..Ona ±hê ¶ïttlê rêÐ Fø×

Greetings from Ona ±hê ¶ïttlê rêÐ Fð×,
If you are wondering why a fox has a profile it is because this den has a kitsune residing here....Kitsune is the Japanese word for fox. Foxes are a common subject of Japanese folklore. Stories depict them as intelligent beings and as possessing magical abilities that increase with their age and wisdom. Foremost among these is the ability to assume human form. While some folktales speak of kitsune employing this ability to trick others — as foxes in folklore often do — others portray them as faithful guardians, friends, lovers, and wives.The fox 'kitsune' - The Lady Kaede in Akira Kurosawa's 'Ran'. Foxes and human beings lived in close proximity in ancient Japan; this companionship gave rise to legends about the creatures. Kitsune have become closely associated with Inari, a Shinto kami or spirit, and serve as his messengers. This role has reinforced the fox's supernatural significance. The Japanese fox has always played a most important part in Japanese culture, especially its supernatural power to transform itself into a human being. In the second half of the film 'Ran', Kurosawa skilfully interweaves this tradition, attributing it to the Lady Kaede after her husband's murder. From the haunting film 'Dreams' again by Akira Kurosawa..this part is called 'Sunshine through the rain'.I won't tell you anymore,just watch and enjoy the magic of the foxes....gorgeous!!! THE FOXES' WEDDING Once upon a time there was a young white fox, whose name was Fukuyémon. When he had reached the fitting age, he shaved off his forelock and began to think of taking to himself a beautiful bride. The old fox, his father, resolved to give up his inheritance to his son, and retired into private life; so the young fox, in gratitude for this, laboured hard and earnestly to increase his patrimony. Now it happened that in a famous old family of foxes there was a beautiful young lady-fox, with such lovely fur that the fame of her jewel-like charms was spread far and wide. The young white fox, who had heard of this, was bent on making her his wife, and a meeting was arranged between them. There was not a fault to be found on either side; so the preliminaries were settled, and the wedding presents sent from the bridegroom to the bride's house, with congratulatory speeches from the messenger, which were duly acknowledged by the person deputed to receive the gifts; the bearers, of course, received the customary fee in copper cash. When the ceremonies had been concluded, an auspicious day was chosen for the bride to go to her husband's house, and she was carried off in solemn procession during a shower of rain, the sun shining all the while. After the ceremonies of drinking wine had been gone through, the bride changed her dress, and the wedding was concluded, without let or hindrance, amid singing and dancing and merry-making. The bride and bridegroom lived lovingly together, and a litter of little foxes were born to them, to the great joy of the old grandsire, who treated the little cubs as tenderly as if they had been butterflies or flowers. "They're the very image of their old grandfather," said he, as proud as possible. "As for medicine, bless them, they're so healthy that they'll never need a copper coin's worth!" As soon as they were old enough, they were carried off to the temple of Inari Sama, the patron saint of foxes, and the old grand-parents prayed that they might be delivered from dogs and all the other ills to which fox flesh is heir.THE FOXES' WEDDING. KITSUNE NO YOMEIRI DOCHU (Fox Marriage Parade Ceremony) at Miyamado Inari Shrine, Miyamado-cho, Yokkaichi-shi. Joyful and humorous "Fox Wedding Parade" led by a red devil and a green devil is held on Setsubun, the eve of the first day of New Year as marked by the ancient luner calendar. A man and a woman born under this year's zodiac sign are the fox bride and groom, wearing masks and throwing soy beans and good fortune bags to onlookers Blacksmith Munechika (end of the 10th century), helped by a fox spirit, forging the blade ko-kitsune-maru ("Little fox"). The kami is represented by a woman surrounded by foxes. Engraving by Ogata Gekko (1859-1920), 1873. The most famous kitsune of the Heian period - .....Tamamo-no-mae ... During the reign of Emperor Konoe, in around 1155, a servant-girl worked in devotion at the Court of Cloistered Emperor Toba. Later, she would come to be called Tamamo-no-mae, the smartest and most beautiful woman in the whole country and perhaps the world. Mysteriously, Tamamo-no-mae's body naturally exuded a lovely scent, and her clothes stayed beautiful all day. She was therefore not just an overwhelming favorite of Emperor Toba. Everyone in the court was infatuated with