This look
like a horse running, doesn't it?
But the original kanji charactor we usually use for a horse
looks like this:
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Ancient people have believed that horses were transportation
for gods. They have been adored as an object of belief.
People in Tobe also have a custom of baking rice bowls with
HIDARIUMA drawings in the begining of the year, or at the
first time of using kiln. They have believed if they ate
with the rice bowl , they would be able to live longer.
It is said that the custom of HIDARIUMA has been influenced
by Onmyo-gogyodo, the study of Chinese fortunetelling.
A horse was
a
symbol of heating power, and ancent people parodied the Japanese
sound of "hideri (meaning " drought")" to "hidari (meaning
"left")".
By combining both sounds
together, they prayed God to get more heat into their kilns
for the first time of using them.
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