How Different are Japanese Gods Compared to Other Gods?
/Every country has their own religions and beliefs that they follow. Some people follow completely devoted while others could care less if they existed or not. Japan is no different with having their own set of gods their people follow and worship. The real question is if they are truly different from other mythologies or just a rip-off of other gods.
Izanami on the left and Izanagi on the right
The first two Japanese gods to have existed were known as Izanagi and Izanami. These two could be seen as counterparts to Adam and Eve or Zeus and Hera as being creators of the human race.
While giving birth to the god of fire called Kagutsuchi, Izanami was burnt to death. Stricken with grief, Izanagi went to the land of the dead in hopes of bringing her back. However, by the time he had found her, she had changed into a rotting and decaying corpse. Terrorfied, Izanagi fled in fear and sealed off the entrance to the land of the dead. She had become the goddess of the dead and took 1,000 lives each day in rage. In response to this, Izanagi created 1,500 lives each day. This gives an explanation to life and death for Japanese culture. Unlike other gods that created life, they are one of the few couples that end apart and angry at each other.
Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu are the god of the moon and goddess of the sun. They are husband and wife, but also siblings. Tsukuyomi is a proud yet very violent deity. The god of food, Uki Mochi, had declared a feast and while Amaterasu was invited, she could not attend. She had sent Tsukuyomi in her stead. When he arrived, he was horrified with how Uki Mochi had prepared the food, pulling it out of her mouth. He was so horrified by their actions that he killed the her on the spot. When Amaterasu heard of his deed, she labeled her husband as evil and unworthy to return to the heaven. This leads to Tsukuyomi forever chasing Amaterasu across the night sky, yet never reaching her.
Hou Yi, the god of the sun, and Chang’e, the goddess of the moon, of China have a very different story. Chang’e’s story goes along the lines of her stealing the elixir of immortality from her husband. There are many reasons why, whether to protect it from a thief or out of her own greed. Either way, after drinking it, she ascends to the moon and becomes the moon goddess. Her husband, Hou Yi, was deemed the sun god due to his great feat as an archer; he shot down nine of the ten suns to save humanity. Even after she stole the elixir, he still loved her.
Susanoo defeating the eight headed dragon.
Susanno, the third child born from Izanagi and brother to Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi, is the god of seas and storms. He was too wild of a god to remain orderly in heaven, and thus became a heroic figure instead. Before leaving, he waved goodbye to his sister whom he normally quarreled with. This led to a contest that Amaterasu won and had enraged Susanoo into a rampage, destroying her fields and throwing the corpse of a horse at her room, killing her handmaiden. She fled in grief, taking the sun with her and placing the world in darkness. His first act after being banished was aiding an elderly couple in slaying an eight headed dragon that was eating their daughters. The dragon yielded a sword, and he gifted it to his sister in hopes to make amends. Once done, he became the guardian of Yomi, the land of the dead.
Norse god Njord is nothing like the deeds of Susanoo, likely due to him being the god of wind and water rather than storms. He’s seen as a much calmer god, and it remains a mystery to who gave birth to him. He’s known for one thing especially, surviving Ragnarök, the end and rebirth of the world.
The great thing about gods and mythologies is each country can have their own, and their own reasons to believe them. Even if they are the same type of gods, that doesn’t mean they are the exact same in any full way.
Graham Curry - is a writer who’s aspiring to becoming a graphic novelist. Graham will prioritize writing about Japanese topics on the blog as he has plenty of knowledge of Japanese media and culture. In his spare time, Graham plays video games as a way to inspire his stories that he writes. These are not fan-fictions but completely different stories aimed in a similar universe.
