Daikoku, God of Happiness

Date17th century

Label TextThe syncretic god known in Japanese as Daikoku is a version of the Hindu deity Mahākāla, a wrathful emanation of the god Shiva, incorporated into the Buddhist pantheon as a guardian figure, transformed in China, and subsequently introduced to Japan in the 800s. In Japan, he became associated with the native Shintō deity known as Ōkuninushi-no-kami and came to be counted as one of the Seven Gods of Good Fortune. He is commonly shown carrying a large sack in his left hand and a mallet in his right, while standing atop two bales of rice. In Ōtsu-e, he is often shown climbing a ladder to shave the large head of Jurōjin, another of the Seven Gods, who is derived from the Chinese Daoist god of longevity.

Object number49.250

Photo CreditPhoto: Beth Mann

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Deities & Demons: Supernatural in Japanese Art, October 20, 2022 – May 18, 2025 (on view December 7, 2024 – May 18, 2025).

Credit LineEugene Fuller Memorial Collection

Dimensions13 1/16 x 9 1/8 in. (33.1 x 23.1 cm)

MediumInk and color on paper with clay and shell wash