This is my translation of a story that originally appeared in The Big Issue Japan Issue 411.
I translated it as a volunteer so that it could be published in other International Network of Street Papers publications.
The original Japanese is on the left, and my translation is on the right.
| （タイトル）
土壁の縄文小屋、炉端で煮炊き、年中裸足。 縄文生活を実践し、今の社会システムと対峙する ── “縄文大工” 雨宮国広さん | (Title)
A mud-walled Jomon period cabin, cooking on an open fire, barefoot all year. Putting the Jomon lifestyle into practice, and standing face-to-face with the current social system —"The Jomon Carpenter" Amemiya Kunihiro |
| （リード）
自宅敷地に縄文小屋を建て、4 年前からそこで生活を続ける雨宮国広さん。 キャリア30 年の大工でもあり、石斧を使った縄文小屋や丸木舟作りにも参加。 その経験から見えてきたことを聞いた。 | (Lead)
Amemiya Kunihiro built a Jomon period (between around 14500-300 BCE) cabin on his property and has lived there for four years. He has been a carpenter for 30 years, and has made Jomon cabins and dugout canoes with stone axes. We asked him what he has come to see from his experiences. |
| 裸足暮らしで、足裏は柔らか、
人間本来の力を取り戻せている | Living barefoot, the soles of his feet are soft,
and he has regained natural human ability |
| 果樹畑が広がり、心地よい風が吹き抜ける山梨県のとある地区。自宅の敷地の一角に、およそ畳３ 枚分の面積の〝縄文小屋〟を建てたのは、「縄文大工」を名乗る雨宮国広さんだ。２０１２年からこの土壁と板葺き屋根の小屋を作り始め、17 年からはここで生活をしている。 | A lovely breeze blows in a region of Yamanashi Prefecture where fruit tree orchards stretch across the land. In a corner of the grounds of his house, Amemiya Kunihiro, called "the Jomon Carpenter," built a 5.5 square meter 'Jomon cabin.' He started making this cabin with mud walls and a wood-shingled roof in 2012, and has lived here since 2017. |
| 「こんにちは、ようこそ！」と笑顔で出てきてくれた雨宮さんは、一年を通して裸足と半袖姿だ。「足裏の皮は分厚くてカチカチだと思われがちなんですけど、つねに角質が取れて再生されるから柔らかいんですよ。逆に靴下と靴を履いている人のほうが、カチカチじゃないかな（笑）。裸足で歩く能力や寒さに耐える力……、この生活を始めてから人間が本来もつ力を今取り戻せている気がしています」 | "Hello, welcome!," Amemiya comes out and says with a smile, in his year-round bare feet and short sleeves. "People tend to think that the skin on the soles of my feet would be thick and stiff, but the outer layer of skin is always coming off and being regenerated so it's soft. On the contrary, the soles of people wearing socks and shoes are probably stiffer (laughs). The capacity to walk barefoot and the strength to tolerate the cold—I believe that since beginning this lifestyle, I've regained the innate abilities that all humans have." |
| 小屋の中は土の床で、夏は涼しく冬は暖かいという。入ってすぐの場所には囲炉裏があり、ここで灰と薪と土器を使い、焼く、蒸す、煮るといった調理をする。「栗やジャガイモ、カボチャは灰の中に埋めて火を通すんです。川魚は内臓を取らず塩もまぶさず、そのままを１時間ぐらいかけてじっくり焼くと旨いんですよ」。煙が昇っていくあたりに食材を吊るせば、燻製のできあがりだ。そのほか、眠るスペースや書斎スペースもある。 | The floor of the cabin is dirt, and Amemiya says it is cool in summer and warm in winter. There is an open hearth as soon as you walk in. Here, he cooks using ashes, firewood, and pottery. He cooks by grilling, steaming, and boiling. "I cover chestnuts, potatoes, and pumpkin with ashes and cook them that way. For river fish, I don't remove organs or cover them with salt; they are wonderful as-is when gently cooked for an hour." He makes smoked food simply by hanging foodstuffs in the rising smoke. There is also a sleeping space and reading space. |
| 「ここではできるだけごみを出さず、省エネルギーな生活を取り入れています。土壁はすぐに崩れ落ちると思われていますが、雨風が当たってもそう簡単に崩れないですし、土だから何回でもリサイクルできるんです。とはいえ、すべて先祖返りしたらいいとも思っていません。でも今の社会システムの中で、何かを考え直すヒントがあるんじゃないかと感じています」 | "I try not to make trash as much as possible and have adopted a low-energy lifestyle. People think that mud walls collapse quickly. But even when the rain and wind hit them they don't come down so easily, and because it's mud it can be recycled over and over. Be that as it may, I don't believe we should go back to doing everything our ancestors did. But I believe there are some signs in our current social system as to what we need to reconsider." |
