In Japanese mythology and folklore, Somin Shōrai (蘇民将来, kyūjitai: 蘇民將來; also written as 蘓民將耒) was a poor man who gave food and shelter to a certain god in the guise of a traveler who was looking for a place to stay. As a reward, the god provided Somin Shōrai's family a means to save themselves from an oncoming pestilence that eventually claimed the lives of those who had turned him away earlier. The story of Somin Shōrai is the basis for the Shinto custom of walking through a large ring of twisted miscanthus reeds during the beginning of summer at many Shinto shrines across Japan. Talismans bearing Somin Shōrai's name are also popularly held to ward off disease and misfortune.