Happy Halloween everyone!

Whew! We made it! Another year of A-Yokai-A-Day. Today’s entry marks the final one for this year’s yokai series, but before that, on to the results of the Hyakki Yagyō poster contest:

I was really impressed by the results of the contest! Naming all of those yokai took a lot of work and research, and a lot of people got them all correct! I wrote down all of the names with the correct answers and picked one at random, and the lucky winner, chosen by whatever yokai controls luck and fate, was Neal from Pennsylvania! Congratulations!

Now, on to today’s yokai. This was a request from a fan at my gallery show in Fukui this August. I saved this one for last because a) it was one of the most difficult to find information to translate, and b) the opportunity for beautiful fall colors deserved to wait until late October, when the reds and yellows are at their peak. Plus, it has a little bit of Halloween flavor to it, with the demon of the story disguising herself as a beautiful princess. Enjoy! | ハッピーハロゥイーン！

今年もやりました！今年のA-Yokai-A-Dayも皆さんのおかげで毎日行う事が出来ました！今年のプロジェクト最後の妖怪ですが…その前に！百鬼夜行ポスターコンテストの正解発表です！

ポスターコンテストに応募された方々の答えにはとても驚かされました！全ての妖怪の名前を挙げるのに沢山リサーチされた事でしょう。多くの方が全問正解でした！

正解者の中からランダムに抽選した結果、選ばれた幸運な勝者が決まりました！幸運の妖怪により選ばれし者、ペンシルベニア州のニールさんです！おめでとうございます！

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Today’s yokai is a demon born out of a sazae, or a sea snail. I’ve included a lovely little tale at the end for those of you going out as pirates this Halloween!

And don’t forget — today is your final chance to submit your answers for the Hyakki Yagyō poster contest! I’ll announce the winner late tomorrow night, when I post the final yokai. | 今日の妖怪はサザエの鬼です。後半には海賊にまつわる伝説もつけましたので、ハロウィーンにぴったりだと思いますよ！ Continue reading →

I hope everyone is safe from Hurricane Sandy! I lost power for a few hours, which caused a bit of delay in today’s painting, but I was able to finish it in time. Today’s yokai is a fun little kaidan (ghost story) from old Edo. | ハリケーン　サンディは大変だ！皆さん大丈夫でしょうか？こちらでは数時間停電になったため、今日の妖怪の投稿も少し遅れてしまいましたが、なんとか今日のうちに終える事ができました。今日の妖怪は可愛い二人の妖怪好き姉妹のリクエストで、江戸時代の怪談話からきた面白いものです。 Continue reading →

Halloween is coming up, and with the Frankenstorm on it’s way, it’s the perfect time to hunker down with some candles and blankets and a good ghost story. Maybe even get your friends together for a hyakumonogatari kaidankai ghost story telling party? If you’re planning on telling any ghost stories this year, today’s entry should help you out a little bit: an except from Night Parade about yūrei, or Japanese ghosts. | ハロウィーンがフランケーンハリケーンと共に近づいています！これは毛布をかぶりながら蝋燭をつけて怪談話をするにうってつけの天気になりそうだ。仲間を集めて百物語怪談会をする準備をしましょう！

今年なにか幽霊話をするつもりでしたら、今日の妖怪はきっとお役に立つでしょう。今日は Night Parade：百鬼夜行より、幽霊をお届けします。 Continue reading →

Today’s yokai is easily one of the weirdest ones I have ever come across… I can’t help but be reminded of the famous scene in The Godfather, or maybe a seahorse. This is one that has so little backstory to it that you can’t help but let your imagine ramble over where it could have possible come from… | 今日の妖怪は今まで見た中でも特にとても奇妙なものである。この妖怪を見るとゴッドファザーの有名なシーンかタツノオトシゴを思い出します。この妖怪の背景やまつわる伝説は少なく、どこから来たのかも想像を膨らますしかないです．．．。 Continue reading →