Japanese Mythology · deity

Susanoo

須佐之男命

also: Susanoo-no-Mikoto · Suso-no-o · the Storm God

deitystormseawarthe hero-slayer of monsters

The storm and sea god, younger brother of Amaterasu; famed for slaying the eight-headed serpent Yamata-no-Orochi and for his role in the subjugation of the island (Kuniyurinshi).

Susanoo-no-Mikoto Slays Yamata-no-Orochi in Izumo · Tsukioka Yoshitoshi · c. 1880 (Meiji) · Wikimedia Commons · Public domain

The account

Who they are

Susanoo-no-Mikoto ('Fierce Male of the Waves') is the storm/sea god, the last and most violent of the three high deities born of the creator pair [S1]. In the Kojiki his disruptive misconduct (desecrating the heavenly rice fields and weaving hall) leads to his banishment from Takamagahara to the earthly realm [S1]. On his way down to Izumo he meets the weeping parents of a family whose daughters are being devoured by the eight-headed, eight-tailed serpent Yamata-no-Orochi; Susanoo slays the beast, and in its tail finds the sword Kusanagi (Ame-murakumo-no-tsurugi) [S1]. He rescues and marries the last daughter, Kushinada-hime [S1]. Later he takes part in the subjugation of the island deity Ōkuninushi (the Kuniyurinshi), working with the thunder god Takemikazuchi [S1]. He is thus a liminal, violent, and heroic figure—storm, sea, and monster-slayer—whose transgressions and triumphs both define him [S1][S2].

Worth knowing

Slays the eight-headed serpent Yamata-no-Orochi and finds the sword Kusanagi in its tail [S1].
Banished from Takamagahara for desecrating the heavenly fields and weaving hall [S1].
Co-acts with Takemikazuchi in the subjugation of Ōkuninushi (Kuniyurinshi) [S1].

Uncertainties & variants

The ordering of his exploits (Orochi-slaying vs. the Kuniyurinshi) and some details differ between the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki [S1][S2].
The identity and exact role of the 'sword' he obtains and carries (Kusanagi) is treated differently in the two texts [S1][S2].

Relationships (13)

Connections

10 rows · 13 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_OFAmaterasu · Tsukuyomi · Kagutsuchi · Konohanasakuya-hime — Siblings among the high deities born of the creator pair.[S1] [S2]

Partners

PARTNER_OFKushinada-hime — Susanoo marries the rescued Kushinada-hime.[S1] [S2]

PARTNER_OFKushinada-hime — Kushinada-hime marries Susanoo (symmetric).[S1] [S2]

Conflict & enmity

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

KILLEDYamata-no-Orochi — Susanoo slays the eight-headed serpent Yamata-no-Orochi.[S1] [S2]

FOUGHTŌkuninushi — Susanoo takes part in the subjugation of Ōkuninushi (Kuniyurinshi).[S1] [S2]

Artifacts

FOUNDKusanagi-no-Tsurugi — Susanoo draws Kusanagi from the tail of Yamata no Orochi.[[S1]]

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

Local graph

Their corner of the divine world

View

hierarchical — generations top → bottom, partners side by side

Overlays

FocusSusanooJapanese

zoom 2.34× · medium

parentage
marriage ♥

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

Myths featuring Susanoo

4 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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Susanoo Slayes Yamata-no-Orochi

On his way down from the banished heaven to the earthly realm (Izumo), Susanoo meets the weeping parents of a family whose daughters are being devoured by the eight-headed, eight-tailed serpent Yamata-no-Orochi; seven of the eight daughters have already been eaten, and the last, Kushinada-hime, is next [S1]. Susanoo asks for her hand, turns himself into a hair-comb, and has her wear it in her hair [S1]. He prepares eight vats of sweetened sake and sets out eight cutting-stations; when the serpent drinks and comes to drink, Susanoo slays it, and in its tail he finds the sword Kusanagi (Ame-murakumo-no-tsurugi) [S1]. He rescues Kushinada-hime and marries her [S1]. This is the archetypal Japanese monster-slaying myth and the origin of the sacred sword Kusanagi [S1][S2].

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The Subjugation of the Country (Kuniyurinshi)

When the heavenly prince Ninigi is sent down to rule the middle land, the indigenous island god Ōkuninushi and his retinue (led by the crossroads god Sarutahiko) resist the heavenly takeover [S1]. A contest ensues, centered on the throwing of the sword: the thunder god Takemikazuchi throws the sword (Kusanagi) from the high land to the middle land, hitting the target and demonstrating the heavenly gods' strength [S1]. Sarutahiko, carrying the sword, is subdued, and Ōkuninushi is defeated; he yields the land and hands over the three sacred regalia (mirror, jewel, sword) as pledge [S1]. Thereafter Ōkuninushi becomes a local deity of the earth, healing, and agriculture (especially in Izumo), while the heavenly line takes sovereignty [S1][S2]. This is the mythic foundation of the transfer of rule from the indigenous to the heavenly/imperial line.

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Artifacts of Susanoo

Objects they wielded, forged, or were bound to

INTERPRETIVE CLASSIFICATION · FULL PROFILE IN THE DIVINE VAULT

Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi

S · DivineAssociated

Artworks

Depictions

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