Ghosts And The Japanese: Cultural Experience in Japanese Death Legends

By Michiko Iwasaka and Barre Toelken

The Japanese have ambivalent attitudes toward death, deeply rooted in pre-Buddhist traditions. In this scholarly but accessible work, authors Iwasaka and Toelken show that everyday beliefs and customs--particularly death traditions--offer special insight into the living culture of Japan.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Utah State University Press
• Release date: Dec 1, 1994
• ISBN: 9780874213799

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Reviews for Ghosts And The Japanese

[tsunaminoai · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Interesting premise of using ghost legends to discover cultural links to every day life in Japan. Liked every much that there was discussion about the rituals surrounding death and how traditional values can be reflected both in them and the legends that spring up around them. Unfortunately, if you're looking for well told legends they are not here. They are short and concise. Also, the explanations for symbology in the legends is told before the text of the tale itself, leading to some anticlimax. Still, if you're interested in ghost stories from Japan and are looking for a deeper understanding of them, this is a good place to start.