Yokai (妖怪) of Japan

Kame hime is the younger sister of Osakabe hime. Much like her sister, Kame hime is a reclusive yokai that does not like communicating with humans. However, Kame hime is believed to reside in Inawashiro Castle, in Fukushima. Unlike her sister, Kame hime absolutely refuses to interact with humans, and will only communicate with them through the yokai that are in service to her, such as shunobon or shitanaga uba. It is said that occasionally Kame hime will visit her sister at Himeji Castle. When visiting, Kame hime will bring the severed head of a man as a souvenir.

Below is a modern image of the entrance of Inawashiro Castle. Unfortunately, the castle itself is no longer present in this era.

Art by: Matthew Meyer

Osakabe hime is a reclusive yokai who lives high up in the keep of Himeji Castle. She takes various appearances, however the most common are that of a majestic old woman or a beautiful young lady wearing a 12-layered kimono. Osakabe hime hates meeting people and spends most of her time hidden away in secret parts of Himeji Castle. However, it is said that once a year she comes out to meet the castle lord and tell the fortune of the castle for the next year. Osakabe hime is an extremely powerful yokai. She is extremely knowledgeable about many things and controls many kenzokushin (animal-like spirits who act as messengers). She can also read a person’s heart and see their true desires. Through this, she can manipulate them like puppets. It is rumored that anybody who sees her face will die instantly.

Below is a modern image of Himeji Castle. Just in case people are interested.

Art from: Mathew Meyer

The Katsura Otoko is an alluring man that is believed to live on the moon. he came from a myth in China that there is a man that lives in a palace on the moon. He spends his time pruning the branches of a Katsura tree, when he is done the tree will grow its branches back and he will once again trim them. According to this myth as he cut the branches the moon would grow smaller and less round. This was a myth was meant to explain the waxing and waning of the moon. It is believed that the only time a person can see the Katsura Otoko is during a moonlit night. He will gaze down on a person looking up to him, it is said that he is so beautiful that it is difficult for a person to look away. If a person gazes at a Katsura Otoko, he will extend his hand and beckon the person to him. With each shake of his hand, the person's lifespan will shrink. If a person stares at the Katsura Otoko long enough he or she may drop dead on the spot.

Gaki are invisible spirits that are being tortured by being eternally hungry. They have distended bellies and tiny mouths and throats. There are many variations of Gaki, and this is dependent upon the sins that he or she committed in their past life, the one thing that is common among all of them is that they are always hungry and can never be fulfilled. Some are unable to eat or drink anything, as the food will burst into flames and disappear whenever they try. While some Gaki are only able to eat unclean things such as feces, vomit, and corpses. Finally, some can eat as they please, however, they will never be sated no matter how much they eat. Today, the word gaki is a cruel term sometimes used to describe a child.

The Akkorokamui is a gigantic octopus that resides in Uchiura Bay Hokkaido. It's said that it is so big that it can swallow boats and whales whole. Its entire body is red and when it appears the sea and sky turn red as a reflection. If any ship sails too close to the Akkorokamui it will be swallowed whole. Akkorokamui comes from Ainu folklore, where it is called the Atkorkamuy. Its name can be translated as “string-holding kamuy.” String-holding refers to the octopus’s string-like tentacles, while kamuy is an Ainu term for a divine being (similar to the Japanese term kami). In Ainu folklore, Akkorokamui is both revered and feared as the lord of Uchiura Bay.

Betobetosan is a formless phantom that likes to follow behind people on the road. He wears wooden sandals making a "beto beto" sound with every step he takes. Betobetosan is harmless, although, he can be fairly disconcerting. He synchronizes his steps with someone on the road and gets closer and closer. Panicking the person when they turn around only to see nothing there. In order to be left around, simply step to the side of the road and say "after you betobetosan". The footsteps will continue past you and eventually vanish from earshot. Allowing you to continue in peace. Interestingly, In northern Fukui Prefecture, a betobetosan is known as a bishagatsuku during winter storms. The name comes from the “bisha bisha” sound his phantom feet make in the slush-filled streets.

