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INARI or Oinari or Oinari-sama
Shinto God/Goddess of Rice & Food
Messenger = The Fox (Kitsune)
Last Update = Dec. 18, 2005
Why the Red Scarf on Fox?
Inari, the god of rice, is a major Shinto deity. Closely associated with the Shinto goddess of food, Inari can be depicted in either male or female form. Inari not only protects the rice harvest -- s/he is also the patron of prosperity for farmers and merchants, especially those involved in rice production, foodstuffs and fisheries.
Inari's messenger is the magical shape-shifting fox, and a pair of foxes typically flank Inari's image in artwork of the deity. In modern times, images of Oinari have all but disappeared, replaced instead by images of Oinari's messenger, the kitsune (fox).
The Fox is Oinari's messenger (tsukai 使い)
Fox Guardians near Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine in Kamakura
Inari lore is quite complex and confusing. In early records, Inari is identified with Uga no Mitama no Kami, the Shinto goddess of agriculture, and also with a male counterpart named Uka no Mitama no Mikoto (the deity of grains, fathered by Susanoo?).
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Uga Benzaiten
Photo Courtesy
telemesse.ne.jp/
daikakuji/0.html
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Inari is also associated with the food goddess Ukemochi no Kami (aka Ogetsu hime no kami). Ukemochi and Ogetsu appear in the literature of the early 8th century. Despite their different names, the two share common attributes and are probably manifestations of the same deity. One tradition says that Inari was married to Ukemochi / Ogetsu. When she was killed by the moon god Tsuki-yomi, Inari stepped in to replace her as protector of the rice crop.
The situation gets more confusing, for depictions of Inari vary greatly. Pre-modern artwork depicts Inari as a bearded man standing on a sack of rice with two fox flanking his sides, or as a long-haired woman carrying sheaves of rice or riding a white fox (myobu). In modern times, Inari's female side has been bundled together with that of the goddess of fine arts, Benzaiten, the only female among the popular Seven Lucky Gods. The composite deity is called Uga Benzaiten.
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OTHER LEGENDS ABOUT INARI'S ORIGIN
Says "Japan as It Is: A Bilingual Guide," published by Gakken, 1990:
Formerly a god of cereals worshipped in Fushimi on the outskirts of Kyoto, Inari was later merged with the Buddhist guardian deity Dakini who was generally depicted riding a fox. This and the traditional reverence of the common people for the fox are probably behind Inari's close association with the animal. Miniature Inari Shrines marking sacred sites are common. They are distinguished by their smallness, bright red gates (torii), and fox figure or figures. Deep-fried bean curd, abura-age, is thought to be a favorite food of the fox. <end excerpt>
Dakini is a powerful Buddhist goddess from the Vajrayana (Tantric) tradition, who is sometimes associated with the Hindu goddess Kali. Called the Goddess of Life's Turning Points, Dakini is today worshipped mainly in Tibet, and she can come in multiple manifestations. Dak (Sanskrit) means to beckon with sound, to call, to knock. Ini (Sanskrit) is attached to word stems to indicate female gender. Another similar theory is that Inari was syncretized with "Dakini-ten." In Japan, Dakini-ten are the various manifestations of Dakini, and were generally associated with Daikoku-ten (Mahakala), who is considered the Hindu god of the Five Cereals (later becomes god of Buddhism, and today is one of Japan's Seven Lucky Gods). This dakini had as its "messenger" a white fox, and worshippers offer fried soybean curd at Inari shrines, for this is apparently the favorite food of the fox.
Needless to say, I'm confused. I am unable to locate any images from mainland Asia or Japan that might confirm this interpretation. Nor does my research into Daikoku-ten provide illumination. As Lafcadio Hearn himself has said, fox lore is "Ghostly Zoology."
For more details on Inari's dakini origins, click here.
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THE FOX SPIRIT
By the 11th century, for reasons hard to discern, Inari becomes intricately associated with the fox. In Japan, the fox is a legendary creature with supernatural powers for doing both good and evil. Able to transform into human shape (typically that of a bewitching woman), and to hear and see all secrets of humankind, the fox is Inari's messenger. Even today, fox statues are found in great number inside and outside the thousands of Japanese shrines dedicated to Inari (some 20,000 Inari shrines nationwide). Although the lore of fox magic was introduced to Japan from China and Korea, it originated in India. Nonetheless, the supernatural powers of the fox are not exclusive to Asia, for fox mythology exists -- quite independently -- in many non-Asian nations as well.
