MOST POPULAR JAPANESE LEGENDS AND MYTHS

In Japanese mythology there is a large presence of fantastic creatures and beings, which are an important part of the daily life of the Japanese. Japanese myths are the essence of much art, theater and literature, and people still learn and tell stories about gods and goddesses.

Japanese Myths

Japanese mythology is an extremely complex structure of creeds. The Shinto mausoleum itself is made up of a large collection of kami (“deities” or “spirits” in the Japanese language). Despite the influence of ancient Chinese culture, a certain important part of Japanese religion and cosmogony is unique.

It is composed of Shinto and Buddhist traditions as well as popular agricultural doctrines. On the other hand, and in contrast to Greek, Norse and Egyptian mythology, it is somewhat difficult to differentiate which is truly a “myth” for the Japanese.

Common Japanese myths are based on the Kojiki, the Nihonshoki and certain supplementary books. The Kojiki, which literally means “notes of ancient things,” is the oldest recognized book about myths, stories and the chronicle of Japan and the Nihonshoki is the second oldest. The Shintoshu describes the origins of Japanese gods from a Buddhist point of view while the Hotsuma Tsutae presents a different version of the mythology.

An obvious effect of the Japanese cosmogony is that it outlines the origin of the royal family, and exposes them as divine descent. The Japanese term for Emperor in Japan, tennō (天皇), means “Heavenly Sovereign” (the symbol 天 means “heaven”).

Writing of Own Names

Numerous divinities are shown in the contexts of Japanese mythology, many of them having a multiplicity of aliases, some of their names being very long. The most notable ones are detailed here, which we also show in their abbreviated style.

Namely, Ninigi, or Ame-Nigishikuni-Nigishiamatsuhiko-Hikono-no-Ninigi-no-Mikoto, can equally be summarized as: Hikoho-no-Ninigi or Hono-Ninigi. In certain parts of this article, the proper names are written in a historical manner. underlined h, y, and w indicate silent letters; are omitted in modern pronunciation. This agreement is particular to this article. Certain syllables are updated as indicated here:

hu is updated as fu. zi and di are updated as ji. (the difference disappears) zu and du are updated as tsu. (the difference disappears) oo is updated as ou oh.

For example, Ohonamudi can be pronounced as Ohonamuji, Oonamuji, Ohnamuji, among others. Because of historical reasons, k, s, t, and h are sometimes confused with g, z, d, and b respectively. Therefore, in certain pronunciations of Ohonamudi, Ohonamuti and Ohonamuchi are included.

Japanese Creation Myths

The original gods summoned two celestial creatures to life, the male Izanagi and the female Izanami, and were tasked with creating the initial earth. To assist them in this, Izanagi and Izanami were given a jeweled spear, called Amenonuhoko (spear of the firmament). From that moment, the two gods went to the bridge between Heaven and Earth, Amenoukihashi (floating bridge of the firmament) and stirred the ocean with the spear.

As the drops of salt water fell from the tip of the spear, they formed the Inojoro Island (self-formed). They came down from the firmament bridge and built their house on the island. Since they longed to unite, they raised a pillar called Amenomihashira and around it they erected a palace named Yahirodono (the enclosure whose surface area is 8 arms).

Izanagi and Izanami walked around the pillar in opposite directions and upon meeting, Izanami, the female goddess, spoke first with a greeting. Izanagi considered that this was not the appropriate way, however they joined together anyway. They fathered two children, Hiruko (water child) and Awashima (bubble island), but they were ill-conceived and were not accepted as gods.

They placed the children on a boat and sent them out to sea. It was when they asked the other divinities for an answer about what they did improperly. They answered that the male god must have started the talk at the “Bonding Ceremony.” In such a way that Izanagi and Izanami went around the pillar again, and this time, when they met, Izanagi spoke initially and their marriage was successful.

From this link was generated the ohoyashima, or the eight enormous islands of the Japanese chain:

Awazi Iyo (later called Shikoku) Ogi Tsukusi (later called Kyushu) Iki Tsushima Sado Yamato (later called Honshu)

It should be noted that Hokkaidō, Chishima, and Okinawa were not part of Japan in ancient times. Six more islands were created and many gods. However, Izanami perished while giving birth to the child Kagutsuchi (personification of fire) or Ho-Masubi (initiator of fire).

She was buried on “Mount Hiba”, on the borders of the old regions of Izumo and Hōki, near Yasugi in Shimane Prefecture. Angered, Izanagi murdered Kagutsuchi. His death also created dozens of gods. The gods begotten by Izanagi and Izanami are symbolic about relevant aspects of nature and culture, but they are too many to mention here.

