SEVEN LUCKY GODS MENU
Intro Page
 Benzaiten
Bishamonten
Daikokuten
Ebisu
Fukurokuju
Hotei
Jurōjin

Related BENZAITEN Pages
Benzaiten's Main Sanctuaries in Japan
Various Kami of Rice, Food, Agriculture
 

BENZAITEN SPELLINGS

Jp. = Benten 弁天
Jp. = Benzaiten 弁才天
Jp. = Benzaiten 弁財天
Jp. = Bionten, Mionten 美音天
Jp. = Myō-on Ten 妙音天
Jp. = Daibenzaiten 大弁才天
Jp. = Daiben Kudokuten 大辯功徳天
Skt. = सरस्वती, Sarasvatī
Chn. = Biàncáitiān 辯才天 or 瓣財天
Chn. = Miàoyīn Tiān 妙音天
Translit = 薩羅薩伐底 Sarasabatei
Krn. = Byeonjaecheon 변재천
Krn. = Myoeum Cheon 묘음천

BENZAITEN MENU

Summary Upfront
Origin and Evolution
Translation of Name, Spelling Change
Scriptural Basis, Benten Sutras
Main Forms & Functions in Japan
8-Armed Weapon-Wielding Defender
2-Armed Benzaiten & the Mandala
2-Armed Beauty Playing Biwa
Nude 2-Armed Beauty Playing Biwa
Uga Benzaiten (Snake & Shrine Gate)
Tenkawa Benzaiten (3-Headed Snake)
Dakini, Inari, White Foxes, and Benten
Dakini, Tengu, and White Foxes
Kichijōten (Jewel) and Dai Benzaiten
3-Faced Sanmen Daikokuten
3-Faced Deva Riding a Fox
Dakini, Aizen, and White Snakes
15 or 16 Attendants (Dōji / Kumāra)
Wish-Giving Jewel & Nyoirin Kannon
Seven Gods of Good Fortune
Modern Benzaiten Artwork
Dark versus Radiant Benzaiten
Conclusions & Questions
Sources:  Primary  |  Secondary

 HINDU ASSOCIATIONS►
Bishamonten, Daikokuten, Dakiniten,
Kankiten, Kariteimo, Katen, Kichijōten

 KAMI ASSOCIATIONS►
Amaterasu, Azaihime, Ebumi, Inari,
 Ichikishima-hime, Itsukushima Myōjin,
Koyane-hime, Munakata Sanjoshin,
Suijin, Tengu, Ugajin, Others

 ANIMAL ASSOCIATIONS►
Dragons, White Snakes, Turtles
 White Foxes, Peacocks, Swans

ESOTERIC SEED & MANTRA

 
Esoteric Seeds <Tobifudo 1  |  2>
Pronounced SA or SO in Japan

ESOTERIC MANTRA
#1 おん　さらさばていえい　そわか
#1 On Sarasabatei-ei Sowaka
#2 おん　そらそばていえい　そわか
#2 On Sorasobatei-ei Sowaka

ENNICHI 縁日 (HOLY DAY)

ONE OF 7 LUCKY GODS

Benzaiten is the sole female among the Seven Lucky Gods of Japan. Since she is a river goddess, her temples and shrines are almost invariably in the neighborhood of water -- the sea, a river, or a lake. As a water goddess, she became the patroness of everything that "flows" -- e.g.,  music, the fine arts (dancing, acting, visual), poetry, and other crafts. Such artistic learning and wisdom often bring prosperity, hence her inclusion in the Japanese group of seven lucky gods. Another factor propelling her popularity goes back to the Muromachi period (1392-1568), when the spelling of her name (Benzaiten 弁才天) was changed, with the character 才 (zai), meaning talent, replaced with its homonym 財 (zai), meaning wealth.

DRAGON / SNAKE AS AVATAR

Beniten playing biwa atop dragon. (snakes & dragons are her avatars). Circa 1910. By Shimomura Kanzan 下村観山 (1873-1930). Mizuno Museum of Art 水野美術館 (Nagano). Source.

Main Forms & Functions of Benzaiten in Japan
Click any image to jump to details / photos about that specific form

Happi Benzaiten
8-Armed Version
Warrior Goddess
Defender of the State
Details Here

Myō-on Benzaiten
Playing Biwa.
Music Goddess.
Main Iconic Form.
Details Here

Daibenten; holds sword and jewel; Bestower of
Virtue & Merit.
Details Here

Hadaka Benten
Nude deity playing biwa.
Kami of Art.
Details Here

Uga Benzaiten
Snake & shrine gate atop head
Food kami.
Details Here

Tenkawa Benten
 Amanogawa; three white snake heads
Food kami.
Details Here

8th Century Onward
Traditional Form

9th Century
Onward

Late 12th Century Onward
Goddess of music, art, warriors, wealth, luck. Worshipped independently.

Benzaiten, the water goddess, comes in many forms, is worshiped in many ways, and is said to bring all manner of material gain. Some of her roles include Goddess of Water, Learning, Oral Eloquence, Music, Poetry, Speech, Rhetoric, Performing Arts, Wealth, Longevity, one who can end droughts or deluges (and is thus said to control dragons), one who protects the nation against natural disaster, and one who protects warriors and brings victory on the battlefield. In many ways, she is best classified as a native "Shintoized" kami rather than an imported "Buddhasized" deity. Her depictions in Japan differ greatly from her conventional portrait found in the Golden Light Sutra, the Dainichi-kyō, and other scriptures, thus highlighting the development of Japan's own unique Benzaiten cult. Her traditional eight-armed martial form and two-armed mandala form underwent significant alteration from the 12th-13th centuries onward. Primary changes included (1) putting a shrine gate and human-headed snake (Ugajin) atop her head, (2) replacing some of the weapons in her hands with wealth-bringing icons, (3) carving her in the nude, (4) linking her to the wish-granting jewel and to jewel-carrying dragons, snakes, and foxes, (5) linking her to numerous Hindu-Buddhist-Kami deities in a convoluted -- even confusing -- web of associations; and (6) depicting her as a monstrous three-headed snake. The below sections explore her various forms both chronologically and thematically, followed by her associations.

Happi Benzaiten 八臂弁財天
Eight Arms Holding Weapons, Defender of Buddhism & Nation

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1. Happi Benzaiten (8-Armed Benzaiten). At the Hōan-den 奉安殿, Enoshima Jinja 江島神社 (Enoshima Island, Japan), Kamakura Era. Kanagawa Prefectural Asset. Wood. H = 59.2 cm, Yosegi-zukuri joined-block technique, crystal eyes.  Legend says shogun Minamoto Yoritomo asked the Buddhist monk Mongaku 文覚 to make this statue to curse his enemies. Since the Edo period, it has been prayed to by samurai seeking protection on the battle field and victory in war. Photo and data from Kamakura Butsuzo Meguri Magazine 鎌倉仏像めぐり (Gakken), 15 June 2010, p. 75.
2. Benzaiten Mandala. Early Edo era. H = 83 cm, W = 38.5. This small cutout from the mandala depicts the 8-armed Uga Benzaiten surrounded by 15 disciples, Daikokuten, & Bishamonten. Location unknown. <Photo Source>
3. Happi Benzaiten Mandala, Kōyasan Shinnō-in Temple 高野山・親王院. Mid Edo era. <Photo Museum Reihokan Kōyasan and the Seven Benten Sites at Kōyansan 高野山七弁天>
4. Happi Benzaiten. Stone, Hase Dera (Kamakura). Hase Dera claims it was made by Kōbō Daishi (774-835), the famed founder of Japan's Shingon sect of Esoteric Buddhism, but this is unsupported by all evidence and should be dismissed as crass modern-day commercialism. The statue is modern. It is no longer located on the grounds, but rather inside the cave devoted to Benzaiten's 16 Daughters. Photo by Mark Schumacher.

Benzaiten and the Heian-Era Mandala
Two-Armed Beauty Playing Biwa

PHOTO: Taizōkai Mandala 胎蔵界曼荼羅 (Genzu Version 現図曼荼羅), still widely used and replicated by Japan's Shingon 真言 and Tendai 天台 sects. Although the Genzu format can vary somewhat, it generally includes around 414 deities arranged systematically into 12 sections. Above clipart from the Mandara Zuten 曼荼羅図典 (The Mandala Dictionary). 1993. Japanese language. 422 pages. Published by Daihorinkaku 大法輪閣. ISBN-10: 480461102-9.

Benzaiten with Two Arms Playing the Biwa
Goddess of Music. Most Common Form in Modern Japan.

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1. Benzaiten Playing Biwa atop a rock surrounded by the sea. Scroll, colors on silk, H = 104 cm, W = 39 cm, 14th Century, Kōyasan Hōjyōin Temple 高野山宝城院. <Photo: Treasures of a Sacred Mountain. Kukai and Mount Koya. The 1200-Year Anniversary of Kukai's Visit to Tang-Dynasty China. Tokyo National Museum, exhibit catalog, 2004. Also see Museum Reihōkan Koyasan, also see Seven Benten Sites at Kōyansan>
2. Benzaiten Playing Biwa, Hanging Scroll, Kamakura / Muromachi era, 14th century AD. Most paintings of Benzaiten from this period depict her as a beauty in Chinese costume but here she appears as a bodhisattva with jeweled crown & necklace. <Photo The British Museum>
3. Butsuzō-zu-i 仏像図彙, "Collected Illustrations of Buddhist Images." First published in 1690 (Genroku 元禄 3). A major Japanese dictionary of Buddhist iconography. However, this image comes from the expanded 1783 version.
4. Woodblock print of Benzaiten playing biwa. By artist Tomikawa Fusanobu 富川房信, fl. 1750-70. <Photo Source>
5. Stone statue. Private home in Kamakura. Early 20th century. <Photo = Mark Schumacher>
6. Stone Statue. Early Showa Era, Takaosan Yakuō-in Temple 高尾山薬王院, Tokyo. <Photo Source>

Other Manifestations of Benzaiten Playing Biwa
The deity sometimes faces left, sometimes right. This has no significance (to my knowledge).

