Benzaiten is a water deity and patron of artists, music, and poetry. She is associated with serpents and the sacred wish-granting jewel that can bring wealth and relieve suffering through eliminating desires.

She is sometimes depicted playing a type of lute or holding a white lotus flower; a symbol of mental clarity and pacification of greed, anger, and ignorance.

Benzaiten employs a hand gesture called Varada mudra to identify and invoke the deity's manifestation. The Varada mudra represents compassion, giving, and welcoming.

Sometimes shown sitting on a lotus flower, she is depicted on a lotus leaf as one who is in the realm of Bodhisattva; one who delays their ultimate liberation to help other suffering beings.