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Inari is one of the major deities that are found in Japan and it is associated with fertility, rice, agriculture and foxes. The deity can be depicted in both male and female form and supposed to protect the interests of the farmers along with their harvests. This deity is also closely associated with the magical shape shifting fox (kitsune) which also acts as its messenger. Today the original deity has been replaced in most places with the messenger, which has gained importance in the recent times.Inari folklore draws its lineage from both male and female forms of deities, earlier it was associated with the Shinto Goddess of Agriculture called Uga no Mitami no Kami as well as the male god of Grains known as Uka no Mitama no Mikoto. To make matters even more complicated the deity is also associated with the goddess of food Ukemochi no kami.There are quite a few depictions of the God, in one Inari is shown as a man with a beard standing on a sack of rice flanked by its messengers the foxes. In another depiction the god is shown as along haired woman carrying sheaves of rice or riding its messenger. Shrines dedicated to Inari are found all over the country as it is perhaps the most popular deity of Japan. The entrances of the shrines dedicated to Inari usually have one or more vermilion tori along with the statues of its messenger, the foxes or the kitsune.Offerings to the Kitsune range from rice, sake and food items which are meant to appease the messengers of Inari.
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