{"id":6162,"date":"2026-05-19T11:18:48","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T11:18:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/ebisu\/"},"modified":"2026-06-04T09:26:35","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T09:26:35","slug":"ebisu","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/ebisu\/","title":{"rendered":"Ebisu"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"6162\" class=\"elementor elementor-6162 elementor-3028 elementor-bc-flex-widget\" data-elementor-post-type=\"page\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e596cf6 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"e596cf6\" 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-f940558 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"f940558\" 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-a06094f e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"a06094f\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7063de9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"7063de9\" 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\">Ebisu, Japanese god of luck and of fishermen<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c0b75f5 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"c0b75f5\" 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>Ebisu is the Japanese god of luck and the patron of fishermen and merchants, to whom a cheerful, kindly character is attributed. Ebisu, with the full name Ebisu-no-<span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In Japanese Shinto, the venerated spirit beings and divine powers.\" tabindex=\"0\">Kami<\/span> (also Hiruko-no-Mikoto or Kotoshironushi-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 <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being venerated as divine within a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">deity<\/span> of fishing, commerce, and luck.<\/p><p>He belongs to the &#8220;Shichifukujin&#8221;, the Seven Lucky Gods, and is among them the only genuinely Japanese <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In Japanese Shinto, the venerated spirit beings and divine powers.\" tabindex=\"0\">kami<\/span>; the other six derive from the Chinese or Indian <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the gods of a religion or culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">pantheon<\/span>.<\/p><p>Ebisu is traditionally depicted with a sea bream (tai) under his arm and a fishing rod in his hand; the laughing, round face and the padded robe make him one of Japan&#8217;s most popular folk saints.<\/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-6a79c34 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"6a79c34\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a7c895f elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"a7c895f\" 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: natural forces, 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-c792d61 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"c792d61\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a06e544 elementor-toc--minimized-on-tablet elementor-widget elementor-widget-table-of-contents\" data-id=\"a06e544\" 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__a06e544\" 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__a06e544\" 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__a06e544\" 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-0deddc1 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"0deddc1\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0be5082 iwg-hero-image elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"0be5082\" 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_ebisu-683x1024.webp\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-6163\" alt=\"Ebisu - gods from the Japanese tradition, historical-illustrative\" srcset=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ebisu-683x1024.webp 683w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ebisu-200x300.webp 200w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ebisu-768x1152.webp 768w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/goetter_japan_ebisu.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-df66f2c e-con-boxed e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"df66f2c\" 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-e184278 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"e184278\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8d59b40 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"8d59b40\" 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\">Identification and Dual Nature<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3b0a822 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"3b0a822\" 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 the history of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religion<\/span>, Ebisu cannot be traced back to a single mythical figure but is identified, depending on the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The passing on of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span>, with various <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In Japanese Shinto, the venerated spirit beings and divine powers.\" tabindex=\"0\">kami<\/span>. The two most important identifications are Hiruko and Kotoshironushi.<\/p><p>Hiruko, the &#8220;leech child&#8221;, is the first, malformed child of Izanagi and Izanami in the &#8220;Kojiki&#8221; and &#8220;Nihon Shoki&#8221;. Because it still could not stand after three years, the parents set it adrift in a reed boat and abandoned it to the sea.<\/p><p>In the medieval tradition, this abandoned child was associated with the sea and with fishing and finally deified as Ebisu. The most important <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A small sacred place of safekeeping or devotion.