Izanami
Izanami (イザナミ), formally referred to with the honorific Izanami-no-Mikoto (
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Shinto |
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Izanami-no-Mikoto | |
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Primordial goddess of creation and death | |
![]() Searching the Seas with the Tenkei ( | |
Other names | Izanami-no-Kami ( |
Japanese | |
Major cult center | Taga Taisha |
Texts | Kojiki, Nihon Shoki, Sendai Kuji Hongi |
Gender | Female |
Region | Japan |
Genealogy | |
Parents | None (Kojiki, Nihon Shoki) Aokashikine-no-Mikoto (Shoki) Awanagi-no-Mikoto (Shoki) Omodaru and Ayakashikone.[1] |
Siblings | Izanagi |
Consort | Izanagi |
Children | Amaterasu Tsukuyomi Susanoo Hiruko Kagu-tsuchi (and others) |
Name
[edit]Her name is given in the Kojiki (c. 712 AD) both as Izanami-no-Kami (
The names Izanagi (Izanaki) and Izanami are often interpreted as being derived from the verb izanau (historical orthography izanafu) or iⁿzanap- from Western Old Japanese 'to invite', with -ki / -gi and -mi being taken as masculine and feminine suffixes, respectively.[2][3][4] The literal translation of Iⁿzanaŋgî and Iⁿzanamî are 'Male-who-invites' and 'Female-who-invites'.[5][6] Shiratori Kurakichi proposed an alternative theory which instead sees the root iza- (or rather isa-) to be derived from isao (historical orthography: isawo) meaning 'achievement' or 'merit'.[7]
Goddess of creation
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Japanese_Primordial_Deities-en.svg/170px-Japanese_Primordial_Deities-en.svg.png)
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/Japan_yashima.png/220px-Japan_yashima.png)
The first gods Amenominakanushi and Kunitokotachi summoned two divine beings into existence, the male Izanagi and the female Izanami, and charged them with creating the first land. To help them do this, Izanagi and Izanami were given a spear decorated with jewels, named Amenonuhoko (heavenly spear). The two deities then went to the bridge between heaven and earth, Ame-no-ukihashi ("floating bridge of heaven"), and churned the sea below with the spear. When drops of salty water fell from the spear, Onogoroshima was created. They descended from the bridge of heaven and made their home on the island.[8]
Eventually they wished to be mated, so they built a pillar called Ame-no-mihashira (
They put the children into a boat and set them out to sea, then petitioned the other gods for an answer as to what they did wrong. They were told that the male deity should have spoken first in greeting during the marriage ceremony. So Izanagi and Izanami went around the pillar again, this time Izanagi speaking first when they met, and their marriage was finally successful.
From their union were born the Ōyashima, or the "great eight islands" of the Japanese chain:
They bore six more islands and many deities. Izanami died giving birth to the child Kagu-tsuchi (incarnation of fire) or Ho-Musubi (causer of fire).[10] She was then buried on Mt. Hiba, at the border of the old provinces of Izumo and Hōki, near modern-day Yasugi of Shimane Prefecture. Izanagi was so angry at the death of his wife that he killed the newborn child, thereby creating dozens of deities.
In the Kojiki
[edit]The Kojiki talks of the death of Izanami and her tomb, which was located at the boundary between country Izumo and Hōki. It implies that Izanami transferred her soul to an animal and a human before her death, but does not state whether or not Izanami had incarnations.[11]
Death and the underworld
[edit]Izanagi-no-Mikoto lamented the death of Izanami-no-Mikoto and undertook a journey to Yomi ("the shadowy land of the dead"). He searched for Izanami-no-Mikoto and found her. At first, Izanagi-no-Mikoto could not see her for the shadows hid her appearance. He asked her to return with him. Izanami-no-Mikoto informed Izanagi-no-Mikoto that he was too late. She had already eaten the food of the underworld and was now one with the land of the dead. She could no longer return to the living but would try to ask for permission to leave.[12]
The news shocked Izanagi-no-Mikoto, but he refused to leave her in Yomi. While Izanami-no-Mikoto 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-no-Mikoto. She was now a rotting form of flesh with maggots and foul creatures running over her ravaged body.
Crying out loud, Izanagi-no-Mikoto could no longer control his fear and started to run, intending to return to the living and abandon his death-ridden wife. Izanami-no-Mikoto woke up, shrieking and indignant, and chased after him. She also sent Yakusa-no-ikazuchi-no-kami (demons who are like Raijin) and shikome (foul women) to hunt for Izanagi-no-Mikoto and bring him back to Yomi. At this time, Izanagi throws a peach to drive away the gods. This narrative feature is of Chinese influence: in China, the peach is treated as a sacred amulet fruit.[citation needed]
Izanagi-no-Mikoto burst out of the entrance and pushed a boulder in the mouth of the Yomotsuhirasaka (
Izanami-no-Mikoto screamed from behind this impenetrable barricade and told Izanagi-no-Mikoto that if he left her she would destroy 1,000 residents of the living every day. He furiously replied he would give life to 1,500 residents.
