EBISU

Ebisu: translation

One of theshichi-fuku-jin, Ebisu is an extremely popular deity of prosperity thought originally to have come from the sea bringing blessings from a distant country. He is closely linked withDaikokuand variously identified with the Buddhist Fudo, withHiru-ko-no-kamiand, especially since theMeijiseparation of kami and buddhas (shinbutsu bunri), withKoto-shiro-nushi-no-kamiwho unlike Ebisu features in theKojiki. In fishing communities Ebisu was associated with good catches while in the countryside he was the god of the rice fields (ta no kami) and in the city from about the twelfth century onwards the protector of markets and merchants. Ebisu is generally represented as a fat, smiling, bearded fisherman holding a fishing rod and a large sea bream. Being deaf, he does not hear the kami being summoned toIzumofor the'kami-na-zuki'lunar month of October which is when his main festival takes place. See alsotoka ebisu.