Emperor, wondering at this, informed the mortar.[1] Therefore he gave these two Princes the names of Great Mortar (Oho-usu) and Little Mortar (Wo-usu). Now this Wo-usu no Mikoto was also called Yamato Woguna and again Yamato-dake no Mikoto.[2] Whilst a child he had a manly spirit; when he arrived at manhood his beauty was extraordinary. He was a rod in height, and his strength was such that he could lift a tripod.[3]
A.D. 73. 3rd year, Spring, 2nd month, 1st day. Divination was made as to whether the Emperor should make a progress to the Land of Kii to perform sacrifices to all the Gods of Heaven and Earth. It was found to be unlucky, and the Imperial car was accordingly countermanded. Ya-nushi-oshiho-dake-wo-goro
- ↑ The Chinese character used here is 碓, which properly means a pestle, and is more particularly applied to that arrangement of a mortar and pestle in which the latter is set on a pivot and worked by the foot.
Pestle and Mortar.This is called the Kara-usu in Japan. Here, however, is one of those cases where we must put aside the Chinese character and be guided by the Japanese word, which is unquestionably usu, a term applied to any arrangement for hulling or grinding grain. The usu is properly the mortar rather than the pestle (kine), but it is used for the combination of both, and for querns or hand-mills, which are also in use in Japan.The usu here referred to is probably of the kind shown in the annexed illustration. Stone pestles resembling in shape that in the right hand upper corner are among the stone implements figured in Kanda's work on this subject.
Hardy, in his "Manual of Buddhism," p. 158, says:—"The eastern pestle is found in every house, and is connected with as many superstitions and ceremonies as the besom among the old wives of Europe."
The "Shukai" editor suggests that by Great Mortar and Little Mortar the lower and upper stones of the hand-mill were meant. But there is no reason to doubt the statement below (A.D. 610) that hand-mills were first introduced in Suiko's reign.
- ↑ Woguna means boy, Yamato-dake means hero of Yamato. It is by the last of these names that he is best known to posterity.
- ↑ A Chinese phrase.