Itsukushima 厳島
Butsuzō-zui (1690)
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Kinyō Shō 金曜星
Butsuzō-zui (1690)
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Myō-on Benzaiten 妙音
Butsuzō-zui (1690)
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Kōmyō-ō 光明王菩薩
Butsuzō-zui (1690)
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1. Itsukushima 厳島 playing biwa, the island kami-goddess at Itsukushima Jinja Shrine 厳島神社 on Miyajima Island 宮島 (Hiroshima Pref.), aka Ichikishima Hime 厳島姫命, Itsukushima Myōjin 厳島明神, Miyajima Gongen 厳島権現, Miyajima Myōjin 厳島明神, or Itsukushima Myō-on Benzaiten 厳島妙音弁財天 ("wondreous sound" island kami-goddess). She was conflated with Benzaiten by at least the late Heian period (10th or 11th centuries). In the Kamakura era, she was adopted as one of four tutelary deities at Mt. Kōya (headquarters of the esoteric Shingon sect). These four are known as the Kōya Shisho Gongen 高野四所権現 (or Kōya Shisha Myōjin 高野四社明神, or Shigū Gongen 四宮権現). The text in this image says she is associated with Niu Gongen 丹生権現 (aka Niu Myōjin 丹生明神) and the Shigū Gongen (four guardians of the four shrines of Mt. Kōya), and states she is the kami incarnation (suijaku 垂迹) of Benzaten (her honji 本地 or "original manifestation"). See Itsukushima for more.
2. Kinyō Shō 金曜星 (Venus) playing biwa; bird atop head. She is one of the Nine Luminaries (Kuyō 九曜). Associated with the planet Venus (Kinsei 金星 or Taibyaku 太白), metal, west, and Friday; considered the kami incarnation (suijaku 垂迹) of Amida Nyorai and Seishi Bosatsu. SPECULATION. Why does Kinyō Shō (Venus) appear similar to Benzaiten (i.e., goddess playing biwa) and why does a bird-like creature appear atop her head? The most probable theories involve wordplay and animal associations. Venus (金星 or 金曜星) is written with the character Kin 金, meaning gold, and represents metal (one of the five elements). If we recall, Benzaiten is introduced in the Sutra of Golden Light 金光明經. Since Benzaiten is a goddess of wealth, her linkage with earthly treasures (gold, silver) is most appropriate. At Kinkazan 金華山 (Gold Lotus Mountain), one of her five main sanctuaries in modern Japan, Benzaiten is venerated together with Kanayama Biko no Kami 金山毘古神 (male) and Kanayama Bime no Kami 金山毘賣神 (female), the Shintō tutelaries of metals and mines. Gold and earthly treasure also leads us to Bishamonten (lord of treasure, dispenser of riches). He appears often in Benzaiten artwork, and along with her, is one of Japan's Seven Gods of Good Fortune. His messenger, the centipede, is credited with the ability to sniff out gold mines in mountain deposits. In image two (above), the bird atop Kinyō's head also leads us to Benzaiten. In artwork from India, Sarasvati (aka Benzaiten) is commonly shown sitting atop or accompanied by a peacock, white swan, or a fowl resembling a goose. There are other "possible" linkages between Venus and Benzaiten, e.g., the advantages of the planet to sea navigators blends well with Benzaiten's role as guardian of  those plying Japan's waterways. Curiously, the Italian poet Dante Alighieri (1265–1321 CE) associated Venus with the liberal art of rhetoric. In Japan, Benzaiten is translated as " Goddess of Eloquent Discourse."
3. Myō-on Benzaiten 妙音天弁才天 (lit. "Wondrous Sound Benzaiten") playing biwa. In Japan, Benzaiten is commonly equated with Myō-on Bosatsu 妙音菩薩 (Wondrous Sound Bodhisattva), Myō-on-ten 妙音天 (Heavenly Sound Deva), or Bionten / Mionten 美音天 (Beautiful Sound Deva). Their iconography is identical. Details above. The text next to Myō-on's face says "Honji Shaka 本地釋迦," meaning she is the suijaku 垂迹 (trace) of Shaka Nyorai (the Historical Buddha).
4. Kōmyō-ō Bosatsu 光明王菩薩 (lit. "Luminous Bodhisattva King) playing biwa. One of the 25 Bodhisattva (Nijūgo Bosatsu 二十五菩薩) who, along with Amida Nyorai, welcome into paradise those who call upon Amida in their last moments of life; in this paradise, the deceased are no longer trapped in the cycle of suffering and can devote all their efforts toward attaining enlightenment. Kōmyō-ō Bosatsu appears with similar icongraphy as Benzaiten, perhaps due simply to word play -- Kōmyō-ō's name contains the same characters as the name of the Golden Light Sutra, spelled variously as Kōmyō kyō 光明經, or 金光明經, or 金光明最勝王経. The Kōmyō kyō scripture has a section devoted to Benzaiten, but mentions nothing at all about 25 Bodhisattva.

More Artwork of Benzaiten Playing Biwa

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1. Enoshima Benzaiten 江の島弁財天 playing biwa while riding atop a dragon (her servant & avatar). By Aoigaoka Keisei 葵岡渓栖 (active, 1st half 19th century). Edo era, 1833, woodblock, ink & color on paper. Photo Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
2. Woman Representing Benzaiten playing biwa, from series Allusions to Seven Lucky Gods (Mitate Shichifukujin 見立七福神・弁天), by Yashima Gakutei 八島岳亭 (1786?-1868), Edo era, late 1820s, woodblock print; ink & color on paper. Photo Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
3. Benzaiten playing biwa (entitled Benzaiten zu 弁財天図). Sits atop rocky island, with ocean waves at bottom of painting. By Ogawa Haritsu 小川破笠 (1663–1747). Edo era, early 18th century, hanging scroll; ink & color on silk, H = 86.5 cm, W = 42.4 cm. Photo Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
4. Big Benzaiten 新湊弁財天 of Shinminato City, Toyama Prefecture. Made in 1986. Material = Aluminum. Height 9.2 meters. Photo = This J-Site. Overlooks & protects the western bay area in Shinminato City 新湊市 (Toyama Prefecture), befitting her role as a water goddess. Read History of Big Benzaiten in Toyama (J only)
5. Benzaiten playing biwa while sitting atop a lotus leaf on a rocky island surrounded by water and clouds. By modern painter Watanabe 渡邉照裕 of the Shinpukuji Buddhist Art School 真福寺仏画導場 associated with the Shingon-sect temple Shinpukuji 真福寺 in Kyoto. In this painting, she appears as a bodhisattva with jeweled crown and necklace. Photo from the Shinpukuji Buddhist Art School. Also see here.
6. 8-Armed Benzaiten atop dragon; surrounded by water and clouds. Meiji Era (about 1886). By Japanese artist Hashimoto Gahō 橋本雅邦 (1835-1908). H = 164.5 cm, W = 117.5 cm. Photo Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
7. Sarasvati playing biwa next to a river, with a peacock at her side. Oleograph by India painter Raja Ravi Varma (1848-1906), whose many paintings often depict epic characters from Hindu mythology. Photo Cyberkerala.
8. Sea Goddess Benzaiten playing biwa while standing atop a dragon. Hand-colored albumen photograph. Appeared originally in the "Deluxe Edition, Volume IX" of Japan, Described and Illustrated by the Japanese, by Okakura Kakuzo and Frank (Captain) Brinkley. Published in 1897-1898. Photo from Baxleystamps. A digitized version of the book is available online at the Openliberary.org.

Naked Sculptures of Benzaiten
Hadaka Benzaiten 裸弁才天、Ragyō Benzaiten 裸形弁才天

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1. Naked Benten (aka Myō-on Ten 妙音天) at the Hōan-den 奉安殿 on Enoshima Island. H = 55 cm. Dated to the last half of the Muromachi era (1392-1573), but underwent major repairs in modern times; reportedly re-painted every 20 years. At Enoshima, the nude statue of Benten is painted milk white and never dressed in cloths. Temple monks say the humid sea air around the island causes the dyes of the cloth to come off and stain her. Photo: Wada Yoshio.
2. Naked Benzaiten. Nemuri Benten 眠り弁天 (lit. Resting Benten or Sleeping Benzaiten). Date Unknown (probably modern). Hase Dera Temple, Kamakura, Japan. Photo Schumacher. See another photo of a half-dressed reclining Benzaiten at Tōgenji Temple 桃厳寺, Nagoya City.
3. Naked Benten (missing biwa), Painted Wood, H = 96 cm. Dated 1266. Housed at the Kamakura Kokuhōkan Museum 鎌倉国宝館, located at Tsurugaoka Hachimangū Shrine 鶴岡八幡宮 in Kamakura. Photo from Tsurugaoka Hachimangū. Donated to the shrine in 1266 CE by a shrine musician named Nakahara Mitsu-uji 中原光氏. It was reportedly installed in the Bugaku-in 舞楽院 (no longer extant), a center for the performance of shrine dances. <source: The Arts of Japan, Ancient and Medieval, by Seiroku Noma, p. 282>
4. Dressed in silk robes. H = 96 cm. Dated 1266. Photo: Tsurugaoka Hachimangū, Kamakura. Same details as photo #3. 

Uga Benzaiten 宇賀弁財天
Syncretic Form with Snake & Shrine Gate Atop Head

ESOTERIC MANTRA FOR UGA BENZAITEN <source: Three Benten Sutra>
なむびゃくじゃぎょう ・ うがやじゃやぎゃらべい ・ しんだまに ・ ひんでんうんそわか
Namu Byakujagyō ・ Ugaya jaya gyarabei ・ Shindamani ・ Hinden Un Sowaka

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1. Benzaiten with snake body. Stone, Fukuju-in Temple 福寿院, Nakanoshinbashi 中野新橋, Tokyo.
2. Izumohara Benzaiten 出流原弁財天, Sano Seven Lucky Gods 佐野七福神. <Photo Source>
3. Ugajin, Wood, H = 17 cm, Edo era, Suzukuma-dera Temple 鈴熊寺, Yoshitomi City, Fukuoka Pref. <Photo Source>
4. Ugajin, Male, Kōyasan Shinnōin Temple, 高野山親王院. <Photo Source>
5. Ugajin, Female, Kōyasan Shinnōin Temple, 高野山親王院. <Photo Source>
6. Uga Benzaiten with white snake and Shinto gate in headdress.
   By Utagawa Kunisada 歌川豊国 (1786 - 1865), wood block print, 1860.
7. Ugajin (old man) & Shinto gate. Modern artwork. Availabe online. <Photo Source>
8. Uga Benzaiten, Kohonji Temple 孝恩寺, Jōdo 浄土 Sect, Osaka. Wood, H = 117.6 cm. Late Heian era. <Photo>
9. Uga Benzaiten, Chikubushima 竹生島, Shiga Pref. 滋賀県. Wood, dated to 1565. <Photo John Dougill>
10. Uga Benzaiten, Wood, Meiji Era. Found inside store near Tsurugaoka Hachimangu, Kamakura. Photo Schumacher.
    
    Somewhere along the line, perhaps in the Edo period, the terripin (tortoise) was added to Benten's snake iconography. See Mystic Tortoise below for details on this iconography.
    
    
11. Sketch of legendary tortoise that appeared before Japan's emperor in 715 AD, with the seven stars of the Big Dipper engraved on its shell. The tortoise is one of four legendary Chinese creatures guarding the four cardinal directions in heaven and on earth. In this role, it guards the north and is associated with water. It is usually depicted as a tortoise entwined by a white snake and intimately associated with the Pole Star and Big Dipper. Photo Source The Worship of Stars in Japanese Religious Practice (p. 210), story by Meri Arichi. ISSN 1368-6534. The appearance of this terrapin is recorded in the Shoku Nihongi 続日本紀 (Heian era) in book six. Enter search term "turtle" at this site.
12. See Photo #11. Actual piece in collection of the Shōsō-in 正倉院 in Nara. Made of Serpentine rock (Jyamongan 蛇紋岩). H = 3.5 cm, L = 15 cm. Photo Source narahaku.go.jp and ameblo.jp/kamenoko-collection
13. Ugajin ofuda 御札 (charm, talisman) at Engakuji Temple 円覚寺 in Kamakura, early 20th century. Formerly in the collection of Alice Getty. Image appears in Getty's 1940 article Uga-jin: Coiled-Serpent God with a Human Head.
14. Lucky snake-headed Ugajin talisman atop turtle-like creature, Jō-onji Temple 城恩寺, Kankiten Hall 歓喜天堂, Higashi Matsuyama City 東松山市, Saitama Pref. 埼玉県. Sketch by Tadami Yamada. Photo Source.

MORE ABOUT UGA BENZAITEN. Uga Benzaiten appears in numerous stories in the Keiran Shūyōshū 渓嵐拾葉集, a multi-volume document compiled in the first half of the 14th century containing many of the oral legends of the Tendai esoteric stronghold at Mt. Hiei. Another Tendai text appearing around the same time, the Bussetsu Saishō Gokoku Ūgaya Tontoku Nyōi Hōju Darani-Kyō 仏説最勝護国宇賀耶得如意宝珠陀羅尼経, describes a number of esoteric Tendai practices involving Uga Benzaiten, thereby indicating that worship of Uga Benzaiten was already substantially systematized. For more details on medieval period

Era Names & Dates:
Standard dating scheme found in both Japan and the West.

