#Cironnup

[blazescompendium]

Blaze's Compendium Entry #5:

What does the fox say? Ask Cironnup- Kamuy

Warning: Faith and religion are important real life topics, that tackles the culture and way of life of millions of real life people. It is a cultural expression, and must be respected by all means. Here, we use a video-game series only to ignite the flame of learning about the matter, using its art when well depicted, but we do this with all due respect to the cultures we talk here, grounded by real life sources, cultures and people. And i mean this with respect. Hope you all enjoy.

Let's get back to Japan once again, but this time to the northern Island of Hokkaido. There lives the Ainu people. Today we are not only talking about my favorite Megami Tensei creature, but also about very interesting entities, culture and people. Please, sit back and enjoy the ride.

(Please, note that i don't speak Japanese. I had to go over English sources as well use software to translate. If i got anything wrong, let me know!) This time, all sources will be available at the end of the post, since iv used them extensively, it got pretty messy to pin down the exact points, so will list them below)

Cironnup (Also called Chironnup or Chironnupu in Japan) in the Ainu tongue translates to ''Those who we kill many''. And it can be used to describe foxes in general, but also is referred to a Kamuy.

For us to understand what Cironnup is, we first need to dive in the meaning of the word Kamuy, which is very, very interesting.

In the Ainu tradition, Kamuy can be a complex term to translate. It can be defined as a sort of divine spirit, supernatural entity or even a god. The Foundation for Ainu Culture translated it as the word god, when i emailed them about the matter. Its similar to the word Kami, in Shinto Japan. It's a tricky word to translate that has no perfect match in English. But let's go with god.

Sometimes in the modern day Japan, the word can also be translated as Kami, or Hotoke (Spirit). But as their English counterparts, those words don't match 100% correctly the true meaning of the Kamuy word.

The Ainu belief system comes from their relationship with the Kamuy. This belief came from people who have a deep connection with nature, and helped them to survive and thrive in their environment, as well protect them from disasters and other calamities.

The Ainu belief system does not have a central scripture, like the Christians have the Bible. Their views of the Kamuy can be interpreted differently through time and place, but remain somewhat similar. It's good to remember the Ainu is a diverse group. Beliefs, customs and regional dialects can vary from region to region.

But ok, then what is a Kamuy? You ask.

The Kamuy description can vary, but they are spirits, supernatural entities, or gods. They can be attributed to many creatures and objects. In fact, there's Kamuy for diseases, earthquakes, fauna, flora, and more. It's like this belief system comes around the idea that everything and everyone has a soul.

There's not only natural occurred Kamuy, but also the ones that came from man-made objects, like spears, boats.

The relationship between Kamuy and Human are complex. Some Kamuy can provide for Humans, like animals that provide meat and fur, or plants that provide food and remedy. Others can protect and take care of Humans. There's also Kamuy who bring calamities, like diseases such as smallpox. (Sources where keen on Smallpox, it seems it got pretty common in Hokkaido some times.)

Some examples are like the Fire Kamuy, that not only provides heat and cooked food, but also hears Humans and take their pleads to other Kamuy in case they still have not answered. the owl related Kamuy remain outside villages looking after their people.

Another good and very specific example is the Salmon Kamuy. Known as Chep-Kamuy. Salmon was a much needed fish for the Ainu, so they often built their villages next to streams where they could find this fish. Thus the importance.

Kamuy are often portraied as free willed entities. They live their lifes just as we do, and they can be good or evil. Some times they are not eivl, but there can be a conflict of interests between Humans and Kamuy. Being good or bad, Kamuy would only come back to their world once their mission is accomplished in the Human world.

It is said that the Kamuy have their own relatives and friends in their world, so it is at least implied that are many instances of one Kamuy. For example, many Chep-Kamuy living in their world along many Cironnup-Kamuy. For this reason, when a good Kamuy is going home the Ainu offers them hospitality, food, drinks in rituals so they can either thank the entity for what was given.

