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=                              Kwaidan                               =
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                            Introduction
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is a Japanese word consisting of two kanji:  () meaning  and  ()
meaning  or .

In its broadest sense, 'kaidan' refers to any ghost story or horror
story, but it has an old-fashioned ring to it that carries the
connotation of Edo period Japanese folktales. The term is no longer as
widely used in Japanese as it once was: Japanese horror books and
films such as 'Ju-on' and 'Ring' would more likely be labeled by the
'katakana' . 'Kaidan' is only used if the author/director wishes to
give an old-fashioned air to the story.


                              Examples
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*'Banchō Sarayashiki' ('The Story of Okiku') by Okamoto Kido
*'Yotsuya Kaidan' ('Ghost Story of Tōkaidō Yotsuya') by Tsuruya
Nanboku IV (1755-1829)
*'Botan Dōrō' ('The Peony Lantern') by Asai Ryoi
*'Mimi-nashi Hōichi' ('Hōichi the Earless')


          ''Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai'' and ''kaidanshu''
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'Kaidan' entered the vernacular during the Edo period, when a parlour
game called 'Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai' became popular. This game led
to a demand for ghost stories and folktales to be gathered from all
parts of Japan and China.The popularity of the game, as well as the
acquisition of a printing press, led to the creation of a literary
genre called 'kaidanshu'. 'Kaidanshu' were originally based on older
Buddhist stories of a didactic nature, although the moral lessons soon
gave way to the demand for strange and gruesome stories.


Examples of ''kaidanshu''
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*'Tonoigusa', called 'Otogi Monogatari' ('Nursery Tales') by Ogita
Ansei (1660)
*'Otogi Boko' ('Handpuppets') by Asai Ryoi (1666)
*'Ugetsu Monogatari' ('Tales of Moonlight and Rain') by Ueda Akinari
(1776)


              Background of the romanized translation
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The word was popularised in English by Lafcadio Hearn in his book
'Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things'. The spelling  is a
romanization based on an archaic spelling of the word in kana - Hearn
used it since the stories in the book were equally archaic. The
revised Hepburn romanization system is spelled .

When film director Masaki Kobayashi made his anthology film 'Kwaidan'
(1964) from Hearn's translated tales, the old spelling was used in the
English title.


                           Plot elements
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Originally based on didactic Buddhist tales, kaidan often involve
elements of karma, and especially ghostly vengeance for misdeeds.
Japanese vengeful ghosts ('Onryō') are far more powerful after death
than they were in life, and are often people who were particularly
powerless in life, such as women and servants.

This vengeance is usually specifically targeted against the tormentor,
but can sometimes be a general hatred toward all living humans.  This
untargeted wrath can be seen in 'Furisode', a story in Hearn's book
'In Ghostly Japan' about a cursed kimono that kills everyone who wears
it.  This motif is repeated in the film 'Ring' with a videotape that
kills all who watch it, and the film franchise 'Ju-on' with a house
that kills all who enter it.

Kaidan also frequently involve water as a ghostly element.  In
Japanese religion, water is a pathway to the underworld as can be seen
in the festival of Obon.


                              See also
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*
* Japanese mythology
*
**
*
*
* Kazuo UmezuJapanese manga artist known for horror manga
* Shigeru MizukiJapanese manga artist known for reviving interest in
yōkai
Other eastern/Pacific cultures
* 'Zhiguai xiaoshuo'Chinese supernatural literature
* 'The Unbelievable'Hong Kong TV program about the paranormal
* Glen GrantWrote about Hawaiian mythology
Western
* Aesop's Fables


                           External links
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*[http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/jz/1279/Ghoul+Power Ghoul Power -
Onryou in the Movies]  'Japanzine' By Jon Wilks
*[https://archive.today/20130111183637/http://www.japanzine.jp/article/jz/2965/tales-of-ghostly-japan
Tales of Ghostly Japan] 'Japanzine' By Zack Davisson
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20061105093306/http://www.mangajin.com/mangajin/samplemj/ghosts/ghosts.htm
Japanese Ghosts]'Mangajin #40' by Tim Screech
*[http://www.sacred-texts.com/shi/kwaidan/index.htm Hearn's 'Kwaidan:
Stories and Studies of Strange Things'.]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20051130232317/http://www.harapan.co.jp/english/kwaidan/kwaidan_index.htm
A site with several kaidan.]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20071023175728/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb3342/is_200012/ai_n8057928
Asian Folklore Studies: The Appeal of Kaidan Tales of the Strange.]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070214000126/http://www.kitsuneensemble.org/
Information on 'The Kaidan Suite,' a musical interpretation of kaidan
by the Kitsune Ensemble.]
*[http://www.hyakumonogatari.com Hyakumonogatari.com] A website of
translated kaidan
*[http://www.thejapanesehorror.com TheJapaneseHorror.com] Website with
several translated Kaidan


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