Why does the stone lion have a ball in its mouth?

There are several different allusions. One is the Wutai Mountain version. It is said that a stone lion stole its tongue and had its tongue cut off. Later, in order to make up for the majesty of the tongueless stone lion, a ball was added to its mouth. Another way is to say that the ball is a spell that can drive away evil spirits, but to achieve the purpose of exorcising evil spirits, the person who casts the spell will turn into a lion with beads in his mouth. Later, that person died, but the monster returned to the human world. People thought of carving a stone lion with a ball in its mouth to scare away evil spirits. The last theory is that it is auspicious for a stone lion to hold a ball in its mouth.

The stone lion holding the ball in its mouth is like a lion dance during the festival. When the lion grabs the hydrangea with its mouth, it means that everything will go well this year.