Japanese Mythology (LL)

Japan is a land of contradictions. It is a land of tradition and custom, but it is a relative newcomer to the ranks of civilization (its first notable court was created 2,000 years after the first Chinese dynasty). While the same Imperial family has led Japan throughout its fifteen centuries of recorded history, the Emperor has rarely enjoyed more than a nominal control over the affairs of the country. It is a land of incredible beauty and tranquility that (before the 20th Century) suffered only one serious attempt at invasion, yet Japan's fierce samurai warriors are well-known for practicing the grimmest kind of warfare.

Japan lies off the east coast of Asia, a chain of volcanic islands somewhat larger in area than Great Britain. It is isolated from its nearest neighbor, Korea, by 100 miles of stormy sea so difficult and dangerous to cross that it proved the undoing of the only invasion fleet to threaten its shores in ancient times. The islands are mostly mountainous, but there are many fertile plains and flat-bottomed river valleys in which to cultivate crops. It has a temperate climate and dependable rainfall that make it a wonderful place to live. Yet it also lies in the middle of a common hurricane path, and is savaged at least once a year by tremendously destructive typhoons. And, being built upon a chain of volcanic islands, large parts are often shaken by tremendous earthquakes or subjected to a fiery rain of molten rock and ash.

In 500 B.C., while Chinese culture was flourishing on the mainland, these beautiful and violent islands were inhabited by two groups of non-Mongoloid tribesmen, one of which (the Ainu) had not yet emerged from the Stone Age. During the Second and First Centuries B.C., Mongoloid peoples ventured across the Korea Strait in large numbers, bringing with them technological and agricultural knowledge (such as crude iron forging and rice-growing). They mixed with the previous inhabitants, forming the Yayoi culture. The Yayoi culture was one of gentle, agricultural barbarians. The islands were divided into hundreds of small states ruled by female sorceresses. (One such ruler, a woman named Pimiko, was served inside her fortified palace by one male and 1,000 female attendants.) Like most early farming communities, they probably practiced a form of natureworship, deifying the sun, moon, rain, especially impressive mountains, etc. They practiced a form of divination, prophesying the future from baked bones.

In about 250 A.D., fierce warlike horsemen (probably of the same stock as Attila and his Huns) crossed the Korea Strait. Wearing iron armor and wielding finely crafted iron swords, they quickly conquered the gentle Yayoi culture and installed themselves as the local aristocracy. It was not many generations before one of their families, perhaps in alliance with native priests, won precedence over the others and established itself as the Imperial Family. The descendants of this shadowy prehistoric family still reign over Japan today.

The Imperial Legacy[]

According to legend, the first earthly member of this family was the grandson of Amaterasu, the sun goddess (it is in her honor that Japan is called the "Land of the Rising Sun"). Bearing three heavenly symbols (the curved jewel, the sword, and the mirror), this "august grandchild" descended to Kyushu (the western-most of the four main islands). The first, semi-legendary emperor, Jimmu Tenno, was descended from this divine grandchild. In 400 A.D., this early Japanese empire had stabilized as far east as the Yamato province (on the largest island, Honshu, near present day Osaka).

By then, the emperor was already cast in the role he was to fulfill for most of Japan's history—that of a divine leader, but more of religious symbol than the head of the government. The true ruler was an official similar to a prime minister, who heavily influenced (if not actually dictated) all of the emperor's pronouncements. In addition, when an emperor died, this minister often choose which prince (always from the Imperial family) became the next emperor—and it was not unusual for him to have his choice's potential rivals assassinated as insurance against future insurrection.

Although individual emperors might be dethroned or even murdered, the royal family was never displaced. Because of the line's religious significance, only an authentic descendant of Jimmu Tennu (and therefore the sun goddess Amaterasu) could be become emperor and intercede with heaven on behalf of men. That is why, after more than 1,500 years, the current emperor of Japan belongs to the same family as the first.

Japan at this time was far from a settled land. Despite the divinity of the emperor, its political organization was little more than a loosely knit assemblage of clans tolerating the supremacy of one member. Their technology was still not as advanced as that of China, there was no written language, communication was so poor that imperial influence outside of the Yamato region was tenuous at best, and much of the country was plagued by outlaws, pirates, or unsubdued Ainu.

