Okinawan Religion
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Okinawan Religion
The Ryukyuan religion (琉球信仰), Ryūkyū Shintō (琉球神道), Nirai Kanai Shinkō (ニライカナイ信仰), or Utaki Shinkō (御嶽信仰) is the indigenous belief system of the Ryukyu Islands. While specific legends and traditions may vary slightly from place to place and island to island, the Ryukyuan religion is generally characterized by ancestor worship and the respecting of relationships between the living, the dead, and the gods and spirits of the natural world. Some of its beliefs, such as those concerning '' genius loci'' spirits and many other beings classified between gods and humans, are indicative of its ancient animistic roots, as is its concern with , or life essence. Over time, Ryukyuan religious practice has been influenced by Japanese Shinto and Chinese religions (White Lotus, Manichaeism, Taoism, Confucianism, and folk beliefs) along with Christianity and Buddhism. One of its most ancient features is the belief , the spiritual superiority of women ...
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Miyako Harimizu Utaki
Miyako may refer to: Places in Japan *Miyako, Iwate, a city in Iwate Prefecture *Miyako Islands **Miyako Island **Miyakojima, Okinawa, a city of the Miyako Islands *Miyako, Fukuoka, a town in Fukuoka Prefecture *''Miyako'' and ''Kyō no Miyako'', former names of Kyoto Other use *Miyako (given name) *Miyako language, a Ryukyuan dialect spoken on Miyako Island and other nearby islands *Miyako Pony, a breed of pony originating from Miyako island in Japan * Japanese cruiser ''Miyako'', an unprotected cruiser of the Imperial Japanese navy *Miyako (brand) Miyako may refer to: Places in Japan *Miyako, Iwate, a city in Iwate Prefecture *Miyako Islands **Miyako Island **Miyakojima, Okinawa, a city of the Miyako Islands *Miyako, Fukuoka, a town in Fukuoka Prefecture *''Miyako'' and ''Kyō no Miyako'', ...
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Noro Priestess
(, sometimes or ) ( ryu, ヌール, nuuru) are priestesses of the Ryukyuan religion at Utaki. They have existed since at least the beginning of the Gusuku period (late 12th century) and continue to perform rituals even today. They are distinct from (psychics), but are classified as ("godly people"). History According to the and , the first were the daughters of Tentei-shi, who was a descendant of the creation goddess, Amamikyu. The first daughter became the first (), and the second daughter became the first village priestess (). The god of fire gave a piece of fire from Ryūgū-jō to each to create a village hearth, from which each family in the village would take fire to maintain their own family hearths. The maintained the royal hearth. The were charged with conducting official rituals and ceremonies for their respective village. The was charged with conducting rituals and ceremonies on behalf of the entire kingdom, and traveled with the king to Sefa-utaki to worshi ...
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Carapace
A carapace is a Dorsum (biology), dorsal (upper) section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods, such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates, such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tortoises, the underside is called the plastron. Crustaceans In crustaceans, the carapace functions as a protective cover over the cephalothorax (i.e., the fused head and thorax, as distinct from the abdomen behind). Where it projects forward beyond the eyes, this projection is called a rostrum (anatomy), rostrum. The carapace is Calcification, calcified to varying degrees in different crustaceans. Zooplankton within the phylum Crustacea also have a carapace. These include Cladocera, ostracods, and Isopoda, isopods, but isopods only have a developed "cephalic shield" carapace covering the head. Arachnids In arachnids, the carapace is formed by the fusion of prosomal tergites into a single Plate (animal anatomy), plate which carries the e ...
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Ryukyuan Religion
The Ryukyuan religion (琉球信仰), Ryūkyū Shintō (琉球神道), Nirai Kanai Shinkō (ニライカナイ信仰), or Utaki Shinkō (御嶽信仰) is the indigenous belief system of the Ryukyu Islands. While specific legends and traditions may vary slightly from place to place and island to island, the Ryukyuan religion is generally characterized by ancestor worship and the respecting of relationships between the living, the dead, and the gods and spirits of the natural world. Some of its beliefs, such as those concerning '' genius loci'' spirits and many other beings classified between gods and humans, are indicative of its ancient animistic roots, as is its concern with , or life essence. Over time, Ryukyuan religious practice has been influenced by Japanese Shinto and Chinese religions (White Lotus, Manichaeism, Taoism, Confucianism, and folk beliefs) along with Christianity and Buddhism. One of its most ancient features is the belief , the spiritual superiority of women ...
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Cheukshin
Cheuksin (Hangul: 측신, Hanja: 廁神) is the toilet goddess of Korean mythology. Unlike better-known household deities such as Jowangshin, god of the hearth, her worship forms a minor part of the Gasin cult. She is believed to reside in the outhouse. Mythology Worship Cheukshin was believed to appear as a young virgin with hair. The goddess, infuriated at her exile to the outhouse by the supreme deity Cheonjiwang and kitchen goddess Jowangshin, was said to spend time counting her hairs. The goddess was believed to appear in the three days containing the number six; Koreans avoided the outhouse in these three days in order not to accidentally provoke her rage. Thus, Koreans held ''jesas'', or rituals, to her in the sixth, sixteenth, and twenty-sixth days in the lunar calendar, or when a shoe or a child fell in the pit toilet. ''Jesas'' were also done for her when a pig contracted disease and died, when a prophecy warned of the anger of the goddess, or when the outhouse ...
