Hyakki yagyō, the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons, is the old belief that late at night a host of oni and yokai marches through the streets of the capital. In the Muromachi period it was painted on picture scrolls; the best known, kept at Shinju-an in Kyoto's Daitoku-ji, shows a procession of tsukumogami, old household things come to life.
Here that scroll is unrolled along a bamboo-grove path at night, and 100 yokai from the YOKAI.JP encyclopedia, each painted anew, walk along it, from familiar faces like the kappa and the tengu to Enma and the Hakutaku; more join the procession over time. Tap one and time slows as it turns round to show itself.
- Kappa
The kappa is among the most famous of all Japanese yokai, said to dwell wherever there is water—rivers, ponds, and marshes alike.
See it on the scroll → - Tengu
The tengu is a yokai and quasi-divine being said to dwell in the mountains of Japan, a lord of the heights inseparably bound to the yamabushi ascetics of Shugendō.
See it on the scroll → - Nine-Tailed Fox
The Nine-Tailed Fox is a spirit-fox said to have lived so long and gathered so much power that its tail divided into nine.
See it on the scroll → - Karakasa-kozou
Karakasa-kozou is a pop icon representing Japanese yokai and is synonymous with tsukumogami (object yokai).
See it on the scroll → - Chochin-obake (Lantern Ghost)
The Chochin-obake is one of Japan's most famous Tsukumogami, an old paper lantern that has transformed into a yokai.
See it on the scroll → - Oni
Powerful yokai with horns.
See it on the scroll → - Tanuki
The tanuki is, as an animal, the Japanese raccoon dog, Nyctereutes procyonoides, a canid native to Asia that includes Japanese subspecies such as the Honshu and Ezo tanuki.
See it on the scroll → - Nekomata
Nekomata is one of the most widely known and complexly evolved supernatural beings in Japanese folklore.
See it on the scroll → - Hitotsume-kozou
A yokai appearing as a shaven-headed boy with a single large eye in the center of his forehead.
See it on the scroll → - Zashiki-warashi
The zashiki-warashi is a household kami or uncanny presence said to dwell in old homes in Tōhoku, especially Iwate.
See it on the scroll → - Noppera-bo
The core terror of the Noppera-bo lies in the sudden disappearance of the "face"—the most fundamental unit of human recognition.
See it on the scroll → - Nurarihyon
Nurarihyon is a yokai known in Edo-period imagery by his name and the figure of an old man with an enlarged, bald head.
See it on the scroll → - Rokurokubi
Rokurokubi is known as a yōkai whose neck stretches unnaturally long at night.
See it on the scroll → - Yuki-onna
Yuki-onna is an apparition that takes the form of a woman on snowy nights, mountain roads in blizzards, and villages buried in white.
See it on the scroll → - Ittan-Momen
Ittan-Momen is a strange, long cotton-like presence associated with the Ōsumi Takayama region, around present-day Takayama in Kimotsuki Town, Kagoshima Prefecture.
See it on the scroll → - Oil Baby
A yokai illustrated in the mid-Edo period by Toriyama Sekien in Konjaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki.
See it on the scroll → - Aburasumashi
Aburasumashi is a yokai said to appear at a mountain pass in Higo Amakusa.
See it on the scroll → - Amabie
Amabie is a prophetic yokai said to have appeared in the sea off Higo Province in mid-April 1846.
See it on the scroll → - Amanojaku
Amanojaku is a small demon known for defying people, twisting words and actions, and teasing by doing the opposite of what is asked.
See it on the scroll → - Ao-andon
Ao-andon is a yokai of the printed page, formed where the blue-paper lantern used in Hyakumonogatari gatherings meets the strange figure Toriyama Sekien drew in his early modern collection of yokai i…
See it on the scroll → - Ashinaga Tenaga (Long-Legs and Long-Arms)
A paired legend of extraordinary people: the Ashinaga, whose legs are preternaturally long, and the Tenaga, whose arms are extraordinarily long.
See it on the scroll → - Azuki-arai (Bean Washer)
A yokai that washes red beans at streams late at night, echoing with shoki-shoki or zaku-zaku sounds.
See it on the scroll → - Bakezōri (Haunted Straw Sandal Tsukumogami)
A tsukumogami said to arise when an old straw sandal gains a spirit.