Much of that was about to change. In 552 A.D., the Korean kingdom of Paikche sent an emissary to Japan, opening the way for Chinese influence to enter the Land of the Rising Sun. Over the next two hundred and fifty years, Japan imported many Chinese innovations, such as writing, technology, and theories of centralized government. They adapted these innovations to the unique conditions of Japan, more often than not improving them in the process. It was also during this time that Buddhism, already a thousand years old, was introduced, and that Japan's native religion acquired its name, Shinto.

During the next five hundred years, Japan advanced, both culturally and technologically, at a remarkable pace. They invented an alphabet more suited to their language than Chinese, created some of the most beautiful poetry and other literature that the world has ever known, and took the art of sword-making to heights that western artisans could not equal until many centuries later.

The Rise of the Samurai[]

Despite Japan's advances in culture and technology, they were not able to permanently consolidate a centralized government. The country remained essentially a land of clans, with powerful families vying savagely for the all-important position that allowed them to exert their influence over the emperor.

Then, in the 10th Century A.D., the imperial government began to suffer a loss of tax revenues through its practice of granting large tracts of tax-free land to monasteries and powerful nobles. Eventually, the ruling family of the time, the Fujiwara, grew so weak that they had to rely upon alliances with powerful provincial families to stabilize the government—and even then, they were far from successful.

The situation grew worse when the Emperor Go Sanjo attempted to assert the power of the throne. During his four-year reign, he managed to oust the Fujiwara family from control. Then, in order to free himself from the time-consuming religious ceremonies of the emperor, he abdicated in favor of his son. As the Retired Emperor, he was free to devote his energies to the real business of running the empire: politics and government.

Unfortunately, Go Sanjo never had the chance to unify the disparate clans of Japan. He died a year after becoming the Retired Emperor, and his son abdicated a short time later. A long and bitter era of bloodshed and almost incessant warfare followed as the two strongest clans, the Minamoto and Taira, vied for power. It was during this period that the warrior became respected and the samurai evolved as a distinct social class.

In many respects, the samurai was outwardly similar to the knights of medieval Europe. He was a gentleman warrior who often fought from horseback and who owed allegiance to a lord of higher rank. But there the semblance ends. Unlike European knights, the samurai were not inspired by religious fervor, chivalric ideals, or the glorification of womanhood. Instead, they were fanatically loyal to their overlords, not allowing love of family, duty to parents, or even fear of death to stand before their duty to their feudal leader.

Eventually, the samurai would acquire a code and a set of characteristics to put it widely apart from the masses of Japanese. But, as the Minamoto and Taira families fought for dominance, the Bushido was not yet a code, and the samurai were little more than fearless, merciless warriors fighting for the glory of their leader.

The conflict between the great Minamoto and Taira families continued for nearly a hundred years. In 1156, the conflict broke into an all-out war that lasted until 1185, when Minamoto Yoritomo crushed the Taira family for good. Yoritomo then began consolidating his power and, in 1192, was named the first shogun (military dictator) of Japan. For the first time, Japan had a strong central government and, under Yoritomo's leadership, it entered a period of relative unification and order.

Shinto[]

By the 12th Century, Japanese society had been heavily influenced by Buddhism. However, Buddhist mythology does not lend itself well to AD&D® campaigns. Therefore, Legends & Lore does not go to any length in describing Buddhism, its history, or mythology. Instead, in the many countries where Buddhism has become influential, Legends & Lore describes, to the degree possible, the mythology of the country before the arrival of Buddhism. In Japan, the native mythology is largely derived from the beliefs surrounding Shintoism.

Shinto is not an easy religion for outsiders to understand, for it relies on spiritual insight and feeling rather than disciplined thought and learning. Were a non-practitioner to attempt to explain it in the space of a few paragraphs—or even pages—he would be doomed to failure—it is beyond the scope of Legends & Lore. Instead, this book presents an adjusted, much simplified version designed specifically for the purpose of adding flavor to a fantasy role-playing campaign in Japan or in a Japanese-like setting. It is in no way an examination of the true religion, much less a judgement or comment upon its validity. With that precaution in mind, the information that follows should prove helpful in adding flavor to your campaign.

