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Kappa
Kappa - Japanese water.
Its appearance is very specific — a cross between a frog and a turtle frog skin, a beak instead of a nose, fingers and toes are connected by swimming webs, short hair on the head.
On the top of the mouthguard there is a recess in the shape of an oval saucer, which must always be filled with water, otherwise it will die.
This same saucer gives him supernatural power.
Sometimes it is depicted with a turtle like shell on its back.
Kappa is a dangerous prankster who pulls people into the water and then pulls out their insides through the anus.
It is believed that if you catch a kappa, he will fulfill any desire.
To prevent the atrocities of Kappa, it is enough just to bow to him every time you meet him.
Since kappa is Japanese, he will immediately bow in response and, having spilled the magic liquid, will turn into a helpless creature.
And you can also appease Kappa by offering him his favorite food cucumber.
Read more: Kappa (Japanese: "river child") is a Japanese variety of water birds.
In addition, kappa in Japan is also called a raincoat (Yap. 合羽 a word that has Portuguese origin).
Kappa is known throughout Japan, however, depending on the area of the country, its name or appearance may vary slightly.
In addition, there are also various related species, such as: seko (ja:セコ) - kappa, who climbed into the mountains at the age of 2-3 years, Mintuti (ja :ンントト) - a creature from Ainu mythology; a ghostly half man half beast; suiko (ja:水虎) — a creature also found in Chinese mythology, literally translated as a water tiger.
Along with oni and tengu, kappa is one of the most famous mythical creatures of Japan.
Turtle like Kappa
The most common image is a cross between a frog and a turtle: frog skin, a beak instead of a nose, fingers and toes can be connected by swimming webs, short hair on the head, a turtle shell can be on the back, has three back passages.
The body emits a fishy smell.
Kappa has a saucer on the top of his head, which gives him supernatural power.
It must always be filled with water, otherwise the kappa will lose its power or even die.
The two hands of the mouthguard are connected to each other in the area of the shoulder blades; if you pull one, the other will shrink or may fall out altogether.
Ape like Kappa
Approximately 30 % of all images of mouthguards are made up of mouthguards that look like monkeys: the whole body is covered with hair, there are fangs in the mouth, the nose is almost invisible, there is a thumb on the hands, a heel bone on the feet.
Unlike the usual mouthguard, instead of a saucer on the head there is a recess in the form of an oval saucer; there may not be a turtle shell.
Lifestyle and folk legends
A typical habitat is a river or a swamp, but there are also rumors about sea kappas that drink sake and swim well.
It is believed that kappa loves pranks, but does not harm a person.
However, there are also stories that, passing near the water or bathing, people are dragged into the water by kappa, drowns and pulls a ball (yap .子子玉) out of a person's anus, which he eats or gives to the dragon king as a tax.
This mythical ball was represented by a special organ in the anus, when taking it out, a person became a fool (yap. до dosl. "without entrails").
The reason for the appearance of such a legend could be that the drowned man's anus muscle relaxes and it seems that a ball was pulled out of there.
There is also a hypothesis that this ball symbolizes the insides as a whole.
Also, the kappa can pull the ball from the child if he loses in the sumo fight.
Kappa loves sumo and often has fun fighting with human children.
It is believed that kappa is stronger than anyone, even an adult sumo wrestler, but there are still several ways to win.
If you catch kappa just after he ate the offering to the deceased, then even a child can defeat him.
Another way is to bow before the start of the fight: kappa will bow in response, water will pour out of the saucer, and he will lose strength.
Generally speaking, kappa loves sumo, because it was originally a ritual in honor of the Water Deity.
Favorite food: cucumbers, fish and fruits.
The reason for the love of cucumbers lies in the fact that kappa is considered the embodiment of the Deity of Water.
And it was customary to bring cucumbers to the Deity of Water.。
By the way, makizushi with cucumbers is called "kappovye" (Yap .ッッッ).
Kappa do not like: iron, deer antlers and monkeys.
Once, after arguing with a monkey, who will stay under water longer; kappa lost by standing for 12 hours, while the monkey is 24.
In folklore, there are frequent mentions that kappa, having a strong sense of duty, brought fish or prescriptions of medicines as a thank you for a good deed.
They say that if kappa pats himself on the head with a fern leaf, he can temporarily turn into a person.
It can also take the form of a monkey or an otter.
It is believed that if you catch a kappa, he will fulfill any desire.
