Today we are looking at another tengu yokai. This one is a bit different than Sojobo and the other tengu you see on yokai.com for a few reasons: she is a female, she is a god, she has a son. Her nicknames reveal how rare those things are: metengu (woman tengu) and tengu kami (tengu god) refer specifically to her; i.e. there aren’t really other female tengu or tengu gods besides her.

I also think she is interesting because while most tengu are considered to be malicious demons lurking in the forests, she is actually revered as a goddess. While it isn’t terribly uncommon to see shrines dedicated to tengu or small tengu cults (think of Sojobo from a few days ago), Amanozako’s story is special in that she interacts with the other gods in heaven. Her myths are not self-contained stories, but play off of the larger pantheon. She was supposedly born out of a chunk of spit and gall that the temperamental storm god, Susanoo, vomited up. Most tengu don’t have that as a claim to fame!

And the fact that there aren’t other female tengu is notable as well. The long tengu nose is often considered to be a phallic symbol, and that may be a reason why most tengu are depicted as men. But for the tengu god to be a female is interesting! Not only that, but she bore her son without the need of a male partner. Truly a powerful woman!

Read more about her on yokai.com, and pick up a copy of The Hour of Meeting Evil Spirits to always have her on your bookshelf!

There have been a lot of yokai lately dealing with the dragon god of the sea—Ryūjin. Wani, suiko, shinkirō, and ryūtō are all closely related to him. Of course today’s is as well! Why are there so many? Well, remember, Japan is an island nation, and the is incredibly important. The fact that Japan is an island chain is the reason it is so unique, so it is only fitting that there should be a lot of lore about the sea. And of course, by extension, of Ryūjin.

So who is Ryūjin exactly? Well, legends about him go way way back to before recorded history. Ryūjin is merely his title; it ryū means dragon, and jin means god. His actual name is Ōwatatsumi, although in most cases he is simply referred to as Ryūjin. He lives in a palace made of red and white coral, deep under the sea. He possess two magical jewels, known as kanju and manju, which respectively control the ebb and flow of the tides. He is served by jellyfish and sea turtles, as well as other aquatic creatures. As a dragon, he has domain over water. Farmers pray to him for rain, fishermen pray to him for a large haul. He is central to a number of important Japanese industries.

Politics below the sea reflect those above it. There are noble courts, dignitaries, parties, probably even war. Ryūjin has been known to bring human guests into his undersea palace, like in the myth of Urashima Tarō and Toyotami hime.

Today’s yokai, shiranui—”unknown fire”—is a manifestation of the power of the dragon god. They were viewed as a sign that the dragon god was nearby, so on days that shiranui appeared, fishermen came in and catching fish was forbidden, lest the god be disturbed. It is, of course, closely related to yesterday’s ryūtō.

Shiranui is really similar to other sea-based mirages and will-o’-the-wisps from English folklore. It seems that many cultures have fantastic stories about strange lights out at sea or on the land. Scientists usually attribute these stories to bio-luminescent creatures, such as algae or jellyfish or squid, or else to illusions caused by refraction of moonlight over the humid sea air. Whatever the cause, I happen to really like this particular interpretation of mysterious lights.

Click below to read about shiranui on yokai.com!

Today’s yokai is not very famous across Japan, but it is famous locally in Hiroshima, particularly on the island of Itsukushima (also known as Miyajima). Arguably the most famous landmark in Hiroshima (after the atomic bomb dome and peace park), nearly everyone has seen the iconic image of the big torii gate reflected in the shallow waters of the bay.

Ryūtō appears once per year, on New Years day. I painted this image two years ago while viisiting Hiroshima over winter break. I was off by just one day; I happened to be there on New Years Eve, so I just missed the lights by 24 hours. However, even without them the bay is absolutely gorgeous at sunset and at night. I painted the dragon lights out of my own imagination, but the sheer beauty of the scene even with phantom fire was more powerful than any painting can capture.

The lights are supposedly visible from the tiny town in the mountains around the island, and the townspeople gather around to view them. They are a sign that the holy dragon god is happy and healthy and still favors the bay around the island. If you’ve ever seen the amazing beauty of Itsukushima, with its tidal pools and shrine built on top of the water, it is hard to imagine how the dragon god could not be happy.

Click on the picture to read more about ryūtō!

Today’s yokai is a great example for the debate about what exactly is a yokai. I’ve mentioned on my blog and at talks that one of the four main categories of yokai is “phenomena.” While the vast number of yokai are creatures of some sort, there are supernatural things that are not actual creatures which still fall under the yokai umbrella. These are also called kaii, which means strange phenomena. Shinkirō is one of these.

Looking at the picture, you might guess that shinkirō is a magical clam. That’s close, but the term actually refers to the clam’s breath and not the clam itself. Although an argument could be made that the clam—with its enormous size and magical powers—is also a yokai, this specific term refers to a mirage that is blown out from the clam along with its breath.

Just like in other countries’ folklore, mirages at sea promised fantastic things to the sailors who saw them. In the case of Japanese folklore, they granted an image of a great castle at the bottom of the sea, where the dragon gods live. Wani, which was added to yokai.com last month thanks to my Patreon backers, would be an example.

An interesting little tidbit is that in Chinese, these clams are known as shen, and are actually shapeshifting dragons which take the form of clams. So they are even more connected to the dragon gods than they appear from just their breath!

