{"id":6152,"date":"2026-05-19T11:18:39","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T11:18:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/ryujin\/"},"modified":"2026-06-04T09:26:36","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T09:26:36","slug":"ryujin","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/","title":{"rendered":"Ryujin"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"6152\" class=\"elementor elementor-6152 elementor-3026 elementor-bc-flex-widget\" data-elementor-post-type=\"page\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-ec7b1a3 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"ec7b1a3\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-55fe62a e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"55fe62a\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2b02454 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"2b02454\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a0ee514 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"a0ee514\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Ryujin, Japanese dragon god of the sea<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-338e8e5 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"338e8e5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Ryujin is a Japanese dragon god of the sea who, from his palace on the ocean floor, commands the tides and storms. Ry\u016bjin, also called \u014cwatatsumi-no-<span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In Japanese Shinto, the venerated spirit beings and divine powers.\" tabindex=\"0\">Kami<\/span>, is in Japanese Shint\u014d the dragon king of the sea and thus the principal god of the deep sea, the tides, and the water beings.<\/p><p>According to mythical conception, his palace &#8220;Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d&#8221; lies deep beneath the Pacific, built of coral and mother-of-pearl. Ry\u016bjin unites two strands of religious history: the archaic Japanese veneration of the sea god Watatsumi and the Buddhist-Chinese <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The passing on of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span> of the n\u0101ga dragon, which entered East Asian Buddhism.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1cc1420 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"1cc1420\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2b8b876 elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"2b8b876\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"iwg-pill-row\"><span class=\"iwg-klasse-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"God \/ goddess: Personified supreme power in the pantheon of a culture, with clear domains: forces of nature, fate, war, fertility. Venerated through cults, sacrifices, and temple institutions.\">God<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/japan\/\" class=\"iwg-kultur-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Japanese Shinto kami and Buddhist-yokai worlds.\">Japan<\/a><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e7c06cc e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"e7c06cc\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-87976ba elementor-toc--minimized-on-tablet elementor-widget elementor-widget-table-of-contents\" data-id=\"87976ba\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;exclude_headings_by_selector&quot;:[],&quot;no_headings_message&quot;:&quot;Es wurden keine \\u00dcberschriften auf dieser Seite gefunden.&quot;,&quot;headings_by_tags&quot;:[&quot;h2&quot;,&quot;h3&quot;],&quot;marker_view&quot;:&quot;bullets&quot;,&quot;icon&quot;:{&quot;value&quot;:&quot;fas fa-circle&quot;,&quot;library&quot;:&quot;fa-solid&quot;,&quot;rendered_tag&quot;:&quot;&lt;svg class=\\&quot;e-font-icon-svg e-fas-circle\\&quot; viewBox=\\&quot;0 0 512 512\\&quot; xmlns=\\&quot;http:\\\/\\\/www.w3.org\\\/2000\\\/svg\\&quot;&gt;&lt;path d=\\&quot;M256 8C119 8 8 119 8 256s111 248 248 248 248-111 248-248S393 8 256 8z\\&quot;&gt;&lt;\\\/path&gt;&lt;\\\/svg&gt;&quot;},&quot;minimize_box&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;minimized_on&quot;:&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;hierarchical_view&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;min_height&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;min_height_tablet&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;min_height_mobile&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]}}\" data-widget_type=\"table-of-contents.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-toc__header-title\">\n\t\t\t\tTable of Contents\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__toggle-button elementor-toc__toggle-button--expand\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-controls=\"elementor-toc__87976ba\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-label=\"Open table of contents\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"e-font-icon-svg e-fas-chevron-down\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M207.029 381.476L12.686 187.132c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941l22.667-22.667c9.357-9.357 24.522-9.375 33.901-.04L224 284.505l154.745-154.021c9.379-9.335 24.544-9.317 33.901.04l22.667 22.667c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941L240.971 381.476c-9.373 9.372-24.569 9.372-33.942 0z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__toggle-button elementor-toc__toggle-button--collapse\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-controls=\"elementor-toc__87976ba\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-label=\"Close table of contents\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"e-font-icon-svg e-fas-chevron-up\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M240.971 130.524l194.343 194.343c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941l-22.667 22.667c-9.357 9.357-24.522 9.375-33.901.04L224 227.495 69.255 381.516c-9.379 9.335-24.544 9.317-33.901-.04l-22.667-22.667c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941L207.03 130.525c9.372-9.373 24.568-9.373 33.941-.001z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"elementor-toc__87976ba\" class=\"elementor-toc__body\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__spinner-container\">\n\t\t\t\t<svg class=\"elementor-toc__spinner eicon-animation-spin e-font-icon-svg e-eicon-loading\" aria-hidden=\"true\" viewBox=\"0 0 1000 1000\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M500 975V858C696 858 858 696 858 500S696 142 500 142 142 304 142 500H25C25 237 238 25 500 25S975 237 975 500 763 975 500 975Z\"><\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-41219c9 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"41219c9\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7c45b6d iwg-hero-image elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"7c45b6d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1-683x1024.webp\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-6153\" alt=\"Ryujin - gods from the Japanese tradition, historical-illustrative\" srcset=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1-683x1024.webp 683w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1-200x300.webp 200w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1-768x1152.webp 768w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1.webp 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a327eeb e-con-boxed e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"a327eeb\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-46ee6f7 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"46ee6f7\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-65531a0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"65531a0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Name, Etymology, and Identification<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-25b4206 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"25b4206\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The name Ry\u016bjin is composed of &#8220;ry\u016b&#8221; (dragon, character \u9f8d) and &#8220;jin&#8221; (<span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being venerated as divine within a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">deity<\/span>, character \u795e). In the &#8220;Kojiki&#8221; and &#8220;Nihon Shoki&#8221; the principal figure appears under the name Watatsumi-no-<span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In Japanese Shinto, the venerated spirit beings and divine powers.\" tabindex=\"0\">Kami<\/span> (also Owatatsumi, &#8220;Great Water Master&#8221;).<\/p><p>Only in the medieval period, with the arrival of Buddhist dragon conceptions from China and India, did the Watatsumi figure merge with the n\u0101ga kings into a single figure, the dragon king Ry\u016bjin.<\/p><p>The oldest evidence for the dragon identification is found in the tale of Hoori in the &#8220;Kojiki,&#8221; where the palace is already described as a dragon palace.<\/p><p>In some texts Ry\u016bjin is identified with the brother of Watatsumi or thought of as his subordinate representative; the sources are not consistent here.<\/p><p>Nelly Naumann (&#8220;Die einheimische <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">Religion<\/span> Japans,&#8221; 1988 and 1994) reconstructed the layers of the Watatsumi tradition and distinguished between a coastal fisherfolk religiosity and a courtly, mythological reworking of the Heian period.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0b7894d e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"0b7894d\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-ac59a3e elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"ac59a3e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Myth of Hoori and Toyotama-hime<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-86074e5 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"86074e5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The central Ry\u016bjin narrative is found in the &#8220;Kojiki&#8221; (Book I, closing section) and in the &#8220;Nihon Shoki&#8221; and is part of the Yamato dynastic <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A transmitted narrative about gods, origins and the order of the world.\" tabindex=\"0\">myth<\/span>. It is regarded as the link between the divine and the human rulers.<\/p><p>The brother Hoori (also Yamasachi-hiko, &#8220;Mountain-Luck Prince&#8221;) loses his fishhook in the sea when he exchanges tools with his brother Hoderi. In search of this hook he descends into the palace of the sea king, where he lives for three years as a guest and marries his daughter Toyotama-hime.<\/p><p>Toyotama-hime becomes pregnant and follows Hoori to the surface to give birth. As her labor approaches she forbids him to look at her, because she gives birth in her true dragon form.<\/p><p>Hoori breaks the taboo, sees her as a huge wani (crocodile or dragon), and she flees back into the sea in shame, leaving the child with Hoori.<\/p><p>From this child, Ugayafukiaezu, later comes Jimmu-tenn\u014d, the mythical first emperor of Japan. The taboo-breaking <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A recurring thematic element in art or narrative.\" tabindex=\"0\">motif<\/span> shows close parallels to the Izanagi narrative and is the subject of comparative-myth research (Joseph Kitagawa, Klaus Antoni).<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-fd809c5 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"fd809c5\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f7f9c0e elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"f7f9c0e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Symbols, Attributes, and Beings of the Court<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-85ae5a8 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"85ae5a8\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Ry\u016bjin is depicted in the visual arts as an old, wise man with a beard, often with a crown and dragon insignia, sometimes directly in dragon form with a long serpent-like body, four claws, and antlers similar to the Chinese long.<\/p><p>His chief attributes are the two tide jewels, Shio-mitsu-tama (flood jewel) and Shio-hiru-tama (ebb jewel), which he gives to Hoori as a wedding gift and with which the latter later defeats his brother Hoderi.<\/p><p>Various sea dwellers belong to Ry\u016bjin&#8217;s court: jellyfish, octopuses, fish, turtles. The turtle plays an important role as messenger and mount; in the Urashima Tar\u014d <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A handed-down tale, often with a historical core and marvelous features.\" tabindex=\"0\">legend<\/span> it is the one that leads the fisherman to the dragon palace.<\/p><p>In the myths Ry\u016bjin has numerous children, among them Toyotama-hime and her younger sister Tamayori-hime, who later marry Hoori and his son and connect the imperial line with dragon blood.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4c42f0b e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"4c42f0b\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-eaa0bb8 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"eaa0bb8\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Veneration, Shrines, and Rituals<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5dc9b6c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"5dc9b6c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Ry\u016bjin is venerated above all in coastal regions, by fishermen, divers (Ama), and seafarers. Important shrines are Ry\u016bg\u016b-jinja in Mie Prefecture on the Shima Peninsula, the Shika-no-Umi-jinja in Fukuoka (one of the oldest shrines in Japan, already named in the Engishiki), Watatsumi-jinja on Tsushima, and the Enoshima-jinja off Kamakura.<\/p><p>The latter is connected with the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An edifying tale, usually about the lives of saints.