毘古那神 ), a son of Kamimusubi-no-Kami ( 神産巣日神 ), one of the three primordial Kotoamatsukami . Sukunabikona assists Ōkuninushi in his task of creating and developing

408-611: A wide audience. The earliest printed edition of the text was the Kan'ei Kojiki ( 寛永古事記 ), published in Kyoto in 1644 ( Kan'ei 21). A second edition, the Gōtō Kojiki ( 鼇頭古事記 , " Kojiki with Marginal Notes") was printed by Deguchi (Watarai) Nobuyoshi , a priest at Ise Shrine , in 1687 ( Jōkyō 4). The birth of nativist studies ( kokugaku ) and nationalist sentiment during the Edo period saw

459-553: A younger sister of Emperor Buretsu , Princess Tashiraka. It is supposed that his succession was not welcomed by everyone, and it took about 20 years for Keitai to enter Yamato Province , near Kawachi and the political center of Japan at the time. In Keitai's later years, 527 or 528, the Iwai Rebellion broke out in Tsukushi province, Kyūshū . Keitai assigned Mononobe no Arakabi as Shōgun and sent him to Kyūshū to put down

510-465: Is a condensed summary of the contents of the text, including many of the names of gods, emperors, and locations as well as events which took place in association with them. The original Japanese is included in parentheses where appropriate. Ō no Yasumaro 's preface, in the form of a dedicatory address to Empress Genmei , begins with a poem summarizing the main contents of the work. He then relates how Emperor Tenmu commissioned Hieda no Are to memorize

561-510: Is a paucity of information about him. There is insufficient material available for further verification and study. When Emperor Ankan died, he had no offspring; and succession passed to his youngest brother Prince Hinokuma no Takata ( 檜隈高田皇子 ) , who will come to be known as Emperor Senka. Emperor Senka was elderly at the time of his enthronement; and his reign is said to have endured for only three years. Senka's contemporary title would not have been tennō , as most historians believe this title

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612-461: Is not traditionally listed. Kojiki The Kojiki ( 古事記 , "Records of Ancient Matters" or "An Account of Ancient Matters") , also sometimes read as Furukotofumi or Furukotobumi , is an early Japanese chronicle of myths , legends, hymns , genealogies, oral traditions , and semi-historical accounts down to 641 concerning the origin of the Japanese archipelago ,

663-431: Is said to have originally been King of Koshi , a smaller tribal entity, apparently in northern parts of central Japan, perhaps as far as the coast of Sea of Japan . Some modern reference works of history call Keitai simply King Ohodo of Koshi . Keitai's contemporary title would not have been tennō , as most historians believe this title was not introduced until the reigns of Emperor Tenmu and Empress Jitō . Rather, it

714-489: Is the oldest existing manuscript. While divided into the Ise branch, it is actually a mixture of the two branches. The monk Ken'yu based his copy on Ōnakatomi Sadayo's copy. In 1266, Sadayo copied volumes one and three but did not have access to the second volume. Finally, in 1282, he obtained access to the second volume through a Urabe-branch manuscript that he used to transcribe. The Kojiki contains various songs and poems. While

765-532: Is traditionally venerated at a memorial Shinto shrine ( misasagi ) at Nara. The Imperial Household Agency designates this location as Senka's mausoleum . It is formally named Musa no Tsukisaka no e no misasagi ; however, the actual sites of the graves of the early Emperors remain problematic, according to some historians and archaeologists. Unless otherwise noted (as BC), years are in CE  / AD   Imperial Consort and Regent Empress Jingū

816-725: The kami ( 神 ) , and the Japanese imperial line . It is claimed in its preface to have been composed by Ō no Yasumaro at the request of Empress Genmei in the early 8th century (711–712), and thus is usually considered to be the oldest extant literary work in Japan . The myths contained in the Kojiki as well as the Nihon Shoki ( 日本書紀 ) are part of the inspiration behind many practices and unified "Shinto orthodoxy". Later, they were incorporated into Shinto practices such as

867-437: The misogi purification ritual. It is believed that the compilation of various genealogical and anecdotal histories of the imperial (Yamato) court and prominent clans began during the reigns of Emperors Keitai and Kinmei in the 6th century, with the first concerted effort at historical compilation of which we have record being the one made in 620 under the auspices of Prince Shotoku and Soga no Umako . According to

918-547: The Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki . The Kojiki puts this emperor's birth year at 485; and his date of death is said to have been April 9, 527. In the extant account, he is called Ohodo ( 袁本杼 ) . The Nihon Shoki gives his birth year at 450; and he is said to have died on February 7, 531 or 534. In this historical record, he is said to have been called Ohodo ( 男大迹 ) and Hikofuto ( 彦太 ) . In other historical records, he

