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A pair of komainu, the "a" on the right, the "um" on the left. Komainu (狛犬), often called lion-dogs in English, are statue pairs of lion-like creatures, which traditionally guard the entrance or gate of the shrine, or placed in front of or within the honden (inner sanctum) of Japanese Shinto shrines.
Shisa (Japanese: シーサー, Hepburn: shīsā, Okinawan: シーサー, romanized: shiisaa) is a traditional Ryukyuan cultural artifact and decoration derived from Chinese guardian lions, often seen in similar pairs, resembling a cross between a lion and a dog, from Okinawan mythology. Shisa are wards, believed to protect from some evils.
A Japanese chimera with the features of the beasts from the Chinese Zodiac: a rat's head, rabbit ears, ox horns, a horse's mane, a rooster's comb, a sheep's beard, a dragon's neck, a back like that of a boar, a tiger's shoulders and belly, monkey arms, a dog's hindquarters, and a snake's tail.
Nue – A Japanese Chimera with the head of a monkey, the legs of a tiger, the body of a Japanese raccoon dog, and the front half of a snake for a tail. Qilin – A Chinese creature with the head and scales of a dragon, the antlers of a deer, the hooves of an ox, and the tail of a lion. The Japanese version is described as a deer-shaped dragon ...
The phenomenon of inugami spiritual possession was a kojutsu (also called "kodō" or "kodoku", a greatly feared ritual for employing the spirits of certain animals) that was already banned in the Heian period that was thought to have spread throughout the population, and it was known to involve cutting off the head of a starving dog and burying the dog at a crossroads to inflame its grudges as ...
In Iranian mythology, the lion is a symbol of courage and monarchy. It is portrayed standing beside the kings in artifacts and sitting on the graves of knights. Imperial seals were also decorated with carved lions. The lion and sun motif is based largely on astronomical configurations, and the ancient zodiacal sign of the sun in the house of Leo.
Kōjin (三宝荒神), is the god of fire, the hearth, and the kitchen. Konjin (金神) Kotoshironushi (事代主神) Kuebiko (久延毘古), the god of knowledge and agriculture, represented in Japanese mythology as a scarecrow who cannot walk but has comprehensive awareness. Kukunochi, believed to be the ancestor of trees. [22]
Fufluns, god of plant life, happiness and health and growth in all things; Liber, cognate for Bacchus/Dionysus; Nemestrinus, god of the forests and woods; Ops, goddess of fertility and the earth; Pilumnus, nature god who ensured children grew properly and stayed healthy; Pomona, goddess of fruit trees, gardens and orchards