Seven gods of luck
The Seven Gods of Fortune ( Japanese 七 福神 , Shichi Fukujin ) are an ensemble of lucky Japanese gods from the Muromachi period , most of whom originally came from religious traditions other than the local Shinto .
They illustrate the syncretism typical of Japanese religion (cf. Shinbutsu-Shūgō ).
New Year
According to legend, the seven gods of luck enter the port on New Year's Day on their “treasure ship” ( 宝船 , Takarabune ). This ship carries seven intangible treasures: cleverness, knowledge, experience, learning, bravery, prosperity and long life and happiness and contentment. But also five material treasures: the inexhaustible wallet, the invisible hat, the lucky coat, the wooden hammer of wealth and the ghost-hunting rat.
In the days after the New Year, many Japanese visit the shrines of the seven gods of luck. On the first day of the New Year one also puts a picture of them or Takarabune under the pillow in order to come to auspicious dreams, especially if one is dreaming of Fuji, falcons or eggplants ( Hatsuyume ).
list
| image | Surname | function | Note / origin |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Daikoku 大 黒 |
Earth, prosperity, agriculture, flood protection, cuisine | Tenbu : derived from the tantristic deity Mahakala , known in Japan from the 9th century. |
|
Ebisu 恵 比 須 |
Fishing, luck and successful trade | Shintō , also known there as Kotoshiro-nushi-no-kami and Hiruko |
|
Benten 弁 天 |
Music, high arts, speech, literature, water | Tenbu : derived from the Indian river deity Sarasvati |
|
Bishamon 毘 沙門 |
Treasure, war, warrior; Buddhist guardian god of the north | Tenbu and one of the Shitennō : derived from the Indian deity Vaisravana |
|
Fukurokuju 福禄寿 |
Wisdom and long life | Probably origins in Chinese Daoism |
|
Jurōjin 寿 老人 |
Long life | Probably origins in Chinese Daoism |
|
Hotei 布袋 |
Contentment and bliss | Probably from Chinese Chan Buddhism (Putai or Budai there); Incarnation of Maitreya |
literature
- Kurt S. Ehrich: Shichifukujin. The seven lucky gods of Japan , Recklinghausen: Bongers, 1994. ISBN 978-3-7647-0416-2
Web links
- Iwai Hiroshi: "Shichifukujin" . In: Encyclopedia of Shinto. Kokugaku-in , March 13, 2005 (English)
- Bernhard Scheid: Religion in Japan - gods of luck
- Seven gods of luck (七 福神 Shichi Fukujin)
- Mark Schumacher: Seven Lucky Gods of Japan - English