  
Inari Shrine (stone) at private home in Kamakura
Inari Shrines are invariably guarded by statues of foxes
FOX LORE (Henge or Shape Shifters)
Animals with the power of transformation -- for either benevolent or malevolent purposes -- are called henge. In Japanese folklore, the kitsune (fox) and tanuki (racoon dog) are masters of transformation, as is the Tengu, the bird-man goblin of the forest and mountain. Some say the fox and tanuki are only manifestations of the powerful Tengu, who is reverred as the slayer of vanity and pride.
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Demons and Ghosts by Yoshitoshi Tsukioka; New Forms of 36 Apparitions, 1889-1892, plate #30: The Lucky Tea Pot of Morin Temple; image courtesy of Nagoya TV at nagoyatv.com/ukiyoe/
Young aristocrat in fox form
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Kitsune, or fox, grow in power as they age. After a century, they grow a tail and gain the ability to shape-shift and possess people. The most powerful foxes are those who reach the grand old age of 1,000 (the so-called nine-tailed fox). When a kitsune gains nine tails, its fur becomes silver, white, or gold, and it gains the power of infinite vision. In Korea, a fox that lives a thousand years is said to turn into a kumiho (literally "nine-tail fox"), but the Korean fox is always depicted as evil, unlike the Japanese fox, which can be either benevolent or malevolent. Click here for more on the Korean fox.
Kitsune are renowned tricksters. In many Japanese folk tales, the kitsune appears in the form of a bewitching woman who seduces and tricks unworthy men or rewards and protects deserving people. In human disguise, the she-fox can breed with a man. Fox folk can also cast illusions, appear in dreams, and read thoughts.
GHOSTLY ZOOLOGY
The subject of the Japanese fox is so voluminous that Lafcadio Hearn has described it as "ghostly zoology." Below are just some of the myriad myths about this creature, followed by a list of resources for those who would like to dig deeper.
- Kitsune Tsuki (Fox Lunacy) means demonic possession by a fox spirit, and according to legend it occurs mostly in women. Indeed researchers at the Imperial University of Japan in the early part of the 20th century seriously suggested that the fox spirit typically enters women of the lower classes (those most prone to superstition) through the breast or between the fingernails (from p.94 of F. Hadland Davis "Myths and Legends of Japan").
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Nakamura Utaemon II as a Nine-tailed Fox; woodblock by Yoshikuni; from Charles Hovey Pepper collection
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Shape-Shifting Powers. While the kitsune's preferred shape is that of a beguiling female, the fox is not limited to human forms. It can transform itself into any natural thing (e.g., it can turn into a tree, a rock, water, another animal). In the story "The Meanness of Raiko," Inari himself assumes the shape of an enormous bloodsucking spider to frighten a mean but rich old man into changing his miserly ways. This story is a bit confusing, for Inari should not be transforming -- that is the work of Inari's messenger, the fox. Alas, the lines between the deity Inari and his messenger, the fox, have become very blurred. The Japanese have even build shrines dedicated to the kitsune rather than Inari.
The shape-shifting power of the fox is not perfect. While transformed, the fox is vulnerable to the same pressures and natural preditors faced by the form it assumes.
Nor can the fox fully hide its disguise. In many tales, the true identity of a she-fox is discovered by viewing her reflection in a mirror or in water -- the reflection reveals a tail ! Dogs are a better defense against the fox spirit, for a fox-woman loses her human form when spotted by a canine.
- Inari as patron of sword smiths. Munechika, a famous sword maker, was ordered to make a sword for the Emperor, so he visited an Inari Shrine to pray for help. As he prayed, Inari appeared and helped him construct a sword of superb beauty. (Story from a Japanese Noh play)
- Hoshi-no-tama (star ball). Kitsune closely guard a round ball. Those who obtain it can force the kitsune to help them; one theory says that the kitsune "reserves" some of its magic in this ball when it shape shifts. Kitsune must keep their promises or suffer a deterioration in their rank and power.
