Miko (巫女, Miko?
lit. Shrine Maiden) are women in the service of Shinto shrines.
Background
The Miko tradition dates back to the ancient eras of Japan. In ancient times, women who went into trances and conveyed
prophecy or the words of the gods were called Miko, not unlike the Oracle at Delphi of ancient
Greece.
Later, miko were young female attendants at Shinto shrines. They were often the daughter(s) of the priest who presided over a
given shrine. Roles of the miko included performing in ceremonial dances (miko-mai) and assisting priests in various ceremonies,
especially weddings. The tradition continues and today miko can be found at many Shinto shrines. In modern times most Miko are
part-time employees or volunteers. Their duties include assisting with shrine functions, performing ceremonial dances, offering
Omikuji (a type of fortune telling), and staffing shrine shops.
It is somewhat difficult to assign a strict definition or English equivalent to the Japanese word "Miko", though "shrine
maiden" is most often used. Other terms that have been used as equivalents are prophet,
medium, priestess, nun,
witch, or sorceress. It should be noted that although
Shinto has female priests - the term "priestess" is not used in Shinto - they are not the same as miko: miko do not have the same
degree of authority as that of an actual priest, although they can serve as the senior cleric of a shrine if no priest is
available. The unique exception to this is that in ancient times, the prophecy revealed by Miko was considered to be handed down
directly from the kami (spirits).
Theoretically, miko were required to be virgins, however, exceptions have historically been
made when one is imbued with a strong character. It is probably true that when a woman who was serving as a miko married, she
abandoned her duties at the shrine in order to be with her husband and new family. This rule has since been mostly removed in
modern times, though most still leave the service of the shrine or train for the priesthood should they wed.
The attire of a miko (traditionally and still worn today) consists of hakama, a
kimono shirt, and tabi. Occasionally miko wear a thin white
haori called "chihaya." The hakama is usually red, but other colors are not unheard of. The
kimono shirt has long, wide sleeves and is always white, as white is a symbol of purity. White or red ribbons often adorn a
miko's hair.
In fiction
Wikipe-tan as an anime-like miko.
Miko are common characters in some Japanese literature, manga, and anime. Miko are often stock characters and are readily identified by
their distinctive costume. Perhaps the most common depiction of a Miko has the character sweeping the grounds of a shrine with a
bamboo-shafted broom. In some romantic stories, especially bishōjo video games and
visual novels, miko are usually portrayed as attractive but extremely stuffy, temperamental
girls--often due to limited or negative exposure to boys. This is in stark contrast to the friendly and demure stereotype of the
Christian nun in such stories.
Despite this mundane image, manga and anime typically portray the miko as a heroine who fights
evil spirits, demons, and ghosts, often with magical or supernatural powers. In such stories miko are generally depicted as being
skilled in some variety of martial art, especially the use of a traditional Japanese weapon such as yumi (longbow), tanto (knife), or any of the various Japanese swords:
katana, wakizashi, etc. Miko are almost always attributed the
ability to do magic of various sorts, especially o-fuda and various forms of divination. In western role-playing games, they are sometimes
treated as rough equivalents to character classes such as Clerics, "white witches", or Paladins. These miko are sometimes
referred to as Betsushikime. In some cases, historical miko, such as Izumo no
Okuni, were believed to have been betsushikime.
Kuro Miko ("Black Miko", though more often translated as Dark Miko or Dark Priestess) are fictional, evil
counterparts to traditional miko in Japanese fiction such as manga. They often serve renegade priests or actual demons. The kuro miko is often very versed at demonology and has a strong command of black magic, and wear a darker
version of the traditional outfit (burgundy, gold, or black instead of red), sometimes with a mask. Such characters have appeared
in InuYasha and Shrine of the Morning
Mist.
Examples of miko
Fictional
- Himeko and Chikane, from the anime and manga series
Kannazuki no Miko.
- Tsukasa and Kagami Hiiragi from the anime and manga series Lucky
Star(らき☆すた).
- Rei Hino, or Sailor Mars, from the anime and
manga series Sailor Moon.
- Kikyo, Kaede, Midoriko, and Kagome Higurashi, from the anime and manga series InuYasha.
- Reimu Hakurei, main character of the Touhou Project series.
- Mutsuki Asahina, one of the three main characters from the anime and manga series Haunted Junction.
- Okinu Himuro, a teenage ghost miko from the anime and manga series
Ghost Sweeper Mikami.
- Takiko Okuda from the popular manga Fushigi
Yugi Genbu Kaiden
- Sarina (Mizuchi Saiou), from the anime series
Yu-Gi-Oh! GX.
- Miaka Yuki and Yui Hongo from the popular anime/manga
Fushigi Yuugi.
- Arashi from the manga and anime X.
- Rika Furude from the anime series and video games Higurashi no Naku Koro ni.
- Chizuru Kagura from the King of
Fighters series—she is seen using the traditional outfit before fighting Orochi
- Sayo-chan from the arcade video game Kiki Kaikai (also known as "Pocky" from the
arcade game's SNES sequel Pocky and Rocky).
- Keiko Asakura, from the anime and manga series Shaman King.
- Mana Tatsumiya from the anime and manga series Negima!
- Mina Hakuba of Konami's Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow.
- Kokon from the manga "Kon Kon Kokon"
- Rin Yagami from the H-game Atlach=Nacha
See also
External links
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