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【神武東征の苦難とその昇華 皇統神話と熊野の旅-3】




さて熊野の得意な地形については、北海道人としてある種の「既視感」を持つことについて昨日触れた。それは北海道にも複数が確認される「カルデラ」地形の残像があるのではないかと。
特徴的な「柱状節理」に関しては中学校の修学旅行で視認している。そういった地形がはるかな南国・紀州で再会するみたいな。このことについては明日以降のブログ記事で深掘りで触れたい。
そういった「特異な地形」要因を知ってか知らずにか、皇統神話には熊野上陸のシーンが大きく扱われて古事記に遺されている。瀬戸内海世界での移動、戦闘が前段として記述された後、大和地域に進出するのに「日を背に負って戦う」という大戦略に基づいて、大和地方の「東部」から「西部」に向かって進軍することになる。
そういう大方針に従って、神武東征軍は長駆して熊野からの上陸を目指すことになるわけだ。
この段階で神武帝の長兄にして実質としての主将たる五瀬命はすでに落命している。いちばん上の図は、橿原神宮の発行する「由緒略記」からのもの。そして乗船していた「関船」<貴人の船。図は阿古師神社にある想像図>は熊野灘の太平洋上で大暴風に翻弄される。こうした暴風に対して、遺された神武帝の兄2人が入水して海の神を静めたとされている。
古代の航海においてしばしばこの人身御供シーンは出てくる。
ヤマトタケルの関東進軍でもこういうシーンはあり、妃が入水したことで「あづま〜吾妻」という地域名が詠まれたとされる説話を生んでいる。科学的な分析の及ばない時代、こうした荒ぶる自然現象に対しての人間側の対応として、ある種、一般解であったものかもしれない。船の舳先に男子が縛り付けられるという人身御供の習俗が連綿とあったことが大きく連想されてくる。
神武帝の2人の兄は最終的に神武一統が上陸したと説話化された二木島の港の海上の入口の左右に祀られたとされている。<もちろん上陸地について諸説あるなかの一般的な有力説>
しかし実際にこの阿古師神社に参詣すると、皇統の由縁を持つ社格とは思えない質朴・簡素さに気付かされる。
長兄の五瀬命については皇統成立後、その陵は紀伊国の竃山に祀られたとされるのに比較して、きわめて簡素だとも思える。皇統説話がそのまま歴史なのだとするとすればこのあたりその真実性には疑念を生じさせる部分。一方で日本民俗の末子相続の風習も微妙にあるのかも知れない。
ただ、実際にこの地を歩いてその自然の奥深さに触れたわたしとしては、腑に落ちる部分もある。なんといってもこの楯ヶ崎への険しい行路では自然の象徴のように野生のシカにまで遭遇したのです。
険しい行路の山道のなか、静寂な空気感につつまれたなかで突然の出会いとしてあったのだけれど、驚きというよりもごく静謐なイキモノ同士の間の親和感に包まれていた。
もちろん内心驚きはあるのだけれど、あまりにも心理的に神々しくおだやかで、そういう空間性の中で皇統が祀られていることに不思議な納得感もあった。
熊野詣という日本的営為全体の中に、こういう空気感があったのではと思えるのですね。

English version⬇

The Sufferings of the Jimmu Expedition and Its Sublimation: The Myth of the Imperial Lineage and a Journey to Kumano – 3
On the way to the Akoji Shrine, we encountered wild deer. A divine encounter between two equestrians in a mysterious and quiet psychological state. Psychological harmony with mythology (laugh). …

Now, I mentioned yesterday that I have a certain “sense of déjà vu” as a Hokkaido-goer with regard to Kumano’s specialty topography. It is thought that there are afterimages of “caldera” landforms, several of which have been confirmed in Hokkaido.
I have seen the characteristic “columnar joints” on a junior high school excursion. It would be like seeing such landforms again in Kishu, a faraway tropical island. I would like to discuss this in depth in a blog post to come tomorrow.
Whether or not we know of such “unique geographical features,” the scene of the landing at Kumano is prominently included in the Kojiki, the oldest surviving record of Japanese history, in the mythology of the imperial lineage. After the movement and battle in the Seto Inland Sea world are described as the first part of the story, they would march from the “eastern” part to the “western” part of the Yamato region based on the grand strategy of “fighting with the sun on their backs” to advance into the Yamato region.
In accordance with such a grand policy, the Jinmu East Expeditionary Force was to make a long drive to land from Kumano.
At this stage, Gose-no-Mikoto, the eldest brother of Emperor Jinmu and in effect the chief commander, had already lost his life. The top image is from the “Brief History of the History” published by the Kashihara Shrine of Kashihara. The top image is from the “Kashihara Shrine’s Brief History of the Kashihara Shrine. The boat was tossed about by a great storm on the Pacific Ocean in the Kumano-nada Sea. In response to the storm, two surviving brothers of Emperor Jinmu are said to have entered the water to calm the sea gods.
This human sacrifice scene often appears in ancient voyages.
Such scenes also occurred during Yamatotakeru’s march to the Kanto region, and the queen’s entering the water is said to have given rise to the legend that the name of the region, “Azuma-Azuma,” was composed. In an age when scientific analysis was not available, this may have been a common human response to such a violent natural phenomenon. The fact that the custom of hinokimi gyoji, in which a man is tied to the bow of a ship, has continued uninterruptedly is greatly reminiscent of this.
The two elder brothers of Emperor Jinmu are said to have been enshrined on either side of the entrance to the sea at the harbor of Futakijima, where the Jinmu line was eventually said to have landed. <This is, of course, the prevailing theory among the various theories about the landing site.
However, when one actually pays a visit to the shrine, one is struck by the simplicity of the shrine, which one would not expect to find in a shrine with an imperial lineage.
Compared to his eldest brother Gose-no-mikoto, whose mausoleum is said to have been enshrined on Mount Gamayama in Kii Province after the establishment of the imperial lineage, the shrine is extremely simple. If the imperial lineage is history as it is, this part of the story raises doubts about its veracity. On the other hand, the custom of inheritance of the youngest child in Japanese folklore may also be subtle.
However, as someone who has actually walked through the area and experienced the depths of its natural environment, some aspects of the story make sense to me. After all, on this steep path to Tategasaki, I even encountered wild deer as a symbol of nature.
It was a sudden encounter on a steep mountain road, in the midst of a quiet atmosphere, but rather than surprise, I was enveloped in a very tranquil sense of affinity between two creatures.
Of course, I was inwardly surprised, but I also felt a strange sense of satisfaction at the fact that the imperial lineage was being enshrined in such a space, which was psychologically so divine and serene.
It seems to me that this kind of atmosphere existed in the whole Japanese activity of Kumano pilgrimage.