\" tabindex=\"0\">shrine<\/span> tradition of this identification is Nishinomiya-jinja in Hy\u014dgo.<\/p><p>Kotoshironushi, a son of \u014ckuninushi, is regarded in the &#8220;Kojiki&#8221; as the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In Japanese Shinto, the venerated spirit beings and divine powers.\" tabindex=\"0\">kami<\/span> who consents to the transfer of earthly rule to the heavenly gods and withdraws into the sea.<\/p><p>From this episode a fisher <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In Japanese Shinto, the venerated spirit beings and divine powers.\" tabindex=\"0\">kami<\/span> was derived in the Middle Ages. This identification is authoritative at the Imamiya-Ebisu-jinja in Osaka. Both traditions coexist in parallel to this day, without any official harmonization having taken place.<\/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-a1daa03 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"a1daa03\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3a4bb97 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"3a4bb97\" 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\">Myth and Origin<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-feaf10d elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"feaf10d\" 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 Hiruko narrative stands at the beginning of the &#8220;Kojiki&#8221;: Izanagi and Izanami circle the heavenly pillar, but because Izanami speaks first, the first birth goes wrong. The child is set adrift in a reed boat.<\/p><p>The mythical narrative breaks off here; medieval Japanese popular thought continued it and had Hiruko make landfall on the coast of Settsu (today Hy\u014dgo), where he was taken in by fishermen and venerated as Ebisu. This narrative is not attested in the oldest sources, but appears in medieval <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A small sacred place of storage or devotion.\" tabindex=\"0\">shrine<\/span> legends.<\/p><p>In the history of religion, Ebisu thus belongs to the widespread class of the &#8220;Hy\u014dchaku-shin&#8221; (&#8220;beach gods&#8221;), who are venerated as beings washed ashore.<\/p><p>Nelly Naumann investigated these beach deities in several essays as a typical phenomenon of Pacific fishing religiosity. Related figures are found in the Ainu tradition (with the whale god Repun-Kamuy) and in the Ry\u016bky\u016b religion.<\/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-dc554a0 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"dc554a0\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-42610fb elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"42610fb\" 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\">Iconography and Symbols<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-934bda7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"934bda7\" 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>Ebisu has been defined in the visual arts since the early Edo period (17th century) by a clearly fixed <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The study of the contents of images and their meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">iconography<\/span>: a rounded, smiling face, a tall black cap hat (&#8220;Kazaori-eboshi&#8221;), a padded robe in red or blue, in his right hand a fishing rod, in his left a large sea bream (tai).<\/p><p>The bream is a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A sign that stands in place of an idea or meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">symbol<\/span> of luck (Japanese &#8220;medetai&#8221;, &#8220;auspicious&#8221;), the rod symbolizes honest, patient labor. Sometimes Ebisu sits on a ball of rice or on a rock.<\/p><p>A distinctive feature is the frequent depiction with a bandaged or wrapped ear: Ebisu is regarded as hard of hearing, which is why worshippers ring the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A small sacred place of storage or devotion.\" tabindex=\"0\">shrine<\/span> bell especially vigorously and on his feast days often knock on the shrine walls to make themselves heard. This practice, called &#8220;Ebisu-no-mimi-ate&#8221;, is a living <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the handed-down customs of a community.\" tabindex=\"0\">folk custom<\/span>.<\/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-0f72a30 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"0f72a30\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b04ee83 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"b04ee83\" 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 and Important Shrines<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b32574d elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"b32574d\" 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>Ebisu is venerated in over 3,500 shrines, with two main shrines of differing tradition. Nishinomiya-jinja in Nishinomiya (Hy\u014dgo) is the main <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A small sacred place of storage or devotion.\" tabindex=\"0\">shrine<\/span> of the Hiruko tradition and the center of the &#8220;T\u014dka Ebisu&#8221; festival, which annually draws hundreds of thousands of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A person who undertakes a religiously motivated journey to a sacred place.\" tabindex=\"0\">pilgrims<\/span> from 9 to 11 January.<\/p><p>The highlight is the &#8220;Fuku-otoko&#8221; (&#8220;Lucky Man&#8221;) race on the morning of 10 January: men run from the main gate to the main hall, and the first to arrive is named &#8220;Lucky Man of the Year&#8221;.