, formerly known in Shinto as Yahata, is the syncretic divinity of archery and war, incorporating elements from both Shinto and Japanese Buddhism.
The first mention of Hachiman is found in the Shoku Nihongi, which writes that offerings were sent in 794 CE to shrines of Hachiman in the event of conflict with the Korean kingdom of Silla.
In Shinto, Hachiman is believed to be the divine spirit of the semi-legendary Emperor à Âjin, who is traditionally said to have reigned from 270 to 310. à Âjin was deified and identified by legend as "Yahata-no-kami", meaning "Kami of Eight Banners", referring to the eight heavenly banners that signalled the birth of the divine and deified emperor, and is also called Hondawake (èªÂç°åÂ¥å½). His messenger is the dove, which symbolizes both the bow and arrow found in samurai banners associated to him where he is called Yumiya Hachiman.
During the age of the samurai, descendants of two samurai clans, the Seiwa Genji and , began to worship Hachiman, leading to nationwide worship of Hachiman by . His other roles include determining a samurai's fateâÂÂi.e., whether they are a success or failure in battle; controlling and protecting the martial arts; and proclaiming the victory of an army. This spread led to him becoming the tutelary god of warriors.
He is also the divine protector of Japan, the Japanese people and the Imperial House.
In the present form of Shinto, Hachiman is the divine spirit of Emperor à Âjin. An account in the of the late Heian period notes a legend that states Hachiman appeared in the form of a three-year-old boy in the Usa regionâÂÂpresent-day city of Usa, Oita PrefectureâÂÂin 571 AD to a man named of the à Âga clan and announced himself as Emperor à Âjin. Hachiman, as the spirit of Emperor à Âjin, is often worshipped in conjunction with two : HachimanâÂÂs and the spirit of Empress Jingà «, Emperor à Âjin's mother, in a trio known as . There are several shrines throughout the country that enshrine the trio, though many of them replace the or Empress Jingà « with Emperor Chà «ai, Takenouchi no Sukune, or Tamayori-hime, and the trio may have the added facet of being to pray to for a safe birth (such as at Umi Hachiman-gà «).
The exact identity of Hachiman's has long been the subject of speculation.
According to one theory, HachimanâÂÂs is collectively the three Munakata goddesses. The three Munakata goddessesâÂÂ, and âÂÂwere said to have descended from heaven to Mount Omoto in the Tsukushi Province. The three Munakata goddesses were worshipped by the mariners of the Munakata clan. It is believed the Munakata clan took up worship of the three Munakata goddesses due to Empress Jingà «âÂÂs success in the Invasion of the Three Koreas. The three goddesses appeared in the region prior to Hachiman, meaning they are also believed to be the of the area.
Other theories have HachimanâÂÂs as Tamayori-hime who was either his consort, aunt, or mother. Some also believe his is the consort of Emperor à Âjin, Nakatsuhime, as Hachiman and Emperor à Âjin began to merge from the Nara period to the Heian period due to writings in the and that present Hachiman as Emperor à Âjin.
Less common theories include the theory that she is Himiko (who is in turn Amaterasu) or that she is Shirayama-hime.
As Emperor à Âjin was already destined to become emperor before he was born, he has been called the , leading some to interpret the worship of his mother as being based on a combined mother-son worship. The Munakata clan which took part in the Invasion of the Three Koreas worshipped several which were enshrined throughout the region, such as the three Munakata goddesses, Sumiyoshi Sanjin, and Amaterasu. It is said that when Empress Jingà « visited Tsushima after the invasion, she placed eight flags () in dedication to the , an act which became the origin of the name (for her son Emperor à Âjin).
As Hachiman is believed to be Emperor à Âjin, he is also considered the ancestral ' of the imperial family. In the , it is stated, âÂÂThe imperial throne of Japan is given on the good offices of the Great Amaterasu of Ise and the Great Boddhisattva Hachiman,â placing Hachiman as a guardian deity of the imperial family second only to Amaterasu.
Emperor à Âjin has long been believed to be connected to the founding of the Konda Hachiman Shrine, and, in addition to worshipping at Ise Shrine, the imperial family worships their ancestral spirits at Hachiman shrines such as Usa Shrine and Iwashimizu Hachimangà «.
After the arrival of Buddhism in Japan, Hachiman became a syncretistic deity, fusing elements of the native kami worship with Buddhism (shinbutsu-shà «gà Â). In the 8th century AD, he joined the Buddhist pantheon as where his jinja (ç¥Â社 - Shinto shrines) and jingu (ç¥Âå®® - Shinto shrine of the Imperial family) were incorporated to shrines in Buddhist temples (寺 tera).
This merging with Buddhism can be seen early in history as shown in an record from 749, while the Great Buddha of TÃ Âdai-ji was being constructed in Nara, of a story claiming that of Usa Hachiman Shrine travelled in a procession to Nara where Hachiman spoke through her to announce he would support the construction.
In 781, the imperial court granted Hachiman of Usa the title of Great Bodhisattva Hachiman as a Buddhist protective deity believed to guard the country. This led to Hachiman being propagated as the of Buddhist temples throughout the country. Additionally, under the theory, HachimanâÂÂs was believed to be AmitÃÂbha. However, the Japanese Buddhist monk Nichiren claimed instead that HachimanâÂÂs was Gautama Buddha.
Beginning in the Heian period, Hachiman began to receive worship from warriors such as the Seiwa Genji and the Taira Heishi which led to the spread of Hachiman shrines throughout the country. However, when the theory became more widespread, Hachiman was depicted in the clothes of a Buddhist monk, resulting in him becoming known as
Because Emperor à Âjin was an ancestor of the Minamoto warrior clan, Hachiman became its . Minamoto no Yoshiie, upon coming of age at Iwashimizu Shrine in Kyoto, took the name Hachiman Taro Yoshiie, and, through his military prowess and virtue as a leader, came to be regarded and respected as the ideal samurai through the ages. After Minamoto no Yoritomo became shà Âgun and established the Kamakura shogunate, Hachiman's popularity grew and he became by extension the protector of the warrior class that the shà Âgun had brought to power. For this reason, the shintai of a Hachiman shrine is usually a stirrup or a bow.
Following the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate, the worship of Hachiman spread throughout Japan among not only samurai, but also the peasantry. There are now about 2,500 Shinto shrines dedicated to Hachiman, who has more shrines dedicated to him than any other deity except Inari. Usa Shrine in Usa, à Âita Prefecture is head shrine of all these shrines; other important Hachiman shrines are Iwashimizu Hachiman-gà «, Hakozaki-gà « and Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gà «.
Hachiman's mon (emblem) is a mitsudomoe, a round whirlpool or vortex with three heads swirling right or left. Many samurai clans used this mon as their own, including some that traced their ancestry back to the mortal enemy of the Minamoto, the Emperor Kanmu of the Taira clan (, Kanmu Heishi).