A shrine dedicated to Amaterasu Omikami, the supreme deity of Japan, was discovered last July during a search of a Geonjin monk's shrine in Seoul's Gangnam district by the special counsel team investigating Kim Keon-hee. The Amaterasu myth forms the foundation of the emperor system, and Japanese imperialism used it to justify wars of aggression and colonial rule. The discovery drew attention at the time because a shrine enshrining such a deity was found at the home of a Korean shaman close to Kim Keon-hee.
Hosaka Yuji, a special-appointment professor at Korea University's Graduate School of Public Administration and an expert on Korea-Japan relations, explained at a press conference for the publication of his book "Far-Right Mythology Japan," held Wednesday at a restaurant in Seoul's Jongno district, that the incident served as the direct catalyst for writing the book. The book traces the political meaning of Japanese mythology along with the roots of Japan's far-right forces.
"Amaterasu is Japan's founding deity and a god of war," Professor Hosaka said. "The 'Kojiki' and 'Nihon Shoki' record that Empress Jingu conquered the Three Han kingdoms after receiving a revelation from Amaterasu, but this is not a historical fact." He added, "An interesting characteristic of Japanese history is that those in power deify themselves. Amaterasu is a deity created by Emperor Tenmu in the early eighth century, after which Japanese emperors gained the status of descendants of a god."
After Japan's defeat in 1945, Emperor Hirohito made his "Humanity Declaration," but the Japanese government did not follow the Allied Powers' order and maintained the notion that "the Japanese people are descendants of a god." Professor Hosaka said, "What Japan's far-right forces dream of today is returning to the pre-1945 system. Making the emperor head of state again, establishing emergency (martial law) provisions, and possessing a military are at the heart of the current constitutional revision debate." He warned, "A country in difficulty tends to try to return to its glorious past era. In Japan as well, forces seeking to return to the period before the defeat are growing." Referring to former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe guiding the leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) to the Ise Grand Shrine, which enshrines Amaterasu, in 2016, he criticized, "This is no different from the German chancellor taking world leaders to a Nazi memorial. What would be considered a crime in Germany is possible in Japan."
Professor Hosaka stressed that although Japan's far-right forces are a minority, their influence should not be underestimated. "Japan's far-right forces number more than 2 million, about 2 percent of the total population, and above all, they are loud," he said. "The problem is that an atmosphere has formed in which the general public does not strongly resist them, even if they do not agree with their logic."
