The Kami

The Kami of Japan
To outsiders, Japan and its Kami have always seemed to be homogenous, united, and indivisible. What most foreigners do not know about is the long and fractured history of the islands of Japan. They do not know about the Ainu people or the Ages of War, the divisions between earthly and heavenly Kami, or the invasion of Buddhist bodhisattvas who accepted roles as Kami. To gaijin, Japan has always been the unified Empire of the Rising Sun.

It’s true that Amaterasu, the sun Goddess, has ruled over all for virtual eternity. But there are lines of division that have broken out into all-out war. But know your history, and you can read between the lines of polite dialogue, between Fortune and Earthly, and you will find those divisions. Against outsiders, the Kami will come together like no other force. Even the Titans come to the Kami’s aid when all of Japan is threatened, for that is their way: something that isn’t quite Shintō, Buddhist, Bushido, or even Christian, but all of those, and more.

The Kami descended from the Heavenly Plane to rule over Japan some 2,500 years ago. Around 600 BCE, the Heavenly Kami decided that Ninigi-no-Mikoto, the grandson of Amaterasu, should travel to the Central Land of the Reed Plains (the Kansai Region of Japan) and rule as Emperor. He was given three gifts by his grandmother: her string of magatama jewels, the mirror that drew her from the cave, and the sword Kusanagi.

His path to Earth was blocked by Sarutahiko, the king of the KunitsuKami: the Earthly Kami. The Heavenly Kami had so long ignored the Earthly that the “lowly” Kami had organized under new leaders. They saw Ninigi as an interloper, an outsider, and an invader. Sarutahiko girded his loins and prepared for a fight against the upstart Ninigi-no-Mikoto, but he was blindsided by the laughter and beauty of Ama-no-Uzume, who had joined Ninigi’s entourage as an advisor.  She spoke kind and gentle words to Sarutahiko, and had Ninigi show Sarutahiko his grandmother’s heirlooms. Amazed, Sarutahiko agreed to stand down and discuss Ninigi-noMikoto’s expedition. Ama-no-Uzume’s charms won over Sarutahiko and Ninigi won the right to rule over all of Japan as Emperor without a single fight. Uniting it was another matter, but unite Japan they did, and the Kami’s power structure has remained since that time.

When foreign Gods arrived in the Land of Eight Million Kami, they were shown their place in the order of heaven and worshipped. This shinbutsu-shūgō, or synchronistic view, has saved Japan much religious strife. That isn’t to say there has been no strife. The arrival of Buddhism saw great upheavals that threatened to destroy Shintō belief, but synchronicity and the Buddhist Fortunes accepting their roles as Kami saved the faith. This, of course, created a third major political faction beyond just the heavenly and earthly Kami factions, a division the Fortunes are happy to play to their advantage. Yet today Japan is one of the most religiously integrated and pluralistic societies.

Principal Members
The Kami of Japan are part of a massive pantheon where everything from a small pebble or an ancient camphor tree are Kami. They are the single largest pantheon on Earth, and the more liberal members argue that every God and or supernatural being could find their place within the Kannagara: order of all things.

Despite their numbers, there are major leaders, and those with the power to create Scions are most often limited to these figures. Also, the leaders are very willing to adopt Scions born of others; there is no problem with such issues socially, and the only stricture that all Kami place on such acceptance is that the Scion must prove themselves worthy. These can range from simple tasks like a potential Scion of Ama-no-Uzume making another person laugh, to a death-defying epic quest to find the missing silver chopstick of Uke Mochi, lost at the bottom of the Sea of Japan, for Tsukiyomi so he can prove to his sister he was correct in his actions.

The Kami of Japan include: Amaterasu (sun and leadership), Tsukiyomi (moon and order), Susano-O (sea, death, and storms), Hachiman (archery, culture, and warriors), Inari (rice and fertility), Ama-no-Uzume (dawn and revelry), Sarutahiko (martial arts and monkeys), Takemikazuchi (thunder and sumo), Ebisu (luck and fishing), Ōkuninushi (heroes and wealth), Bishamon (war and punisher), Benzaiten (talent and eloquence), Fukurokuju (longevity and wisdom), Kisshōten (beauty and mercy), and Hotei (Contentment and Children)

Pantheon Path
Assest Skills: Close Combat, Culture

Virtue: Sincerity and Right Action.

