KUMARI

Real Name: Ame-no-minaka-nushi-no-kami

Occupation: Goddess of freshwater

Legal Status: Citizen of Ama

Identity: The general populace of Earth is unaware of Kumari except as a mythological character.

Other Aliases: Amenomikumari, Ame-No-Mi-Kumari, "Heavenly Water Divider"

Place of Birth: Unrevealed

Marital Status: Single

Known Relatives: Minato-no-kami (father, possibly deceased), Kawa-no-kami (mother, possibly deceased), Izanagi (paternal grandfather), Izanami (paternal grandmother), Takamimusubi, Bishamon, Susanowo, Tsukiyomi, Kagutsuchi (uncles), Amaterasu, Uke-Mochi (aunts), Inn (grandfather, possibly deceased), Gaea (grand-mother, alias Yo)

Group Affiliation: The Kami (Gods of Japan)

Base of Operations: Ama

First Appearance: Ares #5

History: Ame-no-Mi-Kumari is the daughter of Minato-no-kami, god of rivers and estuaries, a member of an extra-dimensional race of beings known as the Amatsu-kami who were worshipped as gods by the Ainu, the ancestors of the Japanese people. Her father was one of the sons of Izanagi and Izanami, the divine gods of Japan who sired the principal Japanese gods. Izanami, however, was badly burned by the birth of her last son, Kagutsuchi the fire-god, and departed Earth for the other-dimensional realm of Yomi. When she departed Earth, she retreated taking her children with her and Izanagi followed her in order to return Minato-no-kami and his siblings to Earth. On Earth, Minato-no-kami became worshipped as god of rivers and estuaries, but his worship was largely eclipsed by Amaterasu, Tsukiyomi and Susanowo who had to share Ancient Japan amongst them. Amaterasu became the divine ancestor of the Royal Family in Japanese Empire.

Unlike the majority of Earth’s gods, Kumari and the Amatsu-kami have been worshipped by the Japanese well into the Twentieth Century. In recent years, Mikaboshi, the god of evil, recovered the Grasscutter Sword from Earth lost by Susanowo, the storm-god. The sword had been a gift to the Imperial Family of Japan for centuries, but when the empire fell during World War Two, it was hidden away in a heavily guarded temple where Mikaboshi lead demonic armies to acquire it for him. The sword was protected by those samurai who had lost their lives to it, but Thor and the Asgardian Gods eventually freed it. They were unable to safely protect it as Asgard, the home of the Asgardian gods, was frequently invaded by other threats, such as Morgan le Fay, who scattered the relics of Asgard on Earth as she seized the Twilight Sword to remake the Earth to her liking. Thor eventually led the Avengers against Morgan and reclaimed the Twilight Sword.

Using the Grasscutter Sword, Mikaboshi severed Ameno-kihasi-date, the bridge connecting Ama, the home of the Japanese gods, to Earth and conquered Yomi, the other-dimensional realm that served as the residence for the shades (ghosts) of the worshippers of the Japanese gods, unleashing the demons of Yomi upon Ama as a result. Several of the Kami either lost their lives in the bloodshed or were forced into hiding in other dimensions. Kumari was protected by Bishamon as they fled Ama. Mikaboshi then turned his attention to the other gods of Earth and lead an attack on the Olympian gods as the Asgardians gods had already succumbed to Ragnarok or Twilight of the Gods. Acting as a messenger, Inari, the rice-god, soon rallied with Hermes, the Olympian god of messengers, to use trickery and deception in uniting their two pantheons against Mikaboshi. During his visit to Olympus, Inari had requested water to quench his thirst, but he actually returned with it to the hiding place of the other Kami rescued by Bishamon, giving the water as a gift to Kumari. Accepting the gift, Kumari and the Amatsu-kami led by Bishamon rallied with the Olympian gods against Mikaboshi and defeated him. Kumari returned the honor of what she considered a gift by granting water to Poseidon, the Olympian sea-god, and joined her powers with his to conjure a flood to fill Yomi and defeat Mikaboshi who was washed away in the storm.

In the absence of Izanagi, king of the Amatsu-Kami, Bishamon is the acting ruler of the Japanese gods, but which of the Amatsu-kami have survived and their subsequent whereabouts are is unrevealed.

Height: 5’ 7”
Weight: 295 lbs.
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Black

Strength Level: Kumari possesses superhuman strength enabling her to lift (press) 10 tons under optimal conditions.

Known Superhuman Powers: Kumari possesses the conventional physical attributes of the Amatsu-kami or Gods of Japan. Like all of the Kami, she is extremely long-lived, but she is not immortal like the Olympian gods. She has not aged since reaching adulthood and cannot die by any conventional means. She is immune to all Earthly diseases and is resistant to conventional injury. If she were somehow wounded, her godly life force would enable him to recover with superhuman speed. It would take an injury of such magnitude that it dispersed a major portion of her bodily molecules to cause her a physical death. Even then, it might be possible for a god of significant power, such as Izanagi, Takamimusubi or Susanowo or for a number of Japanese gods of equal power working together to revive her. Kumari also possesses superhuman strength and her Kami metabolism provides her with far greater than human endurance in all physical activities. Though not quite as powerful as the Olympian or Asgardian gods, the Amatsu-kami have greater speed, reflexes and responses than the Olympian gods.  (Kami flesh and bone is about three times as dense as similar human tissue, contributing to the superhuman strength and weight of the Amatsu-kami.)

Kumari also has limited experience in the mystical arts, mostly in conjuring water from water molecules and creating objects from it, such as waves and giant hands. She can also extend her consciousness into it to create watery forms of extra-ordinary size. She can control water and the elements, including summoning lightning bolts and generating floods. Her might is not quite on par with that of her father who could redirect rivers and create lakes or Poseidon who can create tidal waves and hurricanes.

Comments: This profile largely describes Kumari as she has been seen in the Marvel Universe; she has not yet been seen in the DC Universe.

Last updated: 10-8-08

 

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