Jurojin
Overview
Jurojin, one of the Seven Lucky Gods, is a god of longevity who came to Japan by way of China. Sometimes depicted as sharing a body with his grandfather Fukurokuju, also one of the Seven Lucky Gods, Jurojin represents the Southern Polestar and long life.
Etymology
Jurojin (寿老人) can be translated directly as “Old Man of Longevity.”
Attributes
Jurojin is a syncretic deity, a combination of Chinese Daoist belief, historical figures, and Buddhist imagery. Appearing as an old man, he is relatively short, only 90 centimeters (2’11”), with a bald head and a smiling face. His spine curved, he relies on a staff, upon which is tied either a scroll that recounts the lifespan of all living things or a Buddhist sutra (sacred text). In his other hand he carries a fan. He is accompanied by several animals, including a tortoise and a crane, but his most constant companion is a deer. In the pre-modern world, each of these creatures was believed to live for hundreds or thousands of years, making them symbols of longevity.
Perhaps the most important symbol to Jurojin (and one he shares with Fukurokuju) is the Southern Polestar. The polestars in Chinese lore are important points where sages live, and Jurojin is said to symbolize and inhabit the Southern polestar.
Family
Jurojin is the grandson of Fukurokuju, another of the Seven Lucky Gods who is also god of longevity and the Southern Polestar. They sometimes are said to inhabit the same body.
Mythology
Jurojin has a long history in Japanese art and religious life.
Arrival in Japan
Jurojin has very little in the way of unique mythos compared to Fukurokuju. The god Jurojin is based on a historical figure said to have been a Daoist mystic during the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) in China. He was deified upon death, and the god known as Jurojin is a mixture of stories about this mystic as well as other religious figures. After his stories arrived in Japan via Zen Buddhist monks, Jurojin and his link to long life became important to Japanese art. Prominent from the Muromachi period (1337-1589) through the Edo period (1603-1868), many of Japan’s most famous artists worked on depictions of him, though this tapered off in the modern period.
Unlike many of the other members of the Seven Lucky Gods, Jurojin never developed independent worship, and thus is always revered in the context of the Seven Lucky Gods.
Other Mythology
Like Fukurokuju, Jurojin is an amalgamation of various Chinese sages and deities, including the Old Man of the South Pole, who more explicitly resembles the elder Fukurokuju. He also borrows from the Sanxing, star deities of fortune and longevity.
Worship
Unlike many members of the Seven Lucky Gods, Jurojin is always worshiped as part of this larger group. Thus shrines dedicated to all seven, regardless of who is included or excluded, are his shrines, and many are seasonally related to the New Year, when the worship of the Seven Lucky Gods is at its height. Where he is unique is that artwork featuring him is said to have auspicious qualities such as improving lifespan and quality of life, thus making him a popular figure in artwork from the Muromachi period (1337-1589) onward.
Popular Culture
Jurojin makes a number of appearances in popular culture:
In the video game series Yo-Kai Watch!, Jurojin is one of the Seven Gods of Fortune.
The mobile video game Jurojin: Immortal Ninja bears his name.
The British experimental rock band Jurojin bears his name as well.
In the novel and anime series Uchouten Kazoku, Jurojin is a minor character.