And, yet Ame no Uzume is singing and dancing[xliii] and getting nekkid out here and all of you can see it and are laughing! [xxxv] In Old Japanese, Inbe was pronounced Imibe. When Amaterasu peeked out to see what the commotion was, she was told there was a new god and was directed to look at the mirror. They also ordered two priestly kami, 布刀玉命 Futo Tama no Mikoto and 天児屋命 Ame no Koyane no Mikoto[xxxii], to climb 天香久山 Ame no Kaguyama[xxxiii] Mt. Amanokagu. Slowly, the Earth began to wither and die, causing demons to crawl from the underworld and wreak their own chaos upon the people, plants, and animals upon its surface. First, it sparked renewed interest in the Rock Cave Myth among court nobles and subsequently among Shintō shrines associated with the Yamato Court. The brother’s incessant crying (storms and rains) made the trees wither and the rivers run dry[viii]. He kills her priestess preparing the cultic offering usually given in exchange for a good harvest. Don’t even wait. Amaterasu is apparently offended quite … Again, this kami is quite the conundrum. The term Kagura is supposedly derived from 神 kami and 楽 raku/gaku music/entertainment/leisure. First, the gods gathered together a bunch of roosters to crow in hopes that they could trick the sun into rising again. He undoes cosmic order by destroying the agricultural cycle by “unweaving” Amaterasu’s divine order. [xx] Priestesses, not just any ol’ woman off the street, mind you. [iii] These days, Tsuda’s take on Japanese mythology seems quite cynical, as he seemed to interpret many characters and actions in the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki as mytho-historic political machinations within the Yamato Court. This time we’ll look at the most famous legend in all of Japan, that of Amaterasu, the sun goddess and divine ancestor of the emperors of Japan. Metal-working, and mirrors specifically, were foreign technologies and at one time were so rare and expensive, that it seems inevitable they were assigned magical and spiritual values. She may rule during a state of war, but she does not fight herself. [xliv] Remember, mirrors are a symbol of the sun kami. I do this for free, so if you like what I do, feel free to make a donation down below). [xvii] We’ll probably come back to stages 3 and 4 in a future installment – probably next year. AMATERASU & THE CAVE. All in all, seven kami are specifically listed as present at the encampment outside of the Rock Cave, all of them trying to coax Amaterasu to come outside. [ii] I’m not joking. The sound is … Furthermore, we see descriptions of Shintō rituals – either the origins of them or hints that these rites and beliefs existed prior to the compilation of these myths in the 7th century. [iv] Orthography is “spelling.”[v] Ne no Katasu no Kuni; it’s unclear if this is the same of different than the Land of Yomi. The ancient Japanese name is unwieldy, so I’ll use the Chinese reading San Kishi[xv] if I ever have to refer to them again. Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye. To this day, you’ll still find mirrors in the 拝殿 haiden front hall and/or 本殿 honden main hall[xxxviii] of most Shintō shrines. [vi] The name of the necklace is 御倉板挙之神 Mikuratana no Kami. When they were ready, the divine ones gathered outside the cave of the Sun Goddess. If this is true, then including Susano’o’s troubled early years is a kind of foreshadowing of his ultimate destiny. The great 20th century historian Tsuda Sōkichi thought that Susano’o could be interpreted as a purely political actor in these myths and that he represented a faction of the Yamato Court that rebelled or went rogue, which is why he is portrayed as selfish and destructive[iii]. Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye. Next, he shits in her dining room and throws poo everywhere. This is a reference to an ancient type of divination called 占 uranai[xl]. Amanokagu to remove the whole shoulder of a male deer and gather up bird cherry wood[xxxiv] in order to perform divination rituals[xxxv]. Amaterasu’s disappearance brought total disaster into the world, where evil spirits tried to destroy everything. We will soon see that, it isn’t going through the motions of using sacred objects and chanting that will coax Amaterasu out of the Rock-Cave, it will be the impromptu striptease that comes up next. [xix] Compare to Queen Himiko who reigned in the first half of the 3rd century, only appearing in ancient Chinese records. The dancing style perfected by the Surume eventually evolved into 神楽 kagura shrine dancing[xxxvi]. Anyone from any agrarian society can tell you this[xxxiv]. Interestingly, all of the, I find this assessment kind of orientalist. The imps seem to have taken advantage of the naturally-for… If you’ve ever been to 宮島 Miyajima in Hiroshima, you’ve probably been to the famous shrine 厳島神社 Itsukushima Jinja Itsukushima Shrine. The god of strength, who was hiding beside the door, seized her and pulled out of the cave by her arm, and this suddenly brought light back to the heavens and earth. Is the Rock Cave Myth simply a solar myth? Things go so badly, that Amaterasu hides in the Heavenly Rock Cave, thus plunging the world into darkness. In the Rock Cave Myth, we see a crystallization of Shintō ritual and Shintō symbolism. And with that Izanagi disappeared from the world[xv]. After that, all the kami had a meeting and decided to kick Susano’o out of the Central Land of Reeds forever. Anyhoo, I think we can all agree the connection is obvious. If Japanese gods teach us anything, it’s how to observe rituals correctly. The roosters always woke me up on time. The One Who Makes the Heavens Shine; Heaven-Illuminating Great Deity. He proceeded to