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Fox with Granary Key in Mouth
Photo Courtesy Angus McIntyre
Kyoto; www.raingod.com
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Why the Fox Connection?
According to Kasama Inari Shrine (www.kasama.or.jp/
english/top/no6.html)
In ancient Shinto, the "mountain kami" was believed to descend from its winter residence in the mountain to become the "paddy field kami" (ta no kami) in the spring, residing there during the subsequent agricultural season. Following the fall harvest, the deity would return once again to its winter home in the mountains in its role as the "mountain kami." All this probably took place at the same time that foxes appeared each season. As such, the fox naturally became known as the messenger of Inari.
According to
Tim Screech at mangajin.com
Once very common throughout Japan, foxes were nevertheless seldom seen since they moved at night; dead birds, broken fences and chicken's blood were the only evidence of their nocturnal passages. It may have been the difficulty of seeing a fox, or of keeping it in view for any period of time, which led to the notion that they undergo actual physical shift. A fox might skulk into the farmyards looking like a fox, but exit in an entirely different form -- as an old woman, a boy, a demon, or a princess. In Japanese lore, they live a sort of mirror image of human society, with fox lords and ladies, servants and laborers -- standing on hind legs, dressed in human clothes, and carrying out their mystic rituals by lantern light in the middle of the forest. To the end of mitigating the powers that these worrisome animals possessed, shrines were erected, and the fox-god, Inari, became the most popular roadside divinity, honored with a clap of the hands on passing by, or with a gift of flowers, sake, or fried tofu (aburage, believed to be a favorite food of foxes). Even today, it is common to see a little street-corner shelter with a ceramic fox image housed behind a grill, offerings carefully placed in front to ward off all dangerous eventualities. Foxes have to be placated, for they are potentially disastrous to the livelihood of the farmer. They are also constant and salutary reminders of the fox-like characteristics that lie at the root of human behavior as well.
The fox is sometimes associated with the concept of Kimon (a term stemming from Chinese geomancy, or Feng Shui), for the fox has the power to ward off evil kimon. Kimon means ominous direction, or taboo direction, and can be loosely translated as "gate of the devils to the northeast," or "place where demons gather and enter." The key concept is that the northeast direction is an unlucky direction, and very few houses are built with the entrance facing the northeast. The unlucky northeast direction is also sometimes referred to as "omote kimon," or outer demon corner. Feng Shui is called Fusui in Japanese.
- Inari Shrines. One of the oldest Inari shrines is Fushimi Inari Taisha in southeast Kyoto (est. 8th century). Some sources say there are more than 20,000 shrines nationwide devoted to Inari. Inari is celebrated in a Shinto festival during the first days of spring when cultivation starts.
- WWII (told by Kagari Ando). During the hardship years surrounding World War Two, people in the city of Kyoto held seance sessions to invoke the aid of Inari. A Ouiji-like board was made by placing Japanese alphabet cards on the floor. In the center of the cards was an odd contraption -- three chopsticks standing upright, leaning against each other, like a teepee, and inside the three-pronged conjunction at the top was placed an ochoko (drinking cup). Gathered round, those present begin chanting Inari's name. A question is asked (e.g., is my son still alive), more chanting to Inari, and then magic -- the chopstick structure begins to move, spelling out the answer my moving atop the alphabet cards.
- Kitsune no Yomeiri
When it rains while sun shines, people says "Kitsune no Yomeiri," which means Kitsune's Wedding. It is said that if you look carefully, you can see the wedding procession of Kitsune's bride in the distance.
- http://www.asianart.com/articles/rubin/
A black fox is good luck, a white fox calamity; three foxes together portend disaster. Buddhist legend tells of 'kitsune' who disguise themselves as nuns, and wear traditional robes (depicted in Netsuke figurines). Fables tell how the fox likes to appear as women. Stories tell that while the 'kitsune' is in such a guise, he goes about tricking and misleading men into seduction. When the seduced come to the realisation of the true identity of their supposed love, the fox disappears. Legends tell of how 'Kitsune' can hypnotize people and lead them into perilous situations. To do this, according to the tales, they illuminate the path leading to such disasters, and this illumination is known as a "foxflare" (kitsune bi).
