In the middle of a forest area, coming across an old shrine, you might expect Totoro, but instead we find this guy.
What brings you here, asks the fox?
In Japan, foxes are magical creatures. They can shapeshift, and often assume human forms for some purpose. Some stories speak of them as tricksters, others speak of them as guardians and good friends. Because of this latter idea, they have become associated with Inari† and are often thought of as his/her messenger.
This was taken at a small Inari shrine I discovered one day after a dentist appointment. There is a hill covered with a grove of trees. I thought it was just a small forest. I found an old overgrown trail and thought I would explore a bit. Imagine my surprise when in the middle of the woods I started seeing torii gates and eventually came to an old somewhat untended shrine. Wonderful! This is one of my favorite things about Japan.
Footnotes:
†: 稲荷大神 Inari Okami (Ee-nah-ree Oh-kah-me) is the kami of success and as such makes him/her pretty much the most popular kami in Japan.
Don't miss the other great photos in the Beautiful Japan photo series!
#1 - The Shogun's Keep
#2 - Gate to the Shogun's Shrine
#3 - The Golden Torii
#4 - Across the Universe
#5 - To Walk With You Under the Cherry Blossoms
#6 - I Once Knew This Place
#7 - Okazaki Tenmangu Shrine
#8 - The White Walls of Zui'nenji
Thank you for reading. :)
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I post one photo everyday, as well as some misc posts such as haiku, videos, more Japanese history, and so on. Let me know if there is anything about Japan you would like to know more about or would like to see.
David LaSpina is an American photographer lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time.