【特異な自然地形への上陸・古事記 皇統神話と熊野の旅-2】


ことしは新年早々、能登半島大地震とさらに、その災害救助にあたっていた海上保安庁とJAL機がまさか、羽田空港滑走路上での衝突事故。JAL機の乗員乗客全員は一部ケガ人も出たけれど無事救出。一方、大きな使命感のもと大地震と戦っていた尊い人命が失われてしまった。なんともやるせなく、つらい。ご冥福をお祈りします。
昨年中から2024年は世界にとって分水嶺的な事象が集中することが指摘されてきましたが、どうも騒然とした状況は、日本で象徴的に発生してしまった。なんとか社会平穏を祈念します。


さて昨日元旦から開始したシリーズ2回目。わたしのブログでは千葉県の日本歴史民俗博物館の古代の展示が大革新されたことに感動して「列島37,000年史」シリーズとして自分なりに整理整頓させてもらった。歴史や考古の最新研究の成果を一般に教示いただく博物館・歴史館の学究のみなさんの労に心から感謝したい。
で、考古と歴史の隙間には日本の場合、古事記・日本書紀の世界が広がっている。神武東征の記紀伝承の世界でもこの熊野地域のさまざまなスポットは強く心を捉えられる。
周辺を走る国道311号線の道路脇にある「駐車場」から1.9kmの山道を踏破した先にある神武天皇の東征軍の目印とされる特異な自然景観・楯ヶ崎へのほぼ中間地点にこの阿古師神社はある。
祭神に祀られているのは「三毛入野命」という神武天皇の兄。


系図は神武天皇を祀る「橿原神宮」発行の「由緒略記」から。神武天皇は4人兄弟の末子とされ、この東征行軍中に3人の兄が亡くなっている。長兄の「五瀬命(いつせのみこと)」は難波方面から大和地方に上陸しようとしたときに地元豪族・長髄彦の攻撃を受けその時の負傷がもとで死亡。その遺言の方針に従って弟たちは紀伊半島を迂回して熊野に上陸を目指す。そのとき「楯ヶ崎」を上陸目印としていたが、大嵐に遭遇して神武帝の2人の兄は相次いで「海に身を投じた」とされる。それによって海が静まり一行は上陸を果たしたと。
この2人の兄を祀ったのがこの阿古師神社とその対岸位置関係にある「室古神社」。こちらの祭神に祀られているのは「稲飯命(いなひのみこと)」。両社の中間を通った奥に「二木島港」があり神武帝上陸の「定説」。
このあたり歴史なのか神話なのか判然とはしないけれど、熊野地方の特異な自然景観、北海道の旭川・層雲峡で知られる「柱状節理」地形が「いかにも」感を抱かせる圧倒的舞台装置。とくに楯ヶ崎は巨大な柱状節理地形が太平洋の荒波のなかに屹立していて、見る者に「さもありなん」と思わせる。歴史文学作家の安部龍太郎さんの熊野紀行文を読むと、氏もまったくゾッコン魅了されている様子が伝わってくる(笑)。
中世の皇統の上皇たちが繰り返し熊野を詣でたこともまた、日本史に強い根拠となって「熊野信仰」に大きく寄与していったこともよく理解できる。
かく言うわたしとしては、北海道人として層雲峡以外でここまで圧倒的な自然景観を見たことがなかった。
ちょうど中学校の修学旅行の頃のナイーブなこころに刻まれた自然景観と、この南国ではるかな時間を経て再会したみたいな、不思議な「邂逅」感に包まれていたのであります。

English version⬇

Landing in a peculiar natural terrain, Kojiki: The Myth of the Imperial Lineage and a Journey to Kumano – 2
The unique natural topography of Kumano, so to speak, brings a “convincing” sense of the mythological world with its “Jomon” persuasiveness. It is amazing. I am impressed.

The Noto Peninsula Earthquake occurred early this year, and the Japan Coast Guard and a JAL aircraft engaged in disaster relief unexpectedly collided on the runway of Haneda Airport. On the other hand, precious lives were lost who were fighting against the great earthquake with a great sense of mission. It is very sad and painful. I pray for the repose of their souls.
It has been pointed out since last year that the year 2024 will bring a concentration of watershed events for the world, but apparently the tumultuous situation has symbolically occurred in Japan. I pray for social tranquility somehow.

This is the second in a series that began yesterday, New Year’s Day. In my blog, I was moved by the great innovation of the ancient exhibition at the Japan Museum of History and Folklore in Chiba Prefecture, and I have organized it in my own way as the “37,000 Year History of the Archipelago” series. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the scholars at the museum and history museum for their hard work in sharing the results of their latest research on history and archaeology with the general public.
In the gap between archaeology and history, in the case of Japan, the world of Kojiki and Nihonshoki is expanding. The various spots in the Kumano area are also strongly associated with the legend of the Kiki legend of the Jimmu expedition to the east.
This Akoshi Shrine is located almost halfway to Tategasaki, a unique natural landscape said to be a landmark of Emperor Jinmu’s eastern expeditionary force, after stepping over a 1.9 km mountain path from the “parking lot” on the side of the National Route 311 road that runs through the area.
The deity enshrined at the shrine is Sankeirino-no-mikoto, the elder brother of Emperor Jinmu.

The genealogy is taken from the “Brief History” issued by the Kashihara Jingu Shrine, which enshrines Emperor Jinmu. Emperor Jinmu is said to have been the youngest of four siblings, and three of his elder brothers died during his march to the east. The eldest brother, Itsuse-no-mikoto, was attacked by a local powerful tribe, the Nagasuhiko, when he was about to land in the Yamato region from the Namba area, and died from injuries sustained during the attack. In accordance with the policy of his last will and testament, his younger brothers made a detour around the Kii Peninsula, aiming to land at Kumano. They had set Tategasaki as their landing point, but encountered a great storm and the two brothers threw themselves into the sea one after the other. This calmed the sea, and the party was able to make landfall.
The two brothers are enshrined at the Akoji Shrine and the Muroko Shrine on the opposite shore. The deity enshrined here is Inahi-no-Mikoto. The “Fugishima Harbor” is located in the middle of the two shrines, and it is said that the Emperor Jinmu landed there.
Although it is not clear whether this area is history or myth, the unique natural landscape of the Kumano region and the “columnar jointed terrain” known in Asahikawa and Sounkyo in Hokkaido provide an overwhelming stage setting that makes one feel “just as it should be”. The Tategasaki area in particular, with its huge columnar-jointed terrain soaring above the rough waves of the Pacific Ocean, makes the viewer think, “That’s just as it should be. Reading the Kumano travelogue of Ryutaro Abe, a writer of historical literature, one can see that he too is utterly fascinated by the area (laugh).
It is also understandable that the repeated pilgrimages to Kumano by the emperors of the imperial lineage in the Middle Ages contributed greatly to the “Kumano faith” as a strong basis for Japanese history.
As for myself, as a Hokkaido native, I have never seen such overwhelming natural scenery outside of Sounkyo.
I was wrapped in a strange feeling of “encounter” with the natural scenery that was engraved in my naïve mind when I was on a school excursion in junior high school, as if I was reunited with it after a long time in this tropical country.