In Kyushu, there is a belief that kappa can imitate the sounds of a mountain collapse, a falling tree, an explosion, and even a human song.
But even though the melody of this song will be beautiful, no one will be able to make out its words.
Origin
The origin of kappa can be roughly divided into two parts — in Western Japan and in Eastern Japan.
In the west of Japan, it is believed that the image of the kappa was imported from the continent and comes from the Chinese kahaku (ja: 河 河).
In China, the kappa was attributed to some mythical type of monkey (ja:猿猴).
In eastern Japan, there are several versions of the origin of the kappa: shikigami, which was made by ommoji Abe no Seimei; the hermit's dharmapala En no Ozuno; or even a doll that the sculptor Hidari Jingoro made to help himself.
The stories that the kappa's hands are connected to each other originate from here.
Just as the Deity of Water becomes the Deity of the Mountains in autumn, kappa becomes yamavaro (ja:山 山) with the arrival of winter in some regions.
In Oita Prefecture, in the fall, kappa goes to the mountains and becomes seko, and in Wakayama kexianbo.
Yamawaro is revered as the deity of the mountain, and kappa, like the Chinese dragon, is considered the deity of water.
There is an opinion that just like dzasikivarasi (an analogue of a brownie), which is considered the spirit of the mountains, only children can see kappa.
As for the saucer on the head, the folklorist Shinobu Orikuchi in his book "Stories about Kappa" makes interesting remarks: "A plate or saucer is an object on which food is placed, so it can be a symbol of vital forces..."
Orikuchi notes that since ancient times there was a tradition to sacrifice girls to the water gods, in the hope of the well being of any social activity.
In Hirado, there is a story about how in one mansion the owner killed a maid with a katana and threw her into the sea, who broke a saucer.
Her body became the prototype of the kappa.
Kappa today
At the moment, kappa is considered a creature from the section of cryptozoology.
Mummified remains or kappa bones are sometimes tried to fake with the help of the remains of other animals.
The most commonly used are stingrays, monkeys, hooves and otters.
Nowadays, kappa is usually depicted as a mysterious and cute creature.
It is generally believed that kappa lives at the water's edge, so his image is often used by conservationists to prevent pollution of rivers and lakes.
In Japan, Sha Wujing, the character of "Journey to the West", is often depicted as similar to kappa.
Kappa is one of the minor characters in the novel "Noperapon, or in the Image and Likeness" by Henry Lyon Oldey, a former sumo wrestler who once killed a river kappa and was reborn into a dead one.
Ryunoske Akutagawa in the story "In the land of the water" described the country of kappa hidden from people — this country is a caricature of modern human society.
The original title of the book is "Kappa".
A song called "Kappa", dedicated to this mythical creature, is present in several albums by Keiko Matsui.
In the image of a kappa child, singer and film actress Hibari Misora appears in one of her first film roles in "Dancing Dragon Castle" in 1949, performing one of her first famous film songs "Kappa Boogie Woogie".
Kappa in anime and manga
In the anime "Magic Summer", a young kappa finds himself in the modern world and begins searching for his relatives.
Kappa is found in one of the chapters of "Shin Pet Shop of Horrors".
In the guise of a Kappa, one of the characters of the anime "Arakawa Under the Bridge"appears.
Kappa appears in one of the anime series "Hetalia and the Axis Countries".
Kappa appears in one of the anime series "Inuyasya".
Kappa appears in one of the anime series "Gintama".
A fake mummified kappa appears in several episodes of the anime "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya chan".
Kappa appears in one of the anime series "Natsume's Friendship Notebook".
The character of the anime and manga "School Rumble", Oji Karasuma, wears a kappa costume instead of the usual rain cape.
Kappa in computer games
Kappa a monster that can use water magic even far from rivers (thanks to the water in the saucer) is one of the mobs in the online game Ragnarok Online, living on an island dedicated to Japan.
Nitori Kawashiro, the Touhou Project character, is a kappa.
In the game Might & Magic: Heroes VI, kappas are one of the types of troops of the Sanctuary Castle.
more definition:
The most famous and popular among all evil spirits, kappa is a creature that is found everywhere in Japan, it is found in various interpretations, and is related to the entire genus of all water goblins of a similar species.
But this little water monster is still known for its unique and often stupid characteristics.
The first of these characteristics is a recess with a liquid on his head.
The water in his head gives him great strength, and if it dries or spills, the kappa will lose its superpower or even weaken so much that it will not be able to move.1 Kappa is very proud of his hydro power, and often calls people to compete in the fight, but cunning people deceive him by making a bow and expecting a response, and then even before the fight begins, water spills and the weakened demon loses the duel, which is very upsetting this boastful creature.
