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Japanese Ghosts Night Parade 101

Culture General History
18.05.2021
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Japanese Ghosts Night Parade 101

Japanese ghosts or spirits are also known as Yurei that has returned to the bodily world, normally for the reason of revenge or hatred. Their alternate Japanese names are Obake, Shiryō, Bōrei. They are typically located in graveyards, houses, or close to the location of death. Most of them are women, but some can also be men.

They continue to roam the earth because they are closely related to hatred or love. Some also been tied to the ground because of suicide or being killed. If the rituals aren’t finished or the struggle left unresolved, the Yūrei will persist in its haunting.

Yurei is usually seen as wearing a white kimono or white robe. They almost always have long black hair. Their palms cling limply from their wrists. They are translucent and very faintly visible, and in maximum cases, they’re so faint that they seem to don’t have any feet. Some hover above the floor, as some crawl on the floor and some at the ceilings, they may be no longer certain with the aid of using the legal guidelines of physics.

They commonly will seem around 2-3 am, that is the Japanese witching hours.

 

Japanese Ghosts Origin:

According to Japanese traditional concepts, a person will continue to live independently after death and enter heaven after death. Over the years, relatives perform a series of burial and funeral ceremonies and prayers. Through these rituals, the soul is reunited with the ancestors and becomes the protective spirit of the family.

Those who fail to observe proper burial laws and fall into purgatory traps, these traps are both physical and ethereal. Others, even after proper prayers and rituals, died suddenly or tragically of violence. These “lost” souls become ghosts.

 

Understand the five Japanese Yurei’s:

  • Yuki-Onna-

    She looks like a classic Yurei, with snow-white skin and a white kimono, almost 10 feet tall with skin whiter than any human being. Although her face was young and beautiful. In most tales, the Yuki Onna is a supernaturally beautiful young woman, with dark black hair offsetting the whiteness of her skin and kimono. She appears in Koshogatsu, which means “little new year”, held on January 15. Hence, arrives on New Year’s Day and leaves on the 1st of February.
    Onna only appears in the full moon covered by fresh snow. It is recommended that mothers not let their children play on such nights. While another story says the Yuki Onna appears on the cusp of spring, to bid a temporary farewell to winter.

    Yuki onna. (2015). [Image]. https://yokai.fandom.com/wiki/Yuki-Onna

  • Okiku-

    Okiku is located in Himeji Castle (Hyogo Prefecture). The discussion about ghosts will be incomplete without Okiku. In her life, she was a servant, either she was killed or committed suicide. Then, Okiku became an Onryo (a fierce ghost), she showed up every night and scream loudly to torture her killer. However, once Okiku counted to nine, it is said that the priest said “Ten!” finally to put her soul to rest.

    The poor girl was thrown to death in the well of Himeji Castle. It is said that the ghosts of Okiku still emerge from this well at night, still counting and crying. If you are not sure whether Okiku is a real person, maybe visiting Himeji Castle to hear the screaming ghost will clear your doubts.

  • Chōchin-obake-

    This is a Japanese ghost chōchin that looks like a lantern. They are usually made of bamboo, paper, or silk. They can also be referred to simply as Chochin, Bake-Chochin, Obake-Chochin, and Chochin-Kozo. The lantern or chōchin when advanced to a certain level becomes a Chōchin-obake. The paper of the lantern splits along a wooden rib to form an open mouth with a wild and hanging tongue. Chochin Obake rarely causes personal injury, but simply surprises and scares the guests are in the house. You can also see Chоchin Obake in the Obake Karuta card game.

    Chōchin obake. (n.d.). [Image]. Yokai Wiki

  • Oiwa- You can find her in Yotsuya and Sugamo (Tokyo). She is a pious woman whose husband Iemon Tamiya conspired to poison her in order to marry another woman, Oume. The poison ruined her face terribly.  The iconic appearance was her damaged face, deformed eyes. The traumatized Oiwa committed suicide and cursed Iemon one last breath. She returned in revenge and let Iemon kill Oume and her grandfather. Finally, Oiwa drove Iemon crazy and hunted him down. Oiwa can avenge her tormentor. It has become a tradition to visit her grave. Oiwa has her own shrine located in Yotsuya near Shinjuku. Oiwa visits this shrine to stay away from toxicity. They said that Oiwa has a soft place for women and doesn’t like cheating.

    Oiwa. (2010). [Image]. Matthew Meyer Blog

  • Rokurokubi-

    Rokurokubi seems like regular ladies have a pulley neck. She eats normal meals at day, lamp oil at night. A girl scholar turned into a rokurokubi, at the same time as she sleeps. Their necks stretch to incredible lengths and roam around freely, when it becomes pretty thick, her head would possibly disappear. Sometimes, their head assaults small animals and people; every now and then they lick up lamp oil with their long tongues. Rokurokubi are former human beings transformed thru a curse because of some evil or misdeeds and the curse’s maximum effect influences women.

    Rokurokubi. (2009). [Image]. Matthew Meyer Blog

 

References

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Harshita Katiyar
Harshita Katiyar
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