Mi (hebi) Snake - INFO

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Mi (hebi) 巳 Snake

The Snake / Serpent is one of the 12 zodiac animals of the Asian lunar calendar.
He is therefore a well-liked animal in folk art and handicraft.

It comes as a papermachee doll, clay doll or clay bell and other materials.

. 12 zociac animals 干支　 eto, kanshi .
- Introduction -

. mugiwara hebi 麦藁蛇 / 麦わら蛇 serpent made from straw .
- - - - - mugiwara ryuu 麦藁竜 dragon made from straw


A huge serpent, 大蛇 daija, is often the master of a local pond
and many legends are built around it.
. Legends about the Master of the Pond　池の主 と伝説 ike no nushi .

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. Daruma 「 だるま」 .

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hebi no dorei 巳土鈴 clay bells
. . . CLICK here for Photos !

hebi no ema 絵馬 votive tablets
. . . CLICK here for Photos !

hebi no hariko 寅張子 papermachee dolls
. . . CLICK here for Photos !

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nagamushi　長虫 "long insect", snake, mamushi　真虫 "the real mushi"

. amulets against snake bite in summer .
Kitami no mamushiyoke 喜多見のまむしよけ amulet against snake bite from Kitami
mushiyoke no majinai 蝮除けのまじない spell against snakes
hebiyoke no gofu　蛇よけの護符 amulet against snake bite
mamushi yoke no jinja 蝮除けの神社 - Suwa jinja 諏訪神社

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ABC - List of Zodiac Animals from the Prefectures

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Tokyo 　

The snake clay bell has a very simple form, but has eyes and a little red tongue. It makes a sound goron goron, to ward off snakes.
It was sold before the summer came with water damage from flooding, to appease the deity of water, the snake. The shrine sold it only on two days, July 30 and June 1 only during the main festival.

. Shrine Onoterusaki jinja 小野照崎神社 .

o o o o o

mi naru kane 巳なる金 (みなるかね)
serpent to get money
Sold at the Benten Shrine in the compound. The servant of Benzaiten is the serpent.
This is a pun with the word MI (serpent, to bring fruit)
実のなる金
. Suitengu 水天宮 Shrine for the Water God .

o o o o o

This is not about the zodiac animal, but the real snake:


Setagaya, Shrine Okusawa Jinja 奥澤神社
Okusawa Hachiman 奥澤八幡
世田谷区奥沢5-22-1

Deities in residence:

Hondawake no Mikoto 譽田別尊（ほんだわけのみこと）
Homutawake no Mikoto 誉田別尊
(posthumous deity, Oojin Tenno 応神天皇)
Ugano mitama no mikoto 稲倉魂命（うがのみたまのみこと）

The shrine was founded during the Muromachi period.
On September 2 is the festival of the great serpent.

quote
About five minutes' walk away, nestled amidst an array of beautiful old trees, Okusawa Jinja is a traditional Shinto shrine that’s obviously not only venerated by the local population, but beloved as well.

Okusawa shrine is famed for that 150kg, nine-metre-long daija, or shrine snake, draped over the torii gate at the entrance, which is often mistakenly referred to as a dragon.

This lovable-faced snake ring-in has actually been decreed an official local “intangible folklore cultural asset”, and dates back to a legend from the early Edo period which has it that when a plague assailed Okusawa, the god Hachiman advised the village head – via a dream - to walk round the village carrying a python constructed of dry rice straw, in order to set about recovery from the epidemic.

These days, a new snake is made (of twisted rice straw) by volunteers each year, in early September, and paraded around the shrine at the very popular
Yakuyoke no Daija Festival.
source : iffybizness.blogspot.com



The snake around the big torii gate


Parading through the village
MORE PHOTOS :
source : pokochino


The votive tablet is sold well especially during the New Year holidays:


yakuyoke daija no ema 厄除け大蛇の絵馬
votive tablet of the giant snake to ward off evil
with real "hair" like the big snake on the gate.

Only during the New Year days this ema is also mounted on a lucky rake, Kumade.

. Yakuyoke 厄除け Amulets to ward off evil .
. Tokyo, Okusawa 奥沢地区 Okusawa district .

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. jooshi 上巳 (じょうし) "first day of the snake" .
It used to be the first day of the snake in the third lunar month, but now it is celebrated on the third of March.

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Amulets and O-Mamori
. 12 Zociac animals 干支　 eto, kanshi .

. Regional Folk Toys from Japan .

. Tohoku after the BIG earthquake March 11, 2011

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