Keukegen are filthy monsters with long dirty hair and are about the size of a small dog. Keukegen live in cool, damp, dark places. They like living in places that breed sickness, such as, under floorboards and around run-down homes. Although Keukegen are cute, they are actually a minor spirit of bad luck, disease, and pestilence. As such, They bring sickness to those that live nearby. Despite this Keukegun are inherently shy and it is very rare to see one. When household members mysteriously fall sick or commonly run into bad luck, a Keukegun most likely lives nearby. However, it is very easy to avoid a Keukugen by simply keeping your house clean, as Keukegen dislike clean places and avoid them. Interestingly, the Keukegen’s name is a pun. It is commonly written with characters that mean “a hairy, fluffy sight.” But it can also be written with different characters that mean “rare and dubious.”

The Hitotsume kozō is a one-eyed goblin boy dressed like a Buddhist monk with one eye and a long tongue. Hitotsume kozō are fairly harmless yokai. They delight in startling people by suddenly appearing on a dark street. As they are mischievous and childlike yokai. Hitotsume kozō spends most of their time startling people, however, they have one important job. Every year on December 8th Hitotsume kozō travel across Japan and record in ledgers which families have been bad throughout the year. They will deliver this information to the god of pestilence and bad luck. Using this information, the families fortunes for the following year is decided.

The Iso Onna (coast woman) is closely related to the Nure Onna, however, the Iso Onna does not have serpentine features. The Iso Onna appears to be human from the waist up, however, her lower half is blurred or underwater making it impossible to see, her hair is long and matted and she wears clothes that are almost see-through. An Iso Onna will sit on the beach appearing as a beautiful woman staring out at sea. When a person approaches her she will turn around and let out an ear-piercing scream stunning her victim, allowing her to drag them into the sea and drain them of their blood. If there are no beaches an Iso Onna will wait on the bottom of a cliff and call out to her victim. Mesmerized by the Iso Onna's voice her victim will follow her only to fall off of the cliff to their death allowing her to freely feed on the body.

The Nure Onna (wet woman) is a vampiric sea serpent that is commonly found on the coasts of Kyūshū. They are known for having a serpents body and a woman's head and arms along with long wet black hair and a forked tongue. The Nure Onna lures unsuspecting fishers, sailors, or anybody passing to her in order to trap them and drain their blood. The Nure Onna will do this by holding a bundle that resembles a baby and disguise herself as a distressed woman. She will beg the person to hold her "baby" so that she may rest. If her victim agrees the "baby" will become extremely heavy trapping the victim under its weight allowing the Nure Onna to freely attack her victim.

The Yuki Onna (snow woman) preys upon people in order to eat their life force. They are known to have otherworldly beauty with long black hair, dark eyes, and skin as white as snow, however, their skin is also as cold as ice. They hid along paths in mountains and wait for a traveler to pass by or break into a house while the inhabitants are asleep. They will flash freeze their victims and suck their life force out through the mouth. Despite this, Yuki Onna will sometimes fall in love with their victim and let them go free, often ending in marriage. In myths, the Yuki Onna will commonly be discovered as a spirit in one of two ways. Either, her husband realizes that his wife (an otherworldly spirit) does not age, or he will insist that his wife take a bath in order to warm up, later when he returns all that will be left in the bath is melted icicles. In myths, after the Yuki Onna is discovered she will commonly respond by either fleeing back into the woods or dying.

The Tsurara Onna (Icicle woman) is an exceptionally beautiful woman that appears during winter and is known for being an especially warm Yokai. A man who is unmarried will wish for a wife that could be with him during the winter. As a result, a Tsurara Onna will be created and appear in front of the man. She will knock on the door claiming that she is an ordinary woman that got stuck in the snowstorm. The man and Tsurara Onna often fall in love and get married. However, when Spring comes and the Icicles melt the Tsurara Onna will disappear. According to various myths the man will look for her but she cannot be found. As a result, he will remarry. However, the Tsurara Onna will reappear during the next winter. In her anger and jealously will drop an icicle on the man, impaling and killing him.