969-625: The Nihon Shoki , the documents compiled under their initiative were the Tennōki ( 天皇記 , also Sumera-mikoto no fumi ) or the "Record of the Emperors", the Kokki ( 国記 , also Kunitsufumi ) or the "National Record", and other "fundamental records" ( 本記 , hongi or mototsufumi ) pertaining to influential clans and free subjects. Out of these texts, only the Kokki survived the burning of Soga no Emishi 's estate (where these documents were kept) during

1020-605: The Shaku Nihongi leaves room for discussion, many scholars acknowledge the blood relationship with the Okinaga clan, a powerful local ruling family or the collateral line of the Imperial family-governed Ōmi region (a part of present-day Shiga Prefecture). This family produced many empresses and consorts throughout history. According to the Nihon Shoki , Ohohoto no Ōkimi, the great-grandfather of Emperor Keitai, married into

1071-516: The Chrysanthemum throne . His mother, Furihime, was a seventh generation descendant of Emperor Suinin by his son, Prince Iwatsukuwake. His father was a fourth generation descendant of Emperor Ōjin by his son, Prince Wakanuke no Futamata. Genealogy information is supplemented in Shaku Nihongi which quotes from the now lost text Jōgūki (7th century). It says he was a son of Ushi no Ōkimi (believed to be equivalent to Hikoushi no Ōkimi),

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1122-459: The Isshi incident of 645, and was itself apparently lost soon after. The Kojiki 's preface indicates that leading families also kept their own historical and genealogical records; indeed, one of the reasons it gives for the compilation of the Kojiki is the correction of errors that had supposedly crept into these documents. According to the preface, Emperor Tenmu (reigned 673–686) ordered

1173-470: The Kamakura period (1185–1333), the work languished in obscurity such that very few people had access to the text, particularly that of the middle (second) volume. It is due to this neglect that the Kojiki is available only in comparatively late manuscripts, the earliest of which dates to the late 14th century. It was with the advent of printing in the early modern period that the Kojiki first reached

1224-705: The Kojiki was mostly treated as an ancillary text. Indeed, a work known as the Sendai Kuji Hongi (also known as the Kujiki ), claimed to have been authored by Prince Shōtoku and Soga no Umako, was considered to be earlier and more reliable than the Kojiki . (Modern scholarly consensus holds the Kuji Hongi to be a Heian period forgery based on both the Kojiki and the Shoki , although certain portions may indeed preserve genuine early traditions and sources.) By

1275-475: The Kojiki was still widely seen as inferior to the Nihon Shoki until Motoori Norinaga wrote the Kojiki-den . In 1913, Tsuda Sōkichi argued in a study that the Kojiki , particularly in its earlier sections, was neither history nor myth but a document created to legitimize the rule of the imperial line. While his conclusions led to considerable controversy, his influence remains in subsequent studies of

1326-473: The Kojiki ") , composed over a 34-year period (1764–1798), was the fruit of his labor. With Norinaga, the Kojiki assumed an importance equal to the Nihon Shoki ; in fact, in his view the Kojiki was a more trustworthy source for ancient Japanese traditions than was the Shoki precisely because it was free of "Chinese mentality". He viewed the Kojiki as a true account of actual events that when read correctly, could reveal Japan in its pristine, ideal state as

1377-428: The 28th of the 1st month of 712 (Wadō 5). The Kojiki is a collation of different traditions woven into a single "official" mythology, made in an attempt to justify the rule of the imperial Yamato polity and at the same time to subsume different interest groups under its wing by giving them a place and an interest in the national genealogy-mythology. Apart from furthering the imperial agenda, an increased interest in

1428-468: The Okinaga clan. Keitai's mother, Furihime, was from a local ruling family in Koshi ( Echizen Province ), so his mother brought him to her home after his father's death. Abundant traditions relating to the family have been passed down by shrines and old-established families in both regions. Regardless of speculation about Keitai's genealogy, it is well settled that there was an extended period of disputes over

1479-404: The framework by which Japanese history was examined in terms of the reign of emperors. In contrast to the Nihon Shoki (compiled 720), the first of six histories commissioned by the imperial court, which was modeled on Chinese dynastic histories and was intended to be a national chronicle that could be shown with pride to foreign envoys, the Kojiki is inward looking, concerned mainly with

1530-465: The genealogies and records of the imperial house years earlier, and how Genmei in turn ordered Yasumaro to compile a written record of what Are had learned. He finally concludes the preface with a brief explanation of the Chinese characters used to transcribe native Japanese words in the text and the division of the work into three volumes. Izanagi divides the world among his three children: Amaterasu

1581-641: The historical records and myths are written in a form of the Chinese language , the songs are written in Old Japanese with the Man'yōgana writing system, which uses Chinese characters only phonetically. The Kojiki is divided into three parts: the Kamitsumaki ( 上巻 , "upper volume" ) , the Nakatsumaki ( 中巻 , "middle volume") and the Shimotsumaki ( 下巻 , "lower volume") . What follows