 
Miniature Inari Shrine outside Raikoji Temple, Kamakura
Stone statue at Zuisenji, Kamakura
Inari, wood figurine, Tokugawa Period (1603-1867)
Courtesy Musée Guimet, Paris, where figurine is located
found at: http://www.inari-art.com/rel_myth.htm
Cry of the Fox (#13)
from One Hundred Phases of the Moon (1886)
by Yoshitoshi Tsukioka
www.nagoyatv.com/ukiyoe/moon/moon.html
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Below text largely from Inari Sho's www.inari-art.com/rel_myth.htm
 Uga no Mitama no Kami
 Ukemochi no Kami
 Ogetsu hime no Kami
Ukemochi appears in the Nihon Shokki (Chronicles of Japan), Ogetsu in the Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters), both documents from the early 8th century. Although they have different names, the two appear to be manifestations of the same kami.
Ukemochi, Ukemochi no Kami. Japanese Goddess Who Possesses Food. In Shinto mythology, the goddess of food. Also sometimes identified as Wakaukonome (Young Woman with Food) and is associated with Toyuke (Toyouke) Okami, the god of food, clothing, and housing, who is enshrined in the Outer Shrine of Ise.
She was killed by the moon god Tsuki-yumi when she offended him by vomiting large amounts of food. From her dead body emerged various animals (a horse, an ox, a silk worm, etc.), as well as rice, beans, etc. Her attributes are often absorbed into those of Inari.
According to the legend recounted in the Nihon Shoki ("Chronicles of Japan"), the moon god, Tsukiyomi, was dispatched to earth by his sister, the sun goddess Amaterasu, to visit Ukemochi no Kami. (According to the Kojiki, "Records of Ancient Matters," it was another brother, the storm god Susanoo, who was sent on the mission.) The food goddess welcomed him by facing the land and disgorging from her mouth boiled rice, turning toward the sea and spewing out all kinds of fishes, and turning toward the land and disgorging game. She presented these foods to him at a banquet, but he was displeased at being offered the goddess's vomit and drew his sword and killed her. When he returned to heaven and informed his sister of what he had done, she became angry and said, "Henceforth I shall not meet you face to face," which is said to explain why the Sun and Moon are never seen together.
Another messenger sent to the food goddess by Amaterasu found various food stuffs produced from her dead body. From her head came the ox and the horse; from her forehead, millet; from her eyebrows, silkworms; from her eyes, panic grass (a cereal); from her belly, rice; and from her genitals, wheat and beans. Amaterasu had the food grains sown for humanity's future use and, placing the silkworms in her mouth, reeled thread from them, thereby beginning the art of sericulture - the production of raw silk.
Myth:
"Now, the name of the third deity who ruled these "eight islands" (Yashima) was Toyokunnu. Having assumed the heavenly command, he divided the descendants of the gods into the three ranks of kimi (sovereigns), tomi (ministers), and tami (the people), each with its special role in the organization of the country. "Toyokunnu had a younger brother named Ukemochi. While Ukemochi was praying to Amemiwoya (the "parent deity") one day in his fervent wish to bring prosperity to the people, his wish was granted when hiyouru seeds fell to earth. The hiyouru seeds contained the spirit of the sun and moon. When Ukemochi planted these seeds in a wet field, they grew into rice seedlings. And when the first day of the eighth month came, the ears had grown heavy and yielded a rich harvest. Ukemochi first reported these glad tidings to his brother Toyokunnu, presenting ears of rice bundled into sheaves (yafusa).
Hassaku 八朔
The first day of the eighth month according to the lunar calendar.
"Toyokunnu in turn offered up the rice to the Amemiwoya and Ameminakanushi deities, and held a festival of thanksgiving. Then the rice was distributed among the people so that all could enjoy the blessings of this rich harvest. From this time on, the supply of food for the people increased and their lives became more affluent. And peace reigned long in the land. The people gave Ukemochi the popular name of Inari ("Rice Yielder") and his fame was passed down to posterity. From this started the custom of inviting close friends to share feasts and exchange gifts on the first day of the eighth month. This was known as the festival of Hassaku.
