The Mightiest Gods of Japanese Mythology | The Gods of Japan | The Mightiest Gods Series 3 - video Dailymotion

Mythology Folklore A to Z

The Mightiest Gods of Japanese Mythology | The Gods of Japan | mightiest gods series 3  Featuring: * Izanagi the father creator  * Izanagi the mother creator * Amaterasu the sun goddess * Susanoo the god of the storms * Tsukuyomi - god of the moon * Raijin - god of lightning and thunder * Fujin - god of the winds, * Ame-no-Uzume the goddess of dawn and pleasure   Stories contained in the video: Izanagi and Izanami - The birth of the gods and the creation of Japan The curse of Izanami Amaterasu and Susanoo - The duel and disappearance of the sun Uzume and Amaterasu - The gift of the dancing goddess Susanoo and the 8-headed dragon - Yamata-No-Orochi The crime of Tsukiyomi - The separation and creation of night and day Raijin and Fujin - The demon brothers and gods of the weather  See All Episodes of "The Mightiest Gods Series" Here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgzkWdkylsNCVYycAtmWuw2uEp3YNl_RG  More Series to Watch:  Watch Part 1 of Necronomicon: The Wanderings of Alhazred Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCKYngBSZ-g  Watch Part 2 of Necronomicon: The Wanderings of Alhazred Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfM3jlwfJW4  Watch all episodes of Necronomicon: The Wanderings of Alhazred on our website: https://mythologyfolklore.com/  Watch All Angels & Demons of Every Realm Series Here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgzkWdkylsNBNoiQn0yM3IRpOssASvihm  See our Angelology & Demonology series here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgzkWdkylsND2jbEuAWUgK7ASq3RqQC_c  See the 72 Kings of Hell and the demons of Ars Goetia (Lesser Key Of Solomon - Lemegeton) here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8nMZL_7NWI  Watch our Apocrypha, Pseudepigrapha and Scripture series here:  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgzkWdkylsNAOYAuUYHnA3ZL7ecZsZByc  See our members-only trailers & previews here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgzkWdkylsNAdUeGvp3fkeEGq-j5xi5AM  Watch the episodes of the series "Ethiopian Book Of Enoch" here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgzkWdkylsNCq7IsRkPuMAaS8l9zCyiBQ  Watch the episodes of the series "Angels of Jewish Lore" here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgzkWdkylsNB7eFUPuyXB38U26WnIDNFY  See the individual episodes of The Demons of King Solomon in the series "The Testament of Solomon" here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgzkWdkylsNDTTF-vo3yGFMhTrRjBy-Th  See our full public video library here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgzkWdkylsNAzcqgruZDUuJmydD36Ywx7  See "The Mightiest Gods Series" Here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgzkWdkylsNCVYycAtmWuw2uEp3YNl_RG

Transcript

00:00Oh

00:54Once upon a time, there was no life, there was

00:58no light, there was nothing, nothing but darkness and a great void.

01:03Out of this vast void, came the heavens and an unformed earth, and primordial deities

01:09who claimed the magnificent heavens as their abode.

01:12Seeing the untouched empty form of the earth, two of the primordial beings, Izanagi and his

01:18twin sister, Izanami, went forth to design the dull formless realm as they pleased.

01:24Standing on the pillars of the high heavens, and churning the primordial sea with the heavenly

01:30spear of jewels, they created the islands, the mountains and forests of Japan.

01:36Seeing how well they complemented each other, Izanagi and Izanami united in marriage to procreate

01:43and populate the world with godly offspring.

01:45However, during the marriage ritual, their union was improperly sealed, because Izanami,

01:53affirmed first.

01:54Some say because she was a woman, some say because she was the younger twin, so she should

02:00not have spoken first, they say.

02:03Thus, the children brought forth from that union, were deformed in one way, or another.