her. [Tamamo-no-mae, smartest and most beautiful woman in the world.] What is more, Tamamo-no-mae was not just beautiful, she was also extremely knowledgeable. She looked a mere twenty years old, but there was nothing she did not know. Whatever the question asked of her was, she would grin and reply in easily understood words. So strange was it, the Emperor decided to go and test Tamamo-no-mae, and he asked her a question on one particularly difficult Buddhist teaching. When he did, Tamamo-no-mae replied by explaining with a word for word quote from a volume written long ago by some great monks. The Emperor and all the other courtesans were stunned when they heard this. [Tamamo-no-mae explains the difficult Buddhist teaching.] Then, the Emperor prepared an even tougher riddle. "In the sky there is what they call the 'Milky Way.' What really is it?" "How should someone like me know? But I think it is probably the spirit of the clouds." "Indeed. The spirit of the clouds ... interesting." The Emperor was awestruck. [Tamamo-no-mae points to the sky as she explains the Milky Way.] So deep was the favor that Tamamo-no-mae earned with the Emperor that he kept her at his side day and night. He cherished her as if she was his empress. Sometime around September 20, there was a performance of poetry and music at the Seiryoden, the serene, cool chamber. The Emperor took her along and they sat within the bamboo blinds. Just at that moment, a strong wind rushed through, blowing out the fire of the lanterns, and the room was plunged into darkness.Yet in an instant, there seemed to be light emanating from Tamamo-no-mae's body. Surprised, the honorable ministers looked around and realized that the light was spilling from within the bamboo blinds that surrounded her. The light was like the morning sun. Ignoring the music, the Emperor declared in response to the minister's enquiries, "She is quite a mystery. There is no doubt that she is the embodiment of the Buddha and the Bodhisattva." When the bamboo blinds were raised, it became brighter than noon even though it was darkest night. The light was just like a glowing bulb, and that is how she came to be known as Tamamo-no-mae. [Tamamo-no-mae's body emanates light and the honorable ministers look on in disbelief as light spills from within the bamboo blinds during the palace concert.] Upon the command to "ask Tamamo-no-mae something you want to know," a young courtesan stepped forth with a question about the orchestra. Tamamo-no-mae answered this too with ease, leaving everyone present speechless with admiration. Afterwards, she revealed her knowledge of how all things came into being, from the musical instruments of the lute and the flute to stationary, fans and carriages, surprising people even more. [Tamamo-no-mae discusses the orchestra and the nobles admire her discourse.] The Emperor may have seemed quite fearful, but drawn to the beauty of Tamamo-no-mae, he had exchanged deep vows with her. However, the Emperor was suddenly taken ill, and with no idea of the reason, he became sicker by the day. [The ailing Emperor.] According to the diagnosis of the chief court physician, the sickness had been brought on by evil, and therefore was not something that a doctor could treat. So he went to see the fortune teller Yasunari. Yasunari cast his fortune. He divined that something big would happen to the Emperor, and told him to start praying immediately. The whole palace went into a frenzy. High monks were brought from temples everywhere and made to pray en masse. [Fortune teller Abe-no-Yasunari divines the reason for the Emperor's illness.] However, the prayers were having no effect whatsoever, and the Emperor's condition simply continued to worsen. Shedding tears, he took Tamamo-no-mae by the hand and cried to her, "Such a pity that I shall die, to leave you behind ..." Upon hearing this, Tamamo-no-mae, still prostrate and wailing, replied, "So kindly allowing such a pitiable creature as myself to serve you would have been for nought if you were to leave us, I could not live. I will be devoted to you wherever we are." The prayers were getting nowhere. One by one the monks began to leave. When Yasunari was asked to cast the Emperor's fortune once again, he seemed to be having trouble talking. Finally, he was told, "Don't be scared, just say it," and so the fortune teller said, "The Emperor is ill because of Tamamo-no-mae. If Tamamo-no-mae goes far away you will surely get better." The troubled nobles pressed him for more details. It turned out that Tamamo-no-mae was really a hundred-year-old fox living on the Nasuno Plain in Shimotsuke-no-Kuni (present day Tochigi). The fox was 42 feet tall and had two tails. Disguised as a beautiful woman, he would gain