Amatsukami

Amatsukami (Japanese: 天津神, 天つ神, 'Kami of heaven') is a category of kami in Japanese mythology. Generally speaking, it refers to kami born in, or residing in, Takamagahara.

Amatsukami is one of the three categories of kami, along with their earthly counterpart kunitsukami (国津神, 国つ神), and yaoyorozu-no-kami (八百万の神).[1]:56

Mythology

Amatsukami refers to kami residing in Takamagahara, along with kami who were born in Takamagahara but later descended to Japan.[2] In the mythological event of kuni-yuzuri, the descendants of amatsukami descended to pacify the world, which was occupied by the kunitsukami.[3][4] In Shinto practice, there is no clear distinction between amatsukami and kunitsukami, as their definitions change with time and in different source materials.[2][3][5]

List of amatsukami

References
  1. Yamakage, Motohisa; Gillespie, Mineko S.; Gillespie, Gerald L.; Komuro, Yoshitsugu; Leeuw, Paul de; Rankin, Aidan (2007). The Essence of Shinto: Japan's Spiritual Heart (1st ed.). Tokyo: Kodansha International. ISBN 978-4770030443.
  2. Endō, Jun. "Amatsukami, Kunitsukami". 國學院デジタルミュージアム. Kokugakuin University. Archived from the original on 2021-01-16. Retrieved 2021-01-16.
  3. Brian Bocking (30 September 2005). A Popular Dictionary of Shinto. Routledge. p. 7. ISBN 978-1-135-79739-3.
  4. Kobori, Keiko. "Kuniyuzuri". Encyclopedia of Shinto. Kokugakuin University. Archived from the original on 2021-01-16. Retrieved 2021-01-16.
  5. Institute for Japanese Culture and Classics (1985). Basic Terms of Shinto. Kokugakuin University. p. 26.
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