Kawa no kami (河の神 or 川之神), also known as Kahaku (河伯) is a river deity in Japanese mythology.
It is also known as "Kahaku", a name that is believed to be inspired by the Chinese god of the Yellow River, Hebo.
[citation needed] Many sources show that people offered human sacrifice to Kawa no kami.
In earlier times, when rivers were in flood, people would offer human sacrifice to please Kawa no kami.
This led people to use dolls made of flowers or straw as offerings to Kawa no kami instead.