Kushinadahime (櫛名田比売、くしなだひめ), also known as Kushiinadahime (奇稲田姫、くしいなだひめ) or Inadahime (稲田姫、いなだひめ) among other names, is a goddess (kami) in Japanese mythology and the Shinto faith. According to these traditions, she is one of the wives of the god Susanoo, who rescued her from the monster Yamata no Orochi. As Susanoo's wife, she is a central deity of the Gion cult and worshipped at Yasaka Shrine.
Susanoo and Kushinadahime, by Yoshitoshi
Mount Sentsū as seen from Okuizumo with the Hii River in the foreground
Muromachi period wall painting depicting Kushinadahime (Yaegaki Shrine, Matsue, Shimane Prefecture)
Hikawa Shrine in Saitama, Saitama Prefecture
Susanoo, often referred to by the honorific title Susanoo-no-Mikoto, is a kami in Japanese mythology. The younger brother of Amaterasu, goddess of the sun and mythical ancestress of the Japanese imperial line, he is a multifaceted deity with contradictory characteristics, being portrayed in various stories either as a wild, impetuous god associated with the sea and storms, as a heroic figure who killed a monstrous serpent, or as a local deity linked with the harvest and agriculture. Syncretic beliefs of the Gion cult that arose after the introduction of Buddhism to Japan also saw Susanoo becoming conflated with deities of pestilence and disease.
Susanoo slaying Yamata no Orochi, woodblock print by Utagawa Kuniyoshi
Sword guard (tsuba) depicting Susanoo meeting Amaterasu in Takamagahara
Necklace of magatama beads
Amaterasu emerges from the Heavenly Rock Cave (Shunsai Toshimasa, 1887)