Inari and her fox spirits help the blacksmith Munechika forge the blade ko-kitsune-maru (Little Fox) in the late 10th century. This legend is the subject of the noh drama Sanjo Kokaji.

Inari (Japanese: 稲荷; also Oinari) is the Japanese kami (deity) of fertility, rice, agriculture, foxes, industry, and worldly success. Inari is represented as male, female, or androgynous, is sometimes conceived of as a collective of three or five individual kami, and is a popular figure in both Shinto and Buddhist beliefs in Japan. Inari's foxes, or kitsune, are pure white and act as her messengers. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1573x2227, 692 KB) File links The following pages link to this file: Katana ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1573x2227, 692 KB) File links The following pages link to this file: Katana ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... “Megami” redirects here. ... Fertility is a measure of reproduction: the number of children born per couple, person or population. ... Species Oryza glaberrima Oryza sativa Brown basmati rice Terrace of paddy fields in Yunnan Province, southern China. ... This article is about the animal. ... If referring to a flower, see disambiguation under bisexual Androgyny is the state of indeterminate gender, or characteristics of gender. ... Shinto ) is the native religion of Japan and was once its state religion. ... This article needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ... Prince Hanzoku terrorized by a nine-tailed fox. ...

Depiction

Inari appears to a warrior. This portrayal of Inari shows the influence of Dakiniten concepts from Buddhism.

Inari has been depicted both as male and as female. The most popular representations of Inari, according to scholar Karen Ann Smyers, are an old man carrying rice, a young female food goddess, and an androgynous boddhisatva.^[1] No one view is correct; the preferred gender of depiction varies according to regional traditions and individual beliefs.^[1] Because of his close association with kitsune, Inari is sometimes portrayed as a fox; however, although this belief is widespread, both Shinto and Buddhist priests discourage it.^[1] Inari also appears in the form of a snake or dragon, and one folktale has him appear to a wicked man in the shape of a monstrous spider as a way of teaching him a lesson. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1841x2621, 1487 KB) Source: http://visipix. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1841x2621, 1487 KB) Source: http://visipix. ... This article needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ... Prince Siddhartha Gautama as a bodhisattva, before becoming a Buddha. ... Folklore is the ethnographic concept of the tales, legends, or superstitions current among a particular ethnic population, a part of the oral history of a particular culture. ... Diversity 111 families, 40,000 species Suborders Mesothelae Mygalomorphae Araneomorphae  See table of families Closeup image of a Wolf Spider Wikispecies has information related to: Spiders Spiders are predatory invertebrate animals that have two body segments, eight legs, no chewing mouth parts and no wings. ...

Inari is sometimes identified with other mythological figures. Some scholars suggest that Inari is the figure known in classical Japanese mythology as Ukanomitama or the Kojiki's Ōgetsu-Hime; others suggest Inari is the same figure as Toyouke. Some take Inari to be identical to any grain kami.^[2][3] Japanese mythology is a very complex system of beliefs that embraces Shinto and Buddhist traditions as well as agriculture-based folk religion. ... Kojiki or Furukotofumi (古事記), also known in English as the Records of Ancient Matters, is the oldest surviving historical book recounting events of ancient earth in the Japanese language. ...

Inari's female aspect is often identified or conflated with Dakiniten, a Buddhist deity who is a Japanese transformation of the Indian dakini,^[4] or with Benzaiten of the Seven Lucky Gods.^[5] Dakiniten is portrayed as a female or androgynous boddhisatva riding a flying white fox.^[4] A replica of an ancient statue found among the ruins of a temple at Sarnath Buddhism is a philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama, a prince of the Shakyas, whose lifetime is traditionally given as 566 to 486 BCE. It had subsequently been accepted by... Look up deity in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A dakini (Sanskrit: sky dancer; Chinese language: 空行女) is a Tantric priestess of ancient India who carried the souls of the dead to the sky. This Buddhist figure is particularly upheld in Tibetan Buddhism. ... Benzaiten (弁才天, 弁財天) is the Japanese name of goddess Sarasvati (Saraswati). ... The seven fortune gods (七福神, shichi fukujin) in Japan refer to the seven gods of good fortune in Japanese folklore: ; . They are often the subject of netsuke carvings and other representations. ...

