Meet the guardian of the Tone Unga!

You may be familiar with the famous golden Billiken statue at Tsutenkaku Tower in Osaka, but have you met the silver Billiken in Nagareyama?

Nicknamed “Billiken-san” by the locals, the Silver Billiken is a statue of the god of “things as they ought to be,” and is the guardian of the Tone Unga area.

The original statue was built back in 1913, but was vandalized in 2018, and was taken down for repairs. While this statue was being restored, the golden Billiken of Osaka was sent as a “pinch hitter” to protect the canal area.

The current second-generation Billiken statue that sits here today, is painted silver to honor this history, which symbolizes the idea that “if there’s a golden Billiken guards the West (Osaka), there should be a silver Billiken that guards the East (Nagareyama)!” The friendship between these two statues continues to this day!

If you rub his feet, he may grant you with good luck as a thank you, because his arms are too short to reach his feet on his own!