【神武帝の兄を祀る「阿古師神社」 皇統神話と熊野の旅-1】




きのう元旦、早起きして北海道神宮参拝・初詣。その後、娘夫婦がやってきて水入らず。ワインで一献して即爆睡。で、目覚めたら能登での地震速報。「大津波警報」で北海道西岸地区にも警報発令。
ことしは台湾総統選挙から始まって米国大統領選挙まで世界の趨勢にとってきわめて波乱含みの年と言われ続けてきていますが、のっけからの地震・津波のアラート。能登は数度訪れてその風土性に強く惹かれている。とくにこの地域の文化資産ともいえる「時国家住宅」には魅了され、このブログでも深掘り的に書いていた因縁もある。知人の方の現地在住のご家族とのやり取りの様子もSNSで知って、リアルタイムの危機進行ぶり。ご無事を祈念。

ということですが、ブログではふたたび住まいと人間の文化史に復帰します。
今回からは「熊野御幸」に特徴的に見られた日本の皇統史の特異地域、熊野探訪であります。とは言ってもいきなり全部をワンテーマとして取り組むのは無理筋なので、息長く、ときどき現地探訪しながら、継続していきたいと考えております。
わたしは京都とか奈良とかの「みやこ造営」以降の日本史にながくとらわれ続け、それはそれで素晴らしい文化史だといまでも思っています。が、奈良県南西部・飛鳥(明日香村を中心とした)の皇統最初期痕跡と接し始めてからは、そのそもそもの「言語感覚」でのその大きな違いに驚かされ、さらに京都移転後の皇統、天皇退位後の上皇たちが繰り返し「熊野御幸」を繰り返し、それを民人も圧倒的に支持していたことに驚かされています。
この飛鳥・大和地域と、さらにその背景を為す熊野について強く興味を持っていたのですが、北海道人としてはその交通の困難もあって、なかなか機会を持てなかった。関西で定宿地点と考える堺からでもクルマで3時間程度は行くだけでもかかる遠隔地。千歳から関空までのフライト2.5時間も考えれば、二の足を踏み続けていました。昔の上皇たちも熊野詣には往復1ヶ月以上掛かっていたという。
昔の皇統の人びとも、天皇在位中には熊野詣はむずかしく、みな退位後、自由な環境になってから、いわゆる「行幸」ではなく「御幸」として詣っている。
世界でも最古の歴史を持つ皇統である日本皇室の最大の存続根拠は「祈る」存在であることが中核なのではないかと思っていますが、そういった点に於いても、この熊野御幸が果たした神威は計り知れない。
写真は「阿古師神社」とその船着き場とおぼしき空間。神武天皇が難波から大和地方を攻略しようとして地元豪族の長髄彦の軍勢によって敗走させられ長躯、熊野にまで迂回して上陸したとされる二木島・楯ヶ崎にある社。
神武天皇は同道した兄たち3人をこの東征で失ったと古事記に記されているけれど、この阿古師神社は楯ヶ崎への山道の途中にあって、兄・三毛入野命(みけいりのみこと)を祀ったとされている。<この稿、明日へ>

English version⬇

Akoji Shrine, which enshrines the elder brother of the Emperor Jinmu.
Kumano is a place of repeated pilgrimages to Kumano by the Japanese imperial lineage, who “prayed” for their people. Even today, it takes about half a day one-way for a person from Hokkaido. We respectfully invite you to visit this historical site. The history of Kumano

On New Year’s Day yesterday, I woke up early and paid a visit to the Hokkaido Shrine. After that, my daughter and her husband came over to spend the day with us. After a glass of wine, I fell asleep immediately. When I woke up, I heard the earthquake warning for Noto. A tsunami warning was also issued for the western coast of Hokkaido.
This year has been said to be an extremely tumultuous year for world trends, starting with the Taiwan presidential election and continuing with the U.S. presidential election, but the earthquake and tsunami alert came right from the start. I have visited Noto several times and have been strongly attracted by its natural beauty. In particular, I have been fascinated by the “Toki-no-Kokoku Jutaku,” which can be said to be a cultural asset of the area, and have written about it in depth in this blog. I also learned through social networking services of an acquaintance’s communication with a family living in the area, and was impressed by the real-time progress of the crisis. I pray for your safety.

But I will return to the cultural history of housing and human beings in my blog again.
Starting this time, we will explore Kumano, a unique region in the history of the Japanese imperial lineage, as characteristically seen in the “Kumano Gokou”. However, it would be impossible to tackle all of them as one theme at once, so I would like to continue this project over a long period of time, visiting the area from time to time.
I have been obsessed with Japanese history since the “Miyako Zokei” of Kyoto and Nara, and I still think it is a wonderful cultural history in its own right. However, after coming into contact with the traces of the first period of the imperial lineage in Asuka (centering on Asuka Village) in the southwestern part of Nara Prefecture, I was surprised at the great difference in the “sense of language” and was further surprised at the repeated “Kumano Gokou” by the imperial lineage after the relocation to Kyoto and by the emperors after their abdication, and the overwhelming support for it among the people. The people overwhelmingly supported it.
I had a strong interest in the Asuka-Yamato region and its background, Kumano, but as a Hokkaido-native, I had not had the opportunity to visit the area due to the difficulty of transportation. Even from Sakai, which is considered a regular lodging point in the Kansai region, it takes about three hours by car to get there. Considering the 2.5-hour flight from Chitose to Kansai International Airport, I had been hesitant to visit Kumano. Even the emperors of the olden days used to take more than a month round trip to Kumano for a pilgrimage.
People of the old imperial lineage also found it difficult to make a Kumano pilgrimage while they were in the emperor’s reign, so after they retired from the throne and became free to do so, they all made the pilgrimage not as a so-called “gyoko” but as a “go-ko” (a visit to the Kumano Shrine).
I believe that the greatest reason for the survival of the Japanese Imperial Family, the oldest historical imperial lineage in the world, is that at its core it is a “praying” entity, and in this respect, the divine authority that this Kumano Gokou has played is immeasurable.
The photo shows the “Akoshi Shrine” and the space that appears to be its landing place. The shrine is located at Tategasaki, Futakishima Island, where Emperor Jinmu is said to have made a detour to Kumano after being defeated by the forces of the local Nagasaruhiko tribe in his attempt to invade the Yamato region from Namba.
It is written in the Kojiki that Emperor Jinmu lost three of his brothers who accompanied him on this expedition, but this Akoshi Shrine was located on the mountain road to Tategasaki and is said to have been dedicated to his elder brother Mikeri no Mikoto. <This article will be written tomorrow.

【2024年 あけましておめでとうございます】


ことしわたしは「年男」なのですが、還暦を過ぎてなのであんまりお呼びでない(笑)。しかし自分的には「第2のスタート」気分も大きくなって来ています。ちょうど仕事人生の結節点も超えたので、ようやく昔人の「還暦」が自分にもやってきたという感覚。
上の画像、新年の冬場の写真ではなく夏まっ盛りのような房総の「入道雲」。昨年訪れた千葉県一宮の芥川龍之介に所縁の「芥川荘」旅宿建築の探訪時のものです。
住宅雑誌の主幹として永年生きてきたのですが、その環境からスピンアウト。けれど個人的にはやはり「建築・住宅」には強くこだわりを持っている。そういうタイプだけれど加齢が進んできてその住空間での人間の生き様みたいなこととの「合間」のようなことに心が向かっていく。
そんな心境にピッタリだったのが、この芥川荘探訪でした。このブログでも何回か書きましたが、この房総・九十九里の海浜の宿で夏目漱石が期待した文学青年・芥川が東大を卒業したばかりの時期に、のちに結婚した女性に求婚のラブレターを書いていた青春まっ盛りの場所。
その文章の碑には青春期の男の心情がそのままストレートに記され、なんとも微笑ましかった。
そういう心情の背景装置として九十九里の浜辺があり、防砂林のなかに茅葺きの平屋建物があった。北海道人としてはこういう房総のまぶしい真夏という体感は羨望のさらに先にある。
たまたま現地をふらりと訪れる機会を得て、一種、官能的に受容したのですね。
やはり芥川龍之介という人物、その書いた世界観という読書体験があって、なお、かれも感受した住空間の体感を共有できるということがひどく新鮮で、再生感が強くわき上がっていた。
そんな心理に房総のこの「入道雲」がエールを送ってきてくれたように感じられたのです。


