Gazu Hyakki Yagyō

From Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core
Jump to: navigation, search

Gazu Hyakki Yagyō (画図百鬼夜行?, "The Illustrated Night Parade of a Hundred Demons") is the first book of Japanese artist Toriyama Sekien's famous Gazu Hyakki Yagyō e-hon series, published 1776. These books are supernatural bestiaries, collections of ghosts, spirits, spooks and monsters, many of which Toriyama based on literature, folklore, other artwork. These works have had a profound influence on subsequent yōkai imagery in Japan. (Also see: Hyakki Yagyō). The various creatures are described, below, using images to illustrate many of them.

First Volume "Yin" - 陰

The first volume of Gazu Hyakki Yagyō, called "Yin," includes the following demonic creatures.

  • Kodama (木魅?) : Sekien's comments: A spirit (kami) said to appear in one-hundred-year-old trees. (百年の樹には神ありてかたちをあらはすといふ。?)

  • SekienTengu.jpg

    Tengu (天狗?) is a popular bird-like demon in Japanese folklore.

  • Yamabiko (幽谷響?) means "echo", so Sekien likely meant to imply that this creature is a spirit that mimics sounds in the mountains.

  • SekienYamawarawa.jpg

    Yamawaro (山童?), usually called yamawaro, is a mountain-dwelling creature from Kyūshū, sometimes considered to be the form taken on by the kappa in winter.

  • SekienYamauba.jpg

    Yamauba (山姥?) the mountain hag is a staple of Japanese folktales.

  • SekienInugami.jpg

    Inugami (犬神?) is a dog-spirit said to do the bidding of certain families on Shikoku. Sekien depicted it in anthropomorphic form, wearing an eboshi hat. It is accompanied by a smaller creature called Shirachigo (白児?) which may be an invention of Sekien's.

  • SekienNekomata.jpg

    Nekomata (猫股?) is a cat whose forked tail is a clue that it has become a dangerous supernatural creature.

  • Kappa (河童?) is a famous water imp. Sekien's comments: It is also called kawatarō. (川太郎ともいふ。?)

  • Kawauso (獺?) is a river otter, seen here attempting to appear as a human.

  • Akaname (垢嘗?) is a creature which Sekien illustrated lurking in an old-fashioned bathroom. Its name means "filth-licker", so the function of its protruding tongue isn't hard to imagine.

  • Tanuki (狸?) is a raccoon dog which appears frequently in Japanese folkore.

  • Kamaitachi (鎌鼬?) is a slicing wind spirit. Sekien was the first to imagine it as a weasel-like creature, as an illustration of a pun.

  • SekienAmikiri.jpg

    Amikiri (網剪?) is illustrated by Sekien as a small snake-like creature with a bird-like head and lobster-like claws. Its name means "net cutter".

  • SekienKitsunebi.jpg

    Kitsunebi (狐火?) is ghostly fire created by foxes.

Second Volume "Yang" - 陽

The second volume of Gazu Hyakki Yagyō, called "Yang," includes the following creatures.

  • SekienJorogumo.jpg

    Jorōgumo (絡新婦?) means "prostitute spider", but the name is written with characters that mean "entwining bride".

  • Ten, martens which form a column which emits a mysterious flame.

  • SekienSogenbi.jpg

    Sōgenbi Sekien's comments: It can be found in the west of Saiin outside the capital, near Mibudera temple. As slang it is called Sōgenbi of Suzaku. (、。。?) This is based on a real legend from Kyoto, concerning the ghost of a monk who stole lamp oil.[1][2]

  • SekienTsurubebi.jpg

    Tsurubebi is a fireball dropping out of a tree. It may be related to the tsurube-otoshi.

  • SekienFuraribi.jpg

    Furaribi means "aimless flame".

  • SekienUbagabi.jpg

    Ubagabi. Sekien's comments: It is said to appear in Kawachi Province. (。?) This image shares its name with a real legend from Kyoto.[3]

  • SekienKasha.jpg

    Kasha is a cat-like monster which steals corpses during a funeral.

  • SekienYanari.jpg

    Yanari means the rattling sounds of an old house, which these small demons presumably make.

  • SekienUbume.jpg

    Ubume is the ghost of a pregnant woman who appears holding her child near bodies of water.

  • Umizatō is a blind man walking on the surface of the sea.

  • SekienNoderabo.jpg

    Noderabō is a strange creature standing near a temple bell.

  • SekienTakajo.jpg

    Takaonna (, tall woman?) is a female monster stretching itself to peer into the second story of a house.

