or in the '' Nihon Shoki'', also called or in the ''

Kojiki The , also sometimes read as or , is an early Japanese chronicle of myths, legends, hymns, genealogies, oral traditions, and semi-historical accounts down to 641 concerning the origin of the Japanese archipelago, the , and the Japanese imperia ...

'', refers to a netherworld in

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

. It is sometimes considered to be identical to Yomi, another netherworld in the myths as well as . There is no clear consensus on the relationship between these three realms. The god

Susanoo __FORCETOC__ Susanoo (; historical orthography: , ) is a in Japanese mythology. The younger brother of Amaterasu, goddess of the sun and mythical ancestress of the Japanese imperial line, he is a multifaceted deity with contradictory chara ...

is described as the ruler of Ne-no-kuni. There are differing accounts on how he assumed this position: According to the ''Kojiki'' when

Izanagi Izanagi (イザナギ/伊邪那岐/伊弉諾) or Izanaki (イザナキ), formally known as , is the creator deity (''kami are the deities, divinities, spirits, phenomena or "holy powers", that are venerated in the Shinto religion. They can b ...

tasked his children with the rule over the various realms:

Amaterasu Amaterasu, also known as Amaterasu Ōmikami () or Ōhirume no Muchi no Kami (), is the goddess of the sun in Japanese mythology. One of the major deities (''kami'') of Shinto, she is also portrayed in Japan's earliest literary texts, the ''Kojik ...

got the "Plain of the High Heaven" ('' Takamagahara''), Tsukuyomi got the "Dominion of the Night" (''Yoru-no-wosu-kuni''), and Susanoo got the . Susanoo ignored this command and kept crying over the loss of his dead mother Izanami, such that his weeping lead to death and destruction. As Susanoo wished, Izanagi expelled him to be near his mother in Ne-no-kata-su-kuni. In the previous episodes about Izanami's death this land is called Yomi. The ''Nihon Shoki'' mentions ''Ne-no-kuni'' in passing when describing an episode where Susanoo was banished from Takama-ga-hara for various evil acts he committed, and went to a place called ''(Soko-tsu-)Ne-no-kuni''. According to the ''Kojiki'' when Ōkuninushi visited Ne-no-kuni and insulted Susanoo he was submitted to overcome three ordeals, one being described to sleep in a house infested with snakes, centipedes and wasps. This is sometimes taken as another hint that Ne-no-kuni is a subterranean realm. One explanation of the myth contrasts the trials of Ōkuninushi to a symbolic death through rites of initiation that cause one to become reborn into a new life. In this story, death doesn't pollute, it regenerates. The land of the dead also contains the forces of life, '' tama''. The norito is an ancient Shinto prayer asking the gods to prevent the evil beings from to do any harm. The , also short , which is performed in the great purification ('' harae'') ceremony of the sixth month locates Ne-no-kuni-Soko-no-kuni in the , i.e. the ocean. Kunio Yanagita compared ''Ne no Kuni'' to the Niraikanai of the Ryukyuan religion. This paradisaical land is situated beyond the seas.

References

{{Reflist Afterlife places Locations in Japanese mythology Underworld Mythological places