This way, according to the Ainu, the Kamuy will come back home happy and satisfied, thankful for the Human hospitality. They will tell all their friends and family about how good they were treated on Earth. The Ainu believes that not only the hospitality offered to the Kamuy makes they wanting to come back, but also they could bring more Kamuy along, after telling their relatives about how good they were treated. This also make that specific Kamuy more respected in their world. Both sides having a mutual relationship.

In the case of bad Kamuy, like disease, the tactics were to run away from it. Some Ainu even erasing their own footprints in the snow so they can't be tracked by the malevolent entity. They were also treated with respect, but in more of a fearsome way.

The Kamuy often inhabited animals and plants, for example. So, in the case of wild animals the way a Kamuy go home is when the animal is killed. Hunting deprives a creature of their life, but it is necessary for survival. This act is seen as the Humans liberating a Kamuy back to their world, after have killed their carcass. (In the case of wild animals)

One of the more famous, and important of those rituals were related to the Bear Kamuy. (Kin Un Kamuy) I wont go too deep into it, because it's complex, but basically the Ainu took care of a bear cub for a whole year, even living among them as another member of their society, before slaughtering it with arrows, and eating its meat. This way, the Ainu hope the Kamuy goes to its world grateful for the hospitality and the time it spent with Humans.

-You can remember Teddie from Persona 4 kinda having this motif in his Persona ''Kamuy''.

As you can see, the Kamuy is a fascinating subject. They can be good, bad, they are multitudes, they have families and lifes, their own personalities and interests just like Humans. They can be humble, hateful, have pride or a good sense of humor. They can be related to natural phenomena, animals, plants. There's just a lot to cover about Kamuy.

My note here, but it remembers me a lot of the concept of Jinn and Daemons, from Islamic and Greek pantheons respectively.

BACK TO CIRONNUP, THIS WAS A LONG TURN

Cironnup-Kamuy is the fox deity in this context. Foxes by themselves were called upon many names in the Ainu culture. Cironnup is one of those names. But it could also be Kemakosnekur which means ''light footed god'' according to the Foundation for Ainu Culture.

Cironnup appears in many tales and are generally known to be Kamuy that listens to people's requests, brings food, can protect against illness and foreign enemies. They can appear in premonitory dreams to warn about calamities. But there are some instances of Cironnup doing mischief and evil deeds, like possessing people, transforming into people as disguises.

As in many cultures around the world, foxes are treated like cunning and natural tricksters. But the Ainu had a deep relationship with the foxes, since they were essential to their survival in some times. They could be deceiving, but also could bring good help. This could explain this duality.

The name Cironnup could also be referred to other creatures, it can be names of villages, and could also describe wild beasts. It could describe many other wild animals that were heavily hunted by the Ainu, but slowly the name was more and more associated with the Fox. (The Fox itself could have different names in different regions as well.)

In the specific case of Cironnup, the premonitory nature of it were also brought by some regions using fox skulls as divination tools. They could also be used as guardians for Sea Fishing.

Cironnup calling its Kamuy friends for help? In Japanese this attack is called ''Kitsunebi Aputo'' Which mixes the Kitsunebi flames, with the Ainu word for rain, meaning a rain of a fox fire. Although... Kitsune is a whole different matter.

In my researches i found a Brazilian web page dedicated to Japanese culture. There, i found a story about the author being hunting with an Ainu, and they talked a bit about their relationship with the Cironnup Kamuy.

According to the author, they were out hunting when he noticed footprints in the snow that were from a Fox. He then proceeded to ask the Ainu hunter if they should go after it. But the Ainu stopped the Brazilian hunter, informing him that if they catch the fox first, the Cironnup-Kamuy would certainly go around the woods telling all other animals they were hunting nearby. Because by killing the Fox, the Kamuy would be liberated of the body.

When the fox was indeed caught, they would tie their snouts, so it would keep its mouth shut and wont spoil their hunt. The author did not seemed conclusive if this was a general and normal hunting behavior for the Ainu, but being a first hand account (And written in my own native language) i found it interesting to post here.

