The concept of a shinko or a dragon fox in Japan, how many stories or mentions are there of one? I cant really find any real mentions outside of maybe a few scattered 'oh amaterasu took the form of one' and such
The exact meaning of the term shinko (辰狐) is a subject of debate. The first sign, 辰, can mean “dragon” - specifically the Chinese zodiacal dragon (ie. 龍) as a symbol of the fifth of twelve Earthly Branches (十二地支), though, not any generic dragon - but it also refers to astral bodies (Berthe Jansen, Iyanaga Nobumi, Ḍākinī in Brill’s Encyclopedia of Buddhism Volume II: Lives, p. 137-138).
This doesn’t mean “dragon fox” is necessarily an incorrect translation, and it can actually be found in scholarship. The other options are “gleaming fox, “astral fox” (Bernard Faure, Protectors and Predators, p. 133) and “celestial fox” (Ḍākinī, p. 137). Leaving the term untranslated is common, too, and is the option I lean towards myself. Especially since it’s possible that both meanings of 辰 are applicable at once. It has been argued that shinko was understood as a "magic fox transformed into a dragon and ascended to heaven, becoming an imaginary celestial body” (ibidem, p. 138). Finally, it’s possible that 辰 was only used as a homonym of 神, making all the speculation moot (Protectors and…, p. 386).
The rest of the response has been placed under the cut due to length.
Dakiniten and her fox mount (wikimedia commons).
Regardless of the exact meaning, what is clear is that shinko is primarily attested as a medieval designation of Dakiniten (Ḍākinī, p. 137). In an enthronement ritual from the Toji temple she is referred to as Shinko-ō (辰狐王), ie. “king of the shinko” (Gaétan Rappo, Fortune, Long Life, and Luck in Battle: The Cult of the Three Devas and Worldly Rituals in Medieval Japan, p. 41). The shinko can alternatively be her symbol, mount (Protectors and…, p. 133) or messenger (ibidem, p. 142).
A yegan (yakan in Japanese) drawn by the folklorist Minakata Kumagusu (wikimedia commons).
The association between Dakiniten and a specific sort of supernatural fox shouldn’t be very surprising. Even before her emergence as a singular deity, dakinis came to be associated with foxes in China due to problems with translating Sanskrit śṛgāla, “jackal”. Chinese Buddhist authors, unsure what sort of animal was meant, typically went with yegan (野干), a legendary fox-like creature said to be able to climb trees and to have a taste for human flesh. This eventually led to making a connection between dakinis and foxes, though in China it’s only directly attested in the gloss humei gui (狐魅鬼), literally “fox sorceress demon” in the Śūraṅgama Sūtra. The idea became very popular in Japan, though (Ḍākinī, p. 135-136). The ninth century Buddhist writer Annen (安然) already stated that “a dakini is a fox” in his Taizōkai Daihō taiju-ki (胎藏界大法對受記). He attributes this statement to his contemporary Anne (安慧), who in turn presumably depended on the aforementioned gloss (ibidem, p. 137).
In the context of an esoteric enthronement ritual, the sokui kanjō (即位灌頂), first performed for emperor Fushimi in 1287 (it actually continued to be performed up to the late Edo period, but that’s irrelevant here), Dakiniten’s association with the shinko was transferred to Amaterasu. A commentary on it is actually where the short narrative you’ve presumably stumbled upon before sending this question comes from (Mark Teeuwen, The Kami in Esoteric Buddhist Thought and Practice in Shinto in History: Ways of the Kami, p. 105-106).
The story is specifically recorded in the fourteenth century Keiran Shūyōshū (溪嵐拾葉集), a compilation of originally orally transmitted Tendai esoterica. It explains that Tenshō Daijin (ie. Amaterasu) disguised herself as a shinko during her famous cavern sojourn to hide herself. This was a suitable animal form to take because “among all animals, Celestial Fox is the only one which casts light by itself” (Ḍākinī, p. 137). It further explains that the creature possesses this ability due to being identical with the Buddhist wish-fulfilling jewel, and that one has to revere it to ascend to the throne because it is the “expedient body” of Amaterasu, as described in the preceding section (The Kami…, p. 106).
An Edo period portrait of Nakatomi (or Fujiwara) no Kamatari (wikimedia commons).