\" tabindex=\"0\">legend<\/span> of Benzaiten and the dragon king, who are frequently venerated together.<\/p><p>At <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An ordered sequence of symbolic actions with religious or cultural meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritual<\/span> ceremonies on the coast, rice, sake, and salt are offered to Ry\u016bjin, often also fish, which is returned to the sea. Before long sea voyages it was customary to pray at dragon shrines; during storms fishermen cast ritual <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A gift to a deity, to express thanks, a request, or veneration.\" tabindex=\"0\">offerings<\/span> into the sea.<\/p><p>On Tsushima and Iki there are dragon festivals with boat processions to this day. The Bukatsuchi-no-mikoto <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A fixed, recurring religious act.\" tabindex=\"0\">rite<\/span> at the bay of Mikuriya refers to the reconciliation with the water beings.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5c5071c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"5c5071c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3664168 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"3664168\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Ry\u016bjin in Buddhism: Syncretism with N\u0101garaja<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-9ca739e elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"9ca739e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>With the arrival of Buddhism in Japan in the 6th century, the native sea god was increasingly identified with the n\u0101ga kings of the Indian tradition.<\/p><p>The eight great n\u0101ga kings (Mah\u0101n\u0101gar\u0101ja) appear in the Lotus <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In Hinduism and Buddhism, an instructional text in concise form.\" tabindex=\"0\">Sutra<\/span> in chapter 1 as listeners of the Buddha and are venerated in Japan as &#8220;Hachidai-Ry\u016b\u014d.&#8221; Their leader S\u0101gara (&#8220;Ocean&#8221;) is often equated with Ry\u016bjin.<\/p><p>The daughter of S\u0101gara attains Buddhahood in the Lotus <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In Hinduism and Buddhism, an instructional text in concise form.\" tabindex=\"0\">Sutra<\/span> (Devadatta chapter) despite her animal form and her sex; this account had considerable influence on the Buddhist question of women in Japan.<\/p><p>In the Shingon tradition the dragon kings are <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The petitioning or invoking address to a deity or power.\" tabindex=\"0\">invoked<\/span> during the rain <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A fixed, recurring religious act.\" tabindex=\"0\">rite<\/span>; the rainmaker <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A fixed, recurring religious act.\" tabindex=\"0\">rite<\/span> attributed to K\u016bkai at the Shinsen-en pond in Kyoto (documented in the year 824) is regarded as the classic Japanese application of this practice.<\/p><p>In Zen the dragon becomes the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A sign that stands in place of an idea or meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">symbol<\/span> of enlightenment; the dragon image on the ceiling of many Zen <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A structure that serves the veneration of one or more deities.\" tabindex=\"0\">temple<\/span> main halls goes back to this tradition.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-134ec2f e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"134ec2f\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6a7b8a3 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"6a7b8a3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Folk Tales: Urashima Tar\u014d and Other Fairy Tales<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8d49e58 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"8d49e58\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The best-known folk tale about Ry\u016bjin is the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A handed-down tale, often with a historical core and marvelous features.\" tabindex=\"0\">legend<\/span> of Urashima Tar\u014d, already attested in an early form in the &#8220;Man&#8217;y\u014dsh\u016b&#8221; (8th century, poem 1740) as well as in the &#8220;Tango-fudoki.&#8221; A young fisherman rescues a turtle, is led into the dragon palace, lives there for three years, and returns with a box whose opening ages him: on earth, hundreds of years have passed in his absence.<\/p><p>The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A recurring thematic element in art or narrative.\" tabindex=\"0\">motif<\/span> of distorted time in the Other World is found in Celtic, Hawaiian, and Chinese comparative material. Klaus Vollmer and Bernhard Scheid have traced the adaptation history of this narrative in several works.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-db26e09 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"db26e09\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c27f1b5 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"c27f1b5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Religious-Historical Classification and Cross-References<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f223efd elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"f223efd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Ry\u016bjin belongs to a pan-Asian dragon complex that extends from the Indian n\u0101ga through the Chinese long to the Korean yong. Unlike the West Eurasian dragon (lindworm, Tiamat, Leviathan), the East Asian dragon is not understood as a hostile chaos being but as an ambivalent, often beneficent power.<\/p><p>Christine Guth and Nelly Naumann have worked out the Japanese specificity of the dragon conception in several essays, in which the water-being-dragon continuum remained alive into the folk religion of the Edo period.<\/p><p>In modern popular culture, Ry\u016bjin is present in works such as &#8220;Spirited Away&#8221; (Hayao Miyazaki, 2001) as Haku, in &#8220;Dragon Ball&#8221; as Shenlong, and in numerous anime and game adaptations. The dragon <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The study of pictorial content and its meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">iconography<\/span> has shifted from the religious into an aesthetic, narrative sphere without losing its roots.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-eb1d453 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"eb1d453\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f5145ea elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"f5145ea\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Sources<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0f40a49 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0f40a49\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div data-nosnippet=\"true\"><p>&#8220;Kojiki&#8221; (712), Book I, Hoori episode. &#8220;Nihon Shoki&#8221; (720), Book II. &#8220;Man&#8217;y\u014dsh\u016b&#8221; (8th century), poem 1740 (Urashima Tar\u014d). &#8220;Tango-fudoki&#8221; (8th century, fragments). &#8220;Engishiki&#8221; (927). &#8220;Lotus <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In Hinduism and Buddhism, an instructional text in concise form.