In many cultures, the fox appears in folklore as a symbol of cunning and trickery, or as a familiar animal possessed of magic powers.
In Dogon mythology, the pale fox is the trickster god of the desert, who embodies chaos.
The Medieval Norman adventurer Robert Guiscard was nicknamed "Robert the Fox" as well as the Resourceful, the Cunning, the Wily - underlining the identification of such qualities with foxes.
The term "foxy" in English is defined as meaning - as the obvious "having the qualities of a fox" - also "attractive" and "sexy", as well as "red-haired". And "to outfox" means "to beat in a competition of wits".
In Finnish mythology, foxes are depicted as cunning trickster, but seldom evil: symbol of victory of intelligence over both malevolence and brute strength. Tswana riddle "Phokoje go tsela o dithetsenya" translated literally into Only the muddy fox lives meaning that, in a philosophical sense, only an active person who does not mind getting muddy gets to progress in life.
In early Mesopotamian mythology, the fox is one of the sacred animals of the goddess Ninhursag. The fox acts as her messenger.
In Chinese, Japanese, and Korean folklores, foxes (huli jing in China, kitsune in Japan, and kumiho in Korea) are powerful spirits that are known for their highly mischievous and cunning nature, and they often take on the form of female humans to seduce men. In contemporary Chinese, the word "huli jing" is often used to describe a mistress negatively in an extramarital affair. In Shinto of Japan, kitsune sometimes helps people as an errand of their deity, Inari.
The Moche people of ancient Peru worshiped animals and often depicted the fox in their art. The Moche people believed the fox to be a warrior that would use his mind to fight. The fox would not ever use physical attack, only mental.
The Bible's Song of Solomon (2:15) includes a well-known verse "Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom" which had been given many interpretations over the centuries by Jewish and Christian Bible commentators.
The words "fox" or "foxy" have become slang in English-speaking societies for an individual (most often female) with sex appeal. The word "vixen", which is normally the common name for a female fox, is also used to describe an attractive woman—although, in the case of humans, "vixen" tends to imply that the woman in question has a few nasty qualities.
The fox theme is often associated with transformation in European and East Asian literature. There are four main types of fox stories:
-The word shenanigan (a deceitful confidence trick, or mischief) is considered to be derived from the Irish expression sionnachuighim, meaning "I play the fox.''
-Description of life of more or less realistic animals
-Stories about anthropomorphic animals imbued with human characteristics
-Tales of fox transformations into humans and vice versa
In the Middle Ages and even into the Renaissance, foxes, which were associated with wiliness and fraudulent behavior, were sometimes burned as symbols of the Devil.
And that - folks - is why I always identified to one of them. I mean, all animals are equal, some more than others (G. Orwell) You liked what you just read? - there more tales & myths on wikipedia - WIKIPEDIA?! - Aye, that's right, in my free time, I do update wiki entries - on way too diversified topics : Foxes, Eugenism, Marxism, Nationalism, Facial Recognition and many more!
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30 Jun 2015 22:31 CEST
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