<\/p><p>Imamiya-Ebisu-jinja in Osaka is the main shrine of the Kotoshironushi tradition and likewise holds the &#8220;Toka-Ebisu&#8221;, along with its own rites of the merchant guilds.<\/p><p>Other important shrines are Ky\u014dto-Ebisu-jinja, Kanda-My\u014djin in Tokyo (Ebisu as one of the principal kami), Mihogahama in Shimane, and the T\u014dky\u014d-Ebisu-jinja in the Ebisu district (which gave the district its name).<\/p><p>The Ebisu district in Tokyo was named after a brewery that introduced &#8220;Yebisu beer&#8221; in 1890 and named its location after the god of luck. The railway station, the street name, and the surrounding quarter carry this name to this day.<\/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-e789671 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"e789671\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-22ec1d2 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"22ec1d2\" 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\">Ebisu among the Shichifukujin<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-da78d90 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"da78d90\" 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 Seven Lucky Gods (Shichifukujin) have formed a firmly established iconographic group since the late Middle Ages (15th century), venerated in New Year&#8217;s images and as a joint shrine constellation.<\/p><p>Apart from Ebisu, these are: Daikokuten (Mah\u0101k\u0101la, India, prosperity), Bishamonten (Vai\u015brava\u1e47a, India, warrior protection), Benzaiten (Sarasvat\u012b, India, the arts and water), Fukurokuju (China, longevity), Jur\u014djin (China, longevity), and Hotei (Budai, China, contentment). The group unites Shint\u014d, Buddhist, and Daoist elements and is a key example of the Japanese <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Fusion of ideas or deities from different religious traditions.\" tabindex=\"0\">syncretism<\/span> culture of the Muromachi period.<\/p><p>At New Year&#8217;s celebrations, a &#8220;Takarabune&#8221; image is laid out in many homes: the seven gods on a treasure ship, which is meant to appear in the dream of New Year&#8217;s night. This tradition is documented in detail in the &#8220;Edo-meisho-zue&#8221; (1834).<\/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-7f64fb9 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"7f64fb9\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-769a68c elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"769a68c\" 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\">Rituals, Offerings, and Festivals<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b87db78 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"b87db78\" 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 most important festival is the T\u014dka-Ebisu on 10 January (with an eve and an after-celebration on the 9th and 11th), at which worshippers offer sake, sea bream, beans, rice, and small lucky charms (&#8220;Fuku-zasa&#8221;, lucky bamboo with small rice balls and gold coins).<\/p><p>These bamboo branches are handed out to the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A person who undertakes a religiously motivated journey to a sacred place.\" tabindex=\"0\">pilgrims<\/span> in exchange for donations and are set up in shops, where they are meant to secure business fortune for a year.<\/p><p>In autumn (20 October or a similar date, depending on the region) the &#8220;Ebisu-k\u014d&#8221; takes place: merchants then hold a banquet for their business partners and thank Ebisu for the past year.<\/p><p>At fishermen&#8217;s festivals along the coast, Ebisu is offered the first catches of the season. In the Edo period it was customary to set up an &#8220;Ebisu-da-iko&#8221; (&#8220;Ebisu lamp&#8221;) during the fishing season and to dedicate the first bream to Ebisu in the morning before it was taken to market.<\/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-7a5f6d5 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"7a5f6d5\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a66e6aa elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"a66e6aa\" 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\">Classification in the History of Religion<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b68bf96 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"b68bf96\" 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>Ebisu is interesting in <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religious studies<\/span> for several reasons: as a typical beach <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In Japanese Shinto, the venerated spirit beings and divine powers.\" tabindex=\"0\">kami<\/span>, as a central figure of the urban merchant <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The lived religious attitude and practice of a person.\" tabindex=\"0\">piety<\/span> of the Edo period, and as the only genuinely Japanese representative among the Shichifukujin.<\/p><p>Helen Hardacre and Bernhard Scheid have documented in several works Ebisu&#8217;s role in the development of Japanese business religiosity. Klaus Vollmer investigated the connection between the medieval Hiruko narratives and the oral storytelling tradition of Japanese fishing villages. Nelly Naumann analyzed the kinship with the beach gods of the Ry\u016bky\u016b Islands (&#8220;Niraikanai&#8221; complex).<\/p><p>Structurally, Ebisu has parallels to Hermes (Greece) and Mercury (Rome) as protective gods of merchants, to Poseidon and Neptune as sea gods, and to Lakshmi (Hinduism) as a goddess of luck.<\/p><p>In the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the gods of a religion or culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">pantheon<\/span> of East Asian gods of luck, his hard-of-hearing good nature is a profile of its own that distinguishes him from the grim power of a Bishamonten or the elegant grace of Benzaiten.