Japanese Mythology · deity

Amaterasu

天照大御神

also: Amaterasu-ōmikami · Amaterasu-ōmikami · the Sun Goddess

deitysunheavenimperial ancestrywheatprosperity

The Sun Goddess and supreme deity of the Shinto high pantheon; ancestress of the Japanese imperial line and the central figure of the Heavenly Rock-Cave myth.

Luring the Sun Goddess Amaterasu Out of a Cave with Music; Death of the Fire God · Kōno Bairei · 19th century (Edo/Meiji) · The Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public domain (Met Open Access)

The account

Who they are

Amaterasu-ōmikami ('Great Divine Illuminator of Heaven') is the sun goddess and, in later Shinto, the highest deity of the pantheon and the mythic ancestress of the imperial house [S1]. In the Kojiki she is born from Izanagi's left hand (with the jewel) during the birth-sequence after the islands are formed, and she is sent to rule over the High Plain of Heaven [S1]. Her brother Susanoo's violent misconduct leads to his banishment from heaven; when he departs, Amaterasu, in grief and fear, withdraws into the Heavenly Rock-Cave (Ame-no-Ohafutsu), plunging the world into darkness. The other kami, led by the dancing goddess Ame-no-Uzume, lure her back out, restoring light [S1]. From her line descends the heavenly prince Ninigi and, ultimately, the Japanese emperors [S1][S2]. She is the patron of the Ise Grand Shrine and the symbolic center of state Shinto; the mirror Yata no Kagami, one of the three Imperial Regalia, is her emblem [S1].

Worth knowing

Born from Izanagi's left hand in the Kojiki's birth sequence [S1].
Her withdrawal into the Rock-Cave is the mythic explanation of the need to 'lure the sun back'—the origin of the cave-dance (kagura) [S1].
The mirror Yata no Kagami is her sacred emblem and one of the three Imperial Regalia [S1].
Ancestress of the imperial line through her grandson Ninigi [S1][S2].

Uncertainties & variants

The cave myth's details (which kami take which roles, the naming of the cave, the precise role of Takemikazuchi) differ between the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki [S1][S2].
Her status as the single 'supreme' deity is a later (medieval-modern) development; the Kojiki presents her as one of the high deities sent to rule a portion of the realms [S1][S2].

Relationships (16)

Connections

13 rows · 16 recorded edges — identical notes are grouped

Family & kinship

PARENT_OFIzanagi — Izanagi is a parent of the high deity born in the creation sequence.[S1] [S2]

PARENT_OFIzanami — Izanami is a parent of the high deity born in the creation sequence.[S1] [S2]

SIBLING_OFTsukuyomi · Susanoo · Kagutsuchi · Konohanasakuya-hime — Siblings among the high deities born of the creator pair.[S1] [S2]

PARENT_OFToyotama-hime — Amaterasu is the parent of the heavenly bride Toyotama-hime.[S1] [S2]

Conflict & enmity

ENEMY_OFTsukuyomi — Amaterasu is estranged from Tsukuyomi after he desecrates the weaving hall (the mythic separation of sun and moon).[S1] [S2]

ENEMY_OFSusanoo — Amaterasu and Susanoo are estranged after his violent misconduct; he is banished from heaven.[S1] [S2]

Alliances & rule

ASSOCIATED_WITHNinigi — Ninigi is Amaterasu's grandson, the sent-down heavenly prince.[S1] [S2]

ALLY_OFAme-no-Uzume — Ame-no-Uzume's dance lures Amaterasu out of the cave.[S1] [S2]

ALLY_OFTakemikazuchi — Takemikazuchi's clamor helps draw Amaterasu out.[S1] [S2]

Artifacts

GIFTEDSusanoo — Susanoo offers Kusanagi to Amaterasu.[[S1]]

OWNSKusanagi-no-Tsurugi — Kusanagi becomes a regalia of the imperial line.[[S1]]

OWNSYata no Kagami — Yata no Kagami is a regalia of the imperial line.[[S1]]

OWNSYasakani no Magatama — Yasakani no Magatama is a regalia of the imperial line.[[S1]]

Local graph

Their corner of the divine world

View

hierarchical — generations top → bottom, partners side by side

Overlays

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parentage
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far = primordials · medium = all · close = detail — scroll/pan, click a deity to focus

Myths featuring Amaterasu

3 stories

Izanagi and Izanami Form the Islands

The creator pair Izanagi and Izanami stand on the Floating Bridge of Heaven (Ame-no-ukihashi) and, with the jeweled spear Ame-no-nuhokohe, stir the brine of the deep sea; the salt that drips from the spear forms the first island, Onogoro [S1]. There they wed and, in a series of 'birthings,' produce the great islands of Japan (naming them as they are formed) and then the deities (kami) who attend them [S1]. The sequence of islands and the sequence of kami are given in the text, though the two lists differ between the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki [S1][S2].

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The Heavenly Rock-Cave (Amaterasu and the Dark World)

After his brother Susanoo is banished from the High Plain of Heaven for his violent misconduct, Amaterasu, in grief and fear, withdraws into the Heavenly Rock-Cave (Ame-no-Ohafutsu), and the world is plunged into darkness [S1]. The assembled kami devise a plan to lure her out: the goddess Ame-no-Uzume performs a dance (on an upturned tub), and with the clamor of the assembled deities (including the thunder god Takemikazuchi) and a held-out mirror, they provoke Amaterasu's curiosity and joy [S1]. She peers out to see what the commotion is, sees her own radiance in the mirror, and is drawn back into the light, restoring the world [S1]. This is the mythic origin of the kagura (ritual dance) and of the 'luring back of the sun' [S1][S2].

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The Descent of Ninigi (Tenson Kōryō)

The heavenly prince Ninigi, grandson of Amaterasu, is sent down from Takamagahara to take rule of the middle land (Ashihara-no-Nakatsukuni) [S1]. His descent (Tenson Kōryō) alights at Takachiho in Hyūga (Kyūshū) [S1]. Guided by the crossroads god Sarutahiko, he is confronted by Ōkuninushi's side (the Kuniyurinshi), after which the land is yielded [S1]. Ninigi takes the earthly bride Konohanasakuya-hime and later the heavenly bride Toyotama-hime (Amaterasu's daughter); their son Hooroni (Ōyahata) is the ancestor of the emperors [S1][S2]. The 'birth at sea' of Hooroni (Toyotama-hime giving birth in a hut at sea, whence the sea is born) is part of this descent narrative [S1].