Legendary Origins of Maneki Neko

Part 2 - Legendary Origins

There are many legends explaining origins of Maneki Neko. The following would be some of them. The Temple Cat, Tama: Once, during a heavy thunderstorm, a wealthy feudal lord (some claim he is a merchant and others a Samurai) seek shelter under the tree near Gotoku-ji temple (Western Tokyo) and saw the temple priest's cat, Tama beckoning to him. He went to the direction of the cat and moments later the tree was struck by lightning. This incident resulted in him and priest becoming good friends. As a matter of time, the temple became very prosperous. After the cat died, the first Maneki Neko was made in its honor.

Gotokugi - Grave of the Cat

A Courtesan: Usugumo was a courtesan living in Yoshiwara of Eastern Tokyo who had a cat that was she loved very much. One night, this cat tugged at her kimono persistently. Seeing this, the owner of the brothel, believed the cat was bewitched and cut its head off. The head of the cat however flew to the ceiling killing a snake at instant, which was already at any ready moment to strike Usugumo. This devastated Usugumo and to cheer her up, one of a customer made a cat out of wood that resembled her pet as a gift. Eventually this became the popular Maneki Neko.

Usugumo

An Old Woman: In Imado (Eastern Tokyo) there was once an old woman forced to sell her cat due to extreme poverty. However, the cat appeared into her dreams and told her to make its image in clay. She did as per instructed and sold the statue. Soon she made more and it became very sell-able that she soon became prosperous and wealthy. This in turn led to the legendary origins of Maneki Neko.

Imado

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Historical Origins of Maneki Neko

Part 1 - Historical Origins

The meaning of Maneki Neko in Japanese is Beckoning Cat. Sources and information on the origins of Maneki Neko are rare. The exact origins are unknown. Maneki Neko the fortune cat most likely originated somewhere around the Edo period (1603-1867) of ancient Japan. However, it was only during the early 1900s that Maneki Neko started to popularize. An earlier documentary of it was produced during the 1870s in Japan's Meji's Era and there was a mention of it in the newspaper in 1876. Once, Maneki Neko was widely distributed in the shrine of Osaka too!

Cats are considered to be as wise and lucky spirits. A cat once waved to Japanese Emperor Oda Nobunaga and Samurai Li Naotaka. They paused when the cat waved and took it as a sign. That prevented them from entering a trap. Several Shrines and homes have figurines of cat that are similar to Maneki Neko in which the figurine looks like it is waving. That could just be one of its possible origins.

Some may associate Maneki Neko's gesture as a cat washing its face. Japanese believe that when a cat washes its face, a visitor will arrive shortly. This belief is somewhat related to an old Chinese proverb stating that if a cat washes it's face, there will be rain. This could hence explain the belief of this figuring cat washing its face to bring in customers. As to how it became popular in America, it is unknown. Likely, it could be due to Patricia Dale-Green who wrote about them in 1963 known as the Cult of the Cat. Another possibility could be introduction by Japanese immigrants to the US.

Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine

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