A shinko also appears in a similar context in a medieval legend about the seventh century official Nakatomi no Kamatari (Fabio Rambelli, Or Porath, General Introduction in Rituals of Initiation and Consecration in Premodern Japan, p. 25). It is known as Setsuroku engi (摂籙縁起), since it deals with the founding of the Fujiwara clan, whose members served as the chancellors (摂籙, setsuroku) in the royal court. Supposedly Kamatari met a fox who was both a dakini and a manifestation of Amaterasu somewhere in the Hitachi province, and received a sickle from her. He later used this tool to kill the rebel official Soga no Iruka in order to protect the emperor (Abe Yasurō, The Cultural History of Kanjō in Japan in Rituals of Initiation and Consecration in Premodern Japan, p. 225).
I’m aware of at least one more association between Amaterasu and the shinko, though it’s less direct and doesn’t have an explanatory narrative attached. Bernard Faure argues that Sankoshin (三狐神) from Ise can be identified with shinko. This deity - literally “three fox god” - represented the granary of the outer Ise shrine, which was known as Miketsu (御馔津); the fox association developed as a pun on that, with the name reinterpreted as mi ketsu (三狐; can also be read as sanko), ie. “three foxes” (Protectors and…, p. 138-139).
One final attestation of shinko I found occurs in an exorcism formula meant to help against the “dada affliction” (吒吒病, dada byō) supposedly spread by Dakiniten’s servant Dasseiki (奪精鬼; also 奪魂魄鬼, Datsukonpakuki, “demon that ravishes vital essence”) or by foxes. If a large province (one of more than one hundred li) was affected, the skull of a shinko had to be used. For a smaller one, the skull of a tanuki or a white dog would suffice (Bernard Faure, Rage and Ravage, p. 91).
Sorry if the response is a bit less story-oriented than you'd like, I wasn't able to find much beyond that; most of the academic coverage of the shinko pertains to Dakiniten's involvement in enthronement rituals.
Now listen, I adore Nero. Absolute icon, fabulous Camp Queen!!! She's a joy in almost every form that she appears in. She's always giving pussy pussy cunt cunt meow meow purr purr diva!!! Both of her Beast forms have great designs (obviously not counting the loli form) , Last Encore was an enjoyable watch and not anywhere near as bad as it's worst critics paint it as. And the stealth Last Encore / Arcade collab event for FGO was great!
.................... That being said, if you had to pick only one character to be the lead heroine / female face of the Fate Extra series, and you aren't going with Sakura/ BB, then the only sensible choice is Tamamo no Mae.
And I have very good evidence to backup that argument!
We know that Twice is like this super narrative foil for Hakuno, Twice's original servant was Tamamo. His new servant Saver is Shakyamuni, Shakyamuni and Tamamo are both manifestations of Vairocana.
Kiara the principal antagonist of CCC besides BB, is from a cult of Esoteric Buddhists who worship Amaterasu/ Vairocana via Dakiniten who is Tamamo's higher self /older incarnation (and is also the source for Tamamo's Witchcraft Skill) Kiara is herself a very deliberate inversion of Saver and is the only other candidate we know of for certain that qualifies for that class.
Benzaiten/ Saraswati who is a component of Meltryllis and Durga who is a component of Lip are also both goddesses considered to be manifestations of / syncretized with Amaterasu by different schools of Japanese Esotericism.
Narratively and dramatically I just feel like it has the biggest impact if Tama-chan is Hakuno's Servant.
Koyanskaya isn’t Tamamo-no-Mae or Daji. I think she’s Dakiniten (longggg poast)
REGARDING NOT BEING TAMAMO-NO-MAE:
I mean she’s pretty up-front about it herself in her materials. Even to the original Tamamo herself.
It’s more accurate to say Koyanskaya originated from a divine spirit related to/similar to Tamamo no Mae, or rather, Amaterasu perhaps. So she’s more like a cousin-divinity of Tamamo no Mae. She did not originate from Amaterasu.
Tunguska Sanctuary event confirms this also AND confirms she’s not Daji either. I don’t really want to grab screencaps right now but like half of the event hinges on Jiang Ziya attempting to defeat her by saying she’s Daji and all of his anti-Daji spells failing because she’s literally not Daji & then later all of them confirming when reconvening that she’s not Daji nor is she Tamamo no Mae.
