Isuzu River is the bounds (kekkai) between the sacred ground of Naigū of Ise Jingu and the outer world.
Isuzu (五十鈴) means fifty bells. I think it’s a very Shinto-ish name. Bells signifies the harai, purification. The Shinto maiden dances with bells in her hands. The metallic sound of the bells clears off the evil spirits or negative energies. Not just one bell, but to have many bells to create multiple sounds is the key to harai.
In ancient Shinto, the kazutama(the spirit of numbers) of 3 and 5 is called “annanai”. Annanai means “to help one another”.
The number 50 is bigger than 35 and I sense that it means “perfection.” The Isuzu River is a river that purifies perfectly.
On November 3rd, a ceremony was held for the newly built Uji Bridge that runs on top of Isuzu River. The day before the ceremony, one of our reader took a photo of the new Uji Bridge (shown ). On this photo, you can see a Divine Pillar descending from the heavens. The love from the nation and the efforts of the priests of Ise Jingu are felt by the gods. The gods are making a move.
This photo shows that the divine energy is filling this bridge.
The next kekkai after the Isuzu River is the Miya River. Around a thousand years ago, the priests were strictly told not to pass this river. A visit to the outer world passing Miya River was considered unnecessary for the priests of Ise Jingu. As long as they serve the god of Ise, they were to dedicate their lives to stay inside the sacred ground of Ise Jingu all year around.
I certainly hope the priests of today remain in the same spirit.
The God of Ise is roaring like a thunder. It is time for the priests of Ise to brace oneself so he doesn’t get blown away.
The line between Ise and Hakusan, the center of Japan, is starting to glow.
Ikashite-itadaite arigato-gozaimasu
Thank you for letting us live
No comments:
Post a Comment