The Ame Onna (rain woman) is a woman that summons rain wherever she goes, this is due to the belief that she is related to rain deities. She has the appearance of a haggish woman that is soaked to the bone and will lick her skin like an animal in an attempt to dry herself. Through the rain, the Ame Onna may help a village that is in a drought or help farmers. However, the purpose of the rain is different and more sinister. The Ame Onna is known for using the cover of the rain in order to walk into town and kidnap newborn girls. They will put the girls into sacks and spirit them away to a different world. Often the mother whose baby has been taken away, through her grief and longing, will turn into an Ame Onna herself, roaming the streets with a sack in hopes of replacing what was lost.

Korōri are beasts made up of the tiger, wolf, and tanuki. They have the appearance of a tanuki, with the stripes of a tiger, and the mouth of a wolf. It was believed that cholera was spread through the Korōri in late 19th century Japan. It was believed that the Korōri would sneak into houses and infect the household members. Afterward, they would flee from the homes in order to move on to another household to infect. It was also believed that the Korōri would feed on the dead bodies of the infected. During the Edo Period, the word for cholera in Japan was Korori. One spelling used the kanji for tiger (虎 ko), wolf (狼 rō), and tanuki (狸 ri) which resulted in the development of this Yokai. In 1877 an article was posted in the newspaper Kanayomi, which included a description and image of the korōri, as well as a disclaimer that the Korōri is not real. Rather it was meant to be a representation of the fear of cholera.

The Ushirogami is a type of okubyōgami; a spirit that causes cowardice, or targets cowardly people. It's a ghost with long black hair, one large eye, and no legs. Rather they have a long twisting body, which allows it to jump into the air. The Ushirogami hides along dark paths and waits for people to pass by. They will then sneak up behind that person and pull pranks. Their favorite pranks are to poke the person in the back, pull out the person's hair ties so that it falls out and tangle it, touch them with their cold hands, blow hot air on them or make wind gusts in order to blow the umbrella that the person is carrying away. However, when the person turns around to check, the Ushirogami will disappear from sight. The Ushirogami's favorite victims are young cowardly women.

Hangonkō is an incense that is used to recall the sprits of those who died from sickness or disease. However, those who are recalled can only come back for a short amount of time and cannot leave the smoke that is produced from the incense. Hangonkō is made from the Hangonjū, a magical tree with leaves and flowers that resemble a maple tree. To make Hangonkō, you steam the Hangonjū’s roots until the sap comes out. Then you knead the sap to make the incense. There are multiple legends about Hangonkō. However, the best known is the legend about Emperor Wu of the Han dynasty. Emperor Wu lost his beloved concubine, Li Furen, and became depressed. In response to this a Daoist sorcerer provided him Hangonkō. However, as all the stories about Hangonkō end, it only made him sadder as he was only able to see her for a short amount of time.

The Kirin is a divine beast that resembles a deer with dragon scales covering their body, surrounded in holy fire, and always has a facial expression of complete serenity. The Kirin is extremely rare and will only appear during times of world peace. As such, they will only go to lands owned by wise and benevolent people and during the reigns of a noble and enlightened ruler. Therefore, the appearance of a Kirin is believed to be a sign of the arrival of a great leader or a wise man. The Kirin is known for being extremely gentle, in fact, they step so lightly that they don't crush a single blade of grass. They do this in order to avoid killing anything including any insects that may be living in the grass. Kirin will never hurt someone with a good or pure soul. However, if they feel threatened they will quickly attack someone by breathing holy fire from their mouth. Due to their gentle nature, Kirin are commonly used to decorate temples and shrines as symbols of good luck and fortune. Interestingly the Japanese word for giraffe is Kirin. This is due to giraffes' gentle nature and appearance that resembles the Kirin.