The badger in Japanese folklore
VH Harada - Asian Folklore Studies, 1976 - JSTOR
VH Harada
Asian Folklore Studies, 1976•JSTORDown through the ages, the badger has been a popular figure in Japanese folklore. In
various periods and in different locales, the animal endowed with transcendental powers
has been referred to as tanuki, mujina, or mami. 1 Of these three terms, tanuki is the one
most widely used. Originally mentioned in Chinese lore, the first reference to the badger in
Japanese literature is recorded in an eighth century document," Laws Concerning
Robbers"(" Zokuto Ritsu"), where possible trans-gressors are warned against" smoking …
various periods and in different locales, the animal endowed with transcendental powers
has been referred to as tanuki, mujina, or mami. 1 Of these three terms, tanuki is the one
most widely used. Originally mentioned in Chinese lore, the first reference to the badger in
Japanese literature is recorded in an eighth century document," Laws Concerning
Robbers"(" Zokuto Ritsu"), where possible trans-gressors are warned against" smoking …
Down through the ages, the badger has been a popular figure in Japanese folklore. In various periods and in different locales, the animal endowed with transcendental powers has been referred to as tanuki, mujina, or mami. 1 Of these three terms, tanuki is the one most widely used.
Originally mentioned in Chinese lore, the first reference to the badger in Japanese literature is recorded in an eighth century document," Laws Concerning Robbers"(" Zokuto Ritsu"), where possible trans-gressors are warned against" smoking foxes and badgers out of graves" because of their special bewitching powers. 2 In this same period, first accounts of the badger's ability to transform itself into other shapes appear. A passage from a chronicle Shoku Nihongi reads:
JSTOR