Koinryo - [Yokai|Tsukumogami]

Koinryo - 虎隠良 (こいんりょう）- [Yokai|Tsukumogami] - aka “Ryo-tora”

• About this yokai: A strange hairy tsukumogami with a singular eye(?) on a hairy clam-shaped head wearing an antiquated wooden case on top of its head (called an Inro). Its body is said to be made from “the pelt of a vicious animal” (assumed to be a tiger). It wears a fudoshi loin cloth and carries a bamboo rake with tiger-like claws which it uses to strike swiftly and unexpectedly! It's known to suddenly sprint at ridiculous breakneck speeds towards its targets. 

• Origin: Another of the trio of yokai from the two-page spread at the start of the second edition of Toriyama Sekein’s Gazu Hyakki Tsurezure Bukuro (1784). The other two that share the spread are Yarikecho & Zenfusho. Koinryo is in front of & below Zenfusho (a kettle yokai who appears to be leaping about.) Koinryo is turning on its heel, seemingly dashing towards the mushrooms on the previous page which Yarike appears to be about to smash with a mallet. - Toriyama describes Koinryo as such: 

“A being made from the skin of a vicious animal, this pouch can sprint for 1000 ri”  - (Translation: Japandemonium 2017)

Zenfushou, Koinryo & Yarikecho. [image source: Smithsonian/archive.org]

Sekien didn’t usually group yokai together like this in his books which seems to have led to some confusion, at least in the English speaking world. Wikipedia’s entry incorrectly states that “Zenfusho is carrying a bamboo rake called a Koinryo” when Koinryo is the one carrying the rake and Zenfusho isn’t carrying anything! (Unfortunately I can’t tell you what the rake is actually called.) I suppose the confusion is understandable considering that for years the English speaking public generally didn’t have access to clear scans of most of Toriyama Sekien’s work until a decent scan was made publicly available in 2016 via the Smithsonian and was later followed by decent translations via the book Japandemonium Illustrated in 2017. 

But even with the new, clearer photos of Toriyama's illustration, Koinryo is a bit difficult to comprehend. Its facial appearance alone has baffled yokai enthusiasts & scholars for years. Are either of those circles on its face meant to be eyes or holes for thread? Is one of them an ear?  The facial anatomy is a fairly confusing mess…

• The Antique in question: The box-like object on Koinryo’s head is believed to be an “Inryo.” also known as an “Inro”, tiny lacquered wood cases that are usually knotted with a bead, shell or netsuke & are tied to a kimono’s obi. They’re typically used for carrying small items such as medicine or official seals. Today these tiny cases are prized by collectors for their craftsmanship and ornate designs. The fact that inro are sometimes tied with a seashell might explain the odd ‘ear’ shape on the side of Koinryo’s  face or the general clam shape of its head. But that's just a theory. Admittedly it takes a keen eye to decipher this yokai and it really is quite difficult to tell what we’re looking at exactly even if you do…

Because this yokai supposedly “runs very far and fast”, (a thousand “ri” is roughly 4000 kilometers or 2,500 miles) the “vicious animal” which Toriyama refers to is often theorized to be a tiger! The rake it drags along behind it even has the claws to match! But since Inro aren’t- to my knowledge- made of animal hide, I’m not sure what this description is referring to. Although tigers are a common motif on inro.

Close up of a tiger themed inro with a shell. [Image via Kasasagi fine arts]  

• Similar yokai: Something which we do know is that the poses of Yarike and company are likely taken from a Muromachi-era Hyakki Yagyo Emaki picture scroll. (below) The yokai which the others (Zenfusho and Koinryo) are imitating aren’t named, but the one Yarike is copying is Kanazuchibo, posed with his mallet to smack down Okka as usual. I’ve also heard some yokai scholars compare the horned yokai that Koinryo is copying to have the face of a Kirin but I’d doubt that’s it. As usual, these scrolls are so old it's impossible to say what might have been on the artist's mind.

Come to think of it… given their positioning, Inryo’s hairy body, the fact that Toriyama compared Zenfusho to Bunbuku which is a famous tanuki, and that he said that Koinryo was “made from the pelt of a vicious animal” ...could it be that Koinryo was intentionally positioned that way as a “Tanuki Sack” joke…!? But I digress, it’s difficult to say anything for certain. Id say hes probably Second in command of Captain Yarike's Mushreom Extermination crew, in charge of raking and cleanup. - I almost didn't draw this one because the design was hard to comprehend, and it's not a very popular yokai in general, but the completionist in my head said went “JUST DO-IT!!!” 

• See also: Yarikecho, Zenfusho.

[Art sticker & Writing by @SamKalensky (yo, thats me!) Editing by @Cattype. Part of my Hyakki Yagyo Night Parade of 100 yokai sticker series. Follow & check my shop out for many more!]