Hey!  I recognise that cat!  That’s the cat from my local take-away!  Yes folks, this is the famous Maneki Neko “Lucky Cat” sculpture, and if you’ve ever wondered about its origins and why it never tires of waving at you then read on, my friends, for the full story!

The Maneki Neko ( “Beckoning Cat”) is a popular Japanese sculpture said to bring good luck to the owner.  The cat (traditionally a Japanese Bobtail) is often positioned near the entrance of restaurants and shops and appears to be beckoning with an upright paw.  It is said that a raised right paw attracts money while a raised left paw attracts customers.

In Europe and America the Maneki Neko’s pose is often interpreted as waving rather than beckoning, but this is due to the different gestures that the different cultures use to beckon.  The Japanese beckon by holding up their hand with their palm facing outwards, and fold their fingers down and back up repeatedly (as per the cat’s appearance).

It is believed that Maneki Neko first appeared during the later part of Japan’s Edo period (1603-1867).  The earliest documentary evidence comes from the 1870s. It is mentioned in a newspaper article in 1876 and there is evidence kimono-clad Maneki Neko were distributed at a shrine in Osaka during this time.

There are three popular, but different stories telling the origins of the cat:

The Temple Cat

A wealthy lord was sheltering under a tree during a thunderstorm when he saw the temple priest’s cat beckoning to him.  Surprised by this, he followed and moments later the tree was struck by lightning.  The grateful Lord befriended the poor priest and made the temple prosperous.  The first Maneki Neko was made in honour of the cat.

The Courtesan

A courtesan named Usugumo kept a cat, who she loved very much.  However, one night the cat began tugging at her kimono and no matter what she did, the cat persisted.  The brothel’s owner saw this and, believing the cat bewitched, cut its head off.  Owch.  The cat’s head then flew to the ceiling where it killed a snake, ready at any moment to strike.  Usugumo was devastated by the death of the cat so to cheer her up, one of her customers made her a wooden likeness of her cat as a gift. This cat image then became popular as the Maneki Neko.

The Old Woman

An old woman living in Imado (eastern Tokyo) was forced to sell her cat due to extreme poverty.  Soon afterwards the cat appeared to her in a dream.  The cat told her to make its image in clay. She did as instructed, and soon afterward sold the statue.  She then made more, and people bought them as well. They were so popular she soon became prosperous and wealthy.

It is my hope that Maneki Neko will beckoned new readers to The Cat Comic.  Here readers, readers, readers…

Adapted from Wikipedia entry for Maneki Neko

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As any cat owner will tell you, a cat has nine lives.  It is one of the most well-known myths associated with our feline friends.  While the origin of this expression is not known for certain, there are a variety of different theories.

The ‘multiple lives’ concept is most likely attributed to the fact that cats are such good survivors, swift, agile and able to land on their feet (sometimes even walking away from enormous drops).

The question is, where did the number nine come from?  Nine has, throughout the ages, been considered a lucky number, even mystical or magic.  Nine is the “Trinity of Trinities” (in other words 3 x 3).  With cats being seen as witches familiars and having been worshipped by ancient Egyptians, the mystical number nine would have been the obvious number to assign to the lucky cats.

Other possible explanations for the number nine could be because of the cat o’ nine tails, a type of multi-tailed whipping device that originated as an implement for severe physical punishment.  The association of cats, the number nine and their tenacious characteristics could have all blended together into the saying.

Interestingly, although most cultures would say the cat has nine lives, this varies in some other cultures.  According to Arabic, Spanish and Turkish proverbs cats have seven lives.  In Russia the cat is said to survive nine deaths.

All I know, as a cat owner, is that nine can sometimes seem like a conservative estimate.

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When somebody is said to have let the cat out of the bag, they have revealed a secret, but – my oh my – ain’t that an unusual phrase?

So what, exactly, does feline freedom from sack imprisonment have to do with secrets being shared?  If you have ever wondered about the origins of the phrase “Let the cat out of the bag”, read on and all will be revealed.

The generally accepted origins of the phrase date back to medieval England when piglets were sold in open marketplaces.  To make it easier for the buyer to take the piglet home, the seller would hand it over in a sack.  However, unscrupulous sellers would attempt to trick buyers by doing the ol’ switcheroo and instead of giving them the pig they had paid for, they would supply them with a bag o’ cat instead.

When a shrewd shopper would look in the bag and discover that he was being conned, out would jump kitty and the deception was revealed.  The cat was literally out of the bag.

Source: Wikipedia

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The phrase “there’s not enough room to swing a cat” is used to describe cramped, enclosed spaces, but it may have left you wondering who, exactly, came up with the phrase and what reason they would have for swinging a cat around in the first place.

It is widely believed that the origin of the phrase has nothing to do with a real cat but a type of whip known as a cat-o-nine-tails.

The cat-o-nine-tails was used as a form of corporal punishment and it was a common form of discipline on sea voyages.  Sailors would be taken on to the deck of the ship to be whipped because below deck there was not enough room to swing the cat, and this developed into the expression we are familiar with today.

Source: Wikipedia

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