Bishamon tortoise shell

毘沙門亀甲 bishamon kikkō

Bishamon tortoise shell

Three tortoise-shell hexagons joined in a Y, taken from the armour of Bishamonten, a guardian god of fortune; combines longevity with protection and victory.

Buddhist iconography; samurai and noh use from the Kamakura–Muromachi periods

Named after Bishamonten (Vaiśravaṇa), one of the Four Heavenly Kings, whose armour in Buddhist sculpture and painting is covered with three hexagons joined in a Y. Through that warrior god it was taken up in samurai culture of the Kamakura–Muromachi periods and used on noh costumes and Buddhist altar fittings. It is one of several named kikkō variants.

Technique catalog · draft for review

Every way to wrap, carry and wear a furoshiki.

The furoshiki.com archive, sliced into annotated steps with plain directions, plus techniques found in research.