• Ancient refers to the Asuka and Nara periods (538-794)
• Classical refers to the Heian period (794-1185)
• Medieval refers to the Kamakura era (1185-1333), Muromachi era (1336-1573), and Edo era (1600-1867)
• Modern refers to everything since 1868 (Meiji, Taisho, Showa, & Heisei periods)
  
  NOTE: Ancient & Classical are sometimes used collectively to refer to everything through the Nara era. The Edo Period is also known as "Early Modern," while Meiji and after are the "Modern" period. The term "Premodern" refers to pre-Meiji.

documents about Uga Benzaiten, see Scriptural Basis above. The depiction of Benzaiten in these documents differs significantly from her conventional appearance. Says the Kokugakuin University Encyclopedia of Shintō: "Ugajin was also adopted by Japan's Onmyōdō (Yin-Yang) circles and by Yoshida Shintō, leading to the development of the Ugajinsai 宇賀神祭 (Ugajin Festival)." <end quote>

The Encyclopedia also states: "The Japanese kami of foodstuffs -- Uga no mitama no kami 宇迦之御魂神 (Kojiki) or Uka no Mitama no Mikoto 倉稲魂命 (Nihongi) -- is thought to refer specifically to the spirit of rice. The Kojiki describes the kami as the offspring of Susano-o, while the Nihongi states that the kami was the offspring of the two kami Izanagi and Izanami. The Engishiki's comments on the Ōtono no Hogai Norito further identify the kami with Toyōkehime 豊宇気比売神. Ukanomitama is most commonly known as the rice kami Inari. From the medieval period, the deity was linked to popular combinatory kami such as the snake-bodied Ugajin and Uga Benzaiten. Ukanomitama is enshrined at Kyoto's Fushimi Inari Taisha and other Inari shrines throughout Japan. <end quote> For more details on Benzaiten and her associations with Japan's kami of rice, food, and agricultural, see Kami of Food sidepage.

UGA BENZAITEN, Eight-Armed Snake & Shrine Gate Atop Head Modern Statue, Photo this J-site UGA BENZAITEN, Naked, Eight-Armed Snake & Shrine Gate Atop Head Modern, Kamaishi Daikannon Complex. Kamaishi City, Iwate Prefecture Photo from now-defunct J-source. Says the Encyclopedia of Shintō: The kami Ugajin's name has been conjectured to derive from the Sanskrit ugaya but most sources suggest that it originated in the tutelary of foodstuffs Uga no Mitama as found in the Kojiki and Nihongi, and that it was thus originally worshiped as a grain spirit or deity of good fortune." <end quote> Roughly translated, UGAJIN 宇賀神 means "Kami of Infinite Blessings/Felicitations/Celebrations," while UKANOMITAMA 宇迦之御魂神 means "Kami of Infinite Increase/Expansion/Additions." Ugajin's name was perhaps originally spelled 宇迦神 （UKAJIN）, but at some unknown time was changed to 宇賀神 (UGAJIN) to reflect the deity's luck-bringing, fortune-bringing faculties.

 

Uga Benzaiten. Ofuda 御札 (talisman). Snake & Shrine Gate Atop Head  Mudōji Temple 無動寺, Mt. Hiei. Inscription reads 比叡山無動寺 (lit. = Hiei-zan Mudōji). Shown holding wish-granting jewel, bow, iron wheel, trident, pestle, key, arrow, & sword. Found among the papers of Tendai monk Nakayama Genyū 中山玄雄 (1902-1977). Photo this J-site. Founded in 865 by Tendai monk Sō-ō 相応 (831–918), this temple is dedicated to Fudō Myō-ō and other deities. It possesses a late 14th or early 15th century painting depicting Benzaiten with three snake heads, and attended by Suiten, Katen, Kichijōten, Kariteimo, and three princes (two above, one below), along with wish-granting jewels atop three Shugendō-related mountains (Misen, Kinpusen, Ōmine). This painting, not shown herein, is closely retaled to Tenkawa Benzaiten. A photo can be seen from Ludvik on page 106, Impressions #33.

MORE ABOUT SERPENTS & WHITE SNAKES. In Japan, Benzaiten's linkage to snakes and dragons is derived in part from earlier Hindu naga lore. The Sanskrit term Naga refers to a group of serpent-like creatures described in pre-Buddhist and early Indian Buddhist texts as water spirits with human shapes wearing a crown of serpents on their heads. The dragon, moreover, is considered a member of the Naga group, and Benzaiten's main avatars in Japan are snakes and dragons. Ugajin's appearance as an old man may also suggest venerable antiquity <Ludvik>, which would lead us back to the Naga.

Although ancient Japan probably worshipped snakes independent of outside influences (as did most world cultures), the influx of Korean and Chinese immigrants to Japan between the 2nd and 5th centuries CE no doubt introduced the Japanese to snake lore from continental Asia. But it is impossible to unequivocally say Japan's snake lore was derived entirely from the mainland. In the myths of the Kojiki 古事記 and Nihon Shoki (Nihongi) 日本書紀, two of Japan's earliest official records from the 8th century, the rice kami (rice spirit, rice soul, kami dwelling inside rice) is identified as Ukanomitama 宇迦之御魂神, who was merged later on with Ugajin, the white-snake kami of foodstuffs and wealth considered Benzaiten's companion and manifestation.

Elsewhere, in the Hitachi no Kuni Fudoki 常陸国風土記 (early 8th century document), the Yato no Kami 夜刀の神 were described as fearsome and meddlesome snake kami who lived in the fields near government offices. <Also see Kayanohime 鹿屋野比売, the kami of fields and grasses>. These nature deities tried to impede farming and the expansion of the Japanese nation, and went unworshipped initially, but later they were enshrined as a means to end their meddling. Also, the Kojiki describes snake kami of the field as female. In countless Japanese tales, Benzaiten assumes the form of a snake or a dragon to assist her followers. Snakes also figure prominently in the myths surrounding Miwa Jinja Shrine 三輪神社 in Nara (also known as Ōmiwa Jinja 大神神社), one of Japan's oldest Shintō shrines. A sacred white snake is said to reside in and around Mt. Miwa. The mountain's protective deity is Miwa Daimyōjin 三輪大明神 (aka kami Ōmononushi-no-mikoto 大物主尊, aka Ōkuninushi 大国主神). Ōmononushi's true form, as described in the Ninhogi, is a snake. In later centuries, the deities of Mt. Miwa were identified with Daikokuten. The latter is a Hindu deity who was initially a fierce god of war depicted with white snakes curled around his wrists, but later adopted into Japan's Buddhist pantheon as the god of agriculture and good fortune. Not surprisingly, Daikokuten is closely linked to Benzaiten and her white snake. For more on snakes and the color white, see Animal Associations.

<SOURCES>  Evolution of the Concept of Kami, the Encyclopedia of Shinto, and the Digital Dictionary of Buddhism (login = guest).

PICTORIAL VOTIVE TABLETS. Known as EMA 絵馬 in Japan, such tablets can be purchased at most shrines (less so at temples). You write your name and petition on the back, and then hang it inside the shrine compound. MODERN. Votive tablet at Karikayadō 刈萱堂. Near Zenkōji Temple 善光寺, Nagano City. The above tablet shows a white snake (with gold in its mouth) curled around Daikokuten's magic mallet (uchide nokozuchi 打ち出の小槌). This mallet is said to miraculously produce anything desired when struck. Some Japanese say that coins fall out when Daikokuten shakes it. The tablet's theme is prosperity -- the white snake & golden mallet represent the treasures of rice and agriculture, hence wealth. Photo this J-site. MODERN. Votive tablet at Murayama Sengen Jinja 村山浅間神社 (Shizuoka). The above tablet shows a white snake (with a coin in its mouth) surrounded by the sacred wish-granting jewel. The wish-granting jewel is said to miraculously produce anything desired for devout followers. Thus, the theme of this tablet is wealth and the granting of wishes. The red characters are pronounced Kaiun 開運, which mean "Open to Luck, Fortune, and Prosperity." Photo this J-site.  Shōugyō Mandara 請雨経曼荼羅 "Inviting Rain" Mandala, Mid-to-Late 12th century Hanging scroll, ink on paper, H = 151.1 cm, W = 65.4 cm. As per the description in Daiunrinshōugyō 大雲輪請雨経. Photo Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York). PHOTO AT LEFT. Says the NY Met: "This unusual mandala, a sketch from a compendium of esoteric Buddhist images, set in the watery world of dragon kings, was used in rites to end drought. Interestingly, there are no known polychrome or highly finished versions of this type of mandala, though they are recorded as having been used in sutra-reading services performed by monks from the Tōji and Daigoji temples in Kyoto as early as the ninth century. Perhaps these diagrams were made each time an extraordinary plea for rain was required. The transcendent repose of the bodhisattva Monju (Sanskrit: Manjushri), seated on a garuda bird and cloud at the center, is particularly striking amid the serpents and swirls of water that surround him. The text from which this visualization is drawn is known in Japanese as the Daiunrinshōugyō 大雲輪請雨経." For more on the Shōugyō Mandara 請雨経曼荼羅, see JAANUS. Also see its dragon page. Benzaiten does not appear in this mandala, but she is associated with all its symbolism -- rain bringing, dragons, snake-bodied and snake-headed deities, and Monju (she is his consort according to Alice Getty). Also, if we recall, Myō-on Bosatsu (considered Benzaiten's counterpart in Japan) appears in the Monju-in Court 文殊院 (near the East Gate). Benzaiten's connection to garuda is obscure, but the bird-man garuda of Hindu lore is  the mortal enemy of serpents & dragons. This drawing suggests the pacification of garuda by Buddhist forces. Another intriguing set of links include Garuda →  mount of Vishnu → Kichijōten (wife of Vishnu) → Benten (often confused with Kichijōten). More study is required to determine the relationship (if any) between such art & Benten.

Tenkawa Benzaiten 天川弁才天 or 天河弁才天
Multi-Armed Esoteric Form with Three Serpent-Dragon Heads
Associated with Various Hindu / Buddhist / Shinto Deities

Tenkawa
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Tenkawa
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Uga Benzaiten
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Kubo Benzaiten
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Tenkawa Benzaiten
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1. Tenkawa Mandala 天川弁才天曼荼羅, Hase Dera Nōman-in 長谷寺 能満院, Sakurai City 桜井市, Nara Pref., 1546 CE. Color on Silk, H 99.4 cm  W 39.4 cm. Attributed to Takuma Hōgen 詫間法眼. Records suggest that a similar painting (no longer extant) was made in 1487. See detailed description below.
2. Tenkawa Mandala 天川弁才天曼荼羅, Hase Dera Nōman-in 長谷寺 能満院, Sakurai City 桜井市, Nara Pref. See full details below. Muromachi era. Photo from this J-site. Now preserved at Osaka Museum.
3. Uga Benzaiten Mandala 天川弁才天曼荼羅 ・天河曼荼羅図. 15th-16th century. Surrounded by the black-colored Daikokuten holding his magic mallet and bag, by Bishamonten holding his pagoda of treasure, and by 15 disciples. Above the 8-armed deity are two astral bodies floating on clouds (probably the sun and moon), and two flying white foxes (probably representing Inari and Dakini) dashing toward the central icon. Ugajin and Shinto shrine gate atop the central deity's head. Photo from this J-site. Also see this J-page under 天河と能楽.
4. 8-Armed Uga Benzaiten & 15 sons holding wish-granting jewels, Kōfukuji 興福寺 Temple, Nara, H 38.5 cm, Wood, Yosegi-zukuri, Crystal Eyes, Early Edo Period, 17th century. Also known as Kubo Benzaiten 窪弁才天. Temple legend claims that Kōbō Daishi 弘法大師 (774 - 835 CE) invited-invoked the Tenkawa Benzaiten to also reside at Kōfukuji. These statues are located inside a three-storied pagoda (itself a national treasure) on the grounds at Kōfukuji. They are shown to the public only one day per year, usually on the 7th day of the 7th month. <Source: Kōfukuji placard plus this J-site. Also see this J-site.
5. Tenkawa Benzaiten & 15 sons 天川弁財天 和州芳野山. Also known as Dainichirin Benzaiten 大日輪弁財天. Painted wood. Date unknown (perhaps 16th century). Treasure of Tenkawa Shrine. These carvings are shown to the public only once every 60 years. Photo from this J-site. Also see this J-page under 天河と能楽 and this J-site.