See it on the scroll → - Baku (Dream Eater)
The Baku is an imaginary creature whose womb was the spirit-beast “mo” (貘) recorded in the Chinese classics, and which grew in Japan into something of its own: a beast that devours bad dreams.
See it on the scroll → - Basan
Basan is a phantom bird from Iyo, also called Basabasa or the Dog Phoenix.
See it on the scroll → - Poverty God
A deity said to attach itself to homes or people and drag their fortunes down.
See it on the scroll → - Biwa Bokuboku
A tsukumogami in which a spirit inhabits a biwa lute and appears as a blind minstrel (zatō).
See it on the scroll → - Daikokuten
Daikokuten is a Buddhist guardian deity whose origin lies in Mahakala, a name of the Hindu god Shiva in ancient India meaning "Great Time" or "Great Darkness." In Japan, he developed from the medieva…
See it on the scroll → - Datsue-ba
Datsue-ba is a hag from Japanese Buddhism and folk religion who resides at the Sanzu River, the boundary of the underworld.
See it on the scroll → - Dodomeki
A female yokai illustrated by Toriyama Sekien in Konjaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki, depicted with countless eyes embedded along her arms.
See it on the scroll → - Doro-danbō (Mud Rice-Field Wraith)
A yokai illustrated by Edo-period artist Toriyama Sekien in Konjaku Hyakki Shūi.
See it on the scroll → - Ebisu
Ebisu is the only deity of Japanese origin among the Seven Lucky Gods (Ebisu, Daikoku, Bishamon, Benzaiten, Fukurokuju, Jurojin, Hotei).
See it on the scroll → - Enkou
The Enkou is a dialect name for the kappa primarily used in the Nanyo region of Ehime Prefecture, as well as western Shikoku and the western Chugoku region.
See it on the scroll → - Enma Daio
Enma-o (King Enma) is the most famous judge of the underworld in Japanese Buddhism and folk religion.
See it on the scroll → - Fujin
A deity in Japanese mythology who presides over the wind.
See it on the scroll → - Funayūrei
Funayūrei are maritime apparitions formed from the spirits of people who died by drowning or shipwreck.
See it on the scroll → - Futakuchi-onna (Two-Mouthed Woman)
Futakuchi-onna is a yokai woman said to have a second mouth on the back of her head.
See it on the scroll → - Gashadokuro
Gashadokuro is a modern yōkai known as a gigantic skeleton that walks across night fields.
See it on the scroll → - Gotoku Neko (Trivet Cat)
A shape-shifting bakeneko depicted by Toriyama Sekien in Hyakki Tsurezurebukuro.
See it on the scroll → - Hakutaku (White Marsh)
Hakutaku is an auspicious beast from ancient Chinese lore said to understand human speech and to know all manner of monsters, demons, and calamities.
See it on the scroll → - Hannya
Hannya is a Noh mask for a female demon: two horns, gold-colored eyes, fangs, and a wide, split mouth convey rage, while sorrow still lingers in the expression.
See it on the scroll → - Hihi (Demon Baboon)
A yokai resembling a large monkey said to appear in the mountains, often described as an aged monkey that has transformed.
See it on the scroll → - Bone Woman
Bone Woman is a skeletal female yokai depicted by Toriyama Sekien in Konjaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki.
See it on the scroll → - Hotei
A deity originating from the actual Zen monk Qici (died 917) of the late Tang and Five Dynasties period.
See it on the scroll → - Hyakume (Hundred-Eyed Demon)
A yokai covered with innumerable eyes.
See it on the scroll → - Inugami
Inugami are possessing dog-spirits found mainly in western Japan, counted alongside fox possession and kuda-gitsune as a powerful occult force.
See it on the scroll → - Ippon-Datara
Ippon-Datara is a mountain yokai said to appear as a one-eyed, one-legged being, best known from tales in Kumano (Kii) and Mt.
See it on the scroll → - Issun-boshi
Issun-boshi is widely recognized in modern times as a pure and righteous fairytale hero for children—a "brave little boy who rides in a bowl-boat and defeats oni with a needle-sword." However, his or…
See it on the scroll → - Itsumade
The Itsumade (以津真天) is a gigantic monster bird with a human-like face, a curved beak lined with saw-like teeth, a long serpentine body, and sharp sword-like spurs on its legs.
