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Kodama (spirit)
Kodama (, or ) are spirits in Japanese folklore that inhabit trees. The term is also used to denote a tree in which a kodama supposedly resides. The phenomenon known as yamabiko, when sounds make a delayed echoing effect in mountains and valleys, is sometimes attributed to this kind of spirit and may also be referred to as "kodama". Summary These spirits are considered to nimbly bustle about mountains at will. A kodama's outer appearance is very much like an ordinary tree, but if one attempts to cut it down, one would become cursed, etc., and it is thus considered to have some kind of mysterious supernatural power. The knowledge of those trees that have kodama living in them is passed down by the elderly of that area over successive generations and they are protected, and it is also said that trees that have a kodama living in them are of certain species. There is also a theory that when old trees are cut, blood could come forth from them. Kodama is also seen as something ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hachijō-jima
is a volcano, volcanic Islands of Japan, Japanese island in the Philippine Sea. It is about south of the special wards of Tokyo. It is part of the Izu Islands, Izu archipelago and within the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park. Its only municipality is Hachijō, Tokyo, Hachijō. On 1 March 2018, its population was 7,522 people living on 63 km2. Some inhabitants speak Hachijō language, which is considered an endangered language and the number of speakers is unknown. The island has been inhabited since the Jōmon period, and was used as a place of exile during the Edo period. In modern times, it has been used for farming sugarcane and housing a secret submarine base during World War II; it is now a tourist destination within Japan. Hachijō-jima receives about of precipitation annually. With a humid subtropical climate, and an average high temperature of , the island and the surrounding ocean support a wide variety of sea life, birds, mammals, plants, and other life. The talles ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tree Deities
A tree deity or tree spirit is a nature deity related to a tree. Such deities are present in many cultures. They are usually represented as a young woman, often connected to ancient fertility and tree worship lore.Heinrich Zimmer, ''Myths and Symbols in Indian Art and Civilization.'' (1946) The status of tree deities varies from that of a local fairy, ghost, Sprite (creature), sprite or nymph, to that of a goddess. Examples of tree deities The Yakshis or Yakshinis (), Mythology, mythical maiden deities of Hinduism, Hindu, Buddhism, Buddhist, and Jainism, Jain mythology are closely associated with trees, especially the ashoka tree and the sal tree. Although these tree deities are usually benevolent, there are also yakshinis with malevolent characteristics in Folklore of India, Indian folklore. Panaiveriyamman, named after ''panai'', the Tamil language, Tamil name for the Palmyra palm, is an ancient fertility deity linked to this palm that is so important in Tamil culture. This dei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shinto Kami
are the deities, divinities, spirits, mythological, spiritual, or natural phenomena that are venerated in the traditional Shinto religion of Japan. ''Kami'' can be elements of the landscape, forces of nature, beings and the qualities that these beings express, and/or the spirits of venerated dead people. Many ''kami'' are considered the ancient ancestors of entire clans (some ancestors became ''kami'' upon their death if they were able to embody the values and virtues of ''kami'' in life). Traditionally, great leaders like the Emperor could be or became ''kami''. In Shinto, ''kami'' are not separate from nature, but are of nature, possessing positive and negative, and good and evil characteristics. They are manifestations of , the interconnecting energy of the universe, and are considered exemplary of what humanity should strive towards. ''Kami'' are believed to be "hidden" from this world, and inhabit a complementary existence that mirrors our own: . To be in harmony with th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tree Spirits
A tree deity or tree spirit is a nature deity related to a tree. Such deities are present in many cultures. They are usually represented as a young woman, often connected to ancient fertility and tree worship lore.Heinrich Zimmer, ''Myths and Symbols in Indian Art and Civilization.'' (1946) The status of tree deities varies from that of a local fairy, ghost, sprite or nymph, to that of a goddess. Examples of tree deities The Yakshis or Yakshinis (), mythical maiden deities of Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain mythology are closely associated with trees, especially the ashoka tree and the sal tree. Although these tree deities are usually benevolent, there are also yakshinis with malevolent characteristics in Indian folklore. Panaiveriyamman, named after ''panai'', the Tamil name for the Palmyra palm, is an ancient fertility deity linked to this palm that is so important in Tamil culture. This deity is also known as Taalavaasini, a name that further relates her to all types of palm tr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Balete Tree
The balete tree (also known as balite or baliti) are several species of trees in the Philippines from the genus ''Ficus'', which are generally referred to as ''balete'' in Filipino. A number of these are ''strangler figs'', as they germinate upon other trees, before entrapping their host tree entirely and eventually killing it. Consequently the young plants are hemiepiphytes, i.e. epiphytes or air plants that grow several hanging roots which eventually touch the ground and take root. Some baletes produce natural rubber of an inferior quality. The Indian rubber tree, ''Ficus elastica, F. elastica'', was formerly cultivated to some extent for rubber. Some of the species like ''tangisang-bayawak'' or ''Ficus variegata (plant), Ficus variegata'' are large and could probably be utilized for match wood. The wood of ''Ficus'' species are soft, light, and of inferior quality, and the trees usually have ill-formed, short Bole (botany), boles.Whitford, H.N., Bureau of Forestry"The Fore ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anito
