Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury [Connecticut]) 1903-1917, 1904-09-26
JAPAN's GOD OF WAR.
Bishamon, to Whom Prayers For
Victory Are Offered.
MOST vENERATED OF ALL DEITIEs

Japanese still Worship Him, as of
Old, Laying Their Rifles Down I'm
the Temples For HIS Blessing.
Strange Manner OF His Creation
Many Years Ago.
The Japanese have more gods than
they have fighting men, says writer
in the Chicago Record Herald And
they seem to take delight in manu-
featuring new ones on the slightest
pretext. But Of all the host of deities
there are seven that never change and
whose glories never wane. These sew
en- are the gods of luck. Every Japa-
nese child is taught their names and
attributes even before it learns to
walk.
They consist Of FukurokuJu. who
has an enormously elongated head,
typifying longevity and wisdom; DAT
k0ku, whose rice bales show him to
be the god of wealth and before whose
shrines, dotted here and there through
out the island empire, the poor Of the
land have been prostrating themselves
since before the Christian era; Ebisu,
bearing a fish, the patron of honest
toll; Hotel, whose pictures and idols
show him to be mild looking gentle.
man, with an enormous abdomen, a
bag on his back and fan in his hand.
signifying contentment and good MAJ
ture; Benten, goddess Of love, the only
female in the group; Jurojins with a
stag at one side and crane perched
on the other, the god Of the chase,
and last, but greatest and most ven
Grated of all. the mighty Bishamon,
god Of war, armor clad, with spear
and mace in one hand and his other
resting on the Pagoda Of Seventy
Domes, in symbol Of his prowess in
the capture Of great cities.
Bishamon's temples-that Is to say,
the temples of which he lis the princi-
pal enshrined deity number over
forty, and In addition to these there
are thousands OF wayside grottoes that
bear his idols. These are carved out
of wood, cast in bronze or worked in
papier mache; but, whatever their ma
terial and whatever their size, they
all bear the same unmistakable dis
torted countenance. Picture to your
self the ugliest human being you ever
saw, give him the added attribute of
an attack Of violent spasms and you
have the face Of the immortal Bisha-
mon.
Once upon a time-this may sound
like the beginning Of fairy tale, but
If you value your peace Of mind never.
tell q Japanese so--the goddess of the
sun and Schiyoto, god Of agriculture,
fell in love with one another, and for
years after that happy event the rice
fields yielded abundant harvests, and
all Japan was glad One day the god
of the silver sea met the goddess and
told her OF his love. Schiyoto swore
revenge. He took thunderbolt, filed
1t with mighty weapons, threw in a
golden signet that carried with it the
power to subdue the world and created
Bishamon out Of the heap. This was
in 1914 b. g. A century later all ia
pan gave homage to the new deity,
who by that time had both his creator,
the god Of agriculture, the goddess Of
the sun and the goddess Of the silver
sea In his retinue Of vassals.
His fame grew rapidly. Every
sword before being carried into battle
was laid for weeks at the feet of one
Of the idols. The wooden figures of the
god in every one Of the shrines was
hung with gems. Whenever the saw
age hill men were near village threat
ening it's peace and the husbands, IA
theirs and brothers went out to fight
the enemy all the young maidens Of
the settlement marched in troops to
the town shrine Of the Bishamon,
hung beautiful blossoms about his
neck and prayed that he might give
the victory into their hands.
AS the hill men had not neglected
the similar precaution of appealing to
the same god at his shrines up in
their Businesses he must have had q
difficult time deciding which way some
of the battles were to CO.
Today, over 5000 years after this
god was added to the many thousands
of deities already in existence, the
Japanese are still appealing to him for
aid Instead of meeting the enemy
with bows and arrows they are going
forth to battle armed with the most
modern weapons known to present day
warfare Instead Of fighting hill tribes
they are waging desperate struggle
outside of the limits of their own ter
ritory with power that few years
ago caused Japan to tremble at her
very name. And still they worship, as
of old, at the feet Of Bishamon, laying
their modern magazine rifles down in
his temples for his blessing and beg
ging him to direct their shrapnel fire
straight and true.
The Japanese all hold themselves to
be descendants OF their own gods, and
there are a number of mobiles who
claim kinship with Bishamon and
whose families spend part of their in
come every year in keeping his shrines
in order and offering up incense be-
fore his idols.
Bishamon is supposed to smile on