Cironnup's beta design for Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse. It wears some clothing inspired by the Ainu.

The Human Race has a very interesting relationship with foxes in general. Their depictions usually repeats itself through our history, because they are very interesting animals by themselves. Me myself, I've lived my whole life, in a culture where foxes are absent because they are not naturals to the place where i live.

Their relationship with foxes makes me wonder and reflect about it, since the creature does indeed have a duality. While it can be deceiving and cunning, it has also a protective nature, it is strong and some times even lovable. Foxes are also signaled worldwide as an awareness and investigative symbol, which is also portrayed by Cironnup, sometimes presenting danger from far away.

Still worldwide, the foxes are treated like the tricksters of the nature, masters in deceiving and playing pranks.

The Ainu fascinated me not only as a culture, but also in their relationship with the nature, not exactly looking at the world around only as resource, but also with care and respect.

I hope one day i can visit Hokkaido and learn more about the Ainu culture personally.

-Ainu online dictionary Ainu-to-shizen Degitaru-zukan”by Ainu Museum

Sources:

-Akarenga JP (A Hokkaido culture foccused web page)

-Commentary on the book “Karirinka-to-kitsune-no-kamisama” [カリリンカときつねのかみさま] (2012) by Sakiko Yatani Provided by the Foundation of Ainu Culture

-The Foundation of Ainu Culture (Inquired via e-mail)

-Ainu Legends, Cironnup Daisuke Tchê (The tale about the Ainu hunter, in portuguese)

Special thanks go for @researcherposts for helping me reaching the Foundation of Ainu Culture.

Again, if i got anything wrong, please correct me! I will be more than help to fix anything :)

[leylinefount]

[kivaember]

HAHAHA i did this on a fresh run through so no NG+ shenanigans. Hare of Inaba + taunt is too powerful...

Team comp under the cut for any curious

[foxerlies]

@raggydraws *steals ur booze*

[werehoggin]

Idea for more transients:

Tir Na Nog: Fionn Mac Cumhaill, Nuada, Dagda, Brigid, Danu Land of Wa/Takamagahara: Sukuna Hikona, Amanozako, Jimmu Aaru: Sekhmet, Ra, Sobek, Nephthys El Dorado: Ixchel, Mictlantecuhtli. Mictecacihuatl, Hunahpu Olympus: Nike, Pandora, Dionysus, Charybdis, Scylla, Hestia, Kamuy Kotan: Chironnupu Babilim: Kingu, Apsu, Utnapishtim

Yes! Let’s add a few more to the list too.

Midearth

Vohu Manah (Good Mind)

Asha Vahistah (Truth)

Khshatra Vairya (Good Dominion)

Spenta Armaiti (Devotion)

Haurvatat (Wholeness and Health)

Ameretat (Immortality)

Kamuy Kotan

Sitonai (A girl that slayed a giant snake)

Kandakoro Kamu (Sky god)

Ae-oina Kamuy (culture hero who taught humans the domesticated and sacred arts)

Cironnup Kamuy (god of foxes)

Hasinaw-uk-kamuy (goddess of the hunt)

[hervygervy]

Everyone’s got to have a favorite, and mine’s Cironnup :)

[cake-apostate]

I noticed something interesting about Yuzuru and Ichiro's choice of demon.

Since they can't access the World of Shadows (i.e. Demon Fusion), all the demons they summon were either given to them as gifts or are available as random encounters. And they keep these random encounter demons long after most players would because they can't fuse them away.

In vanilla V, Koshimizu gives Hayataro to Yuzuru upon his return from the first section of Da'at, and Abdiel gives Ichiro a bunch of Thrones to protect him in the third section. Both appear as their summoned demons.

Minor gameplay spoilers for the list of demons below. Also, I've gotten to (but not completed) Vengeance's third section of Da'at.

It's been a while, but I remember that in the battle where you meet Yoko, Yuzuru sends Cait Sith out as his standard attack, and I forget if he has anything else. The area where you encounter Cait Sith is just up ahead.

