Read, reflect, pray
Supreme purification
最上祓
A text in the 1911 Shintō Ōharai Zenshū anthology. It is presented as a historical reading, not the current ritual of every shrine or temple.
English meaning, sound explanations and source text
English meaning and sound explanations
About this English rendering
This site’s English rendering of the Japanese meaning guide, aligned with this edition. It is separate from the source words for recitation and is not an official liturgy. Sacred sounds are explained where possible, not given speculative literal translations. Historical beliefs, royal authority, illness and protection claims belong to the text; they are not present-day judgments, medical advice or guarantees of results.
After the reference to Takamagahara and the venerable Amatsu norito, the phrase 持可々牟吞天牟 is recited.
The latter part resembles a purification expression about gathering and swallowing, but this short text omits subject and object. No particular deity’s action has been supplied.
The kami purify and cleanse.
Source text and reading aid
Roman letters are provided for 1 of 2 lines. Readings not fully supplied in the source are left without Roman letters.
How to use the Roman letters
Roman letters follow the kana displayed in this site’s Japanese reader; some readings are editorial additions documented on the Japanese page. These are a reading aid, not restored Sanskrit or a recording of a temple’s chanting. Historical spellings (such as wo, wi, we and ha used as a particle) are kept. Double vowels and repeated vowels mark the written kana; rhythm and pronunciation can differ by tradition.
You can simply read the meaning or sit quietly. No recitation is required. For a temple or shrine’s own recitation, follow that tradition’s published guidance.
高天原天津祝詞の太祝詞持可々牟吞天牟
祓賜ひ清賜ふ
harahitamahi kiyometamafu
Sources and edition (1)
English explanations on this page were prepared by Inori no Mori from the cited text and its Japanese explanations. They are not an official translation or a prescribed liturgy.