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Tsuru No Ongaeshi
is a story from Japanese folklore about a crane who returns a favor to a man. A variant of the story where a man marries the crane that returns the favor is known as . According to Japanese scholar Seki Keigo, the story is "one of the best known" tales in Japan about supernatural and enchanted spouses. Crane's Return of a Favor A man saves a crane that had been shot down by hunters. That night, a beautiful girl appears at the man's door and tells him that she is his wife. The man tells her that he is not wealthy enough to support them, but she tells him that she has a bag of rice that will fill their stomachs. Every day, the rice never goes down in the sack, and it always stays full. The next day she tells the man that she is going in a room to make something and that he is not to come in until she is finished. Seven days have passed by and she finally comes out with a beautiful piece of clothing, but she is very skinny. She tells the man to go to the markets the next morning an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japanese Folklore
Japanese folklore encompasses the informally learned folk traditions of Japan and the Japanese people as expressed in its oral traditions, customs, and material culture. In Japanese, the term is used to describe folklore. The academic study of folklore is known as . Folklorists also employ the term or to refer to the objects and arts they study. Folk religion Men dressed as namahage, wearing ogre-like masks and traditional straw capes (''mino'') make rounds of homes, in an annual ritual of the Oga Peninsula area of the Northeast region. These ogre-men masquerade as kami looking to instill fear in the children who are lazily idling around the fire. This is a particularly colorful example of folk practice still kept alive. A parallel custom is the secretive ritual of the Yaeyama Islands, Okinawa which does not allow itself to be photographed. Many, though increasingly fewer households maintain a kamidana or a small Shinto altar shelf. The Shinto version of the kitchen go ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seki Keigo
was a Japanese folklorist. He was joined a group under Yanagita Kunio, but often came to different conclusions regarding the same folktales. Along with collecting and compiling folktales, Seki also arranged them into a series of categories. This work culminated in his ''Nihon mukashibanashi shūsei'' (''Collection of Japanese Folktales'') (1928, revised 1961), in three volumes, which classified Japanese folktales after the model of the Aarne-Thompson system. A selection was published as ''Nihon No Mukashi-Banashi'' (1956–7), and was translated into English as ''Folktales of Japan'' (1963) by Robert J. Adams. University Life Seki was a native of Nagasaki Prefecture and graduate of Toyo University. He studied philosophy and worked as a librarian for the university. He founded the Japanese Society for Folk Literature (Nihon Koshobungei Gakkai) in 1977 and was its first president. Seki understood German and translated two works of folktales from German to Japanese, Kaarle Kroh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swan Maiden
The swan maiden is a mythical creature who shapeshifts from human form to swan form. The key to the transformation is usually a swan skin, or a garment with swan feathers attached. In folktales of this type, the male character spies the maiden, typically by some body of water (usually bathing), then snatches away the feather garment (or some other article of clothing), which prevents her from flying away (or swimming away, or renders her helpless in some other manner), forcing her to become his wife. There are parallels around the world, notably the ''Völundarkviða'' and ''Grimms' Fairy Tales'' KHM 193 " The Drummer". There are also many parallels involving creatures other than swans. Legend Typical legend The folktales usually adhere to the following basic plot. A young, unmarried man steals a magic robe made of swan feathers from a swan maiden who comes to bathe in a body of water, so that she will not fly away, and marries her. Usually she bears his children. When the chil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yuki-onna
is a spirit or yōkai in Japanese folklore that is often depicted in Japanese literature, films, or animation. She may also go by such names as ''yuki-musume'', cited by ("snow daughter"), ''yuki-onago'' ("snow girl"), ''yukijorō'' (雪女郎, "snow woman"), ''yuki anesa'' ("snow sis"), ''yuki-onba'' ("snow granny" or "snow nanny"), ''yukinba'' ("snow hag") in Ehime, ''yukifuri-baba'' ("snowfall hag") in Nagano. They are also called several names that are related to icicles, such as ''tsurara-onna'', ''kanekori-musume'', and ''shigama-nyōbō''. Origins Yuki-onna originates from folklores of olden times; in the Muromachi period '' Sōgi Shokoku Monogatari'' by the renga poet Sōgi, there is a statement on how he saw a yuki-onna when he was staying in Echigo Province (now Niigata Prefecture), indicating that the legends already existed in the Muromachi period. Stories In legends from the Ojiya region of Niigata Prefecture, a beautiful woman came to visit a man and became ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hagoromo (play)
is among the most-performed Japanese Noh plays. Tyler, Royall. ''Japanese No Dramas.'' Penguin Classics (1992)p96 . It is an example of the traditional swan maiden motif. Sources and history The earliest recorded version of the legend dates to the eighth century.Blacker, Carmen. ''Collected Writings of Carmen Blacker.'' Routledge (2000)p44 . The play however apparently combines two legends, one concerning the origins of the Suruga Dance (''Suruga-mai'') and another the descent of an angel onto Udo Beach. A parallel story may also be found in the 14th volume of the fifth-century ''Sou-shen chi''. A poem by the 11th century poet Nōin is quoted. The authorship of the Noh play ''Hagoromo'' is unknown. The earliest references to the play in historical records date to 1524, which suggests that it was written well after Zeami's time. Plot A fisherman is walking with his companions at night when he finds the Hagoromo, the magical feather-mantle of a ''tennin'' (an aerial spirit or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fiction About Shapeshifting
Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditional narrow sense, "fiction" refers to written narratives in prose often referring specifically to novels, novellas, and short stories. More broadly, however, fiction encompasses imaginary narratives expressed in any medium, including not just writings but also live theatrical performances, films, television programs, radio dramas, comics, role-playing games, and video games. Definition Typically, the fictionality of a work is publicly marketed and so the audience expects the work to deviate in some ways from the real world rather than presenting, for instance, only factually accurate portrayals or characters who are actual people. Because fiction is generally understood to not fully adhere to the real world, the themes and context of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Legendary Birds
Legendary bird may refer to * Any bird that appears in legends, mythology, and religion ** :Legendary birds ** :Birds in mythology * Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres from the ''Pokémon'' series {{disambiguation ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
