Tanuki No Yudachi

PON POKO PON NO PON

Sho-sho- Shojo-Ji 

Shojo-Ji no niwa wa 

Tsu-tsu-tsuki yo de minna dete koi koi koi!

Oira no tomodacha 

Pon poko pon no pon

Makeru na, makeru na

Oshosan ni makeru na

Koi koi koi koi koi koi

Minna dete koi koi koi!

Sho-sho-shojo-Ji

Shojo-Ji no hagi wa

Tsu-tsu-tsuki yo ni

Hanazakari.

Oira wa ukarete

Pon poko pon no pon.

Stuffed full of beans and sake, the big-bellied, big-balled, magical shapeshifting Tanuki are harbingers of joy, prosperity, and change. They are clever schemers and irrepressible tricksters that conjure illusions and play pranks on the unwary, often raising up the downtrodden and casting foolish, prideful, and despotic people low.

Bring a little more light and laughter into your life with our Pon Poko series! The garden is bright under the moonlit night! Let's thump a snazzy little beat on our golden drums together!

 To begin with, there is indeed such a creature as a raccoon dog and there is a Japanese subspecies of this animal: Nyctereutes procyonoides viverrinus. They look like this:

The tanuki has played a part in Japanese for ages. It is a 'mischievous and jolly, a master of disguise and shapeshifting', but somehwat gullible and absentminded.' (source) Of course the  tanuki in literature is not at all like the natural animal, as all animals in literature get special characteristics. The first thing that is written about them is that in spring they turn into humans and sing songs.

Later they are described as shapeshifters, much like the kitsune tsuki (Japanese fox). Until Buddhism took over in Japan, the tanuki was a deity governing all things in nature, but in Buddhism there was no space for animal deities and they turned into some sort of demons. The difference between Kitsune tsuki and tanuki is that kitsune tsuki shapeshifts to tempt people, whereas the tanuki likes to fool people and make them seem stupid.

Then there is the characteristic of their large balls. I have not found yet where or when that originated, but in the source mentioned above I found this Japanese children's song:

Tan Tan Tanuki no kintama wa,
Kaze mo nai no ni,
Bura bura

which would translate as: 'Tan Tan Tanuki's bollocks ring/The wind stops blowing/But they swing, swing'. The large testicles appear to be one of the 8 lucky traits of the Tanuki, which are:

§  a hat to be ready to protect against trouble or bad weather;

§  big eyes to perceive the environment and help make good decisions;

§  a sake bottle that represents virtue;

§  a big tail that provides steadiness and strength until success is achieved;

§  over-sized testicles that symbolize financial luck;

§  a promissory note that represents trust or confidence;

§  a big belly that symbolizes bold and calm decisiveness; and

§  a friendly smile

This is a very long story and I still haven't come to this particular Tanuki picture and the scent it inspired. But the picture should tell the story: In Tanuki No Yudachi the large testicles serve as protection from an evening rainstorm. The description of the scent is:

Lilium speciosum, rice wine, white grapefruit, lotus root, bourbon vanilla, and vanilla orchid.

When I ordered decants I was too late for this one. That is to say: I was late and the bottles were all booked and for most scents there were second bottles but not for this one. Perhaps because it is not an extraordinary scent. But it is very very good, with fruit and flowers and the friendliness of vanilla. I know this because my decanter sent me a testable sniffie with the full decants I bought.  I shall need quite some self control not to order a bottle of this. 

Lilium speciosum