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Japanese dragons (日本の竜/龍, Nihon no ryū) are diverse legendary creatures in Japanese mythology and folklore. dragon myths amalgamate native legends with imported stories about from , and the Indian subcontinent. The style and appearance of the dragon was heavily influenced by the , especially the three-clawed long (龍) dragons which were introduced in Japan from China in ancient times.

(2026). 9781435703223, China History Press.
Like these other dragons, most Japanese ones are or
(2026). 9783836514484, .
associated with rainfall and bodies of water, and are typically depicted as large, wingless, serpentine creatures with clawed feet.

Indigenous Japanese dragons
The c. 680 AD and the c. 720 AD mytho-histories have the first Japanese textual references to dragons. "In the oldest annals the dragons are mentioned in various ways," explains de Visser, "but mostly as water-gods, serpent- or dragon-shaped." The Kojiki and Nihongi mention several ancient dragons:

  • was an eight-headed and eight-tailed dragon slain by the god of wind , who discovered the (legendary sword of the Imperial Regalia of Japan) in one of its tails.
  • or was the ruler of seas and oceans, and described as a dragon capable of changing into human form. He lived in the undersea , where he kept the magical .
  • was Ryūjin's daughter. She purportedly was an ancestress of , Japan's legendary first emperor.
  • Wani was a that is translated as both "shark" and "crocodile". 'bear (i.e., giant or strong) shark/crocodile' are mentioned in two ancient legends. One says the sea god Kotoshiro-nushi-no-kami transformed into an "8-fathom kuma-wani" and fathered Toyotama-hime, the other says a kuma-wani piloted the ships of Emperor Chūai and his Empress Jingū.
  • was a river dragon and water deity. The Nihongi records legendary offering human sacrifices to mizuchi angered by his river engineering projects.
  • Raijū is Raijin's animal companion and messenger that commonly take form of a dragon, qilin or komainu.

  • was a teahouse waitress who fell in love with a young Buddhist priest. After he spurned her, she studied magic, transformed into a dragon, and killed him.
  • was a dragon with a woman's head and a snake's body. She was typically seen while washing her hair on a riverbank and would sometimes kill humans when angered.
  • was a rain-god depicted either as a dragon with a snake on its head or as a human with a snake's tail.
  • In the fairy tale "My Lord Bag of Rice", the Ryūō "dragon king" of asks the hero Tawara Tōda (田原藤太) to kill a giant centipede.
  • Urashima Tarō rescued a which took him to Ryūgū-jō and turned into the attractive daughter of the ocean god Ryūjin.

Sino-Japanese dragons
mythology is the source of Japanese dragon mythology. Japanese words for "dragon" are written with ("Chinese characters"), either simplified 竜 or traditional kyūjitai 龍 from Chinese long 龍. These kanji can be read tatsu in native Japanese kun'yomi, and ryū or ryō in Sino-Japanese on'yomi.

Many Japanese dragon names are from Chinese. For instance, the Japanese counterparts of the astrological are:

Japanese Shiryū 四竜 "4 dragon kings" are the legendary Chinese Longwang 龍王 "" who rule the four seas.
  • Gōkō < Aoguang 敖廣 ""
  • Gōkin < Aoqin 敖欽 "Dragon King of the South Sea"
  • Gōjin < Aorun 敖閏 ""
  • Gōjun < Aoshun 敖順 "Dragon King of the North Sea"

Some authors attempt to differentiate Japanese ryū and Chinese long dragons by the number of claws on their feet. In 1886 Charles Gould wrote that in Japan the dragon is "invariably figured as possessing three claws, whereas in China it has four or five, according to whether it is an ordinary or an Imperial emblem".

(1886). 9783337977146, Norderstedt Hansebooks.
A common belief in Japan is that the Japanese dragon was native to Japan and was fond of travelling, gaining claws as it walked further from Japan; e.g. when it arrived in Korea, it gained 4-claws; and when it finally arrived to China, it gained five-claws. However, contrary to the Japanese belief that the three-clawed dragons also originated in China and were introduced to Japan. Three-clawed dragons were depicted in China earlier in history and were the principal form of dragons which were used on the robes of the .
(1999). 9780520218765, University of California Press.
When the Chinese dragons were introduced in Japan, they still had three claws. Three-clawed dragons were seldom used after the and were later depicted with four or five claws in China. Three-clawed dragons were briefly revived during the .

During World War II the Japanese military named many armaments after Chinese dragons. The 蛟竜 < 蛟龍 "flood dragon" was a and the 神竜 < 神龍 "spirit dragon" was a rocket aircraft. An Imperial Japanese Army division, the 56th Division, was codenamed the Dragon Division. Coincidentally, the Dragon Division was annihilated in the Chinese town of (龍陵), whose name means "Dragon's Tomb".

Indo-Japanese dragons
When monks from other parts of Asia brought their faith to they transmitted dragon and snake legends from Buddhist and . The most notable examples are the nāga ナーガ or 龍 "Nāga; rain deity; protector of Buddhism" and the nāgarāja ナーガラージャ or 龍王 "; snake king; ". de Visser (1913:179) notes that many Japanese nāga legends have features. "This is quite clear, for it was via that all the tales came to . Moreover, many originally Japanese dragons, to which Chinese legends were applied, were afterwards identified with nāga, so that a blending of ideas was the result.

