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Ame-no-ohabari
Ame-no-Ohabari (), Ameno Ohabari, or Ama-no-Ohabari is a legendary Japanese blade. that roughly translates to "Heaven-Point-Blade-Extended". It is primarily found in the Izumo mythology. It is a kind of sword known as a Totsuka-no-Tsurugi or a "Sword of Length of Ten Fists" which seems to be distinguished by its length and having a double-sided blade. Overview Wielded by the male creator-god Izanagi, this blade is used to cut up the infant Fire God Kagu-Tsuchi after his birth burns Izanami to death. It cuts the Fire God into multiple pieces, creating eight volcano-gods. When blood drips from the blade afterwards, the Sea God Watatsumi and the Rain God Kuraokami are formed. The name of the ten-fist sword wielded by Izanagi is given postscripturally as , otherwise known as Itsu-no-ohabari., gives sword as "Itsu-no-o habari" In the ''Kojiki'' (Conquest of Izumo chapter), the heavenly deities Amaterasu , often called Amaterasu () for short, also known as and , is the god ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Takemikazuchi
is a deity in Japanese mythology, considered a god of thunder and a sword god. He also competed in what is considered the first sumo wrestling match recorded in history. He is otherwise known as "The ''kami'' of Kashima" (Kashima-no-kami), the chief deity revered in the Kashima Shrine at Kashima, Ibaraki (and all other subsidiary Kashima shrines). In the '' namazu-e'' or catfish prints of the Edo period, Takemikazuchi/Kashima is depicted attempting to subdue the Namazu, a giant catfish supposedly dwelling at the of the Japanese landmass and causing its earthquakes. Forms of the name In the ''Kojiki'', the god is known as Takemikazuchi-no-o no kami (建御雷之男神 – "Brave Mighty Thunderbolt Man").Heldt, Gustav. ''The Kojiki: An Account of Ancient Matters''. Columbia University Press, 2014. He also bears the alternate names and .『古事記』text p. 27/ mod. Ja. tr. p.213 Birth of the gods In the Kamiumi ("birth of the gods") episodes of the ''Kojiki'', the god of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Totsuka-no-Tsurugi
is not a specific sword, but a common noun for any sword of this length. In Japanese mythology, numerous deities own a sword of this kind. Some examples of well-known Totsuka-no-Tsurugi: # The totsuka sword used by Izanagi to kill his offspring Kagu-tsuchi. This one is also named . # The totsuka sword used in the oath between Amaterasu and Susanoo. Amaterasu received this sword from Susanoo, snapped it to three pieces, and created the Three Munakata Goddesses from its debris. This sword was not named. # Another totsuka sword in Susanoo's possession, which he used to slay Orochi. This sword is also named , , or . The sword is enshrined as the shintai of Isonokami Shrine. # The totsuka sword wielded by Takemikazuchi in the quelling of the Middle Country. This sword is known as , and is the main enshrined dedication in Isonokami Shrine. Susanoo legend After the sword's owner, Susanoo, was banished from heaven by the reason of killing one of Amaterasu's Attendants and destroying ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Izanagi
Izanagi (イザナギ/伊邪那岐/伊弉諾) or Izanaki (イザナキ), formally referred to with a divine honorific as , is the creator deity (''kami'') of both creation and life in Japanese mythology. He and his sister-wife Izanami are the last of the seven generations of primordial deities that manifested after the formation of heaven and earth. Izanagi and Izanami are held to be the creators of the Japanese archipelago and the progenitors of many deities, which include the sun goddess Amaterasu, the moon deity Tsukuyomi, and the storm god Susanoo. He is a god that can be said to be the beginning of the current Japanese imperial family. Name His name is given in the () both as ''Izanagi-no-Kami'' (伊邪那岐神) and ''Izanagi-no-Mikoto'' (伊邪那岐命), while the '' Nihon Shoki'' (720 AD) refers to him as ''Izanagi-no-Mikoto'', with the name written in different characters (伊弉諾尊). The names ''Izanagi'' (''Izanaki'') and ''Izanami'' are often interpreted ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kagu-Tsuchi
