The woman fox. Chinese legends.
Singapore is a melting pot of old Chinese traditions where, as in Taiwan, founding myths of China’s identity and literary culture and almost forgotten Chinese languages still intersect. Fortunately, it has preserved ancient Chinese myths and legends. The female fox is present in many Asian cultures, whether in China, Korea, steppe peoples or Japan. Although its pict, much more than its mythological outline, is known to some Westerners interested in Japanese culture, it is still unknown, both by Chinese and non-Chinese. The fox woman or 狐 狸 精 (1) is a Chinese founding myth and as a result, he settled by influence in Korea, Mongolia and Japan through the Middle Ages. Thanks to the Chinese diaspora, it is also present in the whole of Southeast Asia, as in Vietnam, where it is called Hồ Tinh (狐 精).
But what is it ?
The fox woman is a beast with magical powers, which can turn into a pretty woman to captivate men. The earliest record of the fox woman is found in Shanhai Jing (2), which is said to have been compiled during the Spring and Fall Warring States period in China (3). Among the scriptures of the mountain and the sea (2), the content of the Sutra Namsan (南 山 經) shows the characteristics of a man-eating monster. In the ancient novels of the Yuan dynasty (4), «Quanxiang Pinghua» or 全 相 平 話 (5), the first wife of King Zhou of the Chinese Shang dynasty, refers to the nine-tailed fox (another name of the fox woman) or it is described as an incarnation. This story travelled to Japan and appeared in the form of the legend called Tamamo-no-Mae (6), which exerted a great influence on the subculture world of the Edo period. A nine-tailed fox also appears in Journey to the West, released under the Ming dynasty (7). In the case of Vietnam, the story is very similar to the myths conveyed in the Peranakan community (8) of on, I am partly issue and where it is a nine-tailed fox, which appears in the founding myth Hakka, having a thousand-year-old spirit, turning into a ghost or a human female at night and coming out of her den to attack people. The Vietnamese call it «Hồ Tinh». This monster is defeated by «Lạc Long Quân» (貉 龍 君) (9), who exhausts him by fighting for three days with the magic of thunder and wind, then strangles him with a flowing knot, made of twisted wire of five colors. Long Quan Lake was born to the daughter of King Loc Tuk and the dragon king, who ruled the country called «Sik Kui». He is a hero and king who travels freely in the water and possesses great power. The nine-tailed fox of Vietnam, which survived the battle against Long Quan Lake for three days, has a splendid history in that it is a trophy of the mythical exploits of the founding hero. This myth occupies an equivalent position in the Dangun myth in Korea.
Because of cultural conflict, there are often debates about whether the fox woman is of Chinese or Japanese origin, such as the many theories that Tamamo-no-mae is the origin of all nine-tailed foxes. In any case, even if foxes do not necessarily have nine tails, as shown by the archives showing foxes in China, Korea and Japan, popular legends often mixed with religion, foxes belonging to the Five Emperors (10) in China and foxes related to the Inari religion in Japan (17), the animal itself has attracted human attention since antiquity. Around the 11th century, foxes were so popular in myths and legends, that there are Chinese records that anyone who slaughtered a fox to death was sentenced to exile. It is also said that it does not really have nine tails, but its fur would be divided into nine branches, which would give it the appearance of nine tails, but there is only one real tail that contains flesh and bones. Or, there are cases where it is explained that if a tail has nine forks, it is a celestial beast living with the Gods, having the same magical attribute by transforming into a woman and if she has nine tails, it would be a nine-tails fox, so a monster (1) see a higher demon. Depending on the time, the culture, a nine-tailed fox is born with a single tail, but as it grows, its tail splits or, in some cases, it has nine tails from birth.
Little anecdote. Apart from this mythical and legendary tradition, the word «fox» is itself mainly used in classical and modern China, to denigrate cunning people, especially treacherous agents within the government and formerly, those of the imperial palace (11).
Bestiary, mythology and traditions.
