was a Japanese dragon

Japanese dragon

Japanese dragons are diverse legendary creatures in Japanese mythology and folklore. Japanese dragon myths amalgamate native legends with imported stories about dragons from China, Korea and India. The style of the dragon was heavily influenced by the Chinese dragon...

 and water deity

Water deity

A water deity is a deity in mythology associated with water or various bodies of water. Water deities are common in mythology and were usually more important among civilizations in which the sea or ocean, or a great river was more important...

.

The name mizuchi (from Old Japanese

Old Japanese

is the oldest attested stage of the Japanese language.This stage in the development of Japanese is still actively studied and debated, and key Old Japanese texts, such as the Man'yōshū, remain obscure in places.-Dating:...

 midzu-chi) is written with several Japanese kanji

Kanji

Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...

, usually the Chinese characters for jiao 蛟 "4-legged dragon" and qiu

Qiulong

Qiulong or qiu was a Chinese dragon that is contradictorily defined as "horned dragon" and "hornless dragon".-Name:This Chinese dragon name can be pronounced qiu or jiu and written 虯 or 虬.-Characters:...

虬 or 虯 "hornless dragon". Daniels (1960:157) notes that rain-controlling Japanese snake deities are sometimes called dragons, but cautions that for okami and mizuchi, "it is unsafe to deduce their forms from the Chinese characters allotted to them."

The Nihongi contains the earliest references to mizuchi river-gods, written once with the kanji 虬 and once with the Man'yōgana transcription mizuchi 水父 "water-father". Two contexts from the semi-legendary era of Emperor Nintoku

Emperor Nintoku

was the 16th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.No firm dates can be assigned to this emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 313–399.-Legendary narrative:...

 (traditional dates 313-399 CE) concern river engineering

River engineering

River engineering is the process of planned human intervention in the course, characteristics or flow of a river with the intention of producing some defined benefit. People have intervened in the natural course and behaviour of rivers since before recorded history - to manage the water resources,...

 projects that angered mizuchi.

The first (supposedly 323 CE) records a human-sacrificial victim who saved his life by tricking the mizuchi with unsinkable calabash

Calabash

Lagenaria siceraria , bottle gourd, opo squash or long melon is a vine grown for its fruit, which can either be harvested young and used as a vegetable, or harvested mature, dried, and used as a bottle, utensil, or pipe. For this reason, the calabash is widely known as the bottle gourd...

es.

Moreover in order to prevent the overflowing of the Northern river the Mamuta embankment was constructed. At this time there were two parts of the construction which gave way and could not be stopped up. Then the Emperor had a dream in which he was admonished by a God saying: "There is a man of Musashi named Koha-kubi and a man of Kahachi named Koromo no ko, the Muraji of Mamuta. Let these two men be sacrificed to the River-God and thou wilt surely be enabled to close the gaps." So he sought for these two men, and having found them, sacrificed them to the River-God. Hereupon Koha-kubi wept and lamented, and plunging into the water, died. So that embankment was completed. Koromo no ko, however, took two whole calabashes, and standing over the water which could not be dammed, plunged the two calabashes into the mid-stream and prayed, saying: "O thou River-God who hast sent the curse (to remove which) I have now come hither as a sacrifice. If thou dost persist in thy desire to have me, sink these calabashes and let them not rise to the surface. Then shall I know that thou art a true God, and will enter the water of my own accord. But if thou canst not sink the calabashes, I shall, of course know that thou art a false God, for whom, why should I spend my life in vain?" Hereupon a whirlwind arose suddenly which drew with it the calabashes and tried to submerge them in the water. But the calabashes, dancing on the waves, would not sink, and floated far away over the wide waters. In this way that embankment was completed, although Koromo no ko did not die. Accordingly Koromo no ko's cleverness saved his life. Therefore the men of that time gave a name to these two places, calling them "Kohakubi's Gap" and "Koromo no ko's Gap." (tr. Aston 1896:1,281-2)

De Visser (1913:139) concludes, "From this passage we learn that in ancient times human sacrifices were made to the dragon-shaped river-gods." Foster (1998:1) suggests this is "perhaps the first documented appearance of the water spirit that would become known popularly in Japan as the kappa." In Japanese folklore

Japanese folklore

The folklore of Japan is heavily influenced by both Shinto and Buddhism, the two primary religions in the country. It often involves humorous or bizarre characters and situations and also includes an assortment of supernatural beings, such as bodhisattva, kami , yōkai , yūrei ,...

, the kappa is considered more of a mischievous water sprite than a deadly dragon

Dragon

A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...

.

The second context (379 CE) similarly records using calabashes to trick a mizuchi and slay it.