\" tabindex=\"0\">Sutra<\/span>,&#8221; Devadatta chapter and opening chapter.<\/p><p>Nelly Naumann, &#8220;Die einheimische Religion Japans,&#8221; 2 volumes, Leiden 1988 and 1994. Klaus Antoni, &#8220;Shint\u00f4 und die Konzeption des japanischen Nationalwesens,&#8221; Leiden 1998. Joseph Kitagawa, &#8220;Religion in Japanese History,&#8221; New York 1966. Helen Hardacre, &#8220;<span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The indigenous religion of Japan, shaped by the veneration of the kami.\" tabindex=\"0\">Shinto<\/span>.<\/p><p>A History,&#8221; Oxford 2017. Christine Guth, &#8220;Asobi. Play in the Arts of Japan,&#8221; New York 1996. Klaus Vollmer, &#8220;Shint\u00f4 und Buddhismus,&#8221; Munich 2002. Bernhard Scheid, &#8220;Religion-in-Japan: Ein digitales Handbuch,&#8221; Vienna, ongoing. Inken Prohl, &#8220;Religi\u00f6se Innovationen,&#8221; Berlin 2006.<\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6bcee3b e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"6bcee3b\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-482c355 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"482c355\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Watatsumi and the Mythical Geography of the Seas<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-31f9884 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"31f9884\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Epoch of Greek and Roman culture, roughly 800 BC to 600 AD.\" tabindex=\"0\">ancient<\/span> Japanese conception of the sea distinguishes between several mythical water spheres, which over the course of the medieval tradition merged into the central Ry\u016bjin figure.<\/p><p>In the Kojiki the &#8220;Watatsumi-no-<span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In Japanese Shinto, the venerated spirit beings and divine powers.\" tabindex=\"0\">Kami<\/span>&#8221; appear as a trio: Soko-tsu-Watatsumi (&#8220;Bottom Water God&#8221;), Naka-tsu-Watatsumi (&#8220;Middle Water God&#8221;), and Uwa-tsu-Watatsumi (&#8220;Upper Water God&#8221;), who arise from the Misogi water during the purification of Izanagi.<\/p><p>This triad is regarded as the oldest Watatsumi complex and is frequently combined into a single Ry\u016bjin figure in the medieval tradition, without the triad having disappeared liturgically.<\/p><p>The regional Watatsumi traditions are very diverse. On Tsushima and Iki, the islands off northern Ky\u016bsh\u016b, an older layer of worship dominates, which shows close connections to the Korean sea-king tradition.<\/p><p>In Shimane and on the west coast of Honshu, by contrast, Watatsumi conceptions mix with the regional Susanoo <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of religious acts of veneration for a deity or holy figure.\" tabindex=\"0\">cult<\/span>, which leads to complicated local mixed traditions. Nelly Naumann has worked out these regional layers in several detailed studies and pointed to their significance for the religious history of the Japanese sea god.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4d6ffe1 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"4d6ffe1\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-bc91228 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"bc91228\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d and Its Literary Tradition<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4168ff1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"4168ff1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The dragon palace Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d (&#8220;Castle of the Dragon Palace&#8221;) is one of the central motifs of Japanese narrative literature. In Kojiki, Nihon Shoki, Konjaku Monogatari, in numerous Setsuwa collections, and in the N\u014d plays (&#8220;Tamamo-no-Mae,&#8221; &#8220;Ama,&#8221; and others) it appears as a radiant, palace-like place beneath the sea.<\/p><p>The typical description includes coral columns, mother-of-pearl floors, gemstone walls, sunlight despite the depth of the sea, vast banquet halls, and a temporally differently structured reality in which hours can become centuries.<\/p><p>In the &#8220;Heike Monogatari&#8221; and in the later medieval narrative literature, the Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d becomes the place to which the heroes of the Heike War who drowned in the sea are carried away.<\/p><p>This conception connects the dragon palace with the realm of the beyond and makes it a Japanese variant of the &#8220;Isles of the Blessed&#8221; topos.<\/p><p>Christine Guth and Bernhard Scheid have shown that the medieval literary treatment of the Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d is essentially a courtly construction that takes up older fisherfolk conceptions and condenses them in an elegant narrative form.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4a479c3 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"4a479c3\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8ecfbac elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"8ecfbac\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Daughter of the Dragon King and Buddhahood<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a175203 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"a175203\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>One of the most influential passages about a dragon king in East Asian Buddhism is found in the &#8220;Devadatta&#8221; chapter of the Lotus Sutra. There the eight-year-old daughter of the n\u0101ga king S\u0101gara appears, presents the Buddha with a gemstone, and instantly attains full Buddhahood.<\/p><p>This narrative is significant in religious history for two reasons: it shows that animals (dragons) and women too can attain Buddhahood, which was revolutionary in patriarchal and anthropocentric early Buddhism.<\/p><p>In the Japanese tradition this narrative was taken up intensively and connected with the native dragon complex. In the Tendai and Nichiren schools the &#8220;Daughter of the Dragon King&#8221; was regarded as a key proof of the universal Buddha nature. D\u014dgen&#8217;s &#8220;Sh\u014db\u014dgenz\u014d&#8221; treats the episode several times.<\/p><p>In Japanese <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Religious ideas and customs that are widespread in everyday life.