<\/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-b37a11b e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"b37a11b\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-555376a elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"555376a\" 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\">Ebisu in Popular Culture<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e765de7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"e765de7\" 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 Japan, Ebisu is a ubiquitous advertising and brand <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A recurring thematic element in art or narrative.\" tabindex=\"0\">motif<\/span>: Yebisu beer (1890), the Tokyo Ebisu district, numerous restaurants, mascots, lucky cards, and comics. The round, friendly figure is a standard motif of the Japanese &#8220;Engimono&#8221; (lucky-charm genre).<\/p><p>In manga and anime he appears regularly as a supporting figure, and in games such as &#8220;Persona&#8221; and &#8220;Touhou&#8221; with his own manifestations. The connection with 10 January as a lucky day shapes the business year calendar to this day.<\/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-9b5737f e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"9b5737f\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d6242ed elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"d6242ed\" 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-298d49b elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"298d49b\" 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 (Hiruko episode). &#8220;Nihon Shoki&#8221; (720), Book I. &#8220;Engishiki&#8221; (927). &#8220;Edo-meisho-zue&#8221; (1834). Various medieval <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A small sacred place of storage or devotion.\" tabindex=\"0\">shrine<\/span> legends (&#8220;Nishinomiya-engi&#8221;, &#8220;Imamiya-engi&#8221;). &#8220;Saikaku Oridome&#8221; and other Edo-period merchant literature with references to Ebisu.<\/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. 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. Joseph Kitagawa, &#8220;Religion in Japanese History&#8221;, New York 1966. 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. Reiko Chiba, &#8220;The Seven Lucky Gods of Japan&#8221;, Tokyo 1966.<\/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-760a69e e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"760a69e\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f9f34d4 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"f9f34d4\" 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\">Ebisu and Whale Religiosity<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-15c0fca elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"15c0fca\" 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 particular strand of the Ebisu tradition concerns his veneration as a whale god in coastal regions where whaling was practiced.<\/p><p>In Wakayama, Kochi, and Nagasaki the whale itself is regarded as &#8220;Ebisu-sama&#8221; or &#8220;Ebisu-no-Maru&#8221;; in some village traditions a beached whale is <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Belonging to a fixed sequence of religious actions.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritually<\/span> received as Ebisu and interpreted as a gift from Ebisu to the entire community.<\/p><p>This conception belongs to the complex of the &#8220;Hy\u014dchaku-shin&#8221;, the beach deities washed ashore, and belongs to the oldest layers of Ebisu religiosity. Nelly Naumann documented the maritime deep layer of this tradition in several detailed studies.<\/p><p>In Taiji (Wakayama), the traditional center of Japanese whaling, there is to this day a whale memorial <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A sacred place dedicated to the veneration of a deity.\" tabindex=\"0\">sanctuary<\/span> in which the souls of the captured whales are <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Belonging to a fixed sequence of religious actions.\" tabindex=\"0\">ritually<\/span> appeased (&#8220;Kuy\u014d&#8221;).<\/p><p>The local Ebisu <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A small sacred place of storage or devotion.\" tabindex=\"0\">shrine<\/span> is closely connected with the whale <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of religious acts of veneration for a deity or sacred figure.\" tabindex=\"0\">cult<\/span>. This tradition stands in tension with the modern whale conservation movement and is the subject of religious-sociological studies of the Japanese whaling controversy.<\/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-29e45cb e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"29e45cb\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d62b7b4 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"d62b7b4\" 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\">Ebisu and the Urban Merchant Cult of the Edo Period<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-207f612 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"207f612\" 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 urbanization of the Edo period (1603 to 1867), the veneration of Ebisu shifted from the coastal village into the growing cities of Edo (Tokyo), Osaka, and Kyoto.<\/p><p>In this phase the urban Ebisu <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of religious acts of veneration for a deity or sacred figure.