Brushpen Doodles

Brushpen doodles when I should be working...

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Just got a notice from state tax board...

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In the middle of getting some work done when suddenly...   RIGHT BRAIN ATTACK!!

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Jyakoubaba (蛇骨婆), “Snake Bone Hag”  Punishes those who disturb snake mounds (used as a threat to keep kids from poking around where they shouldn’t).  Appears with a blue snake in her right hand and a red snake in her left.

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More Rokurokubi (ろくろ首)...

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Amefurikozo (雨ふり小増), Often seen running errands for the rain god during downpours...

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Kawauso (かわうそ);  Some river otters can shape change...  If you are down by the river and you are suspicious of someone you see, call out “Dareda! (だれだ)”-  “Who are you?!”.  If it’s a human he’ll reply “Oreda! (おれだ)”, if its a Kawauso he’ll reply Araya! (あらや).  Sometimes takes the form of a child.  The main danger it poses is to your catch of fish.  Primarily from Ishikawa.

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Ubume (産女);  A traveler comes across a woman who begs him or her to hold her child for a moment.  The woman disappears and the child gets heavier and heavier until the traveler can no longer stand the weight, then the child disappears.  In some stories the child reveals itself to be a Jizo statue or large stone.  In one story a young farmhand proves his dedication to his promise so well he is granted great strength and becomes a famous Sumo wrestler.

There is a theory that the Ubume is tied to the ancient practice of burying living human sacrifices (Hitobashira 人柱) under new bridge pilings to appease the river gods. 

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Õbõzu (大坊主);  On a lonely trail he may suddenly rise up taller than the trees in front of you.  from Tottori.

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Oni Über

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Funayurei (船幽霊);  Fishermen caught out on the waters during Obon when spirits return to this plane can get caught up in a dense fog.  The dim shape of another boat appears in the mist;  “Oi! we need help! lend us a bailing ladle!”  If the ill fated fishermen toss a ladle toward the voice dozens of ghostly hands with ladles appear, filling their boat with water until they sink beneath the waves...

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Kidama (木霊);  Spirits that reside in trees, some scary, some benign.

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Ittanmomen (一反木綿) "Bolt of Cotton”;  Appeared in the forests of Kagoshima flittering through the trees, sometimes in groups of twenty or more.  Known to attack humans by strangulation, wrapping around their victim’s necks and mouths.

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Sekiyo (石妖);  The bewitching stone.  In the mountains of Shizuoka stone cutters at work would be surprised by a pretty young woman who would offer to rub their aching shoulders.  One by one the men would fall senseless to the ground;  If confronted the woman dissapears revealing herself to be a large stone from the quarry...

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Tsukumogami (付喪神);  Sometimes objects that have been around for over 100 years acquire a spirit.  They can be quite benign, but some are quite fragile...

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Iwanabozu (岩無坊主);  Stonefish Bonze.  Warned locals against using poison to fish a local stream. From Gifu.