Tenkawa Benzaiten Mandala 天川弁才天曼荼羅, Dated 1546
Source: Treasures of Nara Prefecture  |  Large Photo  |  J-Description

Tenkawa Benzaiten, Muromachi Era
Photo Source | Text Description

DESCRIPTION OF ABOVE TENKAWA MANDALAS. Treasures of Hase Dera Nōman-in 長谷寺 能満院, a Shingon temple in Sakurai City 桜井市, Nara Pref. At the top of both mandala are three sacred gems (hōju 宝珠) with flame nimbus (kaenkō 火焔光) shown atop three mountains. These mountains perhaps represent the three sacred peaks of Mt. Misen 弥山 (mountain behind Tenkawa Shrine), Mt. Ōmine 大峰山 (Kumano side), and Mt. Kinpusen 金峯山 (Yoshino side) -- the three surround Tenkawa Shrine and form a triangle. At the center of the mandala is a 10-armed Benzaiten shown in human form but with three serpent (or dragon) heads. She stands on the outstretched palms of Katen 火天 (Goddess of Fire) and Suiten 水天 (Goddess of Water) -- who perhaps represent yin (water) and yang (fire). To her left and right are the goddesses Kichijōten 吉祥天 and Kariteimo 訶梨帝母, who are portrayed as Flying Apsara with rice offerings in their hands. Above her are two snake-headed guardians. Around her are the Jūroku Dōji 十六童子 (Sixteen Sons or Disciples), all holding various symbolic objects or riding a bull, deer, jackal, white snake, stork, or horse. The centipede (mukade, hyakusoku 百足) also appears. This creature is attributed with sniffing out gold mines in mountain deposits, and as such, is considered the messenger of Bishamonten (the lord of treasure and wealth in Japan; one of the Seven Lucky Gods; a deity who appears often in artwork with Benzaiten, as in Photo 3 above, and in statues of Sanmen Daikokuten). Strewn everywhere throughout the painting are images of white snakes and foxes, as well as the Hōju 宝珠 (wish-granting jewel), which represent the power to expel evil, cleanse corruption, remove suffering, and grant every mundane wish. In some esoteric traditions in Japan, this sacred jewel is said to have emerged from the head of the dragon king (Ryū-ō 竜王; dragons are a type of serpent). The snake-headed Benzaiten represents the syncretic Shinto-Buddhist deity known as Uga Benzaiten. Although their identity is unclear, the half-naked male-female pairs (there are two pairs) in the painting probably symbolize the merging of Inari 稲荷 (the Japanese kami of rice; his messenger is the white fox) with the esoteric deity known as Dakiniten 荼吉尼天 (a Hindu goddess adopted into the Buddhist pantheon; her messenger is a white fox). Dakiniten, in fact, is often considered identical to Benzaiten. The male figure in both pairs sports bird-like legs, while the female sports fox legs and fox tails. Their identities remain a mystery, but there are indications to suggest their references. For example, in India, Sarasvatī's mount/vehicle (Skt. = Vāhana) is the haṃsa, a fowl resembling a goose or swan. This might help to explain the bird legs of the male figure. Another similar piece is kept at Ishiyama-dera 石山寺, a Shingon temple in Otsu City (Shiga Pref.). Such syncretic pieces are relatively rare in Japan. Records suggest that such pieces began appearing sometime in the late 15th century. The Nezu Museum (Tokyo) has a Muromachi-era Tenkawa Benzaiten Mandala, as does Shinnō-in 親王院 at Mt. Kōya.

MORE DETAILS ABOUT TENKAWA MANDALA, PLUS SPECULATION

• Scarf, Modern Reproduction of the Tenkawa Benzaiten Mandala, from Marca-scarf.jp. Photo this J-site.

  Bernard Faure, a noted scholar of Japanese Buddhism, says the two mandala above form a set. "They differ by their color. In the second one, the dominant color (and in particular the color of Benzaiten's dress and of the three snake/dragon heads) is green, whereas in the first one (above), brown tones are more important. This set could be related to specific spring and autumn rituals." Faure also says: "At the top of the picture, the three mountains in the distance, themselves crowned by large cintamanis [wish-granting jewels], probably represent the three peaks of Yoshino, with Misen (abbreviation of Shumisen, that is, the cosmic Mount Sumeru), the mountain behind Tenkawa Shrine, at the center; Kinpusen on the Yoshino side, and Ōmine on the Kumano side." See page 175 of The Benzaiten and Dakiniten Mandalas: A Problem or an Enigma? Delivered at a three-day symposium entitled "Images and Objects in Japanese Buddhist Practice" at the Columbia Center for Japanese Religion, New York. Held on Oct. 7, 8, and 9, 2010. Faure also points out affinities between the Tenakwa Benzaiten Mandala and another type of representation known as the Three Devas.
  
  
• Says Saroj Kumar Chaudhuri in his Hindu Gods and Goddesses in Japan (p.48): "The Keiran Shūyōshū (Tendai esoteric commentary dated first half 14th century) mentions a shrine dedicated to Sarasvatī (Benzaiten) in Amanogawa (aka Tenkawa Shrine) in Wakayama Prefecture near Osaka. It gives the following account of Amanogawa Sarasvatī. "Long ago, this place was a big sea. Two dragons, one good and another bad, lived here. The bad dragon troubled people living in the neighborhood. Two gods took pity on the people and decided to subdue the bad dragon. The dragon appeared and started emitting his poisonous breath. One of the gods took out an eight-eyed arrow and shot it into the throat of the dragon. The subdued bad dragon sank into the sea. Next, it enveloped its body in water and rose into the sky. This water became the present Amanogawa River. The good dragon, in this case, is the goddess Sarasvatī. The two gods who subdued the bad dragon are her children." <end quote>
  
  

• Rokuji Myō-ō 六字明王 From 12th-century Besson Zakki

  SPECULATION. The above artwork of Uga Benzaiten (photo #3) shares certain lexicographical similarities with the image of Rokuji Myō-ō 六字明王 (literally "Six-Syllable Luminescent King") that appeared in the 12th-century Japanese text Besson Zakki 別尊雑記 (Miscellaneous Record of Classified Sacred Images). See image at right. Rokuji 六字 refers to a powerful six-syllable incantation to ward off evil spirits, enemies, and malicious influences used in esoteric Shingon rituals known as Chōbuku Shinpō 調伏信法 or Chōbuku-hō 調伏法.
  
  This may or may not shed light on the strange iconography of Uga Benzaiten or Tenkawa Benzaiten. The iconographic similarities include:
  
  
• eight-armed deity holding weapons
• sun disc and moon disc shown in image
• serpent or dragon atop head
• appearance of numerous foxes
• appearance of numerous different animals

Benzaiten's Hindu, Buddhist, & Kami Associations
DAKINITEN 荼吉尼天 ・ 叱枳尼天 AND BENZAITEN
Plus Inari, Kankiten, Daikokuten, and Bishamonten
Benzaiten → Durgā → Kālī → Mahākāla → Dakini → Jackal/Fox → Inari → Ugajin (snake) → Uga Benzaiten

1. Dakiniten atop white fox. Toyokawa Dakiniten Shinten 豊川叱枳尼真天, Myōgonji Temple 妙厳寺 (aka Toyokawa Inari 豊川稲荷) in Toyokawa City, Aichi Pref. Also known as 三州豊川 or 三州本山豊川稲荷. Photo source. No date / size given. This temple-shrine worships both Dakini & Inari.
2. Dakiniten Mandala 荼枳尼天曼荼羅. Color on silk. Dimensions = 94.5 cm x 44.0 cm. Edo Period. Four-armed Dakini holding sword, wish-granting jewel, wheel of Dharama, and treasure stick. Used for all manner of benefits, including fecundity, cursing one's enemies, wealth, power, and others mundane concerns. Photo Source.
3. Closeup of Photo Two. Fox with wish-granting  jewel in mouth and atop tail.
4. Dakiniten atop white fox. Nambokucho Era (1333–92 AD). Hanging scroll; ink, color, gold on hemp. 29 1/2 x 13 in. Photo: Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York). Says Barbara B. Ford at the NY Met: "Riding a white fox on a cloud held aloft by a pair of dragons, she clenches a vajra (thunderbolt) surmounted by a sword, a symbol of Buddhist power. In her palm she cradles a triad of sacred jewels, and others are scattered around her as abundant blessings. In her crown are auspicious protectors of the harvest: diminutive foxes on coiled white snakes, like those that encircle her wrists. Above, another triad of sacred jewels rests on an open lotus, flanked by Chinese symbols of the complementary forces of sun and moon. Originally a blood-sucking man-eating demoness, Dakiniten was converted by Vairocana (Dainichi) Buddha into a powerful life-engendering deity. In the complex interaction of Buddhism, Shinto, and Taoist yin-yang practices in medieval Japan, this icon embodied near-magical powers of fecundity that were invoked not only in enthronement rituals but also in personal contexts. The mantra identified with this deity was chanted to achieve control over the mind. Medieval tales recount invocations of Dakiniten by both men and women to win position and favor at court, as well as in matters of the heart." <end quote>

Textual Resources Linking Dakiniten, Benzaiten, & Daikokuten

• The Hokinaiden 簠簋内伝 (Yin-Yang or Onmyōdō 陰陽道) fortunetelling book was written sometime at the end of the Kamakura era by Abe no Harutoki. It says: "The day of the snake, according to the zodiac, is from the Shinto point of view, a good day. The reason for this is said to be that on that day the three daughters of an Indian fox king flew to Japan, where one appeared at each of the three (Benzaiten) shrines -- ltsukushima, Enoshima, & Chikubushima." <Minobe, pp. 222-223>
• The Keiran Shūyōshū (14th century) tells the story of monk Ryōkanbō Ninshō 良観房忍性. While Ninshō was practicing religious seclusion in the dragon cave at the Enoshima Benten Shrine, three foxes appeared before him. These were buried under the residence for the chief monk of Gokurakuji Temple (in Kamakura) and two other temples, and the three temples then flourished. After his death, the monk who succeeded Ninshō at Gokurakuji decided to rebuild the residence, and had it taken down. At that time a white snake appeared on the spot. The workmen killed it. Gokurakuji was soon destroyed by fire, and this incident was suspected as its cause. The author of Keiran Shūyōshū makes his own speculation at the end of this story that Ninshō was really conducting services for Uka-gami (Ugajin) at Enoshima, and notes the fact that the fox transformed itself into a white snake is in agreement with a now unknown sutra called Ukatojimekyō 宇賀刀自女経." <Minobe, p. 222>
• Taira no Kiyomori 平清盛 (1118-1181), whose family controlled Japan for less than two decades before being defeated by Minamoto no Yoritomo 源頼朝 (1147-1199), prayed to Itsukushima Myōjin 厳島明神 to assist him in his struggle to seize imperial authority. This deity, venerated at the Itsukushima Shrine (Hiroshima Prefecture), was said to be the daughter of the sea dragon king, and somewhere along the line belief in her became merged with belief in the Buddhist deity Benzaiten, with the two being worshiped as one. Kiyomori revived this shrine in the mid-12th century and popularized the diety. In his youth, Kiyomori also worshiped Dakiniten to insure his own personal glory, and the story of Kiyomori's worship of Dakiniten is linked, among other things, to his belief in the Itsukushima Benzaiten. The medieval epic Nagatobon Heike Monogatari 長門本平家物語 contains the following story: "When he was hunting, a fox he thought he had shot suddenly transformed itself into a beautiful woman, and said that if he would not kill it, it would see to it that Kiyomori was granted all his desires, so Kiyomori spared the fox's life. From that time onward, Kiyomori worshipped Dakiniten." Both the Genpei Jōsuiki and the Sankō Genpei Jōsuiki (dated to the medieval period

  Era Names & Dates:
  Standard dating scheme found in both Japan and the West.