In China, foxes are yin animals and they are mainly active at night. Even ordinary foxes outside the realm of legends, were considered special animals with intelligence comparable to that of humans. As for the fox woman, under the Qing dynasty she was a symbol of prosperity and abundance, seen as a monster of good omen. Among the fox monsters of China, the most famous in terms of nine-tailed foxes or fox woman, is Dalgi (妲 己) (11). She embodies both the image of the wicked girl, the succubus, the femme fatale and the man-eating witch. In short, she is a free woman, therefore dangerous in a culture where women, in order to hope for a good marriage, had to tie their feet and live all their life, atrocious pains (12). Dalgi then appears rightly as an evil and dangerously attractive woman (13). However, even in China, after Dalgi became famous, foxes were not always perceived negatively. At the time, the fox was a venerated animal on par with one of the «four powers 四 靈 (sìlíng)» (14). His popularity was so present that he was considered an almost omnipotent god. In particular, his status as a god of wealth meant that he was revered in shops, restaurants and playrooms. It is even registered not only in the private sector as I have just explained, but also next to the treasures of palaces and government offices where it seems to have assumed the role of guardian of money and official documents, as well as protector of the walls surrounding the city. In Chinese mythology, a fox woman can reach the level of the Celestial Tiger: this spiritual beast with golden fur is the highest position that a fox can reach. They work in the Palace of the Sun with the Goddess Xihé (15) and the Palace of the Moon. It is said that since they live in a palace in heaven, they will never harm humans, but if they do, something terrible could happen, for they have at least the power of a lower class god (16). Not all foxes become fox gods. In Chinese mythology, for a fox to become a member, it must pass an exam written and supervised by the Goddess Xihé and held once a year. The exam can only be attempted once and if the fox fails, it will remain a demon for a lifetime, without ever being able to surpass her status as a fox woman. A simple fox who wishes to become a demon fox woman, must have a higher intelligence compared to its congeners and learn the language of all the birds of the world. It is a process of learning human language, and by learning more disguise skills, it can turn into human. From his transformation into a fox woman, the monster has a vital need for man for a simple reason: steal human energy to appropriate it and develop its own magical powers, but also remain eternally alive and young. The best way to obtain human energy is through a fleshly relationship with a human. Naturally, there are male and female foxes, just as they are capable of homosexual mating. It is very difficult to resist the attraction of these beings. If you are possessed by them, even if you know their identity, you will not be able to overcome their desires. Legend has it that even if a strong Taoist monk tried to stop them, he would eventually lose all your vital energy and die. In very rare cases, there are fox demons who remember a particular love relationship and thirst for sincere love with one of their victims in order to live a life like humans, but because of their eternity, Most of them approach simply to realize a dream: to become a god. If however a child is born from this union, the child will in turn be a demon.
Coexistence with fox women:
Tales, myths and legends teach us a lot about these beings. When a polite passing fox and a cheerful owner meet, a fairly good coexistence seems to be established in practice. Even if the fox does not intend to harm the owner, the demon will attack the human if the latter is either too suspicious or even hostile. Of course, there is also a problem with the fox woman side that insists on settling in and living in a specific place for a multitude of reasons that are unique to it. If the fox woman somehow manages to live as a tenant and friendly owner, it is not a loss for humans, since the fox woman not only acts as a companion of the owner, but also as a counselor with magical powers. There are also stories of a foxy woman who loves alcohol, who meets a man who loves alcohol, befriends him and gives him advice. It is said that even fox women who have high Taoist powers and do not fear Taoist monks, cannot completely get rid of their hunting instinct. For this reason, they fear hunting dogs and hawks and it is a safe bet that they will not hesitate to kill them. In China, foxes are not ordinary animals, but spiritual creatures with the same intelligence as humans. Therefore, it is not considered easy to hunt foxes who have accumulated magical powers through hard work. These beliefs about animals are widespread in Asia. The belief that turtles and carps live in human form in the Dragon Palace, or that swallows act like humans in their own country, was not limited to China.
The magic pearl.