翻って年末、友人を訪ねたらかれのふるさとのオホーツクの海辺の町の漁船の羅針盤をみた。満艦飾に飾り立てられたその町の最盛期を象徴するような船の写真も添えられていた。人口減少していく北海道内の地方・地域の先を見据えながら、われわれ世代はその「羅針盤」を預かっている立場であることが、しのばれた。
わたし自身はひとつの整理は付けられたけれど、これからも人間としての生き様は続いていくし、なにより未来の人たちへのバトンタッチの責任はまだまだある。
日々、時々刻々と身の回りの状況は生々流転、いっときも留まることはない。つねに自分の位置を冷静に確認してどのように真摯に生きていくか、試され続けていくのでしょう。

English version⬇

Happy New Year 2024!
The energetic iridescent clouds of summer in Boso gave me the energy for a second start. I would like to continue to live my life with a firm sense of direction. ・・・・.

This year I am the “New Year’s Man,” but since I am over 60 years of age, I am not really called upon to do so (laugh). However, I am beginning to feel like I am starting a second life. Since I have just passed the nodal point in my professional life, I feel that the “60th birthday” of the old-timers has finally arrived for me as well.
The image above is not a photo taken in winter at the beginning of the New Year, but rather, the “iridocumulus” in Boso that looks like it is in the height of summer. It was taken during my visit last year to Ichinomiya, Chiba Prefecture, to explore the architecture of “Akutagawa-so,” an inn associated with Ryunosuke Akutagawa.
I have spent many years as the lead editor of a housing magazine, and this is a spin-out from that environment. However, personally, I still have a strong interest in “architecture and housing. I am the type of person who is interested in architecture and housing, but as I get older, I find myself more and more interested in the “in-between” of the human life in the living space and the architecture of the house.
This visit to Akutagawa-so was a perfect fit for such a state of mind. As I have written several times in this blog, Akutagawa, a literary young man whom Soseki Natsume had hoped to meet at this seaside inn in Kujukuri, Boso, was in the prime of his youth when he wrote a love letter of courtship to the woman he later married when he had just graduated from the University of Tokyo.
The monument to his writings was a straight description of the sentiments of a man in his youth, and it was quite amusing to see.
The Kujukuri beach served as a backdrop for these sentiments, and the one-story thatched building stood in the midst of a sand forest. As a Hokkaido native, the experience of the dazzling midsummer in Boso is beyond envy.
I happened to have the opportunity to visit the area on a whim, and I was receptive to it in a kind of sensual way.
I had the experience of reading about Ryunosuke Akutagawa and his worldview, and the fact that I could share the experience of a living space that he had also experienced was extremely fresh, and a sense of rebirth was strongly stirred up in me.
It was as if this “Irido-no-Un” in Boso was sending me a cheer.

When I visited a friend at the end of the year, I saw a compass of a fishing boat in a seaside town in his hometown in Okhotsk. It was decorated in full sail and had a picture of a boat that symbolized the town’s heyday. It was a reminder that our generation is in a position to keep a “compass” as we look ahead to the declining population of Hokkaido’s rural and regional areas.
Although I myself have been able to put things in order, I will continue to live my life as a human being, and above all, I still have the responsibility of passing on the baton to future generations.
Day by day, moment by moment, the circumstances around me are constantly evolving and changing, and I never stop for a moment. We will continue to be tested to see how we can live our lives with sincerity, always calmly checking our position.

【年の瀬のさっぽろ中央市場でお買い物 🎵】




きょうはことしの最終日、大みそか。知人への手土産やわが家の生鮮品など買い物にお出かけであります。例年だともうちょっと早めに来られるのですが、30日までズレ込んでしまった。
だいたいこういう暮れの買い物については、札幌市民の台所と言われる札幌市中央区の北西のはずれに立地する中央卸売市場に行くようにしています。札幌中央卸売市場とは全道、全国各地から生鮮品が集合してセリにかけられて業者向けに流通する「場内」と呼ばれる市場であって、その活気ある空気が大好きなのです。
わたしは小さいときから「食品製造業」を営んでいた実家で毎朝登校前、その仕事を手伝うのがふつうの暮らしでした。そしてこの中央卸売市場にも納品の手伝いとしてトラックに同乗して通ったりしていた。そこで触れる市場の雰囲気がカラダに染み込んでいる部分があるのでしょうね。
ことしはカレンダーの関係でそういう「場内市場」は29日で閉場してしまっていた。やむなくその場内市場に一番近くてほぼ隣接している「場外市場」に出掛けた次第。っていうか、わたしは社員スタッフににぎり寿司を握ってふるまったりするのが好きなので、いつも食材仕入ではここに来ています。たまには場内にも入って、旬の食材を確認したりする。なかなか見られない珍しいものが発見できたりする。
だいたい朝5時くらいには開場するのでちょっと30分ほど遅らせて行ってみたのですが、さすがにことしの開場最終日ということでたくさんの買い物客の駐車ぶり。「これはこれは」と思っていたら場内はちょっと満員御礼ムードでありました。先日まで草戸千軒の市の様子を書いていましたが、こういう無言の民の集合ぶりはどんなに時間が経過しても、変わらないニッポンの光景なのでしょう。
目利きに優れた店舗はおのずと混雑を極め、やや殺気立つような雰囲気も出てくる。とくにお正月の刺身ネタとして大人気のマグロ専門の店舗はすごい人気ぶり。以前、マグロ丼をスタッフに作ったときに数キロ分のマグロを仕込んだこともあったのですが、最近カミさんの知人女性の娘さんがこちらの店主に嫁がれたという新鮮情報も同行のカミさんからもたらされた(笑)。ご同慶の至り。
そういえば、市場の店舗の各所でかわいい小学生くらいとおぼしき子どもたちがお店の手伝いに駆り出されていて、かわいい掛け声で場を盛り上げていた(笑)。まるでタイムスリップして自分の小さいときと再会しているような楽しい光景。大して必要とも思えなかったけれど、ついつい買ってしまった(笑)。
こういう庶民の感覚、商売とコミュニケーションの両方が、愛すべき雰囲気として子どもたちに伝わっていって欲しい、そんな年の瀬のワンシーンでした。

English version⬇

[Shopping at Sapporo Central Market at the end of the year 🎵].
The atmosphere of Kusado-Senken is still the same today. The vitality of the central market that fills the stomachs of the citizens of Sapporo, Hokkaido. The vitality of Nippon, created by the gems of the south and the delicacies of the north. ・・・・.

