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Mikado replied to him, “First serve the gods, and afterwards deliberate on matters of Government.” But the successors of this Mikado neglected the worship of the gods for that of Buddha, and the consequence was the decline of their authority. An effort to reform, the practice of the Court was made by the emperor Juntoku (b. 1197, d. 1242), who in his Kimpi Mishô says, “The rule of the Fobidden Precinct is that the worship of the gods comes first, and other matters afterwards. At morning and evening the wise resolve to do honour to the gods is carried out with diligence. Even in the slightest matters the Jingû[1] (of isé) and the Naishi-dokoro are not to be placed after the emperor. According as all things arrive at maturity, they shall be offered up first (to the gods); but things presented by Buddhist monks and nuns, and from all persons who are under an interdict, these shall not be presented.” As it is the duty of subjects to imitate the practice of the incarnate god (arahito-gami) who is their sovereign, the necessity of worshipping his ancestors and the gods from whom they spring, is to be enjoined upon all every man.’
‘As the number of the gods who possess different functions is so great, it will be convenient to worship by name only the most important and to include the rest in a general petition. Those whose daily affairs are so multitudinous that they have not time to go through the whole of the following morning prayers, may content themselves with adoring the residence of the Emperor,[2] the domestic kami-dana, the spirits of their ancestors,
- ↑ The Jingû are the two temples where Amaterasu, the Mikado’s ancestress, and the goddess of food Ukemochi no kami are worshipped. In the Naishi-Dokoro, a building within the palace, were kept the copies of the sacred mirror of Isé and the sword of Atsuta, which have been already mentioned as being among the divine treasures received by Ninigi when he descended from heaven.
- ↑ Adoration of the Mikado’s residence is not mentioned in the Tamadasuki, but is enjoined by the last edition (published in 1873) of the Maichô Jimpei Shiki (form of morning prayer.) As no form of words is given, it is impossible to say what the character of this prayer should be. The same book contains three other prayers not given in the Tamadasuki, namely to the three primeval gods, to Ninigi no mikoto and to Jimmu Tennô, while it omits the prayer to Adzuma-terasu oho-kami (Tôshôgû, or Iyeyasu, commonly called Gongen Sama).
