天地

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『古事記』の天地開闢は、完成された世界の起源を語るのではなく、差異が生じ、関係が編まれることで秩序が現れてくる過程を描いている。そこでは出来事が連なり、場が分節され、再び結び直されることで世界が立ち上がる。

 

神（かみ）は超越的な存在ではなく、場所や行為、出来事のなかに関係として現れる〈在りよう〉である。山や水、言葉や所作に宿る気配としての神は、世界を支配する力ではなく、場と人との関係を調整し続ける働きそのものを指している。儀礼や祭祀は神を固定するための装置ではなく、位相を変換し、関係の均衡を保つための技法である。

 

日本固有の感覚は、この関係的世界観に基づいている。連続する流れの中で場を切り分け、境界を絶対化せず、場所そのものの変化に応答する感受性。本シリーズは、古事記が内包するこうした生成の論理と、日本的感覚の特質を、象徴や物語の再現ではなく、写真表現として可視化したものである。

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ametsuchi

 

The Kojiki’s account of the creation of heaven and earth does not describe the origin of a completed world. Instead, it portrays a process through which order emerges as differences arise and relationships are woven together. Events unfold in sequence, places are articulated, and through repeated acts of separation and reconnection, the world comes into being.

 

In this context, kami are not transcendent beings, but modes of existence that appear through relationships―within places, actions, and events. As presences that dwell in mountains and water, in words and gestures, kami do not govern the world as forces of domination; rather, they function as ongoing adjustments of the relationship between place and human activity. Rituals and festivals are not devices for fixing the divine, but techniques for transforming phases and maintaining relational balance.

 

The sensibility unique to Japan is grounded in this relational worldview: an attentiveness that divides and organizes places within a continuous flow, that does not absolutize boundaries, and that responds to the subtle transformations of place itself. This series engages with the generative logic embedded in the Kojiki and with these characteristics of Japanese sensibility, approaching them through photographic expression.

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Contextual Notes

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- Kojiki

The Kojiki (712 CE) is the oldest surviving chronicle of Japan, combining myth, genealogy, and early history. Rather than presenting a single, omnipotent creator, it describes a world that takes form through gradual differentiation, interaction, and naming. Creation is understood as a continuous process rather than a singular divine act.

 

- Kami

The term kami is often translated as “god,” but this equivalence is misleading. Kami are not necessarily anthropomorphic or omnipotent entities; they refer to presences or forces that emerge in specific places, phenomena, or relationships. A mountain, a river, or even a particular action can become a site where kami are felt.

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- Ritual and Relational Order

In Shinto practice, rituals do not aim to define or control the divine. Instead, they function as practical methods for adjusting relationships between humans, places, and unseen forces. These practices emphasize balance, timing, and responsiveness rather than moral judgment or salvation.

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- Japanese Sensibility

The worldview reflected in the Kojiki privileges continuity over rupture and relation over abstraction. Boundaries are treated as flexible and situational, and meaning emerges through attentiveness to context and change. This sensibility continues to shape Japanese approaches to space, materiality, and perception.