SO! Then we have to look into what she actually might be. So we look at things that are referenced in her materials. In particular this stands out to me:
Now with the reference of the Izumo Shrine done out of spite in her materials, it’s safe to say she’s a spirit who is “somebody who is Against what the Izumo shrine represents”.
The god Ookuninushi. So then we look at "who could possibly dislike Ookuninushi” (enemies of Ookuninushi, then) and while we don’t find any directly, Nasuverse lore is hugemassive on syncretization and grudges/powers/etc. carrying onward after syncretization (see: the entirety of Tamamo-no-Mae having relation to Daji at all, or her capability to use Dakini magic either)
So then we look into who Ookuninushi/Daikokuten/Mahakala has defeated who might be related to Koyanskaya, even a little bit - we’re looking for somebody who matches the description of her character.
This was the first one I saw but now that I know that Tamamo no Mae literally was stated in Extra/CCC to have Dakini magic this is the one obviously I had to look into. And so as we read on:
Literally that’s why Tamamo no Mae was related to Dakiniten in the first place - because of that fox iconography - but it’s important to remember that Tamamo no Mae is not Inari. Now Koyanskaya, who has stated time and time again that she’s Not Tamamo, but is something similar or “like a Tamamo who got isekai’d” this is why I think she’s definitely Dakiniten.
And then there’s some other stuff as to why, and it’s related to Koyanskaya’s overall narrative.
Koyanskaya hates humanity. When she talks about humanity she talks of them as being disgusting and all-destructive, but also in the Tunguska event mentions that they hunt by gaining your trust and then betraying you. She runs a private military service as well.
It turns out that Dakiniten was heavily worshipped by military figures and political figures seeking prominence. When Dakiniten was syncretized into Japanese Buddhism, she was a essentially Goddess of good luck, but quite a few of those who prayed to her were primarily political/military figures seeking power.
The fate of Kiyomori’s rise and fall from power being both famously attributed to Dakiniten fits with Koyanskaya’s desire to raise up the Chaldean Master & also drag them into the depths of hell.
However, because of this aspect of her cult as a whole, it’s easy to assume she has likely been treated more like a tool for power this entire time, rather than worshipped as a proper Goddess as Dakiniten within her cult. Especially given the favor she holds within the military, and her subsequent obvious, spoken and metaphorically visible distaste for humans mindlessly killing each other with guns.
(note: only thing relevant in this above blurb is her referring to herself as “koyanskaya weapon” but I wanted to include it for this point anyways; the ‘and yet... sigh’ isn’t related to that thought)
Over time the sheer act of worshipping Dakiniten became associated with black magic/curses. So there was no chance for her to be treated like a proper goddess even if she was a true Goddess of good fortune (even after being syncretized into a goddess from a flesh-eating demon anyhow), because she wasn’t being used as such anyways by humanity.
And then this is just my pet theory but the fact that she looks like what could be called an ‘amalgamation’ in the first place (and that she’s described as an ‘amalgamation’ is also a reference to her being Dakiniten, who is a sort of amalgamation of several aspects - the fox goddess Inari, and the evil Dakini spirits from long ago.
Given her entire appearance as a goddess related to military fortune, who has been used by humanity and never worshipped as a kind goddess of good fortune despite literally becoming one when syncretized, being a female fox deity who isn’t Inari but also isn’t Tamamo or Amaterasu but is related enough, as well as being somebody with a direct relation to the Izumo Taisha (or rather, a palpable motive for spite towards it and what it represents) and everything else........ this is why I can’t not see Koyanskaya as Dakiniten. Like there’s just too much here for me.
A small Inari Shrine (稲荷社) enshrining the goddess Dakiniten (吒枳尼天) as the Buddhist manifestation of Inari (稲荷), deity of bountiful harvests and prosperous productivity, on the grounds of Mitakesan Kiyomizudera Temple (御嶽山清水寺) in Katō, Hyōgo Prefecture
A painted image of the goddess Dakiniten (荼枳尼天), invoked generally for prosperity and fecundity, grasping a treasure rod and dharma wheel with her upper hands and a wisdom sword and wish-granting jewel with her lower hands
Detail from a copy of the Dakiniten Mandara (荼枳尼天曼荼羅), a mandala focused on the deity herself along with a crew of her assistants; hanging scroll, color on silk, dating to the Edo period (1600-1868)
