Nine-tailed fox
Encyclopedia
Mythology
Nine-tailed fox, or Jiǔwěihú (九尾狐) is a mythological creature species that was depicted in the Nanshan jing, Haiwaidong jing and Dahuangdong jing of Shan Hai JingShan Hai Jing
Shan Hai Jing is a Chinese classic text, and a compilation of early geography and myth. Versions of the text have existed since the 4th century BC, and by the early Han Dynasty it had reached its final form. It is largely a fabled geographical and cultural account of pre-Qin China as well as a...
to have a voice of a human infant. It can be eaten by human, and those who eat it can be protected from evilness.
Later in some history books like Book of Zhou
Book of Zhou
The Book of Zhou was the official history of the Chinese/Xianbei dynasty Northern Zhou, and it ranks among the official Twenty-Four Histories of imperial China. It was compiled by the Tang Dynasty historian Linghu Defen and was completed in 636...
and story collection like Extensive Records of the Taiping Era, the nine-tailed fox was depicted to be a beast of fortune. Sent by the heavens, the nine-tailed fox was seen as a sign of fortune, peace and luck. In the Han dynasty
Han Dynasty
The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...
, it is the protector of the royal blood. However, it can also represent an omen of revolution when the emperor is not good.
It was said to have possessed Mei Xi(妹喜), bewitched Jie of Xia
Jie of Xia
King Jie was the 17th and last ruler of the Xia dynasty of China. He is traditionally regarded as a tyrant and oppressor who brought about the collapse of a dynasty. Around 1600 BCE Jie was defeated by Shang Tang, bringing an end to the Xia Dynasty, that lasted about 500 years, and a rise to the...
and caused the downfall of the Xia dynasty
Xia Dynasty
The Xia Dynasty is the first dynasty in China to be described in ancient historical chronicles such as Bamboo Annals, Classic of History and Records of the Grand Historian. The Xia Dynasty was established by the legendary Yu the Great after Shun, the last of the Five Emperors gave his throne to him...
. This story, which appeared after the story of Daji
Daji
Daji was a favorite concubine of King Zhou of Shang, the last king of the Shang Dynasty in ancient China. She is a classic example of how a beauty causes the downfall of an empire/dynasty in Chinese culture...
, however, was very similar in nature to the story of Daji, and thus received critics stating the later writers only plagiarized earlier folklore or the telling of the stories was modified to discredit different dynasty. The torture and creations of Mei Xi were very similar to those of the creations of Daji
Creations of Daji
Listed below is an elaborate summary of the varied projects insisted by Daji throughout the novel Fengshen Yanyi.-The Bronze Toaster:The Bronze Toaster would seemingly be the first creation suggested by Daji -- which was suggested in chapter 6. This toaster would be a bronze cylindrical device that...
but those were first used in Zhou dynasty
Zhou Dynasty
The Zhou Dynasty was a Chinese dynasty that followed the Shang Dynasty and preceded the Qin Dynasty. Although the Zhou Dynasty lasted longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history, the actual political and military control of China by the Ji family lasted only until 771 BC, a period known as...
with little historical evidence dating those back to Xia.
The nine-tail fox appeared in the epic fantasy novel Fengshen Bang as a Yaojing, or spirit, controlled by the deity Nüwa
Nüwa
Nüwa is a goddess in ancient Chinese mythology best known for creating mankind and repairing the wall of heaven.-Primary sources:...
and was ordered to bewitch King Zhou of Shang
King Zhou of Shang
Emperor Xin of Shang was the last king of the Shang Dynasty. He was later given the pejorative posthumous name Zhòu . He is also called Zhou Xin or King Zhou . He may also be referred to by adding "Shang" in front of any of his names...
in the 11th century BC. The fox possessed the body of Daji
Daji
Daji was a favorite concubine of King Zhou of Shang, the last king of the Shang Dynasty in ancient China. She is a classic example of how a beauty causes the downfall of an empire/dynasty in Chinese culture...
and did her bidding. Daji was eventually killed by Jiang Ziya
Jiang Ziya
Jiang Ziya was a Chinese historical and legendary figure who resided next to the Weishui River about 3,000 years ago. A sage and military strategist, Jiang Ziya was called upon by King Wen of Zhou to serve as prime minister...
and the fox was condemned by Nüwa due to the fox's cruelty and disobeyed its original order of bewitch King Zhou but do not harm others towards the end of Fengshen Bang.
In later stories, a nine-tailed fox was blamed for possessing Baosi
Baosi
Baosi was the concubine of the Ancient Chinese sovereign King You of Zhou. She was considered one of the most beautiful Chinese women ever.-Life:...
like Daji and caused the downfall of Western Zhou, forcing the dynasty moving its capital and establish the Eastern Zhou period.
