The Meaning of the Sanzu River — Its Name, Three Crossings, and the Six Coins

"What does the Sanzu River mean?" It is a phrase even heard as a metaphor for one's dying moments, yet few know the origin of the name. This article traces the meaning of the Sanzu River — from the source of its name to the tradition of Sai-no-kawara — from a Buddhist and folkloric view.

The meaning of the Sanzu River

The Sanzu River is the river the dead are said to cross from this world to the next. Only by crossing it are the dead said to enter the next world. As a symbol of the boundary dividing life and death, it has been widely passed down since ancient times. Describing someone's final moments as "starting to cross the Sanzu River" comes from this tradition.

That said, the idea of a river dividing the afterlife was not laid out in just this form in early Indian Buddhism. The fine detail of the Sanzu River is thought to have joined the Ten Kings cult in China and grown richer in Japan through texts such as the Jizo Juo-kyo.

The origin of "Sanzu" — three evil realms, or three fords

There are said to be two main theories behind the word "Sanzu" ("three paths").

One holds that it points to the three evil realms of Buddhism — hell, hungry ghosts, and beasts. The word "Sanzu" is said to derive from a passage in the sutra Konkomyo-kyo, taken to name the three worlds of suffering one falls into as retribution for evil deeds.

The other is the "three fords" theory: that the way of crossing splits three ways. According to one's deeds, the place of crossing divides three ways between good and ill — and these three fords are the "Sanzu." Both theories have run side by side since ancient times.

The three ways of crossing

By the three-fords tradition, the way across the river splits according to one's deeds in life. Those who did good cross by a bridge; those with light sins wade a shallow ford; those with grave sins are made to cross a swift, deep current — so the stories go. In other words, the very way of crossing was a mirror reflecting one's deeds. It is sometimes told in sequence: before advancing to the judgment of the ten kings led by King Enma, one must first pass this river as a barrier.

The six coins as toll

Tradition holds that six coins are needed as the toll to cross the Sanzu River. For this reason there was once a custom of placing six coins with the dead at burial. In some regions the custom lives on today in funerals, with six coins printed on paper placed in the coffin. One who carries no toll, it is said, has the robes stripped from them by Datsueba at the river's bank.

Sai-no-kawara and the bodhisattva Jizo

Before the Sanzu River is said to lie the "Sai-no-kawara," a riverbed. It has been told as the place where children who died before their parents arrive. The children try to pile stones into memorial towers, only for a demon to appear each time and knock them down — and still they pile again, a sorrowful scene. The one who saves these children is said to be the bodhisattva Jizo, and the tale of Sai-no-kawara spread in deep connection with Jizo devotion. On Jizo, see also What the Bodhisattva Jizo Is.

The keepers at the bank — Datsueba and Keneo

At the bank of the Sanzu River are said to wait keepers for the dead who cross: Datsueba, who strips the robes, and Keneo, who hangs the robe on a tree branch to weigh the gravity of sin. The pair keep the river's barrier together, questioning one's deeds in life first at the gateway to the next world — and so the Sanzu River has been depicted as the place that opens the story of judgment. On Datsueba, see What Is Datsueba.

Yurusen, and the river to cross

This Sanzu River flows through the world of the app "Yurusen" as well. Old Hag Robesnatch, who strips robes at the river's bank, is one of the beings standing at the deepest part of the Wraith Codex.

To cross the river is to pass a boundary from which there is no return. When you resolve that you can no longer forgive, that feeling too crosses a boundary. Yurusen is your private place to quietly bind that crossed feeling into the ledger. Robesnatch and the other wraiths can be seen on the Wraith Codex page.