Here is a small folk story of the Hakka people that my grandfather told me: in a village called, Wenhwajin in Haichang, in the province of Zhejiang, a couple formed by a fox woman and a fox man, came to live on the second floor of the house of a rich man who rented the place. Although the foxes did no harm other than ask for alcohol, the owner, suspicious to see two such beautiful people with such a delicate physique, had decided to call a monk. The foxes, who have the magical power to see hundreds of miles away, knew it and the next day they attacked the monk who fled. The owner of the house, informed, was satisfied to have seen right. He was a magistrate of Haichang, and endowed with a superior Taoist power, but he knew himself weak in the face of the demon couple. He decided to call upon a very powerful Taoist monk, but the foxes summoned a god from heaven and finally this monk fled in turn. Finally, the owner, a good player, gave them the house, since they had not initially made problems, but that it was his attitude that provoked them, well aware that they could have killed him and the other interveners. After several months, the owner fell seriously ill. No doctor was able to treat him and he had only a few hours to live. The demon couple arrived and the fox woman took out a red pearl from her mouth and placed it on the chest of the owner, who was healed in a few minutes. The pearls of fox women. According to legend, these pearls are a concentrate of magical powers acquired through the accumulation of spiritual power. They bring knowledge and healing. In Japan, the Hoshu no Tama of the Inari shrine (17), seems to have a meaning similar to that of the beads used for Buddhist rosaries. The belief in precious stones, such as jade in the East and rubies in the West, are imbued with the power of immortality, wealth and fame, which is therefore not exclusive to Asian and especially Chinese culture. The anthrax presented in "El libro de los seres imaginarios" by Borges (1967), is a type of cryptid jewel (18). The famous philosopher’s stone is also widely known as a red gemstone. Another Hakka tale about fox women. A tale in which a criminal monster intentionally destroys families and society, marries a human: a man named Wang Lu disappeared and was found in an empty grave. His appearance resembled a fox, so he could not communicate with others and only shouted the name Ai Hua. Finally, he came to his senses and explained that he had met a foxy woman so named in a brothel and that he had fallen madly in love with her. She had pretended to be a prostitute to make sure she easily took the energy of men without risking that one of them fell in love with her. But what happened with him. But she killed most of her family when they wanted to persuade Wang Lu to leave her. He decided to kill her in turn, but could not do anything against her. She killed him during the fight and resurrected him with her magic pearl, leaving him as a memory, only a lock of hair.
I hope all my explanations have you more. For those who had the chance to watch the blockbuster, 47 Ronin with Keanu Reeves playing Kai, the Japanese comedian Rinko Kikuchi plays the role of Mizuki, is a kitsune, that is, a fox woman.
Embun DH.
Notes and references.
1: rarely written 狐 狸 精 (Hulijing) which rather refers to the fox as a monster, although ideograms can generalize all fox monsters. It can also be written 九 尾 狐 (Jiuwěihú) as the fox has nine tails.
2 : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classic_of_Mountains_and_Seas
3 : https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%C3%A9riode_des_Printemps_et_Automnes
4 : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuan_dynasty
6 : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamamo-no-Mae
7 : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Journey_to_the_West
8 : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peranakan_Chinese
9 : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%E1%BA%A1c_Long_Qu%C3%A2n
10 : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Sovereigns_and_Five_Emperors
11: A Thousand Characters (千 字 文) is a Chinese poem belonging to the examinations of the four languages of former imperial officials and a writing manual. The author is Zhou Xingshi (周 興 嗣, 470-521), a scholar who lived under the reign of Emperor Yang Wu of the northern and southern dynasties in China. In this poem, the character named Dalgi, the king’s favorite concubine, seduced King Zhou of Eun, which upset the country. Dalgi is then insulted by «bastard like a nine-tailed fox».
12 : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foot_binding
13: Gao Chong-hu (古 冢 狐) is a work of Bai Juyi, poet of the Tang dynasty in China, in which he describes a fox woman: "The fox of Gochong is beautiful and old. When she turns into a wife, she has a beautiful complexion, her hair is like a cloud and her face is made up. ... As the day goes by, as people traffic slows down, she rolls or dances and cries. Her blue eyebrows are raised… she has a beautiful flower-shaped face, and suddenly she smiles and shows all sorts of nice things, and nine out of ten people will be hypnotized when they see her.”
14: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Symbols
It is still said today in the Peranakan communities that if you worship these animal gods, they will bring you luck. This is a typically Chinese primitive belief that, if neglected, leads to misfortune, disaster or worry for the believer. Since the beginning of the Tang dynasty, people often worshipped the fox god. In the past, in the villages, ancestral rites were organized to pray good luck. At the time, there was a proverb that said: «A village is not built without a fox».
15: The goddess Xihe is the wife of Emperor Jun She was born on the tenth day and often bathes in the sun. Xihe controlled the rhythm of time, moving the sun from east to west every day. Because of this unusual ability, Xihe became the person who created the calendar in ancient times and taught men the time. At the foot of Tiantai Mountain, in Rizhao (Shandong province), there is a Lao Mu temple that still worships the goddess Xihe. The locals call it Xihe Lao Mu.
16: to acquire such knowledge and powers gives access to immortality and a presence with the gods.
17: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Inari
18: do not confuse with its homograph which is a pathogen.
19: Ai (爱) is a feminine given name which means «love and affection» in the filial sense.
