Kunado-no-Kami

Kunado-no-Kami (Japanese: 岐の神), alternately Kunato-no-Kami, Funado-no-Kami, Funato-no-Kami, or Chimata-no-Kami, are Japanese local gods connected chiefly with protection against disaster and malicious spirits.^[1]

Marker dedicated to one of the Chimata-No-Kami, Douso-jin (道祖神)

The term "Kunado-no-Kami" and its variants are derived ultimately from Japanese: 来な処 ku-na-do, meaning a place that is not to be entered, a taboo or sacred space.^[2] These kami are regarded as protecting the boundaries of a village and forestalling entry by malicious or harmful spirits and influences, thereby preventing disasters. A common origin myth connects them with the fundoshi cast aside by Izanagi upon his return from the underworld as recorded in the Kojiki.^[3]

In some cases the protection of these kami extends to roads and paths, in which capacity the variant name Chimata-no-Kami is particularly likely to be applied.^[4]

See also

• Mishaguji
• Yomotsu Hirasaka

References

1. 近藤直也, 徳島県下における岐神信仰に関する言説 (Remarks on the Worship of Kunado-no-Kami in Tokushima Prefecture). Kyushu Institute of Technology, 2013. Archived 2016-09-18 at the Wayback Machine
2. 日本人名大辞典+Plus『来名戸之祖神』。
3. 大辞泉『道祖神』。
4. Illes, Judika (2009). Encyclopedia of Spirits: The Ultimate Guide to the Magic of Fairies, Genies, Demons, Ghosts, Gods & Goddesses. Harper Collins Publishers. pp. 331–332. ISBN 978-0-06-135024-5.