FROM http://www.riceworld.org/special/women/html/wmnjapan.html
In Japan, it is said that the first cultivator of rice was the Sun Goddess Amatereshu-Omi-Kami. She grew rice in the fields of heaven, giving the first harvest to Prince Ninigi. He was told to take it to "The Land of Eight Great Islands," or Japan.
But in the classic Kojiki (Record of Ancient Matters) compiled in AD 712, it is said that rice first came from the eyes of the Food Goddess Ohegetsu-hime.
FROM http://www.kasama.or.jp/english/top/no5.html
The great kami known as Inari was originally known by the name Ukanomitama no kami; according to the oldest collection of Japanese mythology, the Kojiki ("Records of Ancient Matters"), Ukanomitama no kami was the child of Susano no okami and Kamuoichihime no kami. The "Uka" in the name means foodstuffs, indicating the "mysterious spirit dwelling in the grain." In short, Ukanomitama no kami is known as the kami with jurisdiction over the five grains and foodstuffs, the life-root kami having mastery over the sources of life itself.
Devoted to this same Ukanomitama no kami, the Kasama Inari Shrine is one of the three largest Inari shrines in Japan, having been awarded the ancient court rank of Senior First Grade. According to the shrine's legendary history, Kasama Inari was founded in 651 during the reign of Japan's 36th emperor, Kotoku, thus boasting of a history extending over some thirteen centuries. Particularly during the Tokugawa period, the Kasama Inari Shrine received the devoted patronage of the feudal lord of the Kasama Domain, and spread its influence not only through the Kanto region but throughout all of Japan. At present, the shrine is visited by more than 3.5 million pilgrims each year.
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RELATED KAMI NAMES: Inari, O-Inari-San, Kodomo-no-Inari, Uga no Mitama no Kami, Ukemochi no Kami, Ogetsu-no-hime (Japanese food goddess), Lakshmi (India), Dewi Sri (Java), Ceres (Roman), Corn Maidens (Lakota), Yumil Kzxob (Mayan). ASSOCIATIONS: Protector of rice cultivation; patron of sword smiths; god of prosperity; patron of trade, merchants and rice farmers; associated with brothels and entertainers. SYMBOLS: hoshi-no-tama (star ball); pear-shaped emblem surmounted by flame like symbols (??); Cherokee word Inari means "gray fox;" English word for beautiful woman is "foxy" lady; rice wrapped in aburage (fried bean curd) is called Inari-zushi (Inari sushi), and is highly favored by the fox (and often given as on offering).
NOH MASKS
(L) Yakan. Chinese fox-like creature that climbs trees and roars like a wolf
from shofu.pref.ishikawa.jp/shofu/geinou_e/nougaku/4e/nougaku4-c_e.html
(R) Ko-tobide. The Fox Spirit in Noh Plays.
Mask used for the role of the fox spirit or demons in Noh Plays.
The She-Fox of Shinoda
Kuzunoha was a vixen who turned into a beautiful woman in order to marry the man who saved her life. Later, when her young son (Seimei) glimpsed his mother's animal form, Kuzunoha was forced to abandon her family and return to the forest.
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Courtesty http://www.illuminatedlantern.com/liaozhai/page4.html
At the age of fifty, a fox can change into a woman. At the age of a hundred, it can change into a beautiful girl or a wizard or a man who seduces women; it can know about happenings a thousand li distant; it can bewitch people, leading them astray and causing them to lose their wits. At the age of a thousand, it can communicate with heaven and become a celestial fox.
This basic outline of the powers of a fox comes from mythologist Kuo Pu, writing as long ago as c.324 A.D. Foxes in supernatural tales vary from being vicious and murderous, to having no evil intent whatsoever. They, like ghosts, have come to be seen as amorous creatures. But even more than ghosts, foxes can lose their inhibitions and become absolutely wanton in their desires. Even today, to say a woman is "like a fox" is to call her a seductress, a whore.