  • Ancient refers to the Asuka and Nara periods (538-794)
  • Classical refers to the Heian period (794-1185)
  • Medieval refers to the Kamakura era (1185-1333), Muromachi era (1336-1573), and Edo era (1600-1867)
  • Modern refers to everything since 1868 (Meiji, Taisho, Showa, & Heisei periods)
    
    NOTE: Ancient & Classical are sometimes used collectively to refer to everything through the Nara era. The Edo Period is also known as "Early Modern," while Meiji and after are the "Modern" period. The term "Premodern" refers to pre-Meiji.

  ) mention the appearance of Benzaiten during a pilgrimage by Taira no Tsunemasa 平経正 (Kiyomori's nephew) to Chikubushima (another Benzaiten stronghold). The manifestation came in the form of a white fox jumping down from the altar, although other texts say it appeared as a white serpentine dragon. <Saroj, p. 155; Minobe pp. 215-216> See English translation of story in Heike Monogatari by A.L. Sadler (Google Books) and in Asiatic Society of Japan (1918). In the latter, jump to Chapter Two for story of Tsunemasa and the white dragon.
• The Keiran Shūyōshū (early 14th century) tells the tale of Ninkai 仁海 (d. 1046), the founder of the Ono branch 小野流 of Shingon Esoteric Buddhism, who was able to leap through the promotion ladder in a single bound to achieve the rank of Sōjō 僧正 (highest rank among clergy). His secret was Dakini. While worshipping Dakiniten for 1,000 days, he was brought food offerings by the daughter of Gion no Shōnin Hōshi 祇園上人. This woman eventually became the consort of retired Emperor Shirakawa 白河天皇 (1053-1129), and Ninkai was able, through her influence, to leap straight to the top of the clerical ladder. <Minobe, p. 220>
• Says Minobe Shigekatsu (pp. 221-222): "At some unknown point in time, Benzaiten came to be thought identical to Dakiniten. This explanation was the result of a confusion of esoteric Buddhism and Shinto in the context of services for Dakiniten and Uka-gami (aka Ugajin)."
• King Hansoku 斑足王 in the Benevolent Kings Sutra 仁王經 (Ninnōgyō) becomes king through his worship of a deity called Tsuka-gami 塚神. He is able to do so because of a relationship between Tsuka-gami and Dakiniten. The deity Tsuka-gami is none other than Dakiniten or Daikokuten (the deities who live among the grave mounds). The theory that the god of the grave mounds was Daikokuten was transmitted to Japan, but there was also a theory that this deity was Dakiniten. Dakiniten was said to know of people's deaths six months before the event, and was said to eat the livers of those who had died. The origin of this belief stems from the Dainichikyōsho 大日経疏 (8th-century text), which says: "Dakini originally ate the livers of the living, but in order to put an end to this practice, Dainichi Nyorai transformed himself into Daikokuten and beat Dakini. When Dakini then complained that she would not have any food to keep her alive, Daikokuten taught her the art of knowing six months before a person's death that the person would die, so that she would be able to have first claim on the livers of the dead. <Minobe, pp. 223-226>

Other Dakini Resources

• Faure, Bernard. The Benzaiten and Dakiniten Mandalas: A Problem or an Enigma? Delivered at a three-day symposium entitled "Images and Objects in Japanese Buddhist Practice" at the Columbia Center for Japanese Religion, New York. Held on Oct. 7, 8, and 9, 2010.
• Iyanaga, Nobumi. Dakini & the Emperor (PDF file), 1997, 62 pages.

Dakiniten, Tengu, and White Foxes

Sometime in the Muromachi period (1392-1568), for reasons unknown (to me), two warrior-like crow-faced TENGU goblins began appearing in Dakini artwork, the white-colored Tonyūgyō 頓遊行神 holding a spear (or other weapon) and the red-colored Suyochisō 須臾馳走神 sporting wings. These goblins appear, for example, in the Dakiniten Mandala. Their names suggest "swiftness" and thus they appear animated. <source: Faure, p. 169> The two are considered Dakini's attendants, as well as martial deities who serve Inari Daimyōjin 稲荷大明神 at Fushimi Inari Taisha 伏見稲荷大社 in Kyoto (Japan's first and oldest Inari shrine). Prior to the appearance of Tonyūgyō and Suyochisō in Dakini artwork, various Tengu cults had sprung up at numerous holy mountain sites. One well-known example is Dōryō Daigongen 道了大権現. Dōryō was a mountain ascetic before becoming a Soto Zen monk. He was eventually appointed as head cook and administrator at Daiyūzan Temple 大雄山 (Kanagawa Prefecture). After his death in 1411 CE, legend says he metamorphosed into a Tengu and became the monastery guardian. According to scholar Duncan Williams in The Other Side of Zen: A Social History of Soto Zen Buddhism in Tokugawa Japan (2005): "[Upon his death] his body was engulfed in flames as he appeared transformed and stood on a white fox to promise a life free from illness and full of riches for those who sincerely worshipped him." Other important fox-riding Tengu include Izuna Saburō Tengu 飯綱三郎天狗 at sacred Mt. Iizuna (Izuna) 飯綱山 in Nagano Prefecture, whose cult is first mentioned in the Kamakura-era text Asabashō 阿婆縛抄 (1279), and Akibasan Sanshakubō 秋葉山三尺坊 (Nagano), who is also thought to have originated in the Mt. Iizuna area. See photos below.

5-Headed Dakini (one head is a Tengu)
aka Five-Headed Yaksha 五面夜叉
Scroll. Color on Silk. H = 82 cm, W = 31 cm.
Edo Period. Artist Unknown. Photos this J-site.

MODERN. Akibasan Sanshakubō 秋葉山三尺坊 (Nagano)
and Izuna Saburō Tengu 飯綱三郎天狗. (Sendai)
Both depicted atop a white fox, holding sword and rope.
Both are manifestations of Dakiniten. Photos this J-site.

The deity sits atop a white fox. The central head is Dakiniten, surrounded by Benzaiten, the elephant-headed Kankiten 歓喜天 (aka Shōten 聖天), Kōjin 荒神 (the syncretic Shinto-Buddhist deity of the kitchen and cooking stove), and the syncretic deity Iizuna Saburō Tengu 飯綱三郎天狗 (see photo at right).

Says Chaudhuri (p. 157): "The Edo-era text Reijū Zatsuroku 霊獣雑録 mentions shrines dedicated to Iitsuna (Iizuna, Izuna) 飯綱. The deity at such places is the Tengu goblin. People say the evil rites of Dakini are practiced here, and the fox used for ulterior motives." For more, see Encyclopedia of Shinto & Gabi Greve.

DAI BENZAITEN - Holding Sword & Jewel
Kichijōten (Skt. = Lakṣmī) Confusion
Daibenten 大弁天, Daibenzaiten 大弁才天, Daibenkudokuten 大弁功徳天

• Just like Lakṣmī, Sarasvatī was also introduced to the Japanese by the Kon-kō-myō-kyō sutra [mid 8th century] It can be imaged that with more potent Lakṣmī around to bestow wealth, the promise [of Benzaiten] of bestowing scholarly attainment roused very little interest among the Japanese, who had no tradition of scholarship.....the rulers of the period were more eager to stabilize the economy, rather than promote learning. Contemporary literary works of Japan virtually ignored Sarasvatī. (p. 44)
   
• Itsukushima Engi 厳島縁起 [13th-century Japanese text], narrating the origin of the Itsukushima Shrine [a Benzaiten stronghold in Hiroshima], fails to mention the name Sarasvatī. However, for some strange reason, it mentions Lakṣmī (p. 47)......the 1447 Gaun Nikkenroku Batsuyū 臥雲日件録 suggests the possibility of both Lakṣmī and Sarasvatī being enshrined in Itsukushima........according to one legend, a beautiful lady came to the island by boat in the reign of Empress Suiko 推古天皇 (554-628).......the lady said she had been wandering on the sea. This place was very solemn and majestic. So she would settle here. She next turned into a big snake. This serpentine form suggests that the lady may be Sarasvatī. However, in the next breath, the same entry says that, according to popular legend, the deity of Itsukushima has two husbands, one old and another new. The new husband is Vaiśravaṇa (aka Bishamonten). In Japanese works, it is Lakṣmī (not Sarasvatī) who is mentioned as the consort of Vaiśravaṇa.

Daibenzaiten, Daibenkudokuten, and Kichijōten
Below black-and-white images from the 1690 Butsuzō zui 仏像図彙 (Illustrated Compendium of Buddhist Images) and the expanded 1783 version Zōho Shoshū Butsuzō-zui 増補諸宗仏像図彙 (Enlarged Edition Encompassing Various Sects of the Illustrated Compendium of Buddhist Images).

Daibenten
click to enlarge

Daibenten
click to enlarge

8-Armed Daibenten
click to enlarge

Daibenten
click to enlarge

Daibenkudokuten / Kichijōten
click to enlarge

Kichijōten
click to enlarge

Kichijōten
click to enlarge

Kichijōten
click to enlarge

1. At Seto Jinja 瀬戸神社 (Yokohama City). Muromachi Era. Important Cultural Property of Yokohama. Left hand holds wish-granting jewel; missing right hand with sword; the snake kami Ugajin appears atop her head. Photo Source.
2. The world's largest statue of Daibenzaiten, completed in year 2000 in southern Kyushu. Details here.
3. Eight-armed Benzaiten holding sword, jewel, and other objects. Ugajin and shrine gate atop head. Takahatasan Myō-ō-in Temple 高幡山明王院金剛寺  in Tokyo. Painted wood. No date given. Photo Source
4. Wood with polychromy, cut gold leaf, and inlaid crystal eyes. Kamakura Period, 13 Century, Private Collection. Photo taken at Tokyo National Museum (July 2010). Small effigy of Ugajin (god of foodstuffs) atop head.
5. Daibenkudokuten 大弁功徳天 (another name for Benzaiten or for Kichijōten). Treasure of Sanjūsangendō 三十三間堂 in Kyoto. Wood. Height = 164 cm. Kamakura Period. National Treasure. The temple says this statue of Daibenkudokuten is not Benzaiten, but rather a manifestation of Kichijōten 吉祥天 (Skt. = Lakṣmī), a goddess often confused with Benzaiten. Yet, technically speaking, the term "Daibenkudokuten" is an alternative Chinese spelling for Benzaiten. It can be translated as "Deva of Great Virtue and Merit," and somewhere along the line the Japanese applied the term to Kichijōten. Photo scanned from Sanjūsangendō catalog.
6. Japan's oldest Kichijōten statue. H = 202 cm. 754 CE, Sangatsudō 三月堂, Tōdaiji Temple 東大寺 in Nara. Standing clay image, badly damaged. Paired with an equally old Benzaiten statue (shown here). Photo scanned from magazine 日本の仏像 (Japan's Buddha Statues), No. 8, Aug. 2007.
7. Kichijōten. This goddess is often mistaken for Benzaiten, as both are depicted as beauties holding a wish-granting jewel. Wood. H = 116.7 cm. Late Heian period (1078 AD). Hōryūji Temple 法隆寺 in Nara. Photo courtesy magazine Serai サライ, 20 Oct. 2005.
8. Kichijōten. Painted wood. Kōfukuji Temple 興福寺 in Nara. Dated to 1340 and carved by Busshi Kankei 覚慶. Photo courtesy National Treasures of Japan 日本の国宝 magazine, published 22 March 1998, V.056.

The world's largest statue of Daibenzaiten, completed in year 2000 in southern Kyushu.
Located at Saifukuji Temple 最福寺, Kagoshima City 鹿児島市, Kyushu.
Height = 18.5 meters, Weight 15 tons, Sword 8 meters in height. Shrine Gate & Ugajin (H = 3 meters) in headdress.
Carved by Matsumoto Myōkei 松本明慶 and his team from a 500-year-old Canadian cypress tree (Hiba, 檜葉).
During the statue's Kaigen Kuyō 開眼供養 (eye-opening ceremony), a string was attached to Benzaiten's hand which
extended out to the entrance, where visitors/worshippers could touch it to gain a karmic connection with the goddess.
Photo Sources: Saifukuji Temple (J-site) and Kouichi Yamamoto (J-site).