Izanagi is said to have performed ritualistic cleansing, harai, after witnessing the decomposing body of his wife. This is the traditional explanation for the purification rituals often performed at Shinto shrines in Japanese religion, where shrine-goers wash themselves with water before entering the sacred space.[13] While he bathed, Izanagi gave birth to the sun goddess, Amaterasu, from his left eye, the moon god, Tsukuyomi, from his right eye, and the storm god, Susanoo, from his nose.[10]
In the Nihonshoki
[edit]While similar in many aspects, the version of the tale of Izanagi and Izanami in the Nihonshoki differs from the Kojiki version in that Izanagi does not descend into the Underworld (Yomi), instead residing permanently on the island of Awaji in a temple. Additionally, in the Nihonshoki, the three deities Amaterasu, Tsukiyomi, and Susanoo were said to have been created by both Izanagi and Izanami, instead of Izanagi alone.[14]
In popular culture
[edit]Izanami appears as a playable god in the video game Smite.[15] She also, alongside Amaterasu and Susanoo, appears in the video game DKO (Divine Knockout). Izanami is a recurring important character in the Megami Tensei video game series.
Genealogy
[edit]Kuni-no-Tokotachi | |||||||||||||||||||||
Toyokumo | |||||||||||||||||||||
Uhibi | Suhiji | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tsunugi | Ikugu | ||||||||||||||||||||
Ihodonoji | Otonobe | ||||||||||||||||||||
Omodaru | Ayakashikone | ||||||||||||||||||||
Izanagi | Izanami | ||||||||||||||||||||
See also
[edit]- Atago Gongen
- Baba Yaga
- Mount Hiba
- Orpheus and Eurydice
- Persephone
- Shinto in popular culture
- Twins in mythology
References
[edit]- ^ "Encyclopedia of Shinto - Home : Kami in Classic Texts : Omodaru, Ayakashikone". eos.kokugakuin.ac.jp. Retrieved 2021-01-17.
- ^ Kadoya, Atsushi; Yumiyama, Tatsuya. "Izanami". Encyclopedia of Shinto. Kokugakuin University. Retrieved 2024-03-23.
- ^ Phillipi, Donald L. (1969). Kojiki. Tokyo: University of Tokyo Press. p. 482.
- ^ Chamberlain (1882). Section II.—The Seven Divine Generations.
- ^ Philippi, Donald L. (1968). Kojiki. p. 480.
- ^ Chamberlain, Basil Hall (1919). The Kojiki. p. 19.
- ^ Matsumura, Takeo (1955).
日本 神話 の研究 ,第 2巻 (Nihon shinwa no kenkyu, vol. 2). Baifūkan. p. 56. - ^ Takeshi, Matsumae (2005). "Izanagi and Izanami". Encyclopedia of Religion. 7: 4754 – via Gale Virtual Reference Library.
- ^ Kojiki, Translated with an Introduction and Notes by DONALD L. PHILIPPI. Princeton University Press, University of Tokyo Press. 1969. p. 63.
- ^ a b c "Izanagi and Izanami". Britannica Encyclopedia of World Religions: 578. 2006 – via ProQuest Ebook Central.
- ^ "Izanagi and Izanami". JapanKnowledge Lib. NetAdvance Inc.
- ^ a b Kobayashi, Fumihiko (2015). "Japanese Animal-Wife Tales: Narrating Gender Reality in Japanese Folktale Tradition". International Folkloristics. 9 – via ProQuest Ebook Central.
- ^ "Izanagi and Izanami". Britannica Encyclopedia of World Religions: 439. 2006 – via ProQuest Ebook Central.
- ^ Takeshi, Matsumae (2005). Jones, Lindsay (ed.). "Izanagi and Izanami". Encyclopedia of Religion. 7. Detroit, MI: Macmillan Reference, USA: 4754–4755.
- ^ "Izanami - Matron of the Dead". www.smitegame.com. Retrieved 2022-11-04.
- Reader, Ian (2008). Simple Guides: Shinto. Kuperard. pp. 53–55. ISBN 978-1-85733-433-3.
External links
[edit]Media related to Izanami at Wikimedia Commons
- Izanami on the Japanese History Database.