大口真神(おおくちのまかみ)

おおくちのまかみ
noun
wolf deity; messenger of the mountain gods
religionculture
1. wolf deity; divine wolf messenger
A wolf revered in Shinto folklore as a guardian spirit and messenger of the mountain gods. Now-extinct Japanese wolves (日本狼(にほんおおかみ)) were worshipped under this name at shrines believed to protect crops from wild boar and deer.
大口真神(おおくちのまかみ)をまつる。
To enshrine the wolf deity.
三峯(みつみね)神社(じんじゃ)は大口真神(おおくちのまかみ)をまつることで知(し)られている。
Mitsumine Shrine is known for enshrining the wolf deity.
村人(むらびと)たちは大口真神(おおくちのまかみ)のおふだを家(いえ)の入(い)り口(ぐち)にはった。
The villagers put a talisman of the wolf deity at the entrance of the house.

大口真神(おおくちのまかみ) (literally "great-mouthed true god") is a title for the 日本狼(にほんおおかみ) (Japanese wolf) worshipped as a protective spirit and messenger of the mountain gods (山(やま)の神(かみ)).

Cultural note

  • Shrines such as 三峯(みつみね)神社(じんじゃ) (Saitama) and 武蔵御嶽(むさしみたけ)神社(じんじゃ) (Tokyo) issue wolf-deity talismans (おふだ) said to ward off fire, thieves, and crop-raiding animals.
  • The Japanese wolf went extinct around 1905, but the cult persists at these mountain shrines.
  • Related word: 狼(おおかみ), which explains the wolf's broader cultural symbolism.
general
Added 2026.9.20 13:18 · Revised 2026.9.20 13:27
30500/30974_ookuchinomakami