| もの作りが好きだった雨宮さんは20 歳の頃から大工修業を始め、24 歳の時に古民家や寺社の建築や修復を担う工務店に就職、宮大工の道を歩み始める。そこで伝統技術や手道具の世界に魅せられ実力をつけていくも、やがて違和感を覚えるようになったという。 | Amemiya had always enjoyed making things since childhood. He began training to be a carpenter when he was 20 years old. When he was 24, he got a job with a builder that specialized in traditional construction. This set him on his way to becoming a miyadaiku, a temple and shrine carpenter. Even while he was enthralled by the world of traditional craft and hand tools as he developed his talents, he soon became uneasy. |
| 「特に環境問題に関心があったわけではなかったのですが、自然は大好きだから、汚れた海や川、無計画に切り拓かれる森を見ると悲しいという思いはずっとありました。若い頃にあこがれたチェーンソーや他の鉄器もそれを作るために多くのエネルギーが消費されます。家を作る素材にもホルムアルデヒドなど健康や環境を害する化学物質がたくさん使われていて、そこへの疑問が膨らみ始めたんです」 | "I didn't have any particular interest in environmental issues, but I love nature, so seeing polluted seas and rivers and haphazardly cleared forests always made me sad. The chainsaws and other metal tools I loved in my youth consume a lot of energy when made. Materials used to build houses use a lot of chemicals like formaldehyde in their manufacture, which are harmful to our health and the environment. I started to have more and more questions about them." |
| 石斧一振り、何でも作れると直感
３万年前の丸木舟制作に参加 | His instinct: you can make anything with one swing of a stone axe
He joined in making a dugout canoe like ones from 30,000 years ago |
| 30歳の時に工務店を退職し、独立。自然環境にも配慮した家づくりを手掛けるも、ニーズはなかなか増えない。「生活と自分が目指すものづくりの間で悩んでいた時に出合ったのが、東京都立大の山田昌久先生が紹介していた石斧でした」 | He left his job as a builder at the age of 30 and became self-employed. His requirements didn't expand significantly, even when he built houses with the environment in mind. "Professor Yamada Masahisa of Tokyo Metropolitan University told me about stone axes when I was having problems with my life and the handicraft I wanted to do." |
| 山田さんが送ってくれた石を職人の勘で削り出し、木製の柄に空けた穴にはめこんだ。そして、一振り──。「その瞬間、この石斧があれば自然環境を害することなく何でも作れるのではないかという直感を得たんです。これまで何百種類もの道具を使ってきたのですが、その潜在力を感じました」 | With his craftsman's instincts, he cut the stone Yamada sent him and set it in a hole in a wooden handle. Then, with one swing—"At that instant, I got the instinct that, with this stone axe, I could make anything without hurting the environment. I had used hundreds of different tools up until that point, but I genuinely felt its latent power." |
| それから独自に石斧の研究を続けていた雨宮さん。15 年には石川県能登町の「真まわき 脇遺跡縄文館」の事業として、石斧を使った縄文住居作りを依頼された。「石斧を知れば知るほど、縄文の人たちが相当高い技術を持っていたことがわかりました。石斧一つにも数多くのノウハウが詰め込まれているんです。そういう人たちの住居ですから、従来のイメージのような粗末な造りのわけがなくて、居心地がよく機能的だったはず。この時、近くの雑木林から39 本の栗の木の命を頂いたのですが、縄文の人々は木や食料を与えてくれる森のサイクルを心得ていて、持続可能なかたちで共生していたのだと思います」 | Since then, Amemiya has continued original research on stone axes. In 2015 he was commissioned by the Mawaki Archaeology Museum in Noto, Ishikawa to make a Jomon period dwelling using a stone axe. "As I learned more about stone axes, I realized that the Jomon people had highly advanced technology; a single stone axe contains a great deal of knowledge. Because it is their home, it would have been comfortable and practical, rather than the rough structure that most people think of. When I made it, I took the life of 39 chestnut trees from the nearby grove, but the Jomon people understood the cycles of the forest, giving them wood and food. I think they lived with the forest sustainably." |
| 続いて、17 年からは国立科学博物館の「３万年前の航海 徹底再現プロジェクト」（台湾から沖縄県与那国島を目指す実験航海）に参加。縄文より以前、旧石器時代の人々が航海に使ったと思われる丸木舟を石斧で作ることになった。「黒潮を超え、外洋を航海できるレベルの丸木舟の制作は相当な技術がいるものです。30 年間大工をやってきて、手道具をある程度使いこなしてきた僕も、旧石器人はただものではないと思いました（笑）。今でいえば宇宙ロケットを作るようなもの。でも、宇宙ロケットは一部の専門家しか作れませんが、３万年前の丸木舟は大人と子どもが一緒に作っていたと思います。そうして知恵や技術が伝承されていたのでしょう」 | Then, in 2017, he took part in the "Holistic Reenactment Project of Voyages 30,000 Years Ago" at the National Museum of Nature and Science, an experimental voyage from Taiwan to Yonaguni Island in Okinawa. Paleolithic peoples, before the Jomon period, were thought to have crossed the sea on a dugout canoe. Amemiya was tasked with making one with a stone axe. "This sort of dugout canoe required a high level of technology to get through the Kuroshio Current and travel on the open ocean. Even after 30 years as a carpenter and having a degree of mastery of hand tools, I thought the Paleolithic people were no ordinary people (laughs). It'd be like building a space rocket now. However, only a few specialists are capable of creating them. I think that adults and children worked together to construct dugout canoes 30,000 years ago. That's how they passed down their knowledge and skills." |
