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A woman in a flowing dress and headscarf stands on a rocky ledge, holding a branch. Her clothing billows in the wind as dark clouds gather overhead, with mountains visible in the background.

A Game Not For One Night, But For A Thousand and One Nights….

English: Princess Parizade Bringing Home the S...
Princess Parizade Bringing Home the Singing Tree, 1906, oil on paper (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

My friend Mark gave me a new board game for Christmas. The setting is the world of the traditional 1001 Nights, in which Scheherazade is weaving tales to amuse Shahryar and keep herself alive. Players are story characters, with literally thousands of game paths (very re-playable).

It’s a bit different, as games go, rewarding not just game accomplishments in terms of points or accumulated treasures and things, but extreme storytelling — that is, the more dramatic, tragic, twisted, inspiring, and generally enthralling your character’s journey is, the more likely you’ll win the game.

A black and white line drawing of a fox with nine tails, sitting and looking backward. There are three vertical Chinese characters to the right of the fox.

The Eleventh Day of Kitsune – the Kitsune Code of Conduct

This entry is part 11 of 12 in the series Twelve Days of Kitsune

When I asked on my Facebook page what people wanted to know about kitsune or the setting, a reader asked:

Are the kitsune faithful to any kind of code, other than obedience to those they serve? I mean, are they faithful to their friends, or more live-by-what-best-serves-the-moment?

Great question! And the answer is, yes. Sort of. Always. Sometimes.

They are, after all, kitsune.

Five people wearing elaborate, historical-style costumes and dramatic makeup pose indoors; four are standing in the background, and one is seated in front. The window and muted lighting contribute to a theatrical atmosphere.

The Ninth Day of Kitsune — A Period Playlist

This entry is part 9 of 12 in the series Twelve Days of Kitsune
gagaku dancer
Gagaku dancer

As we come to the Ninth Day of Kitsune, let’s treat one of the senses which has been left so far untouched despite our forays into images, taste, and touch; let’s listen to music, both period and related, from Heian era to today.

A person holds a large plush toy of Tails, a yellow fox character from the Sonic the Hedgehog series, outside on a sunny day. Other people stand nearby on a brick pavement.

The Eighth Day of Kitsune – Where Are They Now? Part 2

This entry is part 8 of 12 in the series Twelve Days of Kitsune
Anime Central 2012
flyer for Anime Central 2012

In recent years, kitsune and other folklore creatures have been making a striking comeback, it seems. Yes, they were always there, but now they’re everywhere, from fashion (French clothing line Maison Kitsune) to music (several music groups go by the name Kitsune).

Here’s a very brief collage of modern media in which you might spy a kitsune — and one of my favorite kitsune scenes in which there is no kitsune at all.

Illustration of a fox sitting in front of a straw hut, howling at the sky near a tree, with a yellow circular symbol in the upper right corner. The background is blue with hints of green and red.

The Seventh Day of Kitsune – Where Are They Now? Part 1

This entry is part 7 of 12 in the series Twelve Days of Kitsune

So for thousands of years, creatures of folklore and mythology have stalked the Japanese countryside, keeping wayward children in at night. But what about in the era of electric lights and digital cameras? What happened to the youkai, the bakemono, the monomo and ayakeshi — where are they now?

They’re glad you asked.

A pile of brownish-red pickled plums, known as umeboshi, arranged on a white plate against a plain background.

The Fifth Day of Kitsune — Dining with the Daimyou

This entry is part 5 of 12 in the series Twelve Days of Kitsune

nishiki food market, kyoto, pickled vegetables...
nishiki food market, kyoto, pickled vegetables (nukamiso) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Today we’re going to have a meal with the oyakata-sama and okugata-sama, the lord and lady of the household. Have you been practicing with your chopsticks? I hope you’re hungry!

A Japanese woodblock print shows a woman in a kimono standing beside a shoji screen. A person is lying on the floor behind the screen. Japanese calligraphy and decorative elements are visible above.

The First Day of Kitsune – a folk tale

This entry is part 1 of 12 in the series Twelve Days of Kitsune

For the First Day of Kitsune, I’d like to share one of the oldest and most common folk stories about a kitsune. It’s a tale of a fox wife, similar to Western stories of fairy brides, and it features many of the key points in the kitsune legend.

Fox women (kitsune in human form). Woodcut by Bertha Boynton Lum, 1908. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Fox women (kitsune in human form). Woodcut by Bertha Boynton Lum, 1908. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It’s also a story the village girl Murame hears in Kitsune-Mochi, which prompts her to do some deep thinking….