30. The Heavenly-Young-Prince

1Therefore the High-August-Producing-Wondrous-Deity and the Heaven-Shining-Great-August-Deity again asked all the Deities, saying, “The Deity Ame-no-ho-hi, whom we sent down to the Central Land of Reed-Plains, is long of bringing back a report. Which Deity were it best to send on a fresh mission?” Then the Deity Thought-Includer replied, saying: “The Heavenly-Young-Prince, son of the Deity Heaven’s-Earth-Spirit should be sent.” So they bestowed on the Heavenly-Young-Prince the heavenly true deer-bow and the heavenly feathered arrows, and sent him. Thereupon the Heavenly-Young-Prince, descending to that land, at once wedded Princess Under-Shining, daughter of the Deity Master-of-the-Great-Land, and moreover, planning how he might gain [possession of] the land, for eight years brought back no report. So then the Producing-Wondrous-Deity and the Heaven-Shining-Great-August-Deity again asked all the Deities, [saying]: “The Heavenly-Young-Prince is long of bringing back a report. Which Deity shall we send on a fresh mission to enquire the cause of the Heavenly-Young-Prince’s long tarrying?” Thereupon all the Deities and likewise the Deity Thought-Includer replied, saying: “The pheasant the Name-Crying-Female should be sent,” upon which [the High-August-Producing-Wondrous-Deity and the Heaven-Shining-Great-August-Deity] charged [the pheasant], saying: “What thou shalt go and ask the Heavenly-Young-Prince is this: ‘The reason for which thou wast sent to the Central Land of Reed-Plains was to subdue and pacify the savage Deities of that land. Why for eight years bringest thou back no report?’ ” So then the Crying-Female, descending from Heaven, and perching on the multitudinous [ly-branching] cassia-tree at the Heavenly-Young-Prince’s gate, told him everything according to the mandate of the Heavenly Deities. Then the Heavenly-Spying-Woman, having heard the bird’s words, spoke to the Heavenly-Young-Prince, saying: “The sound of this bird’s cry is very bad. So thou shouldest shoot it to death.” On her [thus] urging him, the Heavenly-Young-Prince at once took the heavenly vegetable wax-tree bow and the heavenly deer-arrows bestowed on him by the Heavenly Deities, and shot the pheasant to death. Then the arrow, being shot up upside down through the pheasant’s breast, reached the august place where the Heaven-Shining-Great-August-Deity and the High-Integrating-Deity were sitting in the bed of the Tranquil River of Heaven. This “High-Integrating-Deity” is another name for the High-August-Producing-Wondrous-Deity. So, on the High-Integrating-Deity taking up the arrow and looking at it [he saw that] there was blood adhering to the feathers of the arrow. Thereupon the High-Integrating-Deity, saying: “This arrow is the arrow that was bestowed on the Heavenly-Young-Prince,” showed it to all the Deities, and said: “If this be an arrow shot at the evil Deities by the Heavenly-Young-Prince in obedience to our command, let it not hit him. If he has a foul heart, let the Heavenly-Young-Prince perish by this arrow.” With these words, he took the arrow and thrust it back down through the arrow’s hole, so that it hit the Heavenly-Young-Prince on the top of his breast as he was sleeping on his couch, so that he died. (This is the origin of [the saying] ‘Beware of a returning arrow.’) Moreover the pheasant returned not. So this is the origin of the modern proverb which speaks of ‘the pheasant as sole messenger.’ So the sound of the wailings of the Heavenly-Young-Prince’s wife Princess Under-Shining, re-echoing in the wind, reached Heaven. So the Heavenly-Young-Prince’s father, the Deity Heaven’s-Earth-Spirit, and his wife and children who were in heaven, hearing it, came down with cries and lamentations, and at once built a mounring-house there, and made the wild goose of the river the head-hanging bearer, the heron the broom-bearer, the kingfisher the person of the august food, the sparrow the pounding-woman, the pheasant the weeping woman; and, having thus arranged matters, they disported themselves for eight days and eight nights, At this time the Deity Ajishiki-taka-hiko-ne came and condoled on the mourning for the Heavenly-Young-Prince, whereupon the Heavenly-Young-Prince’s father and wife who had come down from Heaven bewailed themselves, saying: “My child is not dead, no! My lord is not dead, no!” and with these words clung to his hands and feet, and bewailed themselves and lamented. The cause of their mistake was that the two Deities closely resembled each other in countenance: so therefore they made the mistake. Thereupon the Deity Ajishi-ki-taka-hiko-ne was very angry, and said: “It was only because he was my dear friend that I came to condole. Why should I be likened to an unclean dead person?”—and with these words he drew the ten-grasp sabre that was augustly girded on him, and cut down the mourning-house, and kicked away [the pieces] with his feet. This was on what is called Mount Mourning at the source of the River Awimi in the land of Minu. The great sword with which he cut [the mourning-house to pieces] was called by the name of Great-Blade-Mower, another name by which it was called being the Divine-Keen-Sabre. So when the Deity Aji-shiki-taka-hiko-ne flew away in his anger, his younger sister Her Augustness the High-Princess in order to reveal his august name, sang, saying:

2“Oh! ’tis the Deity Aji-shiki-Taka-Hiko-Ne traversing two august valleys with the refulgence of august assembled hole-jewels, of the august assembled jewels worn round her neck by the Weaving Maiden in Heaven!”