Amaterasu, also called Amaterasu Omikami and Light of Heaven and titled the Great Goddess of the Rising Sun and simply the Sun Goddess, was the goddess of light and the sun (including the dawn[8] and dusk[9]) among the Eight Million Gods of Wa and Kozakura in Kara-Tur.[1][2][7][3][4][5][6]
Description[]
She appeared as a beautiful human woman with, of course, a radiant smile.[1][2][7]
Personality[]
Though considered fragile and to have had a limited upbringing, Amaterasu was curious and forever fascinated by the Prime Material Plane and by the Outer Planes as well. She worried about events on the Prime and sought to understand other deities of the sun.[3] She was known to have great pride but also great gentleness.[6]
Activities[]
The twin siblings Amaterasu the sun goddess and Tsukiyomi the moon god sat with their backs to one another, and thus marked the difference between day and night.[3] Amaterasu caused solar eclipses as omens.[7]
Amaterasu weaved robes for her fellow gods to wear.[7]
Abilities[]
As goddess of the sun, Amaterasu could illuminate any place in the world, cause plants to grow, and cure diseases, or destroy whatever she desired with her brilliant light.[7] Her avatar could shoot rays of blinding heat from her eyes.[7] She was naturally immune to fire and heat, as well as to cold, and to the spells or darkness and light.[1][2][7] She radiated light constantly, similar to continual light.[1][2]
She had the power to change anything into anything else with but a touch; only other divine beings could resist this polymorphing effect. In battle, Amaterasu liked to turn creatures or weaponry that attacked her into small birds. If not, she struck with her fists.[1][2]
For her magic, Amaterasu could draw from the All, Charm, Creation, Elemental, and of course Sun spheres.[7] She was also capable of the id insinuation psionic attack.[1][2]
Divine Realm[]
She made her home in Mercuria, the second layer of Mount Celestia. The realm was called Radiant Light, and was a land of eternal soft sunlight with no shadows cast anywhere. It soothing, and sometimes even sleep-inducing, and all secret and illegal activities failed.[3]
Symbols[]
The sun holy symbol of Amaterasu.
Her holy symbol was an octagonal mirror[1][2] or a depiction of a sun.[7][3]
She was associated with mirrors, goldfish, and the color gold.[1][2]
Legends[]
After the god Nagikami returned from meeting Namikami in the Land of Darkness, he cleaned off the residue of the Underworld, which produced new deities. When he washed his left eye, the sun goddess Amaterasu was born.[7]
Her brother Susano once played a prank on Amaterasu so cruel that she fled into a cave to hide. This act deprived the world of light and led to Susano being sorely punished.[10]
Nagikami presented an island in an enchanted lake on Shinkoku as a gift to Amaterasu. The sun goddess turned it into a beautiful green land for her people to love. Many shrines to the Eight Million Gods were erected there, the greatest of them being the Temple of Amaterasu; for this, it was called Miyashima, meaning "Temple Island".[8]
The Sun Goddess once hurled a flaming coal into the lake of Nora-ko on the island of Shinkoku. Shortly after, the mysterious island of Norijo arose.[11]
Relationships[]
Amaterasu was the daughter of Nagikami and Namikami, the founders of the pantheon. She was the twin sister of Tsukiyomi, the moon god, and sister to Susano. Amaterasu was the mother of her pantheon, and the greatest of them alongside Susano and Tsukiyomi.[1][2][7][3][note 1]
She had a number of children and grandchildren,[7] including Ninigi, the August Grandchild.[12][13]
Through her grandchildren, some mortal emperors of the Prime Material Plane (such as Japan on Earth) were descendants of Amaterasu and thus took the title "Son of Light".[7][3][12] In particular, the Akimatsu emperors of Kozakura were said to be direct descendants of Amaterasu, via the earlier Earth Spirit emperors, and were thus living gods themselves.[14][15]
By the mid–14th century DR, Amaterasu had established relations with fellow sun deities Ra and Apollo, while the gods of the Lords of Creation also began to take an interest in her.[3]
Worshipers[]
The statue of the Great Goddess of the Rising Sun still standing in the ruined temple on Miyashima.