Inari is often venerated as a collective of three deities (Inari sanza); since the Kamakura period, this number has sometimes increased to five kami (Inari goza). However, the identification of these kami has varied over time. According to records of Fushimi Inari, the oldest and perhaps most prominent Inari shrine, these kami have included Izanagi, Izanami, Ninigi, and Wakumusubi, in addition to the food deities previously mentioned. The five kami today identified with Inari at Fushimi Inari are Ukanomitama, Sadahiko, Omiyanome, Tanaka, and Shi. However, at Takekoma Inari, the second-oldest Inari shrine in Japan, the three enshrined deities are Ukanomitama, Ukemochi, and Wakumusubi.^[6] The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Kamakura Period. ... The gates at Fushimi Inari Fushimi Inari Taisha is a shinto jinja dedicated to Inari, located in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan. ... 天瓊を以て滄海を探るの図. Painting by Eitaku Kobayashi (Meiji period). ... In Japanese mythology, Izanami (Katakana: イザナミ; Kanji: 伊弉冉尊 or 伊邪那美命, meaning She who invites) is a goddess of both creation and death, as well as the former wife of the god Izanagi. ... In Japanese mythology, Ninigi no Mikoto was the grandson of Amaterasu, who sent him down to earth to plant rice there. ... Takekoma Inari is the second-oldest shrine to the kami Inari in Japan. ...

The fox and the wish-fulfilling jewel are prominent symbols of Inari. Other common elements in depictions of Inari, and sometimes of his kitsune, include a sickle, a sheaf or sack of rice, and a sword.

History

The origin of Inari worship is not entirely clear. The first recorded use of the present-day kanji (characters), which mean "carrying rice," was in the Ruijū Kokushi in 827 A.D. Other sets of kanji with the same phonetic readings, most of which contained a reference to rice, were in use earlier, and most scholars agree that the name Inari is derived from ine-nari (growing rice).^[7] The worship of Inari is known to have existed as of 711 A.D., the official founding date of the shrine at Inari Mountain in Fushimi, Kyoto. Scholars such as Kazuo Higo believe worship was conducted for centuries before that date; they suggest that the Hata clan began the formal worship of Inari as an agriculture kami in the late fifth century.^[8] The name Inari does not appear in classical Japanese mythology.^[9] Japanese writing Kanji Kana Hiragana Katakana Hentaigana Manyōgana Uses Furigana Okurigana Rōmaji   ) are the Chinese characters that are used in the modern Japanese logographic writing system along with hiragana (平仮名), katakana (片仮名), and the Arabic numerals. ... Categories: Japan-related stubs ... The Hata clan (秦氏)(also called Hada or a number of other variations) was a group active in Japan during the Yamato period, according to the epic history Nihonshoki. ... Japanese mythology is a very complex system of beliefs that embraces Shinto and Buddhist traditions as well as agriculture-based folk religion. ...

By the Heian period, Inari worship began to spread. In 823 A.D., after Emperor Saga presented the Tō-ji temple to Kūkai, the founder of the Shingon Buddhist sect, the latter designated Inari as its resident protector kami.^[8] In 827, the court granted Inari the lower fifth rank, which further increased the deity's popularity in the capital. Inari's rank was subsequently increased, and by 942, Emperor Suzaku granted Inari the top rank in thanks for overcoming rebellions. At this time, the Fushimi Inari shrine was among the twenty-two shrines chosen by the court to receive imperial patronage, a high honor.^[10] The second Inari shrine, Takekoma Inari, was established in the late ninth century. The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Heian Period. ... Emperor Saga (嵯峨天皇, Saga tennō) (786–842) was the 52nd imperial ruler of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. ... Five-story pagoda of Tōji Tōji (東寺; とうじ) is a Buddhist temple of the Shingon sect in Kyoto, Japan. ... Painting of KÅ«kai (774-835). ... Shingon (真言宗) is a major school of Japanese Buddhism, and the most important school of Vajrayana Buddhism outside of the Himalayan region. ... Emperor Suzaku (朱雀天皇 Suzaku Tennō) (923-952) was the 61st imperial ruler of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. ...

Inari's popularity continued to grow. The Fushimi shrine, already a popular pilgrimage site, gained wide renown when it became an imperial pilgrimage site in 1072. By 1338, the shrine's festival was said to rival the Gion Festival in splendor.^[11] People and floats fill the streets at the Gion Matsuri. ...

