| Name ▲▼ | Origin ▲▼ | Description ▲▼ |
|---|---|---|
| Goddess name "Guan Yin/ Guanyin" | Chinese | The goddess of mercy |
| God name "Hachiman" | Shinto / Japan | God of war and peace. A deity whose origins are confused. The name does not appear in either of the sacred texts of Shintoism, but such a deity was probably worshiped in the distant past with the alternative title of HimeGami or Hime-O-Kami. The cult center was on the southern island of Kyushu at Usa. In modern Shintoism, Hachiman originates as a member of the imperial dynasty. Named Ojin-Tenno and born in AD 200 to the empress Jingu-Kogo, he greatly improved the living standards and culture of Japan during his remarkable reign. The place of his birth was marked by a sanctuary and several centuries after his death, a vision of a child KAMI appeared there to a priest. The kami identified himself by the Chinese ideogram representing the name Hachiman, and thus the link developed. The site is, today, the location of a magnificent shrine, the Umi-Hachiman-Gu, where Hachiman has been perceived as a god of war. Soldiers departing for battle once took with them relics from the shrine. Hachiman is also a deity of peace and a guardian of human life and, when pacifism dominated Japan during the post-war era, he became more strongly identified in the latter context.... |
| Goddess name "He Xian-gu" | Taoist / Chinese | Immortal being. One of the eight immortals of Taoist mythology, she was once a mortal being who achieved immortality through her lifestyle. The tutelary goddess of housewives and the only female deity among the group. Attributes include a ladle, lotus and peach fruit.... |
| Goddess name "Ho-Hsien-Ku" | Chinese | One of the `eight immortals' and the virgin of the mountains, goddess of agility, immortality and mother reverence. Chinese |
| God name "Ho-Po" | Taoist / Chinese | River god. The so-called Count of the River, the deity who controls all rivers but particularly the Yellow River, and who is the subject of an official cult and sacrifice. According to tradition he achieved immortality by weighing himself down with stones and drowning himself. He received an annual sacrifice of a young girl until the end of the Shou Dynasty circa 250 BC. Also Hebo; Ping-Yi.... |
| Goddess name "Hsi Shih" | China | Goddess who represents the old virtues and feminine qualities of Chinese women. She also sponsors a nice line of face creams, cosmetics and perfumes. China |
| God name "Hsi shen" | China | God of joy. Fu Shen denotes a generic title for the beneficent gods of the Chinese. China |
| God name "Huang Ti" | Chinese | Astral god. Allegedly a deified emperor, the so-called yellow emperor, who rules the moving as distinct from dark heavens, the latter being presided over by the god PAK TAI. He is attributed with giving mankind the wheel.... |
| Goddess name "Hung Sheng (boly one)" | Chinese | Guardian god. A deity who protects fishing boats and their crews against danger at sea in the Southern Ocean. His role is similar to that of the goddess KUAN YIN. Little is known of the origin of Hung Sheng, but he was allegedly a mortal who died on the thirteenth day of the second moon, which falls two days before the spring equinox when the sea dragon king, Lung Wang, is believed to leave the ocean and ascend into the heavens. The god is propitiated with cakes made from the first grain of the year, on the fifth day of the fifth month and in some traditions he is seen as an aspect of the sea dragon king.... |
| Goddess name "Izanagi-No-Kami (his augustness the one who invites)" | Shinto / Japan | Creator god. One of seventeen beings involved in creation. His consort is IZANAMI-NO-KAMI. They are strictly of Japanese origin with no Chinese or Buddhist influence. Jointly they are responsible to the other fifteen primordial deities to make, consolidate and give birth to this drifting land. The reference, in the Kojiki sacred text, is to the reed beds which were considered to float on the primal waters. The pair were granted a heavenly jeweled spear and they stood upon the floating bridge of heaven, stirring the waters with the spear. When the spear was pulled up, the brine which dripped from it created the island of Onogoro, the first dry land, believed to be the island of Nu-Shima on the southern coast of Awagi. According to mythology, the pair created two beings, a son HIRUKO and an island Ahaji. They generated the remaining fourteen islands which make up Japan and then set about creating the rest of the KAMI pantheon. Izanagi's most significant offspring include AMATERASU, the Sun goddess, born from his nose and SUSANOWO, the storm god, born from his left eye, who are the joint rulers of the universe. Also IzanagiNo-Mikoto.... |
| Deities name "Junrojin" | Shinto / Japan | God of luck. One of seven deities in Shintoism concerned with fortune. He is depicted as a Chinese hermit and is sometimes confused with the god FUKUROKUJU. A small figure with a large head, he carries a staff to which is attached a little Book. By tradition the Book contains information about the lifespan of each mortal person. He is accompanied by a black deer, said to have been made thus by old age.... |
| God name "K'uei Hsing" | Chinese | Chinese god of examinations. |
| God name "Kuei Shing" | Chinese | God of literature. Believed to reside in the star constellation of Ursa major. Also Zhong-Kui.... |
| God name "Lao-Tsze" | Taoist / Chinese | God. Also known as the Most High Prince Lao, he is one of the three holy San Ch'ing whose images stand in a Taoist sanctuary. The tutelary god of alchemists. He is the founder of Taoism who, according to tradition was born with full command of speech, and with white hair, under a plum tree. His sacred animal is the water buffalo.... |
| Deities name "Lei Kung" | Taoist / Chinese | God of thunder. He heads the deities of the pantheon who are responsible for storm, wind and Rain and is usually accompanied by YU SHIH, the god of Rain. He appears in anthropomorphic form from about the beginning of the Christian era, depicted as a strong, youthful figure holding hammer and chisel. In drama his movements are punctuated by rumblings on strings and drums. Circa AD 1000 he becomes depicted as a bird-like being with a monkey face. The transition was probably influenced by the popularity of the Hindu god GARUDA.... |
| Deities name "Liu Pei" | Taoist / Chinese | God. The third member of a trio of deities with KUAN TI and CHANG FEI. He is the embodiment of the imperial ideal and he carries the seal of heaven's authority. He is con sidered to be humane and moderate. In art he usually takes a central position between Chang Fei on his left and Kuan Ti on his right.... |
| Goddess name "Long Mu" | Chinese | Mother of dragons was a Chinese woman who was deified as a goddess after raising five infant dragons. |
| Demon name "Lu Dong-bin" | Taoist / Chinese | Immortal being. One of the eight immortals of Taoist mythology, he was once a mortal being who achieved immortality through his lifestyle. The tutelary god of barbers. Attributes include a sword with which he conquers demons.See also BA XIAN.... |
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