\" tabindex=\"0\">folk belief<\/span> the figure became connected with Benzaiten, the water goddess of the Seven Gods of Fortune, and with various local water deities. This merging of Indian n\u0101ga <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The scholarly study of God and of the faith of a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span>, Chinese long <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the handed-down stories of the gods of a culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">mythology<\/span>, and Japanese Watatsumi religion is a classic example of East Asian religious integration.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e3a7ec7 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"e3a7ec7\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-eb546e8 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"eb546e8\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Dragon Paths and Sacred Mountains<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-106dd3e elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"106dd3e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Japanese folk religion knows the concept of &#8220;dragon paths&#8221; (&#8220;ry\u016bmyaku&#8221;), subterranean water veins that connect <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Belonging to the divine and thereby withdrawn from everyday use.\" tabindex=\"0\">sacred<\/span> mountains with springs, rivers, and finally the sea. This conception is especially pronounced in the Shugend\u014d tradition and shapes the religious geography of numerous sacred mountains such as Ontake, Hakusan, Tateyama, and especially Fuji.<\/p><p>The Heisei-jingu <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A small sacred place of safekeeping or devotion.\" tabindex=\"0\">shrine<\/span> at the foot of Fuji is <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Handed over to the sacred through a religious act and thereby set apart from the everyday.\" tabindex=\"0\">dedicated<\/span> to Watatsumi and maintains ritual connections to the dragon being, which is said to act in the crater waters and at the great waterfalls.<\/p><p>At the Nachi (Wakayama), Kegon (Nikko), and Ry\u016bz\u016b (also Nikko, meaning &#8220;Dragon Head&#8221;) waterfalls, the dragon king is invoked in local rites. These waterfalls are regarded as manifestations of Ry\u016bjin and are classic stations of Misogi water purification and Shugend\u014d mountain asceticism.<\/p><p>The famous Nachi-no-Otaki, the largest waterfall in Japan (133 m), had been a sacred place since the 8th century and was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2004 as part of the &#8220;Sacred Sites and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A religiously motivated journey to a sacred site.\" tabindex=\"0\">Pilgrimage<\/span> Routes in the Kii Mountain Range.&#8221;<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2dbf764 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"2dbf764\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b00f7a3 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"b00f7a3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Rain-Petition Rites and Dragon Invocation<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-858086d elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"858086d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>During prolonged drought, a special form of rain-petition <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A solemn religious procession.\" tabindex=\"0\">procession<\/span> was carried out in many Japanese regions, designated as &#8220;Ry\u016bjin-matsuri&#8221; (&#8220;Dragon Festival&#8221;) or as &#8220;amagoi&#8221; (&#8220;Rain Petition&#8221;). In it, a dragon effigy of bamboo, paper, and cloth is fashioned and carried through the village to a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A small sacred place of safekeeping or devotion.\" tabindex=\"0\">shrine<\/span> or waterfall.<\/p><p>Sometimes a real or symbolically represented frog or eel is shut into a wooden box and led through the village in a petition procession; the assumption is that the dragon king will respond with rain to the suffering of his subjects.<\/p><p>In the Shingon tradition the famous &#8220;Shingon rainmaker <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A fixed, recurring religious act.\" tabindex=\"0\">rite<\/span>&#8221; was performed for the first time at the Shinsen-en pond in Kyoto in the year 824. K\u016bkai is said to have invoked the dragon king of Lake Anavatapta (in the Indian-Buddhist geography the mythical source lake of the Himalayas) and thereby brought about rain after three days.<\/p><p>This <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A fixed, recurring religious act.\" tabindex=\"0\">rite<\/span> became a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Belonging to the authoritatively recognized body of scriptures of a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">canonical<\/span> practice in the Heian period and was continued in the great Shingon <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A structure that serves the veneration of one or more deities.\" tabindex=\"0\">temples<\/span> T\u014d-ji and Daikaku-ji into modern times.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-72760b6 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"72760b6\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7220f50 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"7220f50\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The View of Modern Religious Studies<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a8c95b3 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"a8c95b3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In modern research, Ry\u016bjin is read as a key example of East Asian religious hybridization.<\/p><p>Helen Hardacre, Bernhard Scheid, and Klaus Vollmer have shown in several studies that the merging of native Watatsumi with Indian n\u0101ga and Chinese long is, in Japanese religious history, a paradigmatic case for the multilayered nature of every grown religious practice.<\/p><p>Unlike what an analytically clean religious philology suggests, this merging belongs to the normal reality of living religiosity.<\/p><p>Inken Prohl has emphasized in her studies of modern Japanese religiosity that the dragon figure is experiencing an astonishing renaissance in contemporary spirituality, in healing practices, and in popular <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A collective term for teachings that claim a hidden knowledge accessible only to initiates.\" tabindex=\"0\">esotericism<\/span>.<\/p><p>Dragon-power symbols, dragon tattoos, dragon jewelry, and dragon meditations are widespread in Japan, in the East Asian diaspora, and increasingly also in the Western New Age milieu.<\/p><p>This modern dragon charging draws only partly from the historical Ry\u016bjin <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of religious acts of veneration for a deity or holy figure.\" tabindex=\"0\">cult<\/span>, but rather connects it with elements of Chinese Feng Shui, the Western dragon imagination (Smaug, Tolkien), and popular fantasy culture.