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curiousordinary.bsky.social
curious ordinary
@curiousordinary.bsky.social
10K followers 1.6K following 4.9K posts
▪️Folklore▪️Myth▪️Magic▪️Art▪️
Sharing Japanese and supernatural folklore, mythology, yokai, culture and art. Also love books, cats, crows and trees.
http://linktr.ee/curiousordinary
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curiousordinary.bsky.social
In #JapaneseFolklore there is a #yokai known as tenome, which means 'eyes on hands.' It is believed that they may be the vengeful ghosts of blind men who were robbed and murdered. Tenome take the form of an old man whose face has no eyes but who has an eye on each of his palms.
#MythologyMonday
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A bald man with no eyes wearing a white robe stumbles through long grass with his hands outstretched. On the palm of each hand is an eyeball.
January 5, 2026 at 9:30 AM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
The famous tale of Earless Hoichi is about a blind biwa player who unknowingly played for vengeful ghosts. In order to save him a monk covered his body in sutras so the ghosts couldn't see or harm him. But he forgot to write on Hoichi's ears. The next time the ghost visited...
#MythologyMonday
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A man sits cross legged on a verandah while a ghostly light appears before him. The man's body is covered in writing.
January 5, 2026 at 8:15 AM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
Around the 13th century in Japan there was a ranking system enforced by the Shogunate that restricted certain occupations to specific classes of people. Zato were a class of blind people trained initially as lute players but later this expanded to massage, acupuncture, and...
#MythologyMonday
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A blind man holding a wooden cane.
January 5, 2026 at 7:53 AM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
'Owl and Sunflowers' - Utsushi Rinsai, 1880.
#OwlishMonday #JapaneseArt
A landscape scene with a river flowing towards hills in the distance. Flowers in the foreground and a fruit tree on which an owl sits surrounded by three smaller birds. To the right is a building with a thatched roof.
January 5, 2026 at 3:56 AM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
'Red on White, Owl' - Ippitsusai Buncho, Japanese Edo period. From the Harvard Art Museum collection.
#OwlishMonday #JapaneseArt
A stylised red and white owl.
January 5, 2026 at 3:52 AM
Reposted by curious ordinary
yokai.com
2026 is not just the Year of the Horse... it is the Year of the Fire Horse! This is an especially unlucky combination of element + zodiac animal, originating in the story of Yaoya Oshichi (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yaoya_O...). The yokai hinoenma (yokai.com/hinoenma) is based on this superstition.

❤️‍🔥🐎
January 4, 2026 at 7:11 AM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
'Moon at Musashino' - Tonouchi Misho, ca. 1937. From the Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art collection.
#FullMoon #JapaneseArt
A huge bright full moon in an inky sky fading to pale blue at the horizon and then to a green field.
January 4, 2026 at 2:03 AM
Reposted by curious ordinary
curiousordinary.bsky.social
'Moon and Lake Biwa' from the series 'The Scenic Places of Tokaido' - Utagawa Yoshitsuya, 1863.
#FullMoon #ukiyoe #JapaneseArt
A full moon high in the sky beyond a cliff looking over water towards mountains in the distance.
November 5, 2025 at 12:41 PM
Reposted by curious ordinary
curiousordinary.bsky.social
If you're interested in cats in #JapaneseFolklore and art, I wrote an article that includes a collection of #yokai cats, lucky cats and folktales featuring cats. I thought I'd re-share for #Caturday.
open.substack.com/pub/curiouso...
Cats in Japanese Folklore and Culture
From kawaii (cute) to kaibyo (supernatural)
open.substack.com
October 4, 2025 at 2:08 AM
Reposted by curious ordinary
curiousordinary.bsky.social
'Look Back 3 Red' - Ono Tadashige, 2003.
#Caturday #JapaneseArt
A long haired black cat with golden eyes looks back over its shoulder. The background is bright red.
November 22, 2025 at 6:45 AM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
'Be Yourself' - Taniuchi Masato, late 1900s. The poem is translated roughly as, "Do not try to over extend, just be yourself.".
#Caturday #JapaneseArt
A calico cat sits up looking forward on a lime green background. A poem surrounds it.
January 3, 2026 at 1:03 AM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
'Hall of the Golden Hue at Hiraizumi' - Kawase Hasui, 1957. This was Hasui's final work before his death later the same year.
#JapaneseArt #shinhanga
A lone priest is walking through the snow towards a temple building. The path is lined with snow-laden trees and snow is falling.
January 1, 2026 at 3:09 AM
Reposted by curious ordinary
xingwu.bsky.social
In Chinese folk culture, the gourd (葫芦) carries the blessing of "fulu(福祿)", fortune and prosperity. Its name echoing auspicious wordplay. Its plump form and many seeds suggest abundance and fertile life, while its use as a medicine vessel links it to longevity and 1/2
#painting #art
December 31, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Reposted by curious ordinary
arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social
#HappyNewYear!
Utagawa Hiroshige (Japan, 1797–1858)
New Year's Eve Foxfires at the Changing Tree, Ōji [MShōzoku Inari Shrine in Ōji, Tokyo]
From One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, no. 118, part 4: Winter. 1857
Woodblock print
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hi...
#JapaneseArt #Fox #Kitsune
“In the late 1850s, while Japanese color prints were dominated by themes of the fantastic, Hiroshige emphasized the realities of the observed world in his work. However, here he has ventured into the world of spirits. It was believed that on New Year's Eve all the foxes of the surrounding provinces would gather at a particular tree near Oji Inari Shrine, the headquarters of the regional cult of the god Inari. There the foxes would change their dress for a visit to the shrine, where they would be given orders for the coming year. On the way, the animals would emit distinctive flames by which local farmers were able to predict the crops of the coming year.” (Brooklyn Museum)
January 1, 2026 at 12:20 AM
Reposted by curious ordinary
godysseypodcast.com
In China bats are used to represent the Wufu, the "Five Blessings": long life, wealth, good health, virtuous nature, and a peaceful death in the end. This often contrasts with their dark reception in other cultures around the world. #WyrdWednesday
An unknown artist of the 19th century's depiction of Daoist deity Zhong Kui, a large man with a bushy beard and blue robes, dancing with a black blade, surrounded by the Wufu, the Five Blessings, represented as bats around him. At his feet is a salamander, a centipede, and a toad wrapped in a snake. A symbol of Qigong sits in the center of the image. A spider hangs from one of the bats.
December 31, 2025 at 1:28 PM
Reposted by curious ordinary
ashmoleanmuseum.bsky.social
Happy New Year's Eve 🎆🎇🎆🎇