In 1468, during the Ōnin War, the entire Fushimi shrine complex was burned. Rebuilding took about thirty years; the new building was consecrated in 1499. While the old complex had enshrined three kami in separate buildings, the new one enshrined five kami in a single building. The new shrine also included a Buddhist temple building for the first time, and the hereditary priesthood was expanded to include the Kada clan.^[12] Marker at location of outbreak of ÅŒnin War The ÅŒnin War (応仁の乱 ÅŒnin no Ran) was a civil war from 1467 to 1477 during the Muromachi period in Japan. ...

Statue of a kitsune adorned with a red votive bib in a shrine at Inuyama Castle. Many castles in Japan contain Inari shrines.

During the Edo period, Inari worship spread across Japan; it became especially prominent in Edo.^[13] Smyers attributes this spread to the movement of daimyo (feudal lords). Inari had by the sixteenth century become the patron of blacksmiths and the protector of warriors — for this reason, many castle compounds in Japan contain Inari shrines — and the daimyo took their belief in their protector kami with them when they relocated to a new domain.^[13] Inari's divine role continued to expand; on the coast, he became a protector of fishermen; in Edo, he was invoked to prevent fires. He became the patron of actors and of prostitutes, since his shrines were often found near the pleasure quarters where these individuals lived. He began to be worshipped as the Desire-Fulfilling Inari, a deity of luck and prosperity; a common saying in Osaka was Byō Kōbō, yoku Inari (For sickness [pray to] Kōbō, for desires [pray to] Inari).^[14][15] Ironically, Inari also began to be petitioned for good health; he is credited with curing such diverse afflictions as coughs, toothaches, broken bones, and syphilis.^[16] Women prayed to Inari to grant them children. Inari statue in shrine at Inuyama Castle, Inuyama, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. ... Inari statue in shrine at Inuyama Castle, Inuyama, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. ... Prince Hanzoku terrorized by a nine-tailed fox. ... Inuyama (犬山市; -shi) is a city located near Nagoya in Aichi, Japan. ... The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Edo Period. ... Edo (Japanese: , literally: bay-door, estuary, pronounced //), once also spelled Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo. ... Daimyo Matsudaira Katamori visits the residence of a retainer. ... Osaka )   is a city in Japan, located at the mouth of the Yodo River on Osaka Bay, in the Kansai region of the main island of HonshÅ«. The city is the capital of Osaka Prefecture. ... Painting of Kukai (774-835). ...

After a government decree mandated the separation of Buddhist and Shinto beliefs, many Inari shrines underwent changes. At Fushimi Inari, for instance, structures that were obviously Buddhist were torn down. Among the populace, however, the blended form of worship continued.^[17] Some Buddhist temples maintained Inari worship by arguing that they had always been devoted to a Buddhist deity (often Dakiniten), which had been perceived by the common folk to be Inari.^[18]

In the Tokugawa period, when money replaced rice as the measure of wealth in Japan, Inari's role as a kami of worldly prosperity was expanded to include all aspects of finance, business, and industry. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, followers of Inari at the Ginza mint struck coins meant for offerings to Inari, which featured pictures of two foxes and a jewel or the characters for long life and good luck.^[19] History of Japan Paleolithic Jomon Yayoi Yamato period ---Kofun period ---Asuka period Nara period Heian period Kamakura period Muromachi period Azuchi-Momoyama period ---Nanban period Edo period Meiji period Taisho period Showa period ---Japanese expansionism ---Occupied Japan ---Post-Occupation Japan Heisei The Edo period (江戸時代) is a... The Ginza area of Tokyo, Japan The Wako department store occupies a busy corner in Ginza Ginza (銀座) is a place in Chūō Ward, Tokyo named after the silver coin foundry or Ginza established here in 1612 (Edo period). ...

Shrines and offerings

Red torii along a path at the Fushimi Inari Shrine.