Later, Yuzuru mostly uses Hayataro, but also uses Kaya-hime and Bicorn. Ichiro has Throne, Aitvaras, Cironnup, Basilisk, Senri, and Mokoi. This is by no means a complete list.

Also, Ichiro shouting, "Go, boy!" when summoning Cironnup is adorable. Like he's playing fetch with a dog.

[sho-uta-confessions]

The SMT version of Cironnup feels vaguely kemoshota and honestly... would

-SMT Anon (The S stands for Shota)

confession no. 85

shota megami tensei

he's a cutie...

[shinmegtenworld]

Cironnup

He is so cute and I love his little laugh.

[saika077]

Twst w/ Asirpa!MC *Strictly Platonic*

Disclaimer: All of my hcs are platonic but this one especially is very strictly platonic.

Asirpa!MC seems cold, withdrawn and barely show any emotion at first but is actually pretty playful and childish once they warmed up to people, enjoys cooking and enthusiastic about hunting.

They act mature for their age, "the weak get eaten" as they once said. But at the end of the day, they're still a small child. (I was actually contemplating on putting epilogue Asirpa who's like 16 years old(?) but the idea of a small 12 year-old child who knows about a hundred ways to kill a man and got isekai'ed to a magic highschool is so funny to me personally)

Ace: "what's with this... Sassy lost child?"

Ace may often mess with them due to their lack of knowledge about modern civilization, but he's the one who taught them how to use a pencil, read, write, etc. Meanwhile Deuce tries his best to help them adjust into the modern world and often generally looks out for them.

Grim and ADeuce being the frequent victim of their sutu (disclaimer: sutu or punishment rods are absolutely not to be used lightly)

That aside, I feel like overall they would have a fun sibling-like relationship with them.

MC standing in front of ADeuce and Grim: "excuse me, they asked for no pickles"

I'd like to think that MC calls student "(Name) nispa" except Ace and Deuce bc I feel like they don't respect them enough to do so. Ace specifically, is Sisam (derogatory)

They are basically the polar opposite of Riddle when it comes to following rules and I will elaborate.

While Riddle blindly follows rules and traditions without a second thought despite how ridiculous and outlandish they are, MC deeply respects rules and traditions but actually thinks about why those rules were made in the first place and often dismisses them when they don't make sense to them.

the first time they met Leona, they stepped on his tail and he growled at them (what's he gonna do? Fistfight a child?). But then they just kinda stared, points at him and said "sinna kisar" while making this face 😐

Ruggie did NOT appreciate the trap they set for him back when ADeuce were chasing him in Book 2. They're one quick thinker though, he'll give them that (he still managed to get away).

Main story events aside, he actually likes having them around (like a little sibling of some sort) bc of their vast survival knowledge and how they don't let anything go to waste, "wow they're just like me fr fr" he thought

Jack would never admit it, but he has somewhat of a soft spot for them, he has younger siblings back home and they kinda remind him of them. "I've only had MC for a day and a half but if anything happens to them I would kill everyone in this room and then myself" (he would never admit or say this out loud). I can totally see them calling him "Horkew nispa"

They'd also somewhat become attached to him because he reminded them of their wolf companion back home.

The first time they met Azul in B3 they quietly hid behind Jack while muttered "ikatkar cironnup..."

they would cringe at Jamil's overblot form bc of their fear of snakes

I can sort of see them and Jade going on a hike in the mountains. "Look, Jade nispa! Osoma!" "Well, indeed it is"

Jade would also be fascinated by how resourceful they are and their pragmatic way of living and how they treat the nature around them with respect. Kanto orwa yaku... As they said (Nothing is sent down from Heaven without having a purpose)

Jade thinking that the weird small child with a fasciation for animal droppings who can singlehandedly take down a bear being scared of snakes of all things absolutely hilarious.

I actually would like to think that they met Jade when they joined the Mountain Lovers Club prior to the main story, so in Book 3 they'd be like "Jade nispa from Mountain Lovers Club????"