This woodblock print showing fireworks at Ryōgoku bridge was created by Utagawa Hiroshige I in 1858. It features as part of the One Hundred Famous Views of Edo series.

We'll be closing our doors tomorrow, 1 January 2026, and will be reopening on 2 January.

🎆 EAX.4365
A Japanese woodblock print depicting a firework display against a dark blue sky, above a river with a bridge and boats. A Japanese woodblock print depicting a firework display against a dark blue sky, above a river with a bridge and boats.
December 31, 2025 at 10:00 AM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
Wishing everyone a very Happy New Year! May 2026 bring us all plenty of peace and happiness (and a bit less of the chaos). Thank you so much to everyone who has followed and supported me this year, I am so grateful to you all.
🎨'The Seven Gods of Good Fortune in the Treasure Boat' - Utagawa Sadatora
A boat on the ocean. In it are the seven lucky gods from Japanese folklore. A crane flies above. A minogame (supernatural turtle) swims alongside. Pine trees are at the rear of the boat. A phoenix head at the front.
December 31, 2025 at 1:18 PM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
It's Omisoka (New Year's Eve) so I made my own version of toshikoshi soba to hopefully welcome plenty of good luck in 2026. It's not too late to make your own, but be sure to finish them before midnight so you don't carry any misfortunes from this past year into the new year.
A small bowl of soba noodles in broth with a shiitake mushroom, pak choy, and sliced green onions.
December 31, 2025 at 12:12 PM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
Japanese New Year traditions include a thorough cleaning of the home, putting up decorations, eating soba noodles, visiting a shrine, and taking note of your first dream. I've written all about it here, with lots of #JapaneseArt too. Happy New Year! 🎍
#WyrdWednesday
open.substack.com/pub/curiouso...
Shogatsu
Celebrating the New Year in Japan
open.substack.com
December 31, 2025 at 8:10 AM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
#WyrdWednesday #yokai
curiousordinary.bsky.social curious ordinary @curiousordinary.bsky.social · Mar 25
In #JapaneseFolklore 'The Cat Witch of Okazaki' is a tale about three travellers who stopped at a temple on their way home from a pilgrimage. They found a kind old lady called Osan living there who invited them to spend the night. While there, they witnessed something very...
#FairyTaleTuesday
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A woman with fan and two cats dance on hind legs at her feet.
December 31, 2025 at 8:02 AM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
#WyrdWednesday #JapaneseFolklore
curiousordinary.bsky.social curious ordinary @curiousordinary.bsky.social · May 19
In #JapaneseFolklore sessho seki, or the killing stone, is a large boulder believed to give off poisonous gasses and kill anything that touched or even got too near it. Allegedly the spirit of Tamamo-no-mae, an evil nine-tailed fox who took the form of a beautiful...
#MythologyMonday #yokai
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Illustration by Matthew Meyer if a stone with a beastly shape surrounded by yellow gasses. A photograph of a large stone.
December 31, 2025 at 8:02 AM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
'Saishoin Temple in Snow, Hirosaki' - Kawase Hasui, 1936.
#JapaneseArt #shinhanga
A person holding an umbrella walks through the snow in front of a red temple building. Tall trees are beyond and it is snowing.
December 30, 2025 at 11:56 PM
Reposted by curious ordinary
curiousordinary.bsky.social
Japan's version of the moon rabbit tale is a perfect example of self-sacrifice. Originating from a Sanskrit tale, it tells of a fox, a monkey, and a rabbit who found an exhausted old man collapsed in the mountains. The monkey gathered fruit and nuts, and the fox brought fish...
#WyrdWednesday
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A white rabbit with pink eyes and ears sits in a loaf.
November 26, 2025 at 1:02 PM
Reposted by curious ordinary
curiousordinary.bsky.social
In #JapaneseFolklore there is a belief that when animals and birds reach advanced age they can transform into #yokai. Aosagibi (blue heron fire) is a phenomenon that occurs when an elderly night heron develops supernatural qualities. Over time the heron's feathers begin to...
#LegendaryWednesday
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A blue heron sits on the branch of a tree emitting a blue glow.
November 26, 2025 at 1:24 PM
curiousordinary.bsky.social
'Snow at Miyajima' - Kawase Hasui, 1932.
#ToriiTuesday #JapaneseArt
The famous red torii at Itsukushima (also known as Miyajima) that appears to be floating on water. In the foreground a snowy landscape with sea and mountains beyond.
December 30, 2025 at 10:23 AM