Deity of shinbutsu shūgō (kami–buddha syncretism)
Kasuga Daimyōjin
春日大明神
At Kasuga Taisha, prayers for good fortune and warding off misfortune are offered, and the shrine also introduces the faith of "Kashima-dachi," named for the safe arrival of the kami from Kashima. Kasuga Daimyōjin among the Thirty Guardian Kami is linked with the Kasuga faith of Mount Mikasa in Nara.
This introduction is based on materials published by shrines, temples, and schools, starting with Shōhōin. It is summarized within the scope of the beliefs and traditions those materials convey, and does not present explanations or customs common to all schools, shrines, and temples.
English pages are the site’s own translations of its Japanese pages. The sources cited are in Japanese. 日本語で読む
The kami of Kasuga, who brings good fortune, wards off misfortune and watches over departures
At Kasuga Taisha, prayers for good fortune and warding off misfortune are offered, and the shrine also introduces the faith of "Kashima-dachi," named for the safe arrival of the kami from Kashima. Kasuga Daimyōjin among the Thirty Guardian Kami is linked with the Kasuga faith of Mount Mikasa in Nara.
Source: 春日大社・日蓮宗 光瑞山本立寺
Riding a white deer to Mount Mikasa
Kasuga Taisha tells that Takemikazuchi no Mikoto, the kami of the First Sanctuary, came from Kashima riding a white deer and descended on Ukigumo-no-mine of Mount Mikasa. It is a story related to the faith that cherishes the deer of Kasuga as messengers of the kami.
Source: 春日大社
Guarding one day at a time in turn: the faith of the Thirty Guardian Kami
The Thirty Guardian Kami (Sanjū Banjin) are a faith, combining kami and buddhas, in which thirty kami divide the days among themselves to protect the country and the Buddhist teaching. In Shōhōin's list, each kami is assigned a day from the first to the thirtieth. It is a grouping handed down in the Tendai and Nichiren lineages and others, and it needs to be distinguished from present-day explanations of the enshrined kami at shrines of the same name and from historical views about the original buddhas (honjibutsu).
Source: 飛不動尊 正宝院
Kami who come to hear the sutras — the origin story told by Shinjō-ji
Shinjō-ji, a temple of the Nichiren school, introduces a tradition that while Nichiren Shōnin was reading the Lotus Sutra on Mount Hiei, a different person visited him each day and revealed himself to be one of the Thirty Guardian Kami. This is the origin story of "the Thirty Guardian Kami who protect the Lotus Sutra" as taught by that temple. This site does not treat it as a historical event shared by all faith in the Thirty Guardian Kami.
Source: 日蓮宗 玉蓮山真成寺
Protection in turns that supports daily faith
Shinjō-ji introduces the Thirty Guardian Kami as guardian deities, combining kami and buddhas, who divide their duty by the day. What the temple values is the faith that they protect the Lotus Sutra and the people who believe in its teaching. This explanation is for learning their role as the Thirty Guardian Kami, in addition to the divine virtues handed down at each shrine.
Source: 日蓮宗 玉蓮山真成寺
Related kami and buddhas
Sources (in Japanese)
- 飛不動尊 正宝院「仏様の世界：春日大明神」（2026-10-14 確認）
- 飛不動尊 正宝院「仏様の世界：目次」（2026-10-14 確認）
- 春日大社「ご祈祷」（2026-10-15 確認）
- 日蓮宗 光瑞山本立寺「三十番神堂」（2026-10-15 確認）
- 春日大社「御蓋山浮雲峰遙拝所」（2026-10-15 確認）
- 飛不動尊 正宝院「仏様の世界：三十番神」（2026-10-14 確認）
- 日蓮宗 玉蓮山真成寺「三十番神様」（2026-10-15 確認）