Hinduism in Japan


Hinduism is a minority religion in Japan mainly followed by the Indian, Sri Lankan and Nepali expatriate residents of Japan, who number about 320,000 people as of mid 2025.

History

Hinduism diffused throughout East Asia via trade routes, and also through the expansion of Buddhism in the sixth century. There has also been significant transfer of Hindu-derived material native to China and South East Asia into Japan.
Hindu deities have been integrated into Japanese religious culture and several deities are worshiped for good luck. In fact there are many deities that are still worshiped in Japan which have long been forgotten in India.
Saraswati is arguably the most revered deity in Japan after the Buddha. She forms as a part of the "Seven Gods of Fortune", of which four originated as Hindu deities: Benzaitensama, Bishamon, Daikokuten, and Kichijōten. The last, along with Benzaitennyo and the female version of Daikokuten completes the nipponized Tridevi of Great Goddesses.
The Hindu god of death, Yama, is known in his Buddhist form as Enma. Garuda, the mount of Vishnu, is known as the Karura, an enormous, fire-breathing creature in Japan. It has the body of a human and the face or beak of an eagle. Tennin originated from the apsaras.
Ganesha is prayed to for health, success and good fortune. Many Japanese Buddhist deities have their roots in Hinduism and are still revered by many Japanese particularly in Shingon Buddhism.

Present situation

Hinduism is practiced mainly by Nepali, Indian and Sri Lankan migrants, although there are others. As of 2025, there are 63,472 Sri Lankans, 60,975 Indians and 273,043 Nepalis in Japan.
The few Hindu temples in Japan are as follows:
The Association of Religion Data Archives estimated that 0.07% of the population of Japan were Hindu in 2020.