Kagutsuchi (カグツチ; Old Japanese: ''Kagututi''), also known as Hi-no-Kagutsuchi or Homusubi among other names, is the kami of fire in classical Japanese mythology. Mythology Kagutsuchi's birth burned his mother Izanami, causing her death. His father Izanagi, in his grief, beheaded Kagutsuchi with his sword, Ame no Ohabari (天之尾羽張), and cut his body into eight pieces, which became eight volcanoes. Kagutsuchi's corpse created numerous deities, which typically includes Watatsumi, Kuraokami, Takemikazuchi, Futsunushi, Amatsu-Mikaboshi, and Ōyamatsumi. Kagutsuchi's birth, in Japanese mythology, comes at the end of the creation of the world and marks the beginning of death. In the '' Engishiki'', a source which contains the myth, Izanami, in her death throes, bears the water goddess Mizuhanome, instructing her to pacify Kagu-tsuchi if he should become violent. This story also contains references to traditional fire-fighting tools: gourds for carrying water and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ame-no-Nuboko
, also known simply as the , is the name given to the spear in Shinto used to raise the primordial land-mass, '' Onogoro-shima'', from the sea. It is often represented as a naginata. According to the ''Kojiki'', Shinto's genesis gods Izanagi and Izanami were responsible for creating the first land. To achieve this, they received a spear decorated with jewels from the older heavenly gods. The two deities then went to the bridge between heaven and earth, ''Ame-no-ukihashi'', and churned the sea below with the naginata. When drops of salty water fell from the tip, they formed into the first island, '' Onogoro-shima''. Izanagi and Izanami then descended from the bridge of heaven and made their home on the island. Yamato Katsuragi Hozan-ki, the Shinto book of Shugendo, explains that Amenonuboko is a mystical object generated at the time of the creation of heaven and earth, which is an incarnation of Bonten, and that it is regarded as a vajra which has a power to smash the evil and ha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Izanami
, formally referred to with the honorific , is the creator deity of both creation and death in Japanese mythology, as well as the Shinto mother goddess. She and her brother-husband Izanagi are the last of the seven generations of primordial deities that manifested after the formation of heaven and earth. Izanami and Izanagi are held to be the creators of the Japanese archipelago and the progenitors of many deities, which include the sun goddess Amaterasu, the moon deity Tsukuyomi and the storm god Susanoo. In mythology, she is the direct ancestor of the Japanese imperial family. In Shinto and Japanese mythology, Izanami gave humans death, so Izanami is sometimes seen as a shinigami. Name Her name is given in the () both as ''Izanami-no-Kami'' (伊弉冉神) and ''Izanami-no-Mikoto'' (伊邪那美命), while the (720 AD) refers to her as ''Izanami-no-Mikoto'', with the name written in different characters (伊弉冉尊). The names ''Izanagi'' (''Izanaki'') and ''Izanami'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Watatsumi
, also pronounced Wadatsumi, is a legendary ''kami'' (神, god; deity; spirit), Japanese dragon and tutelary water deity in Japanese mythology. is believed to be another name for the sea deity Ryūjin (龍神, Dragon God) and also for the , which rule the upper, middle and lower seas respectively and were created when Izanagi was washing himself of the dragons blood when he returned from Yomi, "the underworld". The main shrine is Shikaumi Shrine on Shika Island in Fukuoka Prefecture. Name The earliest written sources of Old Japanese transcribe the name of the sea god in a diverse manner. The c. 712 CE '' Kojiki'' (tr. Basil Hall Chamberlain 1883) writes it semantically as 海 神 lit. "sea god" and transcribes it phonetically with man'yōgana as Wata-tsu-mi, 綿 津 見, lit. "cotton port see" in identifying Ōwatsumi kami and the Watatsumi Sanjin. The c. 720 CE '' Nihongi'' (tr. William George Aston 1896) also writes Watatsumi as 海神 "sea god", along with 海� ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kuraokami
Okami (淤加美神, Okami-no-kami) in the ''Kojiki'', or in the ''Nihon Shoki'': or , is a legendary Japanese dragon and Shinto deity of rain and snow. In Japanese mythology, the sibling progenitors Izanagi and Izanami gave birth to the islands and gods of Japan. After Izanami died from burns during the childbirth of the fire deity Kagu-tsuchi, Izanagi was enraged and killed his son. Kagutsuchi's blood or body, according to differing versions of the legend, created several other deities, including Kuraokami. Name The name Kuraokami combines ''kura'' 闇 "dark; darkness; closed" and ''okami'' 龗 "dragon tutelary of water". This uncommon kanji ''(o)kami'' or ''rei'' 龗, borrowed from the Chinese character ''ling'' 龗 "rain-dragon; mysterious" (written with the "rain" radical 雨, 3 口 "mouths", and a phonetic of ''long'' 龍 "dragon") is a variant Chinese character for Japanese ''rei'' < Chinese ''ling'' [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Izumo Province