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1632-405: The introduction of Western academic disciplines such as philology and comparative mythology . The importance of the text as a work of literary value was recognized, and scholars realized that its accounts were comparable in many ways to ancient Greek and Roman myths . At the same time, however, the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki achieved a sort of scriptural status under State Shintō , which viewed

1683-426: The jealousy of his brothers, who begin to make repeated attempts on his life. Seeking refuge in a subterranean realm ruled by Susanoo called Ne-no-Katasukuni ( 根之堅洲国 ), Ōnamuji meets and falls in love with Susanoo's daughter Suseribime-no-Mikoto ( 須勢理毘売 ). Upon learning of their affair, Susanoo imposes four trials on Ōnamuji, each of which he overcame with Suseribime's help. Ōnamuji manages to outwit Susanoo and leave

1734-550: The land ( kuni-zukuri ), but eventually crosses over to the "eternal land" ( 常世国 , tokoyo no kuni ), leaving Ōkuninushi without a partner. Another deity, Ōmononushi-no-Kami ( 大物主神 ), then appears and promises to aid Ōkuninushi if he will worship him. Ōkuninushi then enshrines Ōmononushi in Mount Mimoro in Yamato Province . Emperor Senka Emperor Senka ( 宣化天皇 , Senka-tennō ) (466 — 15 March 539)

1785-484: The nation's origins in reaction to the influx of foreign culture and the need for an authoritative genealogical account by which to consider the claims of noble families and to reorganize them into a new system of ranks and titles are also possible factors for its compilation. The Kojiki 's narrative establishes the Yamato line 's right to rule via myth and legend, portraying it as the progeny of heavenly deities and

1836-458: The realm, taking his new wife Suseribime as well as Susanoo's sword, koto , and bow and arrows back with him, but not before being advised by Susanoo to change his name to Ōkuninushi-no-Kami ( 大国主神 , "Master of the Great Land"). Ōkuninushi defeats his wicked brothers and becomes the lord of Ashihara-no-Nakatsukuni. Under the name Yachihoko-no-Kami ( 八千矛神 , "Eight Thousand Spears"), he takes

1887-1317: The rebellion. Among his sons, Emperor Ankan , Emperor Senka and Emperor Kinmei ascended to the throne. The actual site of Keitai's grave is not known. He is traditionally venerated at a memorial Shinto shrine ( misasagi ) at the Ooda Chausuyama kofun in Ibaraki, Osaka . The Imperial Household Agency designates this location as Keitai's mausoleum . It is formally named Mishima no Aikinu no misasagi . Empress: Princess Tashiraka ( 手白香皇女 , b. 489) , Emperor Ninken 's daughter Consort: Menokohime ( 目子媛 ) , Owari no Muraji Kusaka's daughter Consort: Wakakohime ( 稚子媛 ) , Mio no Tsunoori no Kimi's younger sister Consort: Hirohime ( 広媛 ) , Prince Sakata no Ōmata's daughter Consort: Ominoiratsume ( 麻績娘子 ) , daughter of Okinaga no Mate ( 息長真手王 ) Consort: Sekihime ( 関媛 ) , daughter of Manda no Muraji Omochi ( 茨田連小望 ) Consort: Yamatohime ( 倭媛 ) , daughter of Mio no Kimi Katahi ( 三尾君堅楲 ) Consort: Haehime ( 荑媛 ) , daughter of Wani no Omi Kawachi ( 和珥臣河内 ) Consort: Hirohime ( 広媛 ) , daughter of Ne ( 根王 ) Unless otherwise noted (as BC), years are in CE  / AD   Imperial Consort and Regent Empress Jingū

1938-506: The review and emendation of clan documents and commissioned a certain court attendant ( toneri ) of exceptional memory named Hieda no Are to memorize records and oral traditions concerning the imperial lineage. Beyond this memorization, nothing occurred until the reign of Empress Genmei (reigned 707–715), who on the 18th of the 9th month of 711 ( Wadō 4) ordered the courtier Ō no Yasumaro to record what had been learned by Hieda no Are. He finished and presented his work to Empress Genmei on

1989-427: The rightful heir to the land of Japan. A good part of the latter portion of the text is spent recounting various genealogies which served not only to give the imperial family an air of antiquity (which may not necessarily reflect historical reality), but also served to tie, whether true or not, many existing clans' genealogies to their own. Regardless of the work's original intent, it finalized and possibly even formulated

2040-460: The ruling family and prominent clans, and is apparently intended for internal consumption. Whereas the Nihon Shoki uses a variety of source documents (including Chinese texts), the Kojiki is apparently based on sources handed down within the court. Whereas the Nihon Shoki , owing to its status as one of the six imperial histories, was widely read and studied during the Heian period (794–1185),

