Weasel (itachi)

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Weasel (itachi)

***** Location:Japan, other areas
***** Season: All Winter
***** Category: Animal

*****************************Explanation

weasel, itachi　鼬、イタチ

Ezo itachi 蝦夷鼬（えぞいたち）weasel from Ezo (Hokkaido)

Mustela itatsi, Japanese weasel

It is easily spotted in winter in the snow, although it might have a white coat. It likes the chicken coops of rural areas, where it sneaks in to drink the blood of chickens.


itachi wana 鼬罠 (いたちわな) trap for a weasel


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Today, a fine day in March, we had a special visitor to our outside kitchen.



Look at more photos of our visitor here !

Gabi Greve

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Half a pound of tuppenny rice,
Half a pound of treacle.
That's the way the money goes,
Pop goes the weasel.
..... ..... Pop goes the weasel

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Worldwide use

Canada

The Weasel in Canada

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Germany

Wiesel, Frettchen.

Dieses bekannte Gedicht stammt aus den Galgenliedern von Christian Morgenstern.
"Das ästhetische Wiesel ".

Ein Wiesel
saß auf einem Kiesel
inmitten eines Bachgeriesel.

Wißt ihr,
weshalb?
Das Mondkalb
verriet es mir
im stillen:

Das raffinier-
te Tier
tats um des Reimes willen.


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Mongolia

a squirrel
meditating on the pine
without nuts

- Shared by Sodkhuu Altanchuluun -
Joys of Japan, 2012



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Things found on the way

A sword named "Sickle-Weasel" (kamaitachi 鎌鼬（かまいたち）) as a haiga.

"sickle-weasel" is in fact the name of a strong cutting wind in Northern Japan during the winter. In other areas, this has turned into a monster, or rather three of them, who move very fast. The first knocks the human down, the second cuts it with this sword and the third puts cream on the wounds to heal again.
Some say the wounds of the cut are very slight in the beginning but begin to fester later. The Kamaitachi Sickle-Weasel might be blood-thirsty demons who molest the humans, just like vampirs.



http://www.migikata.net/kanji_saijiki/200412/a/a_20041213.html

Link with a daily Kanji-Saijikihttp://www.migikata.net/kanji_saijiki/


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HAIKU

3 haiku by Issa

梅がかに鼬もないて通りけり
ume ga ka ni itachi mo naite tôri keri

plum blossom scent--
even the weasel passes
with a song


手をかざす鼬よどこだ花の雲
te wo kazasu itachi yo doko da hana no kumo

shading his eyes
where are you gazing, weasel?
blossom clouds

In Shinji Ogawa's interpretaiton, a Japanese weasel (itachi), "like a prairie dog, stands and watches far away."



山吹に手をかざしたる鼬哉
yamabuki ni te wo kazashitaru itachi kana

in yellow roses
shading his eyes to gaze...
a weasel
A weasel peers out from among the yamabuki (yellow roses).

In Issa zenshû, Vol. 1, the animal is itachi: a Japanese weasel. However, in Vol. 3, it is identified as momonga, the Japanese assapan (flying squirrel); Issa zenshû (Nagano: Shinano Mainichi Shimbunsha, 1976-79) 1.237; 3.155. Since Vol. 1 was published later than Vol. 3, I have followed the former text.

In his journal for 1821, Second Month, Issa follows the above haiku with a similar one:

te wo kazasu itachi yo doko da hana no kumo

shading his eyes
where are you gazing, weasel?
blossom clouds
In Shinji Ogawa's interpretaiton, a Japanese weasel (itachi), "like a prairie dog, stands and watches far away."

All translations © 2000-2006 by David G. Lanoue
http://haikuguy.com/issa/



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Related words

***** Ferret, Mink, フェレット
kigo for all winter



***** marten 貂 (てん) Marder, ZobelMartes melampus
kuroten, black marten クロテン (黒貂 Martes zibellina)
kigo for all winter




***** flying squirrel むささび musasabi,
kigo for all winter
Riesenflughörnchen: Petaurista leucogenys
... momonga ももんが small flying squirrel
Pteromys momonga
. . . CLICK here for Photos !
Flughörnchen



***** squirrel りす/ リス【栗鼠】 risu
Myosciurus pumilio or Fam. Sciruinae
topic for haiku
. . . CLICK here for Photos !
Eichhörnchen, Baumhörnchen


. risu no o-tsuge りすのおつげ
divine message brought by the squirrel .
Shrine Hirano Jinja in Kyoto 京都 平野神社


. . . . .



Walter Heubach (1865-1923)

windy day,
squirrels gather
for winter

- Shared by Jimmy ThePeach -
Joys of Japan, October 2012


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