Gazu Hyakki Yakō

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Gazu Hyakki Yakō (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 Yakō series, published ca. 1781. 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.

Contents

[edit] First Volume - 陰

Kodama (木魅?) : Sekien's comments:A spirit (kami) is said to appear in a tree of a hundred years. (百年の樹には神ありてかたちをあらはすといふ。?)

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.

Yamawarawa (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.

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

Inugami (山姥?) 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.

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 (垢嘗?) 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.

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".

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

[edit] Second Volume - 陽

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

Ten (鼬?), martens which form a column which emits a mysterious flame.

Sōgenbi (宗源火?) 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. (洛外西院の南、王生寺のほとりにあり。俗これを朱雀の宗源火といふ。?) This is based on a real legend from Kyoto, concerning the ghost of a monk who stole lamp oil. [1] [2]

Tsurubebi (釣瓶火?) is a fireball dropping out of a tree. It may be related to the tsurube-otoshi.

Furaribi (ふらり火?) means "aimless flame".

Ubagabi (姥が火?). Sekien's comments: It is said to appear in Kawachi Province. (河内国にありといふ。?) This image shares its name with a real legend from Kyoto. [3]

Kasha (火車?) is a cat-like monster which steals corpses during a funeral.

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

Ubume (姑獲鳥?) is the ghost of a pregnant woman who appears holding her child near bodies of water.

Umizatō (海座頭?) is a blind man walking on the surface of the sea.

Noderabō (野寺坊?) is a strange creature standing near a temple bell.

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

Tenome (手の目?) is a creature with its eyes on its hands.

Tesso (鉄鼠?). Sekien's comments: Raigō became a spirit-rat, and went into the world. (頼豪の霊鼠と化と、世にしる所也。?) 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.




  • Kurozuka (黒塚?) is the infamous, cannibalistic hag of Adachigahara. [4] [5] [6]
  • Rokurokubi (飛頭蛮, ろくろ首?) 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 (逆柱?) is a pillar that has been installed upside down, which causes the house to become haunted. [9] [10]
  • 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 (雪女?) is a pale female spirit who appears in the snow, who sometimes causes people to freeze to death. [13] [14]
  • Ikiryō (生霊?) 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]
  • Shiryō (死霊?) is the spirit of a dead person. [17]

[edit] Third Volume - 風

  • Mikoshi, or Mikoshi-nyūdō (見越, 見越し入道?) is a long-necked creature whose height increases as fast as you can look up at it. [19] [20]
  • Shōkera (精螻蛄?) is a creature which peeks in through the skylight of an old house. [21] [22]
  • Hyōsube (ひょうすべ?) is a monkey-like creature which is kin to the kappa. [23] [24]
  • Waira (わいら?) is a large beast that lurks in the mountains, about which little is known. [25] [26]
  • Nuribotoke (塗仏?)
  • Nureonna (濡れ女?)
  • Nurarihyon (ぬらりひょん?)
  • Gagoze (元興寺?)
  • Ōni (苧うに?)　（not to be confused with Oni 鬼)
  • Nuppeppō (ぬっぺっぽうNuppeppō?)

[edit] References


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