The *Warei* is the *goryo* (vengeful or honorable spirit) of Yamaga Seibee Kinyori, the chief retainer of the Uwajima Domain. Seibee served as the head retainer and chief magistrate under the first domain lord, Date Hidemune, devoting himself to the reform of domain administration. However, due to the false accusations of jealous domain samurais, his residence was attacked in the 6th year of Genna (1620), and he was brutally murdered along with his sons (an event known as the Warei Disturbance)[1]. Afterwards, those involved in the assassination died unnatural deaths one after another from lightning strikes and shipwrecks. Fearing Seibee's curse, the people enshrined him as a *goryo*. It is a classic early modern example of *goryo* belief, where the grudge of one who died an unnatural death becomes a cursing spirit, and is eventually pacified and enshrined to transform into a guardian deity[2].
Folklore & Legends
After Seibee's death, those involved in the assassination, such as Sakurada Genba, died unnatural deaths in succession from lightning strikes and shipwrecks, and as strange events continued in Uwajima, people feared this as the curse of Seibee's vengeful spirit[1]. A small shrine was built in the 8th year of Kanei (1631), and when Seibee's innocence was recognized in the 2nd year of Joo (1653), the domain lord Hidemune officially established a shrine and named it Yamayori Warei Shrine[2]. Thereafter, he transformed into a guardian deity of fishing and industry known as 'Warei-sama,' and this belief spread not only in Shikoku but also to Kyushu and the Chugoku region. As of 1982, there were 159 branch shrines nationwide[1]. During the grand Warei Festival held on July 23rd and 24th every year, along with the valiant 'hashirikomi' (running in) where three portable shrines cross the sea, numerous *Ushi-oni* parade through the city streets. The Ushi-oni festival, which symbolizes summer in Uwajima, is held as a ritual to pacify this *goryo*[2].
The *Warei* is an entity that embodies the dynamics of *goryo* belief—where a vengeful spirit transforms into an honorable spirit (*goryo*) and then into a guardian deity—within the early modern history of Uwajima. In life, Yamaga Seibee was a retainer who devoted himself to the reform of domain administration. His unnatural death (the Warei Disturbance) and the subsequent chain of lightning strikes and shipwrecks that struck the participants gave people a tangible sense of a curse. The spirit, initially enshrined out of awe and fear, reversed its nature when his innocence was publicly recognized, acquiring the divinity of 'Warei-sama' protecting fishing and industry. The herd of *Ushi-oni* that parades in the Warei Festival at Warei Shrine is a ritual device to comfort and pacify this *goryo*, showing how monsters (*ushi-oni*) and spirits (*warei*) are inextricably linked in Uwajima's festivals.
Character Profile
This section is our own creative profile for storytelling. It is not historical fact or scholarship.
An honest reformer in life. After his unnatural death, he was feared as a cursing vengeful spirit, but after being pacified and enshrined, he turned into a gentle guardian deity protecting the domain and fishermen.
Cursing (causing unnatural deaths to the conspirators)Protection of industry and fishingDivine protection from shipwrecks
Weaknesses
If respectfully enshrined and pacified, the curse ceases, and he transforms into a guardian deity. His grudge was softened by the public recognition of his innocence and his enshrinement at the shrine.
Habitat
Warei Shrine (Uwajima City), fishing villages of the Uwa Sea, and branch shrines in Shikoku, Kyushu, and the Chugoku region.
The diagram below is a diagnostic evaluation chart for The Goryo of Uwajima: Yamaga Seibee Kinyori. The higher the value of each item, the stronger that characteristic is expressed.
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