Some additional examples of Buddhistic Japanese dragons are:

  • Hachidai ryūō 八大龍王 "8 great naga kings" assembled to hear the Buddha expound on the , and are a common artistic motif.
  • Mucharinda ムチャリンダ "" was the Nāga king who protected the Buddha when he achieved , and is frequently represented as a giant cobra.
  • 弁才天 is the Japanese name of the goddess , who killed a 3-headed serpent or dragon in the . According to the , Benzaiten created Island in 552 CE in order to thwart a 5-headed dragon that had been harassing people.
  • Kuzuryū 九頭龍 "9-headed dragon", deriving from the multi-headed Naga king シェーシャ or 舍沙 "", is worshipped at in Nagano Prefecture.
  • Gozuryū 五頭龍 "5-headed dragon" is worshipped at Ryuko Myojin Shrine in .

Dragon temples
Dragon lore is traditionally associated with Buddhist temples. Myths about dragons living in ponds and lakes near temples are widespread. De Visser lists accounts for Shitennō-ji in , Gogen Temple in Hakone, Kanagawa, and the shrine on where the Genpei Jōsuiki records that a Zen priest saw a nine-headed dragon transform into the goddess . In the present day, the Lake Saiko Dragon Shrine at Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi has an annual festival and fireworks show.

Temple names, like Japanese , frequently involve dragons. For instance, the sect has Tenryū-ji 天龍寺 "Heavenly Dragon Temple", Ryūtaku-ji 龍沢寺 "Dragon Swamp Temple", Ryōan-ji 竜安寺 "Dragon Peace Temple". According to legend, when the Hōkō-ji 法興寺 or 飛鳥寺 Buddhist temple was dedicated at Nara in 596, "a purple cloud descended from the sky and covered the pagoda as well as the Buddha hall; then the cloud became five-coloured and assumed the shape of a dragon or phoenix".

The Kinryū-no-Mai "Golden Dragon Dance" is an annual Japanese performed at Sensō-ji, a Buddhist temple in . The dragon dancers twist and turn within the temple grounds and outside on the streets. According to legend, the Sensō Temple was founded in 628 after two fishermen found a gold statuette of in the , at which time golden dragons purportedly ascended into heaven. The Golden Dragon Dance was produced to celebrate the reconstruction of the Main Hall of the temple in 1958 and is performed twice yearly.

Images
Image:Yoshitsuya The Fiery Dragon.jpg|'s grandmother rescuing him from a dragon, by Yoshitsuya Ichieisai File:Ogata Gekko - Ryu sho ten edit.jpg|A dragon ascends towards the heavens with in the background in this 1897 print from Ogata Gekkō's Views of Mount Fuji. Image:Kiyohime-Serpent-1890-Tsukioka-Yoshitoshi.png| Kiyohime Changes from a Dragon into a human woman, by Yoshitoshi Tsukioka Image:One of the daughters of the dragon king who lives in then bottom of the sea.jpg|The Dragon King's daughter, whose father the Dragon King lives at the bottom of the sea. By Utagawa Kuniyoshi File:2hoox07jieh31.jpg|Takenouchi no Sukune Meets the Dragon King of the Sea Image:Kuniteru Gozu dragon.jpg| slaying the Yamata no Orochi, by Image:Kunisada II The Dragon.jpg|The Buddha riding a sea-dragon, by . Image:Earthquake_Map_of_Great_Japan_1624_(Dragon).jpg|Earthquake map with a dragon surrounds Japan, 1624

File:Miyata Nobukiyo - Dragon Teapot - Walters 571162 - Profile.jpg|Dragon , Walters Art Museum

Dragon shrines
Japanese dragons are mostly associated with as well as some Buddhist temples.

Itsukushima Shrine on Miyajima or Island in Japan's Inland Sea was believed to be the abode of the sea-god Ryūjin's daughter. According to the Gukanshō and The Tale of Heike (Heinrich 1997:74–75), the sea-dragon empowered to ascend the throne because his father Taira no Kiyomori offered prayers at Itsukushima and declared it his ancestral shrine. When Antoku drowned himself after being defeated in the 1185 Battle of Dan-no-ura, he lost the imperial sword (which legendarily came from the tail of the Yamata no Orochi] dragon) back into the sea. In another version, divers found the sword, and it is said to be preserved at . The great earthquake of 1185 was attributed to vengeful Heike spirits, specifically the dragon powers of Antoku.

Ryūjin shinkō 竜神信仰 "dragon god faith" is a form of Shinto religious belief that worships dragons as water . It is connected with agricultural rituals, rain prayers, and the success of fisherman.

Dragons in modern Japanese culture
  • The Imperial Japanese Army Air Force gave some of their aircraft dragon-related names, for example the Kawasaki Ki-45 twin-engine fighter was called Toryu ( Dragon Slayer), the Mitsubishi Ki-67 bomber was called Hiryu ( Flying Dragon) and the Nakajima Ki-49 bomber was called Donryu ( Storm Dragon).
  • The Imperial Japanese Navy and later the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force named some of their ships after dragons. Notable examples are the World War II-era Hiryu and Sōryū and the modern of the Sōryū class.
  • The dragon is a popular figure in art.
  • Manda, the kaiju film character appearing in films produced by , is depicted as a Japanese dragon.
  • , a popular and franchise.
  • In the popular anime and manga series , The antagonist Kaidou has the ability to transform into a Japanese Dragon because of the power he gained from eating the devil fruit known as the Uo Uo no Mi, Model: Seiryu (Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon)

See also

Explanatory notes
Citations
General and cited references

External links

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