Soni-mura village: A place where you may be relieved from worries

 If you want to travel to a beautiful place where is hardly known to foreign travelers in Japan I recommend Soni-mura Village.

Soni-mura Village is in the center of Kii Peninsula, on the eastern rim of Nara prefecture and next to Mie Prefecture. In other words it lies in the pass between the ancient capital place in Osaka and Ise Shrine.The village has good views of nature and an ancient tragic love story. In the village you will be able to have a supreme experience with the kind humanity of the Japanese people.

An ancient Imperial tragic love story in about the fourth century


Japan has two ancient Emperor’s chronicles from the time of gods, which were edited in the 8th century. One is “Nihon-shoki” of Emperor’s command and the other is “Kojiki” of nearly Emperor’s command, which is more literal than Nihon-shoki. Both two chronicles show the tragic love story regarding The Emperor of Nintoku who is thought to have lived in approximately the fourth century.


Nintoku fell in love with a young lady whose name was Metori so that he requested his brother, Hayabusa-wake, to intermediate his love for her. However, Hayabusa-wake fell in love with her as well and he got engaged with her in violation of the request. The Emperor got angry on knowing it, but he abandoned his love in order to keep good connections with his brother. Nonetheless, Hayabusa-wake started to slander the Emperor behind closed doors. The behavior of Hayabusa-wake reached The Emperor, and it broke his brotherly love. The Emperor dispatched his army to kill Hayabusa-wake and Metori in no time. The two people escaped eastward to go to Ise Shrine, because it was believed that Ise Shrine was the best safety area. Sadly, they were surrounded by the army in Soni-mura Village and their lives ended achingly.


There is a small Hayabusa-wake Shrine at the place where it was thought that they were killed, which shrines Hayabusa-wake and Metori. And there are many stone monuments which depict the aspect of the close connections of the two people. These would probably hope for their relief in heaven.


In Japan there is the custom that people worship a noble leveled person who died unnaturally and unhappily. It may be the Japanese people’s deep tendency not to long for the bad influence of a suffering death for the sake of the release of his soul.


At the other place there is a little shrine and it has a back mountain. In ancient times all shrines were small, in more ancient times there wasn’t even small shrines. Because gods and deities live in mountains, ancient people worshipped mountains themselves. It shows that Sone-mura Village is very old, it is said that the village has a history of more than ten thousand years.







The folding screen rock-mountain


Soni-mura Village has some strangely shaped rock-mountains and wide meadowlands. It is different from other rural villages around Japan. One of them, the fold screen rock-mountain, is interesting. Vertically steep and wide cliffs and a lot of mountainous cherry trees beneath the cliffs bring a magnificent view. When I visited there the cherry blossoms were in half bloom. The day I visited was windy and clouds over the cliffs moved fast from left to right. But yet the cherry trees beneath the cliffs were calm without being blown, so that the air surrounding me was gentle and clear.With the good view and the good air I released my tiredness which was made by the two hour bus-trip from Osaka.

To build a school in the nature of Sone-mura Village


Mr.Terawaki has a strong hope to build a school in the nature of Soni-mura Village. He has concerns about the current society in Japan and in the world and he thinks that the good energy in this village adjusts the minds of the current people who have a desire for money or superficial success. He loves Soni-mura Village from the bottom of his heart. Before my trip, he told us that if we, the bus tour members and I, came to Soni-mura Village we would understand his thinking.


His family, his wife, his son, his daughter and he, welcomed us well by his son’s music of Aboriginal original instrument Didgeridoo, his daughter’s Japanese lyrical songs and his wife’s recitation. Moreover, all the villagers we met were honest, polite and kind. Then actually we forgot the cheap desire in this world for a brief time. A female said on the returning bus that she had stayed in heaven and she missed the village. I had a light body like after meditation and my condition continued to my home.

The adjusting energy in nature


Japanese people believe in the adjusting energy in nature. It might relieve us, refresh us and help us to get along with each other. It is “Nagomi” in Japanese, in kanji character nagomi is “wa”(the picture above). “Wa” of the Japanese new era “reiwa” means “nagomi”.


By the way, among all Buddhism, Japanese Buddhism is different from Asian Continental Buddhism. In Asian continent there is no Buddha-nature without people and living things. On the contrary a lot of Japanese renowned priests said that not only people and living things but also mountains and rivers had Buddha-nature. It might be brought by mixing Japanese ancient beliefs.


I am afraid that it is difficult for western people to understand it. For example, it could be explained well by the idea that humanity has a short life in this world but mountains and rivers on the earth have a long life from the birth of the earth. So then humanity with a short life can be relieved by nature with the permanent energy.


Actually the energy in the nature of Soni-mura Village and the villagers who have been relieved by the energy in the nature relieved us, adjusted us and refreshed us.


If you want to go to Soni-Mura Village you have to get a car, but that is all of your concerns. Call Soni-mura Village office, and you will learn how to enjoy the village and someone will welcome you.

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