brightness, so that its appearance was like that of lightning. In consequence of this all Naga-sune-hiko's soldiers were (III. 25.) dazzled and bewildered so that they could not fight stoutly.
Nagasune was the original name of the village, whence it became the name of a man. But in consequence of the Imperial army obtaining the favourable omen of the Kite, the men of that time called it Tobi no mura.[1] It is now called Tomi, which is a corruption of this.
Ever since Itsuse no Mikoto was hit by an arrow at the battle of Kusaka and died, the Emperor bore this in mind, and constantly cherished resentment for it. On this campaign it was his desire to put all to death, and therefore he composed these verses, saying:—
My mouth tingles
With the ginger planted
At the bottom of the hedge
By the glorious
Sons of warriors—
I cannot forget it;
Let us smite them utterly.[2]
Again he sang, saying:—
In the millet-field
Is one stem of odorous garlic:—
The glorious
Sons of warriors
Binding its stem
And binding its shoots
Will smite it utterly.
Then again letting loose his army, he suddenly attacked him. In general, all these songs composed by the Emperor are termed kume uta, in allusion to the persons who took and sang them.
Now Naga-sune-hiko sent a foot-messenger, who addressed the Emperor, saying:—"There was formerly a child of the
- ↑ Kite-village.
- ↑ "As the taste of ginger remains in the mouth for a long time after it is eaten, so do my feelings of resentment for my brother's death remain present to my mind. I cannot forget it, so let us revenge it by destroying the enemy utterly."
The word for shoots is me, which also means females. This is no doubt intentional. Naga-sune-hiko is to be destroyed with all his family.