Another distinctive feature of Kappa is his passion for cucumbers.
Perhaps it turned out because of the custom to pacify the spirits and gods of the rivers with the first harvest of cucumbers and eggplants (which kappa also loves).
Swimming on such days is likely to entail an attack, because the kappa can confuse you with gifts.
In the Tokyo area, at least, it was believed that if you write your name on the first cucumber you pick and throw it into the river, it will protect you and your loved ones from kappa attacks.
But cucumbers, or even their smell, is considered only to lure him, and almost all over Japan, people are advised not to eat these vegetables before bathing.
The most attractive thing for kappa in cucumbers is their tips.
Despite the fact that the kappa is a very formidable creature, it is quite small, usually no bigger than a child.
Sometimes he may have a pointed bird's beak, and sometimes his face may look like a monkey's.
Sometimes there is a turtle shell on the back, its slippery skin is usually blue or greenish in color, less often red.
Its head is usually covered with hair, sometimes not only the head, but also the entire body, the limbs of the creature are long and straight, and of course there are webs between the fingers.
If tengu and demons are borrowed from the folklore of other countries, then kappa is a purely Japanese unique deity.
The kappa (translated from Japanese as "river child") has a beak, a scaly body covered with a turtle shell, a crown on its head filled with a magical liquid from which its vital and supernatural power is drawn.
Kappa also has evil intentions, for example, to lure children and women laundresses into the water and drown them.
To prevent the atrocities of Kappa, it is enough just to bow to him every time you meet him.
Since kappa is Japanese, he will immediately bow in response and, having spilled the magic liquid, will turn into a helpless creature.
And you can also appease Kappa by offering him his favorite food cucumber.
Kappa This unpredictable Japanese water spirit is a bit like one of the most famous magical creatures in Scotland – the Kelpie.
It is found near rivers, lures people into the water and drowns them.
The Kelpie often turns into a horse and, as it were, invites you to ride, and then quickly takes careless riders to the nearest pond.
Animals, like all other mythical creatures, also play an important role in the Japanese world of the supernatural.
First of all, foxes, badger like raccoon dogs, tanuki and snakes have magical power.
The pantheon of magical animals also includes frogs, turtles, cats, dogs, monkeys, birds, mice, shelves, wild boars, deer, horses, otters, weasels, spiders, butterflies, fireflies and even earthworms.
For example, when an earthquake occurs, it is said that this gargantuan an underground striped catfish turns over in its sleep.
In fairy tales and legends, animals are endowed with human qualities, and vice versa.
Often animals communicate with people, protect the borders of our world from the penetration of dark forces, teach wisdom or show the way.
In Izumo Province, the villagers call Kappa Kawako the Son of the River.
Near Matsue there is a small village called Kawachi mura, and on the banks of the Kawachi River there is a small temple known as Kawako no miya, that is, the temple of Kawako, or Kappa.
They say that there is a document signed by this water.
There is the following legend about this document.
Kappa's Promise
In ancient times, Kappa lived in the Kawati River and amused himself by grabbing and killing villagers, and also livestock.
Once a horse entered the river, Kappa, trying to catch it, broke his neck, but, despite the severe pain, did not let go of his victim.
The frightened horse jumped onto the bank and galloped into a nearby field, while Kappa sat astride the animal, mad with fear.
The owner of the horse, with the help of other villagers, grabbed and tightly tied the Son of the River.
"Let's kill this disgusting creature–" the peasants suggested, " because it has certainly committed many terrible crimes.
We will do well to get rid of this vile monster.
"No," replied the owner of the horse, " we will not kill him!"
We will make him swear never to touch the inhabitants of our village and our livestock again.
The relevant document was prepared, Kappa was asked to review it and, when he did it, to sign it.
"I donot know how to write," replied the penitent Kappa, " but I will put my hand in ink and attach it to the document.
When Kappa put his ink "signature", he was released and released into the river, from that day he firmly keeps his word.
How Genta defeated kappa.
A long time ago, in the town of Kawachino, there lived a man named Genta.
He came from a noble family and was highly respected by his neighbors for his bravery and intelligence.
He lived in a large house that stood by the river that flowed through the whole city.
And just near his house there was the deepest place of this river - so deep that the water there was always impenetrably black and it seemed that the bottom of the river simply did not exist.
