{"id":9206,"date":"2013-11-01T01:10:14","date_gmt":"2013-11-01T06:10:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/paganpages.org\/content\/?p=9517"},"modified":"2013-10-31T21:04:34","modified_gmt":"2013-11-01T02:04:34","slug":"paranomal-path-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/2013\/11\/01\/paranomal-path-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Paranomal Path"},"content":{"rendered":"
Japanese Ghost Lore<\/strong><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/strong><\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Japanese culture is rich in tradition and lore.\u00a0 There are many known ghost stories that are passed down from generation to generation.\u00a0 Some of these stories may have been created to ensure proper curfew or to teach respect but there is always the question, how many of these tales are rooted in truth?<\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The Japanese Shinto believe that after death a human becomes a spirit with two sides, one good and one evil.\u00a0 These spirits are believed to be everywhere, water, trees, mountains, and wind.\u00a0 Buddhists believe the way a person behaves while living would determine how they will spend the afterlife.\u00a0 They would either go to the \u201cpure land\u201d or the \u201cLand of the dead\u201d, similar to Hell.\u00a0 There are also certain prayers and rituals to ensure proper passing of a spirit due to the belief that a spirit starts out angry and confused.<\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A Yurei or ghost is believed to haunt the place it once lived and torment the people responsible for any ill feelings it carried during its human life, such as jealousy or envy.\u00a0 A person must pray that the soul of the dead can ascend and be released from its suffering.<\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Recurring themes in these legends are angry and vengeful ghosts of women who experienced cruelty while they were alive.\u00a0 There is a road between Tokyo and Kyoto known as the \u201cRocks that weep\u201d.\u00a0 A woman was said to have traveled down that road to meet her husband late one night.\u00a0 She was attacked by thieves and murdered.\u00a0 Her blood spilled onto the rocks and now these rocks are believed to contain her spirit.<\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The Buruburu is a ghost believed to inhabit graveyards, forests or any dark quiet location.\u00a0 The name translates to \u201cthe sound of shivering\u201d and it will appear to you as a harmless elderly person.\u00a0 The spirit then attaches itself to you; this is why you feel shivers down your spine, and fills you with intense fear, sometimes resulting in heart failure.<\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The Ikiryo is a type of spirit capable of complete human possession.\u00a0 This entity is said to inhabit those who carry hate and anger with them at all times.\u00a0 The ghost latches on and slowly begins to drain the human host of all its energy.\u00a0 The greater the negativity and emotional toxicity the person has, the more powerful this spirit can be.<\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Humans are not the only ones mentioned.\u00a0 Fox and raccoon are often seen as inhabiting magical abilities.\u00a0 They can be tricksters, frightening, misleading and even positive omens at times.\u00a0 The Tanuki is a small furry creature believed to be able to transform into something much more frightening like a one eyed demon who uses nature (earthquakes\u2019, lightening) to claim victims.\u00a0 Another popular creature is the Kitsune, a fox with shape shifting abilities.\u00a0 Usually these creatures shift into beautiful women who seduce and even possess men and lead them to their demise.<\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 There are even stories of inanimate objects containing ghosts.\u00a0 The Bakechochin is a lantern thought to contain the spirits of those who died with hatred and malice in their hearts.\u00a0 The lantern has some human qualities, a long tongue and wild piercing eyes.\u00a0 Anyone who dares to light the lantern will immediately be attacked by the spirits living inside.<\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Many of these stories in their own bizarre way promote peaceful living.\u00a0 Warning us all to stay away from hate, jealousy, lust, and all the similar things viewed as evil or sinful throughout the world.\u00a0 The personification of emotions is a popular theme and a memorable way to teach lessons.\u00a0 However many of these entities and their legends are so ancient the origins have become distorted over the centuries and yet they are powerful enough to stay and invoke fear into the most modern and advanced cultures.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Japanese Ghost Lore \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Japanese culture is rich in tradition and lore.\u00a0 There are many known ghost stories that are passed down from generation to generation.\u00a0 Some of these stories may have been created to ensure proper curfew or to teach respect but there is always the question, how many of these tales are rooted in truth? \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The Japanese Shinto believe that after death a human becomes a spirit with two sides, one good and one evil.\u00a0 These spirits are believed to be everywhere, water, trees, mountains, and wind.\u00a0 Buddhists believe the way a person behaves while living would determine how they will spend the afterlife.\u00a0 They would either go to the \u201cpure land\u201d or the \u201cLand of the dead\u201d, similar to Hell.\u00a0 There are also certain prayers and rituals to ensure proper passing of a spirit due to the belief that a spirit starts out angry and confused. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A Yurei or ghost is believed to haunt the place it once lived and torment the people responsible for any ill feelings it carried during its human life, such as jealousy or envy.\u00a0 A person must pray that the soul of the dead can ascend and be released from its suffering. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Recurring themes in these legends are angry and vengeful ghosts of women who experienced cruelty while they were alive.\u00a0 There is a road between Tokyo and Kyoto known as the \u201cRocks that weep\u201d.\u00a0 A woman was said to have traveled down that road to meet her husband late one night.\u00a0 She was attacked by thieves and murdered.\u00a0 Her blood spilled onto the rocks and now these rocks are believed to contain her spirit. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The Buruburu is a ghost believed to inhabit graveyards, forests or any dark quiet location.\u00a0 The name translates to \u201cthe sound of shivering\u201d and it will appear to you as a harmless elderly person.\u00a0 The spirit then attaches itself to you; this is why you feel shivers down your spine, and fills you with intense fear, sometimes resulting in heart failure. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The Ikiryo is a type of spirit capable of complete human possession.\u00a0 This entity is said to inhabit those who carry hate and anger with them at all times.\u00a0 The ghost latches on and slowly begins to drain the human host of all its energy.\u00a0 The greater the negativity and emotional toxicity the person has, the more powerful this spirit can be. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Humans are not the only ones mentioned.\u00a0 Fox and raccoon are often seen as inhabiting magical abilities.\u00a0 They can be tricksters, frightening, misleading and even positive omens at times.\u00a0 The Tanuki is a small furry creature believed to be able to transform into something much more frightening like a one eyed demon who uses nature (earthquakes\u2019, lightening) to claim victims.\u00a0 Another popular creature is the Kitsune, a fox with shape shifting abilities.\u00a0 Usually these creatures shift into beautiful women who seduce and even possess men and lead them to their demise. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 There are even stories of inanimate objects containing ghosts.\u00a0 The Bakechochin is a lantern thought to contain the spirits of those who died with hatred and malice in their hearts.\u00a0 The lantern has some human qualities, a long tongue and wild piercing eyes.\u00a0 Anyone who dares to light the lantern will immediately be attacked by the spirits living inside. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Many of these stories in their own bizarre way promote peaceful living.\u00a0 Warning us all to stay away from hate, jealousy, lust, and all the similar things viewed as evil or sinful throughout the world.\u00a0 The personification of emotions is a popular theme and a memorable way to teach lessons.\u00a0 However many of these entities and their legends are so ancient the origins have become distorted over the centuries and yet they are powerful enough to stay and invoke fear into the most modern and advanced cultures.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":77,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9206","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9206","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/77"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9206"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9206\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}