September 15, 2022: Your Handy Guide to Weird Yokai!

Kamaitachi are whirlwind-riding weasels that knock men (and only men) down, slashing their ankles with their sickle-like claws that injure yet, at the same time, temporarily anaesthetize the wounds. Beware the wind!

The Nurikabe is an invisible yokai with a tendency to block roads. And there is no way around it, thus providing the perfect excuse for times when you’re running late. Although imperceptible to the naked eye, artists of the Edo period still managed to detail its true form.

The Abumiguchi is a lonely stirrup, abandoned on the field of battle. Forlorn, it awaits the return of its owner – a fallen warrior who will, sadly, never come back for it.

Have you noticed mysterious child-like footprints getting tracked through the ash or soap powder of your home? If so, then your household may be haunted by Zakishi Warashi, spirits that take the form of child ghosts. Drive them away and you risk cursing your home with bad luck.

Once a year, on the night of the Lunar New Year, the Apposha, a big-headed red demon, crawls out of the Sea of Japan. It wanders through towns, banging on a tea kettle, going from house to house requesting food and the odd mischievous child it can drag back to the sea with it.

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