Japanese Ghosts, All Secrets Revealed

August 22, 2008

Japanese Ghost The movie, The Ring was one of the most chilling movies that I had ever seen. The girl crawling out of the television screen troubled me for many nights, of course in my thoughts. Then it was followed Grudge and its second part. I really didn’t understand why the ghosts had long hair. Did they signify something? Many such unanswered questions were systematically sorted out when I came across this article in The Japan Times. The following is an extract from the original piece.

What do Japan’s ghosts look like?

Called “yurei” (faint spirits), ghosts typically wear a white garment and triangular forehead cloth. This is rooted in the way the dead are traditionally laid to rest in white Buddhist burial kimono, and is the preferred attire for the deceased to travel to the other world.

Japanese-style haunted houses at amusement parks will most likely feature a pale-looking ghost with wild black hair, arms stretched forward and wrists dangling. Japanese ghosts are also usually legless. Experts theorize that this is a reflection of their supernatural powers.

How do Japanese and non-Japanese ghosts differ?

Most ghosts are generally considered to be wandering souls of the dead that are deprived of a peaceful rest. But religious backgrounds and concepts of death lead to significant differences, said Haruo Suwa, a professor emeritus at Gakushuin University.

While Western religions, including Christianity, and even Islam of the East, believe in the existence of one deity, divinity is omnipresent in Shinto. Beliefs held in Japan include the notion that men can be transformed after death into supernatural beings.

Whereas Western ghosts may be regarded as the extension of one’s self after death, a yurei was originally believed to be godlike.

This belief can be observed in the fact that Japanese ghosts are usually depicted without legs or only from the waist up, to demonstrate the individual has been transformed from what it was when alive.

Why are ghosts often depicted as being vengeful and bearing a grudge?

According to Suwa, whose published works include “Nihon no Yurei” (“Japanese Ghosts”), ghost tales have been documented since the early eighth century in the Heian Period.

The yurei of ancient times was considered harmless and even favorable. They only manifested grudges and eeriness with the spread of Buddhism throughout the country.

“The religious perception of heaven and hell came into Japan” with the new religion, Suwa said, noting the Buddhist theory of reincarnation and folklore-inspired supernatural beasts helped redefine the concept of yurei. Ghosts “eventually became visually terrifying.”

Folklore, in which ghosts are portrayed as the soul of someone robbed of life and deprived of a peaceful afterlife, also influenced the characteristics of Japanese ghosts. Today it is widely believed a yurei returns to the world to exact revenge, and will not stop until its goal is met.

One notable tale is “Yotsuya Kaidan” (“Yotsuya Ghost Story”), which is probably one of the most famous in Japan.The tale of vengeance takes place in Edo Period Tokyo in the Yotsuya district, featuring Oiwa and her husband, Iemon. Eager to marry an affluent neighbor, Iemon poisons Oiwa, causing her hair to fall out and leaving her face disfigured. Oiwa dies but returns as a ghost and exacts her revenge, killing her husband. The story was originally written as a play in 1825 and was later adapted for kabuki and movie scripts.

How can one stop being haunted by ghosts?

In the Christianized West, holy water and crosses may help ward off ghosts, but they won’t keep their Japanese counterparts, buried under Shinto or Buddhist rites, at bay. Instead, “ofuda” strips inscribed with Buddhist sutras are believed to be effective in keeping evil spirits away. Some Shinto shrines also provide “oharai,” a purification ritual that removes bad omens with wooden wands and chants.

Ghosts are everywhere. I think that knowing how to help them to get their peace is the best way to look at the situation.