The Japanese have two kinds of ghosts in their folklore—the spirits of the dead, and the spirits of the living. This classic of Japanese literature invites you to take your choice, if you dare.in Ghostly Japan collects twelve ghostly stories from Lafcadio Hearn, deathless images of ghosts and goblins, touches of folklore and superstition, salted with traditions of the nation. While some of these stories contain nightmare imagery worthy of a midnight creature feature, others are not ghostly or ghastly at all. "bits of Poetry" offers an engaging study on verse, and "Japanese buddhist Proverbs" explains the meaning of several aphorisms based on Japanese cultural references.
Whether you're looking to spot the demons that walk among us, or simply to enjoy the prose of a legendary craftsman,
in Ghostly Japan affords countless delights. Stories include:
- "Fragment" about a young pilgrim who encounters a mountain of skulls
- "ingwa-banashi" about a dying wife who bequeaths a rival a sinister legacy
- "A Passional Karma" about a spectral beauty who returns for her handsome samurai lover
Patrick Lafcadio Hearn (27 June 1850 – 26 September 1904), known also by the Japanese name Koizumi Yakumo, was an international writer, known best for his books about Japan, especially his collections of Japanese legends and ghost stories, such as Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things. In the United States, Hearn is also known for his writings about the city of New Orleans based on his ten-year stay in that city.