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-33ab28f e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"33ab28f\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-38677ba elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"38677ba\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Ainu Parallels and North Pacific Maritime Religiosity<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-abaf68f elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"abaf68f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>A separate trail in religious history leads from the Japanese Ry\u016bjin into the Ainu religion of the northern Japanese main islands and Sakhalin.<\/p><p>The Ainu whale god Repun-Kamuy is likewise a lord of the sea who rules over whales, fish, and fishing; he appears as a human in a whale costume who lives in a world beneath the sea.<\/p><p>Structural parallels are the connection with whales, the exchange relationship with the fishermen, and the logic of prohibition. These parallels point to a broader North Pacific maritime religiosity that extends from the Aleut and Tlingit to the Itelmen of Kamchatka and the Ainu.<\/p><p>Nelly Naumann and Klaus Vollmer have shown that the Japanese Watatsumi religion (before its merging with the Chinese-Buddhist dragon complex) contained essential elements of this pan-Pacific maritime tradition.<\/p><p>The medieval merging with the n\u0101ga and long complex overlaid this layer without entirely displacing it. In the coastal villages of Tsushima and Hokkaido, traces of this archaic layer have been preserved into modern times.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-517ac62 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"517ac62\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0189265 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"0189265\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">K\u016bkai and the Shinsen-en Rainmaker Rite<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c651bf4 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"c651bf4\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The Shinsen-en rainmaker <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A fixed, recurring religious act.\" tabindex=\"0\">rite<\/span>, which was performed in 824 under Emperor Junna in Kyoto, is among the best-documented dragon rituals of Japanese religious history. K\u016bkai, the founder of the Shingon school, is said to have invoked the dragon king of the mythical Lake Anavatapta in a contest with the Confucian-Daoist monk Shubin.<\/p><p>Anavatapta is regarded in the Indian-Buddhist worldview as the mythical source lake of the Himalayas, in which the eight great dragon kings of the Lotus Sutra reside. After a three-day <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A regulated sequence of symbolic acts with religious or cultural meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritual<\/span>, heavy rain set in, and K\u016bkai&#8217;s rank in the courtly hierarchy was considerably strengthened.<\/p><p>The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A fixed, recurring religious act.\" tabindex=\"0\">rite<\/span> itself was canonized in the following centuries and became a fixed component of the Shingon <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The fixed order of worship of a religious community.\" tabindex=\"0\">liturgy<\/span> repertoire. In the T\u014d-ji and the Daikaku-ji, liturgical handbooks and instructional books that describe the practice in detail are found to this day.<\/p><p>The connection of Indian n\u0101ga <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The scholarly study of God and of the faith of a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span>, Chinese Anavatapta geography, and Japanese weather <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Practices that seek to intervene in the course of events through special actions or formulas.\" tabindex=\"0\">magic<\/span> is a particularly dense example in religious history of East Asian religious integration.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-46df0a9 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"46df0a9\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-bb04c64 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"bb04c64\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Dragon in the Zen Tradition<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-77b8270 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"77b8270\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In Zen Buddhism the dragon has acquired its own <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A sign that stands representatively for a concept or meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">symbolic<\/span> meaning. Unlike in Pure Land Buddhism or in Shingon, it is not primarily a god that can be invoked but an image of enlightenment itself.<\/p><p>The famous &#8220;Dragon of the H\u014dz\u014d-In&#8221; saying runs: &#8220;The dragon sings in the withered tree,&#8221; a paradoxical formulation meant to express the suddenness and unpredictability of the Buddha nature. On the ceilings of many Zen <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A structure that serves the veneration of one or more deities.\" tabindex=\"0\">temple<\/span> main halls, large-format dragon murals are mounted that visualize this symbolic meaning.<\/p><p>The most famous dragon ceilings are found in Kenninji (Kyoto, painted by Koizumi Junsaku, 2002), Tofukuji (Kyoto, painted by D\u014dmoto Insh\u014d, 1934), and Tenryuji (Kyoto, painted by Kayama Matazo, 1997).<\/p><p>The dragon depictions usually show a single, huge dragon being stretching across the ceiling of the assembly hall; the gaze of the monks during meditation falls on this image and is meant to support meditative concentration.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ryujin, Japanese dragon god of the sea Ryujin is a Japanese dragon god of the sea who, from his palace on the ocean floor, commands the tides and storms. Ry\u016bjin, also called \u014cwatatsumi-no-Kami, is in Japanese Shint\u014d the dragon king of the sea and thus the principal god of the deep sea, the tides, and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":6153,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"Ryujin","_yoast_wpseo_title":"Ryujin: Japanese Dragon God of the Sea | iWell Guard","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Ryujin is the Japanese dragon god of the sea, ruler of the dragon palace Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d. Father of Toyotama-hime and lord of the tides.","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_angie_page":false,"gefaehrdungsstufe":"","wesen_kultur":"","wesen_klasse":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[86,27,55,92],"class_list":["post-6152","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gods","category-goetter","category-japan"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.7 (Yoast SEO v27.