A Little Guide to Kitsune and Other Foxes (3)
After covering origins and types of foxes in Japanese folklore, this time around we’ll focus on the powers foxes supposedly possess and how you can spot a Kitsune yourself.
Transformation
Out of all the powers a fox has the power of transformation is probably the most important one. A fox can transform into all sort of things. Transforming into beautiful women seems to be popular, which is explained primarily by their need for Yang (which is associated with men), as beings of Yin (spirits, women, moon, night). In China foxes might need men’s specific “vital energy”. Their Korean sisters and brothers usually also need to store life energy, but they tend to do so in a pearl, which they can transfer into humans. There are also accounts of foxes turning into teakettles, electric poles, trees, stones and even cars and trains. Why? Because they can.
Depending on where you are, a foxes way to transform itself varies.
One, quite straight-forward way is the one where a fox is able to transform after it reaches a certain age, however the actual age tends to differ. I’ve read both 50, 100 or even 500 years are necessary (same goes for wolves).
In Chinese mythology a “good” fox works hard and studies various topics deeply until it can transform itself, whereas a bad fox takes people’s yang to transform itself. (See Tenko)
In Japan a fox has to put either leaves or algae on its head to make a top knot or pigtail. Then it does a double somersault without touching the ground. Once it lands it is human.
Another option: Placing a (human) skull on its head and praying to the North star or Great Bear or another constellation. (Sadly I’m not a fox, so I can’t tell you which one it is exactly, however this might be due to different ideas about divination.)
Fox Spirits and Fox Possession
A fox spirit is, as the name suggests, the spirit of a fox. It might be the spirit of a dead fox, haunting a person to avenger their death, but living foxes can also haunt people with their spirits. (Which seems to be the reason why sometimes it isn’t entirely clear if certain foxes were foxes, or fox spirits.)
With a lack of devilish explanations, the phenomena of possession tended to be explained by animal spirits in old Japan, with the main culprits being snakes, dogs and foxes.
A person possessed by a fox would generally show odd behaviours(hysteria, yelping like a fox, running around naked), offering an explanation for mental (and physical) illnesses. Apparently, women and weak-minded people were particularly vulnerable to being possessed. Yay, sexism.
Sometimes fox spirits were also used in Esoteric Buddhism’s magical practices, being channeled, mostly as a way to gain knowledge or predict the future, which was apparently not without danger.
There’s also a believe that in the game Kokkuri San (狐狗狸-san)(which is essentially a Japanese ouija board) either a tanuki, dog/tengu or a fox are the ones that are supposedly answering the questions.
If you have ever wondered if you or someone you know has been possessed by a fox, there are some signs. Kitsune love fried tofu and azuki beans and hate dogs. These traits are also present when they possess someone. So, if your friend has a craving for fried things and suddenly dislikes your dog, it is definitely a bad sign.
Some say there’s also a sort of lump on an afflicted persons’ body, in which the fox’s soul lives.
To help your afflicted friend you might want to bring them to an Inari shrine or have your dog lick them all over. Another method, which is definetly not recommended for your friend, would be to burn out the fox, which sadly often ended badly for the “possessed”. Another remedy would be Buddhist magical power (hōriki). What we would call “poltergeist” in the West is also sometimes explained as a fox spirit possessing a family.
Foxes (fox spirits) could also be helpers to families, making sure they’d enjoy riches, and safety, escorting them wherever they went. These sort of foxes could also harm their families enemies by cursing, possessing, or bringing them harm. The foxes would stay with the family for generations, while the family would honour and care for their spirits. These families were mostly avoided by others and so-called “permanent fox-owners” would intermarry. Mentioning any suspicions on someone owning foxes was also a big no-no out of fear they might show revenge.
Fox Fires and Weddings
As mentioned above foxes are said to cause fires. This can be done by striking the ground with its tail, or breathing. In this way they usually create small, flickering lights to do their favourite past-time: mislead travellers.
They are also sometimes seen at a fox’s wedding, which either refers to a procession of lights in the dark or the phenomena of rain, when the sun is shinning simultaneously.
How to Spot a Fox
So, if you ever find yourself in East Asia how do you know the beautiful person you just encountered (on a field, in the middle of nowhere.) isn’t a fox?
In China you have a few options: You can use taoist charms or sacred metallic mirrors (buddhism). If you don’t have that at hand you can also use a bagua, something as old as the fox, or simply dogs.
In Japan, Foxes are said to glow in the dark, or if you’re fancy, emit light. They usually have a long fox-like face, and if you lay a fried rat (or fried food in general) in their path, they won’t be able to resist. And, like other yōkai, they are unable to say moshi moshi.
Now, a little applause for everyone who made it til the end. I tried to narrow the topic down, while still including most of the things there are to know, but obviously, there’s always more to say. For example, I do think the aspect of gender and the possibility of these yōkai being related to indigenous groups would deserve more time, but I’ll focus on that another day.
Regarding Sources: Interestingly enough, while there are a lot of legends connected to the kitsune, most english speaking sources i found where actually quoting each other. That does not necessarily mean what they are saying is wrong, it is just something to note. This also seems to be an issue for east asian sources, as Johnson explains the tradition of written history is very long, which might lead to oral traditions getting lost, as written stories get repeated over and over.
Sources
Johnson, T. W. “Far Eastern Fox Lore.” Asian Folklore Studies, vol. 33, no. 1, 1974, pp. 35–68. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/1177503. Accessed 5 July 2025.
Book of Yōkai by Michael Dylan Forster
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/日本の文化における狐
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/おさん狐
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/天狐
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/妖狐
https://kotobank.jp/word/女狐-2087062
Part 1: Japanese Foxes
Why are foxes so common in folklore and why are they called Kitsune in Japanese?
.₊˚.✦₊૮₍ ´• ˕ • ₎ა ♡‧₊˚ ✩‧₊˚ ✧˚₊‧₊˚ ૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა ✩₊˚.
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