Friday, December 17, 2010

Okinawa 101:シーサー

Shi-sa
Shīsā is a traditional Ryukyuan decoration, often in pairs, resembling a cross between a lion and a dog, from Okinawa mythology. People placed pairs of shisa on their rooftops or flanking the gates to their houses. Shisa are wards, believed to protect people from evil spirits. When in pairs, the left shisa traditionally has a closed mouth, the right one has an open mouth. The open mouth wards off evil spirits, and the closed mouth to keep good spirits in.
Sources: Wikipedia 

2 comments:

Mary said...

This is really cute like all your postcard blogs :)

Becky Pitcher said...

Me too! But I want to see some pictures YOU've taken.
(I'm a pretty bossy blog-viewer.)