Today is the last day of the year, the big New Year’s Eve. We are going shopping for souvenirs for our friends and perishables for our house. Usually, I can come a little earlier, but it has been postponed until the 30th.
I usually go to the Sapporo Central Wholesale Market, which is located in the northwest corner of Chuo-ku, Sapporo, and is said to be the kitchen of the citizens of Sapporo. The Sapporo Central Wholesale Market is a market where fresh produce from all over Hokkaido and the country is gathered and auctioned for distribution to traders, and I love its lively atmosphere.
Since I was a small child, I usually helped my parents, who were in the “food manufacturing” business, every morning before going to school. I also rode in the truck to the central wholesale market to help with deliveries. The atmosphere of the market that I was exposed to there must have been ingrained in my body.
This year, due to the calendar, the “on-site market” was closed on the 29th. I had no choice but to go to the “Outer Market,” which is the closest and almost adjacent to the Inner Market. I like to make nigiri-zushi for my staff, so I always come here to purchase ingredients. Sometimes I also go into the market to check on seasonal ingredients. Sometimes I discover rare and unusual items that are not easily seen.
The doors usually open around 5:00 a.m., so I delayed my visit by about 30 minutes, but as expected on the last day of the opening this year, there were many shoppers parked in the lot. I was surprised to see so many shoppers parked in the lot, and I thought to myself, “Well, well, well. I had written about the Kusado-Senken market the other day, and this kind of gathering of silent people is a Japanese scene that will never change, no matter how much time passes.
Stores with excellent taste naturally become crowded, and the atmosphere can be somewhat deadly. In particular, stores specializing in tuna, which is very popular as sashimi material for New Year’s, are incredibly popular. I once stocked up on several kilos of tuna when I made tuna donburi for my staff, and my wife, who was accompanying me, brought me fresh information that the daughter of a female acquaintance of hers had recently married the owner of this restaurant (laugh). We are very happy to hear that.
Speaking of which, there were cute children of elementary school age helping out at the stores in the market, and their cute shouts were enlivening the place (laugh). It was like going back in time and being reunited with my own childhood. I didn’t think I needed it much, but I ended up buying it (laugh).
It was one of those scenes at the end of the year that I hope will be passed on to children as a lovable atmosphere of common people’s sensibilities, both business and communication.

【いのちをつないでいくもの〜草戸千軒2023再訪-16】



きのうはオフィス社屋を共同しているReplanメンバーの仕事打ち上げ日。
身分的には「代表者」から変化して、いまは一定期間「相談役」を拝受しておりますが、一応別会社。なんですがなんとなく出社していたメンバーから、帰り際にあいさつされておりました。大きな変動をいっしょに体験してきたので、みんなの表情にそのことが見えていたように感じました。なによりもみんな前向きに、全力を挙げて未来に向かっていることが喜ばしい。深い感慨。
そんなメンバーの中に出産・育児からようやく復帰したメンバーもいて、朝会の時にはリモートだったので画面越しにカワイイ子どもさんの顔も見ることができた。少子化が進行している日本社会ですが、制度的には女性の働き手が社会参加しやすいようにという方向は進化してきている。企業も、そういった社会的責任感の一端を担うように要請されているということなのでしょう。
これまでの社会では子育て・出産の負担は基本的に「家庭」がそれを担い、2世代3世代が協力し合って未来へといのちをつないできた。しかし基本的には核家族化が究極まで進んで、さらに「個人単位」化にまで社会は変容してきている。
そういう趨勢の中でしかし、未来を担う子どもたちのことは社会全体として護っていかなければならない。女性スタッフの子育てのほんのわずかな部分でも、企業もまた一端を支えられるということなのでしょう。屈託のない「ボーッ」とした子どもたちの表情に無限に癒される気持ちでした。


草戸千軒シリーズ最終回ですが時空間を超えて迫ってくるのは人間らしい、いとなみ感。
市では毎日の食生活を支える新鮮野菜が周辺の郷村から寄せられ、この中世都市が成立した寺院門前町の主役のお坊さんたちも、そのおかげでいのちをつないでこられた。しかし最新研究では草戸千軒では「イヌ」食の痕跡も発見されているとされていた。日本的な「ホンネと建前」ということなのか、真相追究へ、中世の人びとの食文化の不明部分は深まってもいる・・・。
しかしまちと住まいはこうしたくらしの営為をしっかりと支えてきた。交易拠点としては草戸千軒・尾道・鞆の浦などは深い相互ネットワークで結ばれていただろう。わたしの直接のご先祖さまは、瀬戸内海交易圏としてはこの草戸千軒のとなり港・尾道にほど近い地で家系のバトンを渡し続けてきていた。商家としてさまざまな交流が容易に想像でき、この草戸千軒、その後継交易拠点などに関係があったことだろう。
そう想像するとちょっと時間と運命ボタンが違っていればと妄想が膨らみ続けてしまった(笑)。いろいろな気付きを与えていただいた次第です。

English version⬇

The One That Connects Lives – Kusado Senken 2023 Revisited – 16
It is the last day of work for the year. I am very much thankful for your hard work. Even in such a situation, childbirth, childcare, and life continue. From Senken Kusado to today and tomorrow. The last day of work for the year.

Yesterday was the work launch day for Replan members who share an office building.
Although I have changed my status from “representative” to “advisor” for a certain period of time, it is a different company. I was greeted on my way home by a member who had somehow come to the office. I felt that everyone’s expressions showed that they had experienced the big change together with me. Above all, I was pleased to see that everyone was looking forward to the future with all their might. Deep emotion.
One of these members had finally returned to work after childbirth and childcare, and since I was remote during the morning meeting, I was able to see her cute child’s face through the screen. Japanese society is experiencing a declining birthrate, but systematically, there has been an evolution in the direction of making it easier for female workers to participate in society. It may mean that companies are also being requested to take part in such a sense of social responsibility.
In the past, the burden of child rearing and childbirth was basically borne by the “family,” and two or three generations worked together to pass life into the future. However, the nuclear family has reached its ultimate stage, and society has been further transformed into an “individual unit.
Despite these trends, however, society as a whole must protect the children who bear the future. Even a small part of the female staff’s efforts to raise their children may mean that the company can also play a part in supporting them. I felt infinitely healed by the carefree, “spaced-out” expressions on the children’s faces.

This is the final installment of the Kusado-Senken series, but what comes to us across time and space is a sense of humanity and cousinliness.
The city received fresh vegetables from the surrounding villages, and the monks who played a leading role in the temple town where this medieval city was established were also able to sustain their lives thanks to the fresh vegetables. The latest research, however, indicated that traces of “inu” eating had also been discovered in Kusado-Senken. In the search for the truth, we are still trying to understand the Japanese “Honne to Tatemae” (honesty and tactfulness), and the unknown aspects of the medieval people’s food culture are deepening….
However, the town and its houses have firmly supported this way of life. As trading centers, Kusado-Senken, Onomichi, and Tomonoura were probably connected by a deep mutual network. My direct ancestors continued to pass the family baton in the Seto Inland Sea trading area, which is located near Onomichi, a port next to Kusado-Senken. As a merchant family, it is easy to imagine the various interactions that must have taken place between the Kusado-Senken and its successor trading post.
Imagining this, I kept imagining that if only time and the fate button had been a little different (laughs). I am grateful for the many insights I have been given.

