Meanwhile, yokai profited from the Edo period's growth of woodblock printing, which resulted in a significantly larger quantity of nishiki-e (colored woodblock prints) and printed books. With the printing method enabling mass manufacturing, many more people got acquainted with the yokai's images and stories, and yokai culture spread into ordinary people's lives. Hyaku Monogatari picture scrolls were produced in the same way as Hyaku Monogatari volumes of brief ghost stories were, in which yokai tales were recorded with an accompanying image. Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) created a series of Hyaku Monogatari prints as well. Furthermore, popular scrolls that narrate a single tale were made in large quantities, and when presented in a more broad context, their image as monsters to be avoided changed: harmless, pleasant entities arose, and âcute yokaiâ were formed. The yokai of pictorial scrolls, nishiki-e, and printed books, which were beloved by everybody, started to appear as figurines, on kimono, and in a variety of other locations.
Interestingly, if we go back to Exeggcutor's initial stage, Exeggcute, we may find even more Jinmenju origins. According to Exeggcutor's Pokedex entry, "Originally from the tropics, Exeggutor's heads grow bigger from exposure to bright sunshine." When the heads collapse, they are said to create an Exeggcute. So, rather than being eggs, Exeggcute are really matured fruit of an Exeggcutor that has fallen and conglomerated (as if them being eggs really made any more sense). I'd want to point out that there are many, many more Yokai and Pokemon out there (depending on how things go, it's questionable which has more), and I may follow up with other Yokai influences in the Pokemon world. Keep an eye out.
The yokai world is enormous, and although it is growing in popularity, it is easy to get lost in the repackaging of Japanese yokai culture to appeal to contemporary audiences. Today, there is tremendous advancement in the field of yokai studies in Japan, so there has never been a better opportunity to delve into the history of the unexplainable and discover for yourself what a yokai really is! 12 February 2021 | Art, Prints»
Enma is sat on his throne, looking out into the horizon in the first slide. The incense burning on the table in front of him alerts the observer to the fact that this is not a photograph of the "genuine" Enma, but rather a symbol of him. Such icons are prevalent in Japanese Buddhist temples, and the series title of this slip (âAnnual Observances in Edoâ) implies that this is the icon discovered at the now-demolished Enma Hall in Asakusa. The second slip does the same, honouring a "Famous Spot in Naniwa," i.e., Osaka, the Enma Hall at Gappgatsuji. The other slips portray Enma (or Enma statues) engaging with senjafuda culture in a variety of ways, such as holding aloft a votive slip instead of his typical flat wooden scepter, or keeping his characteristic frown despite slips draped on his shoulders, knees, or even nose. Gods of Thunder