Daikokuten, Benzaiten & Bishamonten
Three-Faced Sanmen Daikokuten 三面大黒天
Plus other artwork involving the trio

Click Photo  to Enlarge.
Sanmen Daikokuten
Daikokuten, Benzaiten, Bishamonten

Click Photo  to Enlarge.
Sanmen Daikokuten
Daikokuten, Benzaiten, Bishamonten

Click Photos  to Enlarge.
Sanmen Daikokuten
From the 1690 & 1783 Butsuzō-zu-i

Click Photo  to Enlarge.
Uga Benzaiten & Disciples
plus Daikokuten & Bishamonten.
From Philipp Franz von Siebold.

Click Photo  to Enlarge.
Uga Benzaiten & Disciples
Benzaiten, Bishamonten, Daikokuten
Plus white foxes, 15 disciples, etc.

Click Photo  to Enlarge.
Uga Benzaiten & Disciples
Benzaiten, Bishamonten, Daikokuten
Plus white foxes, 15 disciples, etc.

1. Sanmen Daikokuten at Eishinji Temple 英信寺 in Tokyo's Taitō Ward. One of three famous effigies of the 3-headed Daikoku in the Edo period. To Daikokuten's right is Bishamonten, to the left Benzaiten (shown here holding the key to the storehouse). Photo Source.
2. Sanmen Daikokuten inside zushi. Modern wood statue. Available online at this E-site (our sister site).
3. Sanmen Daikokuten, with Daikokuten (center), Benzaiten (left), and Bishamonten (right). Drawings from the 1690 and 1783 Butsuzō-zu-i.
4. Benzaiten & 15 Disciples, plus Daikokuten and Bishamonten. From Philipp Franz von Siebold's Nippon Archiv zur Beschreibung von Japan. Leiden (1831 CE). Siebold got the images from the Butsuzō-zui. Photo Page   |   Index Page   |   Top Page   |   Text Search
5. Benzaiten Mandala. Early Edo era. H = 83 cm, W = 38.5. This small cutout from the mandala depicts the eight-armed Uga Benzaiten. She is surrounded by 15 disciples, Daikokuten, and Bishamonten. Location unknown. <Photo Source>
6. Uga Benzaiten Mandala 天川弁才天曼荼羅 「天河と能楽」. Surrounded by 15 disciples, Daikokuten, and Bishamonten. Two white foxes fly above her head. They represent Inari, Dakiniten, or both. Details above (photo #3, caption #3). <Photo Source>      

From the 1783 Butsuzō-zu-i As members of the Seven Lucky Gods Click to Enlarge. Daikokuten with miniature icon of Benzaiten inside. See details at left.

Benzaiten, Dakiniten, Kankiten
Three Devas as One Composite Fox-Riding Deva
In this configuration, Benzaiten once again appears with her standard (and by now familar) cast of supporting characters, i.e., Ugajin, Inari, Dakiniten, a white fox, wish-granting jewels, and 15 disciples. But it introduces a newcomer, the elephant-headed Shōten 聖天 (aka Kangiten 歓喜天). How do we account for the newcomer? It is not hard. There are at least three different ways: (1) the unction of enthronement rite for installing new emperors, in which Dakini (the central deity) is flanked by Shōten and Benzaiten; (2) the Shōten = Kannon = Inari = Dakini = Benzaiten route; (3) the Mahākāla route.

3-Headed Fox-Riding Deva Muromachi Era, 15th Century. Its three faces are those of Dakiniten, Benzaiten, & Shōten (or Kangiten).

• SET ONE. Shōten → Eleven-faced Kannon → Mahākāla → Dakiniten → Benzaiten
  The duel-bodied Shōten (or Kangiten) embodies the story of the Eleven-faced Kannon assuming female form to subjugate an evil king; also see story of the evil flesh-eating King Kalmāṣapāda who hopes to ascend the throne but eventually becomes good; one version of the story mentions Mahākāla (Daikokuten), who is the leader of the flesh-eating Dakini, and it was Dakini who served as the central deity in Japanese enthronement rites from the 14th century onward. When Dakini was the main deity in enthronement rites, she was flanked by Shōten and Benzaiten. <See Iyanaga, pp. 150-153, Logic of Combinatory Deities>
  
  
• SET TWO. Inari → Nyoirin Kannon → Benzaiten → Dakini → Mahākāla → Shōten
  Except for Shōten, all are associated with the wish-granting jewel and fox. Dakiniten (fox, jewel) = Inari (fox, jewel) = Nyoirin Kannon (fox, jewel) = Benzaiten (dragon-snake, fox, jewel). A white elephant is also part of the interlocking mythological of  the "jewel woman" (aka Nyoirin Kannon). However, the association between the elephant-headed Shōten and Mahākāla-Dakini requires a few extra steps. <See Fremerman, p. 27; also includes research by Faure>
  
  
• SET THREE. Mahākāla (Jp. = Daikokuten) is the subduer of the Dakini. The dakini are demons under the orders of the goddess Kālī, who is the feminine form of Mahākāla. The eight-armed Benzaiten was derived in large part from the Hindu battle goddess Durgā, who is a manifestation of Kālī. Finally, in the various myths involving Shōten, we encounter Mahākāla as well. Thus, in this configuration, two faces are probably female (Dakini, Benzaiten) while one face is male (Shōten).

Dakiniten Mandala 荼吉尼天曼荼羅. Click images to enlarge.
Three-Headed, 12-Armed, Fox-Riding Goddess. Early Muromachi Era 室町時代, 15th C
Color on Silk. H 82.5 cm x W 41.4 cm. Taho Collection 田万コレクション.
Also known as the Mandala of the 3-Headed, 12-Armed Dragon-Fox King 三面十二臂辰狐王曼荼羅
NOTE: Not sure why this is called the Dakiniten Mandala, as the central face is Benzaiten.
Photo: Osaka Municipal Museum of Art  |  Osaka City Board of Education

DESCRIPTION OF ABOVE MANDALA. Various syncretic themes appear in the above mandala. The central head represents Benzaiten (atop which is Ugajin, a snake with an old man's face), the red face depicts Dakiniten (with a white lunar disk above her head), and the third face shows the elephant-headed Kankiten 歓喜天 (aka Shōten 聖天) with a red solar disk (containing a three-legged crow) atop her head. Above their heads are the seven stars of the Big Dipper. The museum says this piece "incorporates motifs that also reflect Inari Shinkō 稲荷信仰 and Sangaku Shinkō 山岳信仰." This can be translated as faith in Inari (Japanese rice & food kami) and faith in mountain worship and star worship. In Japanese artwork, Dakiniten is often paired with Inari. The messenger of both is a white fox. In addition, the museum says an inscription was found at the back of the mandala, giving it the name 三天合形曼荼羅 (Mandala of Three Deva), and suggesting that it came from Myōtoku-in Temple 比叡山明徳院 (Mt. Hiei, Tendai stronghold). Most of the figures along the border are the Jūroku Dōji 十六童子 (Sixteen Sons or Disciples of Benzaiten), some riding white foxes or other animals. Two Tengu appear at the bottom of the scroll (the white-colored Tonyūgyō 頓遊行 and the red-colored Suyochisō 須臾馳走. The two are considered Dakini's attendants, as well as martial deities who serve Inari Daimyōjin 稲荷大明神 at Japan's first and oldest Inari shrine (in Kyoto) known as Fushimi Inari Taisha 伏見稲荷大社. In the lower third of the painting, we see a red-colored man wearing a black hat (his body sports a fish tail) and a white-colored woman with a fox tail. Their identity is still unclear. The two foxes appearing next to them are biting their tails (details below).

SPECULATION: The identity of the male-female couple sporting a fish tail and fox tail remains a mystery, but there are indications to suggest their reference. The fish-tail male with black hat may be the aforementioned Matarajin (aka Shinra Myōjin 新羅明神), an esoteric deity who in artwork from the Kamakura-period onward is commonly depicted wearing a black hat and considered a "god of destiny," thus perhaps explaining the appearance in this scroll of the seven stars of the Big Dipper, which were worshipped in the form of the deity Myōken 妙見 (the deification of the North Pole Star & Big Dipper), one believed to control the life spans and destinies of the people. Myōken is also closely associated with the sun and moon disks and a black three-legged crow. Moreover, "Matarajin," says Bernard Faure, "first appeared to the Japanese priest Enchin 円珍 (814-891) as a theriomorphic figure, with a man's head and a serpent's body; as such, he calls to mind Ugajin, a god associated with the dragon-goddess Benzaiten." Then again, the man with the black hat might be Inari himself (in the guise of Matarajin). As for the fish tail, let us recall that Inari was worshipped in fishing villages as the kami of fishing, and in artwork, Inari is sometimes portrayed wearing a hat. More remotely, the fish tail might be an obscure reference to Tsukuyomi 月読命 (Kami of Agriculture, the Moon, and Ruler of the Night) who killed the food goddess Ukemochi no Kami 保食神 after she vomited rice and fish from her mouth to feed him, and from her dead body emerged all manner of cereals (food) and game, including oxen and horses. The fox-tailed female might be Dakini herself, who is closely associated with the rice crop and with Inari. The image of two foxes biting the couple's tails brings to mind the imagery of Tantric wheel-of-life paintings. In the center of such paintings one finds three animals (pig for greed, snake for anger, and rooster for ignorance) biting each others' tails -- to show that these evils are inseparably connected.

Mandala of Dakiniten of Kasuga Shrine (Kasuga Taisha 春日大社)
Kasuga Daikiniten Mandara Zu 春日荼吉尼天曼荼羅図. Japanese, Muromachi period, 14th century
H = 109.1 cm, W = 32.1 cm, Panel; ink, color, and gold on silk. Photo from Boston Museum of Fine Arts
NOTE: Not sure why this is called the Dakiniten Mandala, as the central face is Shōten (aka Kankiten).

DESCRIPTION OF ABOVE MANDALA. Although the details of this painting are hard to see, the 3-headed main deity sits atop a white fox, which appears to be plunging through space with its rear legs shown thrusting prominently behind it. The central face is Kankiten 歓喜天 (aka Shōten 聖天), surrounded on either side by Benzaiten and Dakiniten. A coiled snake representing Ugajin appears atop Shōten's head. At the top of the mandala is Mt. Kasuga, under which is a deer (the sacred animal of Kasuga Taisha), an important 8th-century shrine founded in Nara by the Fujiwara 藤原 clan. Along the borders are various deities. Above the 3-headed deity, to the left and right, are the goddesses Kichijōten 吉祥天 and Kariteimo 訶梨帝母. Kariteimo is surrounded by children, while Kichijōten is riding a red bird-like creature, which might be Suzaku 朱雀 (guardian of the south) or perhaps a phoenix. These two goddesses appear often in artwork of Benzaiten, as shown above in the 12th-century zushi painting of the 8-armed Benzaiten, as well as in the aforementioned Tenkawa Mandala. Four female attendants also appear; two (drawn smaller than the rest) below Kichijōten, and two others (riding white foxes) below the central deity. Directly below the main 3-headed deity is a brown-colored figure, which seems to be the traditional dual-headed, dual-bodied form of Kankiten. Below that is a red-colored deity engulfed in a fire-like circle (probably Aizen Myō-ō, who often appears in this form; in the late Edo period, he also appears in artwork as a white snake). Flanking Aizen's upper region are two unknown attendants. One appears to be riding a dragon. These two unidentified deities might be the same two that appear in the 12th-century zushi painting of the 8-armed Benzaiten. The last two figures at the bottom are the Tengu creature associated with Dakiniten, and the three-headed, six-armed, black-colored Sanmen Daikoku, who in artwork commonly carries an elephant skin and sword while grasping the hair of a Gaki 餓鬼 (Hungry Ghost) and the horns of a sheep. Various offerings are strewn about the bottom of the painting. 

