| Benzaiten | |
|---|---|
Goddess of all that flows: water, music, arts, love, wisdom, wealth, fortune | |
| Member of the Seven Lucky Gods | |
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| Other names | Benzaitennyo (弁才天女) Daibenzaiten (大弁才天) Benten (弁天) Myōonten (妙音天) Bionten (美音天) Sarasabakutei (薩羅婆縛底) Sarasabattei (薩羅薩伐底) Sarasantei (薩羅酸底) |
| Japanese | 弁才天, 弁財天 (shinjitai) 辯才天, 辨才天, 辨財天 (kyūjitai) |
| Affiliation | Deva Gadgadasvara Bodhisattva (assumed traits of) Kisshōten (assumed traits of) Ichikishimahime (conflated with) Ugajin (conflated with) |
| Mantra | Oṃ Sarasvatyai svāhā (On Sorasobateiei sowaka) |
| Animals | snake, dragon |
| Symbols | lute (biwa), sword, cintāmaṇi |
| Consort | None Daikokuten (some traditions) |
Benzaiten (shinjitai: 弁才天 or 弁財天; kyūjitai: 辯才天, 辨才天, or 辨財天, lit. "goddess of eloquence", Benten, Chinese: 辯才天, Biancaitian) is an East Asian Buddhist goddess (technically a Dharmapala, "Dharma protector") Worship of Benzaiten arrived in Japan during the sixth through eighth centuries, mainly via Classical Chinese translations of the Golden Light Sutra (Sanskrit: Suvarṇaprabhāsa Sūtra), which has a section devoted to her.[1] Benzaiten was also adopted into Shinto religion, and there are several Shinto shrines dedicated to her.
As such, Benzaiten is now also associated with dragons, snakes, local Japanese deities, wealth, fortune, protection from disease and danger, and the protection of the state.
- ^ Ludvik, Catherine (2007). Sarasvatī: Riverine Goddess of Knowledge. From the Manuscript-carrying Vīṇā-player to the Weapon-wielding Defender of the Dharma. Brill. pp. 1–3.