Ritual Poetry and the Politics of Death in Early Japan

This examination of death rituals in early Japan finds in the practice of double burial a key to understanding the Taika Era (645-710 A.D.). Drawing on narratives and poems from the earliest Japanese texts--the Kojiki, the Nihonshoki, and the Man'yoshu, an anthology of poetry--it argues that double burial was the center of a manipulation of myth and ritual for specific ideological and factional purposes. "This volume has significantly raised the standard of scholarship on early Japanese and Man'yoshu studies."--Joseph Kitagawa "So convincing is the historical and religious thought displayed here, it is impossible to imagine how anyone can ever again read these documents in the old way."--Alan L. Miller, The Journal of Religion "A central resource for historians of early Japan."--David L. Barnhill, History of Religions Contents Notes on Transliteration and Abbreviations Mythistory, Ritual, and Poetry in Early Japan 1 Ritual Poetry in the Court 2 The Mythology of Death and the Niiname-sai 3 The Liminal Period of Temporary Enshrinement 4 The Poetry of the Mogari no Miya 5 Mythistory, Rhetoric, and the Politics of Marriage Glossary of Japanese Terms CONCLUSION Imagining History Notes Bibliography Index of Man'ydshu Poems Cited Index An examination of death rituals in early Japan that finds in the practice of double burial a key to understanding the Taika Era (645-710 AD). Drawing on narratives and poems from the earliest Japanese texts, it argues that double burial was the center of a manipulation of myth and ritual for specific ideological and factional purposes.