There was a college student (we call him "D") who loved pulling people's
legs. For example, D would go to a restaurant with three friends, and
when the waiter asked "four persons?" D would say "come on, look more
carefully! There are five of us!"
D would do this often, and people began to think D could really see
"it." But of course D couldn't see anything really; he was just amusing
himself by watching people's reaction. No matter how many times his
friends told him to stop it, all D would do was just laugh at them.
One day D, who was always with someone when he ate, thought he would eat
alone just for a change, and went into a restaurant all by himself.
He sat down at a table, and a waiter brought him a glass of water and put it down in front of him... and in front of the seat opposite D's. "That's weird."D thought. " Of course, there was no one apart from D at the table.
"Maybe there was someone here just before I came in, and the waiter
thought that the person was with me...Oh well, I will just move to
another table if someone comes back"
The waiter came to take orders. D ordered a spaghetti dish.
By that time all other diners had left the restaurant, and D became the
only diner there. It seemed now certain that the waiter made a mistake.
After a while the waiter brought him the dish; and to D's dismay, he again put the same dish in front of the opposite seat.
"Why do you put two dishes when there's only me here!?" D said to the waiter angrily.
The waiter, surprised, looked around him quickly. "That's strange! I'm sure I saw there were two of you."
Then D talked to the manger, who was at the door when D came into the
restaurant, but he too said D was not alone but walked in with someone
else.
D became very upset and stormed out of the restaurant.
Now being (he thought) at the receiving end of the joke he used to play
himself, he realized how uncomfortable it felt. He swore he would never
do it again.
But that was only the beginning. From then on, everytime he went out people saw someone else
beside D. Everywhere he went, whoever he met, D was seen with someone;
even on a very crowded train people made a space, just enough for one
person, only in front of D.
"Someone is following me...."D couldn't bear going out anymore. He grew
paranoid, lost a lot of weight, and became a completely different
person.
For many months he continued to live like a hermit.
He stayed in, just so that he wouldn't have to deal with "the other person."
Many days had passed. D gradually came to imagine that, after such a
long time, "the other person" must have gone to somewhere else. He
stepped outside for the first time in ages. The air outside felt fresh
and good.
D went into a random restaurant. The restaurant had a lively atomosphere
and D felt quite relaxed. However, he was still scared of sitting at a
table so he chose to sit at the empty bar counter.
I had been stupid, D thought. There was nothing I should be scared of.
He couldn't have felt any better.
"Welcome," the waiter said, and put down a glass of water in front of D.
And he put another glass down next to D; and still another one
next to it, and another one after that, and another one after that, and
then another one after that...!
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Inugami
Inugami, or literally "dog-god" is a kind of spirit that can possess a human, and is a type of kodoku(1*) The belief in this spirit was still strong until recent years and was widespread particularly in western part of Japan.
Those who can create and command Inugami is called "Inugami-tsukai" (Dog-god User). Inugami-tsukai creates an Inugami by the following method; first, you take a live dog and bury it in the ground up to its neck. Then you put some food in front of the dog but just beyond its reach, so that the dog can see the food but not eat it. You let the dog starve and when it is near to death and its desire for food is strongest, the Inugami-tsukai must go behind the dog and cut off its head. The dog's head is then buried undeground in the middle of a cross-road; this is to get as many people walk over it as possible in order to intensify its grudge. Finally the head is dug up and enshrined. Now a powerful inugami is born (2*).
Inugami can be commanded to possess a person. Those who are easily possessed by Inugami are the ones who are emotionally unstable. The possessed may act and say odd things, complain of pains in the chest and limbs, and sometimes walk on all fours and even bark like a dog.
In order to exorcise an Inugami you need either eat a charred beast, or ask a Yamabushi (3*)to perform a special ritual (involving use of fire and incantation) for you.
The size of Inugami is about the same as a large rat. Some say it is covered with spots and is blind. It is usually invisible to ordinary humans.
Inugami-suji "The Dog-god Bloodline"
The family which is possessed by an inugami is described as "Inugami-suji", meaning "dog-god bloodline." They are said to be the descendants of the shamans and sorcerers who originally created Inugami.
