Cool Inuyasha Background Trivia

[ranuel]

Well, I think it's cool.

According to Martin Schumaucher in his entry about tanuki over at Gods of Japan, A tanuki figure commonly appears in front of restaurants in Japan in the same way that the lucky cat is used by shops. These ceramic figures show the tanuki holding a sake bottle in one hand and an IOU promising to pay for it later in the other. Tradition says that the IOU is never redeemed.

For the last several hundred years most of these have been made in Shingaraki and on these the sake bottle often has the emblem of the Nagoya clan who ruled that area in the feudal era.

          It's the character for eight referring to the eight districts they ruled and eight in Japanese is hachi!

And for my readers who've made it this far in the entry without being IY fans (Hi, Christina) Hachi is also the nickname of Hachiemon, Miroku's tanuki friend.

Comments

[christinam33.livejournal.com]

Hi! Thank you for attempting to explain. I have no idea who Miroku is or what a tanuki is but the statue and history are right up my alley.

[ranuel.livejournal.com]

A tanuki is a canine native to Japan that has markings similar to those of the raccoon. Because of this it's frequently referred to as a raccoon dog in English. If you click on the link in the post you will find pictures and info on their role in myth.

A Miroku is a 19-year-old hunk of a wandering Buddhist monk who is an accomplished con artist, not always successful ladies man, and the smartest person on Inuyasha's team despite what his behavior would lead you to believe.

He is cursed with what amounts to a black hole in the palm of his hand that is kept sealed with holy beads. If Naraku, the main villain, doesn't die REAL soon now and break the curse it will overpower the seal and suck up Miroku.

Here is the intro to him Adult Swim ran:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gnp2_JtMHu0&feature=related



(http://s74.photobucket.com/albums/i254/Ranuel/Uploads/?action=view&current=miroku-pose.jpg)

[christinam33.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much! The tanuki are cute. They remind me a little bit of red pandas but with pointier noses. And The Girl's online name is Kitsune. Now I know what that means.

[ranuel.livejournal.com]

I hadn't thought of it before but now that you mention it they are a bit like red pandas.

I think it's interesting how far away from real tanuki the appearance of the tanuki pictures and statues can get an yet still be instantly identified as tanuki.

[fenikkusuken.livejournal.com]

*snickergigglesnort* C'mon... don't leave out the tanuki's testicles, and their role in folklore! Every time I see the InuCru riding on Inflated!Hachi I nearly die laughing!

[ranuel.livejournal.com]

I didn't, if you click on the link it takes you to a page filled with info on Tanuki, including their impressive genitalia. I had to snort at the mention there of a tanuki who used his scrotum as a parachute. Beats Hachi's incredibly painful looking crash landings.

[fenikkusuken.livejournal.com]

When you think about how fussy the animators were in obscuring Mukotsu's sexual assault on Kagome, it's absolutely mind-boggling that inflated sexual organs made it onto the screen.

[ranuel.livejournal.com]

Tanuki EVERYTHING with "golden balls" have been such a part of the scenery for so many centuries that they probably don't even think about it.

[scribefigaro.livejournal.com]

I was looking for a topical post.

I had the itch to write up some vague Inuyasha resources. So I have a post I wrote just a few weeks after I left for Japan and another I started on a few weeks after I returned from Japan. Please take a look if you're interested.

http://scribefigaro.livejournal.com/26919.html

[ranuel.livejournal.com]

Very!

If you ever decide to unlock the posts let me know and I'll throw a link into my reference library.

[scribefigaro.livejournal.com]

I've just finished revising them to the point I think they're accurate enough to release into the wild. So, unlocked now.

I have a lot of pictures and maps I want to put up too, but I think I'll worry about that later.

Thanks so much for your comments!

[ranuel.livejournal.com]

You're welcome! I'll look forward to the pictures and maps.