A fox disguised as a woman is usually beautiful and seductive, as a man he is usually handsome, scholarly, charming, and ready for a good time. Sometimes, the transformation is not so good, in that a tail may occassionally protrude. When discovered and killed, the fox will sometimes be seen to have a human skull propped on its head, and so through that was able to use its magic to appear human.
At times, the fox behaves just as would a female ghost, seeking the companionship of a human, causing the human's ultimate decline and death, whether intended or not. And in fact, sometimes a ghost and a fox may share the same home, in that a fox family may make their nest in a tomb. Again, as with ghost stories, there is the assumption that the fox spirit, being neither human nor animal, neither living nor ghost, seeks out living humans because it desires to share in the experience of a living being.
Foxes do not fear ghosts, with whom they often have a rivalry. But they do fear dogs. Sometimes, the mere presence of a dog is enough for a fox spirit to change to its real form. Many stories end with the fox being chased down and killed by hunting dogs.
In early tales, the ascent of a fox from its simple origins to becoming a shape changer to ascending into a celestial fox was simply a matter of great age; the older the fox was, the more powerful she became. However, in the later tales of Pu Songling, this changed somewhat. Now a fox could go on being what it was, inhabiting the borderline between man and beast, or it could refine itself, through meditation, abstaining from pleasure, sex, murder, mayhem, and so on, and so eventually become immortal. Therefore, the fox becomes something of a metaphor for the Buddhist ideals of striving to improve yourself -- improvement did not come by itself, but only through hard and constant effort.
Foxes often represent the outsider, the stranger, the barbarian. The Chinese word for fox, hu, is a homophone for the word barbarian. So the improvement of the fox may also be seen as a gradual cultivation of the barbarian into things Chinese. Sometimes, as the outsider, the fox spirit seeks marriage, thus gaining respectability. The fox family may go to great lengths to achieve this.
A celestial fox is sometimes called a "nine-tailed fox," because it has just such a number of tails. The nine-tailed fox appears in mythos from all over Asia. In Vietnam, a battle between the mythic founder of the Vietnamese people, Lac Long, and a nine-tailed fox led to the creation of West Lake in Hanoi, originally called the "Sea of the Fox's Body." In Korea, the celestial fox, or Goo Mi Ho, is often of a more vicious complexion, as the fox would first horribly kill someone and eat them in order to take their form. And in Japan, the fox spirit or kitsune arrived from China during the T'ang Dyansty (there is even a Japanese legend explaining that it flew over), where it joined the native tanuki (a shape-changing badger), and became an integral part of the national folklore. It continued to develop in its own style, until the kitsune was in many ways distinct from its original Chinese descendants. Kabuki plays, Bunraku puppet theater, and Ukiyo-e woodblock prints all feature the celestial fox in one guise or another.
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DAKINI ORIGINS - More Details
Below text courtesy of Esoteric Spirits
http://www.khandro.net/dakini_Japan.htm
There is not much concerning the Dakini teachings in the Buddhism of Japan, since most of the esoteric teachings brought to Japan by Kukai (a.k.a. Kobo Daishi) are of the lower tantra type, i.e. single form. That may be because Kukai left China after only two years of practice, and it may not have been not long enough for him to have received any of the higher Vajrayana teachings.
According to Kojien, the term "dakini-ten" is explained as a female demon who devours the hearts of the dead. This unbound spirit was believed to afford extraordinary powers to those engaged in the practice of "black" magic.
The White Fox
Inari are spirit or nature deities similar to the Indian yaksha. Their shrines are numerous and can be distinguished by the pair of fox statues that guard the entrance. One theory is that Inari became syncretized with dakini-ten. Dakini-ten were generally associated with Daikoku-ten (Mahakala) understood as the same as the god of the Five Cereals of Buddhism. This dakini had as its "messenger" a white fox. Worshipers offer fried soybean curd at Inari shrines, a food which is believed to be the foxes' favorite.
In Japan, then, the dakini is understood to be a fox spirit, a were-fox. At the shrine Chiba-Narita, there is a Dakiniten festival held in February.