【愛しい瀬戸内海世界〜草戸千軒2023再訪-15】




さていよいよ今年もあと3日。このブログはことしのわたしの立場の変化にかかわらず、おかげさまでずっと継続することができました。しかし徐々に「深堀り型」で実際の取材での体験と、それプラス周辺的な地固めみたいな情報を心がけて変化して来ています。
ことし最後に深掘りしたのがこの草戸千軒シリーズ。流民としての北海道人であるわたしの身近な関係性、ご先祖さまとの邂逅というのがベースにあります。瀬戸内海世界に非常に近しい空気感を感じていることがあり、掘り起こし方に現実感が膨らんでいくのですね。
古代から中世、近世江戸くらいまでの人々は移動の自由には大きな制限があったでしょうが、現代人はクルマというすばらしい利器がある。加齢にも関わらず、おかげさまでわたしはクルマの運転にはそれほどの疲労蓄積感を感じないタイプ。神戸から広島県東部くらいの213km高速道路移動などはなんとも感じない。
北海道で言えば札幌ー帯広206kmとほぼ同距離。この程度の「日帰り」ですらごく普通。その上,若干のトラベラーズハイが加われば「見るモノ聞くモノ」の新鮮さもあってあっという間。この草戸千軒ミュージアムでの追体験時間は、たしか1.5時間もなかったのですが、そこから実にいろいろな見方、受け取り方が可能で、半月以上もの記事連載に至っているのですね。
こういった取材体験は数十箇所で持っているので、表現していく時間が全然足りない。
上の図は瀬戸内海世界の地質的変化を可視化したもの。近年、こうした時代相の発掘解明努力が集中してきて古代の状況もすっかり想像力が及ぶようになって来た。
一方で生物としての人間はこの1〜2万年程度ではたかだか知れた程度しか「進化」はしていない。おおむね「感じ方・とらえ方」はわたしたちと変わらない。
自分自身という感受性のモノサシで過去の世界を想像していくのにかなりリアル世界化できる。
いわんや、家系的に5-6〜10数代程度であれば、たぶん自分と同じような生き方、感じ方を選択した可能性が高いとも思えるようになる。ひょっとして草戸千軒の街角で出会った人たちと、世代を超えて現代でも遭遇することができているのかも知れません。
こういった積層感が生成してくれる取材対象領域の自由さに新鮮な驚きを感じ続けています。翻ってこれからの時間を担っていく、これからの人たちにとっても、こうした情報は有益だろうと信じます。
ことしの前半くらいまでは特定のメディアという立場だったわけですが、これからはより幅広く自由な立ち場から、住空間・街と人間のくらしというテーマ、深掘りしていきたいと思います。

English version⬇

The Beloved Seto Inland Sea World – Kusado Senken 2023 Revisited – 15
It seems possible to “dig deep and relive” enough about our predecessors in the 5-6 to 10s with the cognitive device called “self”. Virtual reality into the past. …

Finally, there are only three days left in this year. Thanks to your support, I have been able to continue this blog for a long time despite the changes in my position. However, I have been gradually changing to a “deep-dive” type blog, where I try to provide information about my actual experiences in the field, as well as information about the surrounding area.
The last series that I dug deep into this year was the Kusado-Senken series. It is based on my encounter with my ancestors, who are Hokkaido residents as exiles, and my close relationship with them. I sometimes feel a very close atmosphere to the Seto Inland Sea world, which expands my sense of reality in the way I dig up.
People from ancient times to the medieval and early modern Edo period would have had great restrictions on freedom of movement, but people today have the wonderful convenience of the car. Despite the aging of my body, I am the type of person who does not feel much fatigue when driving. A 213-km expressway trip from Kobe to the eastern part of Hiroshima Prefecture is nothing to worry about.
In Hokkaido, it is about the same distance as the 206 km trip from Sapporo to Obihiro. Even a “one-day trip” of this magnitude is quite normal. And if you add a little traveler’s high to the mix, the freshness of what you see and hear makes it all go by very quickly. I spent less than 1.5 hours at the Kusado-Senken Museum, but I was able to see and hear the museum in so many different ways that I have been able to write about it for more than half a month.
Since we have this kind of interview experience in dozens of places, there is not enough time to express it at all.
The figure above is a visualization of geological changes in the Seto Inland Sea world. In recent years, efforts to excavate and elucidate these historical phases have been concentrated, and the ancient situation has become completely imaginative.
On the other hand, human beings as living organisms have evolved only to a very limited extent in the past 10,000 to 20,000 years. The way we feel and perceive things is generally the same as ours.
We can imagine the world of the past using our own sensitivity as a guide, and we can make the world quite real.
If, after all, there are 5-6 to 10 generations in the family, it is highly likely that they have chosen to live and feel in the same way as we do. Perhaps we are still able to encounter the people we met on the streets of Kusado-Senken today, generation after generation.
I continue to be freshly surprised by the freedom of the coverage area generated by this kind of layered feeling. I believe that this kind of information will be beneficial to the people of the future, who will be responsible for the future of our time.
Until the first half of this year, I was in the position of a specific media outlet, but from now on, I would like to delve deeper into the theme of living spaces, towns, and human life from a broader and freer standpoint.

【メンドい除雪も、家への愛着のきっかけなのかも・・・】



さてきのうは久しぶりのちいさな「ドカ雪」体験。わが家周辺での積雪の深さは気象庁の発表する「札幌市の積雪深」では25cmという発表。体感的には通常の冬場の「そこそこの降雪感」で実質的にはこの冬はじめての本格的な「雪かき」だったわけです。
で、きのうはそういう雪かき作業で北国人はどういう心理でそれに対応して行くか、というポイントで報告した次第。わが家周辺ではみなさんそれぞれに除雪作業に取り組まれていた。知らず知らず、そういった光景を見ることで、いろいろな情報が交換されていることに気付きます。言うまでもなく、毎年冬場にはこういった光景が繰り返されてくるので、ご近所の様子が無言で伝わってくるものなのですね。
本当はわが家は32年前に新築したときにロードヒーティングを付設して,煉瓦敷きの路面下には温水循環パイピングがしてある。実際に1−2年の間は稼動させていたのですが、路面融雪させ続けるには「完璧に雪が融ける」状態を維持し続ける必要がある。その場合、降雪の時間を予測して準備運転し続ける必要がある。降雪センサーというものも設置したけれど、現実にはなかなか期待通りの運転状況にはならない。そういうことで「安全側」運転判断で動かすことになると、かかる灯油代金がコントロールしにくいということになってしまうのですね。
実際問題としては駐車場として使っているワケなので、駐車に支障がなければ多少の圧雪があってもまったく問題はない。さらにロードヒーティングで融雪しても、敷設していない公共道路との境界線がむしろ露出して、そこでは路面状況を平準化させるために除雪作業は入念に行っていく必要がある。
そういったことから、潔く当初判断を棄却して、人間の判断力センサーでの人力除雪の方が合理的となっていったのですね。隣家などでもみなさん似たような状況でした。
写真のようなわが家の外観光景ですが、床面の煉瓦敷き込みはこのように薄い圧雪で見えなくなりますが、それはそれで、ときどき融雪面がでてくるときにオモシロい美感が生まれる。「おお、元気だったか」みたいな邂逅感があったりするので悪くはない。外観的には、写真のような「うっすら雪化粧」という雰囲気が生成されてくる。なんか季節感と正直に調和しているように思える。
北海道、北国の住宅の隠れた愛着感のひとつを構成しているように感じさせられる。わが家の素材構成、カラーリングなどではやはり「雪との対話」みたいなことを意識した。毎年冬の雪化粧を確認することで、そういうこと自体が「愛着の契機」になる。
そこそこ32年ほどのすまい実感ですが、だんだん「数寄」になっている自分がいる。
そんなちょっとヘンな愛着感もあり得るのではないかと妄想しております(笑)。家はいろいろな楽しみを気付かせてくれるものではないでしょうか?

