It’s summer here in Japan, so that means I’m fighting a constant battle against almost supernaturally powerful mold. But did you know that there is an actual mold yokai? And a bunch of other sneaky creatures that could be crawling around your house, hiding in the walls and floorboards. Along with the even more terrifying…
Kaibyo is the general term for supernatural cat yokai. The first character is the kai from yokai, which means strange, or scary, the second character, byo is just another pronunciation for the character of neko, or cat. So Kaibyo translates to strange cats. Although to be honest, I feel like this just describes most cats!…
You’re probably already familiar with the amabie (pronounced amabié). Because of old legends about its image being able to prevent epidemics, this lucky yokai has been making the rounds on social media, and even on national television here in Japan. It’s the most media attention a yokai has gotten in a while! But there are…
The Meaning of the Gashadokuro’s Name Kanji: 餓者髑髏 . Gashadokuro literally means “starving skeleton”, where 餓者 means “starving” and “髑髏” means “skeleton”. Also known by 大髑髏, or O-dokoro, which directly translates to “big skeleton”. Hiragana: がしゃどくろ The Gashadokuro’s appearance The Gashadokuro is one of the most easily recognisable of Japanese yokai. It is often seen…
Near a big river, and between two high mountains, a man and his wife lived in a cottage a long, long time ago. A dense forest lay all round the cottage, and there was hardly a path or a tree in the whole wood that was not familiar to the peasant from his boyhood. In…
Once upon a time there lived a cat of marvellous beauty, with a skin as soft and shining as silk, and wise green eyes, that could see even in the dark. His name was Gon, and he belonged to a music teacher, who was so fond and proud of him that he would not have…