Yamata no Orochi - The Eight-headed Serpent

The name means the spirit of the eight tails. In the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki myths, the Yamata no Orochi of the Hinokawa River eats one girl each year, and the couple Ashinazuchi and Tenazuchi lament that the serpent is coming again. They make the couple offer their last daughter, Kushinadahime, as a tribute, but Susanoo prepares a sake vat and kills the serpent. At that time, a sacred sword appears from the middle of the serpent's tail, and is dedicated to Amaterasu Omikami, becoming one of the three sacred treasures. This myth is thought to be related to the Andromeda-type legends (a story in which a hero saves a beautiful woman who has been sacrificed to a monster) that are widely distributed around the world, and the Zandaken, the precious sword of Emperor Gaozu of the Han dynasty. However, the original origin of this legend lies in the snake god belief in the fertility festival held in the Suga River basin in Izumo Province. The legend eventually moved to the Hi River basin, which also has a snake god legend, and was absorbed and altered into the legend of Susanoo, which had a background in the new iron culture, and was then established with the addition of the snake-slaying sword legend.

[Yoshii Iwao]

"The Structure and Establishment of the Yamata no Orochi Myth by Matsumae Ken (included in The Formation of Japanese Mythology, 1970, Hanawa Shobo) " "The Creation of the Izumo Mythology by Mitani Eiichi (included in The Foundations of Japanese Mythology, 1974, Hanawa Shobo)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

八尾(はちび)の神霊の意。記紀神話で、肥河(ひのかわ)の八岐大蛇は年ごとに一人ずつの娘を食い、いままたその大蛇がくると嘆いていた足名椎(あしなづち)・手名椎(てなづち)の夫婦に、最後の娘の奇稲田姫(くしなだひめ)を貢上させるが、素戔嗚尊(すさのおのみこと)がこの大蛇を酒槽(さかぶね)を用意させて退治する。そのとき、大蛇の尾の中ほどから神剣が現れ、天照大神(あまてらすおおみかみ)に奉献されて三種の神器の一つとなったという。この神話には、世界に広く分布するアンドロメダ型伝承（怪物の供犠(くぎ)となった美女を英雄が助ける話）や、漢の高祖の宝剣、斬蛇剣(ざんだけん)との関連が考えられている。しかし、この伝承の本源は、出雲(いずも)国須我川(すががわ)流域で行われていた豊饒(ほうじょう)祭の蛇神信仰にあり、その伝承はやがて同じ蛇神伝承をもつ肥河流域に移るとともに、新しい鉄文化を背景にもつ素戔嗚尊の伝承に吸収されて変質し、斬蛇剣伝承を加味して定着したものと考えられる。

［吉井　巖］

『松前健著『八岐大蛇神話の構造と成立』（『日本神話の形成』所収・1970・塙書房）』▽『三谷栄一著『出雲神話の生成』（『日本神話の基盤』所収・1974・塙書房）』

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