was an Old provinces of Japan, old province of Japan which today consists of the eastern part of Shimane Prefecture. It was sometimes called . The province is in the Chūgoku region. History During the early Kofun period (3rd century) this region was independent and constructed rectangular tumuli. But in the fourth century this region saw the construction of rectangular and key shaped tumuli. During the 6th or 7th century it was absorbed due to the expansion of the state of Yamato Province, Yamato, within which it assumed the role of a sacerdotal domain. Today, the Izumo Shrine constitutes (as does the Grand Shrine of Ise) one of the most important sacred places of Shinto: it is dedicated to ''kami'', especially to Ōkuninushi (''Ō-kuni-nushi-no-mikoto''), mythical progeny of Susanoo and all the clans of Izumo. The mythological mother of Japan, the goddess Izanami, is said to be buried on Mt. Hiba, at the border of the old provinces of Izumo and Hōki Province, Hōki, near mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amaterasu
, often called Amaterasu () for short, also known as and , is the goddess of the sun in Japanese mythology. Often considered the chief deity (''kami'') of the Shinto pantheon, she is also portrayed in Japan's earliest literary texts, the () and the (720 CE), as the ruler (or one of the rulers) of the heavenly realm Takamagahara and as the mythical ancestress of the Imperial House of Japan via her grandson Ninigi. Along with two of her siblings (the moon deity Tsukuyomi and the impetuous storm-god Susanoo) she ranks as one of the "Three Precious Children" (, ), the three most important offspring of the creator god Izanagi. Amaterasu's chief place of worship, the Grand Shrine of Ise in Ise, Mie Prefecture, is one of Shinto's holiest sites and a major pilgrimage center and tourist spot. As with other Shinto ''kami'', she is also enshrined in a number of Shinto shrines throughout Japan. Name The goddess is referred to as ''Amaterasu Ōmikami'' ( / ; historical orthogr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Takamimusubi
Takamimusubi (高御産巣日, lit. "High Generative Force") is a Creator deity, creation deity in Japanese mythology, who was the second of the Kotoamatsukami, first beings to come into existence. It is speculated that Takamimusubi was originally the tutelary deity for the Imperial House of Japan, Japanese imperial family. According to the Kojiki, Takamimusubi was a hitorigami. Mythology According to ''Kojiki'', when the Japanese creation myth, heaven and earth were created, Ame-no-Minakanushi was the first one to appear in Takamagahara, Takamimusubi the second, and Kamimusubi the third. Together with Amaterasu, he jointly rules the Takamagahara. One myth tells of a bird named Nakime who was sent down to earth to check in on Ame-no-wakahiko, Amewakahiko. Amewakahiko shot the bird with his bow. The arrow pierced through the bird, but the arrow flew all the way to heaven. Takamimusubi saw the arrow and threw it back at the earth where it hit Amewakahiko while he was lying in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shinto Kami
are the deities, divinities, spirits, mythological, spiritual, or natural phenomena that are venerated in the traditional Shinto religion of Japan. ''Kami'' can be elements of the landscape, forces of nature, beings and the qualities that these beings express, and/or the spirits of venerated dead people. Many ''kami'' are considered the ancient ancestors of entire clans (some ancestors became ''kami'' upon their death if they were able to embody the values and virtues of ''kami'' in life). Traditionally, great leaders like the Emperor could be or became ''kami''. In Shinto, ''kami'' are not separate from nature, but are of nature, possessing positive and negative, and good and evil characteristics. They are manifestations of , the interconnecting energy of the universe, and are considered exemplary of what humanity should strive towards. ''Kami'' are believed to be "hidden" from this world, and inhabit a complementary existence that mirrors our own: . To be in harmony with th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
