Encyclopedia of Shinto

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カテゴリー1： 2. Kami (Deities)
カテゴリー2： Kami in Classic Texts
Title
Ōkamuzumi
Text [Ōkamuzumi no mikoto] (Kojiki)
The name given to the peaches that saved Izanagi during his flight from the underworld. As Izanagi fled from the underworld of Yomi, Izanami sent the "forces of Yomi" under the leadership of the "eight thunder deities" (yakusa no ikazuchi no kami). Izanagi waited at the Even Pass of Yomi, the border between Yomi and this world, and when the underworld forces approached, he threw at them three peaches that were growing nearby, thus dispersing his pursuers. As he named the peaches, he told them, "Just as you have aided me, even so aid the manifold people of the Central Land of Reed Plains in their time of distress." This story is thus thought to have been based on a belief in the magical power of peaches to dispel baneful influences and promote longevity.

-Mori Mizue

Pronunciation in Japanese/用語音声

No movie/映像なし