The White Heron: Who Delivers Your Fortune
From the shrine to your hands, how does the fortune actually arrive?
Few Have Truly Seen It
Legend says it's a white heron that carries each fortune from Mt. Fuji Gohshingu down to the people who draw them. And yet, remarkably few claim to have actually seen it clearly.
Weaving Through the Clouds
The heron is said to weave through gaps in the clouds, landing only before those who are lost. In its beak, a single fortune. It's said to have never once delivered to the wrong person.
The Wind When You Shake the Jar
That faint breath of wind brushing your cheek as you shake the jar — old tellings say it isn't wind at all, but the heron taking flight.
Why a Heron
No record explains exactly why a heron was chosen. White has long been considered a color free of impurity, and herons, flying straight and true across the sky, have long been dear to people for it. That unwavering, undeviating flight may be exactly what suits a fortune meant for you.
Somewhere, Right Now
Somewhere above the clouds, right now, the heron is still flying. The fortune that reached you today likely arrived carried on its wings.
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