The storm god who slew the eight-headed serpent
Susanoo 須佐之男命
Also known as: Susanoo-no-Mikoto, Gozu Tennō
Element: Water (水)
The myth
Susanoo is Amaterasu's unruly younger brother. His wild behavior in heaven drove her into the Rock Cave, and the gods banished him.
Wandering down to Izumo, he met an elderly couple weeping over their last daughter, Kushinada-hime, who was about to be taken by the eight-headed serpent Yamata-no-Orochi. Susanoo turned her into a comb for his hair, set out vats of strong sake, and cut the serpent apart once it had drunk itself to sleep. In its tail he found the sword later called Kusanagi.
He married Kushinada-hime, and the poem he made on building their home in Izumo, beginning "Yakumo tatsu", is traditionally called the first waka poem.
What people pray to Susanoo for
- Warding off misfortune
- Love and matchmaking
- Good relationships
Why: The raw power that defeated the serpent is why he is prayed to for driving away misfortune and bad connections.
Where to meet Susanoo
- Hikawa Shrine (Musashi Ichinomiya)Omiya, Saitama
- Kawagoe Hikawa ShrineKawagoe, Saitama
- Akasaka Hikawa ShrineAkasaka, Minato, Tokyo
- Nezu ShrineBunkyo, Tokyo
- Yasaka ShrineHigashiyama, Kyoto
More shrines in our database (18, Japanese names)
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- 素盞雄神社 (Tokyo) · map
- 氷川神社（板橋） (Tokyo) · map
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- 千住氷川神社 (Tokyo) · map
- 二宮神社（三山） (Chiba) · map
- 須佐神社 (Shimane) · map
- 八重垣神社 (Shimane) · map
The element shown is the one used by Kamimap's fun guardian-kami quiz, based on traditional five-element associations. It is not a religious teaching.