Inari is a popular deity with shrines and temples located throughout most of Japan. According to a 1985 survey by the National Association of Shinto Shrines, 32,000 shrines — more than one-third of Shinto shrines in Japan — are dedicated to Inari.^[20] This number includes only Shinto shrines with full-time resident priests; if small roadside or field shrines, shrines kept in a home or corporate office, smaller shrines without full-time resident priests, and Buddhist temples were included, the number would increase by at least an order of magnitude.^[21] Torii along path at Fushimi Inari (god) Shrine, Kyoto, Japan I took this photograph and contribute it to the public domain. ... Torii along path at Fushimi Inari (god) Shrine, Kyoto, Japan I took this photograph and contribute it to the public domain. ... Categories: Japan-related stubs ...

The entrance to an Inari shrine is usually marked by one or more vermilion torii and some statues of kitsune, which are often adorned with red yodarekake (votive bibs) by worshippers out of respect. This red color has come to be identified with Inari, because of the prevalence of its use among Inari shrines and their torii.^[22] The main shrine is the Fushimi Inari Shrine in Fushimi, Kyoto, Japan, where the paths up the shrine hill are marked in this fashion. The kitsune statues are at times taken for a form of Inari, and they typically come in pairs, representing a male and a female.^[23] These fox statues hold a symbolic item in their mouths or beneath a front paw — most often a jewel and a key, but a sheaf of rice, a scroll, or a fox cub are all common. Almost all Inari shrines, no matter how small, will feature at least a pair of these statues, usually flanking or on the altar or in front of the main sanctuary.^[23] The statues are rarely realistic; they are typically stylized, portraying a seated animal with its tail in the air looking forward. Despite these common characteristics, the statues are highly individual in nature; no two are quite the same.^[24][25] Inari Shrine ) is a shinto shrine to worship Inari. ... Vermilion, also spelled vermillion, when found naturally-occurring, is an opaque reddish orange pigment, used since antiquity, originally derived from the powdered mineral cinnabar. ... A famous floating torii at Itsukushima Shrine Multiple torii at Osaka shrine Torii are widespread in Japan, to the extent that modern architecture sometimes emulates their form. ... The gates at Fushimi Inari Fushimi Inari Taisha is a shinto jinja dedicated to Inari, located in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan. ... Categories: Japan-related stubs ... This page is about the city Kyoto. ...

Offerings of rice, sake, and other food are given at the shrine to appease and please these kitsune messengers, who are then expected to plead with Inari on the worshipper's behalf.^[26]. Inari-zushi, a Japanese sushi roll of packaged fried tofu, is another popular offering. Fried tofu is believed to be a favorite food of Japanese foxes, and an Inari-zushi roll has pointed corners that resemble fox ears, thus reinforcing the association.^[27] Priests do not normally offer these foods to the deity, but it is common for shops that line the approach to an Inari shrine to sell fried tofu for devotees to offer.^[28] Fox statues are often offered to Inari shrines by worshippers, and on occasion a stuffed and mounted fox is presented to a temple. At one time, some temples were home to live foxes that were venerated, but this is not current practice.^[29] Species Oryza glaberrima Oryza sativa Brown basmati rice Terrace of paddy fields in Yunnan Province, southern China. ... Sake barrels at Itsukushima Shrine. ...

Festival

Inari's traditional festival day was the first horse day (the sixth day) of the second month (nigatsu no hatsuuma) of the lunisolar calendar.^[11] A lunisolar calendar is a calendar whose date indicates both the moon phase and the time of the solar year. ...

In some parts of Kyūshū, a festival or praying period begins five days before the full moon in November; occasionally it is extended to a full week. This is accompanied by bringing offerings of rice products to a shrine to Inari each day and receiving o-mamori (protection charms). The festival is particularly popular in the countryside near Nagasaki. KyÅ«shÅ« region of Japan and the current prefectures on KyÅ«shÅ« island KyÅ«shÅ« ), literally Nine Provinces, is the third largest island of Japan and most southerly and westerly of the four main islands. ... A study-dedicated Omamori. ... An amulet from the Black Pullet grimoire An amulet (from Latin amuletum, meaning A means of protection) or a talisman (from Arabic tilasm, ultimately from Greek telesma or from the Greek word talein wich means to initiate into the mysteries. ... Nagasaki (Japanese: 長崎市, Nagasaki-shi  , long peninsula) is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture in Japan. ...

References

• Ashkenazy, Michael. Handbook of Japanese Mythology. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-Clio, 2003. ISBN 1-57607-467-6
• Smyers, Karen Ann. The Fox and the Jewel: Shared and Private Meanings in Contemporary Japanese Inari Worship. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1999. ISBN 0-8248-2102-5

2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the CE era. ... February 17 is the 48th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... February 19 is the 50th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the CE era. ...

