Inori no Mori祈りの杜working title

Kami (Shinto deity)

Sukunahikona no Mikoto

少彦名命すくなひこなのみこと

An illustration of Sukunahikona no Mikoto created for this site
An original illustration made for this site.

In the Kojiki, Sukunahikona is said to be a child of Kamumusuhi no Kami and works together with Ōkuninushi no Kami to build the land. Sukunahikona Jinja in Osaka also introduces this connection and reveres Sukunahikona as a kami of medicine, hot springs, sake brewing and more.

This page introduces myths and the faith handed down at individual shrines, with their sources. Descriptions of divine virtues are explanations within religious faith and do not guarantee the outcome of any prayer. We do not set uniform rules for the traditions or customs of individual shrines and temples.

English pages are the site’s own translations of its Japanese pages. The sources cited are in Japanese. 日本語で読む

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A small kami who helps build the land

In the Kojiki, Sukunahikona is said to be a child of Kamumusuhi no Kami and works together with Ōkuninushi no Kami to build the land. Sukunahikona Jinja in Osaka also introduces this connection and reveres Sukunahikona as a kami of medicine, hot springs, sake brewing and more.

Source: 國學院大學・少彦名神社

Faith seeking medicine and health

In Dōshōmachi in Osaka, where trade in medicines once flourished, Sukunahikona no Mikoto has been enshrined together with Entei Shinnō. This is the faith of people working with medicine and of people who pray for health, and the origins of the two deities are introduced separately.

Source: 少彦名神社

Arriving from the sea, crossing to Tokoyo

In Kokugakuin University's explanation of the Kojiki, the identity of the kami who appeared from the sea in a small boat becomes known through the advice of Kuebiko. It is told that, after working together with Ōkuninushi no Kami, Sukunahikona crossed over to Tokoyo no Kuni.

Source: 國學院大學

A tiny body, riding a boat of seed pods

In the Kojiki, Sukunabikona no Kami appears from the sea riding a boat of ame no kagami (羅摩) and builds the land with Ōkuninushi no Kami. In Kokugakuin University's explanation, Sukunabikona is told of as a kami so small as to have slipped through the fingers of Kamumusuhi no Kami. To convey that smallness, this image depicts a beardless, childlike figure. The story does not set a specific age, and the facial features and clothing are the artist's interpretation.

Source: 國學院大學

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)