美々津：神武東征の出発地Mimitsu: Where the Eastward March Began

Today I continued further down the Kyushu coastline and arrived at Mimitsu, located on the coast of Miyazaki Prefecture. This is the historically significant place from which it is said that Kamu-Yamato-Iwarehiko and his brothers, upon hearing of a utopia to the east, resolved to march eastward and departed from this land once called Hyuga, heading toward Yamato.

However, what many people have misunderstood is that the name Kamu-Yamato-Iwarehiko was not originally the unique name of a single individual, but rather a designation for a tribe or a confederation of tribes. Thus, when interpreting the myth, it is important to recognize that it was not a single person named Kamu-Yamato-Iwarehiko who, in just one generation, departed from Hyuga, advanced to Yamato, conquered it, and became enthroned as the first emperor Jinmu, but rather that this great undertaking was achieved over dozens of generations. Although the traces of this have long since vanished, the harbor of Mimitsu, the place of origin, still carries a mysterious atmosphere.

Yet the decline of this region, stretching from Nobeoka in northern Miyazaki down through Hyuga City, including Mimitsu, is extremely severe, and walking through the town feels as if the town itself is holding its breath. What I strongly sense while traveling through different regions is that it matters whether the greatness of a place is being handed down in daily life, and yet here, despite the richness of myths, the chances to learn and retell them have thinned, and they are hardly touched in everyday life. This shows in the approach to town development, and the charm of Miyazaki is not being drawn out.

In fact, the beach of Mimitsu, said to be the departure point of Kamu-Yamato-Iwarehiko, is desolate, piled high with astonishing amounts of drifted debris, and devoid of people. This commemorative site is neither cleaned regularly nor maintained in appearance, and it is clear that the present came without a system to protect and pass on this historical and cultural capital, until aging and depopulation left it unsustainable. The coastline is so badly ruined that it is hard to believe it was once the stage of myth, and it stands as a stark symbol of the extreme decline of northern and central Miyazaki, filling me with sadness.

Looking out across the Hyuga Sea from Mimitsu Port, two rocky islets can be seen, but these sacred offshore islands, which would surely have been regarded with importance by ancient people, are now visually blocked by countless concrete structures built along the coast, and the waves are dammed and stagnant. The same impression came to me yesterday when looking at Nobeoka’s urban planning: that the system for handing down their splendid myths and history has grown thin, and that this is not drawn on in town building, which has had widespread consequences and left decline unchecked. With the “land of beginnings” in such a state, it is nearly impossible to convey mythology as lived experience, yet the situation is the same in Takachiho, said to be the dwelling place of the kami (神々). In a sense, this is a grave problem throughout Miyazaki as a whole.

The Hyuga Sea lies at the point where the Ishinami River and Mimi River merge and spread out, with two small islands offshore, and it is believed that from ancient times this route from the open sea into the rivers was part of an important maritime passage for early tribes. These two rivers served as major entryways for maritime clans to move inland, and it can be inferred that the reason Kamu-Yamato-Iwarehiko and his followers chose this place as their point of departure included environmental factors. Even now, though the sea is calm, the waves are strong, and this area has been known since antiquity as a difficult spot to navigate. Nevertheless, the eastern expedition of Emperor Jinmu began here, proceeded northward along the Kyushu coast, entered the Seto Inland Sea, and ultimately advanced into Yamato.

There are also interesting points regarding place names. On the Oita side there is the city of Beppu, known for its hot springs, but in this region the same characters are read as “Byu.” This suggests that a separate phonetic system existed here since ancient times, indicating that Oita and Miyazaki belonged to different cultural spheres.

Seven years ago, as I gazed at the beach from which Kamu-Yamato-Iwarehiko is said to have departed, I suddenly thought to trace the entire route of the eastern expedition, and I followed the main path of Jinmu’s journey eastward until I ultimately entered Yamato myself. Today the forecast was for heavy rain, and since last night thunder had been rumbling constantly, with torrential rain in the morning, but as if the kami were blessing my return, it did not rain while I was outside, and under a faint ray of sunlight I was able to visit at leisure.

At the grounds of Tateiwa Shrine (立磐神社), an old and venerable shrine built on the Mimitsu coast, various traditions of Kamu-Yamato-Iwarehiko are preserved, and unlike the declining settlement around it, the breeze blowing in from the Hyuga Sea feels pleasant, carrying with it an uncanny spiritual power.

The current state of Miyazaki Prefecture, where only tourism strategies have been pursued while ignoring the historical and cultural capital of the land, is dire. When tourism strategy is not tied to the land’s myths and ancient history, the chance to learn the stories handed down since time immemorial is lost, and without noticing its extraordinary local assets, the region moves down a path of decline. Afterward I moved on to Miyazaki City, but I felt strongly that the urban planning of Miyazaki as a whole is disjointed and plagued with a pervasive sense of disharmony.

Although in the ranking of potentially disappearing cities, Miyazaki is rated second only to Fukuoka in terms of sustainability within Kyushu, the reality is far from sustainable, with dysfunction visible throughout. Yet Miyazaki does have the excellent advantage of a mild climate, and it is especially popular among surfers, making the central and southern regions relatively more populated. Even today I spoke with several local people, and they were wonderful. That is precisely why I feel the great problem lies in the fact that its magnificent myths, history, and people are not being reflected in town planning, and that in the long run this will exert a profoundly negative influence.