Tenjin (kami)
| Tenjin | |
|---|---|
Academics, scholarship, learning | |
Ukiyo-e by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi depicting Sugawara no Michizane as the Tenjin (kami of thunder). After Sugawara no Michizane's death, lightning struck the palace, killing and injuring many of the powerful people involved in his banishment, and Sugawara no Michizane was enshrined in the Tenmangū (Shinto shrines) as the Tenjin. | |
| Other names | Tenjinsama Sugawara no Michizane |
| Affiliation | Shinto |
| Animals | Bull |
| Age | 58 (845 – 903 AD) |
| Tree | Ume |
| Gender | Male |
| Region | Fukuoka |
| Ethnic group | Japanese |
In the Shinto religion of Japan, Tenjin (天神), also called Tenman Daijizai Tenjin (天満大自在天神), is the patron kami (deity) of academics, scholarship, of learning, and of the intelligentsia.
Tenjin is the deification of Sugawara no Michizane (845–903), the famous scholar, poet and politician of the Heian period.
Ten (天) means sky or heaven, and jin (神) means god or deity.