The Kami believe that Sincerity and Right Action are the best possible way for a person to act. If they are sincere in all they do, and what they do is right and proper, then they will always be victorious, prosperous, and happy. Some wrongly believe that bushidō is the Virtue of the Kami. But that is only the path that bushi, warriors, must follow. It would be wrong for a farmer to follow bushidō, just as it would be wrong for a warrior to follow the path of the farmer.

Sincerity: The Virtue of Sincerity is to believe in what one does with all their heart. To commit partially will lead to failure and unhappiness. No matter what one does, be sincere; commit fully and earnestly. Whatever you do, be that planting rice, running towards the enemy, or playing the biwa, be sincere and one will find greatness.

Right Action: All things have a place under heaven. One must find their proper place, and with sincerity do the thing they are meant to do. All paths are different in life, and while many might converge on a battlefield, they are not all the same, even if they are similar. Do sincerely what the right action is for yourself in every moment and you will not fail. That right action might be to die gloriously, but it is the right action. Alternatively, the right action might be to stay home with a broken leg and take it easy while your friends are off at war and your father cares for the horse that threw you off.

Signature Purview: Eight Million Kami

All things are Kami and can be bidden to work wonders. Everything that exists is a Kami. The pebbles in a stream are all Kami, the river they are in is a Kami, the bay it flows into is a Kami, and the dream of a man about the Kami Godzilla sleeping in that bay are all Kami.

If one knows the proper way to appease a Kami, then it will help you in whatever way it can. A great river Kami might know about all the places it goes and that people have stepped into the stream that feeds into it, but it won’t know the type of shoe worn by the man who stepped into the stream the previous night. But the stone that the man stepped on can probably describe to you the design on the bottom of the boot the man wore, but only if you know how to appease it with the proper prayers and treat it with respect.

Takahamagahara - The High Plain of Heaven
The rulers of all the Kami are the Heavenly Kami, or Amatsukami. They are led by Amaterasu, who rules over the High Plain. Not much is known about the place, as few who are not Kami, and many Kami themselves, never travel there. Amaterasu has her palace there along with her rice fields, dikes, and various important buildings for carrying on life.

There is also a great river that flows through heaven, but it has been dammed up so that the Heavenly Kami can all collect there and discuss important matters. It is a fantastic place, but much like the land of early Japan. To get there one must cross the Heavenly Bridge, which is the Milky Way. Somewhere along that route is the eight-path crossroads where Sarutahiko confronted Ninigi-no-Mikoto’s procession to Earth.

Yomi
Yomi was the original land of the dead. It is deep beneath the earth, dark and dusty, and those who reside there are unclean. Susano-O guarded the entrance to Yomi at his castle of Izumo, until he turned it over to Ōkuninushi. There is said to be a river, and for it to be much like the land of the living, except everything is decaying and a shadow of its former life.

Jigoku
When Buddhism became part of the syncretic beliefs of the Japanese, many more Kami joined the realms of both the living and the dead. The Underworld expanded, and across the river bordering Yomi appeared Jigoku, the Buddhist hells and lands of the dead. There, those who have not attained enlightenment are punished for their sins in life, and once their punishments are complete they are sent back up and reborn into life. There are eight hot and eight cold regions in Jigoku, and a capital city where the great Emma-O is said to rule. Besides the ruler, there are many demons of a multitude of ranks that run Jigoku and punish the inhabitants.

Titans
Finding one’s proper place in this cycle isn’t always a great thing. Your place might be as the example of what not to do when riding a bike down a road. A number of the Kami have succumbed being so focused on one’s specific place that they have lost sight of balance and harmony and become Titans. This is a path all Kami are fearful of treading, but one that has claimed many over the eons, and why harmony in all things is considered important, for any Kami could become as broken and dark as these Titans.

Fujin - Kami of the Winds
One of the oldest Kami, along with his brother Raijin, both fell to the dark focus of the Titans. Fujin once dealt in magic, strange creatures, and sailors, but now cares for nothing else but blowing wind. He appears as a monstrous, green-skinned demon with red hair and a leopardskin loincloth. He carries a large bag of wind over his shoulders.

Purview: Sky

Raijin - Kami of Lightning
Brother of Fujin, was originally a protector of the Buddha’s teachings and Japan, but became so absorbed with dominating the power of lightning as his tool to protect that he lost sight of all other things. Now, he is a monster of lightning, and cares little for protecting anything, just reveling in his destructive power.

Purview: Sky

Nezumo - Kami of Earthquakes
Was once a simple carp Kami who could shake and escape anything. Because nothing could trap him, he continued to eat and grow for thousands of years. Unfortunately, he gained a taste for the fish who live in the deepest oceans and caverns below Japan, but he was too large to fit until he shook himself, broke through, and trapped himself below Japan; this, of course, caused earthquakes. Now all he cares to do is escape. Takemikazuchi was tasked with stopping Nezumo.