One summer evening, Genta returned from riding and, as usual, ordered his servants to tie up the horse in the shade of a spreading tree that grew near the river.
After resting for a while, Genta went out into the garden and was surprised to notice that the animal was no longer near the tree.
Rushing to search, Genta ran out to the river bank and saw that kappa had grabbed the horse by the hind leg and was almost dragged into the river.
The strangest thing is that the servant Genta, stood next to him and helped kappa, pouring water on the hole in his skull.
And the more water the servant poured, the stronger kappa became.
Genta, of course, was very angry when he saw such an outrage, but he did not lose his head.
He quickly ran to the barn and brought out a strong rope, and then crept up with it to kappa, threw the rope around his neck and dragged him away from the river, wringing the creature's hands as he went.
Then the servant also woke up from the delusion and rushed to help the master.
Together they managed to twist kappa and hang him upside down on a branch of the same tree.
After this fight, Genta looked at the helpless kappa hanging on a branch and began to reproach him in every possible way.
"Why are you stealing horses?" he asked.
- "Do you think that everything is possible for you?
Perhaps I should kill you, as a warning to other kappa'm."
Kappa, who was suspended upside down, had water leaking out of the hollow on his skull, besides, the rope cut deeper and deeper into the flesh, causing him more and more severe suffering.
In the end, kappa could not stand it and began to beg Genta to let him go, promising never to harm people again.
Genta was a kind person and kappa managed to soften him up.
Together with the servant, they removed kappa from the tree, cut the ropes, and then forced the merman to repeat his oath three times not to harm people, addressing different sides of the world.
After that, kappa was allowed to go back to the river, and no one heard anything more about him, and the fame of Genta, who defeated kappa, spread throughout Japan.
There are also modern stories about kappa in Japan, he is something like Nessie for the Scots, appearing with enviable regularity in public and in newspaper articles.
In August 1984, Shirozaki Ryu was returning home late at night and saw children playing by the river.
Coming closer, he managed to notice that they looked somehow strange, but he did not have time to examine anything in more detail, because the children jumped into the river together.
No one appeared on the surface, and the rescuers and the police who arrived on the call found only strange three fingered footprints on the shore.
Another story dates back to the 91st year and occurred in the city of Saito What's in Miyazaki Prefecture ( 宮崎県 ).
Matsumoto Matsugi, along with his wife, came home in the evening and found that the floor was trampled all over with three fingered paw prints, and there was a strong smell of fish in the air.
Everything was in its place in the house and nothing was missing, but in some places there were traces of a strange orange liquid, as it turned out later, the composition did not differ from ordinary water in anything except a very high iron content.
The couple turned to a Shinto priest, who suggested that kappa had visited their house.
Despite the fact that the incident was quite harmless, it was not possible to wash the traces of the uninvited guest.
There are also legends with a theory about the origin of kappa - it is associated with Shinto water gods, with legends about drowned children who return to take revenge (children were drowned in rivers during a hungry time when there was nothing to eat), with Chinese stories about monkeys (hence the monkey features in appearance), and Chinese water demons, and even associate its origin with the image of a Portuguese monk (the fact is that the monks carried their bags behind their backs, like a turtle the shell, and tonzura gave rise to the legend of a hollow in the skull - however, knowing the habits of kappa, you begin to think about the moral appearance of monks).
But, despite the abundance of reasonable and not very theories, the most common opinion still says that kappa just always lived in rivers and still live in them, so swim more carefully - you never know what...
People said that in ancient samurai times, women went to the bathroom with a small sword, because they were afraid that kappa would crawl out of the cesspool and certainly rape them.
They did all their business, being all the time with caution.
And if kappa managed to touch intimate places with a cold webbed paw, it was necessary to deftly cut off his paw with this short sword and then.
Then the defeated kappa gave a magical elixir of immortality or eternal youth in exchange for a severed hand.
Kappa loves to eat children very much, but the most favorite delicacy for him is cucumbers.
So you can always pay off by throwing into the water, where kappa, a cucumber with its carved name, seems to live.
There are even special sushi kappa maki, that is, rolls with cucumber.
Kappa is afraid of fire.
In the old days, people often arranged fireworks near the river to drive away this insidious spirit of water.
The figure depicting kappa can be a warning to those who are insecure on the water or do not know how to swim at all.
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Category: Demonology / Added: Ginger Owl (03.07.2012)
Views: 3960 / Tags: Water, Kappa / Rating: 0.0/0
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