oni
next let's talk about the hulk of japanese mythology also known as oni even though the hulk
is famous for being aggressive this japanese yokai takes ferocity to a whole new level
and is considered to be beyond evil as a result it is often associated with mysterious calamities
the word oni roughly corresponds to concepts like ogres or demons
according to mythology onis were much taller than even the tallest man
these powerful yokai demons usually had red or blue colored skin with pretty messy hair two horns
and a number of large sharp canine teeth their size suggested they could handle any size creature
even poor wild elephants if you're unfortunate enough to see an oni approaching just run away
they are not only dangerous and terrifying but also spread deadly diseases and disasters wherever
they go the question is how were these terrifying creatures born according to ancient texts onis
were once human like us however when a truly evil and wicked man dies he transforms into an
oni in buddhist hell onis are considered to be the guardians of hell under the command of lord edna
their main weapon is handheld iron knoble which is like an iron club if any human
crosses the restricted territories oni won't hesitate to crush the bones of the intruders
ironically the wicked oni punish evil people in hell by crushing their bones and peeling
off their skin in doing so they torture those who meet the criteria to become the next onis
simply put onis are like a cruel underworld military for newcomers in the hell
however in the darkest times an oni can appear in this world too there is one terrifying tale about
an oni that was transformed from a human in the real world centuries ago his name was shutendoji
an orphan child who was becoming a monk but he didn't like their strict training and lifestyle
he was an aggressive child by nature and a troublemaker with a corrupt soul as a young boy
he used to drink alcohol which was considered to be forbidden for monks hence he got its nickname
shutendoji which means little boozer during one festival shuten doji hit himself in darkness and
wore an oni mask in order to scare the people who were coming from the festival when his prank was
over he attempted to remove his oni mask but he couldn't the mask was permanently attached to
his face because he was a troublemaker instead of helping him the other monks mocked shooting doji
as a result he became furious and full of rage and ran away to the mountains to live his life away
from humans in the mountains he started learning black magic and accepted his evil wicked nature
he started kidnapping men and women nearby then ate their organs and flesh and drank their blood
his strength aggressiveness and cruelty grew stronger over time soon he formed a small
yet powerful army of demons their numbers grew with each passing day the emperor at the time
became fearful something had to be done so the emperor gave the task of killing shooting doji
to a fearsome warrior minomoto raikou raico and his men managed to successfully poison some sake
which was a favorite drink for the demons raikou and his men killed every drunken demon one by one
finally raico cut doji's head with his blade but the head remained alive and
continuously attempted to bite riko and his men raikou decided to bury the head in
an unknown place to avoid this demon from ever re-emerging again interestingly today in japan
this demon is now considered a symbol of good luck and people happily wear oni masks
you might be surprised to know that the japanese people even celebrate oni in setsubun festival
according to the mummy maki custom on 3rd february of every year
you