Billiken Statue ビリケン像

An American god in Japan?!

I first learned of Biliken on a visit to the museum in Nagareyama City which preserves a historic statue of the figure. It's a cute, elf-like creature with a friendly smile. Biliken was the invention of an American art teacher who promoted the figure as a good luck charm in the 1890s. At that time a spiritual movement took off, a blend of philosophy and mysticism with an emphasis on the individual's ability to make thoughts happen. Biliken was promoted as the god of the way things ought to be, adopted and enshrined in Osaka and other parts of the country, and then shelved during wartime. Although the Biliken fandom faded in the US and Biliken images disappeared, he still blesses folks today. I saw a few people bowing their heads when passing this roadside statue at the Tone Canal.