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Akaname
The is a Japanese ''yōkai'' depicted in Toriyama Sekien's 1776 book ''Gazu Hyakki Yagyō'', with its precursor or equivalent documented earlier in 1686. These beings presumably lick the filth and scum that collect in bathtubs and bathrooms. Terminology The word ''aka'' refers to dead skin on a person's body, alongside the dirt, grime, or sweat that may be scrubbed or washed off; the ''aka'' can also refer to scum that accumulates at the bathhouse as a result, including perhaps mildew. Hence the name ''akaname'' means 'scum-licker' or 'filth-licker". There is speculation whether ''aka'' alludes to impurities or defilements of the soul, or negative thoughts known in Buddhism as ''bonnō'' (Sankskrit: '' kleshas''), and the ''yōkai'' may serve as warning not to be so preoccupied with such thoughts as to be derelict in the chores of cleansing the bath of such filth. Another speculation is a possible connection to the sacred water used as offering in Buddhism, known as wate ...
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Pig Toilet
A pig toilet (sometimes called a "pig sty latrine") is a simple type of dry toilet consisting of an outhouse mounted over a pigsty, with a chute or hole connecting the two. The pigs consume the feces of the users of the toilet, as well as other food. History Pig toilets ( ''zhūquānmáokēng'') were once common in rural China, where a single Chinese ideogram () signifies both "pigsty" and "privy". Funerary models of pig toilets from the Han dynasty (206 BC to AD 220) prove that it was an ancient custom. These arrangements have been strongly discouraged by the Chinese authorities in recent years, although as late as 2005 they could still be found in remote northern provinces. Chinese influence may have spread the use of pig toilets to Okinawa (Okinawan: ふーる (''fūru'') / 風呂) before World War II, and also to the Manchu people during the Qing Dynasty period. Pig toilets were also used in parts of India such as Goa. A 2003 survey of sanitary arrangements in Goa and Kerala ...
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Toilet God
A toilet god is a deity associated with latrines and toilets. Belief in toilet gods – a type of household deity – has been known from both modern and ancient cultures, ranging from Japan to ancient Rome. Such deities have been associated with health, well-being and fertility (because of the association between human waste and agriculture) and have been propitiated in a wide variety of ways, including making offerings, invoking and appeasing them through prayers, meditating and carrying out ritual actions such as clearing one's throat before entering or even biting the latrine to transfer spiritual forces back to the god. Modern cultures In Japan, belief in the toilet god or ''kawaya kami'', most often depicted in the form of ''Ususama-myō-ō'' (烏枢沙摩明王), served a dual purpose. Most bodily wastes were collected and used as fertilizers, ensuring a higher overall level of sanitation than in other countries where wastes were stored in cesspits or otherwise disposed of. ...
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Kamuy
A ''kamuy'' ( ain, カムィ; ja, カムイ, kamui) is a spiritual or divine being in Ainu mythology, a term denoting a supernatural entity composed of or possessing spiritual energy. The Ainu people have many myths about the ''kamuy'', passed down through oral traditions and rituals. The stories of the ''kamuy'' were portrayed in chants and performances, which were often performed during sacred rituals. Concept In concept, ''kamuy'' are similar to the Japanese ''kami'' but this translation misses some of the nuances of the termAshkenazy, Michael. ''Handbook of Japanese Mythology''. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-Clio, 2003. 187-188 (the missionary John Batchelor assumed that the Japanese term was of Ainu origin).John Batchelor: ''The Ainu and Their Folk-Lore'', London 1901, p. 580–582. The usage of the term is very extensive and contextual among the Ainu, and can refer to something regarded as especially positive as well as something regarded as especially strong. ''Kamuy'' c ...
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Kamui Fuchi
Kamuy-huci (カムイフチ, ''Kamui Fuchi'') is the Ainu ''kamuy'' (''goddess'') of the hearth. Her full name is Apemerukoyan-mat Unamerukoyan-mat (''Rising Fire Sparks Woman/ Rising Cinder Sparks Woman''), and she is also known as Iresu Kamuy (''People Teacher''). She is among the most important ''kamuy'' of Ainu mythology, serving as keeper of the gateway between the world of humans and the world of ''kamuy''. Depiction Kamuy-huci is a woman who lives in the hearth. Her position is so important that she never leaves her home. Accordingly, the hearth fire must never be extinguished completely.Ashkenazy, Michael. ''Handbook of Japanese Mythology''. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-Clio, 2003. 191-192 Mythology There are a few myths of Kamuy-huci's origins. In the most common, she descends from the heavens, accompanied by Kanna Kamuy, the ''kamuy'' of thunder and lightning. In another version, she was born from the fire-producing drill and is the sister of Hasinaw-uk-kamuy, the go ...
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Utaki
Utaki (御嶽) is an Okinawan term for a sacred place, often a grove, cave, or mountain. They are central to the Ryukyuan religion and the former noro priestess system. Although the term ''utaki'' is used throughout the Ryukyu Islands, the terms ''suku'' and ''on'' are heard in the Miyako and Yaeyama regions respectively. Utaki are usually located on the outskirts of villages and are places for the veneration of gods and ancestors. Most gusuku have places of worship, and it is theorized that the origins of both ''gusuku'' and ''utaki'' are closely related. Important Utaki * Biinudaki (弁ヶ嶽), Naha * Misaki-on (美崎御嶽), Ishigaki * Miyatori-on (宮鳥御嶽), Nago * Pyarumizu-utaki (漲水御嶽), Miyako * Sefa-utaki (斎場御嶽), Nanjō * Sunuhyan-utaki ''Sunufan-utaki'' is a sacred grove of trees and plants (''utaki'') of the traditional indigenous Ryukyuan religion. It is located on the grounds of Shuri Castle in Naha, Okinawa, a few paces away from t ...
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