02:10Casting the deformed children away, Izanagi and Izanami, performed the marriage rites

02:16all over again, with Izanagi affirming first, properly sealing the marriage this time, and

02:22allowing the couple to give rise to a healthy generation of kami, afterwards.

02:27Their marriage was a happy one, but, it was short lived.

02:31Alas, Izanami met her death, while giving birth to the god of fire, Kagutsuchi.

02:38The painful flames so consumed her body, that she was burnt beyond regeneration.

02:44But before Izanami succumbed to death, she bore the water goddess, Mizuhami, with her last

02:51strength, instructing her to subdue her fiery brother, whenever he became violent.

02:57With this, she passed on, and her soul traveled to the underworld, which would then become

03:03her new home.

03:05Devastated by the death of his wife, Izanagi beheaded his fiery son with his sword, cutting

03:11him up into eight pieces, and scattering the pieces across the world.

03:16The eight pieces, became eight volcanoes, and the blood that dripped from his sword, gave rise

03:22to a number of elemental gods and monsters alike.

03:26Then Izanagi descended to the underworld in search of his wife, he would bring her back,

03:32so he thought.

03:33But when he beheld Izanami, she had become nothing more than a ghastly looking rotten corpse, infested

03:40with many demons, that freely went in and out of her body.

03:45She had eaten the food of the underworld, and so, became like them, an undead, a demon.

03:52The demons that went in and out of her body, were supposed to be celestial beings, glorious,

03:59and beautiful, they were her unborn children.

04:02But because she had eaten the food of Yomi, because she had become a demon, and only, her

04:08unborn children, became demons too, dark, and horrifying, waiting, to be summoned.

04:15The hideous sight terrified Izanagi, and he begged the keepers of the underworld, to give

04:21his wife another chance, to let him take her back to her realm, the realm of celestials.

04:27The keepers of Yomi agreed to his incessant pleas, but warned him not to look back at Izanami,

04:33till they got to the entrance of the living world, where the gloomy darkness of the underworld,

04:39fades into brilliant light.

04:41Izanagi promised to do as instructed.

04:44On their way however, he soon forgot the warnings in his impatience, turning back to look at his

04:50wife, thereby condemning her to forever remain, in her ghastly state.

04:56Now furious at her husband, for failing his promise, Izanami sent her horde of demons

05:01after him, to devour his soul, to equally imprison him in the underworld forever, and then, go forth

05:09to devour the land of the living, inflicting suffering and rot, upon every realm.

05:14They chased Izanagi to every nook and cranny of the underworld, even to the exit and the

05:20entrance to the realm of the living, the demons angrily pursued him.

05:26Luckily, Izanagi managed to roll the gates of the underworld shut,

05:29just in time to trap the angry demons, and save himself, as well as the other realms from a grim

05:36fate.

05:36A narrow escape indeed, it was.

05:40More furious now, at the anguish she was left to suffer alone in the underworld,

05:45Izanami cursed the world, vowing she would kill a thousand people each day.

05:51Your words are frail, your promises are a lie.

05:55In light and happiness I once revelled, now they are gone and shall never be nigh,

06:01In splendor and glory the gods thrive, as I wallow and rot, in eternal night.

06:08Hear me now, the world be damned, see what it feels like, this fate of mine,

06:15Neither from pain or suffering, can they hide, each day that rises, a thousand will die.

06:22How dark you have become, it saddens me more.

06:26Death may strike, and high may be the scores.

06:31Each day that comes, many shall be born, a thousand new lives, and five hundred more.

06:40Izanagi countered her curse by vowing that one thousand five hundred people would be born each day.

06:46And so it was.

06:48As Izanami kept her word every day, so did Izanagi, as thousands of people died each day, so were thousands

06:56born.

06:58Thus, Izanagi was able to protect and keep the land of the living, from being annihilated.

07:04To cleanse himself of the impurities encountered in his horrible journey, Izanagi washed himself, in the heavenly spring of purification.