  • SekienTenome.jpg

    Tenome is a creature with its eyes on its hands.

  • SekienTesso.jpg

    Tesso. Sekien's comments: Raigō became a spirit-rat, and went into the world. (、也。?) Raigō Anjari was a priest of Mii-dera, who was snubbed by the emperor in favor of Enryaku-ji, and according to legend became a swarm of rats which laid waste to the rival temple.

  • SekienKurozuka.jpg

    Kurozuka (ja:黒塚?) is the infamous, cannibalistic hag of Adachigahara.[4][5][6]

  • Rokurokubi (飛頭蛮?) is a woman who suffers from a supernatural illness, causing her head to float away from her body at night while her neck stretches indefinitely.[7][8]

  • Sakabashira.jpg

    Sakabashira (ja:逆柱?) is a pillar that has been installed upside down, which causes the house to become haunted.[9][10]

  • SekienMakuragaeshi.jpg

    Makuragaeshi (反枕?) is a spirit that takes your pillow out from under your head while you sleep and places it by your feet instead.[11][12]

  • Yukionna is a pale female spirit who appears in the snow, who sometimes causes people to freeze to death.[13][14]

  • Ikiryō is a "living ghost", a spirit which appears outside of its body while its owner is still alive. It often belongs to a woman motivated by jealousy.[15][16]

  • SekienShiryo.jpg

    Shiryō (ja:死霊?) is the spirit of a dead person.[17]

  • SekienYurei.jpg

    Yūrei is a ghost.[18]

Third Volume "Wind" - 風

The third volume of Gazu Hyakki Yagyō, called "Wind," includes the following creatures.

  • Mikoshi (見越, ja:見越し入道?) is a long-necked creature whose height increases as fast as you can look up at it.[19][20]

  • SekienShoukera.jpg

    Shōkera (ja:しょうけら?) is a creature which peeks in through the skylight of an old house.[21][22]

  • SekienHyousube.jpg

    Hyōsube (ja:ひょうすべ?) is a monkey-like creature which is kin to the kappa.[23][24]

  • SekienWaira.jpg

    Waira (ja:わいら?) is a large beast that lurks in the mountains, about which little is known.[25][26]

  • SekienOtoroshi.jpg

    Otoroshi (ja:おとろし?) is a hairy creature sitting on top of a torii gate, thought to be a guardian of the shrine.[27][28]

  • SekienNuribotoke.jpg

    Nuribotoke (ja:塗仏?) An animated corpse with blackened flesh and dangling eyeballs.

  • SekienNureonna.jpg

    Nureonna (ja:濡れ女?) A female snake-like monster who appears on the shore.

  • SekienNurarihyon.jpg

    Nurarihyon (ぬらりひょん?) A strange character who sneaks into houses on busy evenings

  • SekienGagoze.jpg

    Gagoze (元興寺?) A demon who attacked young priests at Gangō-ji temple.

  • SekienOuni.jpg

    Ouni (ja:苧うに?) An old hag covered in long hair.

  • SekienAobouzu.jpg

    Aobōzu (青坊主?) The green monk who kidnaps children.

  • SekienAkashita.jpg

    Akashita (赤舌?) A creature that looms in a black cloud over a floodgate.

  • SekienNuppeppo.jpg

    Nuppeppō (ぬっぺっぽう, ぬっぺふほふ?) An animated lump of decaying human flesh.

  • SekienUshioni.jpg

    Ushioni (牛鬼?) A name given to an assortment of ox-headed monsters.

  • SekienUwan.jpg

    Uwan (うわん?) A spirit named for the sound it shouts when surprising people.

See also

References

  1. ↑ [1]
  2. ↑ [2]
  3. ↑ [3]
  4. ↑ [4]
  5. ↑ [5]
  6. ↑ [6]
  7. ↑ [7]
  8. ↑ [8]
  9. ↑ [9]
  10. ↑ [10]
  11. ↑ [11]
  12. ↑ [12]
  13. ↑ [13]
  14. ↑ [14]
  15. ↑ [15]
  16. ↑ [16]
  17. ↑ [17]
  18. ↑ [18]
  19. ↑ [19]
  20. ↑ [20]
  21. ↑ [21]
  22. ↑ [22]
  23. ↑ [23]
  24. ↑ [24]
  25. ↑ [25]
  26. ↑ [26]
  27. ↑ [27]
  28. ↑ [28]
  • Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  • Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Retrieved from "https://infogalactic.com/w/index.php?title=Gazu_Hyakki_Yagyō&oldid=2344391"