A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

Overview

In Ishanashte’s tale as recorded by Chamberlain, the persecuted junior chief first sees the badger-goddess in a dream. Her room is carpeted with skins, and she welcomes, feeds and richly clothes him. After the privy god frees him from burial and restores his memory, that god leads him to the corresponding place, where she repeats the assistance. Her designation identifies an animal-associated goddess, but the account does not show a transformation between a particular animal species and her human-appearing hospitality.

She tells the chief to claim that the god of door-posts rescued and rewarded him because he was buried nearby. He repeats this false explanation to his enemy, who arranges his own burial and dies. The badger-goddess then comes to the village and marries the rescued man, who becomes senior chief. The deception and fatal outcome are part of the story rather than omitted from a wholly benevolent portrait. This figure remains distinct from Japanese tanuki and mujina merely bearing an overlapping English animal translation; no indigenous zoological or personal-name equivalence has been established here.

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Origins & earliest records

Ishanashte of Shumunkot, through Chamberlain’s identified1886 collection and1888 English publication.

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Records & interpretation

Complete named tale reread; explicit memory-reconstruction label and narrator/date retained.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    Aino Folk-Tales

    Basil Hall Chamberlain, collector and English translator; narrative by Ishanashte · 1888

    xxxviii, Buying a Dream, pp.44–46; Ishanashte,16 November1886; written down from memory; Folk-Lore Society XXII. Transcription page markers, not independent scan collation.

Family & connections

A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.

Primary records and illustrations

Complete tale reread, named narrator/date/memory label and relevant introduction qualifications checked.

Aino Folk-Tales

Folk-Lore Society XXII,1888. xxxviii, Buying a Dream, pp.44–46; Ishanashte,16 November1886; written down from memory

Cache chamberlain-aino-38.txt and master chamberlain-aino.html. Actual privy-god intervention distinct fabricateddoorpostclaim; pinegoddess distinct bearformgoddess. Native-language text not independently collated.

Inspect the digitized plate · Source collection manifest

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Attributed historical English narrative recordAino Folk-Tales — xxxviii, Buying a Dream, pp.44–46; Ishanashte,16 November1886; written down from memoryResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

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