Purview: Earth

Shintoism
Shintō, or the Way of the Gods, is as old as the history of Japan in the World. Most Worldly Japanese people say they are Shintō. There is a common saying in Japan: “Born Shintō, marry Christian, die Buddhist.” In the World, Shintō and the Japanese people are synchronistic: Many see no trouble with religions and beliefs coexisting at the same time. This doesn’t mean there are not rifts between the various factions. If most devout Japanese knew about the kirishitan Kannon during the long era of the closed Japan, they would have torn down the shrines and executed the Christians. Similar fights between Buddhist and Shintō beliefs occurred, with Buddhism winning in many ways, but accepting Shintō as a lesser form, and the Shintō just incorporated the Buddhist deities into their pantheon.

The basic tenant is the belief in the Kannagara, or the proper and natural order of things. It includes the understanding of being clean and unclean, right action, sincerity, and duty. Everything, including outside beliefs and Gods, have a place in Japan, one must just find the proper place and become part of the order.

Most practitioners interact by visiting shrines, praying to the Kami, lighting candles, ringing bells, and leaving them small offerings. One, some, or all of these actions can be taken, but there is no specific action for all Kami. All Kami are different, and while the deaf Ebisu will not hear the bell ringing, he will appreciate the gift of fish left at his shrine.

Birthright
The most common Kami Birthrights are Creatures and Relics although there are some Followers and Guides.

Creatures
Komainu: Lion dogs are magical creatures that protect Shintō shrines and temples. They have a lion-like head with a mane, a large mouth, bulging eyes, and the body of a dog.

Followers
Kitsune:  The magical foxes of Inari, whom she employs as messengers and advisors to supplicants. While some appear as simple foxes, others can have multiple tails; the greatest will have as many as nine tails. They can shapeshift into beautiful maidens.

Guides
Tengu: Powerful raven-headed Kami with the body of a man and often wings. They live at the top of secluded mountains and are wise and skilled sword masters. If one gains their respect, then they will teach the person in the ways of the sword.

Relics
Magatama beads: The Yasakani no Magatama beads of Amaterasu and later the Emperors of Japan, is the symbol of the right to rule over all of the Kami. They are kept safe in the Kashikodokoro Shrine in the Three Palace Sanctuaries at the Tokyo Imperial Palace.

The Eight-hand Mirror: The Yata no Kagami is the mirror used by the Kami to trick Amaterasu from her cave. It was lost sometime in the 9th-century C.E. and has the ability to show the viewer any place or being they wish to view.

The Kusanagi sword: Named Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, the grass-cutting sword, it is the sword that Susano-O gifted to his sister Amaterasu. It gained its name when one prince, Yamato Takeru, used it to free himself from a surrounding flame set by his enemies. He discovered it can control the Kami of the air, but lost it soon after.

Relationships
In Japan, face is an important concept to everyone. Tatemae is the outward face one projects to preserve harmony in any given social situation. Honne is one’s inner face, or true feelings about such situations or personages. While one would never share their honne with anyone but family and friends, it can create problems when actions promised under tatemae never materialize because of honne.

Other Pantheons
Other pantheons find the Kami to be very friendly, but sometimes frustrating to work with as honne and tatamae come into play. The Kami, wishing to preserve harmony within a group, will agree to things or make promises they cannot or will not keep, while Gods of other pantheons have no clue why the Kami are acting in this manner. The Buddhist and Hindu pantheons have the closest relationships with the Fortunes, who are the most diplomatic of the Kami. Many of them are different incarnations of themselves, with good working relations and little animosity. Kannon has a direct connection to the Catholic Virgin Mary as her incarnation for the crypto-Japanese Christians of the 17th and 18th centuries. After that, pantheons who have a strong relationship with nature, like the Tuatha Dé Danann, have the most cordial relations with the Kami.

Greatest Weakness
The Kami would never speak of this publicly, but they all know that they are superior to all others. They are the greatest pantheon of Gods. Saying so out loud would destroy harmony and lose them face, but to them it’s true. Who works harder than Hachiman? Who is more enlightened than Amaterasu and the Fortunes? Who is more epic than any of them? None! They expect other Gods and Scions to fail where they would, and plan for that failure. If others do not fail, they are surprised, and this surprise can reveal their superiority complex, and thus destroy harmony