07:14As the water cleansed his left eye, a goddess more beautiful and brighter than anything in the universe, was born.

07:23This was Amaterasu, the goddess of the bright sun.

07:27As the water washed his right eye, a god so pale and lovely, emerged.

07:33This was Tsukuyomi, the radiant god of the moon.

07:37And as the water cleaned his nose, an angry god sprang out, with waves splashing and storms thrashing.

07:44This, was Susano, the impetuous god of the storms.

07:48These three new gods, became the greatest of all Izanagi's children, and he gave them dominion over different parts of

07:57the heavens, relegating most of his powers, and authority, as the supreme ruler of the heavens, to his daughter, Amaterasu.

08:25Amaterasu Omi Kami, the imperial great goddess, the ruler of the high heavens, the shining goddess of the sun.

08:32She, from whom the Japanese imperial family claims descent, a most revered deity of the Shinto religion, she who was

08:41born from the left eye of her father, Izanagi.

08:45At the birth of Amaterasu, Izanagi bestowed upon her, a necklace of jewels, and gave her dominion over the celestial

08:53plain, over the high heavens, the abode of all the kami, the home of all the gods.

08:59She is the sister and wife to the moon god, Tsukuyomi, as well as the sister to the storm god,

09:06Susano.

09:08Once upon a time, Izanagi shared to his godly descendants, roles and positions in the celestial realm, relegating his powers

09:17and authority to the shining Amaterasu.

09:19With all the kami, fulfilling their various roles as tradition demands, the celestial realm was supposed to be a place

09:28of law and order, of peace and serenity.

09:31Is that not right?

09:33But it wasn't.

09:35Why?

09:37Susano

09:39Susano was by nature, a stormy god, a violent kami, the spirit of the angry clouds.

09:45The heavens knew no calm as long as Susano was present.

09:50For not knowing why he did so, he brought only turmoil in his wake.

09:55He disrupted the peace and calm of the heavens, whenever he had the chance, throwing a tantrum at the slighter's

10:02provocation, only to become sober, after much destruction had been done.

10:07It was not because he took delight in his deeds.

10:11Susano only manifested what he was, the raging storm.

10:15He was in constant rivalry with Amaterasu, and one day challenged the sun goddess to a contest.

10:22A contest of who could create the most kami, a contest of who could bring forth the most creations.

10:30All this peace and calm is depressing.

10:33What say you for a brawl against the mighty Susano, O Queen of the heavens?

10:38O brother, are you not aware how futile your powers are against me?

10:44Have you not learned anything?

10:46Your strength will do you no good, and your wits are sorely lacking.

10:51But, very well, a contest you shall have.

10:56Taking Susano's sword, Amaterasu, bit into the sword, and spat out its pieces, and out of the pieces, sprang three

11:05gods, some say three women.

11:07Now taking Amaterasu's necklace, Susano bit into the jewel, and also spat out its pieces, and out of the pieces,

11:16sprang five gods, some say five men.

11:20Susano had brought forth more creations than the queen of the heavens, thus, he should be the winner of the

11:27contest, shouldn't he?

11:28But no.

11:30It was all part of Amaterasu's clever tactics.

11:34Amaterasu reminded the gods that the necklace, which had brought forth the five new deities, belonged to her.

11:43Standing atop her throne, she declared, that because the necklace was her property, everything that came out of it, was

11:50hers as well.

11:52Thus, the five deities, born from her necklace, belonged to her, and the three deities, born from Susano's sword, belonged

12:01to Susano.

12:02The other gods found no flaw in her reasoning, and pronounced Amaterasu, the winner of the contest.

12:10But at this moment, the winds blew strong, the skies grew dark, and the storms came forth, Susano had flown

12:18into rage, again.

12:20He dashed to Amaterasu's rice fields, and destroyed all the crops.

12:26He killed her horse, and flayed the poor animal, throwing the body, at one of her handmaidens, and killing the

12:33handmaiden, in the process.

