also: おおがみ · だいじん
great god; deity
Archaic honorific term for a god or deity, often used in Shinto contexts or classical literature. Modern usage is rare and mostly found in fixed expressions or historical references.
In the Kojiki, the story of the great god Amaterasu hiding in the rock cave is recorded.
村人たちは山の大神に祈りを捧げた。
The villagers offered prayers to the great god of the mountain.
大神 is an archaic honorific term reserved for a specific great deity, while 神 is the plain, everyday word for 'god'.
大神 (おおかみ) means 'great god', while 狼 (おおかみ) means 'wolf' — they share the same reading but have completely unrelated meanings.
大神 read as だいじん is an archaic word for 'great god', while 大臣 (だいじん) means 'government minister' — the two are easily confused since they share this reading.
Deities such as 大神 are traditionally counted with the counter 柱, as in 二柱の大神 ('two gods').
Standard kanji spelling for the reading おおかみ, meaning 'great god'.
Alternate reading of the same kanji, also meaning 'great god'.
Sino-Japanese reading; less common and may appear in historical or literary contexts.
A native compound of 大 and 神, denoting a great or eminent deity.