But strangely enough, constellations very seldom appear in the Japanese mythology. A rare God with a name relative to stars is Amatsu-mitsuboshi, but this was the deity of evil. In Japan, it seems the God of stars do have an element of a wickedness.

However, although star does not appear in its name, Sumiyoshi-no-Ookami is presumed to be the deity of stars. This God is the general term for the three Gods born under, within and above the ocean when Izanagi-no-mikoto performed his ablutions. To be exact, they are Sokotsutsunowo-no-mikoto, Nakatsutsunowo-no-mikoto, and Uwatsutsunowo-no-mikoto. Having its origin at the sea, they were worshipped by the maritime people.

An ancient history researcher, Dr. Iwao Yamato noticed that the star in which the maritime people placed most importance is the Orion's Belt. And he proposed that the three Gods of Sumiyoshi might signify the Orion's Belt. Dr. Torao Mozai, a prominent figure in the field of navigation also supports this theory. The Orion's Belt rises from due east and sets in due west. And the altitude of culmination exactly matches with its latitude. These points are regarded especially important. It is true that the sun also moves from due east to due west, with its culmination altitude matching with its latitude. But as you know, sun is big. It is by no way a point, but a circle, making it unfit for accurate calculation.

Sumiyoshi-no-Ookami is not an evil deity. As a matter of fact, it is the other way around. He can be regarded as the ancestor of the Imperial family. Not way back in the mythical era when Amaterasu-no-Ookami was in reign but was the father of the past emperor. Now, is this worth believing?

The emperor in question is the fifteenth Emperor Ojin. According to the chronicles, the father of Emperor Ojin was the fourteenth Emperor Chuai. However, in the back of this history is another story.

When Empress Jingu, the mother of Chuai, decided to send soldiers to Korean Peninsula, Emperor Chuai opposed to the plan saying there is no such nation on the opposite shore. Such articulation offended Sumiyoshi-no-Ookami. And soon after, Emperor Chuai perished. Ten months and ten days afterwards, Emperor Ojin was born. Too good to be true, don' you think?

To support this, the legend of Sumiyoshi-Taisha signifies that the real father of Emperor Ojin was the Sumiyoshi-no-Ookami. To express this in today's fashion, the two had committed adultery. If we rely on the legend, Emperor Ojin was a child of infidelity.

From this point on, the ancient history researchers launched a hot debate. Who was the father of Emperor Ojin?

The most supported theory is that Sumiyoshi-no-Ookami was Takenouchi Sukune, the entourage of Empress Jingu. This is highly probable since it was Takenouchi Sukune who had toured the countries holding the young Emperor Ojin in his arms.

But I stand on a completely different view. First of all, Sumiyoshi-no-Ookami is not a singular body but three. If Sumiyoshi-no-Ookami were the father of Emperor Ojin, it would turn out that Ojin had three fathers. Mysterious, isn't it? We better not interpret this situation as if it happened in the human society. Here, we are talking about Gods. We should analyze this as one of the myths.

So let's take a break and look at the maternal side, which is the Empress Jingu. She is sometimes called "the holy mother" deriving from being the mother of an emperor. Chinese characters can also read "shomo". These letters remind us of Virgin Mary. In fact, among the empresses of history, she is the only one depicted as holding the young emperor in her arms. A her statue enshrined at the Umi-Hachiman shrine in Kyushu, looks just like Virgin Mary carrying young Jesus in her arms.

If we shall replace Emperor Ojin with Jesus Christ and Empress Jingu with Virgin Mary, then who can replace Sumiyoshi-no-Ookami? Obviously, it shall be the God, the father.

Moreover, based on the idea of the Trinity in Christianity, three Gods of Sumiyoshi-no-Ookami correspond with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Besides, Virgin Mary was found to be pregnant by the Holy Spirit. When Jesus Christ was baptized, the Holy Spirit came down upon the earth, in form of a dove.

Dove then became the symbol of the Holy Spirit. As a matter of fact, at the Hachiman-shrines around the nation that worships Emperor Ojin and Empress Jingu, the messenger of Hachiman deity (=Emperor Ojin) is designated as dove.

Why does Emperor Ojin suggest so strongly its relation with Christianity? It is because Empress Jingu is of the same blood with Amano-Himuko. Amano-Himuko is known as the Prince of Silla. But among the academic world, he is accepted as the figure representing the Hata-clan. In other words, Empress Jingu was a Hata. The truth may be that Hatas, who were the Primitive Christian Jews, had deliberately applied the legend of Jesus Christ to its Great King born from the family.

Translated by Rie Ishida