Kusanagi

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article contains a trivia section.
Content in this section should be integrated into other appropriate areas of the article or removed, and the trivia section removed.
For other uses, see Kusanagi (disambiguation).
Part of the series on
Japanese Mythology

Religions  · Divinities
Creatures & Spirits
Stories and Myths
Kojiki  · Kwaidan
Nihon Shoki  · Otogizōshi
Yotsuya Kaidan
Legendary Figures
Abe no Seimei  · Hidari Jingorō
Kintarō  · Kuzunoha  · Momotarō
Nezumi Kozō  · Tamamo-no-Mae
Tomoe Gozen  · Urashima Tarō
Sacred Objects
Amenonuhoko  · Kusanagi
Sesshō-seki  · Tonbogiri
Three Sacred Treasures
Mythical & Sacred Locations
Hōrai  · Mount Hiei
Mt. Fuji  · Rashōmon
Ryūgū-jō  · Suzakumon
Takamagahara  · Yomi
Japanese Mythology

Kusanagi-no-tsurugi (Japanese: 草薙の剣) is a legendary Japanese sword as important to Japan's history as Excalibur is to Britain's. It is actually called Ame-no-murakumo-no-tsurugi (天叢雲剣, lit. "Heaven's Cloud-Gathering Sword") but it is more popularly called Kusanagi-no-tsurugi (草切断の剣 lit. "Grass-Cutting Sword" or more probably "sword of snake"). It may also be called Tsumugari-no-tachi (都牟刈の太刀). The actual Kusanagi, if it exists, is likely to be a sword in the style of the Bronze Age which is typically double-edged, short and straight; very different from the more recent katana backsword style, which features typical curved single-edged blades.

Contents

[edit] Legends

The history of Kusanagi extends into legend. According to Kojiki, the Japanese god Susano'o encountered a grieving family headed by Ashi-na-Zuchi in Izumo province. When Susano'o inquired of Ashi-na-Zuchi, he told him that his family was being ravaged by the fearsome Yamata-no-Orochi, an eight-headed serpent of Koshi, who consumed seven of the family's eight daughters and that the creature was coming for his final daughter, Kushinada-hime. Susano'o proceeded to investigate the creature, and after an abortive encounter he returned with a plan to defeat it. In return, he asked for Kushinada's hand in marriage, which was agreed. Transforming her temporarily into a comb (one interpreter reads this section as 'using a comb he turns into [masquerades as] Kushinadahime') to have her company during battle, he detailed his plan.

He instructed the preparation of eight vats of sake (rice wine) to be put on individual platforms positioned behind a fence with eight gates. The monster took the bait and put each of its heads through each gate. With this distraction, Susano'o attacked and slew the beast. He decapitated each head and then proceeded to the tails. In the fourth tail, he discovered a great sword inside the body of the dragon which he called Ame-no-Murakumo-no-tsurugi, which he presented to the goddess, Amaterasu to settle an old grievance.

Generations later in the reign of the Twelfth Emperor, Emperor Keikō, the sword was given to the great warrior, Yamato Takeru as part of a pair of gifts given by his aunt, Yamato Hime the Shrine Maiden of Ise Shrine, to protect her nephew in times of peril.

These gifts came in handy when Yamato Takeru was lured onto an open grassland during a hunting expedition by a treacherous warlord. The lord had fiery arrows to ignite the grass and trap Yamato Takeru in the field so that he would burn to death. He also killed the warrior's horse to prevent his escape. Desperately, Yamato Takeru used Ama-no-Murakumo-no-tsurugi to cut back the grass and remove fuel from the fire, but in doing so, he discovered that the sword enabled him to control the wind and cause it to move in the direction of his swing. Taking advantage of this magic, Yamato Takeru used his other gift, fire strikers, to enlarge the fire in the direction of the lord and his men, and he used the winds controlled by the sword to sweep the blaze toward them. In triumph, Yamato Takeru renamed the sword Kusanagi-no-tsurugi (lit. "Grasscutter Sword") to commemorate his narrow escape and victory. Eventually, Yamato Takeru married and later fell in battle with a monster, after ignoring his wife's advice to take Kusanagi with him.

While this is the most popular theory of how Kusanagi got its name, researchers agree that it is most likely false. In the ancient Japanese language, kusa meant "sword" and nagi meant "snake". Thus, an alternative theory is that Kusanagi meant "sword of the snake".

