A comparison between Japanese and European myths

1. A MYTHICAL JOURNEY FROM
JAPAN TO EUROPE
ΠΡΟΤΥΠΟ ΠΕΙΡΑΜΑΤΙΚΟ Γ/ΣΙΟ ΠΑΝ/ΜΙΟΥ ΚΡΗΤΗΣ
Γ’ ΓΥΜΝΑΣΙΟΥ

2. Japanese mythology is a system of beliefs
that is consisted of elements of
“Shintoshu” Sintoistic religion (that is the
native religion of Japan and for a time the states
religion) and the Buddhist tradition, as well
as the folk religion around the land and
agriculture.

4.  According to the myth Amaterasu had a grandson , Ninigki , who
was sended to live on earth, carrying presents ,a mirror, a
necklace and the sword of the god Kousanagki Susanna. Ninigki
was accepted as ruler of Japan and the divine presents he carried
became the treasures of the imperial family. He was married the
goddess of Mount Fuji and gave birth to his three sons, one of
whom was the father of Jimmy Tenno, the first historical Japanese
emperor (660 BC), from whom comes the Japanese imperial family.

5.  One myth says that Tsukuyomi caused the anger of Amaterasou when he
killed Ouke Moche, the god of food. Then Amaterasou was raged so much
that she moved to another section of the sky and for this reason the day
and the night are never together.

6. One of the oldest myths tells of a long-standing rivalry between Susanoo and his sister Amaterasu. When
Susanoo was about to leave Heaven by orders of his father Izanagi, he went to make an offer to his sister
Amaterasu, but she was suspicious. Susanoo then proposed her a challenge to prove that he tells the truth ,
and she accepted.
Each of the two took an object of the other's and from it birthed gods and goddesses. Amaterasu birthed three
goddesses from Susanoo's sword while Susanoo birthed five men from her necklace. Susanoo claiming that
the gods were hers because they were born of her necklace, and the goddesses were his, he decided that he
has won the challenge, as his item produced women. So Susanoo, the Storm God, became restless and went
to destroy his sister's rice fields and killed one of her attendants. Amaterasu, who was in fury and grief, hid
inside a "heavenly rock cave. Though she was persuaded to leave the cave, Susanoo was punished by being
banished from Heaven. He descended to the province of Izumo.
In Izumo Susano met an elderly couple who told him that seven of their eight daughters had been devoured by
the eight-headed eight-tailed monster dragon Yamata-no-Orochi and it was to eat their eighth daughter,
Kushinada-hime Susano offered to save the remaining daughter because he knew about the old couple's
relation to Amaterasu, in return he asked the beautiful daughter's hand in marriage.
…

7. …
In Izumo Susano met an elderly couple who told him that seven of their eight daughters had been devoured by
the eight-headed eight-tailed monster dragon Yamata-no-Orochi and it was to eat their eighth daughter,
Kushinada-hime Susano offered to save the remaining daughter because he knew about the old couple's
relation to Amaterasu, in return he asked the beautiful daughter's hand in marriage. The parents accept
then Susanoo transforms Kushinada into a comb and hides her safely in his hair. He also orders a large
fence-like barrier to be built around the house. The fence has eight gates, with eight tables placed at each
gate and eight barrel placed on each table. Each barrel is filled with eight-times-brewed rice wine “ Sake”.
Orochi the dragon beast arrives and finds his path blocked. After some time he finds that he cannot get through
the barrier. Then he smells the sake—which Orochi loves—and the eight heads are now faced with a
problem. They want to drink the delicious sake, yet the fence blocks access to the sake. The heads then
searched for an opening. They find the eight gates, and, eager for the sake, they wish to poke their heads
through to drink it. Yet, the eighth head, which is the wisest, warns the other heads about the folly of such
an act and volunteers to go through first to ensure that all is well. Susanoo waits for his chance. He allows
the head to drink some sake in safety and to report to the others that there is no danger. All eight heads
plunge through the hatches and greedily drink every drop of the sake.
As the heads finish the sake, Susanoo launches his attack on Orochi. Drunken from drinking so much sake, the
great monster is no match for Susanoo who decapitates all the eight heads of Orochi. As Susanoo cuts the
dragon into pieces, he finds an excellent sword from a tail of the dragon that his sword had been unable to
cut. The sword is later presented to Amaterasu and named Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi.

8.  Yōkai (妖怪 ), (literally demon or spirit) are a class of
supernatural spirits in Japanese folklore. The word yōkai
means "otherworldly" and "weird". Yōkai’s are malevolent
or mischievous creatures, that some time bring good
fortune to those who encounter them. Often they possess
animal features, other times they can appear mostly
human. Yōkai usually have a spiritual supernatural power,
with shape shifting as one of the most common.
 Yūreis (幽霊) are figures in Japanese folklore, analogous
to Western legends of ghosts. The name consists of two
parts (yū), meaning "faint" or "dim" and (rei), meaning
"soul" or "spirit."

