Izanami (イザナミ), formally referred to with the honorific Izanami-no-Mikoto (伊弉冉尊/伊邪那美命, meaning "She-who-invites" or the "Female-who-invites"), is the creator deity of both creation and death in Japanese mythology, as well as the Shinto mother goddess. She and her brother-husband Izanagi are the last of the seven generations of primordial deities that manifested after the formation of heaven and earth. Izanami and Izanagi are held to be the creators of the Japanese archipelago and the progenitors of many deities, which include the sun goddess Amaterasu, the moon deity Tsukuyomi and the storm god Susanoo. In mythology, she is the direct ancestor of the Japanese imperial family.
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Shinto |
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Izanami-no-Mikoto | |
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Primordial goddess of creation and death | |
Other names | Izanami-no-Kami (伊弉冉神) |
Japanese | 伊邪那美 |
Major cult center | Taga Taisha |
Texts | Kojiki, Nihon Shoki, Sendai Kuji Hongi |
Gender | Female |
Region | Japan |
Genealogy | |
Parents | None (Kojiki, Nihon Shoki) Aokashikine-no-Mikoto (Shoki) Awanagi-no-Mikoto (Shoki) Omodaru and Ayakashikone.[1] |
Siblings | Izanagi |
Consort | Izanagi |
Children | Amaterasu Tsukuyomi Susanoo Hiruko Kagu-tsuchi (and others) |