raged with victory by breaking down the ridges between Amaterasu’s rice paddies[xix] causing them to flood. Amaterasu later finds the sapling in a cave blocked by a rock which needs a Cherry Bomb. Amaterasu sought refuge in a cave within the mountains, refusing to shine her light and joy upon the world anymore. And lastly, he destroys the sacred rice paddies which deprive the people of food and the offerings they need to ask for good luck during the harvest and for the cold winter when resources are scarce – ultimately bankrupting and potentially starving the world. Amaterasu is enshrined at Ise and Emperor Tenmu strongly supported her cult. “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. You’ve been warned. She is also very intelligent, as when she encounters Rao at Queen Himiko's throne room, she figures out that she is the demon lord Ninetails. [xiv] By the way, the Nihon Shoki claims Susano’o has three sons, not daughters. The Yamato Court found it so valuable, in fact, that they had courtiers who oversaw such rituals and thought it important enough to include in the Kojiki. One other image they may have had in mind is the 大嘗祭 daijō-sai Imperial Accession Ceremony which developed out of the Festival of the First Fruits[xxi]. While any information gleaned from these kinds of acts was meaningless, a lot of cultures have considered it valuable for millennia. If we accept the version in the Nihon Shoki, where it’s Amaterasu who gets banged in the pussy by the heavenly weaving loom and dies (as opposed to Amaterasu’s maiden/priestess), we can see the Rock Cave Myth as the death and burial of the sun-goddess, followed by the other kami performing a ritual correctly in order to resurrect her. And thus, the sun was restored to both the Heavenly High Plain and Central Land of Plain of Reeds, and the natural order of things returned[xlvi]. That is, until they realized they had all the armies and local villages and the courtiers in Kyōto were just a bunch of pussies who didn’t respect them and ordered them around. [xl] This was /ɯɾanapʰi̥/ in Old Japanese. Susanoo eventually earned redemption by killing a terrible dragon. [xxiii] Because who the fuck would take a dump in someone’s dining room and then throw the shit all over the place?? We see Amenokoyane and Futotama perform these same roles in front of the Rock Cave. It should also be noted that Japan has traditionally been a very, how shall we say, prurient culture. The second is that the custom predates the introduction of 洋産業  yōsangyō sericulture (ie; silk culture), or at least the widespread cultivation of silkworms in Japan. The time Amaterasu spent in the cave was the first winter and, while subsequent seasons would never be as dark and cold as when Amaterasu hid herself in the cave, each year she dimmed again. In recent years, especially during the 64 Tōkyō Olympics and the 98 Nagano Olympics, great effort was made by the government to shield foreigners and foreign press from the casual presence of the sex industry, even going so far as to shutting down entire red-light districts. While Amaterasu is overseeing this important ritual activity to ensure a good harvest and healthy winter for all, her dickhead brother goes out and finds a baby horse and flays it alive. In fact, he cried so much that it caused the green mountains to turn brown and the rivers and seas to dry up[xi]. As in other representations of the Midwinter Mystery, such as the Western Christmas, the fundamental element is the (re)birth of the Light. This mountain is located in 奈良県橿原市 Nara-ken Kashihara-shi Kashihara City, Nara Prefecture. They collected cocks, whose crowing precedes the dawn, and hung a mirror and jewels on a sakaki tree in front of the cave. Thanks for sharing all your research. I told you that the kami were self-absorbed and capricious, but things are going to get truly bizarre now. This darkness brings misery to both the kami and all other living things. Once she did that, however, the world was plunged into darkness, as she was its sun. Once she did that, however, the world was plunged into darkness, as she was its sun. The most famous myth involving her took place when her brother Susano-o attacked her temple in a drunken rage and killed several of her priestesses. She decorated her hair and arms with long strings decorated with priceless magatama beads. Eventually, she was persuaded to leave the cave. Amaterasu was the last god released in Season 2. This is foreshadowing. I had no idea the origins of this story was so complicated. “Are you freaking kidding me?” Izanagi roared. All right, let’s get into it! [xxix] In the Kojiki just calls this stone a heavenly hard rock. A lot of scholars get boners for this sort of thing, but I’m not even half-mast about it, so…. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! [xlv] In Japanese, this magic rope is called 尻久米縄 shirikume nawa ass-shroud rope. I made up the kitty litter box part. For narrative purposes, the assembly of deities at the Heavenly River in front of the Heavenly Rock-Cave is just to get everyone together to figure out what to do about Amaterasu. [xxii] OK, I have to be honest. I view “Japanese solve problems in groups/act in groups” as weak as “Japanese are good at copying, but not innovation.”[xxxii] Minus Hiruko/Ebisu, of course. He’s a major player, and one day, I’ll get to him, I’m sure. Who knows? Anyone familiar with the extreme formality of most Shintō dance and other rituals immediately will find this shocking. The death of the weaving maiden is often thought to be a substitute for the death of Amaterasu and a foreshadowing of her symbolic death in the Rock Cave.

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