Tamatori-hime

Attributes: Female Warrior, Selflessness, Sacrifice, Bravery, Family, Strength

Tamatori-hime is venerated as an ancestral spirit as well as a goddess.

There are many different versions of her story. In some she marries a prince and has his child before her sacrifice.

Tamatori-hime is the Ama goddess. Ama are traditional Japanese divers. They are known for their ability to dive deep with out the help or use of diving equipment. Usually they are diving for pearls, but they also dive for food and other treasure as well.

In her story a pearl is lost at sea and Tamatori decides to recover it. Legend has it that if something is lost at sea it becomes the property of the Dragon Kings of the Sea. In this situation the Dragon King of Japan has recovered the pearl.

wear a loin cloth to make diving easier.

After many attempts Tamatori, wearing only a loin cloth to make diving easier, was successful at recovering the pearl by lulling the dragon and the other grotesque creatures to sleep with music. Once she reclaimed the pearl she came under persuit from the dragon and other creatures of the deep. She knew that the dragon could only take something back from the living, plus she could swim faster and fight better without the pearl in her hand, so she slashed her chest open and stuffed the pearl inside herself. She was able to swim fast enough to get away from the creatures but eventually died and floated to the surface.

The Kami (spirits, in this case god spirits) were so touched by her sacrifice that they gave her immortality and she became a goddess.