Her clerics could be male or female, and they wore green vestments and kept their heads uncovered.[1][2]
She was worshiped at her temples and propitiated with handicrafts on a semi-annual basis. Her holy days were the summer and winter solstices.[1][2]
In Kozakura, a good number of significant shrines were dedicated to the sun goddess, as well as to her descendant the emperor.[4][5] For example, they could be found in Miyama Province, from the Temple District of the town of Tamanokuni[4] to the village of Ise-ko.[16] Some notable shrines and temples were:
- Shrine of the Sun Goddess: Standing in Miyama Province, this marked where the Sun Goddess placed the Spear of the Sun that reached between the Land of the Gods and the island of Shinkoku.[17]
- Shrine of the Setting Sun: Also in Miyama Province, this shrine honored the Heavenly Sun Goddess's passing at the day's end.[9]
- Temple of Amaterasu: Built by the Kanchai sect of the Way of Enlightenment on the island of Miyashima, this was a great temple to Amaterasu before it was destroyed by Bane-worshiping Lord Nobunaga during the reign of Emperor Nijo (Kozakuran Year 1163 (1089 DR) to Kozakuran Year 1190 (1116 DR)).[8] Her statue was fashioned from solid iron and covered in gold leaf, with a golden headdress lit up by light from a skylight behind it.[6]
Notable Followers[]
- Shichi No Ken, paladin of Amaterasu
Appendix[]
Background[]
Amaterasu is of course based on Amaterasu, the goddess of the sun in Japanese mythology and Shinto, and the mythical ancestor of the Japanese emperors. While Legends & Lore 2nd edition gives more information about Amaterasu from real-world mythology in relation to Japan, this article excludes this information as being unrelated to the Kara-Tur setting and focuses on only what is necessary for Kara-Tur and the Eight Million Gods.
See Also[]
Notes[]
- ↑ While the parent gods are named Izanagi and Izanami in Japanese mythology and core D&D sources, Kara-Tur sources call them Nagikami and Namikami, respectively. Their stories appear too similar to treat them as separate entities, and many other Japanese deities appear under their own names. Therefore, for consistency, this wiki assumes they are the same and adopts the latter names.
References[]
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 James Ward, Robert J. Kuntz (August 1980). Deities & Demigods. Edited by Lawrence Schick. (TSR, Inc.), pp. 76, 124. ISBN 0-935696-22-9.
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 James Ward and Robert Kuntz (November 1984). Legends & Lore. (TSR, Inc), pp. 76, 124. ISBN 978-0880380508.
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 Colin McComb (October 1996). On Hallowed Ground. Edited by Ray Vallese. (TSR, Inc.), pp. 158, 159, 179. ISBN 0-7869-0430-5.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 David Cook (1986). Swords of the Daimyo (Province Book of Miyama). (TSR, Inc), pp. 9, 18. ISBN 0-88038-273-2.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Mike Pondsmith, Jay Batista, Rick Swan, John Nephew, Deborah Christian (1988). Kara-Tur: The Eastern Realms (Volume II). (TSR, Inc), p. 145. ISBN 0-88038-608-8.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Colin Sullivan (January/February 1992). “Mad Gyoji”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #33 (TSR, Inc.) (33)., p. 71.
- ↑ 7.00 7.01 7.02 7.03 7.04 7.05 7.06 7.07 7.08 7.09 7.10 7.11 7.12 7.13 7.14 James M. Ward and Troy Denning (August 1990). Legends & Lore (2nd edition). (TSR, Inc), pp. 141, 143. ISBN 978-0880388443.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Colin Sullivan (January/February 1992). “Mad Gyoji”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #33 (TSR, Inc.) (33)., pp. 57, 59, 65–66.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 David Cook (1986). Swords of the Daimyo (Province Book of Miyama). (TSR, Inc), p. 31. ISBN 0-88038-273-2.
- ↑ James M. Ward and Troy Denning (August 1990). Legends & Lore (2nd edition). (TSR, Inc), p. 145. ISBN 978-0880388443.
- ↑ David Cook (1986). Swords of the Daimyo (Province Book of Miyama). (TSR, Inc), p. 26. ISBN 0-88038-273-2.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 James M. Ward and Troy Denning (August 1990). Legends & Lore (2nd edition). (TSR, Inc), p. 139. ISBN 978-0880388443.
- ↑ Mike Pondsmith, Jay Batista, Rick Swan, John Nephew, Deborah Christian (1988). Kara-Tur: The Eastern Realms (Volume II). (TSR, Inc), p. 167. ISBN 0-88038-608-8.
- ↑ Mike Pondsmith, Jay Batista, Rick Swan, John Nephew, Deborah Christian (1988). Kara-Tur: The Eastern Realms (Volume II). (TSR, Inc), p. 149. ISBN 0-88038-608-8.
- ↑ Colin Sullivan (January/February 1992). “Mad Gyoji”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #33 (TSR, Inc.) (33)., p. 68.
- ↑ Colin Sullivan (January/February 1992). “Mad Gyoji”. In Barbara G. Young ed. Dungeon #33 (TSR, Inc.) (33)., pp. 55, 57.
- ↑ David Cook (1986). Swords of the Daimyo (Province Book of Miyama). (TSR, Inc), p. 23. ISBN 0-88038-273-2.