English version⬇

Snow removal may be a trigger for attachment to the house…
The “dialogue” between northern houses and snow is a fate that cannot be escaped. Is it a challenge to be overcome, or a flexible response? It is also a matter of attachment to the climate. …

Yesterday was the first time in a long time that we experienced a small “snow flurry. The depth of snow around our house was 25 cm according to the “depth of snowfall in Sapporo” announced by the Japan Meteorological Agency. In terms of physical sensation, it felt like a normal winter snowfall, but in reality, this was the first time I had to shovel snow this winter.
So, yesterday, I reported on the mentality of northern people in dealing with such snow shoveling work. Around my house, everyone was engaged in snow removal work in their own way. Unknowingly, we realize that a lot of information is exchanged through such scenes. Needless to say, this kind of scene is repeated every winter, so it is a silent reminder of what is going on in our neighborhood.
The truth is that when our house was newly built 32 years ago, road heating was attached and there is hot water circulation piping under the brick-paved road surface. We actually had it running for 1-2 years, but in order to keep the road surface melting snow, we need to keep the “perfect snow melt” conditions. In this case, it is necessary to predict the time of snowfall and keep running in preparation. We have installed snowfall sensors, but in reality, the operating conditions are not always as expected. So when we have to make “safe side” driving decisions, it is difficult to control the cost of the kerosene.
In reality, the parking lot is being used as a parking lot, so there is no problem if there is some compacted snow as long as it does not interfere with parking. Furthermore, even if the snow is melted by road heating, the boundary with the public road that has not been paved is rather exposed, and snow removal work must be carefully carried out there to level the road surface condition.
So, for these reasons, the initial decision was gracefully dismissed and human-powered snow removal using human judgment sensors became more reasonable. Everyone was in a similar situation at neighboring houses, etc.
The exterior of my house looks like the photo, but the brick flooring is obscured by the thin layer of compacted snow, which gives it an interesting beauty when the melted snow surface appears from time to time. This is not a bad thing, as there is a sense of encounter, as if to say, “Oh, how are you? In terms of appearance, the “lightly covered with snow” atmosphere is generated, as shown in the photo. It seems to be honestly in harmony with the sense of the season.
It makes me feel as if it constitutes one of the hidden attachment feelings of houses in Hokkaido and northern Japan. In the material composition and coloring of our house, we were conscious of a kind of “dialogue with the snow. By checking the snow cover every winter, it becomes an “opportunity for attachment” in itself.
I have been living in this house for about 32 years, and I find myself becoming more and more “sukiyori.
I fantasize that it is possible to have such a strange sense of attachment (laughs). Houses can make us realize various kinds of enjoyment, can’t they?

【年末最終週の札幌、雪かき本格化かなぁ 🎵】




本日早朝目覚めたら、ごらんのような景色がわが家前に出現。
ことしの冬は,夏が非常にながく暑かったのでさてどうなるか、と思っていましたが季節の進み方はそれなりに順調で、ようやくのまとまった降りようであります。12月に入ってからはそこそこに除雪はしていましたが、ついに本格的雪かき出動が必要といったところ。
写真は12/27 午前4時前に撮影したものですが、道路除雪の様子からは降雪はたぶん昨日の夜になってからのようで市の除雪車が入ってその後はあんまり降っていない様子であります。その下のように天気状況図を確認してみると、わが家周辺には昨晩20時以降、活発な雪雲が出張ってきていることが確認できた。
そこそこの半「ドカ雪」っていうところ。急に降ってきてダラダラしないで降り終わったみたいな降雪。予報でもきょう午前中まで降雪の可能性があり、その後は晴れマークが出ています。
まぁ冬将軍様、軽いごあいさつと言ったところでしょうか。
最近はすっかり温暖地・広島県福山市の草戸千軒遺跡の探訪シリーズに耽溺。あたらしく興味を持っていただいたみなさんも多いようで書き込みへの好意的な反応も見られましたが、ここはいったん休憩。
家系の縁の強い地域とは言え、わたし自身は生まれながらの生粋の北海道人。雪が降ってくれば、おのずと体内からスイッチが入る部分がある。戸建て住宅の住まい手として50年以上は暮らし続けてきているので、人によって違いはあるけれど、雪国人間としては除雪作業への「運命感」は共通していると思う。
ということで、たぶん1時間ほどは除雪作業に没頭すると思われるので、毎朝のブログ書き込み作業は、ちょっと時間的制約から本日は「軽め」とさせていただきます。さてやるか、であります、おーっ!


追伸:約1.5時間で3箇所(自宅・事務所前、駐車場2箇所)除雪を完了。ふ〜としていたら、読者の方からすばらしい「解説・説明」投稿。わかりやすく科学的なので、了解いただき加筆転載します。
〜札幌市の除雪は基本的に降り終わるのを見極めてから出動する。そのために小樽の毛無山にある気象レーダーが活躍する。北海道にはこのほか函館の横津岳と釧路町昆布森にも気象レーダーがあり、降水のリアルタイムの把握や数時間程度の将来推定を気象庁のHPからいつでも閲覧できる。
これらは15年くらい前にドップラーレーダーに換装され、雨雲の位置の他に移動速度もわかるようになった。このため、気象庁の降水予想は高精度となり、数kmのオーダーの分単位の細かい予想が可能になっている。リモートセンシング技術と解析技術は、10年単位で革新され、われわれは知らず知らずのうちにその恩恵にあずかっている。 by Shigeru Narabeさん。〜

English version⬇

Sapporo, the last week of the year, is the snow shoveling in full swing 🎵.
The winter general of semi-“Boomerang snow” has arrived. I have been living in a detached house in snow country for more than 50 years. When it snows, it turns on my DNA. The roar of the snow removal warriors! ・・・

When I woke up early this morning, the view in front of my house was as you can see.
I had been plowing since the beginning of December, but finally I had to start shoveling snow in earnest.
The photo was taken before 4:00 a.m. on 12/27, and from the look of the street plows, it seems that the snow probably started falling last night, and not much has fallen since the city’s snowplows arrived. Checking the weather map below, I could see that there was an active snow cloud around our house after 8 pm last night.
It was a semi “heavy” snowfall. It was the kind of snowfall that came suddenly and ended up falling without lingering. The forecast also shows a chance of snowfall until mid-morning today, followed by clear skies.
Well, General Winter, I guess you could say I have a light greeting for you.
Recently, I have been indulging in a series of visits to the Kusado-Senken site in Fukuyama City, Hiroshima Prefecture, a warm climate area. Many of you seem to have taken a new interest in the site and have responded favorably to my posts, but I am going to take a break for now.
Although I have strong family ties to this area, I myself am a native Hokkaidoan. When the snow falls, there is a part of me that naturally turns on inside of me. I have been living in a detached house for more than 50 years, and although there are differences among people, I think we all share the same sense of “destiny” for snow removal work as people from snow country.
So, since I will probably spend about an hour or so immersed in the snow removal work, I’m going to lighten up on my blog writing today due to time constraints. Let’s do it, shall we?