access to the ruler and shorten his life in a devilish plot to take over as ruler. People secretly told the Emperor this, but he did not believe them. Meanwhile, he continued to get sicker and sicker. Following Yasunari's advice, the Emperor was to worship the god Taizan-fukun, and Tamamo-no-mae was ordered to make an offering to the gods. Although she disdained the task immediately as a wearisome chore, she was persuaded to assent to it by the ministers who said that if this cured the Emperor, she would gain admiration. So that very day, Tamamo-no-mae, more smartly dressed than ever, in the middle of reading a formula and looking as though she was about to ceremonially wave a hemp cloth, suddenly disappeared. Just as Yasunari had predicted, she was indeed a fox in disguise. [Tamamo-no-mae makes an offering to the gods at the Taizan-fukun festival.] Everyone was racking their brains: How to get rid of this fox? Many worried about whether it was possible to eradicate such a creature with human strength, but finally, believing they could pull it off by gathering together all the reputed archers of the land, they decided the warriors would hunt the fox. The most superb warriors of the day were said to be Kazusa-nosuke and Miura-nosuke. The Emperor ordered them to hunt down the fox. Accepting the Emperor's orders, they purified themselves, proclaimed that there was no higher honor and roused their families and retainers to join the mission. Then they set out, the two warriors galloping off ahead of their entourage. [Kazusa-nosuke and Miura-nosuke take orders to eradicate the fox from Nasuno Plain.] As they pushed into the grasses of the wide Nasuno Plain, they came upon the two-tailed fox they had all heard about. Everyone chased the fox to lay their hands on some of the glory, but as it was a creature with supernatural powers, the fox cleverly escaped. [The Nasuno Plain fox and its leisurely escape.] So the fighters withdrew for a time, planning another attempt with a new attack strategy using martial arts. Kazusa-nosuke practiced hitting a ball dropped from his horse, and Miura-nosuke practiced with his bow and arrow using dogs instead of foxes as targets. [Miura-nosuke earnestly practices his hunting skills, using dogs instead of foxes as targets.] Then, they set out for Nasuno Plain to once again hunt the fox, but after seven days they had achieved nothing and by then, the retainers could not hide their tiredness. Kazusa-nosuke and Miura-nosuke swore that they would never return to their hometown alive, such would be the disgrace of somehow failing to hunt down the fox, and they prayed to the gods for their grace. Then, Miura-nosuke took a short nap during which he had a dream. In his dream, a beautiful women of about 20 appeared and begged him, crying, "Tomorrow I will regrettably lose my life to you. Please save me." When he woke up, Miura-nosuke, who had refused her on no uncertain terms in his dream, rounded up the entourage and led the charge forth, proclaiming that today was the day that they would bring down the fox. [Miura-nosuke's dream in which Tamamo-no-mae appears to beg him to spare her life.] Just at daybreak, a certain fox attempted to flee for the mountains. Miura-nosuke whipped his horse and approached the fox, then shot his arrow. The arrow made a perfect direct hit on the fox, and it tumbled to the ground. "Ha!" he cried, dismounting his horse. As he got closer, the creature was more wondrous than any rumor had hinted. The corpse of the fox was soon taken to the capital, and Kazusa-nosuke and Miura-nosuke went to the capital as well. Even the Emperor was impressed with this unprecendented achievement, and a re-creation of the fox hunt was held in the presence of the Emperor at the very spot on the Nasuno Plain where it had taken place. Sadly fox-hunting became the reason for Yabusame, Japanese archery on horseback but that is the human aspect of the legend that does not bear scrutiny probably.Hunting has long been a way of life for warriors in the past - it needs to be outlawed everywhere in these times. [Benkei and a magical fox in the forest....] Manifestations of this ¶ïttlê rêÐ Fð× watching you watching the world pass by...here are some more of my legendary companions and festivals celebrated in Japan... Children's Day - May 5th: Celebration of Kodomo No Hi May 5 is the celebration of "Children’s Day", (Kodomo no Hi) also known as "Boys Day". This day is special to children in Japan as it a time to pray for good health and prosperity. Kodomo no Hi is celebrated as a combination of what use to be separate days for “Girls Day” (Hina Matsuri, March 3rd) and “Boys Day” (Tango-no-Sekku, May 5). Girls Day celebration is marked by displaying dolls which have been handed