158 



EngishiU \ on the contrary, states that in the Engi era (901 — 922) 

 a white horse was offered in the former case, a black one in 

 the latter. This may have varied at different times; red (or 

 blue, i. er dark coloured), black and white were at any rate the 

 colours, of which red was limited to cases in which the stopping 

 of rain was prayed for. 



§ .3 Buddhism wins field- 



Especially in the last of the six oldest Japanese Standard 

 Histories (the Rikkokushi, :^H^), i- e. the Sandai jitsuroku 

 (written in 910), we see the Buddhist priests, gradually prevailing 

 in their struggle against the Shintoists. Whereas formerly in times 

 of drought there was only one way of averting this evil, namely 

 praying and offering to the Shinto rain-gods, and among them 

 especially to the dragon-shaped river-gods, now the Emperors 

 began to employ Buddhistic assistance at the same time, or 

 sometimes even without addressing the Shinto deities. 



It is most characteristic ■ that in the, seventh month of 877, 

 when such a heavy drought prevailed that the Prime Minister, 

 Fujiwara no Mototsune, tendered his resignation because he con- 

 sidered it a sign of his bad government, nothing was said about 

 prayers or offerings to Shinto gods ^. The Emperor did not accept 

 Mototsune's resignation, and ascribed the drought to a curse of 

 the Empress Jingo's mausoleum at' Tatanami (;|§ ^|J) in Tamato, 

 whither he accordingly sent messengers to investigate the matter. 

 They reported that a stag had been cut to pieces and eaten, 

 and that peasants had cut down three hundred and thirty two 

 trees near the mausolea; the guilty oflBcials were punished,- but 

 the drought continued. Then one hundred Buddhist priests were 

 summoned' to the Shishinden (a building of the Palace) and there 

 read the Daihannya (Mahaprajnaparamita) sutra for three days; 

 this was the sutra to be read in autumn, but at the same time 

 used in causing rain. After two days a thunderstorm arose, and 

 clouds covered the sky. A slight rain fell, but this was not suffi- 

 cient, so that the sutra reading was prolonged for two days and^ 

 the Ni-o ("fl! ^) sutra was read. The next day even the water 

 of the pond in the Shinsenen, or Sacred Spring Park (see below, 

 § 4), was required to drain the rice-fields; in one day and one 

 night the pond was quite dry. Then the Emperor sent messengers 



1 Quoted ibidem. 



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