Reading Notes: Japanese Mythology, Part A

Japanese Mythology

(Izanagi and Izanami from Web Source.)

Izanagi and Izanami: 

• "Out of her plenteous womb sprang the numberless worlds in commotion." She is literally the mother of everything and I like how she is such in the beginning of the story, hopefully this continues. 
• Gloomy chaos, born in chaos the tiredness. Weary in their bones and the desire for peace is so great they would fight to get it. IDEA.
• The sacred jewel of Izanagi's spear, the water droplets that clutched to the spear as he brought it back up, the water dropped back into the sea and created islands
• Whelp, the equality did not last long!
• eight islands: Yamato (male) , Tsukushi (male?), Iyo (female), Tsushima (gender), Ahaji (gender) , Shikoku (gender) , Oki (gender), Lado (female)?
• two offsprings: one daughter and one son, Amaterasu and Susa-no-wo-no-mikoto 

Izanagi and Izanami (cont.):

• Amaterasu is beautiful and outshone the heavens - this could be really good or really bad for Amaterasu.
• Susa-no-wo, was like the moon: morose, turbulent and sinister
• "seas-chariots" I love it.
• Her children did not like the idea of elevating the Earth children to that of gods, she back so upset and when she had her next child this affected the actual birth and the son: God of Fire and she perished. I think it is very interesting how her emotional state affected the type of child/god she birthed.
• Balance to all gods: Fire and then water
• Izanagi going to find Izanami in the world of the departed reminds me of a Greek myth, but I cannot remember the names.
• Izanagi returned to Earth and dwelt thenceforth upon the isle of Ahaji (grieving island).

The Miraculous Mirror:

• green: life; scarlet: slaughter; silver: peace; red: war
• Now that Izanagi has disappeared, Susa-no-wo has gone after Amaterasu
• Jewel of Heaven 
• ... she deemed her reflection a rival...
• I am confused about the ending.

The Eight-Forked Serpent of Koshi:

• I remember I did my Tech Tip on Reverse Image search and I used this image!
• Of course, he is only helping if he can get the girl for marriage.
• The "hero" gets the girl.

The Heaven-Descended:

• "Thereupon she took the arrow and flung it forth to the earth, saying: 'If this arrow be one shot by Amewaka at the Earth Spirits, let it not attain to him, but if he hath an evil heart, may the heavenly arrow fly straight to that mark.'" - And it did!

The Heaven Descended (cont.):

• Used a pretty girl/goddess to cause a distraction 
• And they get married, very original
• This reminds me of a biblical story where a man wants to marry the youngest daughter, but is tricked into marrying the oldest, and then marries the youngest.
• Marriage is a really prominent theme in the tales

The Fortunate Fish-Hook & Fish-Hook (cont.):

• I recently watch Moana, so when I read Fish-Hook I thought of Maui!
• I find it strange that men immediately fall in love with women at first sight, I also think it is very ironic since western men are not supposed to be so romantic.
• "Then the ever-bountiful Sun Goddess sent Yatagarasu the raven to guide him upon his way, and Jimmu, bearing with him the sacred regalia, necklace, sword, and mirror, sailed through the Sea of Myriad Isles to the flowery land of Yamato."

Bibliography: Japanese Mythology from The Romance of Old Japan by E.W Champney and F. Champney