Shinto is not a Japanese word, but was coined in the sixth century A.D. when Buddhism entered Japan. Literally, it means "the way of good spirits," which is not—at least to most westerners—a very accurate description of the religion. Shintoism is a naturalistic religion in which the forces of nature and, to a lesser extent, ancestors are deified. These forces are called "kami," which is an extremely difficult concept to translate accurately into English. Basically, for our purposes, kami is somewhere between a "god" and a "spirit." It might be described as meaning "the beings more highly placed," "the venerated," or as "the awe-inspiring." Anything which deserves to be revered or dreaded for its extraordinary powers (especially those possessing a magical nature) deserves to be called "kami." A god, a majestic mountain, and the august personage of the emperor are all "kami." Not surprisingly, there are a lot of kamis—eight million of them, to be precise.

For our purposes, only animals of a magical nature or origin would have a kami. Thus, dragons, unicorns, and lycanthropes would all have a kami; bears, griffins, and kobolds would not. If in doubt, consider whether or not the creature has any magical abilities or magic resistance; generally, those that do have kamis, the others don't.

On earth, kamis can be found in anything, from beautiful waterfalls to majestic mountains to oddly shaped rocks. All are worshiped as fervently as other cultures worship their gods, and when walking through Japan, one is likely to come upon a small shrine to one of these kamis at any time—beside a quiet pool, at the base of a great cliff, or deep within a peaceful glade.

Most of the kamis described in Legends & Lore are of a different type, however. These kamis correspond more closely to conventional concepts of deities. They are the gods of the sun and moon, the beings responsible for storms and fertility, the ones who created the land and populated it with people.

For the largest part, these kami, the "Ama-Tsu-Kami" or kami of the heavens, reside "in the sky" (any of the Seven Heavens). At one time, earth was linked to the sky by a bridge, the Ama no Hashidate, which allowed the gods free and easy access to the earth. Unfortunately, this bridge has long since collapsed, forcing the gods to send their avatars when they wish to visit the world of men.

Under the earth lies the kingdom of the dead, the "Land of Darkness" or Yomi-tsu-kuni. It can be reached via a winding road that begins in the Izumo province and leads underground, or via the bottomless abyss which engulfs all the waters of the sea. It is pictured as an ugly, foul land filled with the repulsive corpses of the dead.

According to mythology, a generation of unnamed divinities were born at the same time as the heaven and the earth. They were followed by several more unnamed generations of divinities, until finally the seventh generation, containing Izanagi and Izanami, was born. Izanagi and Izanami created the islands of Japan, then went down to live on them. There, in many different manners, they began giving birth to many other kamis.

This process continued until Izanami gave birth to the god of fire, a difficult delivery which resulted in her death. After Izanami went to the Land of Darkness, the other kamis continued to procreate. Nevertheless, Izanagi missed his wife and went to retrieve her, but Izanami was furious when he saw her in her decayed form and chased him away. Afterwards, as Izanagi washed himself, he created the deities of the sea and, when he washed his left eye, Amaterasu, the goddess of the sun and the ancestor of Japanese emperors.

After this, of course, all the kamis engaged in a great many adventures—far too numerous to recount here.

New Spells[]

Kami Absorption (Priest Spell) - Level 5 Priest Spell

New Magic Items[]

Sage Advice (Dragon Issue #204)[]

These are unofficial suggestions for using the optional spheres of priest spells from the Tome of Magic with the deities of the Japanese pantheon from Legends & Lore:

Izanagi and Izanami: Major: Time, Travelers; Minor: None.
Amaterasu: Major: Time, Wards; Minor: None.
Tsuki-Yomi: Major: Time, Numbers; Minor: None.
Hachiman: Major: Travelers, War; Minor: None.
Susanoo: Major: Chaos; Minor: None.
Raiden: Major: Time; Minor: None.
O-Kuni-Nushi: Major: Time; Minor: None.
Ama-Tsu-Mara: Major: Time; Minor: None.
Inari: Major: Time; Minor: None.
Ho Masubi: Major: Time; Minor: None.
Nai No Kami: Major: Time; Minor: None.
O-Wata-Tsu-Mi: Major: Time; Minor: None.
Kura Okami: Major: Time; Minor: None.
Shina-Tsu-Hiko: Major: Chaos; Minor: None.
Amatsu-Mikaboshi: Major: Time; Minor: None.
Shichifukujin: Major: Priest chooses one of the following: Time, Travelers, Wards; Minor: None