Kami of the Kojiki
Tenazuchi
手名椎
Of the couple Ashinazuchi and Tenazuchi, whom Susanoo no Mikoto, driven out of Takamagahara, met on the upper reaches of the Hi River in the province of Izumo, Tenazuchi was the wife, and the mother of Kushinadahime, the daughter whom Yamata no Orochi had marked as its prey.
This page introduces the name and the story recorded in the Kojiki.
English pages are the site’s own translations of its Japanese pages. The sources cited are in Japanese. 日本語で読む
Story and genealogy in the Kojiki
Of the couple Ashinazuchi and Tenazuchi, whom Susanoo no Mikoto, driven out of Takamagahara, met on the upper reaches of the Hi River in the province of Izumo, Tenazuchi was the wife, and the mother of Kushinadahime, the daughter whom Yamata no Orochi had marked as its prey.
Source: 國學院大學・青空文庫／武田祐吉校訂・國學院大學
Scenes in the text
Appears in the Kojiki in “The Slaying of the Eight-Forked Serpent” (first volume). You can trace the relevant passages of the text through the sources below.
Source: 國學院大學・青空文庫／武田祐吉校訂・國學院大學
An aged mother who appears in the story
The Kojiki depicts the two people whom Susanoo no Mikoto met upstream as an old man and an old woman. Tenazuchi is the wife of Ashinazuchi and the mother of Kushinadahime. To fit this scene, she is shown as a person advanced in years. The text does not specify such details as her facial features or her clothing.
Source: 國學院大學・青空文庫／武田祐吉校訂
An example of a chant (in Japanese)
祓え給い、清め給え、神（かむ）ながら守り給い、幸（さきわ）え給え
Related shrines and temples
Sources (in Japanese)
- 國學院大學「古事記ビューアー・神名データベース「手名椎」」（2026-10-15 確認）
- 青空文庫／武田祐吉校訂「校註 古事記 〔八俣の大蛇〕」（2026-10-15 確認）
- 國學院大學「古事記ビューアー 八俣の大蛇退治②」（2026-10-15 確認）