See it on the scroll → - Jorōgumo
The jorōgumo is a Japanese yokai whose popular image coalesced from several distinct traditions: the name of a living spider species, early modern ghost stories of spiders transforming into women, To…
See it on the scroll → - Kama-itachi
Kama-itachi are yokai said to ride dust devils or sudden whirlwinds, slicing human skin as if by a blade.
See it on the scroll → - Hair-Cutter
Kamikiri is a catch-all term for a phenomenon said to snip off a person’s hair before they notice.
See it on the scroll → - Crab Monk
A crab yokai that disguises itself as a Buddhist monk to challenge travelers with riddles and Zen-style questions.
See it on the scroll → - Kasha (Corpse-Dragging Fiend)
A yokai said to appear at funerals, funeral processions, and graveyards to snatch coffins and corpses.
See it on the scroll → - Kejōrō (Hair Courtesan)
A strongly imaginative yokai depicted in Toriyama Sekien’s Konjaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki and Edo-period kibyōshi.
See it on the scroll → - Keukegen
A shaggy, seldom-seen yokai sketched by Toriyama Sekien in Konjaku Hyakki Shūi.
See it on the scroll → - Kijimuna
Kijimuna is a tree spirit passed down through generations around the main island of Okinawa and the Amami archipelago.
See it on the scroll → - Kiyohime
Kiyohime is the serpent woman from the legend of Anchin and Kiyohime, passed down at Dojoji Temple in Kii Province.
See it on the scroll → - Konaki-jiji
The Konaki-jiji (Child-crying Old Man) is a yokai originating from the mountainous regions of Miyoshi District, Tokushima Prefecture (specifically the former Sanyo Village, now part of Miyoshi City).
See it on the scroll → - Konoha Tengu
Konoha Tengu is a class of tengu frequently mentioned in Edo-period essays and ghost tales, also called “boundary birds.” Unlike the long-nosed yamabushi-looking tengu, some accounts portray them as …
See it on the scroll → - Koropokkuru
The Koropokkuru are a race of little people appearing in the oral traditions of the Ainu people in Hokkaido, Sakhalin, and the Southern Kuril Islands.
See it on the scroll → - Kuchisake-onna
Kuchisake-onna (Slit-Mouthed Woman) is a representative modern urban legend of post-war Japan that originated in Gifu Prefecture between 1978 and 1979 and spread nationwide.
See it on the scroll → - Kudan (Prophetic Human-Cow Yokai)
Kudan is a half-human, half-cow prophetic creature that spread widely in the late Edo period.
See it on the scroll → - Kyōkotsu (Mad Bone)
A skeletal yokai illustrated by Toriyama Sekien in Konjaku Hyakki Shūi.
See it on the scroll → - Mikoshi-nyūdō (Looming Priest)
A towering monk-like apparition that appears on night roads, at the end of slopes, crossroads, stone bridges, or atop trees.
See it on the scroll → - Hoichi the Earless
Hoichi the Earless is known as a blind biwa (lute) priest who was summoned by the ghosts of the Taira clan to recite the tale of the Battle of Dan-no-ura.
See it on the scroll → - Namahage
The Namahage is a "visiting deity" (raihōshin) that calls upon the villages of the Oga Peninsula in Akita Prefecture on New Year's Eve.
See it on the scroll → - Cat Maiden
Cat Maiden is a label given to women who display feline habits or tastes, appearing in early modern eyewitness notes, sideshow bills, and yomihon fiction.
See it on the scroll → - Nue
The Nue is a figure shaped by the overlap of an ancient bird name, medieval courtly marvels and warrior tales, and later Noh drama and yōkai art.
See it on the scroll → - Painted Buddha
A black, monk-shaped apparition from Edo-period yokai picture scrolls, shown with protruding eyes drooping downward.
See it on the scroll → - Nurikabe
A yokai famed as an invisible wall that blocks travelers on night roads.
See it on the scroll → - Ohaguro-bettari
Ohaguro-bettari appears as a bride or young woman who keeps her face hidden.
See it on the scroll → - Oiwa
Oiwa is the protagonist of Japan's most widely known ghost story, renowned as a female ghost who was betrayed and poisoned by her husband, dying with a disfigured face and returning as a terrifying, …
See it on the scroll → - Okiku
Okiku is the vengeful ghost of a woman who was drowned in a well over the suspected loss of a single heirloom plate, returning every night to the bottom of the well to count plates: "One...
