Japanese Mythology

Japanese cosmogony and anthropogony
Oprea Corina
2nd year
History major
Completed in the year 712, The Kojiki is the oldest existing record of Japanese history,
and is a text that is vital to any discussion of ancient Japanese history.
Even if it were merely a historical record, the value of The Kojiki is unquestionable, as it
also is a collection of a large amount of Japanese mythology. The Kojiki begins during the
period known as Kamiyo (The Age of the Gods), starting with the Japanese creation myth. Other
myths include: Izanagi and Izanami’s creation of the islands of Japan and the myriad deities that
populated the heavens and this world.
The exploits of the gods included in The Kojiki lead to a record of the lineage of the
Imperial Family up to Empress Suiko (593 – 628 AD), and events that happened during each
emperor’s reign. In doing this, The Kojiki traces a path from mythology into historical record,
and while it is difficult to say at which point the stories pass from myth and legend into historical
fact, this blend of stories gives the reader many different windows into Japanese history and
culture.
Creation myth
This story is described first hand at the beginning of the Kojiki, the first book written in
Japan (712), and in the Nihon Shoki (720). Both form the literary basis of Japanese mythology
and Shinto; however, the story differs in some aspects between these works, with the most
accepted for the Japanese being the one of the Kojiki. Is the story that describes the legendary
birth of the celestial and earthly world, the birth of the first gods and the birth of the Japanese
archipelago.
When the world began, it was divided between Takamagahara, the heavens, and
Ashihara-no-nakatsukuni, the earth. Many gods came to be in the heavens, but the earth
remained a formless, chaotic mass, much like drops of oil floating on water, or jellyfish drifting
aimlessly. The gods in Takamagahara charged Izanagi and Izanami, (the first male and female
pair of gods to be born), with giving the world form and creating the deities that would populate
the heavens and the earth. After creating the islands that make up Japan, they set to creating the
myriad gods. Everything went well at first; the gods of the sea, the winds, the trees, the fields,
and the mountains were all born at this time. Then Izanami gave birth to the fire god Kagutsuchi,
and she suffered horrible burns that caused her to fall ill and eventually die.In anger, Izanagi
killed Kagutsuchi.
Izanagi buried Izanami on Mt. Hiba, which is on the border of Izumo and Hoki, and her
spirit descended to Yomi-no-kuni, the underworld. Now that Izanami was gone, Izanagi missed
her terribly. He decided to make the journey to Yomi-no-kuni and bring her back. He followed
the dark path to its gates, where Izanami came out to greet him.
At first, Izanagi could not see her for she was well hidden in the shadows. Nevertheless,
he asked her to return with him. Izanami spat at Izanagi and informed him that he was too late.
She had already eaten the food of the underworld and now belonged to the land of the dead.
Izanagi was shocked at this news, but he refused to give in to her wishes to be left to the
dark embrace of Yomi. Izanami agreed to return to the world but first requested to have some
time to rest. She instructed Izanagi to not come into her bedroom. After a long wait, Izanami did
not come out of her bedroom, and Izanagi was worried. While Izanami was sleeping, he took the
comb that bound his long hair and set it alight as a torch. Under the sudden burst of light, he saw
the horrid form of the once beautiful and graceful Izanami. The flesh of her ravaged body was
rotting and was overrun with maggots and foul creatures.
Crying out loud, Izanagi could no longer control his fear and started to run, intending to
return to the living and to abandon his death-ridden wife. Izanami woke up shrieking and
indignant and chased after him. Izanami instructed the shikome, or foul women, hunt for the
frightened Izanagi and to bring him back.
Izanagi burst through the entrance and quickly pushed a boulder to the entrance of Yomi.
Izanami screamed from behind this barricade and told Izanagi that, if he left her, she would
destroy 1,000 living people every day. He furiously replied that he would give life to 1,500.
And so began the existence of Death, caused by the hands of the proud Izanagi, the abandoned
wife Izanami.
As could be expected, Izanagi went on to purify himself after recovering from his descent
to Yomi. As he undressed and removed the adornments of his body, each item that he dropped
tothe ground formed a deity. Even more gods came into being when he went to the water to wash
himself. The most important ones were created once he washed his face:
Amaterasu (incarnation of the sun) from his left eye,
Tsukuyomi (incarnation of the moon) from his right eye, and
Susanoo (incarnation of storms) from his nose.
Izanagi went on to divide the world between them with Amaterasu inheriting the heavens,
Tsukuyomi taking control of the night and moon and the storm god Susanoo owning the seas. In
some versions of the myth, Susanoo rules not only the seas but also all elements of a storm,
including snow and hail, and, in rare cases, even sand.
The first human. The first emperor.
The Japanese story of creation leads not so much to the first man as to the first emperor -
not surprisingly, since the legends are collected and written down early in the 8th century AD by
command of the imperial family, eager to establish a direct link back to the gods. It transpires
that the gods have a lengthy and complex existence before we reach the emperor.
Sun goddess sends her grandson, Ninigi, to rule the Central Land of Reed Plains. This is
Japan.
Ninigi is granted three treasures as symbols of his rule - a jewelled necklace (symbolizing
benevolence), a mirror (purity) and a sword (courage). His great-grandson Jimmu-Tenno is listed
in Japanese legend as the first emperor. A necklace, mirror and sword are still the Japanese
imperial symbols, kept in an inner sanctuary of Shinto shrines.
Hitobashira (human pillar), practiced formerly in Japan, is a human sacrifice, buried

alive under or near large-scale buildings like dams, bridges, and castles, as a prayer to the gods
so that the building is not destroyed by natural disasters such as floods or by enemy attacks.
Hitobashira can also refer to workers who were buried alive under inhumane conditions.
Some of the earliest written records of hitobashira can be found in the Nihon Shoki (The
Chronicles of Japan). One story centered on Emperor Nintoku (323 A.D.) discusses the
overflowing of the Kitakawa and Mamuta Rivers. Protection against the torrent was beyond the
ability of the stricken populace. According to the tradition, a woman who was carrying a boy on
her back was caught while she was passing along the river Nagara, she was buried at the place
where a large bridge was then to be built. Hitobashira traditions are almost always connected
with complex and dangerous projects that were required to be built and mostly with water. The
stories of hitobashira were believed to inspire a spirit of self-sacrifice in people.
Stories of hitobashira and other human sacrifices were common in Japan as late as the
sixteenth century. Currently, hitobashira is no longer practiced in construction.

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Japanese cosmogony and anthropogony

Amaterasu (incarnation of the sun) from his left eye,

Tsukuyomi (incarnation of the moon) from his right eye, and

Susanoo (incarnation of storms) from his nose.

The first human. The first emperor.

Hitobashira (human pillar), practiced formerly in Japan, is a human sacrifice, buried

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