According to the old Shinto legends, the Shinto gods (kami) of agriculture are spending the winter up in the mountains and, when the spring comes and the agricultural season begins, they descend near the villages, close to the cultivated fields.

Since the foxes are behaving in a similar way, coming from the mountains, close to human settlements, during the rice harvesting season, the popular Japanese tradition considers them messengers of kami. And so kitsune, foxes with magical powers, are always represented as guardians of the shrines dedicated to kami Inari, the god of agriculture and rice.

Kasamori Inari Jinja, Matsumoto

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Yesterday’s Japan Photo: National Treasures of Japan, Nishi Honganji Karamon, Kyoto