Ok People, here are the infamous Okinawan Shisaa. I took a picture of these two lookers at the entrance to the aquarium in Motobu, which is in the northwestern part of the island. I was gonna write a little somethin-somethin about them, but I figured I would like wikipedia do that for me instead...
Shīsā (シーサー) (Okinawan: siisaa) (alternative spelling shishi or shisaa) is a traditional Ryukyuan decoration, often found in pairs, resembling a cross between a lion and a dog, from Okinawa mythology. Many people put a pair of shisa on their rooftops or flanking the gates to their houses. Shisa are wards, believed to protect from various evils. When found in pairs, the shisa on the left traditionally has a closed mouth, and the one on the right an open mouth. The open mouth to ward off evil spirits, and the closed mouth to keep good spirits in.
Originally pairs like these were called “shisa and guardian dogs”: the right with its mouth opened is the guardian, the left with its mouth closed is the shisa. Some people believe that one is male and the other is female, and provide various justifications for which is which; for example, “the female has her mouth shut as she should” or “the male has his mouth shut to hold in all the family’s good fortune”. (Compare this to the distinction between male and female guardian lions in Chinese culture.)
So there ya have it. Now it doesn't state this in the little wiki-thingy, but Sarah told me that Shisaa are apparently very good luck to have at an entrance to a home, business, etc., and are generally given as a gift. So, if you're thinking about wantin' some o' them Fu-dogs up on your hizzzouse, ya better start droppin' hints for your bday or xmas!! It just occured to me that I wrote fu-dogs in that last statement and you probably have no idea why, but the shisaa are a form of the chinese fudogs... so there ya have it!
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