Japan

Japan is an island nation consisting of the four main islands of Honshu, Hokkaido Kyushu, and Shikoku. Honshu is the largest and main island where the capital Tokyo is located. Other major cities in Japan are Yokohama, Nagoya, Osaka, Sapporo, and Kyoto, the former capital. A majority of the population is concentrated in the major metropolitan areas which leads to a very high population density. Today Japan is noted for being one of the major industrialized nations and a leader in the technology field.

Although Japan had been one of the fastest growing nations economically through the last decade, the nineties have brought an extended recession which the country seems unable to emerge from easily. The next few years will be a time of tremendous change for Japan economically and politically as it tried to regain its position as a leading nation.

The Creation Myth of Japan

There is no Shinto myth regarding the creation of man; the Mikados and the chiefs of tribes were descendants of deities. The chief source of information being the Kojiki of "records of Ancient Matters," and the Nihongi, "Chronicles of Japan." Kojiki is the older of the records, being completed in Japanese in 712 C.E.; the Nihongi was completed in 720 C.E. in Chinese.

The opening passages to the Kojiki begin with a creation myth. Chaos ruled in the beginning and the heaven and earth were not yet separate. Out of their chaos emerged two deities, Izanami and Izanagi, male and female, who with their "Ame No Tamaboko," or "Celestial Jewel Spear," stood on the "Floating Bridge of Heaven" and stirred the ocean until the primeval soup began to curdle. Some of the cosmic porridge dropped from the point of the celestial spear and formed and island , which was named Onogoro, or "self-condenced." The deities descended from heaven onto this island. Izanagi and Izanami subsequently had as children the eight islands of Japan, and although other islands came into being later, Japan was called the Land of the Eight Islands. Many other Kami, deities, arose from their union.

The birth of the fire god, however, caused Izanami such pain that she sickened and passed onto the land of Yomi, or the Underworld. Agonized at her passing, Izanagi cut off the head of the fire god with his sabre and the blood spilled brought into being new gods. Izanagi, however was stilled seize with desire to see Izanami, thus he set out to find her in Yomi.

When he reached her gloomy dwelling, he pleaded to her to come back. Izanami, however, had eaten the food of Yomi so had to ask the Kami of Yomi if she could return. She had warned him not to look as she did so, but he looked, and to his horror found Izanami's body rotting, with maggots swarming over it. Shamed, Izanami set out to pursue Izanagi. After much fleeing, Izanagi blocked up the Pass of Yomi with a huge boulder of rock, which would take a thousand men to lift, and stood on one side of it while she stood on the other. On leaving Yomi, Izanagi flung down various articles of clothing and engaged in purification rituals. Each discarded item became a Kami. His shoes, for example, became Chi-shiki-no-kami, or, god of knowledge.

When he washed his left eye, the goddess of the sun, Amaterasu-o-mikami, arose. When he washed his nose, there came into being the god of wind, storms and violence, Susa-no-o-mikami. Izanagi bestowed his necklace of jewels on Amaterasu and set her to rule the Takamagahara, or the "Plain of High Heaven."

Together these deities produced the next series of deities that later struggle for power in Japan. Amaterasu is mainly associated with northern Kyushu and Yamato, while Izumo is associated with Susano-o's descendants. The brother and sister appear in perpetual conflict but it is Amaterasu who becomes the progenitor of the main line of rulers on earth, a group of families known as the "sun line." Susa-no-o becomes the progenitor of the Izumo line of rulers. Ultimately, the struggle between the deities is transferred down to earth.

Amaterasu sends her grandson, Ninigi-no-Mikoto, from Takamagahara down to earth with three treasures to symbolize his authority. He settles down with his warriors, retinue and servants in northern Kyushu. Two generations later, Ninigi's grandson, Kamy Yamato Iware Hiko leaves Kyushu and occupies Yamato where he established his seat of power. He becomes Japan's first emperor Jimmu ("Divine Warrior"). Jimmu's descendants eventually conquer all of Japan, including the Izumo rulers.

Thus this legendary Japanese history, backed up by archaeological record and Chinese chronicles, reveals the establishment of the first Japanese state.