is a female ''

kami are the Deity, deities, Divinity, divinities, Spirit (supernatural entity), spirits, mythological, spiritual, or natural phenomena that are venerated in the traditional Shinto religion of Japan. ''Kami'' can be elements of the landscape, forc ...

'' in

Japanese mythology Japanese mythology is a collection of traditional stories, folktales, and beliefs that emerged in the islands of the Japanese archipelago. Shinto traditions are the cornerstones of Japanese mythology. The history of thousands of years of contac ...

. Her name means "crying weeping female". During the myth of the Birth of the Gods, in which the goddess

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 ...

died after giving birth to the fire deity

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. ...

, Izanagi clung to his wife's dead body and cried. From his tears, Nakisawame emerged. She is considered a spirit of spring water. According to the Shinto creation myth, she lives at the foot of Mount Kagu. In the ''Kojiki'' she is also named . The mentions the , located in Kinomoto,

Kashihara, Nara file:Kashihara City Hall.jpg, 280px, Kashihara City Hall is a Cities of Japan, city located in Nara Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 118,674 in 56,013 households, and a population density of 3000 persons per km2. The ...

, nicknamed , in which Nakisawame is enshrined.

References

{{reflist Amatsukami Japanese goddesses