Wednesday, August 6, 2014

Takada Aragami-sha


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This little shrine is located between Tokoji and Shoin Shrine in Hagi, Yamaguchi. It was founded in 771 and so precedes the establishment of Hagi as a castle town by almost a millenia. It is the shrine that protects the local area.

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Aragami is most often translates as "Rough Deity", though some say it means "evil deity". I prefer "Turbulent Deity". Most instances I have come across the aragami is nameless, but here it refers to Susano. I have heard Susano referred to as aragami elsewhere in Yamaguchi too.

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Also enshrined here are Okitsuhiko and Okitsuhime, a male/female pair that are often called the Kami of the Hearth or Kitchen or  sometimes the kami of the cauldron and the pot.

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They are both descendants of Susano, through his son Otoshi.

East along the coast is a town called Susa, and when I was first researching Susano I made a trip there to see if there was any connection with Susano, but coulod find none. recently however I can across a local story west of here at Omijima that says Susano used to leave from Omijima on his journeys back to the Korean Peninsula, which makes sense as that is the closest point of Honshu to the peninsula.

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