\" tabindex=\"0\">cult<\/span> arose, in which the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being venerated as divine within a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">deity<\/span> was understood less as a protector of fishermen than as a protective god of commerce and business piety.<\/p><p>The Sakai craftsmen and the Hokkaid\u014d rice lodges (Hatago houses) of the Edo period maintained the &#8220;Ebisu-k\u014d&#8221; (&#8220;Ebisu association&#8221;), an annual banquet on 20 October at which merchants, craftsmen, and business partners gathered.<\/p><p>Saikaku Ihara, the most significant Edo-period storyteller of the merchant genre, worked numerous Ebisu anecdotes into his works (&#8220;Nippon Eitaigura&#8221;, 1688; &#8220;Seken Munesan&#8217;y\u014d&#8221;, 1692) and showed how deeply the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being venerated as divine within a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">deity<\/span> had grown into the self-understanding of urban business people.<\/p><p>Over the course of the 18th century the &#8220;Ebisu association&#8221; became an informal economic institution in which business relationships were religiously ratified.<\/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-27ccdc2 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"27ccdc2\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-da3995b elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"da3995b\" 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 Festival Culture of the T\u014dka-Ebisu<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-21a88db elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"21a88db\" 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 main festival T\u014dka-Ebisu on 10 January (with Yoinomiya on the 9th and Zankyo-Ebisu on 11 January) is one of the largest urban shrine festivals in Japan. In Osaka around one million <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A person who undertakes a religiously motivated journey to a sacred place.\" tabindex=\"0\">pilgrims<\/span> come to the Imamiya-Ebisu each year, in Nishinomiya around 500,000 to the Nishinomiya <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A small sacred place of storage or devotion.\" tabindex=\"0\">shrine<\/span>.<\/p><p>The central <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A fixed, recurring religious action.\" tabindex=\"0\">rite<\/span> is the distribution of the &#8220;Fuku-zasa&#8221;, bamboo branches with attached gold coins, small rice balls, lucky symbols, and bream. These bamboo branches are set up in shops and are meant to secure business fortune for a year.<\/p><p>The &#8220;Fuku-otoko&#8221; race on the morning of 10 January in Nishinomiya is among the religious events in Japan that are most intensely observed by the media.<\/p><p>Male worshippers run from the main gate to the main hall (a distance of around 230 meters); the first, second, and third to arrive are named &#8220;Fuku-otoko&#8221; (&#8220;Lucky Men of the Year&#8221;) and receive gifts from the shrine.<\/p><p>This practice has existed since the late 17th century and is one of the few modern shrine festivals that are regularly broadcast live in the mass media.<\/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-953ea63 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"953ea63\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8b0194b elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"8b0194b\" 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\">Ebisu Iconography in Edo-Period Folk Art<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7bc483d elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"7bc483d\" 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 Ebisu <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The study of the contents of images and their meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">iconography<\/span> that is <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Belonging to the authoritatively recognized body of scriptures of a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">canonical<\/span> today, with bream, fishing rod, and eboshi hat, was fixed in the early Edo period and reproduced in countless woodblock prints, Otsu-e (folk paintings from Otsu), netsuke (belt toggles), and inr\u014d (medicine cases).<\/p><p>Hokusai and Hiroshige created several Ebisu pictures that found wide distribution in printed graphics. Japanese folk art has made Ebisu one of the unmistakable &#8220;Engimono&#8221; figures (lucky charms), whose image appears in the entrance areas of shops, on New Year&#8217;s gifts, and on congratulatory letters.<\/p><p>A tradition of its own are the &#8220;Ebisu-Ningy\u014d&#8221;, small cloth or clay dolls produced in the Edo period as toys and as lucky charms. The tradition lives on in the modern &#8220;Kappa-Tengu-Ebisu&#8221; toy culture and is documented in folk-art museums such as the Nihon Mingeikan in Tokyo.<\/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-08050f2 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"08050f2\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3e6a54d elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"3e6a54d\" 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\">Syncretic Identifications with Daikokuten<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-9f2845e elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"9f2845e\" 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>An important <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic study of God and the doctrines of a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">theological<\/span> constellation is the close connection of Ebisu with Daikokuten, another of the Seven Lucky Gods. Both are frequently depicted as a pair: Ebisu for the economy of the water (fishing, commerce), Daikokuten for the economy of the land (agriculture, rice stores).