Believing he had won, Susanoo ran riot—breaking rice paddies, fouling the halls, and flinging a flayed horse into the weaving hall. Grieved beyond bearing, Amaterasu shut herself inside the Heavenly Rock Cave, and the world fell into endless dark, teeming with calamity.
The eight hundred myriad gods gathered by the Heavenly River to devise a plan. They hung a mirror and jewels on a sacred tree, and Ame-no-Uzume danced wildly upon an overturned tub until the gods roared with laughter.
Wondering at the merriment, Amaterasu opened the door a crack—and in that instant Uzume showed her the mirror, and the strong god Ame-no-Tajikarao hauled the door open. Light returned to the world, and a sacred rope was hung so she could never hide again.
