Norito for Presenting Offerings When an Embassy Is Sent to Tang China

遣唐使時奉幣祝詞

12

The Sumiyoshi kami and the promise of a ship

The Sumiyoshi kami and the promise of a ship

Sumemima no mikotonōomikoto o mochite suminoe ni tataegotōe matsuru sumegamitachi no mae ni mōshi tamahaku皇御孫尊の御命を以ちて住吉に称辞竟へ奉る皇神等の前に申し賜はく

Morokoshi ni tsukahitsukawasamu to suru ni funainaki ni yorite大唐に使遣はさむと為るに船居無きに依りて

Harimanokuni yori funanori to shite tsukahi wa tsukawasamu to omohoshimesu ahida ni播磨国より船乗と為て使は遣はさむと念ほしめす間に

Sumegami no mikotomochite funai wa waretsukuramu to oshihe satoshi tamaiki皇神の命以ちて船居は吾作らむと教へ悟し給ひき

The completed ship and gifts of thanks

Oshihe satoshi tamainagara funaitsukuri tamaere ba教へ悟し給ひながら船居作り給へれば

Yorokobi yomishiteiyajiro no mitegura o kaniseimei ni sasage motashimete悦び嘉しみ礼代の幣帛を官位姓名に捧げ賷たしめて

Tatematsuraku to mōsu進奉らくと申す

TranslationThe Sumiyoshi kami and the promise of a ship

Includes interpretation

By command of the Sovereign Grandchild, these words are addressed before the kami praised at Suminoe. When an embassy was to be sent to Tang China, no suitable ship was available, and a plan was being made for the envoys to sail from Harima. Then the kami revealed: “I shall make the ship.”

Editorial note

The Japanese reader uses the older place-name reading Suminoe. Sumiyoshi is the familiar modern form.

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Norito for Presenting Offerings When an Embassy Is Sent to Tang China

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Norito for Presenting Offerings When an Embassy Is Sent to Tang China

About Norito for Presenting Offerings When an Embassy Is Sent to Tang China

Overview

An ancient norito thanking the Sumiyoshi kami for guiding the preparation of ships for an embassy to Tang China and presenting offerings through an imperial envoy.

Structure
2sections
Japanese text
144characters
Notes
2notes

Purposes

  • To thank the kami for guiding the preparation of the ships
  • To present offerings before the embassy departs
  • To report the undertaking of the sea journey to the kami

Deities and subjects

The kami of Sumiyoshi
Give the instruction for preparing the ships and receive offerings of thanks

Background

Preserved in Book Eight of the Engishiki, this prayer is tied to the concrete state undertaking of dispatching an embassy to Tang China. A divine instruction concerning the ships and gratitude for their completion stand at its center.

Flow of the text

Across 2 sections, the text moves from “The Sumiyoshi kami and the promise of a ship” to “The completed ship and gifts of thanks.”

What to know before reading

  • The two sections move from the divine instruction concerning the ships to gratitude and the presentation of offerings.

  • The placeholder for office, rank, surname, and name was filled with the credentials of the actual envoy.

Norito for Presenting Offerings When an Embassy Is Sent to Tang China

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Norito for Presenting Offerings When an Embassy Is Sent to Tang China

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Norito for Presenting Offerings When an Embassy Is Sent to Tang China

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