Scary Japanese urban legends & myths which inspired many famous horror movies, anime and manga. They will send a chill down your spine. Years ago in Japan, there was a tradition where people would gather in a room and light 100 candles. After that they would start telling scary tales and ghost stories. And with the end of each story, they would extinguish a candle. And the room would grow darker and darker. And at the end of the final ghost story, the room would be in complete darkness. So let’s light a few candles and read on:  .......

 

Kappa

         A Kappa ("river-child"), alternatively called kawatarō ("river-boy"), komahiki (“horse puller”), or kawako ("river-child"), is a yōkai found in Japanese folklore. The name is a combination of the word kawa (river) and wappa, an inflection of warabe (child). In Shintō they are considered to be one of many suijin (“water deity”), their yorishiro, or one of their temporary appearances. A hairy kappa is called a Hyōsube. There are more than eighty other names associated with the kappa in different regions, including kawappa, gawappa, kōgo, mizushi, mizuchi, enkō, kawaso, suitengu, and dangame. Along with the oni and the tengu, the kappa is among the best-known yōkai in Japan.
       Kappa are similar to Finnish Näkki, Scandinavian/Germanic näck/neck, Slavic vodník and Scottish kelpie, in that all have been used to warn children of the dangers lurking in rivers and lakes.
       It has been suggested that the kappa legends are based on the Japanese giant salamander or hanzaki, an aggressive salamander that grabs its prey with its powerful jaws.

Kitsune

      Kitsune (IPA: [kitsɯne] ( listen) is the Japanese word for fox. Foxes are a common subject of Japanese folklore; in English, kitsune refers to them in this context. Stories depict them as intelligent beings and as possessing magical abilities that increase with their age and wisdom. According to Yōkai folklore, all foxes have the ability to shape shift into women. While some folktales speak of kitsune employing this ability to trick others—as foxes in folklore often do—other stories portray them as faithful guardians, friends, lovers, and wives.
         Foxes and human beings lived close together in ancient Japan; this companionship gave rise to legends about the creatures. Kitsune have become closely associated with Inari, a Shinto kami or spirit, and serve as its messengers. This role has reinforced the fox's supernatural significance. The more tails a kitsune has—they may have as many as nine—the older, wiser, and more powerful it is. Because of their potential power and influence, some people make offerings to them as to a deity.

Human transformations

           There are a large number of yōkai who were originally ordinary human beings, transformed into something horrific and grotesque usually during an extremely emotional state. Women suffering from intense jealousy, for example, were thought to transform into the female oni represented by hannya masks. Other examples of human transformations or humanoid yōkai are:

A)  Rokuro-kubi (humans able to elongate their necks during the night)

B)  Ohaguro-bettari (a figure, usually female, that turns to reveal a face with only a blackened mouth)



 

    C)  Futakuchi-onna (a woman with a voracious extra mouth on the back of her head)

       D)  Dorotabō (the risen corpse of a farmer, who haunts his abused land)

 

 

 

 

 

Tsukumogami

Tsukumogami are an entire class of yōkai and obake, comprising ordinary household items that have come to life on the one-hundredth anniversary of their birthday. This virtually unlimited classification includes:



Bakezōri

A)  Bakezōri (straw sandals)

B)  Biwa-bokuboku (a lute)

C)  Burabura (a paper lantern)



D)  Karakasa (old umbrellas)

E)  Kameosa (old sake jars) 

Mokumokuren

  F)  Morinji-no-kama (tea kettles)

   G)  Mokumokuren (paper screens with eyes)