Read more about shinkirō at yokai.com, or in The Hour of Meeting Evil Spirits!

I’ve said before how I love when yokai “interact” with each other—that is, when one yokai legend references another. It shows the ongoing continuity in folklore; folklore is not just created and then archived; it lives and breathes, it changes, and it builds off of itself. Tonight’s yokai is one of those. He is connected to a number of local myths around the place where he supposedly lives, but he is also strongly connected to another yokai which is featured in The Hour of Meeting Evil Spirits: eritategoromo. The little connections and interactions like this add an air of credibility and authenticity to the stories; they feel like they exist in a living, breathing canon rather than as static legends.

Sōjōbō is especially interesting because his legend continues to grow and evolve even in recent memory. In 1949 the temple to which he is strongly connected split away from Tendai Buddhism to form a new esoteric sect. In this branch of Buddhism, a holy trinity is worshiped as a central force, and part of that trinity is Mao-son, a demon king who came to earth from planet Venus 6,500,000 years ago to live at Mount Kurama. According to the priests, Sōjōbō and Mao-son are one and the same… so a tengu from Venus? I suppose it wouldn’t be the strangest story to come out of Kurama Temple, as it is also the place where reiki was invented!

Sōjōbō was selected for today by my Patreon backers. I think they picked a great one, don’t you? If you have a favorite yokai you’d like to see, consider joining my project!

As always, click below to read about Sōjōbō on yokai.com:

Sōjōbō

One of the most enjoyable parts of studying folklore is learning about the similarities and differences between different cultures. Japan is pretty well know for having wild and weird folkloric creatures, and I love pointing out how unique Japanese folklore is, but even Japan has a fair number of creatures that share a lot in common with folkloric beasts in other countries. (Yurei, yama uba, kijo, oni, and onibi being just a few of them…)

Tonight’s yokai, Ikuchi, is a particularly fun one. Sea serpents are common lore in many cultures, but what makes ikuchi so interesting to me is that it is not so violent, and more just naturally dangerous. Sea serpent legends often depict violent, raging sea creatures which rise up to tear ships apart and eat the sailors. Ikuchi, on the other hand, is a slow danger, smoothly slithering over ships without directly destroying them. The danger comes not from the creature’s temper, but from the gallons of heavy oil seeping from its body which threaten to capsize the ship.

This presents another interesting point: the problems presented by this yokai are not solved through great strength or fortitude, or through magical prowess or divine intervention. They are solved through diligence and hard work. There are no heroic warriors like in Norse sagas. They are not saved by their faith like in religious folklore. They are saved by the work ethic that Japan is so famous for. How appropriate and unique is that!

Click below to read more about ikuchi on yokai.com.

If you are enjoying A-Yokai-A-Day, remember that you can help make more yokai all year round by joining my Patreon project as a supporter. $1 per month helps me to translate and illustrate at a constant pace and expand yokai.com throughout the whole year.

One of the reasons I began this project, and pretty much the main topic which has dominated this blog over the past 7 years, is bringing yokai to the English speaking world. When I first started talking about yokai on here, there were almost no books on yokai in English except for what had been writteb by Lafcadio Hearn, and other collections of Japanese folk tales.

Today, not even a decade later, that is very different. I have published two books. A number of other talented writers have published books on yokai and yurei, including Matt Alt and Zack Davisson, and of course Michael Dylan Foster who has the academic side very well covered. When you search Amazon for yokai books, you’ll find a huge number have come out in just the last few years. I have no idea what caused it to suddenly spring forth, but a huge surge in yokai popularity has come to the English-speaking world.

Now, on the heels of the handful of folks like myself working to share yokai with the world, Yokai Watch has hit US shores. For those who haven’t heard of it, Yokai Watch is a mega franchise in the vein of Pokemon which has taken Japan by storm. It has already surged past Pokemon in popularity, and that is no small thing to say.

And now the anime has just come to the US, airing on Disney just one week ago. The video game is set to be released soon, and no doubt a tidal wave of Yokai Watch goods will flood every market. Part of the reason for Yokai Watch’s success is that, like Pokemon, they are pushing every possible market: video games, tv, toys, and so on.

Although I haven’t watched the show and am not particularly interested in the game itself, I am very excited for this because it means yokai may be about to become a household word in North America. It means that a lot of young people are going to become aware of the idea of yokai, and there will probably be a lot of new fans of Japanese folklore made from this franchise. Even though many of Yokai Watch’s yokai are not quite “authentic” in that they were made up for the franchise, they still have roots in folklore, and will still drive people to learn more about their origins.

There has been some speculation that Yokai Watch might not take off in the US, because American kids are not familiar with the concept of yokai, and some concepts, like the idea of one of the main characters being the ghost of a cat who dies in the first episode might be too difficult for American kids to handle. Personally I find that a bit patronizing and an unfair underestimation of the intelligence of kids. But only time will tell.

Even if Yokai Watch doesn’t hit it big, I hope that at least a few kids and teens will be turned on to the world of yokai and folklore from this franchise!

Anyway… today’s yokai is below! Kawa akago is a tricksy river imp who pulls people into the water. He’s quite a silly yokai, but also a dangerous one. You’ll find him in The Hour of Meeting Evil Spirits. Click here to order it from amazon, and click below to view the entry on yokai.com!