Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: Kasunga, Kasuga
Category: Deer, Deity
The Myth
Kasunga refers to the deity associated with Kasuga Grand Shrine in Nara, whose sacred deer were regarded as messengers of the gods. The deer were allowed to roam freely through the streets of Nara and were treated with great reverence.
In 1565, the Jesuit missionary Luis Frois wrote a letter to a colleague in Goa describing Nara as a place subordinate to a shrine of the “devil” named Kasunga. He reported that Nara contained many deer, which he interpreted as idols of the devil. According to his account, the deer wandered through the streets as freely as dogs in Spain, and nobody was permitted to touch them. Anyone who attempted to strike one would supposedly be severely punished, while killing a deer could result in execution and confiscation of all possessions.
Frois therefore understood the worship of Kasunga and the reverence shown toward the deer as a form of devil worship. His description reflects the perspective of a Christian missionary who interpreted Japanese religious practices through the framework of Christianity and regarded non-Christian gods as demonic beings.
Other missionaries who visited Nara during the same period gave different descriptions. In 1565, Almeida described the deity as Kakunga and wrote that the god was believed to grant worldly honor, wealth, longevity, and other things people desired, explaining that these promises made the deity greatly worshipped. He did not specifically characterize the god as a demon.
Gaspar Vilela similarly described the worship at Kasuga Shrine, comparing what he witnessed to the worship of Baal, his priests, and their temples among the ancient Phoenicians. Vilela also recorded a rumor from Miyajima that a demon took the form of a deer in order to be worshipped.
Thus, the accounts of Kasunga preserve an early European interpretation of the sacred deer and religious traditions of Nara. The deer themselves were not originally understood by the Japanese as demons, but as sacred messengers connected with the gods of Kasuga.
Sources
Takahashi, Toshihiro. “カスンガ (Kasunga).” 新版TYZ 妖怪図鑑 (New TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia). December 31, 2019. https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1076296181.html