Deity of shinbutsu shūgō (kami–buddha syncretism)
Atsuta Daimyōjin
熱田大明神
Atsuta Jingū explains that Amaterasu Ōmikami, who dwells there with the sacred sword Kusanagi as the mitamashiro (the object in which the spirit resides), is Atsuta no Ōkami. "Atsuta Daimyōjin" among the Thirty Guardian Kami (Sanjū Banjin) is a name connected with this Atsuta faith. It carries both reverence for the divine virtue through the sacred sword and the role of guarding the first day among the Thirty Guardian Kami.
This introduction is based on materials published by shrines, temples, and schools, starting with Shōhōin. It is summarized within the scope of the beliefs and traditions those materials convey, and does not present explanations or customs common to all schools, 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
The kami of Atsuta, linked with the Kusanagi sword
Atsuta Jingū explains that Amaterasu Ōmikami, who dwells there with the sacred sword Kusanagi as the mitamashiro (the object in which the spirit resides), is Atsuta no Ōkami. "Atsuta Daimyōjin" among the Thirty Guardian Kami (Sanjū Banjin) is a name connected with this Atsuta faith. It carries both reverence for the divine virtue through the sacred sword and the role of guarding the first day among the Thirty Guardian Kami.
Source: 熱田神宮・日蓮宗 光瑞山本立寺
The story of Yamato Takeru no Mikoto and Miyasu-hime no Mikoto
The shrine's history tells that Yamato Takeru no Mikoto died having left the sacred sword Kusanagi in Owari, and that his consort Miyasu-hime no Mikoto enshrined the sword at Atsuta. This story of enshrinement is regarded as the beginning of Atsuta Jingū. The portrait on this site does not show what the sacred sword itself looks like.
Source: 熱田神宮
Guarding one day at a time in turn: the faith of the Thirty Guardian Kami
The Thirty Guardian Kami (Sanjū Banjin) are a faith, combining kami and buddhas, in which thirty kami divide the days among themselves to protect the country and the Buddhist teaching. In Shōhōin's list, each kami is assigned a day from the first to the thirtieth. It is a grouping handed down in the Tendai and Nichiren lineages and others, and it needs to be distinguished from present-day explanations of the enshrined kami at shrines of the same name and from historical views about the original buddhas (honjibutsu).
Source: 飛不動尊 正宝院
Kami who come to hear the sutras — the origin story told by Shinjō-ji
Shinjō-ji, a temple of the Nichiren school, introduces a tradition that while Nichiren Shōnin was reading the Lotus Sutra on Mount Hiei, a different person visited him each day and revealed himself to be one of the Thirty Guardian Kami. This is the origin story of "the Thirty Guardian Kami who protect the Lotus Sutra" as taught by that temple. This site does not treat it as a historical event shared by all faith in the Thirty Guardian Kami.
Source: 日蓮宗 玉蓮山真成寺
Protection in turns that supports daily faith
Shinjō-ji introduces the Thirty Guardian Kami as guardian deities, combining kami and buddhas, who divide their duty by the day. What the temple values is the faith that they protect the Lotus Sutra and the people who believe in its teaching. This explanation is for learning their role as the Thirty Guardian Kami, in addition to the divine virtues handed down at each shrine.
Source: 日蓮宗 玉蓮山真成寺
Related kami and buddhas
Sources (in Japanese)
- 飛不動尊 正宝院「仏様の世界：熱田大明神」（2026-10-14 確認）
- 飛不動尊 正宝院「仏様の世界：目次」（2026-10-14 確認）
- 熱田神宮「御祭神」（2026-10-15 確認）
- 日蓮宗 光瑞山本立寺「三十番神堂」（2026-10-15 確認）
- 熱田神宮「熱田神宮について」（2026-10-15 確認）
- 飛不動尊 正宝院「仏様の世界：三十番神」（2026-10-14 確認）
- 日蓮宗 玉蓮山真成寺「三十番神様」（2026-10-15 確認）