Omoikane (思兼 or 思金) is a
Shinto
Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintois ...
god of wisdom and intelligence. His name means "serving one's thoughts." A heavenly deity who is called upon to "ponder" and give good counsel in the deliberations of the heavenly deities. In the myth where
Amaterasu
Amaterasu, also known as Amaterasu Ōmikami () or Ōhirume no Muchi no Kami (), is the goddess of the sun in Japanese mythology. One of the major deities (''kami'') of Shinto, she is also portrayed in Japan's earliest literary texts, the ''Kojik ...
hid in a cave, he was tasked to find a way to get her out.
He is known by other names as ''Tokoyo-no-Omoikane'' (常世思金神) in the ''
Kojiki
The , also sometimes read as or , is an early Japanese chronicle of myths, legends, hymns, genealogies, oral traditions, and semi-historical accounts down to 641 concerning the origin of the Japanese archipelago, the , and the Japanese imperia ...
'' (古事記); ''Omoikane'' (思兼神) in the ''
Nihon Shoki'' (日本書紀); ''Omokane'' (思金神, 思兼神), ''Tokoyo-no-Omoikane'' (常世思金神), ''Yagokoro-omoikane'' (八意思兼神, 八意思金神) in the ''
Kujiki
, or , is a historical Japanese text. It was generally believed to have been one of the earliest Japanese histories until the middle of the Edo period, when scholars such as Tokugawa Mitsukuni and Tada Yoshitoshi successfully contended that it wa ...
'' (旧事紀 or ''Sendai Kuji Hongi'' 先代旧事本紀), or ''Achihiko'' (阿智彦).
He is the son of creator deity
Takamimusubi
Takamimusubi (高御産巣日神, lit. "High Creator") is a god of agriculture in Japanese mythology, who was the second of the first beings to come into existence.
It is speculated that Takamimusubi was originally the tutelary deity for the J ...
(高御産巣日神) and the older brother of ''Takuhatachiji-hime'' (栲幡千千姫命, or commonly named in the ''
Kojiki
The , also sometimes read as or , is an early Japanese chronicle of myths, legends, hymns, genealogies, oral traditions, and semi-historical accounts down to 641 concerning the origin of the Japanese archipelago, the , and the Japanese imperia ...
'': 万幡豊秋津師比売命 ''Yorozuhatatoyo'akitsushi-hime''), who is the wife of the deity ''
Ame-no-Oshihomimi'' (天忍穂耳命).
However in the ''
Kujiki
, or , is a historical Japanese text. It was generally believed to have been one of the earliest Japanese histories until the middle of the Edo period, when scholars such as Tokugawa Mitsukuni and Tada Yoshitoshi successfully contended that it wa ...
'' (旧事紀 or ''Sendai Kuji Hongi'' 先代旧事本紀). Omoikane descends to
Shinano Province
or is an old province of Japan that is now Nagano Prefecture.
Shinano bordered on Echigo, Etchū, Hida, Kai, Kōzuke, Mikawa, Mino, Musashi, Suruga, and Tōtōmi Provinces. The ancient capital was located near modern-day Matsumoto, whi ...
(信濃国 ''Shinano-no-kuni'', a former province that is now
Nagano Prefecture
is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Nagano Prefecture has a population of 2,052,493 () and has a geographic area of . Nagano Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture to the north, Gunma Prefecture to the ...
) to become the ancestor ''Shina-no-achihouri'' (信之阿智祝) and as in
Chichibu Province (知々夫国, ''Chichibu no kuni''), a former province in
Saitama Prefecture
is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Saitama Prefecture has a population of 7,338,536 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 3,797 km2 (1,466 sq mi). Saitama Prefecture borders Tochigi Prefecture ...
. He then becomes the father of both deities ''Ame-no-Uwaharu'' (天表春命) and ''Ame-no-Shitaharu'' (天下春命), also through this lineage become the patriarchal ancestor of the children of ''
Ama-no-Koyane'' (天児屋命, 天児屋根命).
See also
*
Amaterasu
Amaterasu, also known as Amaterasu Ōmikami () or Ōhirume no Muchi no Kami (), is the goddess of the sun in Japanese mythology. One of the major deities (''kami'') of Shinto, she is also portrayed in Japan's earliest literary texts, the ''Kojik ...
*
Benzaiten
*
Kuebiko
*
Tenjin
References
External links
Omoikane Encyclopedia of Shinto
Omoikane- History of Japan Database
Japanese gods
Wisdom gods
Shinto kami
{{Shinto-stub