Tradition: Japanese mythology
Alternative Names: Nuribotoke
Category: Demon

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The Myth

Nuribotoke is a yokai depicted in Japanese picture scrolls and illustrated collections of supernatural creatures, including Hyakkai Zukan and Toriyama Sekien’s Gazu Hyakki Yagyō (Illustrated Night Parade of One Hundred Demons).

The creature is generally depicted as a completely black Buddhist monk with bulging eyes and a strange appendage resembling a fish’s tail extending from its back.

In Toriyama Sekien’s Gazu Hyakki Yagyō, the Nuribotoke appears emerging from inside a Buddhist altar. Its body is black, but unlike some other depictions, it does not have a tail on its back.

No accompanying text or explanation survives with the traditional illustrations, so there are no specific characteristics, legends, or stories associated with the Nuribotoke in these sources. In later children’s books dealing with yokai, it is sometimes described as suddenly appearing from a Buddhist altar to surprise people.

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Sources

Takahashi, Toshihiro. “塗仏 [ぬりぼとけ] (Nuribotoke).” 新版TYZ 妖怪図鑑 (New TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia). October 25, 2009. https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1010652662.html

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