Mythical Creatures from Japan
Japan is an amazing country of contrasts, where the achievements of high technologies perfectly coexist with centuries-old traditions, and the magical gardens and temples – with skyscrapers, from one look at which is breathtaking. They say to know Japan is not enough for a lifetime. The unpredictability of the elements, geographical location and national character formed a kind of mythology with their own, sometimes so absurd, creatures whose image and purpose are paradoxical for Europeans to understand. Let’s take a look at what mythical creatures live in Japan according to their mythology!
1) Yuki-onna
Mythical creatures from Japan (40 photos)
Some legends claim that the Yuki-onna, associated with winter and unbearable cold, is the spirit of a girl who has forever perished in the snow. Her name means in Japanese “snow woman”. Yuki-onna appears on snowy nights as a tall, stately maid in white kimono with long black hair. It can hardly be seen against the background of snow due to inhumanly pale, almost transparent skin. Despite the ephemeral beauty, Yuki-onna eyes instill fear in mortals. She swims in the snow, leaving no traces, and can turn into a cloud of fog or snow. According to some beliefs, she has no legs, and this is a feature of many Japanese ghosts.
The nature of Yuki-onna varies from fairy tale to fairy tale. Sometimes she is just content to see the victim dying. More often, she is a vampire who cruelly kills men for the sake of their blood and vital energy, sometimes she acts as a succubus. In many strashno.com.ua Yuki-onna stories appear when travelers wander in snowstorms. After her ice, like death itself, of breathing or kissing, the travelers remain lying lifeless, stiff corpses. Other legends endow the Yuki-onn with an even more bloodthirsty and cruel character. She sometimes intrudes into the house, blowing on the door with the force of a storm to kill all the inhabitants of the house in a dream, but some legends say that she can enter the house and harm people only by being invited inside as a guest.
2) Kappa
A variety of water, the embodiment of the deity of Water. Their appearance is very specific – a cross between a frog and a turtle: a frog skin, instead of a nose – a beak, fingers and toes are connected by swimming membranes, there is short hair on the head. The body exudes a fishy smell. At the top of the tray there is a saucer, which gives it supernatural power. It must always be filled with water, strashno.com.ua otherwise kappa will lose its power or even die. The two hands of the mouthguard are connected to each other in the area of the shoulder blades; if you pull one, then the other will shrink or even fall out.
About a third of all images are made up of mouthguards, similar to monkeys: the whole body is covered with hair, there are fangs in the mouth, the nose is almost invisible, there is a thumb on the hands, and a heel bone on the legs. Unlike conventional mouthguard, instead of a saucer on the head, there is a hollow in the shape of an oval saucer; turtle shell may not be. Kappa is an admirer of sumo wrestling and loves cucumbers, fish and fruits. It is believed that if you catch the mouthguard, it will fulfill any desire. Kappa was considered to be a very dangerous creature in Japan who hunted by cunning or dragging people and animals into the water by force.
3) Yorogumo
The ghost of a spider, taking the form of a seductive woman. In accordance with strashno.com.ua with legends, yorogumo plays the lute in an abandoned hut in the forest to attract the attention of a potential victim passing by. While a person is fascinated by listening to enchanting music, Yorogumo wraps it with his web to provide food for himself and his offspring. According to some beliefs, after the spider has lived 400 years in the world, it acquires magical power. In many stories, a beautiful yorogumo asks a samurai to marry her or, in order to arouse trust and sympathy, takes the form of a young woman with a child in her arms, which is in fact a spider masonry. Ancient Japanese drawings and engravings depict yorogumo as a half woman, half a spider surrounded by her children.
4) Kitsune
The image of the werewolf fox spirit fox is quite widespread in Asia. But outside the Japanese islands, they almost always act as sharply negative and unsympathetic characters. In China and Korea, the fox usually strashno.com.ua is interested only in human blood. In the Land of the Rising Sun, the image of the werewolf fox is much more multifaceted. Inherent characters of Japanese folklore and literature, Japanese Kitsune have the characteristics of an elf, a vampire and a werewolf. They can act as carriers of undiluted evil, and be ambassadors of divine forces. Their patroness is the goddess Inari, in the temples of which the fox sculptures are certainly present. Some sources indicate that Inari is the highest kitsune. She is usually accompanied by two snow-white foxes about nine tails. The Japanese treat Kitsune with respect with a mixture of fear and sympathy.