External links

• Tamatsukuri Inari Shrine

	Japanese Mythology & Folklore Image File history File linksMetadata Amaterasu_cave_crop. ... Japanese mythology is a very complex system of beliefs that embraces Shinto and Buddhist traditions as well as agriculture-based folk religion. ... Japanese folklore is the folklore of Japan. ...
	Mythic Texts and Folktales: Kojiki | Nihon Shoki | Otogizōshi | Yotsuya Kaidan Urashima Tarō | Kintarō | Momotarō | Tamamo-no-Mae Divinities: Izanami | Izanagi | Amaterasu Susanoo | Ama-no-Uzume | Inari List of divinities | Kami | Seven Lucky Gods Legendary Creatures: Oni | Kappa | Tengu | Tanuki | Fox | Yōkai | Dragon Mythical and Sacred Locations: Mt. Hiei | Mt. Fuji | Izumo | Ryūgū-jō | Takamagahara | Yomi Kojiki or Furukotofumi (古事記), also known in English as the Records of Ancient Matters, is the oldest surviving historical book recounting events of ancient earth in the Japanese language. ... Nihonshoki (日本書紀) is the second oldest history book about the ancient history of Japan. ... Illustration from otogizōshi tale, published c. ... Yotsuya Kaidan (四つ谷怪談) is a Japanese ghost story. ... Urashima Tarō ) is a Japanese fairy tale about a fisherman who rescues a turtle and is rewarded with a visit to the RyÅ«gÅ«-jō, the Dragon Palace. ... This article is about the Japanese folklore hero; for the Mortal Kombat character, see Kintaro (Mortal Kombat character). ... Bisque doll of Momotarō Momotarō (桃太郎) is a hero from Japanese folklore. ... Tamamo-no-Mae (玉藻前) is a legendary figure in Japanese mythology. ... In Japanese mythology, Izanami (Katakana: イザナミ; Kanji: 伊弉冉尊 or 伊邪那美命, meaning She who invites) is a goddess of both creation and death, as well as the former wife of the god Izanagi. ... 天瓊を以て滄海を探るの図. Painting by Eitaku Kobayashi (Meiji period). ... The Sun goddess emerging out of a cave, bringing sunlight back to the universe. ... Susanoo, (Japanese: 須佐之男命, Susanoo-no-mikoto; also romanized as Susano-o, Susa-no-o, and Susanowo) in Shinto is the god of the sea and storms. ... Categories: Stub | Japanese goddesses ... This is a list of divinities native to Japanese beliefs and religious traditions. ... “Megami” redirects here. ... The seven fortune gods (七福神, shichi fukujin) in Japan refer to the seven gods of good fortune in Japanese folklore: ; . They are often the subject of netsuke carvings and other representations. ... A statue of a red oni wielding a tetsubo. ... This article does not adequately cite its references. ... Tengu and a Buddhist monk, by Kawanabe Kyōsai. ... Pottery statue of tanuki This article deals with tanuki in folklore; see Raccoon Dog for more information on the wild animal. ... Prince Hanzoku terrorized by a nine-tailed fox. ... ukiyo-e print of yōkai, by Aotoshi Matsui Yōkai apparitions, spirits, or demons, also romanized youkai, yokai, or yookai) are a class of obake, creatures in Japanese folklore (many with Chinese origins) ranging from the evil oni to the mischievous kitsune or snow woman Yuki-onna. ... A Japanese dragon, also known as ryÅ« or tatsu (ç«œ or 龍, dragon) is a legendary creature from Japan. ... Mount Hiei (Jp. ... Mount Fuji Mount Fuji , IPA: )   is the highest mountain in Japan. ... Izumo (Japanese: 出雲国; Izumo no kuni) was an old province of Japan which today consists of the eastern part of Shimane prefecture in the Chugoku region. ... In Japanese mythology, RyÅ«gÅ«-jō (竜宮城) is the undersea palace of RyÅ«jin, the dragon god of the sea. ... Takama-ga-hara (Japanese: 高天原), or The High Plain of Heaven, is a place in Japanese mythology. ... This article is about the location in japanese mythology. ...
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