Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1857-06-04
Death Of the High Priest Of Japan.

The Dairi or High Priest Of ia
pan inhabits splendid palace in th'
city of Mako, on the Island of Nip
bon. His court is composed Of 20,
600 priests, who are intrusted witt
the charge Of the 1000 temples Q
the immense city. His costume is ,
long tunic, over which be wears 3
large dress; a white, transparent vel
ornamented with golden fringe, is
worn upon his head falling about hal
way down the body. His counte-
nance remains always invisible.
On the first Of July, 1856, the
Dairi was taken i'll. Immediately
the chief priest, With his ghostly COL
leagues, 200 priests of :he first rank,
who are endowed with the religious
power Of the empire. we're summoned
to the palace. By the next day the
invalid situation became more crit
ical and on the 3lst his death was pro-
nounced to be inevitable, and close at
hand. The priests repaired at once to
the temple, and informed the popu-
lace that the Dairi had entered into
a compact with the Seven Gods OF
Heaven, and was upon the eve OF re-
juvenating his mind ir the embrace oil
Ten-sy .dai-sin, the principal of-those
deities, who the japanese believe to
have created the world. She has been
at the head of affairs for about 25,s
600 years and from her spring all the
royal families Of Japan. To her the
inhabitants of the entire empire ad-
dress their invocations, as the protec-
tress OF the land.
At the conclusion Of the first
prayers, the priests declared that the
inhabitants could Immediately enter
the palace and regale their eyes with
the sight Of their highly veuerated
High Priest. At once the crowd
siream,d to the pnlace, where
they beheld the Dairi lying stretched
upon "A bed of state. He was dressed
in white tunic, and his features,
covered with very thin mask, were
dimly perceptible through a veil
spread over them. The priests prayed
loudly, and waited sweet perfume
from :heir censors around the dying
man. At9 o'clock on the morning
of the 9Th of July he breathed his last.
AS the last breath passed through bis
lips. the chief priest, raising his arm
as token of departed life, assured
the bystanders that the soul OF the
High Priest had ascended to the IL
bode OF the gods, but that it would
shortly return and resume its earthly
habitations. Upon this announce
ment solemn silence peryaded the
audience. After the lapse Of ten
minutes, the chief priest, surrounded.
BY crowd of his religious companions
threw over the still warm corpse Of the
Dairi large white cloth, which he in
stantly witbdrew,and in the place just
before occupied by the body there
appeared another, similarly attired,
but alive and strong; who, raising
himself from his redundant position
went to the altar standing near The
bedside, and bestowed upon the peo-
pie present his blessing. The crowd
instantly broke out into EXPLANATIONS
of gladness and rejoicing.
By we'll concerted stratagem the
priests had abstracted the body of
this Dairi, supplying its place with
his son, who inherited his father sta
ton. The state bed being hung a
round with drapery rendered it all the
easier to perform the trick without
arousing the suspicious of the cred
ulous inhabitants. The corpse OF the
Dairi was carried in the night time
to the Yete temple by the priests,
where it was laid upon pyre and
burned to ashes This being done,
the temple is closed and all persons
are forbidden to enter it. A violation
of this Law is punished by burning to
death.