down through the generations from mother to daughter, and dates back to the Heian Period, about 1,000 years ago. Dolls are arranged on a 5 or 7 tiered stand. At the top of the tier are the Emperor and Empress,followed by court ladies, musicians and servants."Hishimochi" or rice cakes are served. These rice cakes are red (or pink), white, and green. Red symbolizes the chasing away of evil spirits. White is a symbol of purity, and green symbolizes good health. Bean filled rice cakes are also served. Boys Day is traditionally celebrated with the flying of carp windsocks or streamers outside of the family home. A carp streamer is hung for each boy in a household. The largest carp streamer is hung in honor of the first born son and the streamers size are smaller for each son thereafter. Warrior Dolls (Musha-Ningyo) are also displayed on Boys Day within the home as they represent strength. Two of the dolls represent Kintaro and Momotaro. Kintaro, the legend goes, was raised in the mountains by his mother. The animals of the forest became his friends due to his gentle nature.Eventually Kintaro joins up with a Samurai clan and helps to defeat a gang of demons. Momotaro is the story of Peach Boy, who also defeats evil demons. Special foods are served including rice cakes wrapped in bamboo and rice cakes filled with sweet bean. Kamigamo shrine celebrates Children’s Day with horse races in the tradition of the samurai. The leaves of Japanese iris are used in baths and mixed with sake for this special holiday.
Japanese dolls are the most famous of all dolls and influenced doll makers all over the world especially in Germany and France.There are many different types of Japanese dolls some of which are illustrated in this profile but for more information of types of dolls please check my blog for updated information.Adventures of a Japanese Doll by Henry Mayer 1901, Grant Richards, London This book is hardbound, measures about 24 x 32 cm, and consists of 64 single-sided pages, numbered however 1-128. Each printed opening consists of a full-page color image on one page, and a section of text on the facing page. The text is quite full, and divided into chapters.Why Hang A Carp Streamer? (Koi Nobori)The carp symbolizes strength and determination.Two desirable characteristics for the Japanese male to be able to meet the challenges life will surely bring. In China, Chinese dragons are carp that swim over the Dragon Bridge and transform to become young dragons.The old tale of the carps jumping and crossing over "Dragon Gate" to transform into the dragon reminds us of the ability to resist hurdles and achieving success. Chinese stamps with the carp swimming over Dragon's Gate.The carp is a tough fish that could resist big currents in China's ancient Yellow River and they portray perseverance and determination. They are able to persistently resist hardship, swim upstream and rapidly jumping above the water to reach heaven to symbolize great achievements in ones pursuit or high ambitions of a lifetime. Although the carp is often associated with scholastic success and literary luck, it is also a potent emblem of happy outcome, joyful marriage, sufficient fortune and prosperity.Chinese Feng Shui Masters often recommend fishes to boost wealth luck in homes. The most traditional type of Feng Shui fish recommended by ancient Feng Shui Masters is the Carp. They exist massively in China's Yellow River and is kept by emperors, officials and tycoons in their ponds and man-made pools surrounding their huge gardens to enhance wealth chi. Arowana is another powerful wealth fish that makes money come of "life".Hanabi - [Fireworks Festivals] No summer in Japan would be complete without fireworks. Japanese hanabi (fireworks), which many argue are the world's most gorgeous and elaborate, are famous for their perfect roundness and harmoniously blended, multicolored layers that blossom out into the night sky. Each year in July and August fireworks festivals are held throughout Japan. This summer some 122 are scheduled for the greater Tokyo region alone. - “hanabi”, the Japanese word for “fireworks”, literally means “flower + fire.” **** Fireworks, which were invented in China during the Tang dynasty (618-907), reached Europe by way of the Silk Road.