Creation Myth
The creation myth of Shinto is recorded in the ca. 712 Kojiki. It is a depiction of the events leading up to and including the creation of the Japanese Islands. There are many translations of the story with variations of complexity.
- Izanagi-no-Mikoto (male) and Izanami-no-Mikoto (female) were called by all the myriad gods and asked to help each other to create a new land which was to become Japan.
- They were given a spear with which they stirred the water, and when removed water dripped from the end, an island was created in the great nothingness.
- They lived on this island, and created a palace and within was a large pole.
- When they wished to bear offspring, they performed a ritual each rounding a pole, male to the left and female to the right, the female greeting the male first.
- They had 2 children (islands) which turned out badly and they cast them out. They decided that the ritual had been done incorrectly the first time.
- They repeated the ritual but according to the correct laws of nature, the male spoke first.
- They then gave birth to the 8 perfect islands of the Japanese archipelago.
- After the islands, they gave birth to the other Kami, Izanami-no-Mikoto dies and Izanagi-no-Mikoto tries to revive her.
- His attempts to deny the laws of life and death have bad consequences.
The islands of Japan are to be considered a paradise as they were directly created by the gods for the people of Japan, and were ordained by the higher spirits to be created into the Japanese empire. Shinto is the fundamental connection between the power and beauty of nature (the land) and the people of Japan. It is the manifestation of a path to understanding the institution of divine power.
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Famous quotes containing the words creation and/or myth:
“As the truest society approaches always nearer to solitude, so the most excellent speech finally falls into Silence. Silence is audible to all men, at all times, and in all places. She is when we hear inwardly, sound when we hear outwardly. Creation has not displaced her, but is her visible framework and foil. All sounds are her servants, and purveyors, proclaiming not only that their mistress is, but is a rare mistress, and earnestly to be sought after.”
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“The myth of motherhood as martyrdom has been bred into women, and behavioral scientists have helped embellish the myth with their ideas of correct “feminine” behavior. If women understand that they do not have to ignore their own needs and desires when they become mothers, that to be self-interested is not to be selfish, it will help them to avoid the trap of overattachment.”
—Grace Baruch (20th century)