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Sasthi, the Indian Brahmanical goddess, is a feline antly generally depicted as riding on cat. She is the bestower of children and she gives protection to them. There are several legends and stories regarding her origin. All the stories are more or less connected with her love and protection to the children. As for her iconographic feature, she holds two or three children in her lap and a few children stand around her. But she is a folk deity of Bengal and she is little worshipped in other parts of India. 1. Adhunik Japane Tirhbabhraman-o-Ekti Murtitattvik Samiksha, p. 140, P. 1-72,

-161Sasthi's counterpart in Japan is Hariti, who is variously known as Kariteema, Kishimojin or Kishibojin. She is generally worshipped by the mothers. She is the benevolent deity of the children. From the iconographic point of view Hariti should always hold a pomegranate fruit in one of her hands. Moreover, numerous children should stand around the goddess. Sometimes she holds a few children in her lap. There are different beliefs regarding the presence of pomegrante in her hand. One of these beliefs is that the fruit has five hundred seeds which symbolises the five hundred children of Hariti. Hariti waswitch and she used to devour all the children. But by the kindness of Boddha, Hariti's evil nature was changed and *ken she became a normal lady and then she was raised to the status of a goddess. She is also regarded as the accessory deity of Sarasvati. The representation of Hariti is very few in Japan. a One of the best representations of Hariti in Japan is to be seen along with a painting of Benzai-ten that appear on the back wall of a Zushi or miniature shrine (called Kichijo-ten ten Zushi) (P 1XXV||,Fig.1. ). The painting is preserved in the Tokyo University of Arts. In this painting, the goddess is seated on a dais with two children on her lap. Two other children are sitting and standing beside her. There is a pomegranate fruit in her right hand. Another interesting painted representation of Hariti can be seen in the Daigo-ji temple of Kyoto. Here the goddess holds in her right hand two pomegranates with the twig of the

" " 162. same tree. A number of children are seen surrounding the deity. The presence of children is, however, very common in the representations of Hariti in Japan.