watatsumi

Watatsumi, also known as Watatsumi no kami, is a sea deity in Japanese mythology who is commonly described as the ruler of the ocean and the undersea realm. In some traditions he is identified with Ryūjin (the Dragon God of the Sea), and the two are treated as the same being in certain texts and folk beliefs. The name is often written with variations such as 綿津見神 or simply 海神, reflecting his central association with the sea.

In the mythic narratives of the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, Watatsumi is the father of Toyotama-hime, the princess of the sea. Toyotama-hime marries Hōri, a mortal descendant in the human-Land of Honor, and their union produces Ugayafukiaezu, the forefather of the imperial line. Thus Watatsumi is the paternal grandfather (in some accounts the great-grandfather through Toyotama-hime) of later emperors. The couple’s life is tied to the underwater realm, often described as Ryūgū-jō, the Dragon King’s palace beneath the waves.

A central episode involving Watatsumi concerns Toyotama-hime’s stay on land and her grants of magical knowledge and tools. When Hōri looks upon Toyotama-hime in her true Dragon Princess form, she reverts to the sea and returns to Watatsumi’s realm, leaving the human world and ending their mortal marriage. The tale emphasizes themes of boundary-crossing between sea and land, and the origins of the imperial lineage through Toyotama-hime and Ugayafukiaezu.

In Shinto practice, Watatsumi is venerated as a guardian of sailors and coastal communities. Shrines and coastal rites honor the sea god as an essential, sometimes protective, presence in maritime life.