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Ryujin: Japanese Dragon God of the Sea | iWell Guard<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ryujin is the Japanese dragon god of the sea, ruler of the dragon palace Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d. Father of Toyotama-hime and lord of the tides.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ryujin\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Ryujin is the Japanese dragon god of the sea, ruler of the dragon palace Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d. Father of Toyotama-hime and lord of the tides.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"iWell Guard\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-06-04T09:26:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1536\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"14 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/ryujin\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/ryujin\\\/\",\"name\":\"Ryujin: Japanese Dragon God of the Sea | iWell Guard\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/ryujin\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/ryujin\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-19T11:18:39+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-04T09:26:36+00:00\",\"description\":\"Ryujin is the Japanese dragon god of the sea, ruler of the dragon palace Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d. Father of Toyotama-hime and lord of the tides.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/ryujin\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/ryujin\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/ryujin\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1.webp\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":1536,\"caption\":\"Gods from the Japanese tradition.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/ryujin\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Start\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/home\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Ryujin\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"iWell Guard\",\"description\":\"Schutz vor dunklen Einfl\u00fcssen\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Ittermann electronic GmbH\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/Ittermann-Logo-1182x237-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/Ittermann-Logo-1182x237-1.png\",\"width\":1182,\"height\":237,\"caption\":\"Ittermann electronic GmbH\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/pantip.com\\\/profile\\\/9367242\",\"https:\\\/\\\/micro.blog\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.diggerslist.com\\\/iwellguard\\\/about\",\"https:\\\/\\\/skitterphoto.com\\\/photographers\\\/2870314\\\/iwell-guard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/iwellguard.wordpress.com\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/06\\\/iwell-guard\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/hub.docker.com\\\/u\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pinterest.com\\\/iwellguard\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/bit.ly\\\/m\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/entre-vos-mains.alsace.eu\\\/profiles\\\/iwellguard\\\/activity\",\"https:\\\/\\\/gravatar.com\\\/reallybeded8fd34\",\"https:\\\/\\\/naijamatta.com\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.goodreads.com\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/profile.hatena.ne.jp\\\/iwellguard\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/experiment.com\\\/users\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/wakelet.com\\\/@iWellGuard82270\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.chordie.com\\\/forum\\\/profile.php?id=2555664\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instapaper.com\\\/p\\\/17757966\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mapleprimes.com\\\/users\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/businesslistingplus.com\\\/profile\\\/iwell-guard\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/telegra.ph\\\/iWell-Guard-06-06\",\"https:\\\/\\\/pbase.com\\\/iwellguard\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/b.hatena.ne.jp\\\/iwellguard\\\/20260607#bookmark-4788405196491818882\",\"https:\\\/\\\/fliphtml5.com\\\/home\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/anyflip.com\\\/homepage\\\/cmiwl#About\",\"https:\\\/\\\/transfur.com\\\/Users\\\/iwellguard\",\"http:\\\/\\\/delphi.larsbo.org\\\/user\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/jobs.lajobsportal.org\\\/profiles\\\/8380803-iwell-guard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/md.chaosdorf.de\\\/s\\\/jfbe5SBdJD\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.lingvolive.com\\\/en-us\\\/profile\\\/9ecaeaca-ce11-4e51-9e71-01d55e2bff36\\\/translations\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.fitday.com\\\/fitness\\\/forums\\\/members\\\/iwellguard.html\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mymeetbook.com\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/pxhere.com\\\/en\\\/photographer-me\\\/5040798\",\"https:\\\/\\\/disqus.com\\\/by\\\/iwellguard\\\/about\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/pastelink.net\\\/hjwciqwq\",\"https:\\\/\\\/pubhtml5.com\\\/homepage\\\/scjhn\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bitchute.com\\\/channel\\\/2O2eOKzNqujT\",\"https:\\\/\\\/audiomack.com\\\/iwellguard\"]},{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/ryujin\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/ryujin\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Ralf Ittermann\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ee2a27f1cac3406c7c6fb5820cb7349f\"},\"headline\":\"Ryujin\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-19T11:18:39+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-04T09:26:36+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/ryujin\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":2851,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/ryujin\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Gods\",\"Goetter\",\"Japan\",\"Japan\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"description\":\"Ryujin is the Japanese dragon god of the sea, ruler of the dragon palace Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d. Father of Toyotama-hime and lord of the tides.\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Ryujin: Japanese Dragon God of the Sea | iWell Guard","description":"Ryujin is the Japanese dragon god of the sea, ruler of the dragon palace Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d. Father of Toyotama-hime and lord of the tides.