9. SIMILARITIES BETWEEN JAPANESE
AND EUROPEAN MYTHOLOGIES!

10. Helios was the personification of the Sun
in Greek mythology. Homer often calls
him simply Titan or Hyperion,
while Hesiod and the Homeric
Hymn separate him as a son of the
Titans Hyperion and Theia or Euryphaessa
and brother of the goddesses Selene, the
moon, and Eos, the dawn.
Helios was imagined as a handsome god
crowned with the shining aureole of the Sun,
who drove the chariot of the sun across the sky
each day to earth-circling Oceanus and through
the world-ocean returned to the East at night. As
time passed, Helios was increasingly identified
with the god of light, Apollo. However, in spite
of their syncretism, they were also often viewed
as two distinct gods. Helios was a Titan, whereas
Apollo was an Olympian.

11. Selene was the goddess of the moon in
Greek mythology. She was depicted as
a woman either riding side saddle on a
horse or in a chariot drawn by a pair
of winged steeds. Her lunar sphere or
crescent was represented as either a
crown set upon her head or as the fold
of a raised, shining cloak. Sometimes
she was said to drive a team of oxen
and her lunar crescent was likened to
the horns of a bull.
Selene's great love was the
shepherd prince Endymion. The
beautiful boy was granted
eternal youth and immortality
by Zeus and placed in a state of
eternal slumber in a cave near
the peak of Lydian Mount
Latmos. There his heavenly
bride descended to consort with
him in the night.

12. Kabouter
Kabouter is the Dutch/Afrikaans word
for gnome or leprechaun. In folklore, the Dutch
Kabouters are akin to the Irish Leprechaun,
Scandinavian Tomte, the English Hob or Brownie and
the German Klabauter or kobold. The
term kabouter was also adopted by a
1970s hippie movement in Amsterdam that sprang
from the Provo movement. One of its best known
representatives is Roel van Duijn.
In the folklore of the Low Countries, kabouters are
tiny men who live underground or in mushrooms, or
spirits who help in the home. The males have long,
full beards (unlike dwarves, who do not always have
full beards [citation needed]) and wear tall, pointed
red hats. They are generally shy of humans.

13. Merlin
Merlin is a legendary figure best
known as the wizard featured in
the Arthurian legend. The standard
depiction of the character first
appears in Geoffrey of
Monmouth's Historia Regum
Britanniae, written c. 1136, and is
based on an amalgamation of
previous historical and legendary
figures. Geoffrey combined existing
stories of Myrddin Wyllt (Merlinus
Caledonensis), a North
Brythonic prophet and madman wit
h no connection to King Arthur, with
tales of the Romano-British war
leader Ambrosius Aurelianus to
form the composite figure he
called Merlin
Ambrosius (Welsh: Myrddin
Emrys).

16.  Samurai warriors described themselves as followers of
"The Way of the Warrior" or Bushido. Bushido is
defined by the Japanese dictionary Shogakukan
Kokugo Daijiten as "a unique philosophy (ronri) that
spread through the warrior class from the Muromachi
(chusei) period. From the earliest times, the Samurai
felt that the path of the warrior was one of honor,
emphasizing duty to one's master, and loyalty unto
death.

17.  The word samurai is derived from the
Japanese verb samoro or sampouro and was
first used to describe the personal servants of
the rich and powerful landowners of the
eighth century in Japan.

18.  Japan, like China in ancient times, has shown great expertise
in traditional gunsmith. It is indeed astonishing
inventiveness in the construction and use of specialized
weapons of non-being, as it is known that the subsoil of the
Japanese islands is very low in minerals, so that-even today-
that the country depends on imported raw materials.
Undoubtedly, the most impressive weapon is the sword
Catania. It is not just a weapon, but the soul of a warrior.
The more beautiful it is, the more sharp and the blade

19.  The key element for samurai
costume was the kimono,
which for men normally
consisted of an outer and an
inner garment. Heavier
kimonos were worn in
winter, while lighter, made of
silk, for example, were worn
in summer. In fact there was
a moment where winter
kimonos were changing with
the corresponding summer.
The kimono was a samurai
normally made of silk, a
material that is superior to
cotton and hemp not just for
the feel and appearance, but
also the relative coolness
offered by the hot Japanese
summer.

21.  A hoplite typically had a bronze, muscled breastplate,
a helmet with cheek plates, as well as greaves and
other shin armor. They carried a bowl-shaped wood
and bronze shield called an aspis or hoplon, . It was
very heavy and protected the warrior from chin to
knee.. "Come home with this shield or upon it" was a
there motto. Meanings, if you can’t come home
victorious, then come home dead.

22.  Their primary weapon was a spear around 2.7 meters in length called a dory.
The dory had a leaf shaped spearhead on the business end and a spike on the
other. The spike, called a “lizard killer” could be used to stand the spear up
by planting it in the ground or it can be used to finish off fallen enemies that
the formation is moving over. Additionally, if the spearhead broke off the
spear could then be spun around and the spike used in its place.
 Another secondary weapon available was the kopis, a short sword with a
heavy curved blade that could be used for hacking away at enemies.
Although it had a point that could be used for stabbing the weapon was
designed to be used almost like a hatchet. In the art of Sparta’s arch rival,
Athens, Spartan warriors are often depicted using the kopis.

23. THE END