[edit] Present State of Kusanagi

Although the sword is mentioned in the Kojiki, this book is a collection of Japanese myths and is not considered a historical document. The first reliable historical mention of the sword is in the Nihonshoki. Although the Nihonshiki also contains mythological stories that are not considered reliable history, it records some events that were contemporary or nearly contemporary to its writing, and these sections of the book are considered historical. In the Nihonshoki, the Kusanagi was removed from the Imperial palace in 688, and moved to Atsuta Shrine after the sword was blamed for causing Emperor Temmu to fall ill. Along with the jewel and the mirror, it is one of the three imperial regalia of Japan, the sword representing the virtue of valor.

Kusanagi is allegedly kept at Atsuta shrine to this day, although it is not available for public display, and its existence cannot be confirmed. It is recorded that during the Edo period, a Shinto priest claimed to have seen the sword. According to him, the sword was about 84 cm long, shaped like calamus, fashioned in a white metallic color, and well maintained. Another record claims that this priest died from the curse and the power of the sword, but this is most likely a story that was spread to emphasize its power.

In recent times, Japan's nationally run broadcasting station, NHK, went to Atsuta Shrine to videotape the sword. However, the priests declined to present it, although they did not deny its existence.

Although some sword may be held by the Atsuta shrine, it is somewhat unlikely to be the legendary Kusanagi. In The Tale of the Heike, a collection of oral stories transcribed in 1371, the sword is lost at sea after the defeat of the Heike clan in the Battle of Dan-no-ura, a naval battle that ended in the defeat of the Heike clan forces and the child Emperor Antoku at the hands of Minamoto no Yoshitsune. In the tale, upon hearing of the Navy's defeat, the Emperor's grandmother led the Emperor and his entourage to commit suicide by drowning in the waters of the strait along with the three imperal regalia, including Kusanagi. Although the Minamoto troops managed to stop a handful of them and recovered two of the three regalia, Kusanagi was said to have been lost forever. Although written about historical events, The Tale of the Heike is a collection of epic poetry passed down orally and written down nearly 200 years after the actual events, so its reliability as a historical document is questionable.

According to some records, the Tenth Emperor, Emperor Sujin, is reported to have ordered the fashioning of a replica of Kusanagi. However, this information was reportedly only made public after it was known that the sword had been stolen. The imperial household claimed that it was the replica which was stolen, but it is just as likely that the replica was made after the fact to replace the irrecoverable sword. It should be noted that Emperor Sujin is considered a "legendary Emperor" by historians, because of a lack of sufficient evidence to assign him to a historical period.

Another story holds that the sword was reportedly stolen again in the sixth century by a Chinese monk. However, his ship allegedly sank at sea, allowing the sword to wash ashore at Ise, where it was recovered by Shinto priests. Given the somewhat fantastic nature of this story, its historical accuracy is questionable.

Due to the refusal of Shinto priests to show the sword, and the rather sketchy nature of its historical references, the current state of or even the existence at all of the sword as a historical artifact cannot be confirmed.

[edit] In popular culture

Much like Excalibur, Kusanagi's high profile has made it popular, appearing in various works of fiction. Its appearance typically signals the nearing of an end of the storyline as it is the most powerful item next to the divine spear, Amenonuhoko, which was used to create the landmass Onogoro. But unlike Excalibur, it is rare for characters to actually use one in a combat as it is a ceremonial weapon. Instead, its magical properties are stressed. As in its mythic origin, it typically gives its wielder the power to control the wind, and it is one of the most powerful weapons used to support the performance of miracles. It is sometimes misrepresented as a katana, because it is a Japanese weapon.

