Kainan HōshiKainan Hōshi, Visitor of the Twenty-Fourth Night
kainan hōshi
Detailed Description
Kainan Hōshi is inseparable from the taboos observed in the Izu Islands on the twenty-fourth day of the first lunar month. It is described as the vengeful dead of maritime disasters. Some origin stories point to a hated island official; others tell of a group of young people killed together in a storm. The resentful spirits cross from offshore in washbasins or small boats, and anyone who sees them may suffer calamity.
That night, households cover their entrances with baskets, place branches of holly and tobira—Japanese cheesewood—in the storm shutters, close themselves indoors, and avoid even outdoor trips to the privy. The next day, the tobira is burned and the crop forecast from its cracking sounds and the way the branches swell. Customs differ considerably from island to island. At Senzu on Izu Ōshima, the visitor is called Hiimi-sama and remains the object of shrine rites; one account assigns a particular family to wait beside the shore through the night. On Kōzushima, shrine priests preserve a solemn nocturnal reception that gives the vengeful spirit the character of a visiting deity. On Miyakejima, plates and earthenware are placed at doorways and small children are put to bed early.
Over time, these practices became a shared rule for guarding the boundary between sea and community. Stories warn that anyone who mocks Kainan Hōshi or breaks the taboo may encounter strange events or fall ill. Researchers have also noted that related traditions are scarce in the southern islands, so the distribution is uneven. Kainan Hōshi is not a general name for every maritime ghost. It belongs to the calendar, ritual life, and one recurring night of the Izu Islands.
Source Information
種類全体の出典primary
海難法師・日忌様 伝承（伊豆諸島）
著者: （伊豆諸島各島の民俗伝承）
年代: 江戸期-現代
出版社: （伊豆大島・新島・神津島・三宅島ほか）
Personality
Silent and unyielding. It is said to leave people alone when they observe the night's taboos, but to punish mockery, contempt, or deliberate violations harshly.
Compatibility
It avoids conflict with communities that keep the night indoors and receive the visitor properly, but does not tolerate disrespect toward the rites or the maritime dead.
Abilities & Skills
Weaknesses
Baskets, holly, and tobira at the doorway mark the protected boundary; staying indoors, refusing to look at the visitor, and observing the community's rites of reception and pacification prevent conflict.
Collection Inclusion
This yokai is included in the following collections:
診断評価
妖怪バウンダリー・タイプ指標
いたずら濃度
1.0high: 戯 low: 護
📝 メモ
目撃者を害するが、禁忌を守る者には無干渉という試しの性格が強い。
変化適応
-1.0high: 化 low: 定
📝 メモ
僧姿や来訪霊として固定され、変化より暦の来訪が本質。
夜話度
3.0high: 夜 low: 昼
📝 メモ
闇夜に神職が迎え、夜間に家々の戸口を巡るとされる。
情の深さ
2.0high: 縁 low: 境
📝 メモ
水難死者や島役人への怨恨を背負い、毎年同じ共同体へ戻る。
結界強度
3.0high: 律 low: 流
📝 メモ
戸口の籠や柊・トベラ、不見の作法で海と家の境を厳密に守る。
表舞台圧
2.0high: 表 low: 影
📝 メモ
旧暦一月二十四日に沖から来訪し、見た者へ災いを及ぼす。
妖怪相性診断
喜び
1.0喜びと楽しさの程度
📝 メモ
喜悦表現はなく、来訪も厳粛・忌日の性格。
怒り
7.5怒りの激しさの程度
📝 メモ
嘲弄・無視に苛烈に報いる怨霊性が強い。
慈悲深い
2.0慈悲深さの程度
📝 メモ
禁忌を守れば不干渉だが、救済や加護の意図は乏しい。
憂鬱
6.5憂鬱で思慮深い程度
📝 メモ
水難死者の怨念・物忌みの陰性が強く、哀切と沈鬱が基調。
静寂
4.0内なる平静の程度
📝 メモ
寡黙で規範下では静謐だが、基本は不穏な来訪で高くはない。
いたずら好き
0.5いたずら好きで活発な程度
📝 メモ
戯れや悪戯性は伝承に乏しい。
やさしい
1.5やさしく親しみやすい程度
📝 メモ
来訪型だが目撃者に水難を招くとされ、基本は脅威。禁忌遵守者には無干渉のため0ではない。
厳格
8.0厳格で真面目な程度
📝 メモ
物忌み・不見の作法を強く要求し、破れば祟る。
守護的
3.0他者を守る傾向
📝 メモ
共同体の物忌みを促し境界を守る機能はあるが、主体は怨霊で直接守護は弱い。
神秘的
8.5神秘的で不思議な程度
📝 メモ
盥・小舟での来訪、日忌様としての祭祀や作柄占いなど神秘性が強い。
霊性の深さ
8.0精神的境界の深さ
📝 メモ
怨霊と来訪神の二面性、祠祭祀・神職の迎え・占いなど霊的文脈が厚い。
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