Inari

Meaning: Harvest, Agriculture, Prosperity, Rice, Kitsune

The earliest form of Inari was as a god, or goddess, of agriculture. Of the thousands of kami revered in Shinto, perhaps none is as beloved as Inari. A deity of prosperity and good fortune, Inari’s cult spread throughout Japan relatively early in the country’s history. Inari can be seen as a kindly and beautiful maiden goddess. They can be a powerful craftsman with a hammer. They can be an androgynous bodhisattva, a withered old man, or even (most often) a fox.

Inari’s name shares part of its kanji with the word for rice, making it clear that the deity had agricultural significance from an early period. Inari quickly became associated with other forms of agricultural prosperity, however. They were soon linked with the cultivation of tea, another staple of the Japanese diet, and eventually with all grains and the products made from them, such as sake. Craftsmen of all types began to see Inari as an important deity in their own work. Blacksmiths, sword makers, and other metalworkers particularly embraced Inari as their patron deity.

While the agricultural deity had been associated with all the products made from grain, this new measure of success linked them to all the products made from metal. Weapons, tools, and household goods all became symbols of the prosperity Inari brought. As Japan became increasingly industrialized, the role of Inari continued to be adapted to fit the culture’s definition of prosperity. As Inari’s cult spread, the deity came to symbolize prosperity and good fortune in whatever form the local culture defined it.

https://mythologysource.com/inari-okami-japanese-spirit-success/