🔗 Original article in Japanese | ひめひこ三組

 

📌 Framing information:

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There are three pairs of HIMEHIKO' worshiped within UPHYCA.

UPHYCAにはお祀りしている三組の『ひめひこ』がいます。

MINAMOTO NO HAHA and TAMAWARI NO MIKO
 

The first pair of HIMEHIKO which is the core of UPHYCA's mythology is MINAMOTO NO HAHA and TAMAWARI NO MIKO. This name is a name given for convenience as the true name is kept secret at this time. MINAMOTO NO HAHA is told through spoken myth, and TAMAWAR NO MIKO takes physical form and migrates from year to year and MIKO to MIKO.  The MIKO who is the care taker of TAMAWARI NO MIKO for the year is called GOSHINTAI BAN. This physical figure is called OSHIRUSHI SAMA by the MIKO of UPHYCA, and is a representation of TAMWAWARI NO MIKO. As the name of this HIMEHIKO suggests, HAHA represents the MIKO's mother as well as the precious treasure entrusted to the MIKO by her mother, symbolizing her past.

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一組目は、『みなもとのはは』と『たまわりみこ』でUPHYCAの神話の軸となる『ひめひこ』です。この名は都合上の呼び名であり真名は秘されています。『みなもとのはは』は神話の中で語られ、『たまわりみこ』は物質を伴った姿で巫女の家々を一年ずつ放浪します。一年間『たまわりみこ』を預かる巫女は『御神体番』と呼ばれます。UPHYCAの巫女たちの使う『おしるしさま』と呼ばれる図は、この『たまわりみこ』の似姿です。この『ひめひこ』は呼び名の通り、巫女にとっての母と、母から託された大切な預かり物で、過去を象徴します。
 

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NISHINO HIMEHIKO
 

The second pair of HIMEHIKO is NISHI NO HIMEHIKO. This HIMEHIKO is a deity of the land of Nishinoshima, a new island off the coast of the Pacific Ocean that was born immediately after the formation of UPHYCA. This is a sacred place with many layers of importance to the MIKO of UPHYCA.

Nishinoshima is a new island in the Ogasawara Islands that was born on a Wednesday shortly after UPHYCA was formed. To be more precise, a small volcanic island called Nishinoshima gave birth to a new landmass through its first eruption in 40 years, and then the old and new merged to form one large island.  As of 2013, it was thought that even if land formed temporarily, it would soon disappear, but due to continued eruptions and lava outflows, by 2015 it was expected to completely engulf the former Nishinoshima. and merged, increasing the area ten times. In 2016, the eruption subsided and a landing survey began.

Although there are other volcanic islands that have newly formed similarly to the new island formation of Nishinoshima, it is extremely rare that a new island is completely isolated.  Nishinoshima is 1,000 km from Honshu and 150 km from the nearest island, and is not known for human activity. It is attracting worldwide attention as the only place where you can see the process of ecosystem formation unaffected by environmental influences. Currently, this island is home to only insects carried by boobies and a few plants, but it is predicted that in 30,000 years it will become an island rich in life with its own unique ecosystem. The MIKO of UPHYCA pray every day that this land will be filled with life 30,000 years from now. For MIKO, these HIMEHIKO are children that she must protect and love, as they symbolize the future.

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二組目は、『にしのひめひこ』です。この『ひめひこ』はUPHYCA結成直後に誕生した太平洋沖の新島、西之島の土地の神々です。ここはUPHYCAの巫女にとって非常に重要な、多重構造的聖地です。西之島はウフィカ結成直後のある水曜日にうまれた小笠原諸島の新島です。正しくは、西之島というちいさな火山島が40年ぶりの噴火によって新たな陸地を産み、その後新旧が融合して一つの大きな島となりました。2013年時点では、一時的に陸地ができたとしてもすぐに消滅するだろうと目されていましたが、継続的な噴火と溶岩流出により、2015年までには旧西之島を完全に飲み込むようにして融合し、面積は十倍となりました。2016年には噴火が落ち着き、上陸調査が開始されました。同じような火山性の新島は他にも見られますが、西之島新島のように本州から1000キロ、最も近い島からも150キロというように完全に孤立した新島は大変珍しく、「人間活動の影響を受けずに生態系ができる過程をみられる唯一の場所」として世界的に注目されています。いまはカツオドリが運ぶ虫と少しの植物が茂るのみのこの島ですが、3万年後には独自の生態系をもつ命豊かな島になると目されています。UPHYCAの巫女は3万年後、どうぞこの地に命がみちますようにと日々祈ります。 この『ひめひこ』は巫女にとって、守るべき愛でるべき子供達であり、未来を象徴しています。
 

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SUNA TAMA SHISHIMURA YUKARI NO HIMEHIKO

The third pair of HIMEHIKO is SUNA TAMA SHISHIMURA YUKARI NO HIMEHIKO.  This long name is a combination of three words: [SUNA] [TAMA] and [SHISHIMURA].

