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Japanese people like to hear scary stories in summer.

Do you like horror?
In the summer, we hear more and more stories about ghosts in Japan.
There are scary stories planned on TV programs, and haunted houses are set up in theme parks.
I've always wondered why haunted stories take place in the summer, so I looked into it. It seems to have something to do with Obon.

In the previous article, I explained that Obon is the day when our ancestors come back.

Origin of ghost stories in summer.
It was thought that not only the spirits of ancestors, but also those of unrelated Buddhas who had ceased to be worshipped and grudge-holding spirits would return during Obon. 😱😱😱

In order to appease the spirits of these grudges, "Bon Kyogen" was performed in rural areas around this time, which seems to have been the origin of ghost stories in summer.

Reference: About Kyogen

Ghost 幽霊(ゆうれい)Yuurei 
The right side of the illustration is what we call a ghost in Japan. It is said that people who have lingering regrets in this world after death become ghosts. Due to differences in religious beliefs, Japanese people may be more familiar with ghosts than people overseas.

In Buddhism, when a person dies, a trial is held every seven days in the afterlife to determine whether or not the person can go to the Pure Land of Paradise, and the day of the final judgment is said to be the 49th day.
The last day of the trial is said to be the 49th day. Until the 49th day, the soul of the dead person is still nearby.
Those who have strong attachments to this world, such as grudges and regrets, remain in this world even after the 49th day, and exist as ghosts.

Do you believe it?
In rare cases, a person with a strong psychic sense will say something like, "There are about five ghosts in this room," and those of us who cannot see them feel like crying.😱😱😱

妖怪yokai
Is the word "yokai" famous overseas?
Some yokai are harmful to humans and some are not, and they are unique.
There are a lot of anime and movies out there that are based on yokai.

The person who made the existence of yokai famous is Shigeru Mizuki, the author of the old anime "GeGeGe no Kitaro".

Mizuki Shigeru Road
In his birthplace, Sakaiminato, Shimane Prefecture, you can find various yokai that appear in Gegege no Kitaro here and there.

Reference: 
Mizuki Shigeru Road Translation available


If you want to know more about Obon, please see here.

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