12:36Such impetus. I shall not stand for this madness.

12:41Appalled by the height of Susano's uncivil behavior, Amaterasu left the heavens, and withdrew deep into the caves, where her

12:49light could no longer reach the world.

12:51But without the sun goddess's light, darkness, descended upon the world of gods, and men.

12:59Everything began to suffer, plants and trees, withered and died, men and animals, began to ail, the heavens had no

13:07light, and no joy, the entire universe, was in perpetual darkness, like it once was, in the beginning.

13:15The celestials desperately sought their queen, the earth cried out for her return.

13:21Oh, how indispensable she was.

13:25Journeying to the cave, which the sun goddess had withdrawn into, the 800 gods of the celestial plane, pleaded for

13:33her return.

13:34But Amaterasu, would not listen.

13:38What could they do now?

13:42The End

14:01Once upon a time, Amaterasu, the sun goddess, exiled herself into the heavenly rock caves, withdrawing her light, that the

14:10world was plunged into a long, long night.

14:13The other gods tried to lure her out, all to no avail.

14:18And when the predicament of the universe, grew worse every day that went by, without the light of the sun,

14:24the heavens, were at a loss, for what to do?

14:28The sun could not be replaced, so how could they make Amaterasu change her mind?

14:34Who could make her bring back her light to the world?

14:37Well, who could?

14:39If not Ozume, the dancing goddess.

14:43Known as Amano Ozume, the great persuader, and the heavenly alarming female, she is the goddess of dawn, mirth, revelry,

14:53the arts, and sexual pleasure, in the Shinto religion of Japan.

14:57Ah, another pandemonium.

15:01Well, nothing a little swing of the hips won't settle.

15:04Well, when the clever Ozume, was called into action, she pulled off a brilliant trick, for that, was what she

15:12was known for.

15:13She overturned a tub, near the cave entrance, and began to dance on it, tearing her clothes, with every step

15:21she took, partially disrobing herself, as she danced her way through.

15:27This, so delighted all the other gods, that they roared with laughter.

15:32There was never a dull moment with Ozume.

15:35She had also brought a huge bronze mirror, and a beautiful jewel of polished jade, placing the mirror, in front

15:43of the cave, as part of her plan, to lure the sun goddess out, then dancing to the mouth of

15:49the cave, with the other gods still roaring, and cheering behind her.

15:54Curious, as to why the gods were this happy, and excited, Amaterasu could not help but call out to the

16:01dancing goddess, from deep inside the caves, asking what in the world was going on.

16:07Why was there this much merriment, when there was no sunlight in the world?

16:13Ozume simply replied, that they had found a deity, brighter than her, fairer than her, more glorious, and more illustrious,

16:22than her.

16:23She asked the sun goddess, to come see for herself, to come behold, the new fairest of all the gods.

16:31Amaterasu, again unable to help her curiosity, slowly drew out of the caves, towards the entrance, to see, who this

16:40new goddess was.

16:42Truly, when Amaterasu peeped outside, she saw a goddess more glorious than anything she had ever seen.

16:49What she didn't know, was that, this goddess, was merely her own reflection, in some mirror, the very mirror Ozume

16:58had placed in front of the cave.

17:01In awe of this magnificent being in front of her, the sun goddess fully came out of the cave, going

17:08closer to the mirror, in order to get a better view.

17:12Just when she realized, that she was looking at her own self, her own reflection, the other gods quickly shut

17:19the cave, with a giant boulder, with one of them placing a magical barrier on the rock, so she wouldn't

17:25go back in.

17:27Amaterasu did not object, for she was no longer angry now.

17:32And when they asked her to join them in the dance, the sun goddess happily obliged.

17:38Thus, sunlight was restored upon the lands.

17:42Ozume the dancing goddess had done it.

18:05Susano, the impetuous highness, the Japanese god of storms, the god of the oceans, and seas.