| 道具は子どもへと体験を開く
全国で石斧での丸木舟作り計画 | Opening up hands-on experiences with tools to children
A plan to make dugout canoes with stone axes all over Japan |
| 人類と道具は切っても切れない関係だと雨宮さんは言う。「石が鉄、鉄が機械になり、機械がハイテクマシンになった。そしてそれは今では、地球の状態を変化させるぐらいのハイパワーになった。今や、自然環境への影響はそっちのけで効率と利便性だけで道具を使っているのではないでしょうか。どんな道具であっても人間次第で破壊の道具にもなるし凶器にもなる。道具を手にする時は、地球上にいるすべての命を思いやる気持ちをもたないといけないと思うんです。僕は石斧を使う縄文大工として、森も動物も植物もすべての命が共存できるところを目指したい」 | According to Amemiya, humans and tools are inextricably linked. "Stones turned into metal, metal into machines, and machines into high-tech machines. Finally, the machines have developed to the point that they are capable of altering the planet's environment. Currently, we use our tools solely for efficiency and convenience, disregarding the impact on the environment. Regardless of the tool, it can become a destructive tool or a lethal weapon depending on the people that use it. I believe that when you hold a tool in your hands, you must think about all life on the planet. As the Jomon Carpenter, my goal is to live in harmony with the forest, animals, plants, and all living things.” |
| その活動の一つとして、雨宮さんは子どもを対象にした「JOMONさんがやってきた！」プロジェクトを計画している。47 都道府県を回り、子どもたちと石斧を使って全長８ｍの丸木舟を作り、海や湖で漕ぎ出すというものだ。「持続可能なかたちで木の命を頂くことを前提に、今回は丸木舟を作るために樹齢３００年の木を伐り出すところから始めます。鉄器は石斧の５倍の早さで、チェーンソーなら石斧の90 倍の早さで作業ができるのに、なぜ石斧を使って舟を作るのか、そこを子どもたちとも一緒に考えていきたい。そして子どもたちが、また未来の子どもたちへとその体験をつないでいってくれたらうれしいです」 | Amemiya is organizing the "Mr. Jomon is here!" project for children as part of his efforts. This project travels to all of Japan's 47 prefectures, building 8-meter-long dugout canoes with children using stone axes. They then row them out onto the sea or lakes. "This time, we’re starting with cutting down a 300-year-old tree to create a dugout boat, on the assumption that we’re taking the tree's life sustainably. Why do we build the boat using a stone axe while an iron axe is 5 times faster and a chainsaw is 90 times faster? I'd like the children to discuss it amongst themselves. I'm hoping that the children will be able to relate their experiences to future generations." |
| （松岡理絵） | (Matsuoka Rie) |
| （プロフィール）
あめみや・くにひろ 1969年、山梨県生まれ。縄文大工。建築家。宮大工として、手道具のみを使う伝統的技術を磨く。2009年に石斧と出合う。15 年に石川県真脇遺跡で縄文住居の復元に参加。17 年には国立科学博物館「3万年前の航海 徹底再現プロジェクト」で丸木舟を制作。著書に『ぼくは縄文大工 石斧でつくる丸木舟と小屋』（平凡社新書）。 | (Profile)
Amemiya Kunihiro Born 1969 in Yamanashi. Jomon Carpenter. Architect. As a temple and shrine construction specialist, he refined his skills in traditional craft using only hand tools. He came across stone axes in 2009. In 2015 he participated in reconstructing Jomon period dwellings at the Mawaki Site in Ishikawa. In 2017 he made a dugout canoe as part of the National Museum of Nature and Science's "Holistic Reenactment Project of Voyages 30,000 Years Ago." He wrote a book, "I am a Jomon Carpenter - Making Dugout Canoes and Cabins with a Stone Axe" (published by Heibonsha) |
| （キャプション）
1: 上衣はシカの皮、腰巻きはシカとアナグマの皮。亡くなった動物を空豆大の黒曜石のナイフで解体して制作した 2: 大きさも刃の形もさまざまな石斧を作業によって使い分ける 3: 2017 年の丸木舟制作では杉の巨木を使用。6 日間で計3 万6000 回も石斧を振り下ろして伐採 4: 子どもたちには制作から漕ぐまでを体験してもらう予定 （クレジット） Photos (1,2) : Yokozeki Kazuhiro 写真提供(3,4)：雨宮国広さん | (Captions)
1: He wears a deer coat and a deer and badger loincloth. He dissected the dead animals with an obsidian knife and made the clothing. 2: Stone axes of different sizes and blade shapes are used for different tasks. 3: In 2017, he built a dugout canoe out of a huge cedar tree. To fell the tree, he swung a stone axe 36,000 times over the course of 6 days. 4: From creation to paddling, he intends to provide the children with a hands-on experience. (Credit) Photos (1,2): Yokozeki Kazuhiro Photos (3,4): Amemiya Kunihiro |