This HIMEHIKO is different than the two HIMEHIKO listed above in that each MIKO will have different objects that they pray to. 

First, [SUNA], refers to land, and represents HIMEHIKO of the place where each MIKO lives, was born and raised, or feels a special connection. 
Next, [TAMA] refers to knowledge and information such as ideas and culture that have had a special influence on the MIKO. It is HIMEHIKO of knowledge and ambition. 
Finally, [SHISHIMURA] refers to the body, and is the ancestral spirit of one's own body and the HIMEHIKO of the descendants. This includes all parents who came before one's biological parents, and in some cases, all ancestral spirits who come before one's spouse or relatives. For example, [SUNANO HIMEHIKO] is the deity of the land called Japan, and since I (Lumi) live in Wakayama which is near the beach, I/she also now calls out to the HIMEHIKO of this beach. 

TAMA NO HIMEHIKO is definitely the non-binary (?) deity of modern witchcraft.  
And SUNATAMA SHISHIMURA refers to both the paternal and maternal sides of the Tanizaki family (Lumi's family through marriage), the spouse's clan, and all future relatives of the unborn children.

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三組目は、『すなたまししむらゆかりのひめひこ』です。この長い名前には「すな」「たま」「ししむら」と三つの言葉が合わさっています。この『ひめひこ』は上記の二組とは違い、それぞれの巫女によって祈る対象が異なります。というのもまず「すな」とは土地のことであり、それぞれの巫女が暮らしたり生まれ育ったり、または特別に結びつきを感じている場そのものの『ひめひこ』を表しています。次に「たま」とは巫女が特別に影響を受けた思想や文化などの知識や情報のことを指します。知や志の『ひめひこ』のことです。最後に「ししむら」とは肉体のことで、自身の肉体の祖霊と子孫の『ひめひこ』です。実の父母に連なるはるか以前の全ての父母、そして場合によっては配偶者や縁者の先に連なる全ての祖霊も含みます。私を例に挙げるなら、「すなのひめひこ」は日本という土地の神々と、和歌山、特に今は浜辺に暮らしていますから、この浜のひめひこにも呼びかけます。「たまのひめひこ」は間違いなく現代魔女術の男女神でしょう。そして「すなたまししむら」は谷崎家の父方母方両方と配偶者の一族、そしてまだ見ぬ子供達の未来の縁者全て、ということになります。



Since UPHYCA is a gathering based on online communication, it is inevitable that a wide variety of MIKO from different places and cultures will gather together.
Each MIKO endeavors not to lose any of her own connections as well as to not undermine any existing religion and culture. As each MIKO has a different SUNA TAMA SHISHIMURA YUKARI NO HIMEHIKO than her sisters, I (Lumi) believe that sharing and exploring this together in a relaxed way is a very important and valuable thing. This HIMEHIKO symbolizes the present for the MIKO.

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UPHYCAはオンライン上のコミュニケーションを前提とした集いであるため、必然的に住む場所も文化も違う多種多様な巫女が集っています。それぞれの巫女が、自分自身のどの縁も取りこぼさぬよう、また既存の宗教や文化を粗末にせずとうとみ、そして巫女同士がそれぞれ異なる『すなたまししむらゆかりのひめひこ』を互いにとほぎ合うことは、とても大切で価値あることであると考えています。この『ひめひこ』は巫女にとって、現在を象徴しています。

When a UPHYCA MIKO dies physically, the first thing she does is become SUNA TAMA SHISHIMURA YUKARI NO HIMEHIKO and complete anything that needs to be done.  You may become a guardian of the land as a SUNA NO HIMEHIKO, or you may become someone's  TAMA NO HIMEHIKO through the creations you leave behind for future generations.  Or perhaps there is a MIKO who becomes SHISHIMURA NO HIMEHIKO who watches over the people close to her who she left behind. All of these are worthy deeds.  The MIKO who has fulfilled her role as YUKARI NO HIMEHIKO will call KEMONO.  The MIKO goes to Nishinoshima with KEMONO and becomes part of NISHI NO HIMEHIKO pilgrimage, and finally dissolves into MINAMOTO NO HAHA.

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UPHYCAの巫女が肉体の死を迎えたら、まずは巫女自身が『すなたまししむらゆかりのひめひこ』となって行うべきことを済ませます。『すなのひめひこ』として土地の守り手となることもあれば、後世に残した創作物を媒介して誰かの『たまのひめひこ』になることもあるでしょう。もしくは残してきた近しい人々を見守る『ししむらのひめひこ』となる巫女もいるでしょう。そのどれもが、とうとい行いです。『ゆかりのひめひこ』としての役割を全うした巫女は『けもの』を呼びます。

巫女は『けもの』とともに西之島へと向かい『にしのひめひこ』の巡りの一部になり、そして最後は『みなもとのはは』へと溶けてゆきます。