Dear reader: a violent storm is approaching Scandinavia. Red alerts of all sorts have been issued, and the populus is busy removing loose objects, filling up their water tanks and checking if they have enough batteries to last. Later tonight, when all Hell breaks loose , they will huddle together, step away from the windows, brace themselves and excert a nordic form of calm born through experience with hellish weather.
But i digress.
Now, let me take this occasion, to tell you about the nightgown - wearing ghost. Her face is covered by her long black hair. She is the one that comes crawling down the stairs and out of closets in you nightmares. The ghost that make this throat gurgling "moaaaaaaaaaaaaa" - sound that makes your skin crawl. The one that that comes crawling towards you, behind you, in the darkness to pull you... away. Away from this world.
Let me tell you about yūrei!
Kayako is the main antagonist in the Ju-On and The Grudge film series. She returns as an vengeful spirit, often referred to as an onryō, after being murdered by her husband. Her vengeful haunting, her relentless fury and the spreading of her curse at the site of her death is nothing short of iconic in japanese horror, stemming from the deeply rooted cultural belief in yūrei (or yurei).
Yūrei is far from being a new phenomenon. We are talking ancient Japanese folklore here, dating back to the 8th century. This folklore revolves around the souls of the deceased who have not found peace through the proper funeral rituals. They may also have lost their lives through a violent haneous death.
Their spectral beings, fueled by an exceptional rage and hunger for blood and revenge, exert their endless revenge on their surroundings in the form of yūrei. The hatred and grief that is concentrated in such a brutal death can, according to this folklore, be so strong that it builds a bridge between the spirit world and the physical world, with the result that yūrei will exist on earth until the soul finds peace or the crime behind their death is avenged.
The classic features of yūrei are:
-White funeral kimono / "nightgown".
-Long hair in front of the face. Head hanging slightly down. Hateful eyes staring out through long tufts of hair.
+Arms and legs hanging straight down, with the elbows pulled in towards the body.
-In recent times, yūrei have been given a number of body horror characteristics, such as unnatural joint movement, crawling in unnatural ways and rapid, snapping movements with the neck and head.
-Nowadays, yūrei can also move extremely fast between spots, and suddenly be right behind you - or above you.
Or inside you.
A yūrei is what you hope never will come crawling out of the drain in your bathroom or down your stairs. It is the spectral being that never sleeps. It is what makes this guttural sound that will turn your blood into ice in an instant. Yūrei is a pure white burning fury which can only be stopped by more death or by the crime that started it all being re-done.
A twist in the fabric of space where time becomes a loop. Where time becomes a loop. Where time becomes a loop. Where time becomes a loop.
Pray you never encounter one! 😉⻤
