Yamato Okunitama

Yamato Okunitama
The Haiden, or main prayer hall or Oyamato Shrine where he is worshipped
Major cult centreŌyamato Shrine
Yamato Okunitama Shrine [ja]

Yamato Okunitama (Japanese: 倭大国魂神) is a kami, the okunitama (国魂; 'country spirit') or tutelary deity of Yamato Province.[1]

They are the ujigami, or 'clan deity', of the Yamato clan, and are worshiped at Ōyamato Shrine.[1] Some scholars interpret the kami as being a variant or epithet of Ōmononushi.[2][3]: 22 

As the Yamato court grew in power, shrines were constructed in more and more places beyond Yamato Province.[3]: 22 

The scholar Hirata Atsutane said that the deities who were subjects of morning prayer within Yamato province were Yamato Okunitama, Ōmononushi, and Kotoshironushi.[3]: 343 

Yamato Okunitama appears in the Nihon Shoki,[4] as well as the Kogo Shūi.[5] He was formerly worshiped in the imperial palace,[6] but Amaterasu was ultimately promoted over him when Emperor Sujin was disturbed by the presence of two competing kami'.[7][8][9][4] This may be the ultimate reason that Amaterasu is considered to be the main deity of Shinto today.[7] Another interpretation is that Amaterasu's influence actually suffered as a result of this, as the center of her cult moved from the imperial palace to more diffuse locations, culminating in Ise.[2]

  1. ^ a b "International Symposium "Perspectives on Japanese history and literature from ancient historical records"". Top Global University Project: Waseda Goes Global. Retrieved 2023-05-04.
  2. ^ a b Ellwood, Robert S. (1990). "The Sujin Religious Revolution". Japanese Journal of Religious Studies. 17 (2/3): 199–217. ISSN 0304-1042. JSTOR 30234018.
  3. ^ a b c Hardacre, Helen (2017). Shinto: A History. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-062171-1.
  4. ^ a b "Book V", Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697, Volume 1, retrieved 2023-05-04
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference :6 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "The History of Infectious Disease in Japan: Origins of the World's Best Hygiene Awareness — The Mysterious Relationship between the Japanese and the God of Pestilence - Discuss Japan". www.japanpolicyforum.jp. Retrieved 2023-05-04.
  7. ^ a b D, John (2012-11-10). "Teeuwen on Shinto". Green Shinto. Retrieved 2023-05-04.
  8. ^ https://www.japanpolicyforum.jp/pdf/2016/no35/DJweb_35_cul_02.pdf
  9. ^ https://freidok.uni-freiburg.de/fedora/objects/freidok:4635/datastreams/FILE1/content