MAGATSUHINOKAMI

   Evil kami. Shinto theology and cosmology, where articulated, does not encourage the notion of a fixed dualism of good and evil forces in the world. Whether things turn out well or badly depends partly on the will of the kami, and how effectively they are propitiated by rites and matsuri. Whereas the anti-social deity Susano-o performs destructive actions he is a 'heavenly' kami and enshrined as the purifying deity Gozu tenno of Gion. However, the Magatsuhi-no-kami seem to be consistently evil; they emanate from the lower world of yomi and were identified by Motoori, Norinaga as the source of everything in life that is bad and unfortunate. Their counterpart, however, is the Naobi-no-kami, born immediately after the Magatsuhi, who repair the damage caused by the Magatsuhi and restore purity.

   See also Oni, Araburu kami.