P.S.: I finished removing snow from 3 areas (in front of my house and office, and 2 parking lots) in about 1.5 hours. While I was relaxing, a reader posted a wonderful “explanation/explanation. It is easy to understand and scientific, so I am reprinting it here with your permission.
〜The city of Sapporo basically waits until the snowfall is over before going out to remove it. For this purpose, a weather radar located at Mt. In addition to these radars in Hokkaido, there are also weather radars at Yokotsudake in Hakodate and Kombumori in Kushiro Town, which allow real-time monitoring of precipitation and future estimates of a few hours to be viewed at any time from the JMA website.
These radars were converted to Doppler radar about 15 years ago, and now provide information on the location of rain clouds as well as their speed of movement. As a result, the JMA’s precipitation forecasts have become highly accurate, and minute-by-minute detailed forecasts on the order of several kilometers are now possible. Remote sensing and analysis technology has been revolutionized over the past decade, and we are unknowingly reaping the benefits of these innovations. by Shigeru Narabe. ~

【中世都市に集う異形の人びと〜草戸千軒2023再訪-14】



ことしはわたし自身にとって節目の年になったのですが、現代人はさまざまなステージでの生き方というのが必然的な「対応力」として求められていくことでしょう。そういうことを強く実感した。
一般的には「老後の人生」みたいなことですね。まだまだそういう着地点には到達できませんが、しかしこれまでを土台にして、現役の時には気付く余裕がなかった部分に思惟を巡らす、ということにだんだん、惹かれてきております。
必ずしも「やり残した」心理ではないのですが、そんな気分に導かれ自分なりの探索をしたい。
この草戸千軒の探訪みって、まだ自分自身でも整理がついていないことがら。どうして自分自身が強く惹かれるのか、その意味合いはよくわからない段階です。でも興味を強く持っている。
そんなことで少しマーケティング的に調査もしてみたのですが、読者のみなさんからも興味深い反応が得られてきております。たぶん先人の「生き様」みたいな部分で共有できるモノがあるのでは?
上の図版は草戸千軒の街並み復元模型と、同時代1417年に描かれた室町中期の「融通念仏縁起絵巻(東京国立博物館蔵)」の一部。中世都市というアジールには多様な人びと、世間的には「異形」と見なされる人びとの人間痕跡が描かれる。現代ニッポン人は非常に従順に企業・資本主義社会と関係しながら正しく生きているけれど、先人はもうちょっと多様だった。

こちらは右側画面の詳細拡図。画面右上には集団で狼藉を働いていると目される「悪党」の3人組。日本社会では最近「チンピラ」という存在は見かけなくない。未曾有の「人手不足」社会でこういった「はみ出し」的存在は淘汰されているのか。よく見ると結構な年齢のようで一種職業的でもある。今回シリーズでみた足駄屋さんに特注したような「高下駄」を履いての肩衣姿。右の人物は「みせ鞘」の腰刀をさしている、とされていた。
その画面下には、乞食が描かれている。体位の表情に必死さが表現される。その乞食の左側には「覆面」の人物も。歴史家の網野善彦氏によるとこういう覆面姿という装束をあやしげに着こなす生き様の人びとが中世社会には多数存在したとされていた。氏によると「非人」ではないかとのこと。

こちらは左側画面の拡大。やや上のふたりの男性は「鉦叩き・鉢叩き」とされていた。それって「チンドン屋」という宣伝マンということか。鳴り物入りというコトバがあるけれど、中世都市で参集する大衆に対して宣伝するのに、こういう手法が編み出されたのか。市女笠姿の杖を突いた女性や、子どもを背負った女性の姿も確認できる。右上のような悪党もいるけれど、中世都市では「他人の目」という治安効果も発生したモノだろうか。どうもわたし、こういう歴史的な多様性社会、人間存在のありようと住宅とか建築・都市の関係性にどんどん導かれていっているような気がしています(笑)。

English version⬇

The Different Kinds of People Gathering in a Medieval City – Kusado-Senken 2023 Revisited – 14
I am going to be drawn to the area of historical diversity society, the state of human existence and housing, architecture and cities. What shall I do (laugh) …

This year was a milestone year for me personally, and I believe that people today will inevitably be required to live in various stages of life as a way of “coping. I strongly felt that way.
Generally speaking, it is something like “life after old age. I have yet to reach such a landing point, but I am gradually becoming more and more attracted to the idea of building on what I have done so far and thinking about things that I did not have time to notice when I was in active service.
It is not necessarily something that I have “left undone,” but I would like to explore in my own way, guided by such a feeling.
Things like this exploration of Senken Kusado are things that I have yet to sort out for myself, and I am not sure why I am so strongly attracted to them or what their implications are. But I am strongly interested.
So I have done a little marketing research, and I am getting some interesting responses from readers. Perhaps there is something we can share in the “way of life” of our predecessors?
The illustration above is a part of the “Yutsu Nenbutsu Emaki” (scroll depicting the Buddha) from the middle Muromachi period (mid-Muromachi period), which was probably drawn in 1417, the same year as the reconstruction of the streetscape of Kusado-Senken. In the asylum of the medieval city, human traces of diverse people, people who are considered “deformed” by the world, are sometimes depicted. Although modern Japanese people are living a proper life in relation to the corporate and capitalist society in a very docile manner, their predecessors were a bit more diverse.

This is a detailed zoomed-in view of the right side of the screen. In the upper right corner are three “thugs” who are believed to be committing gang violence. In Japanese society, “hoodlums” are not so common these days. In a society of unprecedented “labor shortage,” are such “outcasts” being weeded out? The figure on the right is wearing “mise-saya,” a type of geta custom-made by a geta shop, and is dressed in a shoulder-length robe. The figure on the right is said to be holding a “mise-saya” (waist sword).
Below this screen, a beggar is depicted. The expression on his body expresses his desperation. To the left of the beggar is also a “masked” figure. According to historian Yoshihiko Amino, there were many people in medieval society who wore such masked costumes in a dubious manner. According to Yoshihiko Amino, they may have been “non-humans.

This is an enlargement of the screen on the left. The two men slightly above were considered to be “gong-tappers and bowl-tappers”. Does that mean they were “chindon-ya,” or publicity men? The word “ringo” is used to describe this kind of publicity, and I wonder if this kind of technique was developed in medieval cities to advertise to the masses who gathered there. A woman with a walking stick in a straw hat and a woman carrying a child on her back can also be seen in the scene. There are also rogues like the one on the upper right, but I wonder if the “eyes of others” also had a security effect in medieval cities. I feel that I am being led more and more to this kind of historical diversity of society and the relationship between human existence and housing, architecture, and the city.