In the primordial era before the world had taken shape, the universe existed as an undifferentiated, chaotic mass, a swirling ocean of potentiality without order, light, or form. Over vast, unmeasured aeons, the lighter, clearer elements rose to form Takamagahara, the High Plain of Heaven, while the heavier, denser elements remained below, settling into a dark, jelly-like mass that drifted aimlessly. In this celestial realm of Takamagahara, the first primeval deities emerged spontaneously, existing as solitary forces of pure creation. Generations of gods came and went in silence until the emergence of the seventh generation of heavenly deities, who appeared as a complementary pair: Izanagi-no-Mikoto, the Male-who-Invites, and Izanami-no-Mikoto, the Female-who-Invites.
Seeing the chaotic, drifting state of the world below, the elder heavenly deities summoned Izanagi and Izanami. They presented the young couple with a jewel-encrusted spear of extraordinary power and beauty, known as Amenonuhoko, the Heavenly Jeweled Spear. The elders commanded the couple to descend to the boundary between Heaven and Earth, to stir the drifting, formless waters, and to consolidate the chaos into a firm, orderly land where life could flourish. Accepting their sacred charge, Izanagi and Izanami stood upon the Ame-no-ukihashi, the Floating Bridge of Heaven, which spanned the vast gulf between the celestial realm and the swirling void below.
From their vantage point on the Floating Bridge, the two deities looked down upon the murky, dark waters. Izanagi raised the magnificent, jeweled spear and thrust it down into the depths. Together, they stirred the chaotic brine, the jewels on the spear-tip glittering in the dim light of the early universe. As they withdrew the spear, a single drop of salty water condensed and dripped from its tip. This drop fell back into the void, solidifying instantly upon contact with the waters to form the very first island of the world, Onogoro-shima, the Self-Condensing Island. Eager to begin their work, Izanagi and Izanami descended from the Floating Bridge of Heaven and set foot upon the firm ground of Onogoro-shima, making it their temporary home.
Upon this new land, the couple erected a massive, towering structure known as the Ame-no-mihashira, the Heavenly August Pillar, and built a spacious palace called the Yahiro-dono, the Eight-Fathom Palace, to serve as their sanctuary. Having established their dwelling, they desired to unite as husband and wife to fulfill their divine mandate of generating more land and living things. To solemnize their marriage, they devised a sacred ritual: they would walk around the Heavenly August Pillar from opposite directions. Izanagi would walk around the pillar starting to the left, while Izanami would walk around it starting to the right. When they met on the opposite side of the pillar, they would exchange vows.
As they circled the great pillar, their paths finally crossed. Overwhelmed by the joy of the moment, Izanami spoke first, exclaiming, 'What a beautiful and handsome youth I have met!' Izanagi, though pleased by her beauty, felt a deep sense of unease that she had spoken before him, as the male deity was traditionally expected to initiate the ritual greeting. Nevertheless, he replied, 'What a beautiful and lovely maiden I have met!' They completed their union, but the consequences of breaking the proper ritual order soon became apparent. Izanami gave birth to Hiruko, the leech-child, a weak and boneless infant, followed by Awashishima, an island of foam. Deeply saddened by these imperfect, fragile creations, the couple placed Hiruko in a boat made of reeds and set him adrift on the ocean currents, and did not count either child among their true offspring.
Realizing that something had gone terribly wrong with their union, Izanagi and Izanami ascended back up the Floating Bridge of Heaven to consult the elder deities of Takamagahara. The high gods performed a sacred divination using the shoulder blade of a deer and declared that the ritual had been ruined because the female deity had spoken first during the marriage ceremony. The elders instructed them to return to Onogoro-shima, repeat the ritual, and ensure that Izanagi initiated the greeting. Armed with this wisdom, the couple returned to their palace.
Once again, they stood before the great Heavenly August Pillar. They began their circular march in opposite directions, Izanagi to the left and Izanami to the right. When they met on the far side, Izanagi spoke first, declaring, 'What a beautiful and lovely maiden I have met!' Izanami then replied in turn, 'What a beautiful and handsome youth I have met!' With the ritual properly corrected and performed in the proper cosmic order, their subsequent union became extraordinarily fruitful. This sacred process of creation, known as Kuniumi, the birth of the land, was officially underway.