Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: 幽霊, ゆうれい, Obake, Shiryō, Bōrei
Category: Ghost

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The Myth

Yūrei are the spirits of the dead who remain trapped between the world of the living and the afterlife. Their appearance often reflects the circumstances of their deaths. They are commonly depicted as translucent, faintly visible figures dressed in white burial kimonos or the uniforms of fallen warriors. Some bear bloody wounds that reveal how they died, while their long, disheveled hair often hangs across their faces. Their hands dangle limply from their wrists, and their lower bodies frequently fade away, leaving them seemingly without feet.

Unlike spirits that wander freely, Yūrei usually haunt a particular place or person. They may linger where they died or were buried, or pursue someone connected to their deaths, such as a murderer. Others remain close to their living families, unable to accept their own deaths and bringing misfortune and unhappiness to those they once loved. Some can invoke powerful curses, making their presence dangerous to anyone who encounters them.

Yūrei remain in the world of the living because something prevents them from moving on. Some died suddenly or violently, while others carried deep resentment or hatred into death. Spirits who do not receive proper funeral rites and prayers may also become trapped between the physical world and the afterlife. Their unfinished business varies: some need their killers brought to justice, others require their bodies to be found, and some simply wish to deliver a final message to a loved one.

A Yūrei can finally rest when the purpose that binds it to the world has been fulfilled, or when a priest successfully exorcises it. In Japanese tradition, the dead are normally honored through funeral ceremonies, prayers, and rituals that help reunite their souls with their ancestors. During the summer festival of Obon, ancestral spirits are believed to return to visit their families. Yūrei, however, are restless souls who have not completed this journey, remaining behind until they can find peace.

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Sources

“Yūrei.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Accessed October 15, 2026. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Y%C5%ABrei

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Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: 怨霊, おんりょう, Grudge Spirit, Vengeful Ghost
Category: Ghost

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The Myth

Onryō are among the most feared spirits in Japanese mythology. They are the ghosts of people who died consumed by powerful emotions such as jealousy, rage, hatred, or grief. Unable to pass on because of their overwhelming passions, they transform into wrathful spirits that seek vengeance upon the living. Many were victims of war, betrayal, murder, catastrophe, or suicide, and their ghostly forms may bear the wounds and injuries they suffered before death.

An Onryō seeks to punish those it blames for its suffering, but its vengeance often extends far beyond the original offender. Rather than simply killing its targets, it may subject them to prolonged torment, destroy their relationships, and cause their loved ones to die. Its curse can spread from person to person and affect entire places, creating a cycle of death and destruction. Unlike other ghosts, which may disappear after being appeased or exorcised, an Onryō’s curse can continue to haunt a location long after its spirit has been laid to rest. Its wrath is relentless and does not distinguish between the guilty and the innocent.

Not every Onryō is driven by hatred alone. Sometimes an intense love becomes corrupted by jealousy, causing a spirit to torment a former lover and destroy their new relationships, marriages, and families. The ghost of Oiwa, the central figure of Yotsuya Kaidan, is one of the most famous examples. Brutally disfigured and murdered through her husband’s treachery, she returns as a vengeful ghost whose curse is said to threaten those who retell her story. Actors, producers, and other performers have traditionally visited her grave in Tokyo before adapting the tale, praying for her soul and asking for her blessing. Through such legends, the Onryō embodies the terrifying idea that powerful resentment can survive death and continue to bring suffering to the living.

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Sources

“Onryō.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Accessed October 15, 2026. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onry%C5%8D

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Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: お菊, おきく, Banchō Sarayashiki, The Dish Manor at Banchō
Category: Ghost

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The Myth

Okiku was a beautiful servant girl who worked as a dishwashing maid at Himeji Castle. She became the object of desire of Aoyama, one of her master’s samurai retainers, who repeatedly tried to seduce her. Okiku continually rejected him, angering the samurai. Determined to force her into becoming his lover, Aoyama devised a cruel trick involving a set of ten precious dishes belonging to the castle.

Aoyama secretly hid one of the dishes and accused Okiku of losing it. Terrified because the loss of such a valuable object could be punished by death, she counted the dishes again and again, but could find only nine. Aoyama offered to protect her from punishment if she agreed to become his mistress. When she refused once more, he ordered her beaten, tied her up, and suspended her over the castle well. He repeatedly plunged her into the water and tortured her, demanding that she submit to him. When she continued to refuse, he struck her with his sword and threw her body into the well.

After her death, Okiku returned as a vengeful ghost. Night after night, she rose from the well and entered the castle grounds, searching for the missing dish. She counted the plates aloud: “One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine.” After reaching nine, she let out a bloodcurdling scream that echoed throughout the castle. Her haunting tormented Aoyama and robbed him of sleep. Those who heard her counting became gravely ill, while those who heard her count all the way to nine were said to die soon afterward.

Eventually, the lord of the castle summoned a priest to put an end to the haunting. The priest waited in the garden, chanting prayers until Okiku emerged from the well and began counting once more. When she reached nine, the priest shouted, “Ten!” Before she could scream, Okiku appeared relieved, believing that the missing dish had finally been found. From that night onward, her ghost no longer haunted the castle.

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Sources

“Okiku.” Yokai.com: The Database of Japanese Folklore. https://yokai.com/okiku/

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Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: 置行堀, おいてけぼり
Category: Ghost

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The Myth

Oitekebori is a mysterious apparition said to haunt the canals of Honjo, in present-day Sumida, Tokyo. It is described as a human-like ghost that lurks near waterways and terrorizes fishermen who venture too close to its home. Its name comes from the eerie command “Oiteke,” meaning “Leave it behind!” or “Drop it and get out of here!”

Long ago, the canals of Honjo were filled with fish, and fishermen made their living catching them. One evening, two fishermen were fishing in a canal and found themselves catching far more fish than usual. Delighted by their enormous haul, they continued until their baskets were full. As they prepared to leave and carry their catch home, a terrible, disembodied voice rose from the water and shouted, “Oiteke!”

Terrified, the fishermen fled. In some versions, they abandoned their baskets and later discovered that the fish had vanished. In another telling, one fisherman escaped with his basket while the other was seized by a ghostly hand that rose from the canal and dragged him underwater, never to be seen again. The identity of Oitekebori remains uncertain in the legends: some stories blame a hungry kappa stealing fish, while others attribute the haunting to a mischievous tanuki, a yūrei, a kawauso, a mujina, or a supernatural soft-shelled turtle.

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Sources

“Oitekebori.” Yokai.com: The Database of Japanese Folklore. https://yokai.com/oitekebori/

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Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: 震々, ぶるぶる, Zozogami
Category: Ghost

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The Myth

Buruburu is a mysterious yokai known as the spirit of cowardice. It follows people through inhabited areas, causing them to shudder with fear. Although it may not appear as a clearly visible creature, its presence is felt through sudden chills, trembling bodies, and the sensation of fear running down the spine.

Buruburu is born when a person commits an act of cowardice, such as fleeing from battle. The spirit then attaches itself to other people, possessing them by clinging to the collars of their shirts and touching the backs of their necks. Its supernatural touch makes their hair stand on end and sends shivers throughout their bodies.

The name Buruburu imitates the sound of trembling, while its alternate name, Zozogami, is also associated with the sensation of shivering with fear. The spirit embodies the physical feeling of terror itself, haunting people through the sudden, uncontrollable shudders that reveal its presence.

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Sources

“Buruburu.” Yokai.com: The Database of Japanese Folklore. https://yokai.com/buruburu/

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