Show pony dedicates its life to shogun warrior

By BILLY ADAMS

We're always told never to look a gift horse in the mouth, but this is bordering on the ridiculous.

Koha, the gift horse in question, is resisting all attempts to attract his attention with a contempt that could be mistaken for boredom.

Not even the offer of a large lump of sugar can persuade the wily old thoroughbred to turn and face the door of the stable.

But Koha isn't any old horse. For 21 years he has enjoyed the lofty status of sacred horse at a famous shrine in Japan devoted to the fearless warrior who inspired James Clavell's novel Shogun.

How Koha came to spend his life in the Japanese mountains is an interesting tale.

His fate was effectively sealed in 1976, the year of his birth, when then prime minister Robert Muldoon visited the shrine in the historic village of Nikko, northwest of Tokyo.

The sacred horse at that time was getting on, and had New Zealand blood. The late Sir Robert decided a donation was in order, and the following year a horse named Marutai was sent to Japan.

But three years later Marutai died in an accident, paving the way for a replacement. Koha, Maori for gift, trotted into the stable of fame.

Now 26 years old - verging on ancient in equine terms - Koha's distinctive white mane remains pristine. As does his health.

Earlier this year New Zealand's Ambassador to Japan, Phillip Gibson, travelled to Nikko to check on his old compatriot.

He was impressed by what he saw.

"The ambassador went up there, checked Koha's teeth and saw what excellent condition he appeared to be in," said a spokeswoman at the New Zealand Embassy in Tokyo.

He's quite old for a horse, but Koha appears to still be enjoying life.

This is not surprising, because the life of a sacred horse is hardly taxing.

Koha shares the role with a Japanese thoroughbred, Matsumiya, who at 32 makes his foreign partner seem like a baby.

Each day they are exercised and fed at a stable near the shrine. In winter, to avoid the cold, they spend their days at a riding school.

In fact, their official duties amount to standing in the sacred stable for four hours every second day while tourists peer in the front door with cameras at the ready.

And there is no shortage of gawking visitors. Each year three million of them come to view the lavish ancient buildings, the most famous of which is the Toshogu shrine.

It was built in the mid 1600s as a mark of devotion to Tokugawa Ieyasu, the real-life shogun on whom Clavell based his fictional warrior. Tokugawa's power was so great that his heirs continued to rule the country virtually unchallenged for the next 250 years.

Koha's role in all this stems from a long tradition of dedicating horses to Shinto gods, and keeping them at shrines. A sign says Koha is the only sacred horse donated from abroad presently serving in Japan.

The sacred stable is adorned by carvings of Nikko's most recognisable characters the famous "Three Monkeys" who see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.

Reminding visitors not to idle away precious time, the figures are regarded as guardians of the sacred horse who, facing the wall away from the tourists, appears to be doing just that.

It's easy to form the impression that this official stint isn't a highlight of Koha's day.

But he is a happy horse, says Shinto priest Takamasa Inaba. "Perhaps both horses are so healthy for their age because of the great care we take of them," he says.

And no-one gets to ride on them. "I think Koha will be here for a long time yet."