Zashiki Warashi - 座敷童子 - [Yokai|Yurei]

Zashiki Warashi - 座敷童子 - "Guest Room Child"

• About this Yokai: Mischievous ghost children who haunt Tatami Guest Rooms... Unlike most other ghosts, you actually want these to stick around! Zashiki warashi are Considered guardians of the house and are often worshipped as gods of luck: It's said that they'll bring excellent fortune while they're in your home. – The catch is: all your good luck and wealth will suddenly flip & become chaos if they ever decide to leave... so it’s best to keep them happy.

Like most kids, they love snacks & pulling pranks such as like leaving footprints on the walls & floor or spinning in chairs and invisibly giggling. usually, offerings of  candy are left out for them.

• History and early appearances•

There are countless regional & local traditions and variants to Zashiki Warashi depending you are in Japan: though most legends & stories are said to stem from Iwate prefecture and the surrounding areas.

• Although the Zashiki Warashi wasn't directly included in Toriyama Sekiens Gazu Hyakki Yagyo (1776) a yokai who is often said to be a variant "Makurageshi" was. (That yokai flips pillows!)

• The Okiku doll is also said to be a good example of a ZashikiWarashi.

• Though not often considered as a zashikiwarashi: Hanako-san is probably the most popular ghost child in Japan.

• Occasionally they are considered to be a type of kappa (or rather that kappa are occasionally said to be metaphors for drown/culled children.)

Sticker Art by @Samkalensky (yo thats me!) - Part of my Night parade of 100 Demons - Yokai & Japanese folklore sticker collection, weather-resistant 4" Glossy sticker. Check my shop & follow @samkalensky for many more! -

Incidentally, I found $10 on the ground the day i finished this design: so i personally consider it to be the luckiest out of them all. :D