18:12Born from the nose of Izanagi, he holds dominion over the many spirits of the oceans, storms, and winds.

18:21A powerful kami, whose moods are as temperamental as his actions are chaotic.

18:26A riotous deity, whose flaring anger and tattered appearance, simply reflect his status, as the god of dreadful storms.

18:36Susano's shrines are located at the sea surrounding South Japan, and like the one who dwells within, this sea very

18:43well reflects his attributes, stormy, dark, raging.

18:50Susano is sometimes malevolent, and sometimes benevolent.

18:54And so are the many sea and storm gods, who serve under him.

18:59Despite his immorality, he remains one of Japanese mythology's most celebrated heroes.

19:05He fought and slew the fearsome eight-headed dragon, Orochi, killing it with his famed ten-span sword, the Kusanagi

19:14-no Tsurugi.

19:16This, became his greatest feat.

19:19A feat done as penance, to atone for his catastrophic tendencies.

19:24It was a quest to restore his honor.

19:27Once upon a time, Susano's rash actions led to the disappearance of the sun goddess, Amaterasu, plunging the world into

19:36eerie darkness.

19:39Trial after trial, the gods failed to bring back their queen.

19:43Until Uzume, the dancing goddess, stepped in and saved the day.

19:48And light and joy was restored on the lands, for the sun goddess had returned.

19:54But Susano needed to be taught a lesson, to be punished, to ensure such a disaster never happened again.

20:01And this, Izanagi, the heavenly grandfather did.

20:06Izanagi banished him from the high heavens, and cast him down to the earth, into the deepest seas, to live

20:13in solitude, far away from the gods, for no one could stand such a being.

20:18There, in his watery abyss, he could forever display his temperament however he wished.

20:25In regret, Susano wandered the earth and seas, in search of what or who else he could find, in this

20:32new realm.

20:33By that time, humans, and the lesser gods of the earth, had begun to sprout from the lands and mountains,

20:41created by Izanagi and Izanami.

20:43He saw that these humans, were so much like the kami, yet so different.

20:49They were weaker, much weaker than the gods.

20:53They ailed, grew old, and died, whereas the gods of the high, did not.

20:59They were mortal beings.

21:03Susano found a chopstick floating in the river one day, following it to see who lived nearby.

21:10He came across a small village, and all he could hear, was people crying.

21:16Entering the village, he met an elderly couple, with a beautiful maiden by their side, sobbing, weeping.

21:25He asked why they were all sad, and the elderly couple told him their story.

21:31They originally had eight daughters, eight princesses.

21:34Each year, an evil serpent came, and devoured one.

21:39And the maiden beside them, Princess Kushinada, was the last of their daughters.

21:45Now it was time for the serpent to come again, to feed again, and that, is why they all cry.

21:53When Susano asked of this serpent, they told him about Orochi, the eight-headed dragon.

22:00A beast like no other, this creature was.

22:04With eyes that glowed red, it had eight heads and eight tails, and with a belly that glowed

22:10hot with the fire of its breath, its body was as long as eight valleys and eight hills.

22:15Who could deny such a beast?

22:18Enchanted by the beauty of Princess Kushinada, and in a quest to atone for his crimes, Susano

22:24offered to soothe their grief, to do some good, for the first time in his long immortal life,

22:31but with a condition.

22:32He would slay the monster in exchange for the princess's hand in marriage.

22:38The elderly couple readily agreed, so they quickly devised a plan to defeat the dragon.

22:44Turning the princess into a close-toothed comb, Susano stuck the comb in his long hair,

22:50to protect her while they worked their plan.

22:53They brewed a large quantity of sake, an enormous quantity of strong liquor.

22:59Then they built eight gates, placing a pot of the strong liquor, at the entrance of each gate.

23:07He would see if this creature was as wise as it was huge. He would get it drunk with sake,

23:14then hack it to death. This was the plan of the impetuous god.

