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]S1 · *Kojiki* ('Records of Ancient Matters', 712 CE), trans. Basil Hall Chamberlain (1882/1933) — PRIMARY TRANSLATION — https://sacred-texts.com/Open source ↗. 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]S1 · *Kojiki* ('Records of Ancient Matters', 712 CE), trans. Basil Hall Chamberlain (1882/1933) — PRIMARY TRANSLATION — https://sacred-texts.com/Open source ↗. 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]S1 · *Kojiki* ('Records of Ancient Matters', 712 CE), trans. Basil Hall Chamberlain (1882/1933) — PRIMARY TRANSLATION — https://sacred-texts.com/Open source ↗. Thereafter Ōkuninushi becomes a local deity of the earth, healing, and agriculture (especially in Izumo), while the heavenly line takes sovereignty [S1]S1 · *Kojiki* ('Records of Ancient Matters', 712 CE), trans. Basil Hall Chamberlain (1882/1933) — PRIMARY TRANSLATION — https://sacred-texts.com/Open source ↗[S2]S2 · *Nihon Shoki* ('Chronicles of Japan', 720 CE) — PRIMARY TEXT (annalistic + mythographic) — (translation: G. Cameron, 1968; see Internet Arch. This is the mythic foundation of the transfer of rule from the indigenous to the heavenly/imperial line.