Following Toriyama Sekien’s note, this version centers on a moralizing motif warning against theft. The many eyes along the arm relate to a pun likening the holes of copper coins to birds’ eyes, externalizing the habit of hands reaching to steal. The source Sekien cites, “Kankangai-shi,” is of uncertain reality; his wordplay on Hakone as a boundary and his own remark calling it a curious book suggest the citation itself is part of the artistic conceit. The Dodomeki’s image concentrates on a female form, yet no concrete personal names, family lines, or local legends are preserved, pointing to an urban allegory where image and wordplay outweigh regional lore. Postwar explanations vary in reading and interpretation, but the archetype is traced to Sekien’s original.
Character Profile
This section is our own creative profile for storytelling. It is not historical fact or scholarship.
Yokai Type - Traditional Yokai
Category - Half-Human Beings
Rarity - Epic
Personality - prone to fixation on attention and money yet fond of quiet
Compatibility - unlikely to clash with those who value honesty and frugality
Abilities - eyes that discern stolen goods even in darkness, a persistent gaze that watches hands from hiding, a knack for sensing a person’s funds and drawing near
Weaknesses - loses power through repentance and restitution, dislikes wrongdoing brought to light
Habitat - city thoroughfares, around tenement quarters, markets and places where coins gather
🔮Yokai Compatibility Test
For more detailed information and diagnosis results about Sekien Iconography Standard, please click here.