23:19The gigantic eight-headed dragon soon arrived as anticipated, and easily falling for Susano's trick,

23:26it drank all the pots of sake, laying down to sleep, for it had become intoxicated.

23:33Trapping the dragon's heads beneath the gates, Susano cut off its heads before it had the chance to

23:40recover. As he severed the eight tails from its body, he struck something, something very hard.

23:47And pulling the object out, behold! It was a magnificent sword.

23:52This was the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, the holy sword of Japanese mythology.

23:59Susano married Princess Kushinada afterwards, and having repented from his uncivil ways,

24:05he offered the Kusanagi no Tsurugi to his sister, Amaterasu, as a sign of apology.

24:12Amaterasu accepted his gift, and allowed him to return to the heavens if he wished.

24:18However, Susano decided to stay in his watery kingdom, to stay with his new wife, in the land

24:26that would one day be called Izumo. The Kusanagi no Tsurugi is a sacred sword in Japanese mythology,

24:34and one of the three imperial regalia of Japan. The three imperial regalia are the three treasures of

24:40Japan, namely, the mirror and the jewel, which brought back the sun, and the sword which came from the

24:47dragon. The sword, representing valor, the mirror, representing wisdom, and the jewel, representing

24:55benevolence.

25:16Tsukuyomi, god of the moon, god of the night, the moon-reading man, the night watcher.

25:23A proud and fierce god, he was born from the right eye of Izanagi, as he washed himself in the

25:30river of

25:30purification. Thus, he is the brother to the sun goddess, Amaterasu, and the storm god, Susano.

25:39Also the consort to Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi's beauty equally matched that of the sun goddess.

25:45While she was the light, he was the dark. They both believed in law and order, however,

25:53they enforced it in different ways. While Amaterasu was kind and considerate,

25:59in judgment, Tsukuyomi was cruel and violent. He believed mercy was a sign of weakness and dealt

26:07ruthlessly with anything he deemed inappropriate. In order to maintain a law, he was willing to break it.

26:15This would lead him to commit the sacrilege of murdering a fellow god and his separation with

26:21Amaterasu. Once upon a time, appearing side by side in the far skies, the sun and the moon always did

26:30shine at the same time, illuminating all that was in the heavens and below. Wherever Amaterasu was

26:38found, Tsukuyomi was also found. There was no such thing as night or darkness. There was only light.

26:46There was only day. One day, Amaterasu, along with the other gods of the high,

26:53were invited to a feast by the goddess of food and plenty, Yukmochi. Yukmochi was a half-deity who

27:01brought about all the edible things known to mankind today. Every single substance that came out of her

27:07body became food. Now, having other matters to attend to, Amaterasu could not make it to the feast,

27:16and so, sent Tsukuyomi in her place. Tsukuyomi was welcomed by the goddess upon his arrival. However,

27:25what came next gave him an unforgettable eyesore. Facing the land, Yukmochi vomited from her mouth,

27:33boiled rice. Turning to the sea, she coughed into the waters, and her sputum became all sorts of

27:40fishes. And facing the forest, she vomited again, and it turned to assorted dishes of finely cooked meat

27:48and game. Although the meals looked tasty and sumptuous, Tsukuyomi could not hide his disgust in

27:55the manner the meals came about. At least, the eyesore was over now, the moon god thought with relief.

28:04Just then, Yukmochi began to spew food from her body once again, out of her ears, out of her nose,

28:11out of her mouth, out of every hole in her body, she pulled out different kinds of fruits and vegetables.

28:18But Tsukuyomi had had enough. Unable to contain his disgust any longer, the moon god drew his sword,

28:26and cut off Yukmochi's head. When he told his wife what he had done, the sun goddess fumed with anger,

28:34refusing to ever look at him again. She cast him away from her sight, to another part of the heavens,

28:41never to be seen by her side, thenceforth. He would become the dark, and she, the light. He would become

28:50the night, and she, the day. Forever longing for what they once had, to the very end of days.

