Fox Attraction (II)
This is a guardian fox at the entrance of the Inari Shrine (see Episode One). The photo was taken on 26 December 2002, a few days before the Japanese New Year day. The guardian fox was wearing a red shawl to celebrate the new year. Every year, thousands of people visit Inari Shrine on the new year day.
It is said that the Fox Spirit has great power but the force exercised by it can be positive or negative and is unpredicatable. It can bring happiness or destruction to people.
It is also said that on the new year day, people beg the Fox Spirit not to create trouble on them or their families in the new year rather than asking the Fox Spirit for benefit.
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2 comments:
More on Inari's fox:
1. I went there some years ago (in actual fact, on your suggestion). The route to the mountains was a very nice walk, gave you a fairy-tale feeling of being deep in the forest. The complete route was in the form of the letter "8", and along the route of the inner "o", there were hide-away houses (at the end of short diversions from the main route), presumably boarding houses for religious purposes (though many Japanese will not admit that Japanese Shinto is a kind of religion - a Japanese Buddhist may well affiliate with a Shinto shrine).
2. According to this sect of Japanese Shinto, Fox is a messenger of God (what the west called "prophet" when the messenger is in human form). Like other folk religions, the temperaments of these messengers of God are quite unpredictable. I would guess in older days, foxes in the area would zoom out from the mountains and took a chicken or two or even a small kid away. Messengers in other folk religions include raging rivers, water falls, wind-masters, other wild animals or the mountain itself. Particularly for Japanese, these messengers of God are usually good magicians. They can change into different animals or objects - including HUMAN ("Hence, are you sure you are really discussing the fox issue with a REAL Japanese??!!!"). For brevity, these messengers are sometimes called "gods". This explains why the Japanese pray that the fox spirit will not do any harm to them in the new year.
I guess "T" (whom you have met) is not a Messenger himself. I was actually warned not to visit Inari but, I believe you will agree, its fairy-tale feeling is irresistable!
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