Kitayama Polished Logs is a pioneering example of venture industry from 600 years ago
～Excavation of sand abrasives from Bodai Falls. A super spot,
and the roots of Kyoto ventures found in nature～

Yoshie Doi
　　
　

Bodai Falls of a postcard

　”The Ancient Capital” (Kawabata Yasunari) contains many sharp observations about Kyoto’s nature, festivals, and events throughout the seasons, and in particular the bodhi sand used to polish the Kitayama cedar trees in the Kitayama Nakagawa district.

　Six hundred years ago, a high priest who had been training in the mountains all over the country collapsed in a village in what is now the Kitayama Nakagawa district of Kita Ward, Kyoto City. He made a full recovery after about six months of tireless nursing by the villagers.

　A story passed down among the villagers goes, “Thank you for showing us such kindness for so many years, even though Nakagawa village cannot produce rice. I would like to show you something in return, but I have nothing to give you, so I cannot show you anything in return. Instead, I will teach you something good. The sand from Bodai Falls in this village has a rare power that cannot be found anywhere else. If you use this sand to polish this cedar log, I am sure that the village will prosper.

　The sand that falls into the pool at the bottom of the waterfall from rain that falls on Mount Akasuna behind Bodai Falls is called Masagoko sand, which is weathered granite. The high priest felt that there was something powerful about the sand, not just the soil, so he named it “Bodai Falls.

　It is believed that this high priest was able to communicate with the earth. It seems that ancient Japanese people had the ability to communicate with nature. They read the energy of the land, and with their intuition and ability to act, they evolved into ways of living that were in harmony with the rhythm of nature and agriculture that suited the land.

(Continued in the next issue)

The end of document
Translated by Masami Otani

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