The Gift of Life

Life gives and takes constantly. It is beautiful, mesmerizing, compelling, and lovely, but also terrible, cruel, and unforgiving. These dimensions of our existence are neither good nor bad; they simply are. The fact that we are alive is too often taken for granted, or even regarded as a burden. Across centuries, ideologies that deny life have emerged from a misunderstanding of what it means to live. Those who continually reject life's darker aspects may provoke a mirrored response from the world around them. Here, the two kitsune associated with Inari in the Shintō religion act as fierce protectors, defending life rather than embodying aggression or danger. Their terrifying expressions are a consequence of human behaviour. Life will go on, whether we like it or not, and it will bite us until we accept it.