I feel like Jade would like to learn their native language just to talk smack about Azul around him, because I firmly believe that whenever Jade learns something new, his immediate thought is "how can I ruin Azul's day with this information?". Floyd joins shortly after, much to Azul's confusion.

Rook would simply adore them like "aww look at this young hunter!" Or something like that. It's like seeing a younger version of himself (it really is not). He'd love to hear them talk about their way of hunting their quarry and the poison they use.

Epel and MC could share their love for each of their respective hometowns and their grandmas.

they pointed at every beastmen and fae they met while saying "sinna kisar"

They called a lot of faes sinna kisar but Malleus is THE Sinna Kisar Nispa

Malleus: "I've only had MC for a day and a half but if anything happens to this child of man, I will kill everyone in this room and then myself" (yeah they just has that kind of effect on people)

Y'know this is how Lilia must have felt, he thought to himself.

Silver's animal friends fear them.

Y'all can fight me on this, but the first years would be their squad of protective older brothers (yeah, that includes Ortho, just bc he's taller).

And you know what? Whenever MC is feeling homesick, they'd make citatap together and hear them talk about their home world, their way of life, their Kotan, Huci, Aca (though they'd notice how MC gets sad whenever they talk about their Aca, they'd also notice that MC is scared of being abandoned).

omg imagine them feeding the first years salted brains, Grim being the only one enthusiastic over this.

Sebek initially refuses, but MC gave him this look 🥺 and he just gave in. Also because Ace and Deuce called him a chicken for not wanting to eat the raw brain (he also almost refused to citatap, how dare he).

Speaking of Grim, he would be very well fed under MC's care. He'd be like one of those cat whose owner feed them raw everyday. He'd also enjoy their cooking in general.

Yeah this is all just the general stuff and a lot of these are just a play on the Beloved Ainu Child thing Asirpa has going on in canon, honestly one of my favorite running joke in the manga (I still find it hilarious how these gruff, grown ass men can not say no to her).

[tetrachromiahedron]

A big one i remember from the early Touhou days was YukiKitsune! U may have seen this flash before!

The coolest thing is that their site is still up!

Another flash artist that comes to mind is Tetla-Pot, which hopped on to the scene around MoH or SA

My absolute fave tho is HappyFlameTime! They made a bunch of Yakumo family doujin back in the day but sadly a lot of their flash animations are lost to time, but one that managed to stick around was their Yakumo De Pon series:

asking this to help with researching artstyles

when you see the term "Touhou Flash" (as in adobe flash) what kind of aesthetic/style pops into your mind? any specific video/flash animation/game etc as well?

Right now my main frames of reference are walfas and various IOSYS MVs, but I'd like to know more

[blazescompendium]

The response to my Cironnup post was amazing, i am truly happy that you all liked it! Thank you very much for all the comments!

[surpriserose]

New favorite guy alert

[animusmage]

mr. mac cumhaill why do you have a +5 severe attack?

[genkinahito]

Gekijouban Re:cycle of Penguindrum Part One Kimi no Ressha wa Seizon Senryaku, Waga Seishun Tsukirutomo Ito Chiyoko no Shoga, Boku no Ichiban Sukidatta Hito, to..., Cironnup Kamuy Iomante Japanese Film Trailers

Gekijouban Re:cycle of Penguindrum Part One Kimi no Ressha wa Seizon Senryaku, Waga Seishun Tsukirutomo Ito Chiyoko no Shoga, Boku no Ichiban Sukidatta Hito, to…, Cironnup Kamuy Iomante Japanese Film Trailers

Happy Weekend I hope you are well. This is part two of the trailer post following yesterday’s opener. This week, I posted a news article about the release of Zokki and I also posted a great interview with the filmmaker Daisuke Miyazaki. It has been a low-energy week/year for me but I do have more in the pipeline. One thing I will write about is the free films that are currently on offer with the…

[p3answer]

unending joy and contentment whenever i hear this track