Kamuy-huci

Kamuy-huci is one of the most important kamuy. Her full name means ‘Rising Fire Sparks Woman’, and she is also called Iresu Kamuy, ‘People Teacher’. She guards the gateway between the world of humans and the world of the kamuy.

Ainu belief holds that the soul of the dead travels to the afterlife through her hearth. Funerals therefore included prayers and offerings to the fire kamuy and verse laments wishing the dead a smooth journey.