9 Izanaki Escapes from the land of Yomi

”Kami” is a Japanese word referring to gods, spirits, and sacred presences in Japanese belief. The unit used to count Kami is “Hashira.”

Izanaki was horrified when he saw his wife Izanami—her body decayed, with no trace of her former appearance remaining. In a panic, he turned and ran.

Angered that Izanaki had broken his promise not to look, Izanami sent the Yomotsu-shikome, the hags of the underworld, to chase after him.

As the Yomotsu-shikome closed in, Izanaki threw down the kuro-mikazura, a vine he had been wearing in his hair. At once, wild grapes sprang forth. While the Yomotsu-shikome greedily devoured the grapes, Izanaki escaped.

Soon they caught up with him again. This time, Izanaki broke the sacred comb he had tucked into his hair and cast its teeth to the ground. From them, bamboo shoots grew. As the Yomotsu-shikome pulled up the shoots and ate them, Izanaki fled even farther.

Kami on this site were character-designed and illustrated by Tokura Kura. Since the Kojiki contains no descriptions or illustrations of Kami’s physical appearances, they are depicted based on imagination.

This project does not aim to promote or criticize any specific religion.
It is not intended to serve as an academic, historical, or educational reference.

This site treats mythology as one cultural element among many.
It has no affiliation with any country, government, shrine, or official organization.
The content is part of a personal project by the creator, Tokura, based on knowledge personally accumulated over many years and closely aligned with texts such as the Kojiki, and expressed through an original approach and presentation.

The project places particular emphasis on carefully explaining concepts that may be difficult to understand, especially for readers unfamiliar with Japanese culture.