KAMIYO Episode 9: Kuninotokotachi-no-Kami — The Eternal Earth

Prologue: The Sea of Chaos, The Drifting Mud

When heaven and earth were first separated, five "Solitary Gods" (Hitorigami) known as the Kotoamatsukami (Separate Heavenly Deities) appeared in Takamagahara (The High Plain of Heaven), only to hide their presence. What they left behind were the sparks of creation and a world that had yet to take form.

At that time, the lower world was not yet something that could be called a "country."

To use a metaphor, it drifted aimlessly like floating fat upon water, or like a jellyfish (kurage). Spreading beneath the Floating Bridge of Heaven was a chaotic soup where mud, water, and hot gases intermingled. In that space where there was no up or down, and where even gravity was undecided, countless clumps of earth floated unreliably, colliding and shattering, fusing and losing shape.

Silence—

There was an eerie quietude that followed the storm of creation.

The world was defenseless like a newborn babe, wavering without knowing what it was or how it should be. It simply drifted, as if waiting to diffuse into the infinite void.

Chapter 1: That Which Sprouts Like a Reed Shoot

In the center of that unstable mud, in an abyss too deep to measure, a faint change occurred.

From within the drifting mire, a single pulse began. It was a light different from the celestial radiance brought by the Separate Heavenly Deities; it was heavier, deeper, and warmer. Its color was a brownish hue, reminiscent of matured earth.

Something writhed within the mud, condensing.

As the Nihon Shoki states: "Its shape was like a reed shoot (Ashikabi)."

It was the sight of something containing life force sprouting powerfully upward from the mud. It was the moment when pure "Yang" energy began to crystallize from within the chaotic "Yin" atmosphere.

The brownish light gradually took shape, standing tall as if passing a "core" through the wavering earth.

When the light cleared, a single god stood there.

He possessed the dignified appearance of a man in his prime. He was clad in a brown Kariginu (hunting robe) embroidered with patterns of layered strata and crystals. His eyes were as hard as bedrock, yet filled with boundless compassion.

He was the first of the Kamiyo-nanayo (The Seven Divine Generations).

The first Solitary God to appear on this earth after the departure of the Separate Heavenly Deities.

The god gazed at the footing that was not yet fixed, and quietly, yet with a deep resonance like distant thunder, declared his name.

"I am Kuninotokotachi. I shall be the foundation so that this earth may stand eternally."

The moment those words were spoken, the concept of "Immovability" was born into the world for the first time. Into a world that had only known flux, the will to "remain" was driven in like a wedge.

Chapter 2: A Call to the Drifting Land

Kuninotokotachi looked out over the clusters of floating earth clumps.

They looked like children who had been separated from their parents, crying because they had lost their way. With no place to settle, they were blown by winds, tossed by waves, and simply frightened.

The god slowly spread his arms and spoke to the trembling mud.

"Do not fear."

His voice became a wave that shook the air, permeating every corner of the chaos.

"You have a place to return to. You have a seat where you must remain. I shall show it to you. There is no longer a need to drift."

The god’s gaze was filled with a warm embrace, like a strict father watching over his child.

From Kuninotokotachi's hands, golden particles were released. It was not a command or force, but a light that awakened the faint desire within the clumps of earth to "stick together and solidify."

"Assemble. And become."

Responding to the god's words, the scattered, floating clumps of earth began to move as if drawn by a magnet. Centering on Kuninotokotachi's feet, countless amounts of mud and rock congregated. They huddled together, filled the gaps, and combined into one massive plane.

The god's expression was one of pure focus. Sweat beaded on his forehead.

This was not merely a physical combination. It was the task of teaching the logic of "Solid" to a world that possessed properties closer to "Liquid."

"Here, I build the foundation of the eternal earth. Never wavering, never decaying."