28:58This is the story of how day and night, came to be. Now, even from her lifeless corpse,

29:05Yukmochi's body still produced food. From her head, came the ox, and the horse. From her forehead,

29:14came millet. From her eyebrows, came silkworms. From her eyes, came panic grass. From her belly,

29:22came rice. And from her genitals, came wheat, and beans. Amaterasu commanded that the food grains be

29:30sown. So humanity would never lack. Placing the silkworms in her mouth, she drew silk threads from them.

29:38Thus, gifting mankind, the art of raw silk production.

30:03Raejin, the Lord Thunder, the resounding one, Raiden Summer. Born from the rotten corpse of

30:10Izan army, Raejin is the god of lightning and thunder. A being of death, and yet a being of life,

30:17a being of destruction, and yet, a being of protection. His rain and thunder, brought disastrous

30:25typhoons, and storms, yet the water gave life to all that lived and walked the earth. His lightning

30:32destroyed anything that was in its path, yet when it touched a crop, harvest would be abundant and

30:39plentiful. He was the bringer of rain, a blessing to farmers, and whenever drought came, they say

30:46Raejin was sleeping, the drought would disappear when he awakes. With a big muscular build, and a

30:53terrifying gaze, Raejin was an intimidating kami. With long sharp fangs, and a gravity defying hair,

31:01he resembled a demon. This was a reminder of his unnatural birth, his birth in the underworld,

31:08he was born a demon. On each of his hands are only three fingers, representing the past,

31:15the present, and the future. Once upon a time, Izanami was burnt to death as she gave birth to the

31:22fire god, Kagutsuchi, and so descended into the land of Yomi, into the land of the dead. She was still

31:30pregnant at the time of her death, and thus, carried her unborn children with her, unharmed,

31:37as her soul traveled to the underworld. Alas, before her husband Izanagi could bring her back from the

31:44underworld, Izanami ate the food of Yomi, and drank the drink of the dead, becoming a demon. And as she

31:52became a demon, so did her unborn children, the many gods inside her divine belly. Izanagi arrived to

32:00rescue his wife from the gloomy realm, only to see the horrifying sinister looking creature she had

32:06become, so he ran away. There, Izanami felt betrayed, he had abandoned her. In her anger, she summoned all her

32:16children, and out of her rotten corpse, emerged the terrifying Raijin, and the ghastly Fujin, and many

32:24other demons and Oni, that would dominate the underworld. They had a single purpose, to carry

32:30out their mother's wish, to bring unending suffering and calamity, to the world of the living.

32:37Shutting the gates of Yomi, Izanagi escaped the underworld, trapping the host of demons behind him.

32:43Unfortunately, before the gates could roll shut, Raijin and Fujin, slipped through, bringing with them,

32:52death and destruction. Flying across the sky, Raijin threw death-dealing lightning at unwary

32:59passers-by. Calling down rain, he would cause typhoons and rainstorms. And hiding in the dark clouds,

33:08he would prey on children who did not hide their belly buttons. Behold the fiend you fear the most.

33:15Lightning and thunder, I create with the pounding of my drums. The skies are mine to rule, the battlefields

33:24I dominate. Japanese parents would warn their children to always cover their belly buttons,

33:30else, if Raijin saw it, he would swallow them up, for their belly buttons reminded him of his cursed

33:37birth in the land of the dead, and fuels his envy of natural born humans. Raijin wrecked so much

33:44destruction in Japan that the emperors began to seek a way to imprison him. But of course,

33:50the mortals were nowhere a match for this powerful demon. Thus, the emperors sent a god hunter,

33:57named Sugaru, to hunt him down. Fool! The earth trembles at the mere sound of my laughter,

34:05my thunder claps as resounding as a blasting cannon. I shatter everything that lays in my path,