**** In the first century A.D., the Chinese reportedly had a simple form of gunpowder made from saltpeter, sulfur, and charcoal dust. To create explosions during religious festivals, they filled bamboo tubes with a mixture and tossed them into fires. Perhaps some of those tubes failed to explode and instead skittered out of the fires, propelled by the gases and sparks produced by the burning gunpowder. The Chinese began experimenting with the gunpowder filled tubes. At some point, they attached bamboo tubes to arrows and launched them with bows. Soon they discovered that these gunpowder tubes could launch themselves just by the power produced from the escaping gas. The true rocket was born. The date reporting the first use of true rockets was in 1232. At this time, the Chinese and the Mongols were at war with each other. During the battle of Kai-Keng, the Chinese repelled the Mongol invaders by a barrage of "arrows of flying fire." These fire-arrows were a simple form of a solid-propellant rocket. A tube, capped at one end, contained gunpowder. The other end was left open and the tube was attached to a long stick. When the powder was ignited, the rapid burning of the powder produced fire, smoke, and gas that escaped out the open end and produced a thrust. The stick acted as a simple guidance system that kept the rocket headed in one general direction as it flew through the air. Gunpowder was to re-shape warfare up until the present day.Chinese invention became the world's passion. CHINESE FIRECRACKERS..................... The Chinese also invented firecrackers to celebrate the New Year. Firecrackers are let off to ward away evil spirits and to awaken the Spring dragon from his slumber. The Spring Dragon then soars in the heavens disturbing the skies and causing thunderstorms of welcome spring rain to encourage the rice crops to grow.All this depended on Chinese gunpowder...an incredible invention!Even Christmas Crackers owe their origins to Japan...... CRACKERS.............................................. A box of "Japanese" crackersBelow is, first, the lid of the box of "G. Spargnapane Co's Japanese Crackers" (possibly from the 1890s or early 1900s) and, below that, a sample of the box's contents: crackers in bright paper, and little dolls and a parasol which were part of the treats inside. It seems evident that the box and contents were prepared and the seller added the company name at the point of sale. The box lid shows a little Japanese girl and her mother (probably, though the hairdo suggests a misunderstanding of the hairdo of the Kabuki actors who portray women, wearing a little cap on the front of the head). The girl holds a male doll with arms straight out, like the male doll in a tachibina pair, and dolls of this type decorate the four corners of the box lid.Across the top and bottom there is a procession of children (repeated a total of 4 times), while down the sides there are groups of 3 standing ladies or lady dollsThe crackers (probably a dozen in the original box) are wrapped in a variety of papers, one of which (left below) has a Japanese motif. Pasted on the front of each one is a small die-cut image of an Oriental person; some of these are clearly Japanese, while others appear to be Chinese or an amalgam. The little dolls and the parasol are examples of the contents BACK TO HANABI AND JAPANESE FIREWORKS..................Japan's first brush with hanabi is said to have occurred in 1613, when they were introduced to Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu by an envoy of the British monarchy.**** In the middle of the Edo period (1603-1868) hanabi became favorite entertainment of daimyo (landholding military lords) and wealthy merchants, who would order displays from firework makers and enjoy the performances from their boats. In 1733 Shogun Yoshimune organized a fireworks display along the Sumida River to pay respects to the many people who died of a terrible famine the previous year and to ward off evil spirits.This was the start of the renowned Ryogoku River Festival. At festivals around Japan spectators can often be heard calling out "Tamaya!" "Kagiya!"These cheers refer to the names of the two families that became the biggest hanabi producers during the Edo period and catapulted the Ryogoku River Festival into the nation's biggest display of fireworks. At the first festival in 1733 the Tamaya family set off some 20 rockets that created a sensation. In 1810 the Kagiya clan branched off from the Tamaya, resulting in an annual battle for hanabi supremacy that became a favorite event for the Edo public. From the Taisho (1912-26) through the Showa (1926-89) eras, well-known firework makers began surfacing throughout Japan and, as hanabi-making techniques improved, the country's fireworks gradually acquired their own unique flavor. Old-World Tradition The Ryogoku River Festival of the Edo period has since come to be known as the Sumida River Fireworks Festival. It is the biggest fireworks display in the greater Tokyo area, where more than 20,000 rockets are launched annually from the Sumida River, which flows along the eastern part of Tokyo, including Ryogoku. The most thrilling part of the festival is a competition among 10 