Yamato Takeru

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Yamato Takeru

, originally Prince Ousu (???, ???????) was a Japan

Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
ese legendary prince of the Yamato dynasty, son of Keiko of Yamato

Emperor Keiko

; also known as Ootarashihikooshirowake no Sumeramikoto; was the 12th emperor of Japan to appear on the traditional Emperors of Japan. No firm dates can be assigned to this emperor's life or reign....
, a legendary monarch who is traditionally counted as the 12th Tenno or Emperor of Japan. The tragic tale of this impressive figure is told in the Japanese chronicles Kojiki
Kojiki

, is the oldest surviving book in Japan. The body of the Kojiki is written in Chinese language, but it includes numerous Japanese names and some phrases....
and Nihon Shoki
Nihon Shoki

The , sometimes translated as The Chronicles of Japan, is the second oldest book of classical Japanese history of Japan. It is more elaborate and detailed than the Kojiki, the oldest, and has proven to be an important tool for historians and archaeologists as it includes the most complete extant historical record of ancient Japan....
. One of his sons later became Chuai

Emperor Chuai

; also known as Tarashinakatsuhiko no Sumeramikoto; was a Japanese Emperor of Japan, the 14th emperor of Japan to appear on the traditional Emperors of Japan....
, traditionally counted as the 14th Emperor of Japan

Emperor of Japan

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, originally Prince Ousu (???, ???????) was a Japan

Japan

Emperor Keiko

Emperor Chuai

Emperor of Japan

The of Japan is the symbol of the state and of the unity of the Japanese people. He is the head of the Imperial House of Japan. Under Japan's present constitution, the Emperor is the "symbol of the state and the unity of the people," and is a ceremonial figurehead in a constitutional monarchy ....
.

His historical existence is uncertain but those books date his life to the 4th century AD. Details are different between the two books and the version in Kojiki is assumed to be loyal to the older form of this legend. Prince Ousu slew his elder brother Ousu (???, ????????) and his father, the emperor Keiko, feared his brutal temperament. The father plotted to have his son die in battle and sent him to Izumo Province

Izumo Province

Izumo was an Old provinces of Japan of Japan which today consists of the eastern part of Shimane Prefecture in the Chugoku region.It was one of the regions of ancient Japan where major political powers arose....
, today the eastern part of Shimane Prefecture

Shimane Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is Matsue, Shimane. It is the second least populous prefecture in Japan, next to the Tottori Prefecture that is a neighboring prefecture on the east side....
and then the land of Kumaso, today Kumamoto Prefecture

Kumamoto Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located on Kyushu Island. The capital is the city of Kumamoto, Kumamoto....
. But Ousu succeeded in defeating his enemies, in the latter case by dressing as a maid servant attendant at a drinking party (see image right). One of the enemies he defeated praised him and gave him the title Yamatotakeru, meaning The Brave of Yamato. But Emperor Keiko's mind was unchanged.

Keiko sent Yamato Takeru to the eastern land whose people disobeyed the imperial court. Yamatotakeru met his aunt Princess Yamato, the highest priestess of Amaterasu

Amaterasu

, or is in Japanese mythology a Solar deity and perhaps the most important Shinto . Her name, Amaterasu, means literally " illuminates Heaven"....
in Ise Province

Ise Province

or Seishu was a Provinces of Japan of Japan including most of modern Mie Prefecture. Ise bordered Iga Province, Kii Province, Mino Province, Omi Province, Owari Province, Shima Province, and Yamato Provinces....
. His father attempted to kill him with his own hands, however Princess Yamato showed him compassion and lent him a holy sword named Kusanagi
Kusanagi

is a legendary Japanese sword as important to Japan's history as Excalibur is to Great Britain, and is one of three Imperial Regalia of Japan. It was originally called Ama-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi but its name was later changed to the more popular Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi ....
no tsurugi which Susanoo

Susanoo

is the Shinto god of the sea and storms....
, the brother god of Amaterasu found in the body of the great serpent, Yamata no Orochi

Orochi

Yamata no Orochi or Orochi, translated as the Eight-Forked Serpent in English language, is a legendary 8-headed and 8-tailed Japanese dragon that was slain by the Shinto sea-god Susanoo....
. Yamatotakeru went to the eastern land. He lost his wife Ototachibanahime during a storm, when she sacrificed herself to soothe the anger of the sea god. He defeated many enemies in the eastern land, and legend has it that he and a local old man composed the first renga

Renga

is a genre of Japanese language collaboration poetry. A renga consists of at least two or stanzas, usually many more. The opening stanza of the renga, called the , later became the basis for the modern haiku style of poetry....
in Kai Province

Kai Province

is an old provinces of Japan in Japan that corresponds to Yamanashi Prefecture today. It lies in central Honshu, west of Tokyo, in a landlocked mountainous region that includes Mount Fuji along its border with Shizuoka Prefecture....
and their theme was Mount Tsukuba