So much for this explanation of the origins of Japanese deities, which are the greatest source for Japanese legends and myths. They merge chronicles of animated umbrellas with illustrated but aggressive turtles, which means that Japanese folklore contains some stories with extremely creative monsters. If we compare the anthology of creatures from Japan, Western folklore might seem a bit monotonous.

Popular Japanese Myths

Recognizing when one of the Japanese myths is popular is very difficult in this culture, since whatever the deity or fantastic character, most of them have a sanctuary either at a religious level or at the level of media worship or customs. popular.

Hachiman in Japanese Mythology

Hachiman is considered the god of samurai fighters (not of war) and of archery shooting in Japanese cosmogony despite the fact that, strangely, his origin is not found in traditional Japanese manuscripts. This myth originated after the death of the first emperor Ojín, who was elevated to god and rebaptized.

His final origin is in the union between the Shinto deity of war and the Buddhist creeds from China, a country where he is known as Great Bodhisattva Hachiman, defender of the devotees of the Lotus Sutra.

The Shinto manifestations of Japan also have him as the deity of agriculture and the protector of Japan, responsible for preserving the peace, prosperity and well-being of its inhabitants. The dove is the animal that symbolizes him and the one that serves as his messenger. In battles, traditional drums called Odaiko were played and it was thought that Hachiman’s soul resided in the sound of the drums and the clash of swords in battle.

Hachimán, whose name means “Deity of the 8 banners” referring to the eight divine banners that warned and marked the birth of the initial emperor Ojin, is also protector of the lives of men. And in certain regions of the country even the sailors and fishermen who adore him as their guide and teacher and whom they implore when it comes to a profitable day of fishing.

Another community that adores Hachiman is that of farmers and peasants, whom he defends and protects. Its importance is immense, with some 25,000 temples built in its name in Japan alone, and there are many cities, towns and villages whose name is linked to Hachiman.

Namazu, The Japanese God of Earthquakes

Ancient Japanese myths tell that the person responsible for making the earth shake causing earthquakes and tsunamis is Namazu, a huge catfish that lives underground. Namazu is a being belonging to the yokai or Japanese mythological beasts, linked to calamities and all kinds of misfortunes.

But before Namazu transformed into a horrifying and enormous fish, in the most remote tradition he was known as Sakana mono-iu, his dimensions were normal and he had the gift of communicating with humans, even becoming one. from them. The waters reigned and it was said that the person who dared to catch it would experience the most terrible of adversities.

Namazu, as the deity of earthquakes, has uncontrollable strength and barely the god Kashima can contain him. The enormous saluro, or catfish, loves to cause destruction with the movements of its immense tail.

If Namazu’s bad character is to be contained, Kashima, a divinity who protects the Japanese from earthquakes and the rampages of the great catfish, must support a stone of great size and weight over Namazu with his fantastic forces so that it remains. calm both him and his tail.

This divine stone is called Kaname ishi, and Japanese cosmogony considers it as the point where all the gods intersect and the defensive territory of the spiritual world that keeps the negative energies of mother nature under control, among which There are earthquakes.

However, Kashima could not hold the rock down forever. Sometimes she would become careless, or tired, or would have to respond to her other duties with the other gods. It was on these occasions that Namazu would do his thing and cause tremors, creating panic among the inhabitants.

Immediately, Kashima responded and put pressure on Namizu again by sitting down or applying pressure with the stone. During the months of October, Kashima had to attend the Izumo temple to hold important meetings with other deities. To do this he turns to Ebisu, a calm and peaceful goddess, famous for being one of the divinities of good fortune.

With such a temperament it is evident that Ebisu was not appropriate to control a being like Namazu. In such a way that she, as well as she could, tried to dominate the powerful movements of the catfish without much success until Kashima arrived. This is the explanation for a strong earthquake, its repetitions and subsequent disappearance.

Stories about the Tengu, Japanese Goblins

The tengu are little genies of the Japanese peaks and forests. Its appearance has changed over the years. Initially they were figured as supernatural birds (similar to a crow or bird of prey), but since the 8th century they took a hybrid form between human and bird, and later an almost totally human figure, in which only wings and wings remain from their ornithological past. an aquiline nose of uneven size. In all these forms it appears in myths.

Tengu possess certain magical powers, particularly excelling in invoking complex illusions that appear true. They can camouflage themselves as humans, usually as a monk. But what is most curious about them is perhaps their quality as eminent swordsmen. On occasions they share their art with the heroes of…