Under the Ritsuryo system, the jugon hakase was considered indispensable for his spells, medical treatments of the sick and efforts to make childbirth safer, and at the same time, given the fact that the jugonshi were also casting Daoist incantations in order to ensure the stability and peace of the realm, jugon (the art of sorcery) was ranked among the 'kokka yodo' (arts vital to the state), along with astronomy and calendrical science.
律令制においては呪禁は病気治療や安産のために欠かせないものとされ、同時に国家安泰のための道教呪術を行う存在として、天文学・暦学ともに「国家要道」の学と位置づけられた。