KMM092026_33_ EMPEROR SUTOKU BECOMES AN ONRYO / THE GHOSTS OF JAPANESE FOLKLORE _ MELBOURNE ART CLASS 11.06.2024 / KAJA MOUSE MAGAZINE 12. 09. 2026 Emperor Sutoku (1119-1164), who died in exile, becomes an onryō (vengeful spirit) (1856)—ukiyo-e (woodblock print) by Utagawa Yoshitsuya (1822-1866), Wikipedia.
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In the first artwork above, we find Emperor Sutoku (1119-1164), who was defeated by his brother and banished from the imperial capital Kyoto to the Sanuki Province, where he led a monastic life. Carrying resentment, he is said to have become an onryō (one of the three great in Japan). The palace’s subsequent troubles—decline in wealth, natural calamities, clan rivalries, civil war, the rise of samurai powers—are, in legend, attributed to Sutoku’s revengeful haunting.
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#Onryo #EmperorSutoku #UtagawaYoshitsuya #Sarvikpütt #PodicepsAuritus #EndelLepp #MuzanE #GentlemensFloralCabinet #KumariImedemaa #EndelLepaKurgiaed #FearAndLoathingInArmandonia #EndelLeppFashionHouse #TheGardenOfMensFashionDelights #AppallingSilence #ShadowWarfare #TeedeniAiaSalaarhiiv #TheKirblaMethod #KajaMouseMagazine092026 #MEEZ092026
MELBOURNE ART CLASS:
June 11, 2024
The Ghosts of Japanese Folklore
A close friend of mine, whom I met in Bangkok, has always been too interested in ghosts—their stories, also in mysterious techniques by which contact could be made with them. A Burmese of Theravada Buddhist background, she is greatly influenced by the animism of her homeland. I find her to be exceptionally intelligent—and we have had some wonderful conversations on literature, philosophy, politics, culture and social issues. Normally, you wouldn’t expect people who are so intellectually gifted in these areas to suddenly, during dinner, start talking of dead bodies in a marshland.
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Mookerjee presents another weighty insight. If ghosts did not exist, we would have to invent them “because we need a socially acceptable understanding for the very important idea that the past rarely moves on and disappears. It hangs around our lives, and looks over our shoulders as we try to make decisions, forge relationships, and walk towards the future. Fragments of the past habitually intrude on the present…”
When I think of representations of ghosts in art—particularly the indignant and restless aspect of their personalities owing to unfair treatment or unfinished business—my mind immediately goes to Japan. In my teens, I discovered Hollywood remakes of Japanese horror films like Ring (1998) and Ju-On: The Grudge (2002). In 2019, I encountered “Japan Supernatural” at the Art Gallery of New South Wales—which shed light on several folkloric spirits and creatures in the country. The classification is complex, and straightforward dichotomies of benevolence or malevolence, angelic or demonic may not always be applicable to the characters.
In the Shinto religion, divinities that are venerated are called “kami”. “Yōkai” are lesser supernatural entities that can be very diverse (having animal, even inanimate, features). “Yūrei” are the spirits of the human dead, similar to the Western concept of ghosts. A whole genre of art exists dedicated to their tales known as “yūrei-zu”, which was very popular in the 19th century in the form of woodblock prints.
There are different types of yūrei: onryō (those who died with a grudge), ubume (mothers who died in childbirth or left children behind), goryō (a noble individual dying prematurely), funayūrei (those who died at sea), zashiki-warashi (those who died in childhood), and more. The categorisation is nuanced, displaying context sensitivity for the deceased, sometimes leading to sub-categorisation. For instance, onryō could also be of different kinds; one among them is kuchisake-onna, the slit-mouthed woman, the unfaithful wife of a neglectful samurai. Also, yūrei may be historical figures or derived from fiction.
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https://melbourneartclass.com/the-ghosts-of-japanese-folklore/
The Ghosts of Japanese FolkloreThe Ghosts of Japanese Folklore
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When I think of representations of ghosts in art—particularly the indignant and restless aspect of their personalities owing to unfair treatment or unfinished business—my mind immediately goes to Japan. In my teens, I discovered Hollywood remakes of Japanese horror films like Ring (1998) and Ju-On: The Grudge (2002). In 2019, I encountered “Japan Supernatural” at the Art Gallery of New South Wales—which shed light on several folkloric spirits and creatures in the country. The classification is complex, and straightforward dichotomies of benevolence or malevolence, angelic or demonic may not always be applicable to the characters.
In the Shinto religion, divinities that are venerated are called “kami”. “Yōkai” are lesser supernatural entities that can be very diverse (having animal, even inanimate, features). “Yūrei” are the spirits of the human dead, similar to the Western concept of ghosts. A whole genre of art exists dedicated to their tales known as “yūrei-zu”, which was very popular in the 19th century in the form of woodblock prints.
There are different types of yūrei: onryō (those who died with a grudge), ubume (mothers who died in childbirth or left children behind), goryō (a noble individual dying prematurely), funayūrei (those who died at sea), zashiki-warashi (those who died in childhood), and more. The categorisation is nuanced, displaying context sensitivity for the deceased, sometimes leading to sub-categorisation. For instance, onryō could also be of different kinds; one among them is kuchisake-onna, the slit-mouthed woman, the unfaithful wife of a neglectful samurai. Also, yūrei may be historical figures or derived from fiction.
/.../
In the first artwork above, we find Emperor Sutoku (1119-1164), who was defeated by his brother and banished from the imperial capital Kyoto to the Sanuki Province, where he led a monastic life. Carrying resentment, he is said to have become an onryō (one of the three great in Japan). The palace’s subsequent troubles—decline in wealth, natural calamities, clan rivalries, civil war, the rise of samurai powers—are, in legend, attributed to Sutoku’s revengeful haunting.
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Yūrei, in their varied forms, are potent symbols of the simple and enduring universal human need for right over wrong that a specific culture generously extends to us.
To learn more about the rich and absorbing world of Japanese folklore and its portrayal in visual art, check out these titles: Yurei: The Japanese Ghost (2020) and The Book of Yokai (2024), as well as the online database yokai.com.
Written by Tulika Bahadur
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Yūrei, in their varied forms, are potent symbols of the simple and enduring universal human need for right over wrong that a specific culture generously extends to us.
To learn more about the rich and absorbing world of Japanese folklore and its portrayal in visual art, check out these titles: Yurei: The Japanese Ghost (2020) and The Book of Yokai (2024), as well as the online database yokai.com.
Written by Tulika Bahadur
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