Ebisu- Japanese GodDeity"God of Fishermen"

The Boneless Child

The first child born to Izanagi and Izanami was a failure. When the divine couple performed the marriage rite on the heavenly pillar of Onogoro Island, Izanami spoke first: "What a fine young man." Izanagi replied: "What a lovely young woman." But the female had spoken before the male, a reversal of the proper cosmic order, and the child conceived from this union was born without bones. The Kojiki names him Hiruko, the Leech Child, a creature unable to stand even at the age of three.

The divine parents placed the child in a boat of reeds and set him adrift upon the waters. Creation could not proceed from a malformed beginning. Izanagi and Izanami repeated the rite correctly, the husband speaking first, and from their union came the islands of Japan and the kami who would inhabit them. Their firstborn had already vanished into the current. The Kojiki says nothing more about him.

Reborn from the Sea

Later tradition refused to let the child die. Somewhere beyond the horizon, the boneless infant washed ashore. At Nishinomiya on the coast of Settsu Province, according to the shrine traditions that claim to mark the spot. The child who had been cast out grew strong, took form, and became a god of abundance: the smiling fisherman with a rod in one hand and a great sea bream tucked under his arm.

Not all traditions identify Ebisu with Hiruko. The Kojiki also records Kotoshironushi, son of the great land god Ōkuninushi, who was fishing at Cape Miho when the heavenly envoy descended to demand the cession of the land. Kotoshironushi's association with the sea and with fishing established a separate identity that merged with the Ebisu figure. Miho Shrine in Shimane still enshrines Kotoshironushi under Ebisu's name.

In fishing villages along Japan's coastlines, objects washed ashore, whale bones, driftwood, unusual stones, were sometimes venerated as Ebisu. The first great catch of each season was dedicated to him. He was the god the sea delivers without being asked.

The God Who Stays

Folk tradition holds that Ebisu is deaf, possibly a residual mark of his Hiruko origins. Worshippers at Ebisu shrines clap loudly and ring bells to get his attention before praying.

The deafness explains why Ebisu remains behind during the Kamiarizuki, the tenth month when all other kami travel to Ōkuninushi's assembly at Izumo. Unable to hear the summons, Ebisu stays at his posts throughout Japan. Local communities celebrate his continued presence with Ebisu-kō festivals during the month the other gods are gone. He is the one kami you can always find.