If the family worships it the Inugami bestows proeperity on it; on the other hand if the spirit is treated poorly it will bring calamity to the house.
In Inugami-suji household, a new Inugami is created every time a girl is born. When the girl marries, she is said to take her Inugami with her, thus making the new household an Inugami-suji too. For this reason normally marrying to an Inugami-suji was the thing to be avoided by common people. In few areas of Japan, some people still check the bloodline of the bride before marriage to make sure that she is not from an Inugami-suji.
********************************************************
1*Kodoku - a black magic that uses living animals; will be explained more in detail in this blog in the near future.
2*This is the most well-known method. A source says when the dog's head is cut off it should fly and bite the food in front of it.
3* Yamabushi - lieterally meaning "one who lies in the mountain" Yamabushi is a Japanese ascetic and is a practitioner of shugendo, a syncretic religion mixing Buddhist and Shinto elements. (wikipedia).
Those who can create and command Inugami is called "Inugami-tsukai" (Dog-god User). Inugami-tsukai creates an Inugami by the following method; first, you take a live dog and bury it in the ground up to its neck. Then you put some food in front of the dog but just beyond its reach, so that the dog can see the food but not eat it. You let the dog starve and when it is near to death and its desire for food is strongest, the Inugami-tsukai must go behind the dog and cut off its head. The dog's head is then buried undeground in the middle of a cross-road; this is to get as many people walk over it as possible in order to intensify its grudge. Finally the head is dug up and enshrined. Now a powerful inugami is born (2*).
Inugami can be commanded to possess a person. Those who are easily possessed by Inugami are the ones who are emotionally unstable. The possessed may act and say odd things, complain of pains in the chest and limbs, and sometimes walk on all fours and even bark like a dog.
In order to exorcise an Inugami you need either eat a charred beast, or ask a Yamabushi (3*)to perform a special ritual (involving use of fire and incantation) for you.
The size of Inugami is about the same as a large rat. Some say it is covered with spots and is blind. It is usually invisible to ordinary humans.
Inugami-suji "The Dog-god Bloodline"
The family which is possessed by an inugami is described as "Inugami-suji", meaning "dog-god bloodline." They are said to be the descendants of the shamans and sorcerers who originally created Inugami.
If the family worships it the Inugami bestows proeperity on it; on the other hand if the spirit is treated poorly it will bring calamity to the house.
In Inugami-suji household, a new Inugami is created every time a girl is born. When the girl marries, she is said to take her Inugami with her, thus making the new household an Inugami-suji too. For this reason normally marrying to an Inugami-suji was the thing to be avoided by common people. In few areas of Japan, some people still check the bloodline of the bride before marriage to make sure that she is not from an Inugami-suji.
********************************************************
1*Kodoku - a black magic that uses living animals; will be explained more in detail in this blog in the near future.
2*This is the most well-known method. A source says when the dog's head is cut off it should fly and bite the food in front of it.
3* Yamabushi - lieterally meaning "one who lies in the mountain" Yamabushi is a Japanese ascetic and is a practitioner of shugendo, a syncretic religion mixing Buddhist and Shinto elements. (wikipedia).
Seven Misaki
Seven Misaki, or Shichi-Nin Misaki in Japanese, is a name given to a group of seven vengeful spirits.
They are spirits of seven people who had met their ends in tragic ways, such as by drowning. They usually haunt places like sea or riverside.
The Seven Misaki's souls are so full of grudge that they will not rest until they succeed at possessing and eventually killing another seven human beings: only then they become appeased and are able to leave this world.
The unfortunate victims of Seven Misaki become the new Seven Misaki. And they too, must look for another seven victims to replace them, so that they can rest in peace.
They are spirits of seven people who had met their ends in tragic ways, such as by drowning. They usually haunt places like sea or riverside.
The Seven Misaki's souls are so full of grudge that they will not rest until they succeed at possessing and eventually killing another seven human beings: only then they become appeased and are able to leave this world.
The unfortunate victims of Seven Misaki become the new Seven Misaki. And they too, must look for another seven victims to replace them, so that they can rest in peace.
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