Ame-no-Koyane

Ame-no-Koyane-no-mikoto (天児屋命, 天児屋根命) is a male deity (kami) in Japanese mythology and Shinto. He is the ancestor god of the Nakatomi clan and its cadet branch the Fujiwara clan.  

He is also the god of Kasuga-taisha,Allan G. Grapard The Protocol of the Gods: A Study of the Kasuga Cult in Japanese History, University of California press  he is the third god of the Kasuga-no-Kami. His wife Himegami is the fourth one.  His son Ame-no-Oshikumone is the fifth one. Those five gods all have Shinto and Buddhist forms. His Buddhist form is Kṣitigarbha.

At first, he and his consort Himegami were worshipped at Hiraoka Shrine. Later, they were moved to Kasuga Taisha, and Hiraoka Shrine became known as Moto-Kasuga ("former Kasuga"). These two deities and their son Ame-no-Oshikumone are ancestors of the Nakatomi clan and Fujiwara clan.Shibata, Joue. Saitama Sōsho. (1929) Volume 1: Chichibu Shi, p 111, Chichibu hikomikoto o keizu 『埼玉叢書. 第1巻』内『秩父志』内111頁「秩父彦命御系図」. Sanmeisha
 Mythology 

In the Kogo Shūi and in the genealogy of Kashima Shrine, Ame-no-Koyane is said to be the son of the creator deity Kamimusubi, one of the three oldest gods.   The Nihon Shoki gives a different story and says he is the son of Kogotomusubi (興台産霊命).

In the Nihon Shoki, Ame-no-Koyane was “the first in charge of divine affairs.” For this, he performed the Greater Divination. Amaterasu ordered him to protect the divine mirror. He served as the "Imperial Aide" in the Imperial Palace, managing its divine matters.

In Japanese mythology, Ame-no-Koyane prayed to the sun goddess Amaterasu to make her come out of the cave of Ama-no-Iwato and bring back light to the world, after Susanoo, the storm god, made her hide away.

During the tenson kōrin, he was one of the five gods who came down from heaven with Ninigi, becoming the ancestor of the Nakatomi clan.

Related pages

 Kumano Gongen
 Kasuga-no-Kami
References

External links
Shinto Portal - IJCC, Kokugakuin University - Encyclopedia of Shinto
Ameno Koyane - History of Japan Database

Category:Amatsukami