Shisa

Many of you may have no clue what Shisa are, but I have posted a few pictures in the past of neat pairs that we have come across. Just a little reminder…

   

Shisa are very popular here in Okinawa. They adorn attractions, businesses, and home entrances, and are most often found in pairs. They range from silly to rather serious and scary looking. The lion dog mixes are said to ward off evil spirits. There are different stories about their meaning such as, the one with the open mouth is keeping bad spirits away while the closed mouth is keeping good ones in. At our newcomer's brief one of the speakers joked about how the one with its mouth open is the woman and the one with the closed mouth is the man. Typically though it is considered the other way around. We have seen shisa that can fit in the palm of your hand and some as tall as we are. Shisa can be a big time investment since they are often placed outside of the house they are not to be replaced for some time. We have seen shisa upwards of $2000. Think that’s too much for a pair of ceramic lion dogs? Just remember it wards off evil…

 

 

For more information:

Click here to read more about shisa on wikipedia

I can’t find many other sources, but this includes the legend of the shisa. If you’re interested, enjoy!