Kitsune (狐? [kitsɯne], Listen(i)) It is the Japanese word for "fox". Foxes are a recurring subject
and an element of particular importance in Japanese folklore; In English, kitsune refers to them in
this context. According to Japanese mythology, the fox is a being endowed with great
intelligence, able to live a long time and to develop supernatural powers with age: the main
among the latter is the ability to change appearance and take on human features, in fact they
often appear with the appearance of a beautiful woman. In some tales, they use these abilities to
deceive others—as is often the case in popular folklore—while others portray them as
benevolent guardians, friends, lovers, and wives. The older, wiser, and more powerful
a kitsune is, the more tails it has, up to a maximum of nine.
The kitsune are closely associated with the figure of Inari,
the Shinto kami of fertility, agriculture and rice: they are at her service with the role of messenger,
and this garment has reinforced the supernatural meaning of the fox. As a consequence of the
influence they exert on people and the powers attributed to them, they are worshipped as if they
were gods in their own right.
The historical origin of the central role of the fox in Japanese folklore is to be found in its
harmonious coexistence with humans in ancient Japan, from which the various myths and
legends about these creatures derive.
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Super Mario World, known in Japan as Super Mario World - Super Mario Bros. 4 (スーパーマリ
オワールド - スーパーマリオブラザーズ4 Sūpā Mario Wārudo: Sūpā Mario Burazāzu 4?), is
a platform video game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) developed by
Nintendo Entertainment Analysis & Development and published by Nintendo in Japan on 21
November 1990, in North America on 13 August 1991 and in Europe on 11 April 1992. It is the
sixth installment in the Super Mario series, part of the larger Mario franchise. This is Nintendo's
first video game to feature the dinosaur Yoshi. With his help, Mario and Luigi must free Dinosaur
Land and Princess Toadstool from the clutches of Bowser and the Bowserotti. The gameplay is
the same as that adopted in previous Mario titles, with the addition of elements and features that
will also be present in most of the later video games.
The title was critically and commercially successful, selling more than 20 million copies
worldwide. It has been re-released four times over the years: first as part of the 1994 Super
Mario All-Stars collection, then as a Game Boy Advance adaptation titled Super Mario Advance 2
(スーパーマリオアドバンス2 Sūpā Mario Adobansu Tsū?) in Japan, and Super Mario Advance
2: Super Mario World in the rest of the world; It was later released on Virtual Console for both
the Wii and Wii U.
The game was also adapted into an animated series of the same name, produced by DiC
Entertainment and aired in 1991.
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Did you know that...
Costasiella kuroshimae ICHIKAWA, 1993 is a species of gastropod mollusk in
the family Costasiellidae. The species, discovered in 1993 off the coast of
Japan's Kuroshima Island, has also been found in waters near Japan,
the Philippines and Indonesia. By preserving chloroplasts from the algae on which it feeds, it is
able to indirectly practice photosynthesis.
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Recurrences
Joan Baez
Born on January 9th...
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Pope Gregory XV (1554))
Richard Nixon (1913))
Joan Baez (1941))
... and deaths
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Maria Gaetana Agnesi (1799)
Victor Emmanuel II of Savoy (1878)
Norberto Bobbio (2004))
On this day it happened...
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475 – Basilisk takes advantage of Emperor Zeno's flight from Constantinople and is
recognized as Eastern Roman Emperor.
1878 – Umberto I ascends the throne after the death of his father Victor Emmanuel
II.
1912 – United States Marines invade Honduras.
1951 – The United Nations Headquarters is inaugurated in New York City.
1992 – Bosnia and Herzegovina declares independence from the Socialist Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia.
Today's anniversary: the Catholic Church celebrates the memory of Saints Adrian of
Canterbury and Marcellin of Ancona. Roman religion celebrated the Agonalia in honor of Janus.
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