Simplified Kanji on Obibasami Netsuke?

[Bugyotsuji]

Would anyone be able to guess what this single character on an Obihasami/Obibasami Netsuke represents? Thanks in advance.

http://forums.netsuke.org/file?id=998161

http://forums.netsuke.org/file?id=998160

[cabowen]

genki...ha ha....

 

元　記

[Bugyotsuji]

genki...ha ha....

 

元　記

 

I like it! :lol:

[Nobody]

I guess ...

 

礼 - rei

[Bugyotsuji]

I guess ...

 

礼 - rei

Thank you, Koichi san.

[Bugyotsuji]

Koichi San, I have been playing with your idea. How about 祀？(Matsuri, shi, toshi, as in 祭祀 saishi)

[Nobody]

The attached picture shows 礼 and 祀 in Tensho-style. At least the right part of the character seems to look more like 礼, though I am still unsure.

[Bugyotsuji]

Now I understand what you are seeing, Koichi san and why it is hard to decide. Hmmmm...

 

Could this character be specially designed to be a crossover containing the feeling of both meanings?

 

For example, I noticed in one dictionary that the two words 祭祀 and 祭礼 are given as having the same or very similar meaning.

[Nobody]

Could this character be specially designed to be a crossover containing the feeling of both meanings?

I do not think so, because the left part of 礼 and 祀 is the same element.

Refer to a variation of 礼 in the attached picture. The font of the variation only could not work in text format.

[Bugyotsuji]

Thank you. I am sorry that you have to spend time on this, but glad that you have troubled to help me. I think I understand why you are suggesting 礼

 

When I look in Koh Masuda's Kenkyusha J-E dictionary under saishi 祭祀, it says: 'a festival (祭礼)', so even though the characters have different original meanings, they end up being very close, certainly when used together with 祭.

 

PS Would it be more likely to be uya, iya as in reigi 礼儀 because of the context, do you think? In other words, are you working solely from the shape of the old historical characters, or does situation also play an important part in your consideration?

[Nobody]

PS Would it be more likely to be uya, iya as in reigi 礼儀 because of the context, do you think? In other words, are you working solely from the shape of the old historical characters, or does situation also play an important part in your consideration?

At the first glance, the character reminded me of 礼. And I considered if it was an appropriate character/symbol placed on such an item, or not. Then, it became my first guess.

 

BTW, the left part of 礼 or 祀 is “示”, whose original meaning is a table which was used to offer sacrifice to god. The right part of 礼 is equivalent to “豊”, whose original meaning is a sweet beverage which was offered to god. The right part of 祀 is 巳, which means a snake thought to be an incarnation of god.

[Bugyotsuji]

Koichi sama, that's wonderful work. Many thanks.

 

The picture in Tensho style of the snake reminds me of an old word for snake in the west of Japan, くちなわ　= Kuchinawa. "Mouth & rope".

[Nobody]

Thanks Piers, I did not have such knowledge.

According to my dictionary, that Kuchinawa (朽縄) seems to mean a rotten rope.

[Bugyotsuji]

It was an old Okayama word used by the people in the area around Osafune. There is a place called Fukuoka in Osafune, and there was a Fukuoka Castle overlooking the Yoshii River crossing. When they all moved to Hakata in Kyushu, the area overlapping Hakata was newly called 'Fukuoka' in memory, and some of the old local words survived there. 口縄 Kuchinaha for snake is one of these words, I was told.

 

PS I can find 'Kuchinaha' in Iwanami's 古語辞典　but the 当て字？is 蛇, reading Kuchinaha. A local friend told me many years ago that the actual meaning comes from 'mouth' and 'straw rope'.

[Nobody]

One of my dictionaries lists two different Kuchinawa; 朽縄 and 口縄.

 

According to the dictionary;

朽縄 literally means a rotten rope, and it is used as another name of a snake.

口縄 means a leading rope for a horse or a cow.

 

 

ps. The following page lists 朽縄 and 口縄, and both could mean a snake.

Ref. http://www.weblio.jp/content/%E3%81%8F% ... A%E3%82%8F