Alan comments on Hyakujo's Fox - Less Wrong

12 Post author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 24 March 2009 10:14AM

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Comment author: Alan 25 March 2009 03:09:58AM 7 points [-]

"It really makes you wonder how the hell they got that far while still believing that the wrong answer could turn you into a fox."

In the autobiography of Master Hakuin, people considered to be possesed by the spirit of a wild fox were thought to exhibit irrational, even erratic behavior, or vice versa. So this seems like a metaphor, but one at odds with standard western interpretations.

Comment author: gwern 12 May 2011 04:04:38PM 2 points [-]

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kitsune#Kitsunetsuki

In medicine, kitsunetsuki is an ethnic psychosis unique to Japanese culture. Those who suffer from the condition believe they are possessed by a fox.[36] Symptoms include cravings for rice or sweet red beans, listlessness, restlessness, and aversion to eye contact. Kitsunetsuki is similar to but distinct from clinical lycanthropy.[37]