Benzaiten's 15 or 16 Disciples
Jūgo Dōji 十五童子 = Fifteen Sons, Boy Attendants, Disciples, Escorts, or Daughters
Jūroku Dōji 十六童子 = Sixteen Sons, Boy Attendants, Disciples, Escorts, or Daughters

Benzaiten's 15 (16) Disciples Listed in Their Customary Order. In Japan, these 15 (16) disciples are known as Dōji 童子, meaning boy, youth, prince, or child. Dōji is the Sino-Japanese translation of the Sanskrit term Kumāra 倶摩羅, which refers to those who wish to join the priesthood and begin by becoming servants of the monks.

1783 Butsuzō-zui

1783 Butsuzō-zui

1783 Butsuzō-zui

1783 Butsuzō-zui

1783 Butsuzō-zui

1690 Butsuzō-zui

Name

Manifestation

Attributes

Esoteric Mantra

1

Inyaku 印鑰 or
Jyakō 麝香

Shaka Nyorai,
the Historic Buddha

Holds wish-granting jewel and square key; represents guardians, and those who help others achieve enlightenment

おんうかや。ぎヤちぎヤかねい。
えいけいきそわか。

2

Kantai 官帯 or
Sekion 赤音

Fugen Bosatsu

Holds belt; represents the law; helps people observe the law

おんぎヤかぎヤか。
うかやえいけいきそわか。

3

Hikken 筆硯 or
Kōsei 香精

Kongōshu Bosatsu, aka Kongō Rikishi; also Fugen Bosatsu

Holds brush & writing tablet (ink stone); represents students and civil servants; the god of learning;

おんうかや。えいひじヤ。
えいけいきそわか。

4

Konzai 金財 or
Shōjō 召請

Yakushi Nyorai,
the Medicine Buddhai

Holds balancing scale; represents doctors; some traditions say Konzai is the god of gold, silver, and treasure, and holds the balancing scale to measure coins; said to bring prosperity

おんうかや。ほされいじヤ。
えいけいきそわか。

5

Tōchū 稻籾 or
Daijin 大神

Monju Bosatsu

Shoulders bundles of harvested rice and holds wish-granting jewel; represents farmers and  brings bumper crops

おんされいあされい。
うかや。そわか。

6

Keishō 計升 or
Akujo 悪女

Jizō Bosatsu

Holds a masu 升 (square container for measuring grain); represents fairness; the god of accounting

おんしつりしつみり。みりはり。
はりさんまんだきヤらしヤに。
うかやえいけいきそわか。

7

Hanki 飯櫃 or
Shitsugetsu 質月

Senju Kannon

Carries plate of rice on head; represents cooks; the god who bestows food

おんぎヤぎヤなう。
びしユだねい。うかや。そわか。

8

Ishō 衣裳 or
Jōki 除哂

Marishiten

Carries cloth; represents weavers; god who ensures that people are clothed and are not naked to the elements 

おんびもら。びまれい。
うかや。そわか。

9

Sanyō 蠶養
or Himan 悲満

Seishi Bosatsu

Holds bowl full of silkworms; represents silkworm breeders; the god of silkworms and cocoons and the benefits they bring

おんひまれい。
うかや。そわか。

10

Shusen 酒泉 or
Misshaku 密迹

Muryōju Nyorai
aka Amida Nyorai

Holds sake jar & wish-granting jewel; represents distillers; god of alcohol; sometimes depicted as though dipping into the keg

おんうかや。
ぎヤらべいぎヤりぎヤり。
そわか。

11

Aikyō 愛敬
or Sekon 施願

Shō Kannon

Holds bow and arrow; represents military class; the god of love

おんぎヤぎヤりぎヤぎヤり。
そわか。

12

Shōmyō 生命 or
Seiko 臍虚空

Miroku Bosatsu

Holds sword & wish-granting jewel; represents magistrates; god of longevity

おんうかや。
げんばりげんばり。そわか。

13

Jūsha 従者 or
Semmui 施無畏

Ryūju Kannon or
Ryūju Bosatsu 竜樹菩薩

Holds tray of wish-granting jewels; represents jewellers; god of commerce. Ryūju is the Japanese name for Nāgārjuna.

おんうかや。ぎヤちぎヤち。
我まねいぎヤれい。そわか。

14

Gyūba 牛馬
or Zuirei 随令

Yakūo Bosatsu

Leads a horse and ox; represents livestock breeders and husbandry; the god of animals

おんうかや。まそに。
そわか。

15

Sensha 船車 or
Kōmyō 光明

Yakujō Bosatsu

Guards boat and cart loaded with rice; represents carriers; god of traffic safety; the 14th-century Keiran Shūyōshū (chapter entitled Gohō no Koto or Matters About Dharma Protectors), Sensha is another name for Otogohō, the yougest son of an Indian king (who is Benzaiten's avatar). Sensha/Otogohō is thus Benten's adopted son & leader of the others. He is enshrined at Sefurizan (see below), a Benten stronghold.

おんうかや。ほだたつま。
そうぎえい。
ひやくえい。そわか。

Otogohō 乙護法 strongholds include Sefurizan 背振山, Asosan 阿蘇山, and Shoshazan 書写山. Linked also to Nāgārjuna.

16

Zenzai 善財 or
Otsugo 乙護 or
Otogohō Zenshin
乙護法善神

Daikokuten or
Benzaiten; also
Sudhana śreṣṭhidāraka
(see note below)

Holds treasure bag; adopted son of Benzaiten; also one of Monju's 500 Dōji; the leader of the other 15; represents the Kegon-kyō 華厳経 (Garland Sutra), protects Buddhist devotees and those who do good deeds; two conflicting stories about him (see note 5 below);

Confusion with
Sensha (#15 above)
stemming from two
varying traditions, i.e. are
there 15 disciplines or 16 ?

Sources & Notes

1. Butsuzō-zui 仏像図彙. Above images from both the 1690 original and 1783 expanded version.
2. Flammarion Guide, p. 336-337.
3. Esoteric Mantra Readings. Above mantras come from a spurious medieval-era text known as the Bussetsu Saishō Gokoku Ūgaya Tontoku Nyōi Hōju Darani-Kyō 仏説最勝護国宇賀耶頓得如意宝珠王陀羅尼経.
4. Kōyasan Shingon-shū 高野山真言宗・亀乃瀬弁才天・国分寺.
5. Zenzai 善財 (#16 in list). There are two conflicting theories about his identity. In one tradition, he is a manifestation of Sudhana śreṣṭhidāraka. Says the DDB (user name = guest): "The story told is of a merchant-banker's son (śreṣṭhidāraka) named Sudhana (lit. 'Good Wealth;' Jp. = Zenzai Dōshi 善財童子), who searches for enlightenment in ancient India during the time of the Buddha. On the advice of the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī 文殊師利 (Jp. = Monju), he sets out to visit 'good friends' (善知識; Skt. kalyāṇamitra) in order to learn how to carry out the course of conduct of a bodhisattva. After traveling far and wide across India visiting fifty-two good friends of various occupations (including the bodhisattva Maitreya 彌勒; Jp. = Miroku), Sudhana has his final visionary experience of the supreme bodhisattva Samantabhadra 普賢 (Jp. = Fugen) and merges with him." <end quote> This story appears in the Garland Sutra 華厳経 (devoted to Fugen). Japan's Zenzai Dōshi personifies this sutra. At Hase Dera in Kamakura, Zenzai is considered a manifestation of Daikokuten. For a detailed English version of the Sudhana story, click here. In another tradition, the leader of Benzaiten's 15 disciples is known as Otogohō Zenshin 乙護法善神, who is venerated as Benzaiten's adopted son and avatar at Sefurizan 背振山, Asosan 阿蘇山, and Shoshazan 書写山. Otogohō's story is quite different from that of Zenzai.
6. 16 Children of Benzaiten (editor: below unconfirmed). One story is that 15 Princes and one Princess set out from Japan, which at that time was still part of the ancient continent of Mu, to populate the world. They went to various parts of the globe. Apparently their names are similar to the names of the various continents & countries. 

Benzaiten's 15 (16) Disciples
Other Artwork including Daikokuten, Bishamonten, and the Dragon King

Wish-Granting Jewel and Nyoirin Kannon
The Jewel, Foxes, Snakes, Benzaiten, Amaterasu, Inari, Dakini, Seiryō Gongen and Others

PHOTO AT RIGHT
ESOTERIC SEVEN LUCKY GODS
Ofuda 御札 (talisman) from Asamagatake (Mt. Asama) 朝熊ケ岳, located near Ise Jingū Shrine 伊勢神宮 in Mie Prefecture. Ise Jingū continues to play a pivotal role in modern-day Shintōism. It and its numerous sub-shrines are devoted to Amaterasu Ōmikami 天照大神 (female, sun goddess, chief deity of Ise's inner sanctuary or Naikū 内宮) and Toyōke Hime no Kami 豊宇気比売神 (female, kami of agriculture and foodstuffs, chief deity of Ise's outer sanctuary or Gekū 外宮). The adjacent drawing shows an unconventional grouping of the seven deities, with Nyoirin Kannon 如意輪観音 (at top center) holding a wish-granting jewel. Nyoirin is considered the honji 本地 (original Buddhist form) of the Japanese sun goddess Amaterasu (Nyoirin's kami counterpart). The others include the eight-armed Benzaiten (atop dragon), Dakiniten (riding fox), Bishamonten (holding pagoda), Daikokuten (atop bales of rice), Ebisu (with fish/fishing rod), and Fukurokuju (riding a horned deer, holding a long staff, and wearing a nage zukin 投頭巾 or squared-off bonnet). <Photo Source> No date given. Perhaps the 17th century. Importantly, Nyoirin is also the honji of kami Inari Daimyōjin (see 30 Kami of 30 Days). Nyoirin = Amaterasu and Inari; Amaterasu = Benzaiten; Nyoirin = Benzaiten.

Learn More about Wish-Granting Jewels and Nyoirin / Amaterasu / Benzaiten / Dakini / Inari Linkages

• Ruppert, Brian D. Pearl in the Shrine, A Genealogy of the Buddhist Jewel of the Japanese Sovereign, Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 2002 29/1.2. Explores connections between jewels, royal authority, and Amaterasu. Also see Jewel in the Ashes: Buddha Relics and Power in Early Medieval Japan. Harvard Univ. Asia Center (July 1, 2000).
• Iyanaga, Nobumi. Dakini and the Emperor (PDF file), 1997. 62 pages. Also see Nyoirin Kannon & Femininity (scroll to bottom of this link for English review).
• Fremerman, Sarah Alizah, Divine Impersonations: Nyoirin Kannon in Medieval Japan, Ph.D. Dissertation, Stanford University, 2008, 230 pages; AAT 3332823. Available at Proquest. See excerpt from her dissertation (p. 172)
• Faure, Bernard. Nyoirin Kannon & Femininity (scroll to bottom for English review).
• Smyers, Karen A. The Fox & the Jewel: Shared and Private Meanings in Contemporary Japanese Inari Worship, Honolulu, Univ. of Hawaii Press, 1999, iii, Questia, Web, 28 Dec. 2011.

