Memoir (20) by Professor Joe Watkins, University of Arizona, USA
On June 21, 2023, the Hokkaido University Summer Institute G-109 (Introduction to Ainu and Indigenous Studies II: Ainu Cultural Heritage and Cultural Landscape) class was treated to a rare opportunity to observe the setting sun of the summer solstice in the hole in Opusnupuri on the Saru River near the town of Nibutani. The top of the hole collapsed in the 19th century due to either an earthquake or a heavy rain event.
According to Ainu legend, Okikurmi was a god who decided to live with the Ainu. The hole in the mountain was created when Okikurmi shot an arrow at the mountain to act as a deterrent for a group of Ainu warriors from the other side of the mountain who wanted to fight. The legend is told in a book created by Biratori Ankan Tori Project Kaeru Club.
On the summer solstice, local Ainu people gather to watch the sun’s descent. People laugh and talk, and jockey around to get in the best position to snap a photo of the sun as it fills the hole in the mountain as it sets. A location has been set aside by the highway department to allow people to safely watch the event without creating too much of a traffic safety issue, but traffic slowed as the sunset approached.
The picture book The Legend of Opusnupuri.
Sunset from the riverside.
Sunset from the highway viewing site.