low hills, shall carry
out to the great sea plain the offences which are cleared away
and purified, so that there be no remaining offence; like as
Shinato's wind blows apart the manifold clouds of heaven, as the
morning wind and the evening wind blow away the morning mist and
the evening mist, as the great ships which lie on the shore of a
great port loosen their prows, and loosen their sterns to push
out into the great sea-plain; as the trunks of the forest trees,
far and near, are cleared away by the sharp sickle, the sickle
forged with fire: so that there ceased to be any offence called
an offence in the court of the Sovran GRANDCHILD'S augustness to
begin with, and in the countries of the four quarters of the
region under heaven.

And when she thus carries them out and away, the deity called
the Maiden-of-the-Swift-cleansing, who dwells in the
multitudinous meetings of the sea waters, the multitudinous
currents of rough sea-waters shall gulp them down.

And when she has thus gulped them down, the lord of the
Breath-blowing-place, who dwells in the Breath-blowing-place,
shall utterly blow them away with his breath to the
Root-country, the Bottom-country.

And when he has thus blown them away, the deity called the
Maiden-of-Swift-Banishment, who dwells in the Root-country, the
Bottom-country, shall completely banish them, and get rid of
them.

And when they have thus been got rid of, there shall from this
day onwards be no offence which is called offence, with regard
to the men of the offices who serve in the court of the Sovran,
nor in the four quarters of the region under heaven.

Then the high priest says:

Hear all of you how he leads forth the horse, as a thing that
erects its ears towards the plain of high heaven, and deigns to
sweep away and purify with the general purification, as the
evening sun goes down on the last day of the watery moon of this
year.

O diviners of the four countries, take (the sacrifices) away out
to the river highway, and sweep them away.

Mikadoism Usurps the Primitive God-way.

A further proof of the transformation of the primitive god-way in the
interest of practical politics, is shown by Professor Kumi in the fact
that some of the festivals now directly connected with the Mikado's
house, and even in his honor, were originally fes