Ama no Iwato
AMA NO IWATO ↓ versione italiana qui sotto ↓ ↓ version française ci-dessous ↓ Today I want to share something that moved me deeply. I know there are several caves in Japan associated with the name “Ama no Iwato”, but standing in front of this one near Ise felt incredibly powerful, as if the story I’ve been told and read was suddenly alive all around me. According to the Kojiki, the world once fell into complete darkness. The Sun Goddess Amaterasu Ōmikami, wounded and humiliated by her brother Susanoo no Mikoto, hid herself inside a sacred cave called Ama no Iwato. When she closed the massive stone behind her, the light vanished from the earth. The kamis (gods) gathered, desperate to bring back the sun. Then Ame no Uzume (the goddess of dance) stepped forward. She began to dance wildly, stamping her feet, laughing, letting pure joy erupt from her body until all the kamis were laughing with her. The sound of their laughter echoed so loudly that Amaterasu became curious. At the same time,...