''Anito'', also spelled ''anitu'', refers to ancestor spirits, nature spirits, and deities in the Indigenous Philippine folk religions from the precolonial age to the present, although the term itself may have other meanings and associations depending on the Filipino ethnic group. It can also refer to carved humanoid figures, the ''taotao'', made of wood, stone, or ivory, that represent these spirits. ''Anito'' (a term predominantly used in Luzon) is also sometimes known as ''diwata'' in certain ethnic groups (especially among Visayans). ''Pag-anito'' refers to a séance, often accompanied by other rituals or celebrations, in which a shaman ( Visayan: ''babaylan'', Tagalog: ''katalonan'') acts as a medium to communicate directly with the dead ancestors and spirits. When a nature spirit or deity is specifically involved, the ritual is called ''pagdiwata''. The act of worship or a religious sacrifice to a spirit and deities. The belief in ''anito'' are sometimes refer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shimenawa
are lengths of laid rice straw or hemp rope used for ritual purification in the Shinto religion. vary in diameter from a few centimetres to several metres, and are often seen festooned with —traditional paper streamers. A space bound by typically indicates a sacred or ritually pure space, such as that of a Shinto shrine. are believed to act as a ward against evil spirits, and are often set up at a ground-breaking ceremony before construction begins on a new building. They are often found at Shinto shrines, gates, and sacred landmarks. are also placed on , objects considered to attract spirits or be inhabited by them. These notably include being placed on certain trees, the spirits considered to inhabit them being known as . Cutting down these trees is thought to bring misfortune. In the case of stones considered to be inhabited by spirits, the stones are known as . A variation of the are worn in sumo wrestling by (grand champions), during the entrance ceremony to d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shinto
, also called Shintoism, is a religion originating in Japan. Classified as an East Asian religions, East Asian religion by Religious studies, scholars of religion, it is often regarded by its practitioners as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintoists'', although adherents rarely use that term themselves. With no central authority in control of Shinto, there is much diversity of belief and practice evident among practitioners. A polytheism, polytheistic and animism, animistic religion, Shinto revolves around supernatural entities called the (神). The are believed to inhabit all things, including forces of nature and prominent landscape locations. The are worshipped at household shrines, family shrines, and Shinto shrine, ''jinja'' public shrines. The latter are staffed by priests, known as , who oversee offerings of food and drink to the specific enshrined at that location. This is done to cultivate harmony ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toriyama Sekien
200px, A , specifically a Miage-nyūdō, as portrayed by Toriyama , real name Sano Toyofusa, was a scholar, '' kyōka'' poet, and ''ukiyo-e'' artist of Japanese folklore. Early life Born to a family of high-ranking servants to the Tokugawa shogunate, Toriyama was trained by Kanō school artists Kanō Gyokuen and Kanō Chikanobu, although he was never officially recognized as a Kanō school painter. Art career After retiring from service to the shogunate, Toriyama became a teacher to numerous apprentices in poetry and painting. He was among the first to apply Kanō techniques to ''ukiyo-e'' printmaking, inventing key new techniques along the way, such as ''fuki-bokashi'', which allowed for replicating color gradations. Most famously, he was the teacher of Kitagawa Utamaro and Utagawa Toyoharu. Sekien is best known for his mass-produced illustrated books of yōkai that had appeared in '' Hyakki Yagyō'' monster parade scrolls. The first book proved popular enough to spawn thre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gazu Hyakki Yagyō
is the first book of Japanese artist Toriyama Sekien's famous ''Gazu Hyakki Yagyō'' e-hon tetralogy, published in 1776. A version of the tetralogy translated and annotated in English was published in 2016. Although the title translates to "The Illustrated Night Parade of a Hundred Demons", it is based on an idiom, ''hyakki yagyō,'' that is akin to wikt:pandemonium, pandemonium in English and implies an uncountable horde. The book is followed by ''Konjaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki'', ''Konjaku Hyakki Shūi'', and ''Gazu Hyakki Tsurezure Bukuro''. The book is a supernatural bestiary, a collection of ghosts, spirits, spooks and monsters from Japanese literature, literature, Japanese folklore, folklore, and other Japanese art, artwork. The art of ''Gazu Hyakki Yagyō'' heavily references a 1737 scroll-painting called the ''Hyakkai Zukan'' by artist Sawaki Sūshi; Sekien's innovation was preparing the illustrations as woodblock prints that could be mass-produced in a bound book format. Intend ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kijimuna
The Kijimuna ( Okinawan: , ''kijimunaa'', also ''kijimun'' 木の精), or Bunagaya, are creatures of the mythology native to the island of Okinawa. They are said to look around three or four years old and have red hair. About The kijimuna are small wood spirits according to Okinawan mythology. The kijimuna are said to live in trees, but the most common one is the 'gajumaru' or banyan tree. Their name, derived from the Okinawan language, translates to "child of the tree" or "tree ghost". They are often described as being child-sized, with red hair covering their bodies and large heads. They are also known to be excellent fisherman, able to catch many fish, but then only eating one of the eyes of the fish before leaving the rest of it. The Kijimuna festival in Okinawa is named after them. Another name for the kijimuna is "bunagaya," which means roughly "Large-Headed." The Kijimuna are known to be very mischievous, playing pranks and tricking humans. One of their best-known tricks ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