manufacturers--7 local and 3 from other parts of the country whose displays have received critical acclaim--that never fails to dazzle the crowd.The tale of Urashima Taro.... Urashima Taro was fishing one day when he sees a turtle in distress. Urashima saves the turtle, in gratitude the turtle takes Urashima to the Dragon Palace.He spends many days in happiness at this underwater kingdom, however soon becomes homesick and asks to be allowed home. The queen of the palace allows him to go home and gives him as a gift a jewel encrusted box with explicit instructions never to open it.Upon arriving home Urashima discovers that over 300 years have passed in the real world and no one can remember him or any of his contemporaries.Wallowing in self-induced depression, he heads to the beach and remembers the box he was given. He opens it and a white cloud is released and he suddenly ages and dies - the box having contained his true age Shell-shaped Satsuma earthenware 'box', decorated with scenes Urashima Tarô, signed Yozan 19th.century. SAVE SEA TURTLES AND SEA TURTLE HABITATS*...flies in and settles down...*One of my favourite companions is the Tengu....... There are actually two forms of tengu. The first and more ancient type, karasu or "crow" tengu, has the beak, claws, and wings of a bird but the body of a man. Often the bird tengu is wearing a small round priest's cap.Yamabushi or "mountain priest" tengu are probably more well known. They take the form of barefooted elderly mountain priests with extremely long noses. Wooden masks of both types of tengu are popular. In English, the term tengu merely translates as "goblin" without distinction as to the two forms.The Heavenly Dogs of China The Chinese have a legend about mountain demons called t'ien-kou, the written characters for which mean heavenly or celestial dog. Those same characters are pronounced "tengu" in Japanese. The Chinese t'ien-kou derived their names from comets or meteors-heavenly bodies falling to earth, the trails of which resemble the tails of dogs or foxes. In other words, they are starry, or "astral," beings. T'ien-kou legends found their way to Japan in the sixth and seventh centuries. Early tengu, like the t'ien-kou, were evil birdlike demons which did many foul deeds such as kidnapping and eating children, starting fires, and misleading priests. They could also transform themselves into the form of men, women or children. Since they lived in the mountains, tengu often took the form of the eccentric yamabushi (mountain priests) who also lived there. Many yamabushi were thought to possess magical powers derived from their ascetic practices and the sacredness of the mountains themselves. Over time, the folklore of tengu and yamabushi became intertwined. The yamabushi form of tengu became most popular and even the bird tengu were shown wearing the short robes and caps of priests. Tengu were also portrayed as being more mischievous than evil and were often depicted helping people.Being shape-shifters, tengu are capable of assuming a variety of forms or casting various illusions to deceive humans, but their primoridal nature is definitely avian. They hatch from enormous eggs (despite almost always being male), and make their homes in the sugi (Cryptomeria) trees that make up much of Japan's forests. [Carved ivory inro and netsuke decorated in the forms of tengu and their eggs.] Although today they are often associated with crows, ravens, and the like (karasu can refer to any member of genus Corvus), the first bird they were identified with was apparently the black-eared kite, Milvus lineatus, a gregarious raptor Lafcadio Hearn noted for its insolent and brash behavior around humans.Over time, the Shinto deity Saruta-biko no Mikoto became the god for good journey and the ancestor of the super beings called " Tengu," who live deep in the mountains.The Tengu are considered as agile as "saru" (monkies). There are many legends that the great swordsmen of Japanese history learned their skills in the martial arts from Tengu tutors.Legend says that Minamoto-no-Yoshitsune, when a child, learned martial arts with the king of the Tengu at Mt. Kurama in Kyoto. Legend speaks of a planned assassination at the Shogun's court. Razor sharp iron bands were inserted in to the edge of the sliding screen doors. When the intended victim,a Samurai lord who would enter the room on his knees [knee walking -jiko]as protocol demanded, he would bow [rei] -at the entrance to the room as was the custom, the doors would be slammed shut to fatally injure him. Samurai lords were not allowed to enter court with weapons but they did have a fan tucked into their waist sash [obi].Items were handed to other warlords on a horizontally held fan as a sign of non-agression