You want some good luck in your life?
Find yourself a tanuki
Those little bastards have balls
Running around drinking and merrymaking
At all times of the day without a care in the world
There’s this old children’s tale that tells you all you need to know
Tan tan tanuki no kintama wa
Kaze mo nai no ni bura bura
You need to be careful because they’re hard to find
And even harder to catch
But it’s worth all the graft
They don’t call me golden balls for nothing
Have you heard the story of the yuki-onna?
The maiden with the heart as cold as ice
They say she preys on the souls of lost travellers
Leads them astray and devours their lifeforce
Cold bitches the lot of them
Well, maybe not all
I remember hearing about a yuki-onna
That fell in love with a one-legged man
Looking for his little brother on the mountain
In the middle of a blizzard in the dead of winter
Stupid? Stubborn? Suicide?
All the above
But the one-legged man dragged himself through an icy hell
To find his kin trapped in a cave
Some say the yuki-onna guided him
Others say she followed to test his resolve
But these are just rumours, you understand
Ghost stories, really
But I like to think that even ghosts
Remember what it’s like to be human
Japanese folklore is filled with all kinds of supernatural tales that have been passed down from generation to generation. Creatures like the tengu and kitsune are as complex as the stories that have spawned them. Perhaps one of the most significant events in Japanese folklore is the Hyakki Yagyo, otherwise known as the night parade of one hundred demons.
As a Japanese idiom, the Hyakki Yagyo represents the concept of utter pandemonium. It’s the breaking down of the barrier between the human and supernatural world. The time of evil spirits and tricksters running amok through the streets. Continue reading “The Hyakki Yagyo: How To Survive The Night Of One Hundred Demons”
Japanese folklore is filled with spirits and mythical creatures, and one of the most well-known beings is the tengu. Tengu are an important part of Shinto and Buddhism and form part of the yokai. Originally seen as demons, the importance of tengu have changed over time. Many people wear tengu masks and the image has been woven into popular culture. Yamato Magazine is looking into the history of the tengu to see what they are and their significance to Japanese culture. Continue reading “How The Role Of The Tengu Has Changed In Japanese Culture”
Japanese mythology is filled with all kinds of supernatural creatures and monsters, ranging from mischievous kitsune, which take the appearance of foxes, to demonic oni, that live in the mountains and look like trolls. In anime, it’s common for characters to be inspired by fantastical Japanese creatures, and a franchise that does it so well is Pokémon. A lot of Pokémon are based on mythical monsters and some of my favourites have been influenced by yokai, Japanese ghosts and phantoms.
Continue reading “How Pokémon Reinvented Yokai For A Modern Generation”
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