Type of Research Principal Research [Branch B]
Project Title The History of Japanese Archipelago focusing on Water and Human Life
Research Title Water in Our Lives: From the Perspectives of Practice and Belief
Head of the Research Team Prof. SEKIZAWA Mayumi
Research Period FY2020 -2022
Purpose This research uses the perspective of the historical relationship between water and human beings to examine the reality of the history and folklore behind this relationship, including specific and practical aspects as well as symbolic and religious (spiritual) aspects. The research analyzes: (1) the use of and belief in water sources such as wells with a primary focus on islands, where there was a delay in the spread of water supply systems; (2) religious rituals surrounding water sources; and (3) historical memories of large-scale civil engineering works to secure water resources. This research also examines how new generations inherited the above concepts and memories.
Result

As branch B of the core research project "History of Water and People in the Japanese Islands," the main results of this joint research are as follows: 1) First are observations regarding the securing and ritualistic use of water in Okinawa. Prior to the spread of waterworks, people in the southwestern part of the main island of Okinawa relied on wells and rivers for their water supply. The wells, which fell into disuse following the spread of waterworks after World War II, are still carefully preserved and thus maintain their strong transmissive power as spiritual objects. Several specific case studies allow it to point out that wells that become the object of such spirituality must be ones that were used in a preceding settlement, for example before the relocation of a village, and thus must contain the suji or seji called water that one’s ancestors have passed on their life force with. 2) Joint sessions with Branch A (archaeology and ancient history) provided a perspective for interdisciplinary tracking of archaeology, history, and folklore on the changing forms (ways of being) of rituals concerning water, such as the relationship between kofun burial mounds, the sanctification of kings, the use of water alongside the transmission of rituals relating to the water’s source (spring), as well as rituals and the location and of shrines from a water perspective.