<\/p><p>In many Japanese households and shops, Ebisu and Daikokuten figures stand side by side as a pair on the kamidana, the house <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An elevated place or table for offerings and religious acts.\" tabindex=\"0\">altar<\/span>. This connection is significant in the history of religion because it establishes a deliberate complementarity in the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The scholarly study of God and of the faith of a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">theology<\/span> of luck.<\/p><p>In some traditions Ebisu is venerated as the son of Daikokuten and Daikokuten as his father; this goes back to a late Edo-period construction in which the Seven Lucky Gods were ordered genealogically.<\/p><p>This genealogy is not anchored in the oldest sources but has become entrenched in folk-religious practice. Reiko Chiba documented the developmental history of these constellations in &#8220;The Seven Lucky Gods of Japan&#8221; (1966).<\/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-8cec84a e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"8cec84a\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-479aa34 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"479aa34\" 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\">Ebisu and the Concept of the Marebito<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-74416e2 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"74416e2\" 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 religious-studies research of Origuchi Shinobu (1887 to 1953), one of the most significant Japanese ethnologists, placed Ebisu within the complex of the &#8220;Marebito&#8221; (&#8220;foreign guests&#8221;). According to Origuchi&#8217;s theory, Marebito are divine beings who periodically come from an otherworldly realm, bring <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The bestowal of well-being and protection, often in a fixed verbal form.\" tabindex=\"0\">blessing<\/span>, and depart again.<\/p><p>Ebisu, who as the abandoned Hiruko comes from outside and makes landfall on the coast, is a classic Marebito. This theory is admittedly not tenable in all its details in modern <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The discipline that studies cultures and societies comparatively.\" tabindex=\"0\">ethnology<\/span>, but it has lastingly shaped Japanese religious research and placed Ebisu in a broader context of the history of religion.<\/p><p>Joseph Kitagawa and Helen Hardacre took up the Marebito theory in several studies and pointed to the significance of the &#8220;foreign&#8221; and the &#8220;washed ashore&#8221; in Japanese religiosity.<\/p><p>In this reading, Ebisu is not only a god of luck but also a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A sign that stands in place of an idea or meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">symbol<\/span> for the possibility of salvation from the foreign, a conception of profound importance in the history of religion.<\/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-93068f2 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"93068f2\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-42b1639 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"42b1639\" 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\">Modern Branding and Urban Symbolic Value<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-04be4c4 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"04be4c4\" 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 peculiarity of Ebisu&#8217;s religious history is the intensive branding in the modern era. The &#8220;Yebisu beer&#8221; introduced in Tokyo in 1890 (the old spelling with &#8220;Ye-&#8221; was not modernized) is among the oldest brand names in Japan.<\/p><p>Ebisu Station, the Ebisu city quarter, and Yebisu Garden Place bear the name of the god of luck and are examples of the productive tension between commercial branding and religious symbolism. Similar effects appear in restaurant and business names (&#8220;Ebisuya&#8221;, &#8220;Ebisu-tei&#8221;), which are widespread in Japan and rely on the positive connotation of the name.<\/p><p>In contemporary popular culture, Ebisu is a recurring figure in anime, manga, and games. The friendly, hard-of-hearing good nature of the traditional <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The study of the contents of images and their meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">iconography<\/span> is frequently quoted in a parodic or ironic manner.<\/p><p>Despite the commercial and entertainment-oriented charging, the religious core of the Ebisu complex remains alive, as the annual mass <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A religiously motivated journey to a sacred site.\" tabindex=\"0\">pilgrimage<\/span> festivals at the T\u014dka-Ebisu show.<\/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>Ebisu, Japanese god of luck and of fishermen Ebisu is the Japanese god of luck and the patron of fishermen and merchants, to whom a cheerful, kindly character is attributed. Ebisu, with the full name Ebisu-no-Kami (also Hiruko-no-Mikoto or Kotoshironushi-no-Kami), is in Japanese Shint\u014d the deity of fishing, commerce, and luck. He belongs to the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":6163,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"Ebisu","_yoast_wpseo_title":"Ebisu: God of Luck of Japan's Fishermen | iWell Guard","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Ebisu is the god of luck for fishermen, merchants, and prosperity. 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