In China and Japan, mirrors were thought to have special powers. The Chinese believed they attracted the essence of yin and
yang from the heavens. In Japanese mythology, the mirror was said to be "the soul of a woman as the sword is to a samurai."
The ancients believed that people or objects could be connected to their reflections. Buddhists have been known to reach enlightenment by gazing in a mirror. Most of Shinto shrines still house sacred objects such as mirrors (the symbol of the Sun Goddess). Ba gua mirrors are used in Feng Shui to ward off irritating effects or "secret arrows," to restore balance and to draw in ch'i and money-making opportunities. Mirrors are also used still for scrying, exorcisms and protection.
The sanshu no jingi, or Imperial Regalia are holy relics which appear in Japan's ancient myths. One of these is the sacred mirror (yata no kagami) stored at Ise Shrine. According to the myth, the Shinto sun goddess Amaterasu Omikami was driven hide in a cave by the monstrous behaviour of her younger brother, Susanoo no Mikoto, god of the seas. The sacred mirror was used to lure her from her
hiding place. When she emerged, the gods of heaven presented her with the sacred jewels. The sword was removed from the tail of a
serpent by Susanoo and presented to his sister as a sign of his submission.
Sources
anime-myth mirror
Shinto
Shintosim
To take home this lovely Magic Mirror plaque created by Shinju Shikibu,
copy the codes in the textarea box and paste them onto your homesite.
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Posted Oct 24, 2006 - 08:14 , Last Edited: Oct 24, 2006 - 17:30
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