Tradition: Japanese mythology
Alternative names: The Coughing Disease Oni
Category: Demon
The Myth
Gaibyō-ki are small oni associated with an outbreak of coughing sickness. They are depicted as three small demons riding on clouds and attempting to enter a household, where they spread the disease.
The story appears in Ehon Sayoshigure under the title Okina Ekijin o Fusegu.
Around the Eishō era (1504–1521), coughing sickness spread through four or five villages in Echizen Province. Many villagers became seriously ill and were confined to their beds.
A rōnin lived in one of the affected villages, but strangely, nobody in his household became sick.
One night, an old man appeared at the rōnin’s house and told him that he lived beneath the southeastern corner of the house. He explained that oni carrying the coughing disease had recently been entering people’s homes and causing them to suffer. Because he recognized the rōnin’s virtuous conduct, the old man had been standing guard outside the house each night to keep the oni away.
After the old man departed, the rōnin dug beneath the southeastern corner of the house. There he discovered a box buried in the ground.
Believing that the box represented the old man who had protected his household, the rōnin built a shrine and worshipped him.
The accompanying illustration shows three small oni riding through the clouds as they attempt to enter the rōnin’s home, while the old man stands before the gate and glares at them, preventing their entry.
Sources
Takahashi, Toshihiro. “咳病の鬼 [がいびょう‐き] (Gaibyō-ki).” 新版TYZ 妖怪図鑑 (New TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia). July 19, 2020. https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1077741576.html