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Ryujin","og_description":"Ryujin is the Japanese dragon god of the sea, ruler of the dragon palace Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d. Father of Toyotama-hime and lord of the tides.","og_url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/","og_site_name":"iWell Guard","article_modified_time":"2026-06-04T09:26:36+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":1536,"url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"14 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/"},"author":{"name":"Ralf Ittermann","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/ee2a27f1cac3406c7c6fb5820cb7349f"},"headline":"Ryujin","datePublished":"2026-05-19T11:18:39+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-04T09:26:36+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/"},"wordCount":2851,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1.webp","articleSection":["Gods","Goetter","Japan","Japan"],"inLanguage":"en-US","description":"Ryujin is the Japanese dragon god of the sea, ruler of the dragon palace Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d. Father of Toyotama-hime and lord of the tides."},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/","url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/","name":"Ryujin: Japanese Dragon God of the Sea | iWell Guard","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1.webp","datePublished":"2026-05-19T11:18:39+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-04T09:26:36+00:00","description":"Ryujin is the Japanese dragon god of the sea, ruler of the dragon palace Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d. Father of Toyotama-hime and lord of the tides.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1.webp","width":1024,"height":1536,"caption":"Gods from the Japanese tradition."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Start","item":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/home\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Ryujin"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/","name":"iWell Guard","description":"Schutz vor dunklen Einfl\u00fcssen","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#organization","name":"Ittermann electronic GmbH","url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ittermann-Logo-1182x237-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ittermann-Logo-1182x237-1.png","width":1182,"height":237,"caption":"Ittermann electronic GmbH"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/pantip.com\/profile\/9367242","https:\/\/micro.blog\/iwellguard","https:\/\/www.diggerslist.com\/iwellguard\/about","https:\/\/skitterphoto.com\/photographers\/2870314\/iwell-guard","https:\/\/iwellguard.wordpress.com\/2026\/06\/06\/iwell-guard\/","https:\/\/hub.docker.com\/u\/iwellguard","https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/iwellguard\/","https:\/\/bit.ly\/m\/iwellguard","https:\/\/entre-vos-mains.alsace.eu\/profiles\/iwellguard\/activity","https:\/\/gravatar.com\/reallybeded8fd34","https:\/\/naijamatta.com\/iwellguard","https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/iwellguard","https:\/\/profile.hatena.ne.jp\/iwellguard\/","https:\/\/experiment.com\/users\/iwellguard","https:\/\/wakelet.com\/@iWellGuard82270","https:\/\/www.chordie.com\/forum\/profile.php?id=2555664","https:\/\/www.instapaper.com\/p\/17757966","https:\/\/www.mapleprimes.com\/users\/iwellguard","https:\/\/businesslistingplus.com\/profile\/iwell-guard\/","https:\/\/telegra.ph\/iWell-Guard-06-06","https:\/\/pbase.com\/iwellguard\/iwellguard","https:\/\/b.hatena.ne.jp\/iwellguard\/20260607#bookmark-4788405196491818882","https:\/\/fliphtml5.com\/home\/iwellguard","https:\/\/anyflip.com\/homepage\/cmiwl#About","https:\/\/transfur.com\/Users\/iwellguard","http:\/\/delphi.larsbo.org\/user\/iwellguard","https:\/\/jobs.lajobsportal.org\/profiles\/8380803-iwell-guard","https:\/\/md.chaosdorf.de\/s\/jfbe5SBdJD","https:\/\/www.lingvolive.com\/en-us\/profile\/9ecaeaca-ce11-4e51-9e71-01d55e2bff36\/translations","https:\/\/www.fitday.com\/fitness\/forums\/members\/iwellguard.html","https:\/\/www.mymeetbook.com\/iwellguard","https:\/\/pxhere.com\/en\/photographer-me\/5040798","https:\/\/disqus.com\/by\/iwellguard\/about\/","https:\/\/pastelink.net\/hjwciqwq","https:\/\/pubhtml5.com\/homepage\/scjhn\/","https:\/\/www.bitchute.com\/channel\/2O2eOKzNqujT","https:\/\/audiomack.com\/iwellguard"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/ee2a27f1cac3406c7c6fb5820cb7349f","name":"Ralf Ittermann","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/073c0153e350a5005b68eb752b445fea71f6b24a26da9449ad7e155e6b446c9d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/073c0153e350a5005b68eb752b445fea71f6b24a26da9449ad7e155e6b446c9d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/073c0153e350a5005b68eb752b445fea71f6b24a26da9449ad7e155e6b446c9d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Ralf Ittermann"},"givenName":"Ralf","familyName":"Ittermann","jobTitle":"Gesch\u00e4ftsf\u00fchrer und redaktioneller Verantwortlicher","url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/author\/claude\/","description":"Ralf Ittermann ist Gesch\u00e4ftsf\u00fchrer der Ittermann electronic GmbH und redaktioneller Verantwortlicher des iWell-Guard-Lexikons. Er verbindet langj\u00e4hrige Erfahrung in der Pr\u00e4zisionsfertigung mit medialer Praxis und religionsgeschichtlicher Quellenarbeit.","worksFor":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Ittermann electronic GmbH","url":"https:\/\/ittermann.de\/","address":{"@type":"PostalAddress","streetAddress":"K\u00f6hlergasse 16-18","postalCode":"99842","addressLocality":"Ruhla","addressCountry":"DE"}},"knowsAbout":["Religionsgeschichte","Mythologie","Mediale Praxis","Energetische Diagnostik","Schutzpraxis","Volksglauben","Westliche Esoterik"]},{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/"},"author":{"name":"Ralf Ittermann","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/ee2a27f1cac3406c7c6fb5820cb7349f"},"headline":"Ryujin","datePublished":"2026-05-19T11:18:39+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-04T09:26:36+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/"},"wordCount":2851,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ryujin\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ryujin-1.webp","articleSection":["Gods","Goetter","Japan","Japan"],"inLanguage":"en-US","description":"Ryujin is the Japanese dragon god of the sea, ruler of the dragon palace Ry\u016bg\u016b-j\u014d. Father of Toyotama-hime and lord of the tides."}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6152","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6152"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6152\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6156,"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6152\/revisions\/6156"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6153"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6152"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6152"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}