See it on the scroll → - Raijin
Raijin is the Japanese deity of thunder and lightning, typically depicted as an ogre-like figure carrying a ring of drums on his back, which he strikes to create thunder.
See it on the scroll → - Raijū
A beastlike yokai feared for plummeting from storm clouds with thunder, racing wildly through trees and fields.
See it on the scroll → - Ryōmen Sukuna
Ryōmen Sukuna is an extraordinary figure from Hida Province described in the Nihon Shoki and remembered in later Hida and Mino traditions as a temple founder, guardian of Buddhism, and dragon-defeati…
See it on the scroll → - Ryūjin
Ryūjin is a dragon- or serpent-shaped deity who governs water, rain, and the sea.
See it on the scroll → - Satori
A mind-reading yokai recorded in the Edo-period scroll Konjaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki.
See it on the scroll → - Sazae-oni
Sazae-oni appears in Toriyama Sekien's Hyakki Tsurezure-bukuro (1784) as a turban shell that has aged into an oni.
See it on the scroll → - Seto General
A tsukumogami-like figure from Toriyama Sekien’s Hyakki Tsurezure Bukuro: ceramic vessels and utensils gather to form an armored warrior.
See it on the scroll → - Shojo
A legendary sacred beast appearing in Chinese classics such as the Classic of Mountains and Seas, Book of Rites, Chuci, Huainanzi, and Commentary on the Water Classic, possessing two lines of lore: a…
See it on the scroll → - Zhong Kui (Shōki)
Shōki is a demon-banishing deity originating in Chinese folk religion.
See it on the scroll → - Shuten-dōji
Shuten-dōji is the central figure in medieval oni-slaying tales that pit an oni king, who carries people away from the capital, against warriors sent into the mountains by imperial command.
See it on the scroll → - Sunakake-baba
The Sunakake-baba (Sand-throwing Hag) is a yokai originating from local legends in Nara Prefecture (the Yamato region), Hyogo Prefecture (Amagasaki and Nishinomiya), and Shiga Prefecture.
See it on the scroll → - Sunekosuri
The Sunekosuri is a small beast-shaped yokai said to appear on night roads in Okayama Prefecture.
See it on the scroll → - Tall Woman
A female yokai depicted by Toriyama Sekien in Gazu Hyakki Yagyo.
See it on the scroll → - Tamamo-no-Mae
Tamamo-no-Mae is a beauty of unrivaled grace who, in the late Heian period, is said to have served the retired Emperor Toba.
See it on the scroll → - Tesso
Tesso is a yokai said to be the vengeful spirit of the monk Raiyō from Onjōji (Miidera), which took the form of a giant rat.
See it on the scroll → - Tofu-kozo
The Tofu-kozo (Tofu Boy) is a yokai that appears on rainy evenings in the guise of a child wearing a large sedge hat, holding a tray with a block of tofu stamped with a maple leaf design.
See it on the scroll → - Tsuchigumo (Earth Spider)
In ancient records, tsuchigumo was a derogatory label for local powers who defied the imperial court—groups who hid in mountains and caves and resisted rule.
See it on the scroll → - Moon Rabbit
A legendary lunar beast seen in the dark markings on the full moon, interpreted as a rabbit.
See it on the scroll → - Umi-zatō
Umi-zatō is a maritime yokai depicted in Edo-period art as a zatō—a blind biwa player and Buddhist lay musician—standing at sea.
See it on the scroll → - Umibōzu
Umibōzu is a maritime apparition known along coasts throughout Japan and long feared especially by fishers.
See it on the scroll → - Ushi-oni
Ushi-oni appears chiefly on the coasts, in deep pools, and in the mountains of western Japan.
See it on the scroll → - Uwan
The Uwan is a yokai of uncertain identity found in Edo-period yokai art.
See it on the scroll → - Wanyūdō
A yokai appearing as a flaming ox-cart wheel with the face of a giant monk-like ogre set in its hub.
See it on the scroll → - Yamauba
An old witch-like yokai who dwells deep in the mountains.
See it on the scroll → - Yatagarasu
The Yatagarasu is a sacred bird sent from heaven during the legendary Eastern Expedition of Emperor Jimmu, guiding his forces on the path from Kumano to Yamato.
See it on the scroll → - Yūrei (Ghost)
Yūrei are the spirits of the dead who remain in the living world, appearing at night or in places tied to them.
See it on the scroll →