[edit] Manga

  • Kusanagi is the subject of a handful of Usagi Yojimbo books. For instance, the book, Grasscutter depicts the legendary history of the sword as a background tale to the main story. The main story's plot is of Usagi inadvertently discovering the sword and must use it to fight Jei. This is followed by Grasscutter II where Usagi and his friends must transport Kusanagi to the temple to be hid in plain sight despite deadly opposition by enemies determined to seize the sword.
  • The sword, jewel, and mirror may also be the inspiration for the orb, mirror, and sword in the earlier saga of Yuyu Hakusho that Yusuke Urameshi needs to return before Enma (King Yama) realizes they are missing.
  • Naruto character Orochimaru carries the sword of Kusanagi in his throat. The sword is accurately depicted as a straight, Bronze Age-style weapon. Orochimaru, a snake controller, kills the Third Hokage from Konoha and the Fourth Kazekage from the Sand Village with this sword. Fitting for the name grasscutter (especially since one of Orochimaru's disguise is a Grass Village ninja) and snake's sword. In the English dub it is called the Grass Longsword. The character Sasuke Uchiha also carries a Kusanagi sword after his 2 1/2 year training with Orochimaru.
  • In the manga Blue Seed, there is a character named Kusanagi who has sword-like weapons that extend from his arms. The anime is heavily based on the myth of Susanoo and Kushi Nada Hime.
  • Although not named by its name in Dream Saga the Kusanagi was retrieved from one of the crystal Orochi's scales. Later the sword turned out to be the sixth magic stone unleashing Susanoo's true power.
  • In the Kannazuki no Miko manga (also anime), the two main female characters' main goal was to revive a god named Ame no Murakumo. The Orochi also exists in this manga.

[edit] Anime

  • In the animated feature Ghost in the Shell, one of the main characters, a female cyborg, is named Major Motoko Kusanagi (草薙素子 Kusanagi Motoko).
  • In the popular anime Sailor Moon, the outer Sailor Senshi (Sailor Neptune, Uranus, and Pluto) own similar items called "talismans" that were more than likely derived from the three regalia. They are Deep Aqua Mirror (mirror), Space Sword (sword), and Garnet Orb (jewel)
  • In the third movie of the anime Inuyasha, Kagome's grandfather mistakes Inuyasha's father's sword Souunga for Kusanagi although he calls it Murakumo no Tsurugi.
  • In the Kannazuki no Miko anime (also manga), the two main female characters' main goal was to revive a god named Ame no Murakumo. The Orochi also exists in this anime.
  • As in the Manga, in the anime incarnation of Naruto, the snake controlling villain Orochimaru uses the Kusanagi, a straight long sword that he can pull from his throat.

[edit] Video games

  • Kyo Kusanagi (草薙 京 Kusanagi Kyō) is the main character of SNK Playmore's King of Fighters series and is the descendant of the Kusanagi Clan Leader who helped seal away Orochi with the Yasakani and Yata Clans. The descendants of those clans, Iori Yagami (Who holds the Magatama) and Chizuru Kagura (Who holds the Mirror) both appear in The King of Fighters alongside Kyo. In the end of King of Fighters '97, the three of them must team together to re-seal a freed Orochi. Also, Kyo's father, Saisyu Kusanagi, has an super move called Tsumugari, which is part of one of the names for the sword.
  • In the online video game, Phantasy Star Online, there are three rare items based on the three sacred treasures. The Kusanagi (sword), Yata Mirror (mirror), and the Yasakani Magatama (jewel)
  • In the video game Ōkami, there is a class of weapon the player can use known as "glaives", although they resemble swords in appearance and use. The third "glaive/sword" the player obtains in the game is name "Blade of Kusanagi", obtained from defeating a nine-tailed fox demon, contrary to the fact that the myth has it that Kusanagi was obtained from the defeat of the Orochi, which the player also fights much earlier (and then, later) in the game.
  • In the video game Tales of Symphonia, there are three rare items based on the three sacred treasures. The Kusanagi (sword), Yata Mirror (mirror), and the Yasakani Magatama (jewel).
  • In the Video Game Saga Frontier there is magical sword called the Kusanagi, which can be won from an undead king, and to unlock the door to him you need three artifacts, one of which is the Magatama.
  • In the Video Game Golden Sun: The Lost Age, the village of Izumo is being threatened by a great serpent, who wishes to devour eight maidens from the village. In order for the serpent to be slain, the local hero of the village gets the serpent drunk and the main characters kill it. Once it is defeated, you find a weapon called the Cloud Brand in its tail.
  • The Ame-no-Murakumo appeared in many games of the Final Fantasy series as a katana, and at least once as a double-edged weapon, sometimes translated as "Heaven's Cloud"
  • In the video game Ogre Battle, Kusanagi is one of several swords that can be found in towns or as buried treasure. The sword is holy-elemental and improves a character's strength significantly, while providing a small bonus to intelligence. It does a small amount of extra damage if wielded by a Fencer or Swordmaster. Unlike in many other games, this Kusanagi is not unique, though it is one of the more uncommon weapons.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../k/u/s/Kusanagi.html"