2091-442: The stories contained therein as orthodox national history. Official ideology upheld as unquestionable fact the belief in the emperor's divinity and the idea of Japan as a racially superior "national body" ( kokutai ), with scholars who questioned their veracity facing the threat of censorship, forced resignation, or even trial in court. Until the Meiji era , the text's sacred nature was not known to have been questioned. However,

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2142-537: The succession which developed after Keitai's death. A confrontation arose between adherents of two branches of the Yamato, pitting the supporters of sons who would become known as Emperor Ankan and Emperor Senka against those who were backers of the son who would become known as Emperor Kinmei . Keitai declared his ascension in Kuzuha, in the northern part of Kawachi Province (present day Hirakata, Osaka), and married

2193-498: The text (particularly in post- World War II scholarship), which amounts largely to development and correction of the line of thought originally proposed by him. In reaction to Tsuda, Watsuji Tetsurō (1920) argued for a literary appreciation of the Kojiki, claiming that this gave it inner coherence. Kurano Kenji (1927) took it a step further, proposing that the Kojiki may best be compared with Western epic literature and regarded as

2244-606: The text by authors such as Kurano Kenji, Takeda Yūkichi , Saigō Nobutsuna , and Kōnoshi Takamitsu . There are two major branches of Kojiki manuscripts: Ise and Urabe. The extant Urabe branch consists of 36 existing manuscripts all based on the 1522 copies by Urabe Kanenaga. The Ise branch may be subdivided into the Shinpukuji-bon ( 真福寺本 ) manuscript of 1371–1372 and the Dōka-bon ( 道果本 ) manuscripts. The Dōka sub-branch consists of: The Shinpukuji-bon manuscript (1371–1372)

2295-408: The throne. If Emperor Keitai began a new dynasty as some historians believe, then Emperor Buretsu would have been the last monarch of the first recorded dynasty of Japan. According to the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki , his father was Hikoushi no Ō/Hikoushi no Ōkimi ( 彦主人王 ) and his mother was Furihime ( 振媛 ) . When Buretsu died, Kanamura recommended Keitai (at the age of 58) as a possible heir to

2346-498: The two gods each chewed and spat out an object carried by the other (Amaterasu Susanoo's sword, Susanoo Amaterasu's magatama beads) during the rite of oath-taking. Susanoo, declaring himself the winner of the contest, "raged with victory" and proceeds to wreak havoc upon Takamagahara, causing Amaterasu to hide in the Ama-no-Iwato ( 天岩戸 , the "Heavenly Rock Cave"), plunging heaven and earth into total darkness. The gods, led by

2397-451: The wise Omoikane-no-Kami ( 思金神 ), eventually persuade her to come out of the cave, restoring light to the world. As punishment for his misdeeds, Susanoo is thrown out of Takamagahara. A descendant of Susanoo, Ōnamuji-no-Kami ( 大穴牟遅神 ), helps a hapless hare that had been mistreated by his eighty brothers ( 八十神 , yasogami ); the hare, in turn, helps Ōnamuji win the hand of the goddess Yagamihime ( 八上比売 ) of Inaba . This earns Ōnamuji

2448-559: Was allotted Takamagahara ( 高天原 , the "Plain of High Heaven"), Tsukuyomi the night, and Susanoo the seas. Susanoo, who missed his mother and kept weeping and howling incessantly, rejects his appointed task, leading Izanagi to expel him. Susanoo then goes up to Takamagahara, claiming to wish to see his sister. When a suspicious Amaterasu went out to meet him clad in armor, Susanoo protested his innocence and proposed that they exchange oaths . Five male kami (Amaterasu's sons) and three female kami (Susanoo's daughters) come into existence when

2499-451: Was not introduced until the reigns of Emperor Tenmu and Empress Jitō . Rather, it was presumably Sumeramikoto or Amenoshita Shiroshimesu Ōkimi ( 治天下大王 ) , meaning "the great king who rules all under heaven". Alternatively, Senka might have been referred to as ヤマト大王/大君 or the "Great King of Yamato". During this reign, Soga no Iname is believed to have been the first verifiable Omi (also Ōomi , "Great Minister"). The Emperor

2550-453: Was presumably Sumeramikoto or Amenoshita Shiroshimesu Ōkimi ( 治天下大王 ) , meaning "the great king who rules all under heaven". Alternatively, Keitai might have been referred to as ヤマト大王/大君 or the "Great King of Yamato". Keitai was not the son of the immediate previous monarch. According to the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki , Buretsu died without a successor, at which time a fifth generation grandson of Emperor Ōjin , Keitai, came and ascended

2601-516: Was the 28th legendary emperor of Japan , according to the traditional order of succession . No firm dates can be assigned to this emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 25 January 536 to 15 March 539, the end of the Kofun period , which was followed by the Asuka period . Senka is considered to have ruled the country during the early-6th century, but there

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