Seven Lucky Gods, Seven Deities of Good Fortune
Benzaiten, Bishamonten, Daikokuten, Ebisu, Fukurokuju, Hotei, Jurōjin

Modern Artwork of Benzaiten (Benten for short)
Cutification and Commercialization of Religious Icons

HINDU, BUDDHIST, & SHINTŌ ASSOCIATIONS
Table 1. Benzaiten's Many Convoluted Linkages
This chart provides a simplified "one glance" guide to the complex web of associations between Benzaiten and other deities in Japan's Deva-Buddha-Kami matrix. It is by no means comprehensive, yet helps one visualize the extreme degree of syncretism in Benzaiten faith and art. Says Iyanaga Nobumi: "From the Buddhist cosmological/metaphysical point of view, all Japanese kami are exactly on the same level of existence as the Hindu deities (though, perhaps, they were felt to be a little inferior, since Japan was considered as a small country very far from the center of the world, which people situated in India, or more precisely at the Diamond Seat where the Buddha had attained enlightenment. The only way people had to think about Japanese deities was according to the model of Hindu deities as they appear in Buddhist cosmology and mythology......I think that they were conscious of the fact that this kind of [Hindu-related] myth was not really in conformity with Buddhist doctrine in the strict sense. But this did not stop them -- to the contrary, I would think that they were intentionally creating a new type of theology........the new theology that they were trying to create was a mythical theology of kami-devas, built on the model of Hindu mythology as they could unveil it from within the Buddhist mythical corpus. In this sense, I think that it is possible to argue that medieval Buddhist-Shinto was an attempt to create a kind of 'Japanese Hinduism' inside Buddhism, itself self-revolutionizing in an incessant movement." <end Iyanaga quote, page 175, Honji Suijaku and the "Logic" of Combinatory Deities: Two Case Studies> 

Key attributes of    
Benzaiten shared with other deities who are associated with her in artwork, rituals, and faith systems. Listed in no particular order.

  = Shared Iconography
Main configurations
in Japanese artwork
when deities appear
alongside Benzaiten
(discussed in this report)

1

Daikokuten (Mahākāla)

Sanmen Daikoku, Uga Benzaiten, Tenkawa Mandala, 7 Lucky Gods

2

Bishamonten (Vaiśravaṇa)

Sanmen Daikoku, Uga Benzaiten, Tenkawa Mandala, 7 Lucky Gods

3

Dakiniten (ḍākinī)

Sanmen Dakini, Gomen Yaksha, Tenkawa Mandala, White Fox

4

Shōten (Gaṇeśa)

Sanmen Dakini, Gomen Yaksha, Dakini Mandala

5

15 (or 16) Disciples

Uga Benzaiten & 15 Attendants, Tenkawa Mandala, Dakini Mandala

6

Suiten (Varuṇa)

Tenkawa Mandala (involves Suiten, a water deva)

7

Kichijōten (Lakṣmī)

Tenkawa Mandala, Dakini Mandala, 7 Lucky Gods

8

Kariteimo (Hārītī)

Tenkawa Mandala, Dakini Mandala

9

Nyoirin Kannon

Nyoirin Kannon = Inari, Benzaiten, Amaterasu, Seiryō Gongen

10

Inari

Tenkawa Mandala, Dakini Mandala, White Fox

11

Ugajin

Uga Benzaiten, Dai Benzaiten, Happi Benzaiten, Tenkawa Mandala

12

Amaterasu

Amaterasu = Nyoirin Kannon, Benzaiten, Wish-Granting Jewel

13

Suijin

Various shrines worship Benten together with Suijin

14

Tenkawa Benten

Tenkawa Mandala; very localized faith system

15

Itsukushima Hime

Ichikishima Hime, Munakata Sanjoshin, Kōya Shisho Gongen

   NOTES TABLE 1

1. Deva is a Sanskrit term meaning celestial being or demigod. In both China and Japan, deva is written as 天 (read "tiān" in China, "ten" in Japan). When "ten" is added as a suffix to deity names (e.g., Benzaiten, Daikokuten, Dakiniten), it means the deity originated in Hindu myth but in later centuries was adopted into the Buddhist pantheon as a protective god or goddess. See the TENBU page for details.Most were associated with a kami counterpart in Japan's Buddha-Kami matrix (Honji Suijaku

   Honjisuijaku or Honji-suijaku Setsu :
   Theory of original reality and manifest traces. A theory of Buddhist-Shinto syncretism. Originally a Buddhist term used to explain the Buddha's nature as a metaphysical being (honji) and the Historical Buddha (i.e. Sakyamuni) as a trace manifestation (suijaku). This theory was used in Japan to explain the relationship between the various Buddha and Shinto kami; the many Buddha were regarded as the honji, and the Shinto kami as their incarnations or suijaku. Theoretically, honji and suijaku are an indivisible unity and there is no question of valuing one more highly than the other; but in the early Nara period, the honji were regarded as more important than the suijaku. Gradually they both came to be regarded as one; but in the Kamakura period, Shintoists also proposed the opposite theory, that the Shinto kami were the honji and the Buddha were the suijaku. This latter theory is called han-honji-suijaku setsu or shinpon-butsuju setsu.

   ).
2. Wealth is broadly defined, e.g. blessed with children, good fortune, talent, bountiful harvests, others. Rice and the food crop represent riches and are invariably associated with the fertility of the earth. Benzaiten, Suiten, and Suijin are all water goddesses and each is venerated to ensure the fecundity of the land. Inari, Ugajin, and Daikokuten are all agricultural deities and each is worshipped to ensure plentiful harvests.
3. White Color. The snakes, dragons, and foxes associated with Benzaten and related deities are commonly white (suggesting "divinity") and shown carrying wish-granting jewels atop their heads or tails or in their mouths.
4. Bishamonten is not generally linked with fertility, but in some tales (Konjaku Monogatari, 11th C) he grants children.
5. Shōten (aka Kangiten) and Inari can be portrayed as either male or female. The elephant-headed Shōten is typically represented as two figures embracing each other. The male is Gaṇeśa (the eldest son of Śiva), and the female is Kannon.
6. Benzaiten's 15 (sometimes 16) disciples are a purely Japanese convention. They appear in the 13th-century Benten Sutras and the 14th-century Keiran Shūyōshū (see T. 76, 2410, 783c). For an English overvew of their origin, see Sefurizan Sanctuary.
7. Kichijōten (confused often with Benzaiten); linked also to Bishamonten and Vishnu.

   DEITIES NOT SHOWN IN TABLE 1

1. Gigeiten (Goddess of the Arts). Not shown in above chart. A minor Buddhist deity revered as patroness of the arts. In Japan, she has been largely supplanted by Benzaiten.
2. Marishiten (God / Goddess of prosperity, the warrior class, and entertainers in Japan). Not shown in above chart. The warrior goddess Marishiten was counted along with Benzaiten and Daikokuten as one of a trio of "three deities" (Santen 三天) invoked by merchants for good fortune during the Edo period, but today her place has been largely supplanted by Benzaiten. Marishiten's mount is the boar. Marishiten is also known as Candī / Cundi 準提 ・ 准胝 ・ 尊提 or as Cundī-Guanyin 準提觀音 (a form of Kannon). In Brahmanic myth, Candī / Cundi is a vindictive form of Hindu goddess Durgā 突迦 (Chn. = Tújiā, Jp. = Toga), who can appear in the form of a wild boar. If we recall, the eight-armed martial Benzaiten was derived in large part from the Indian battle goddess Durgā, who is an aspect of Kālī (the black one, death, the wife of Śiva). Kālī is typically depicted in India with one face and eight arms, or three faces and six arms. We may also note that Benzaiten's holy days (ennichi 縁日) in Japan are days/months/years of the snake and the boar.
3. Otogohō 乙護法 (guardian deity of the Tendai stronghold on Mt. Hiei, as well as a Dharma-protecting deity at Sefurizan 背振山 (Saga Pref.) Not shown in above chart. Considered a manifestation of Benzaiten. See Sefurizan for Otogohō's story.
4. Nāgārjuna Bodhisattva 龍樹菩薩 (one of the most esteemed figures in Buddhist history; active 2nd-3rd centuries CE). His name literally means "Dragon Tree," which one might translate figuratively as "Dragon Pillar." The central pillars at Ise's Outer Shrine are said to be the residence of Benzaiten. Nāgārjuna (Chn. = Lóngshù) also represents the white snakes that reportedly live under the central pillars of Ise's inner and outer shrines. <source: M. Teeuwen, F. Rambelli, Introduction, p. 49, Buddhas and Kami in Japan, 2003> For more on Nāgârjuna, see the Digital Dictionary of Buddhism (sign in with user name = guest). Say Teeuwen and Rambelli (p. 49-52): "The place where the heavenly halberd struck the earth is where the sakadono 酒殿 (sake hall) of Ise's Outer Shrine is located, or, alternatively, corresponds to the sites of the shrines' central pillars (shin no mihashira 心の御柱). The sakadono, moreover, is the residence of Benzaiten; Benzaiten is the same as the Bodhisattva Nāgārjuna. Nāgārjuna then becomes the foucs of a new set of associations. As a personificaiton of the heart/mind of the sentient beings, he is, on the one hand, the 'father and mother' of all beings, and gives them religious guidance, in particular by revealing the Shingon teachings he received in a secret initiation in the Iron Stūpa in southern India. On the other hand, since the essence of the heart/mind of sentient beings is constituted by the three poisons (the three afflictions, usually represented in medieval Japan by a snake), Nāgārjuna stands for the white snakes that supposedly live underneath the central pillars of the two Ise shrines. These, in turn, correspond to Nanda 難陀 and Batsunanda 跋難陀, the two cosmic serpents supporting Mount Sumeru 須彌山. In another thread of associations, the central pillars of Ise are identified with the heavenly halberd (sakahoko 逆鉾) that created Japan; its shape, that of a one-pronged vajra, is the very shape of the Japanese territory. Finally, Benzaiten is also Otogohō 乙護法, one of the protecting deities of Mount Hiei." <end quote> On page 52 they continue: "In the correlations of Benzaiten mentioned above there are two main cores: the symbolism of the dragon/serpent and that of the pillar/tree/vajra. The symbols were combined with the Buddhist cosmology centred on Mount Sumeru, with medieval Japanese Buddhist epistemological and physiological doctrines concerning the heart/mind of sentient beings, and with esoteric Buddhist soteriology; with a semi-divine human being, Nāgārjuna (in Japanese Ryūju 龍樹) -- whose name, incidentally, contained the two central symbols of this chain of associations, the dragon (nāga = ryū) and the tree (arjuna = ju); an Indian deity, Benzaiten; and a Japanese combinatory deity, Otogohō 乙護法. Importantly, this chain of association, a veritable rhizomatic system in which nearly every component is connected with all the others, was not purely abstract and textual. On the contrary, it was rooted directly in the cultic centres it referred to by concrete references to architectural elements (the central pillars), buildings (the sakadono), places, and ultimately, to the very territory of Japan, of which Ise claims to be the spiritual and cosmological centre." <end quote> On page 53 they continue: "Benzaiten does not just 'stand for' Nāgārjuna or the central pillars of Ise; these three items are 'alternative shapes of one another.'"<end quote>  

Benzaiten's Two Main Hindu-Derived Forms in Japan
Dark-Deadly Benzaiten versus Radiant-Gentle Benzaiten

KAMI ASSOCIATIONS LISTED ALPHEBETICALLY
Indigenous Japanese Deities Related or Conflated with Benzaiten

Kōjin 荒神. Kami of the kitchen; found nationwide. Appears in Benzaiten artwork and is associated with Daikokuten (lord of five grains, agriculture, and the kitchen), who in turn is identified with Ōkuninushi 大国主命, the kami of abundance, rice, luck, and happy marriages. For details, see page on Sanbō Kōjin (syncretic Shinto-Buddhist deity of the kitchen & cooking stove).

Konpira 金比羅, a local kami worshipped as the guardian of seafarers, navigation, fishing, and water for agriculture at many Kotohira-gū Shrines 金刀比羅宮 throughout Japan. Konpira is a local kami manifestation of the Hindu-Buddhist deity Kubira 宮毘羅 (one of the Twelve Heavenly Generals). Konpira is not directly identified with Benzaiten, but shares many of  the same associations, e.g., prayed to for safe sea voyages and abundant rain, appears as a snake or as a dragon kami (Ryūjin 竜神), also  identified with Ōmononushi 大物主神 (the Shintō kami of Mt. Miwa 三輪 and the counterpart to Daikokuten, Japan's Buddhist god of agriculture and the kitchen, who in turn appears often in Benzaiten artwork). Kotohira-gū Shrine (in Shikoku) possesses one of Japan's oldest extant paintings of Uga Benzaiten and her 15 Attendants (dated to the early 14th century). Related Entry = Ebumi Daimyōjin. Also see Gabi Greve's page on Konpira.