What is the difference between yokai and ayakashi

There are many, many more. Most of the stories are slightly similar—describing either some kind of great sea monster, or a boat full of drowning victims out for revenge—but few of them are exactly the same.

Ayakashi just means all sea weirdness. That covers everything, right? While no one agrees on exactly what kind of ocean phenomenon ayakashi is, they are all at least agreed that it is SOME kind of ocean phenomenon. Except for Noh theater. As you know ha ha!

Noh theater uses masks. All of the masks have names, and the name for a male mask of a ghost or violent god is called ayakashi. These masks come in variation, like the chigusa ayakashi which is fleshy and more human-like, or the shin no ayakashi with protruding eyes and bulging blood vessels. The most terrifying is the rei no ayakashi, a skeletonesque face with a white pallor and sunken eyes. The ayakashi masks were designed around the Muromachi period and where used interchangeably for many ghostly roles, but by the Edo period each mask had been assigned a specific role.

And that brings us to where most Westerners have heard the term ayakashi, in the anime Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales. While this is a brilliant series, you will notice that nowhere is there a sea creature of any kind, neither monster nor boat full of lantern-bearing yurei. That is because the series is named after the Noh usage of ayakashi, which gives it a mysterious, nostalgic feel and is also a bit misleading, as the stories in Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales come from Kabuki theater and not Noh.

It soon became apparent that there was far too much information for a simple answer, and blossomed into this article. But at least you will have a better understanding of what ayakashi means! What Does Yokai Mean in English? A Brief History of Yokai. Funa Yurei. Umibozu — The Sea Monk. These events are being triggered by legendary creatures with enigmatic power beyond comprehension. Zack Davisson Aug 21, Yes, I saw that. However, for both the anime and card game the word is just being used for flair.

I have a similar question. Mazyrian Aug 21, Almost everywhere it listed it as a word specifically for ocean yokai. Its not really surprising—manga is about the least useful resource for authenticity.

Storytellers will make things up, and then a good idea will be used by other authors and translators. My guess is someone somewhere borrowed the word from Noh theater because it sounded cool and had a particular feel to it, and then other mangaka saw that and started using it as well.

Whatever the reason, the use of ayakashi to mean yokai in general is a modern invention. As to the difference between yokai and kami —whew, that is a deep conversation. The single largest difference is if something is worshiped or not. A yokai who is worshiped becomes a kami. Katriel Aug 22, They are mutable. This is a long, rambling answer to a question by reader Chiara Leerendix, who was having a debate with her professor on the differences between yurei and yokai.

He claimed that yurei were spirits of the dead and related to death and religion, while yokai were just monsters without any deeper meaning or religious connection. Obviously, I disagree with that. But the debate is ongoing. Of course, her professor is welcome to respond to this post as well!

Fantomdranzerx Nov 16, This actually also reminds me of the anime Vampire Princess Miyu. Zack Davisson Nov 18, And especially true when you look at early translations of kaidan and yokai stories from the s. An excellent article! I think nowadays, for many people, the cultural pespective also makes a difference.

A Ghost is a spirit of the Dead, haunting wherever it is, for what ever reason. It is not a force of nature. Anyone who is willing to work at it can become a hero like him. Buri-chan Nov 17, Very interesting, and probably an entry I will link people back to if the topic ever comes up! Plus, has any other country produced such an array of collectable monster trading cards?

I would make more distinction between kami and yokai, however. If you consider Shinto in a wider context than just kami, one of its only spiritual considerations or moral codes is purity. A shrine is set apart from the world as a pure space, and impurities, such as death or—historically—menstrating women, are kept out of the shrines due to their impurity. Many yokai are associated with rather unclean parts of the world.

Purity and impurity do not necessarily mean good and evil, though. Sure, but keep in mind that the purity of Shinto is ritual purity. The kami are not themselves pure.. Kami are like lightning or fire—dangerous in its uncontrolled state but beneficial if trapped and controlled. And many kami are onryo—vengeful ghosts—transformed into kami via ritual and enshrinement. Which is what Komatsu Kazuhiko says, that yokai are the same essential kami energy but ones who were never purified, never worshiped or enshrined.

The energy found other means of expression, becoming yokai instead of kami. Jose Prado Nov 28, Zethkal Apr 21, Oh Thank goodness! Glad to get some clarification on the whole deal. So in cases like Kitsune, and such.. Just to add…and when you get Yurei-like monsters Collection of evil spirits.. Zack Davisson May 17, Close enough! Folklore changes, and ideas and characters change over time. Anastasia Kyzylo Jun 07, Thank you very much for the article!

It was very informative. Folklore and legends of Japan have been in my area of interests for quite some time, but recently I have started researching it more fundamentally. I have a question about this post though.

I think I am missing something. Or maybe different examples of usage are discussed here, so the dates also differ? I would be extremely grateful to you if you could provide me with some names and universities they are associated with. Zack Davisson Jun 07, No problem! The confusion is just about the countries. Anonymous Jul 25, I heard about the word hokaigaku. Do you know it? Kejoro from Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan. Damage Taken Vs Yokai Reduces damage taken from yokai.. Special Effects can be acquired from Weapons, Armor, Accessories, Soul Cores and Guardian Spirits and can be either fixed or selected from a random pool..

Damage Taken Vs Yokai Effects. Ayakashi may refer to: R education foundation grant.. Read Wikipedia in Modernized UI. Ayakashi Triangle, sometimes abbreviated as AyaTri, is a Japanese fantasy, romantic comedy manga series written and illustrated by Kentaro Yabuki. And yurei are being left out of the party, treated as something different from yokai entirely. We are currently editing over articles and images and you can help! Sadness that his curse had not been lifted, eventhough he did all he could.

Blue Oni personalities are often respected by others, but also likely to puzzle or confound their peers because they are difficult to read and have a mysterious quality to them. Ayakashi visual novel , a horror visual novel with a anime adaptation. Begin typing your search term above and press enter to search. Press ESC to cancel.