In Japanese mythology, this flying creature is a raven or a jungle crow called Yatagarasu (八咫烏, "eight-span crow")[16] and the appearance of the gr...
In Japanese mythology, this flying creature is a raven or a jungle crow called Yatagarasu (八咫烏, "eight-span crow")[16] and the appearance of the great bird is construed as evidence of the will of Heaven or divine intervention in human affairs.[17]
Although Yatagarasu is mentioned in a number of places in Shintō, the depictions are primarily seen on Edo wood art, dating back to the early 1800s wood-art era. Although not as celebrated today, the crow is a mark of rebirth and rejuvenation; the animal that has historically cleaned up after great battles symbolized the renaissance after such tragedy.
Yatagarasu as a crow-god is a symbol specifically of guidance. This great crow was sent from heaven as a guide for legendary Emperor Jimmu on his initial journey from the region which would become Kumano to what would become Yamato, (Yoshino and then Kashihara). It is generally accepted that Yatagarasu is an incarnation of Taketsunimi no mikoto, but none of the early surviving documentary records are quite so specific.[18]
In more than one instance, Yatagarasu appears as a three legged crow not in Kojiki but in Wamyō Ruijushō.
Both the Japan Football Association and subsequently its administered teams such as the Japan national football team use the symbol of Yatagarasu in their emblems and badges respectively.[19] The winner of the Emperor's Cup is also given the honor of wearing the Yatagarasu emblem the following season.
Although the Yatagarasu is commonly perceived as a three-legged crow, there is in fact no mention of it being such in the original Kojiki. Consequently, it is theorised that this is a result of a later possible misinterpretation during the Heian period that the Yatagarasu and the Chinese Yangwu refer to an identical entity.
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Pontianak (folklore)
The Pontianak, Matianak or Kuntilanak (from Dutch-Indonesian: Puntianak, Jawi: ڤونتيانق), sometimes shortened to Kunti, is a mythological creature in...
The Pontianak, Matianak or Kuntilanak (from Dutch-Indonesian: Puntianak, Jawi: ڤونتيانق), sometimes shortened to Kunti, is a mythological creature in Malay and Indonesian folklore. It is described as a vampiric, vengeful female ghost. The pontianak is the singular form of Kuntilanak, a woman who died in childbirth. Similar to the langsuir in Southeast Asia, the pontianak is a long-hair female bloodsucker that represents a local variation of vampire lore. She lures in unsuspecting men to incite fear and enact revenge. Signs that a pontianak is nearby include the sound of an infant crying and the smell of decaying corpses or the plumeria flower.
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