Food and the Heart

3

There also seems to be much custom, called "ippyo koden" (the one-bale condolence offering), of giving a significant amount of gifts to relatives within the sphere of death impurity. This custom likely aimed to distinguish itself clearly from the rice or money that regular mourners would bring, rather than requiring a precise measure of one bale to be given. The way this tradition gradually shifted toward economic assistance might become clearer as more cases are collected. The so-called “village condolence gift” probably does not date back very far. When family structures centered around a single clan leader were tighter than they are today, there likely wasn’t an equal relationship among the family members. It seems that this exchange of gifts and hospitality began only when the branch families later needed external assistance. Originally, mourners who awed contamination from impurities had to actively eat separate rice. Many examples of villagers’ funeral offerings consisting of a certain quantity of grain may represent the opposite of Iki Island’s hi-no-meshi custom; this may indicate the need to prepare food separately to actively avoid impurity. This remains one of our long-held questions.

bale（名）俵

condolence（名）お悔やみ

sphere（名）範囲

awe（動）畏怖する

contamination（名）汚染

Upon reflection, the idea that shared meals bound participants together while eating separately isolated them, turning once-close individuals into strangers, is evident even in mythological records, such as the Yomotsu Hegui* (the taboo against eating food from the underworld). The custom that people who feared becoming companions with the dead were avoiding foods influenced with death impurities persisted even into an era when funerals were recognized as occasions for full stomachs. Though many traces of this custom may remain upon closer observation, one unique practice that early on caught the attention of co-researchers in various regions is the curious custom called "Mimi Fusagi" (ear-blocking). Upon hearing of a death, those of the same age as the deceased would promptly pound white rice pudding, cover their ears with a piece of it, and then dispose of it at a crossroads or give it to children to eat. In some areas, they might eat the mochi themselves or distribute it among family members. In certain cases, beans are used in place of rice pudding, and while nowadays, confectionery-store-bought rice pudding is often substituted, the shared custom of using it to cover the ears remains consistent. Everyone considers this custom as a unique feature of their own village and reports it, thinking it would surprise others. However, what is truly surprising is that this custom is not isolated; rather, the same event is still transmitted sporadically from the northernmost to the southwestern end of the country. My guess is that this signifies that residents of the same age and region as the deceased were once considered companions who should be contaminated with the impurity of death and share the deceased's impurity. Over time, as people began to find this unnecessary and undesirable, they came to understand that they should prepare separate meals and eat to achieve the purpose of isolation. The widespread practice of the same custom is not solely because of its ancient origin. Its continued existence suggests that the fear of the impurity of death remains extremely strong.

upon reflection......熟考してみると

mythological （形）神話の

underworld（名）黄泉の国

persist（動）主張する

promptly（副）速やかに、即座に

pound（動）搗く

confectionery（名）菓子

sporadically（副）散発的に

undesirable（形）望ましくない、好ましくない

Old customs, as mentioned above, are often staunchly defended at fortresses in remote corners of the country. If we were to explain this as an isolated phenomenon, we would need to construct an intelligent-sounding dogma that no one would ever accept. But it doesn't have to be studied only in our major folklore. Because the researchers hate and fear the reports of new cases as if they had heard of the death of a person of their age, and they often has to pound the mimifusagi mochi. No matter how vast the world is, there is no country where folklore studies that do not base their foundation on field collection or folkloric studies that cite old books as evidence exists. The fieldwork we conduct is an undertaking for the future. If the day when the collected materials are became all complete never comes, we must establish hypotheses that are as easily correctable as possible and gradually move in a more accurate direction. Nevertheless, it is essential for everyone to realize that the collection and comparison of such materials, as done this time, demonstrate that the country's customs were originally one cohesive system and that hi-no-mesi and mimisagi-mochi are merely remnants of it that have been preserved by chance. Otherwise, the collection of materials becomes an endeavor disproportionate to the effort expended, rendering it an unfruitful labor.

staunchly（形）忠実に、断固として

fortresses（名）砦

dogma（名）独断

undertake（動）引き受ける、保証する

hypothesis（名）仮定

correctable（形）修正可能な

accurate（形）正確な

remnant（名）残余物

unfruitful（形）実りのない

The reason why Japanese people have become less concerned about the impurity of death is generally because their experiences have become more accurate. In other words, they have gradually come to know and remember instances where no abnormal calamities occurred even when traditional customs were not observed. What accelerated this change was contact with people from different regions. These individuals, living diverse lives in various places, would have often innocently broken the traditional rules. Especially when agricultural techniques became widespread and there was no longer land available for newcomers, jobs that involved contamination by the impurity of death—such as caretakers of crematoriums or grave diggers—were willingly undertaken by some individuals. If these individuals were 'hijiri' or 'onbo'**, who had become spiritually strong through special beliefs, it can be imagined that common people gradually became influenced by them and were able to reduce their own anxieties. Even though the custom of cooking at two hearths on the day of the funeral still remains, it is inconvenient for relatives to have meals separately. Many people dislike such aloof treatment, especially after drinking hot water or tea at the deceased's house. There were even long-lived elderly people who sought to be shared the rice offered at the deceased's bedside to partake in their happiness. However, fundamentally, some discriminatory notions still persist. There would be many more points to notice if one were to observe it in detail.

calamity（名）災害、厄災

crematorium（名）火葬場

aloof（形）よそよそしい

discriminatory（形）差別的な

notion（名）観念

*Yomotsu Hegui: The taboo against eating food from the underworld. It is a phrase written in "Kojiki", which describes the origin of Japan and the Imperial Family. The god Izanagi visited the underworld to see his deceased wife Izanami, and tried to bring her back, but she could not because she ate the food from the underworld.

**hijiri or onbo: Hijiri means Sammai hijiri (a priest in a graveyard). Sammai hijiri and ombo are occupations that cremate bodies and guard cemeteries.