and 'open-handedness' ,so fans were standard accessories.Whether the plot was discovered, or he used 'zanshin' or a sixth sense we do not know - but as he bowed whilst kneeling, his gaze moving to the floor in respect, with one swift movement he rammed the folded fan in to the floor track of the doors at his side, which jammed the doors much to the shock of the assassins disguised as servants, and he saved himself from decapitation.The fan became revered and the iron fan ,'tessen' came into being. A tessen (iron war fan), on display in Iwakuni Castle, Japan A tessen usually has eight or ten ribs. The use of the war fan in combat is mentioned in early Japanese legends. Yoshitsune is said to have defeated Benkei [the famous warrior monk] by parrying the blows of his opponent's spear [yari] with an iron fan. This use of the iron fan was taught to him by the tengu, who also had instructed him in the art of swordsmanship.Red-crowned cranes (Grus japonensis)................Red-crowned Crane chick in the rushes and reeds Cranes dancing, Kushiro-Shitsugen National Park, Hokkaido Tancho (red- crowned crane) is Japan's most popular bird, but it was hunted for food until the 1900-s. In winter, the remaining Hokkaido birds, plus a few from the Kurils, gather in a protected area near Kushiro.This crane qualifies as Endangered because it has a very small, declining population as a result of loss and degradation of wetlands through conversion to agriculture and industrial development Pair calling in duo, Kushiro-Shitsugen Nat'l Park. Sometimes almost the entire population can be seen in one field. Pair of Japanese Red-crowned cranes (Grus japonensis)displaying on frozen lake may all the little red foxes live in peace and harmony... I hope I can count on your support to 'Say NO to Fur' campaign and especially in re-enactment groups.The largest Viking group in the UK will NOT wear fur and I hope that together we will particularly guard foxes which seem to be the most popular fur worn [Courtesy and copyright of the R.S.P.C.A. ,U.K.] Each year, the worldwide fur industry kills more than 55 million animals* in the name of fashion.The RSPCA is opposed to the farming and trapping of animals for their fur. Husbandry and slaughter methods used on fur farms can cause considerable suffering to the animals involved. Some animals are SKINNED ALIVE to cut costs!Make sure you know the facts and never buy anything that is made entirely or partly of real fur.By refusing to buy real fur items and by ensuring that the fur on the clothes and accessories you buy is completely fake (faux), you are not contributing to the killing of fur-bearing animals in the name of fashion."STOP the FUR TRADE and hunting of animals as trophies....this is what wearing fur REALLY means Here is the rest of the fur coat"To help the foxes in many ways here in the United Kingdom why not visit the Fox Shop on E Bay?... http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Fox-ShopThe fox shop directly helps foxes when you buy goods. The Fox Shop is selling goods for the National Fox Welfare Society. For more information of the work of the Society visit their web site at www.nfws.org.uk. The Society helps sick, injured and orphaned foxes across the country. Lastly, a little about myself and where I am from..My tribe, the Brigantes:This large tribe was, like the Votandini, a federation of smaller communities. The name means 'upland people' or 'hill dwellers'. This name is very appropriate as the Pennines formed the heart of their territory. After the Roman Conquest, the Brigantes were formed into a very large civitates, or administrative unit that covered most of Yorkshire, Cleveland, Durham and Lancashire. It stretched from the North Sea to the Irish Sea. We know the names of some of the smaller tribes they made up the Brigantes at the time of the Roman Conquest. They include the Setanti in Lancashire , the Lopocares, the Corionototae and the Tectoverdi around the Tyne valley. This huge area was very varied. As well as people living in the Dales and hills, many people farmed the fertile land in Durham, Tyneside and Teeside. At the time of the Roman Conquest people in this region wore swords carried in distinctive local metal scabbards that were highly decorated. An important centre for the Brigantes was built at Stanwick in North Yorkshire in the first century AD. This was probably the capital of Queen Cartimandua who ruled the Brigantes. Cartimandua was friendly towards the Romans, but her husband was anti-Roman. The Romans invaded and occupied the territory in AD79.I edited my profile with Thomas' Myspace Editor V4.1
Finally this little fox hopes that you enjoyed reading this profile and would like to thank you for being a friend....