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Fukurokuju
 
 
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In Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
, Fukurokuju (from Japanese
Japanese language

IPA: [n?iho?go] is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is related to the Ryukyuan languages....
 fuku, "happiness"; roku, "wealth"; and ju, "longevity") is one of the Seven Lucky Gods
Seven Lucky Gods

The , commonly referred to in English language as the Seven Lucky Gods, refer to the seven gods of good fortune in Japanese mythology and Japanese folklore....
 in Japanese mythology
Japanese mythology

Japanese mythology is a system of beliefs that embraces Shinto and Buddhist traditions as well as agriculture-based folk religion. The Shinto pantheon alone consists of an uncountable number of kami ....
. It has been theorized that he is a Japanese assimilation
Cultural assimilation

Cultural assimilation is when an individual or individuals adopts some or all aspects of a dominant culture . Cultural assimilation is a process of socialization....
 of the Chinese Three Star Gods (either Fuk, Luk and Sau or Fu, Lu and Shou) embodied in one god. Most related in appearance to the Chinese star god Sau or Shou, he is the God of wisdom and longevity
Longevity

The word longevity is sometimes used as a synonym for "life expectancy" in demography. However, this is not the most popular or accepted definition....
. According to some, before attaining divinity, he was a Chinese hermit of the Sung Dynasty and a reincarnation of the Taoist god Hsuan-Wu.






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Encyclopedia


In Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
, Fukurokuju (from Japanese
Japanese language

IPA: [n?iho?go] is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is related to the Ryukyuan languages....
 fuku, "happiness"; roku, "wealth"; and ju, "longevity") is one of the Seven Lucky Gods
Seven Lucky Gods

The , commonly referred to in English language as the Seven Lucky Gods, refer to the seven gods of good fortune in Japanese mythology and Japanese folklore....
 in Japanese mythology
Japanese mythology

Japanese mythology is a system of beliefs that embraces Shinto and Buddhist traditions as well as agriculture-based folk religion. The Shinto pantheon alone consists of an uncountable number of kami ....
. It has been theorized that he is a Japanese assimilation
Cultural assimilation

Cultural assimilation is when an individual or individuals adopts some or all aspects of a dominant culture . Cultural assimilation is a process of socialization....
 of the Chinese Three Star Gods (either Fuk, Luk and Sau or Fu, Lu and Shou) embodied in one god. Most related in appearance to the Chinese star god Sau or Shou, he is the God of wisdom and longevity
Longevity

The word longevity is sometimes used as a synonym for "life expectancy" in demography. However, this is not the most popular or accepted definition....
. According to some, before attaining divinity, he was a Chinese hermit of the Sung Dynasty and a reincarnation of the Taoist god Hsuan-Wu. It is said that during his human incarnation, he was a sennin
Sennin

The Japanese term sennin is a loanword from Chinese xianr?n ?? "immortal person", known also as xian "immortal; transcendent; genie; mage; jdinn; sage; hermit" in Daoism....
; a philosopher who could exist without eating food.

He is sometimes confused with Juroujin
Juroujin

In Japan, Juroujin , also known as Gama, is one of the Seven Gods of Fortune or Shichi-fuku-jin, according to Taoist beliefs. He is the God of longevity....
, who by some accounts is Fukurokuju's grandson and by other accounts inhabits the same body as Fukurokuju.

Usually portrayed as being bald, with long whiskers, he is said to be an incarnation of the Southern Polestar
Pole star

A pole star is a visible star, especially a prominent one, that is approximately aligned with the Earth's axis of rotation; that is, a star whose apparent position is close to one of the celestial poles, and which lies directly overhead when viewed from the Earth's North Pole or South Pole....
. In many depictions, Fukurokuju has an abnormally high forehead
Forehead

In human anatomy, the forehead or brow is the bony part of the head above the eyes....
. The sacred book tied to his staff either contains the lifespan of every person on earth or a magical scripture. He is accompanied by a crane
Crane (bird)

Cranes are large, long-legged and long-necked birds of the order Gruiformes, and family Gruidae. Unlike the similar-looking but unrelated herons, cranes fly with necks outstretched, not pulled back....
 and a turtle
Turtle

Turtles are reptiles of the Order Testudines , most of whose body is shielded by a special bone or cartilage animal shell developed from their ribs....
, which are considered to be symbols of longevity. He is also sometimes accompanied by a black deer
Deer

Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae . A number of broadly similar animals from related families within the order even-toed ungulate are often also called deer....
 (ancient legends say a deer turns black if it is over 2000 years old).

He is the only member of the Seven Lucky Gods credited with the ability to revive the dead.

See also

  • Three Star Gods