Inari Ōkami

Inari and her fox spirits help the blacksmith Munechika forge the blade ko-kitsune-maru (Little Fox) in the late 10th century. This legend is the subject of the noh drama Sanjo Kokaji.

Inari (稲荷code: ja is deprecated , also Oinari) is the Japanese kami (spirit) of fertility, rice and agriculture.^[1] Inari is sometimes represented as a male, female or both.

The traditional messengers of Inari are foxes.^[1]

Inari Ōkami Media

Inari and their fox spirits help the blacksmith Munechika forge the blade kogitsune-maru (Little Fox) in the late 10th century. This legend is the subject of the noh drama Sanjo Kokaji.
Inari appears to a warrior. This portrayal of Inari shows the influence of Dakiniten concepts from Buddhism.
Red fox (Vulpes vulpes), a Vulpes vulpes schrencki native to Hokkaido, lying in the snow.
Searching the Seas with the Tenkei (天瓊を以て滄海を探るの図code: ja is deprecated , Tenkei o motte sōkai o saguru no zu). Painting by Kobayashi Eitaku, 1880–90 (MFA, Boston). Izanagi to the right, Izanami to the left.
Statue of a kitsune adorned with a red votive bib in a shrine at Inuyama Castle. Many castles in Japan contain Inari shrines.
Hundreds of Inari can be found at Toyokawa Inari Betsuin in Akasaka.
Red torii along a path at the Fushimi Inari shrine in Kyoto
ojiyama-inari,
Kakigara-Inari at Hase-dera (Kamakura)

References

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Hōki" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 386.

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[nussbaum-1] 1.0 ^1.1 Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Hōki" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 386.

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