Mount Tsukuba

Mount Tsukuba is an mountain located near Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan. It is one of the most famous mountains in Japan, particularly well-known for its double peaks, Nyotai-san and Nantai-san ....
(now in Ibaraki Prefecture

Ibaraki Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Kanto region on Honshu island. The capital is Mito, Ibaraki....
). In return he blasphemed a local god of Mount Ibuki

Mount Ibuki

is a high mountain, on the border of Maibara, Shiga, Shiga Prefecture, and Ibigawa, Gifu, Gifu Prefecture, Japan. It is one of the 100 Famous Japanese Mountains, and is also included on the lists of the 100 Kinki Mountains the 50 Shiga Mountains....
, which sits on the border of Omi Province

Omi Province

is an old provinces of Japan of Japan, which today comprises Shiga Prefecture. It was one of the provinces that made up the Tosando Circuit . It is nicknamed as ...
and Mino Province

Mino Province

, one of the old provinces of Japan, was composed of nearly the entire southern part of modern-day Gifu Prefecture. Mino Province bordered Echizen Province, Hida Province, Ise Province, Mikawa Province, Omi Province, Owari Province, and Shinano Province provinces....
. The god cursed him with disease and he fell ill.

Yamato Takeru died somewhere in Ise Province. According to the legend the name of Mie Prefecture

Mie Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan which is part of the Kinki and Chubu regions on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Tsu, Mie....
was derived from his final words. After death his soul turned into a great white bird and flew away. His tomb in Ise is known as the Mausoleum of the White Plover. A statue of Yamato Takeru stands in Kenrokuen in Kanazawa

Kanazawa, Ishikawa

is the capital cities of Japan of Ishikawa Prefecture in Japan....
, Ishikawa Prefecture

Ishikawa Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chubu region on Honshu island. The capital is Kanazawa, Ishikawa....
.

Yamato Takeru in popular culture

The story of Yamato Takeru was turned into a live action movie loosely based on this prince. However, the movie was a fantasy/sci-fi movie about magic, monsters, love, and mecha. Just like the legend he was famous for being a warrior and also given the title "Yamatotakeru," but the main focus of the plot was to defeat an eight-headed dragon.
Yamato Takeru was also featured as an anime
Anime

is animation in Japan and considered to be "Japanese animation" in the rest of the world. Anime dates from about 1917.Anime, in addition to manga , is extremely popular in Japan and well known throughout the world....
series about a human boy living amongst human-like aliens and acquired a powerful robot with a sword. Just like the movie he has similar necklace in the live action movie, a sword, and a large mech robot to take on an eight-headed dragon.
In Digimon Adventure
Digimon Adventure

is the first season of the anime saga Digimon. Its premise involves a group of boys and girls being whisked to a parallel reality called the Digital World while at summer camp....
and its sequel, Digimon Adventure 02
Digimon Adventure 02

, also commonly written as Digimon 02/Digimon Zero Two, is a direct sequel to the Digimon Adventure; three years later. With most of the original characters now in high school, the Digital World was supposedly secure and peaceful....
, two of the main characters are brothers named Yamato and Takeru (they were given the nicknames "Matt" and "T.K." in the English version). The brothers have no relation to the original Yamato Takeru, and are merely named after him.
The third volume of Osamu Tezuka
Osamu Tezuka

was a Japanese people Mangaka, animator, movie producer and medical doctor, although he never practiced medicine. Born in Osaka Prefecture, he is best known as the creator of Astro Boy and Kimba the White Lion....
's Phoenix series
Phoenix (manga)

is a manga series by Osamu Tezuka. Tezuka considered Phoenix his "life's work"; it consists of 12 books, each of which tells a separate, self-contained story and takes place in a different era....
features a somewhat de-mythologized version of Yamato Takeru as its protagonist, but aside from his adventure in Kumaso, the book's story bears little resemblance to the original legend.
An ANBU agent in the popular Anime Series Naruto Shippuuden is given the codename Yamato by Tsunade and first appears in episode 34 when summoned to temporarily replace Kakashi Hatake
Kakashi Hatake

is a Character in the Naruto manga and anime series created by Masashi Kishimoto. Kishimoto originally planned to introduce Kakashi in the manga to the series' titular character, Naruto Uzumaki, early on, but pushed back this meeting so that Naruto's teammates could be better developed....
on a mission to capture a ninja with information about the missing Legendary Sannin Orochimaru.
The real Eyeshield 21 in the manga Eyeshield 21 is named Yamato Takeru. Kobayakawa Sena, the manga's protagonist, was named after him.
In the video game Persona 4, Naoto Shirogane's ultimate Persona is Yamato Takeru.

Yamato Takeru

Yamato Takeru in popular culture

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