This year, at a fork of the River Kahashima, in the central division of the Province of Kibi, there was a great water-dragon (mizuchi) which harassed the people. Now when travellers were passing that place on their journey, they were sure to be affected by its poison [flooding], so that many died. Hereupon Agatamori, the ancestor of the Omi of Kasa, a man of fierce temper and of great bodily strength, stood over the pool of the river-fork and flung into the water three whole calabashes, saying: "Thou art continually belching up poison and therewithal plaguing travellers. I will kill thee, thou water-dragon (虬). If thou canst sink these calabashes, then will I take myself away, but if thou canst not sink them, then will I cut thy body to pieces". Now the water-dragon changed itself into a deer and tried to draw down the calabashes, but the calabashes would not sink. So with upraised sword he entered the water and slew the water-dragon. He further sought out the water-dragon's fellows. Now the tribe of all the water-dragons filled a cave in the bottom of the pool. He slew them every one, and the water of the river became changed to blood. Therefore that water was called the pool of Agatamori. (tr. Aston 1896:2,138)

William George Aston

William George Aston

William George Aston was a British diplomat, author and scholar-expert in the language and history of Japan and Korea.-Early life:...

 contrasted the Japanese river-god mizuchi with river-dragons in other cultures, including Chinese Jiaolong

Jiaolong

Jiaolong or jiao is a polysemous aquatic dragon in Chinese mythology. Edward H. Schafer describes the jiao.Spiritually akin to the crocodile, and perhaps originally the same reptile, was a mysterious creature capable of many forms called the chiao . Most often it was regarded as a kind of lung – a...

, Indian Nāga

Naga

Naga or NAGA may refer to:* Nāga, a group of serpent deities in Hindu and Buddhist mythology.-People:* Nayan / Nayar/Nair people of Kerala Society* Naga people, a diverse ethnic identity in Northeast India...

, Aztec Tlaloc

Tlaloc

Tlaloc was an important deity in Aztec religion, a god of rain, fertility, and water. He was a beneficent god who gave life and sustenance, but he was also feared for his ability to send hail, thunder and lightning, and for being the lord of the powerful element of water. In Aztec iconography he...

, and Greek Gorgon

Gorgon

In Greek mythology, the Gorgon was a terrifying female creature. The name derives from the Greek word gorgós, which means "dreadful." While descriptions of Gorgons vary across Greek literature, the term commonly refers to any of three sisters who had hair of living, venomous snakes, and a...

.

The River-Gods have no individual names. They are called generally midzu-chi or water-father. Japanese dictionaries describe the midzu-chi as an animal of the dragon species with four legs. Hepburn, in his 'Japanese-English Dictionary', calls it a large water-snake. The difference is not material. … Rivers have their favourable and their maleficent aspects. On the one hand they furnish water for irrigation, and on the other they cause destruction and loss of life by their floods, metaphorically expressed by the serpent's poison. The River-Gods are prayed to for rain in time of drought. We hear oftener of their sinister aspect. (1905:150-151)

In Popular Culture

The name mizuchi 蛟 is used in Japanese popular culture

Japanese popular culture

Japanese popular culture not only reflects the attitudes and concerns of the present but also provides a link to the past. Japanese cinema, cuisine, television programs, manga, and music all developed from older artistic and literary traditions, and many of their themes and styles of presentation...

.

"Mizuchi" was a 2006 horror movie directed by Kiyoshi Yamamoto, known in English as "Death Water", though it is unrelated to the mythological creature as its title uses 水霊 (literally "water spirit") as a homonym.

The manga

Manga

Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 character Demon Eyes Kyo

Demon Eyes Kyo

Demon Eyes Kyo is the main character in the manga Samurai Deeper Kyo, a popular manga written by Akimine Kamijyo. He was ranked first in the 2002 Samurai Deeper Kyo popularity contest and has remained in the top in every other poll...

 uses an attack called "mizuchi" in his sword fighting style. Compare Japanese kōryū or kōryō 蛟竜 "rain dragon; hidden genius; Kaiten

Kaiten

The Kaiten were manned torpedos and suicide craft, they were used by the Imperial Japanese Navy in the final stages of World War II.-History:...

 torpedo".

Mizuchi is the name given to one of the end bosses of the game Neo Geo Battle Coliseum

Neo Geo Battle Coliseum

NeoGeo Battle Coliseum is a 2 on 2 tag team fighting game for the Atomiswave arcade board. The game features characters from several SNK and ADK titles. The PlayStation 2 version of the game has been released in Japan, North America and Europe...

, whom is a clone of the character Orochi

Orochi

or Orochi, translated as the Eight-Forked Serpent in English, is a legendary 8-headed and 8-tailed Japanese dragon that was slain by the Shinto storm-god Susanoo.-Mythology:...

 (who in turn, is named after another mythlogical creature), from the game The King of Fighters '97.

In the manga Omamori Himari

Omamori Himari

, often abbreviated as , is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Milan Matra. The manga began serialization in the May 2006 issue of Fujimi Shobo's manga magazine Monthly Dragon Age, and the first tankōbon was released by Kadokawa Shoten on February 7, 2007...

, the character Shizuku is a mizuchi.