Tamamo-no Mae is the Japanese name of a mysterious female tantric adept who at one time was the consort of an Indian king. Later, she became the concubine of Emperor Toba (1103-1156,) but she was believed to actually be a nine-tailed golden fox. When the Emperor suddenly fell sick with a serious illness, she was blamed. It is said that when her true identity was discovered, she sprang into the air and flew off to the Plain of Nasu where she was shot by the archer, Miura Kuranosuke. (Some say she was struck by the "hammer" of one of the gods.) When she fell to earth, she assumed the form of a rock subsequently known as sessho seki or the death stone, for any living thing that came into contact with it died.
" ... the play called "Tamamo no Mae asahi no tamoto" written by three playwrights for the puppet (joruri) theater and first staged in 1751. It was later revised and restaged in 1806 in Osaka, and it is the latter version that is better known today. ... a good synopsis of the play is in The Bunraku Handbook by Shuzaburo Hironaga, Maison des Arts Inc., Tokyo, Japan, 1976, pp. 369-373 ... .
Lady Tamamo is a nine-tailed fox who kills a young woman of the Emperor's court, assumes her identity, and gains employment as a lady-in-waiting. She soon becomes the Emperor's favorite concubine, but then later joins a prince who plots to dethrone the Emperor and agrees to use her supernatural powers to aid him. When the Emperor becomes ill, the chief astrologer of the court accuses her of having an evil influence and causing the illness.
Tamamo no Mae survives the trial, but later during a prayer to assist the Emperor, the astrologer cleverly uncovers her true identity. She then takes back her fox form and flees. During her escape Tamamo no Mae assumes various forms (a country girl, a masseur, a god of thunder, a man, a street girl, a courtesan, and once again Lady Tamamo).
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Kitsune
(Oinari's Messenger)
Photo
Fox at Tsurugaoka
Hachimangu Shrine
Kamakura City
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THE FOX. In the Shinto realm, the fox deity known as KITSUNE is often decked in red bibs. The fox is the messenger of Oinari, the deity of food, farmers, and the rice harvest. Oinari (also written Inari) appears in both male and female form, and is generally associated with various manifestations of the Hindu goddess Dakini, who in turn is associated with Daikoku-ten (Mahakala), the latter considered the Hindu god of Five Cereals. Here the symbolism is two-fold. First, rice is sacred in Japan, closely associated with fertility (the pregnant earth) and with sustaining life. Foxes must therefore be placated -- otherwise it would be disastrous to the livelihood of the nation's farmers and people. Second, the fox is associated with the concept of Kimon 鬼門 (a Japanese term stemming from Chinese geomancy; literally "demon gate"). Kimon generally means ominous direction, or taboo direction, and can be most accurately translated as "demon gate to the northeast," or the "northeast place where demons gather and enter." The fox, like the monkey, is able to ward of evil kimon, and therefore the fox, in Japan, plays the same role as the monkey in guarding the demon gate to the northeast. For the monkey, this is easy to understand. The Japanese word for monkey (猿 saru) is a homonym for the Japanese word 去る, which means to "dispel, punch out, push away, beat away," and thus monkeys are thought to dispel evil spirits. But there is no similar reason (that I know of) for the fox's ability to ward off evil. There are approximately 20,000 Inari (fox) shrines nationwide. Characteristics of Inari shrines are red torii (gates) protected by a pair of fox statues, one on the left and one on the right. Chinese concepts of geomancy (i.e., feng shui) are discussed here.
LEARN MORE
- Color Red in Japanese Mythology
- www.inari-art.com/rel_myth.htm
www.comnet.ca/~foxtrot/kitsune/
www.khandro.net/dakini_Japan.htm
www.kokugakuin.ac.jp/ijcc/wp/glossary/index2.html
members.tripod.com/~deanjones/inari.html
www.pantheon.org/articles/i/inari.html
www.pantheon.org/search.html
www.raingod.com/angus/Gallery/Photos/Asia/
www.sinister-designs.com/graphicarts/ghosts.html
- Japan's Fox of Mystery, Romance, and Humor by Kiyoshi Nozaki (Hokuseido Press, 1961). Out of print.
- Monkeys and Foxes in Japanese Folktales (courtesy Yoshi-Yoshi)
http://pweb.sophia.ac.jp/~britto/deekid/task17/yoshi17.html
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