Haraedo no Okami (祓戸大神)
Haraedo no Okami refers to Shinto deities in charge of "harae" (purification or redemption). The 'haraedo' (also known as 'harae-dokoro,' or 'harae-dono') refers to a site where harae is performed; thus Haraedo no Okami means "deities enshrined in the haraedo."
The 'harae kotoba,' one of the "norito" (Shinto prayers) that Shinto priests enchant prior to religious services, reads "Haraedo no Okami and others were created when Izanagi, the great deity, performed misogi-harae (purification rites) at Awakigihara in Tachibana no Odo in Hyuga (in Miyazaki Prefecture) in Chikushi (Kyushu). Haraedo no Okami, therefore, is considered a generic term for the deities created when Izanagi returned from Yomi (Realm of the Dead) and performed misogi, as described in the 'Kamiumi' (Birth of Deities) Chapter of the "Nihonshoki" (Chronicles of Japan). Incidentally, on this occasion, "Mihashira no uzuno miko" (three noble children) - Amaterasu Omikami (the Sun Goddess), Susano (the Storm God), and Tsukuyomi (the Moon God) - were also created, but they do not number among the Haraedo no Okami.
The harae kotoba prayer to the Haraedo no Okami is, "If there are evils, sins, and vice in the world, please purify the world"
The four deities featured in the 'Oharae no kotoba' of the "Engishiki" (an ancient book of codes and procedures on national rites and prayers) -Seoritsuhime(-no-kami), Hayaakitsuhime(-no-kami), Ibukidonushi(-no-kami), and Hayasasurahime(-no-kami)--are called 'the four Haraedo deities' ("haraedo yon-shin"), and sometimes Haraedo no Okami is used as a generic term for these four deities.
The four deities purify "Ashihara no Nakatsukuni" (Literally, "Central Land of Reed Plains", which refers to the human world) by removing all the sins and evils; the roles of each deity are described in the 'Oharae no kotoba.'
Seoritsuhime
She throws all the evils, sins, and vice into a river so that they will flow into the sea.
Hayaakitsuhime
She, who is waiting at the bottom of the sea, swallows all the evils, sins, and vice.
Ibukidonushi
He confirms that Hayaakitsuhime swallowed all the evils, sins, and vice and breathes those evils, sins, and vice to "Nenokuni" (the underworld).
Hayasasurahime
She takes all the evils, sins, and vice brought into Nenokuni/Sokonokuni and disperses them throughout the underworld.
Except for Hayaakitsuhime, the names of the above-mentioned deities cannot be found in the "Kojiki" (Records of Ancient Matters) or the "Nihonshoki" (Chronicles of Japan), and there are many theories as to which of the deities in the Kojiki and the Nihonshoki they correspond to. It is often the case, however, that the four deities are identified with any of the deities created when Izanagi performed misogi, as mentioned above. Norinaga MOTOORI proposed that Seoritsuhime, Hayaakitsuhime, and Ibukidonushi correspond to Yasomagatsuhinokami, Izunome, and Naobinokami, respectively, while Hayasasurahime is represented by Suseribime based on the similarity of their names and the fact that both dwelled in Nenokuni.
Main shrine that enshrines Haraedo no Okami