In the beginning of Japanese myth, a divine couple stood on the Floating Bridge of Heaven and looked down at a world that was still unformed — an ocean of drifting, oily brine. They were Izanagi (“he who invites”) and Izanami (“she who invites”). With a jewelled spear they stirred the sea and made the first island. They married, and from their union came the islands of Japan and a multitude of gods: gods of the sea, the wind, the mountains, the trees, and the rivers. Then Izanami gave birth to the god of fire, and was burned to death. Izanagi followed her into the land of the dead — and what he found there changed the world forever.
The story of Izanagi and Izanami is the Japanese creation myth, told in the two oldest books of Japanese history: the Kojiki (“Record of Ancient Matters,” 712 CE) and the Nihon Shoki (“Chronicles of Japan,” 720 CE). It stands at the head of the Shinto tradition and of the genealogy of the imperial family.
Before the Gods
The Kojiki begins at the moment when heaven and earth first separated. In the Plain of High Heaven (Takamagahara), three gods appeared spontaneously, then two more. These were followed by seven generations of gods, the last of which were the pair Izanagi-no-Mikoto and Izanami-no-Mikoto, brother and sister.
The earth below was still young, “like floating oil, drifting like a jellyfish.”
The Jewelled Spear
The heavenly gods commanded Izanagi and Izanami to “complete and solidify this drifting land.” They gave them a jewelled spear, the Ame-no-nuboko. The two gods stood on the Floating Bridge of Heaven (Ame-no-ukihashi), perhaps a rainbow, and thrust the spear down into the brine, stirring it until it went koworo-koworo — “curdle-curdle.” When they drew the spear up, the brine dripping from its tip piled up and formed an island: Onogoro-shima, “self-curdling island.”
The Marriage
Izanagi and Izanami descended to the island. There they erected a heavenly pillar and built a great palace. Izanagi asked Izanami how her body was formed. She replied that it was complete except for one place that was not grown together. He said that his body was complete except for one place that was grown in excess. He proposed that they join these places and give birth to lands. Izanami agreed.
They walked around the heavenly pillar in opposite directions, and when they met, Izanami spoke first: “How delightful! What a handsome young man!” Then Izanagi said: “How delightful! What a lovely maiden!” Afterwards he remarked that it was not proper for the woman to speak first.
The Leech Child
Their first child was Hiruko, the “leech child,” born without bones. They put it in a reed boat and set it adrift on the sea. Their second child, the island of Awashima, was also unsatisfactory.
The two gods went up to heaven to ask the elder gods what had gone wrong. The heavenly gods performed a divination and announced that the child had been born badly because the woman had spoken first. They must go back and repeat the ritual correctly.
(Hiruko, the abandoned leech child, was later identified in folk tradition with Ebisu, the god of fishermen and good fortune, one of the Seven Lucky Gods — as if the rejected child had drifted ashore and been taken in.)
The Birth of the Islands
Izanagi and Izanami circled the pillar again, and this time Izanagi spoke first. Now their union was fruitful. Izanami gave birth to the Great Eight Islands (Ōyashima) that make up Japan: Awaji, Shikoku, Oki, Kyushu, Iki, Tsushima, Sado, and Honshu. Then she gave birth to more islands.
The Birth of the Gods
Next they gave birth to gods — thirty-five in the Kojiki’s count: the gods of the house, of the sea, of the harbours, of the wind, of the trees, of the mountains, of the moors, and many others.
The last was Kagutsuchi, the god of fire. As she gave birth to him, Izanami’s genitals were burned, and she fell sick. Even as she lay dying, more gods were born from her vomit, her faeces, and her urine: gods of metal, of clay, of water, and of food.
Then Izanami died.
The Grief of Izanagi
Izanagi wept over her, crawling around her head and feet. From his tears was born a goddess who lives at the foot of Mount Kagu. He buried Izanami on Mount Hiba, on the border between the lands of Izumo and Hōki.
Then, in his rage and grief, he drew his long sword and cut off the head of his son, the fire god Kagutsuchi. From the blood that dripped from the sword and the pieces of Kagutsuchi’s body, more gods were born — gods of rock, of thunder, of swords, and of mountains.
The Journey to Yomi
Unable to live without his wife, Izanagi followed Izanami into Yomi (Yomi-no-kuni), the dark land of the dead. What happened there — Izanami’s request that he not look at her, the terrible sight that he saw when he did, his flight from the underworld, and the great boulder with which he closed the way — is one of the most famous stories in Japanese myth. It is told in full in Izanagi in Yomi: The Journey to the Land of the Dead.
At the end of that journey, Izanami became the goddess of death, and the gates between the living and the dead were sealed.
The Purification and the Three Noble Children
Returning from Yomi, Izanagi felt defiled by contact with death. He went to a river mouth in Himuka, in Kyushu, to purify himself by bathing — the first act of misogi, the ritual washing that remains central to Shinto practice.
As he removed his clothing and ornaments, gods were born from each piece. As he washed, more gods were born from the water. And at the end, three great gods were born:
- When he washed his left eye, Amaterasu, the sun goddess, was born.
- When he washed his right eye, Tsukuyomi, the moon god, was born.
- When he washed his nose, Susanoo, the storm god, was born.
Izanagi rejoiced: “I have borne child after child, and at the end I have obtained three noble children.” He gave Amaterasu his necklace and entrusted her with the Plain of High Heaven; Tsukuyomi was given the realm of night, and Susanoo the ocean. (See Amaterasu: The Sun Goddess of Japan and Susanoo: The Storm God of Japanese Mythology.)
Izanagi’s Retirement
Susanoo refused to rule the sea. He wept and howled for his dead mother, Izanami, until the mountains withered and the rivers dried up. Izanagi, angry, banished him. Then Izanagi retired, according to the Kojiki, to Taga in Ōmi (modern Shiga Prefecture), where the Taga Taisha shrine still honours him. The Nihon Shoki says he lived on Awaji island, where the Izanagi Shrine claims to mark his resting place.
Meaning and Themes
The myth of Izanagi and Izanami touches on themes found throughout world mythology:
- Creation through a divine couple, whose union produces the world.
- The correct order of ritual. The first failed union shows the importance of doing things properly.
- Fire as both gift and danger. The birth of fire kills the mother goddess, as in many myths fire is linked to death and sacrifice.
- Death and pollution. The concept of kegare, ritual impurity, especially from contact with death, is central to Shinto, and the myth explains why purification is necessary.
- The origin of the imperial line. Amaterasu, born from Izanagi’s eye, was the ancestress of the Japanese emperors.
Legacy
The Onogoro-shima of the myth has been identified with several small islands, including Nushima near Awaji. The Izanagi Shrine on Awaji and the Taga Taisha in Shiga are important centres of their worship. The couple appear in art, anime, and games — the popular Naruto series named powerful techniques after them. Their story remains the foundation of the Japanese mythological tradition.
Last reviewed: September 2026.