Kisshōten Explained

Śrīmahādevī (Buddhism)
Sanskrit Name:श्रीमहादेवी
Śrīmahādevī
Chinese Name:吉祥天
(Pinyin: Jíxiáng tiān)
Japanese Name: or
(romaji: Kichijōten)
Korean Name:길상천
(RR: Gilsang Cheon)
Tagalog Name:Slimahadevi
Tibetan Name:ལྷ་མོ་ཆེན་མོ་དཔལ།་
Wylie: lha mo chen mo dpal
Vietnamese Name:Cát Tường Thiên
Veneration:Mahāyāna, Vajrayāna

Kisshōten (Japanese: [[Wiktionary:吉祥天|吉祥天]], lit. "Auspicious Heavens"), also known as Kichijōten, Kisshoutennyo (吉祥天女), or Kudokuten (功徳天), is a Japanese female deity, adapted via Buddhism from the Hindu goddess Lakshmi. Kisshoutennyo is sometimes named as one of the Seven Gods of Fortune (fukujin), replacing either Jurōjin or Fukurokuju.[1] For example, in the 1783 edition of the Butsuzōzui compendium (reprinted in 1796), Kichijōten replaces Fukurokuju as one of the seven fukujin.[2] She is considered to be the goddess of happiness, fertility, and beauty.[1] [3] [4] Kisshoutennyo's iconography is distinguished by the Nyoihōju gem (如意宝珠) in her hand,[5] Kisshōten and the Nyoihōju gem are both represented by the symbol of the kagome.

When Kisshoutennyo is counted among the seven fukujin and fellow Fukujin Daikoku is regarded in feminine form,[6] all three of the Hindu Tridevi goddesses are represented in the Fukujin, with Daikoku representing Parvati and Benzaiten representing Saraswati.

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Wooden figure of Kichijōten. The British Museum. 27 August 2012.
  2. Web site: Butsuzōzui (Illustrated Compendium of Buddhist Images). Ehime University Library. (077.jpg). ja. digital photos. 1796. 14 May 2016. 10 October 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181010061804/http://www.lib.ehime-u.ac.jp/SUZUKA/316/index.html. dead.
  3. Web site: 2023-02-10 . Kichijoten Japanese Lucky Goddess of Beauty . 2023-03-01 . 10 February 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230210030230/https://mythologysource.com/kichijotenl-japanese-goddess/ . bot: unknown .
  4. Web site: Kisshōten (Kichijōten). Philadelphia Museum of Art. 27 August 2012.
  5. Web site: Neighbour-Parent . Mary . Kichijouten 吉祥天 . JAANUS . Atsumi International Scholarship Foundation.
  6. Web site: Butsuzōzui (Illustrated Compendium of Buddhist Images). Ehime University Library. (059.jpg). ja. digital photos. 1796. 14 May 2016. 10 October 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181010061804/http://www.lib.ehime-u.ac.jp/SUZUKA/316/index.html. dead.