The June Sculpture of the Month has puzzled me ever since I first sketched the scene in the fall of 2017.
It has a very powerful and unexpected presence, indicative of the maneki-neko, the familiar Japanese “beckoning cat” often seen in Japanese and Chinese restaurants and businesses. It’s said that when the cat beckons with the left arm, it invites good luck, while beckoning with the right paw brings financial reward.
Moneki-neko Oracle Mother
The maneki-neko story tells of a monk who lived in seclusion, with only his cat, in a very poor temple he built himself.
During a rainstorm one night, a passing warrior stopped under a tree near the temple for shelter, when he noticed a cat beckoning him towards the temple. He followed the cat, and as soon as he was clear of the tree, a large lighting bolt struck it and would have killed him but for the cat’s invitation.
Because the cat saved his life, from then on, the warrior donated funds to take care of the temple, and the cat became famous over all Japan. At the beginning of the 19th century, potters began to create the familiar, glazed, maneki-neko (literally, “beckoning cat”) statues, which they sold as good luck charms for residences, temples, and businesses.
However, the cat in this sculpture is not the traditional one.
First, this cat has the western beckoning gesture with her palm up and facing back, not the eastern one with palm down. Also, she appears pregnant and seems to have the body, breasts, and limbs of a human, though her paws and head remain catlike. In addition, her paws show extended claws not found on the original. Finally, she beckons the viewer toward a volcano in the background, rather than a temple.
Her sharp claws clutch both the new life she carries in her womb and her own leg, suggesting that she’s frightened about the prospects of survival for herself and her baby. These threats, symbolized by the erupting volcano in the background, which she warns, endanger the future of her child and need our fierce attention.
The scene in this sculpture is like a prophecy: Under the stars’ guidance, the oracle cat urges us to see that the countries dominating the world have laid a path into danger, threatening the survival of future generations and perhaps even life itself.
Perhaps, like the temple cat in the original story, this maneki-neko urges us to move out of harm’s way and donate our resources to those activities that bring us together – person to person and nation to nation – to honor the best in ourselves and others, so we can all survive together in peace and safety.
I hope this sculpture will inspire you to keep your eyes open for opportunities to diffuse conflicts, create safety for all, and contribute to the healing of our world.
