| relig. |
A general term for the kami of thunder, and by extension for rain (in times of drought). The deities are believed to manifest in the form of a serpent or child. The best-known is Ryujin the dragon-god, a Chinese and Buddhist deity who is worshipped in a number of Shinto shrines (see under Umi-no-kami). Another Buddhist deity karaijin or karaishin is the deity of lightning. In the Kanto area there is a tradition of erecting a shimenawa strung between green bamboos when lightning strikes a rice field, to record the beneficence of this deity. Various shrines are dedicated to the thunder or rain deity under the name of Kamo -wake-ikazuchi-no-kami. See Amagoi A Popular Dictionary of Shinto (Brian Bocking) |