Tamamo-no-mae
Tamamo-no-Mae written/collected in the OtogizōshiOtogizoshi
refers to a group of approximately 350 Japanese prose narratives written primarily in the Muromachi period . These illustrated short stories, which remain unattributed, together form one of the representative literary genres of the Japanese medieval era.-Overview:This type of short prose narrative...
of the Muromachi period
Muromachi period
The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate, which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi shogun, Ashikaga Takauji, two years after the brief Kemmu restoration of imperial...
, also mentioned by Toriyama Sekien
Toriyama Sekien
thumb|200px| was an 18th century scholar and ukiyo-e artist of Japanese folklore. He was the teacher of Utamaro and, before taking up printmaking, a painter of the Kanō school. Toriyama is most famous for his attempt to catalogue all species of yōkai in the Hyakki Yakō series.-References:...
in Konjaku Hyakki Shūi
Konjaku Hyakki Shui
is the third book of Japanese artist Toriyama Sekien's Gazu Hyakki Yakō series, published ca. 1781. These books are supernatural bestiaries, collections of ghosts, spirits, spooks and monsters, many of which Toriyama based on literature, folklore, and other artwork...
. Tamamo-no-Mae was a courtesan under the Japanese Emperor Konoe
Emperor Konoe
was the 76th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.Konoe's reign spanned the years from 1142 through 1155.-Genealogy:...
, she was praised to be the most beautiful and intelligent woman. She caused the Emperor to be extremely ill and was chased away by Abe no Yasuchika, who was called to diagnose the reason of the Emperor's poor health, and discovered the true nature of Tamamo-no-mae. A few years later, in the area of Nasu
Nasu, Tochigi
is a town located in Nasu District, Tochigi, Japan.As of April 1, 2008, the town has an estimated population of 26,629 and a density of 71.5 persons per km². The total area is 372.31 km².Nasu Imperial Villa is located there.-External links:*...
, the nine-tailed fox was seen killing and eating women and travelers, Emperor Konoe thus sent Kazusa-no-suke and Miura-no-suke along with 80,000 troops to kill the fox. In the plains of Nasu, it was finally killed and became a stone called Sessho-seki
Sessho-seki
The Sessho-seki , or "Killing Stone," is an object in Japanese mythology. It is said that the stone kills anyone who comes into contact with it. The stone is believed to be the transformed corpse of Tamamo no Mae, a beautiful woman who was exposed to be a kind nine-tailed fox working for an evil...
that continued to release poisonous gas and kill everything that contacts it. The stone was said to have been destroyed in the Nanboku-chō period by Gennoh Shinshou and the pieces flew away to different parts in Japan.
Hokusai's depiction
In the story told by HokusaiHokusai
was a Japanese artist, ukiyo-e painter and printmaker of the Edo period. He was influenced by such painters as Sesshu, and other styles of Chinese painting...
, formed in the Edo
Edo
, also romanized as Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo, and was the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868...
period, the nine-tail fox which possessed Daji was not killed, but instead fled to Magadha
Magadha
Magadha formed one of the sixteen Mahājanapadas or kingdoms in ancient India. The core of the kingdom was the area of Bihar south of the Ganga; its first capital was Rajagriha then Pataliputra...
of Tianzhu
Tianzhu
-Locations in China:*Mount Tianzhu , in Anhui*Tianzhu County, Guizhou , in Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, Guizhou*Tenzhu Tibetan Autonomous County , or Tianzhu, of Wuwei, Gansu...
(ancient India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
) and became the concubine of a prince there, causing him to cut off 1000 men's heads. It was then defeated again, and fled the country.
In around 780 BC, the same fox was said to have possessed Baosi (see above) and again chased away by human military forces.
The fox stayed quiet for some period. In AD 753, changed into the form of a 16, 7 year old girl named Wakamo, fooled Kibi Makibi
Kibi Makibi
was a Japanese scholar and noble during the Nara period. Also known as Kibi Daijin . Born in Bitchu Province as Shimotsumichi Asomi, he came from a line of local elites. Kibi was the name of the town or area he came from.In 716, he traveled to China to study. He stayed in China for 17 years...
, Abe no Nakamaro and Jianzhen
Jianzhen
Jianzhen was a Chinese monk who helped to propagate Buddhism in Japan. In the eleven years from 743 to 754, Jianzhen attempted to visit Japan some six times.-Life:...
and boarded the ship of the 10th Japanese missions to Tang China
Japanese missions to Tang China
Japanese missions to Tang China represent a lens for examining and evaluating the relationships between China and Japan in the 7th, 8th and 9th centuries...
when it is about to return to Japan.
In 1113, a samurai called Sakabe Yukitsuna (坂部行綱) with no children picked up an abandoned baby girl Mizukume (藻女, girl of algae) which was actually the nine-tailed fox's transformed, and raised her for 17 years. At the age of 18, she changed her name to Tamamo-no-Mae, entered the palace and bewitched Emperor Konoe
Emperor Konoe
was the 76th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.Konoe's reign spanned the years from 1142 through 1155.-Genealogy:...
.(see above)