(This is my version of Shinto, and wont match some of the descriptions on the kami list located at the bottom of my story)
Japan begins in the Celestial Heavens, which at the time were one with the mortal world. There, Lady Izanami and Lord Izanagi were born from nothing, and together bore many children. Known as kami, these children have many names. Lord Izanagi, was jealous of his children, however, and did not wish to share their mothers love with them. Thus, he sought to destroy his children by eating them. He swallowed all but one, one who hid in a cave. When this child reached adulthood he faced his father in combat and cut open his belly. From the wound, the living children spilled out. After this Izanami died and went on to watch over the realm of the dead. Its said Lord Izanagi’s blood and Lady Izanami’s tears fell from the sky, raining down on the earth. From the mixture of blood and tears, humanity was born. The kami, too, fell to the earth- Amatsu-Mikaboshi landing in the deep pit that would become the source of evil, the others landing among the new race of humanity.
When humanity was born, it was not alone on the earth. Nezumi, Nagas, Kenkus, and Kitsus lived on earth before humanity arose. The oldest stories speak of a race that was flourishing when they were young. All were pushed aside by the rising empire. The Nezumi empire was shattered by Amatsu-Mikaboshi’s fall, and the Nezumi reduced to their savage state in order to survive the horrors of the shadow lands. The Nagas began their long sleep, planning to reawaken when they were needed once more. The Kenkus simply withdrew into the deepest forests. The Kitsus were hunted down and nearly exterminated, until a kami saw their intelligence and brought the survivors into his clan.
Here is a list of a few Shinto Kami:
Major kami
* Ame-no-Uzume- Commonly called Uzume, she is the goddess of dawn and revelry, instrumental to the "missing sun legend" in Shinto. She is also known as The Great Persuader and The Heavenly Alarming Female.
* Amaterasu-Ō-Mi-Kami- Commonly called Amaterasu, she is the goddess of the sun as well as the purported ancestress of the Imperial Household of Japan. Her full name means "Great Goddess" or "Great Spirit Who Shines in the Heavens"; she may also be referred to as Ōhiru-menomuchi-no-kami. Due to her ties to the Imperial family, she is often considered (though not official) to be the "primary god" of Shinto.
* Ame-no-Koyane- A male deity, he is considered the "First in Charge of Divine Affairs", as well as the aide to the first Emperor of Japan. He is also considered to be the ancestor of the Fujiwara family.
* Fūjin- Also known as Kami-no-Kaze, he is the Japanese god of the wind and one of the eldest Shinto gods, said to be present at the creation of the world. He is often depicted as an oni with a bag slung over his back.
* Hachiman- Also known as Hachiman-shin or Yawata no Kami, he is the god of war and the divine protector of Japan and its people. Originally an agricultural deity, he later became the guardian of the Minamoto clan. His symbolic animal and messenger is the dove.
* Inari- The god or goddess of rice and fertility. His/her messengers and symbolic animal are foxes. He/she is often identified with the Buddhist deity Dakiniten.
* Izanagi- The forefather of the gods, he is the first male as well as the god of creation and life. He and his wife, Izanami, were responsible for the birth of the islands of Japan and many kami, though she died in childbirth. Later, after his failed attempt to retrieve her from the underworld, he sired Amaterasu, Susanoo and Tsukuyomi.
* Izanami- Izanagi's wife and sister, she is the first female as well as the goddess of creation and death. She died shortly after the birth of Kagu-tsuchi, and Izanagi followed her to the underworld, but failed to bring her back to the living world. A marital spat between the pair caused the cycle of life and death for all living beings.
* Ninigi-no-Mikoto- Commonly called Ninigi, he was the grandson of Amaterasu. His great-grandson was Kamuyamato Iwarebiko, later to be known as Emperor Jimmu, first emperor of Japan.
* Omoikane- The deity of wisdom and intelligence, who is always called upon to "ponder" and give good counsel in the deliberations of the heavenly deities.
* Raijin- Commonly called Raiden, he is the god of thunder and lightning, and is often paired with Fūjin. As with the latter, Raijin is usually depicted as an oni.
* Ryūjin- Also known as Ōwatatsumi, he is a dragon, as well as god of the sea. He resides in Ryūgū-jō, his palace under the sea built out of red and white coral, from where he controlled the tides with magical tide jewels. His great-grandson would become Emperor Jimmu.
* Sukuna-Biko-Na- A small deity of medicine and rain, who created and solidified the land with Ōkuninushi.
* Tenjin- The god of scholarship, he is the deified Sugawara no Michizane, who was elevated to his position after dying in exile and subsequent disasters in Heiankyo were attributed to his angered spirit.
* Toyotama-hime- Also known as Otohime, she was the daughter of Ryūjin and the grandmother of Jimmu. It is said that after she gave birth to her son, she turned into a dragon and disappeared.
* Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto- Also known as Tsukiyomi, Tsuki no Kami, Tsukiyomino Mikoto, and Tsukiyumi no Mikoto, he is the god of the moon. He killed the goddess of food, Uke Mochi, out of disgust and anger in the way she had prepared a meal. This caused Amaterasu to never face him again, causing the sun and moon to be in different parts of the sky.
Minor kami
* Amatsu-Mikaboshi- the kami of all evil and stars who existed before the Kotoamatsukami.
* Konohanasakuya-hime- the wife of Ninigi and daughter of Ohoyamatsumi, and great-grandmother of Jimmu. She is also known as the goddess of Mount Fuji. She is also known by the name Sengen.
* Ōhoyamatsumi- an elder brother of Amaterasu, and an important god who rules mountain, sea, and war, as well as the father of Konohanasakuya-hime.
* Sarutahiko Ōkami- a kami of the Earth that guided Ninigi to the Japanese islands.
* Uke Mochi- sometimes called Ogetsu-hime-no-Kami, a goddess of food. After she had spat a fish, vomited or defecated game and coughed rice, she had been killed by a disgusted Tsukuyomi, or in some other versions, Susanoo.
