After being expelled from heaven (see Amaterasu in the cave) Susanoo descended to the Hi river and there, he saw an old couple, who cried with a young girl.
—Who are you?— asked the god.
— I am a terrenal god —answered the old man— this is my wife and this is my daughter, Kushinada-hime.
— And why do you cry?
— Before, we had eight daughters, but the great eight headed snake came each year and ate one. Today is the day where he comes to take our last daughter.
— How does the snake look like? —Susanoo asked.
— Its eyes are red as cherries and he has eight head and eight tails. Its skin is covered in moss, cypresses and pines. The length of its body extends through eight valleys and eight mountains.
Susanoo then asked the old man:
— Would you give me your daughter as a wife?
— Of course! but I do not know your name.
— I am the brother of the great goddess Amaterasu, who just descended from the Heavenly highlands.
The couple was happy and they agreed to give him their daughter. Then, Susanoo transformed her into a comb, and placed her in his top knot. Then, he ordered the old man:
— Prepare wine that has fermented eight times. Lift a fence in a circle and open eight doors in it. At each door, make eight platforms and on each of them place the wine. Then, stay waiting.
The two elders did what they were told and everything was prepared. When they were waiting, the snake appeared and began to drink the wine.
Then, totally drunk, it fell asleep. Susanoo disheveled his sword and began to cut the snake into pieces.
However, he could not cut the trunk. Estranged, he opened it and within its guts he found a long sword which he later named Kusanagi.
Sources
Rubio, C. and Moratalla, R (2008) Kojiki, Cronicas de antiguos hechos de Japón. Editorial Trotta. Translated from spanish by Mythology Web.
Images from Wikimedia Commons, public domain.
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