Hitorigami

In early Shinto cosmogony as recorded in sources summarized from the Kojiki, hitorigami are among the first divine beings to come into existence. They are grouped with the 'three deities of creation' and the 'separate heavenly kami.' Some named hitorigami (notably Ame‑no‑Minakanushi and Kuni‑no‑Tokotachi) are described as summoning the later divine pair Izanagi and Izanami and instructing them to create the first land from the swirling salt water beneath the heavens. The category marks a stage in the mythic genealogy in which solitary, often hidden principles precede paired generative deities.

Sources report that many hitorigami 'hid their bodies' or that their 'forms [were] not being visible.' No detailed anthropomorphic descriptions are provided in the supplied material; the emphasis in the tradition is on concealment, non‑manifest or non‑visible form rather than specific physical traits.

Hitorigami function primarily as primordial or initiatory beings in the cosmology: some named hitorigami are recorded as initiating or summoning the paired creators (Izanagi and Izanami) who then fashion the land. They are described as having originated alone (not in male–female pairs) and, in the supplied sources, most are said to have been created from 'male essence' and are often described as male. Beyond these cosmogonic roles and their characteristic hiddenness, the sources give no further powers or active functions.