When the god stomped his foot down hard, golden light ran like a ripple to the ends of the horizon. The mud expelled its water, the rocks increased their hardness, and for the first time in the world, a firm ground that could be called "Earth"—the prototype of the future "Land"—was born there.

Chapter 3: The First Trial, The Scream of the Earth

However, creation is always side-by-side with destruction.

The fact that the earth had become "something with form" meant that it had simultaneously become "something that can break."

Suddenly, a roar echoed.

A massive crack ran through the center of the newborn earth.

With unpleasant sounds of grinding and snapping, the earth that had just been joined was about to be torn apart again. Did the lingering power of chaos attempt to rebel against order? Or did the earth itself simply fail to endure its own weight?

Violent shaking assailed the land. The ground rippled, and scorching steam erupted from the fissures.

Yet, Kuninotokotachi did not move a muscle.

He did not flee, nor did he panic. Rather, a fearless smile floated on his lips, as if welcoming the hardship.

"So it comes, the first trial."

The god glared at the tearing earth.

"Do you refuse to settle? Does it pain you to take form? ...But I shall never yield."

As the leader of the Seven Divine Generations, making this country "Stand" (Tachi) "Eternally" (Toko) was his very reason for existence. If he crumbled here, there would be no seat for the gods who were to follow.

Chapter 4: The Marrow of God, The Cornerstone of Earth

Kuninotokotachi knelt upon the violently shaking earth.

Not minding the dirt, he pressed both palms against the edge of the widening fissure.

"My will is the earth itself. Even if it crumbles, I will make it stand again!"

As the god roared, blinding energy flowed from his body into the earth like a torrent. It was divine aura, life force, and his very soul.

The veins on Kuninotokotachi's arms bulged, and the sleeves of his hunting robe fluttered.

The god's energy reached the depths of the crack, becoming a "clamp" to stitch together the wounded strata. The god's heat melted the cold rock, binding it together firmly once more.

"Be still... Be still...!"

Touched by the god's devoted love and absolute will of "Immovability," the earth's trembling began to subside.

The crack was filled with light, and soon it was repaired into flat ground without a single scar. No, it was not just repaired. The earth that had overcome the trial was stronger and denser than before, obtaining true stability.

Mud turned to soil, soil to rock, and rock to bedrock.

It was the moment when "Divinity" dwelt within "Matter."

Chapter 5: The Eternal Contract, and to the Next Generation

The storm passed.

The repaired earth shone beautifully in the dim light. It no longer drifted like a jellyfish. It had taken deep root, asserting its existence toward the heavens.

Kuninotokotachi stood up, wiped his sweat, and looked over the completed earth with satisfaction.

From his feet, invisible roots of light extended deep underground, reaching the very core of this star.

"This contract is eternal. As long as I exist, this earth shall never perish."

The god stepped firmly on the ground. The sensation was reliable.

An eternal bond was tied between the god and the earth. This was the beginning of the fundamental philosophy of Japan—"The Permanence of the Land"—which would eventually be called Toyoashihara-no-Chiaki-no-Mizuho-no-Kuni (The Land of Abundant Reed Plains and Rice Fields).

In the world where silence returned, a new presence began to fill the air.

Far beyond the stable earth, at the edge of the horizon, a light like a pale cloud began to rise.

It was the premonition of the next life, born only because the solid earth had been completed.

Kuninotokotachi gazed into the distance, narrowing his eyes with expectation.

His back was proud, filled with the satisfaction of having accomplished a great work. The loneliness of a Solitary God was not there. He had this earth, his child. And he had his younger siblings who would soon be born.

"The foundation is set. Upon the bedrock of the earth, it is now the turn of the one who connects heaven and earth."

The god carried the name upon the wind.

"Toyokumono... Your time is coming."

From mud to earth.

And from the earth, the cycle where water vapor rises to become clouds and moistens the fields.

Having built the cornerstone of the Seven Divine Generations, Kuninotokotachi stood quietly in that place. Leaving the gift of eternal stability to all that lay in the future.