34:13you're useless, nothing can stop me. Upon their first encounter, Sugaru realized in no time that Raijin

34:22was a much more powerful opponent, and so invoked the Buddha of compassion, named Kanan, who compelled

34:28Raijin into submission, and showed him the error of his ways. Raijin was taken to the emperor's palace,

34:36where he swore to serve Japan thenceforth, not destroy it. There, Raijin became a protector,

34:43and no more a bringer of death. No more would he throw his lightning at the natives, no more would

34:50he gobble up little children. With his rains, he would bring life and growth. The crops shall yield

34:58and the fields thrive. And with his thunderstorms, he would fight the enemies. Their vessels shall

35:05shatter and their armies, scatter, for Raijin watches over the lands. In 1274, a warlord named Kublai Khan

35:15tried to invade Japan. As his Mongols stepped onto the shores, a great typhoon descended from the skies

35:22and disassembled his army, making them retreat in fear. After they recovered in 1281, they made another

35:31attempt to invade Japan, and as they once again stepped onto the shores of the country, this same

35:37great typhoon, blew them away with a fury so strong, that the Mongols never returned to Japan again.

35:44To the outside world, what happened to the Mongols, was just an unusual but natural phenomenon. A mere

35:51coincidence, they will say. But to the people of Japan, it was Raijin, their sworn protector. Raijin,

36:00the defender of the people. It had to be. Nothing else could have done that, with such perfect timing.

36:08They say Raijin takes a human form, whenever he walks among his people. He takes the form of a man,

36:16a man called Raiden, wearing a simple robe, and a straw hat. On his right hand is his son,

36:23Raitaro, heir of thunder. On his left hand is his brother, Fujin, god of the winds. And upon a thunder

36:32beast called Raijin, he rides. Together, they are the protectors of Japan.

36:59They say the demons that populate the underworld, and even the world of men, all came from Izanami,

37:07the former queen of the heavens, and now mother of the dead. When Raijin emerged from her decaying

37:14corpse, Fujin followed closely. When Raijin escaped into the realm of men, Fujin was right beside him.

37:22While Raijin poured down the heavy rains, Fujin gathered the gloomy clouds. While Raijin brought

37:30forth the terrifying thunder and lightning, Fujin blew forth the swirling winds and breezes.

37:36God of the wild winds and subtle breezes, Fujin was a red-headed demon, a green-skinned ogre,

37:43carrying on his shoulders, a large bag, which contained all the winds of the world.

37:49The brothers constantly dueled each other in a friendly combat, to determine who ruled the skies,

37:55who dominated the most. Whenever they began their mock battles, mankind would shudder and hide in fear,

38:03at the chaos, the merciless thunderstorms and devastating tornadoes they caused. But to the

38:10demon brothers, their scuffle in the skies was simply fun, entertaining, just a good way to pass time.

38:17When they first entered the world of the living, they caused nothing but suffering and disasters.

38:23After all, that was the reason they were sent. Raijin, throwing his lightning at unsuspecting humans,

38:31and Fujin, knocking down the trees upon them. But as Raijin transitioned from an evil oni to a protector god,

38:39Fujin emulated his brother and equally turned away from his evil ways, assisting in protecting the land of Japan.

38:48When the Mongols invaded Japan in 1274 and 1281, they say Raijin did not fight the invaders alone,

38:57for somewhere in the shadows was Fujin, aiding his brother. Raijin, pouring down the rains,

39:04the lightning and thunder. And Fujin, summoning the powerful winds that made that typhoon as menacing as it was.

39:12Two sides of a coin, brothers till the end. The lightning and the cloud, the thunder and the storm.

39:21The rain and the wind, Raijin, and Fujin.

39:42The rain and the weather are the days. BONG GIinent

39:54These are happening in the sun. The rain and the storm.

The Mightiest Gods of Japanese Mythology | The Gods of Japan | The Mightiest Gods Series 3

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