Ghosts, Spirits and Paranormal Entities From Asian Folklore and Mythology (Book 2): Illustrated Books of Asian Ghosts and Monsters, #2

Ghosts, Spirits and Paranormal Entities From Asian Folklore and Mythology (Book 2)

S. N. Linn

To my best friend and husband Tom and our son Alex, just for being who he is.

Cover: Todor Gotchkov (@ ArtworksByTAG)

All Illustrations except those of Mekurabe, Kinnara, Mahsuri, and Oat Da Sount: Todor Gotchkov (@ ArtworksByTAG)

Copyright ©2024 by Su Nandar Linn

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part, or stored in a retrieval system, or distributed in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of author.

Published by Wispolips Publishing

www.wispolipspublishing.com

ISBN 978-981-94-0559-6

Preface (A Short One!)

As someone who skips prefaces and goes straight to the content when reading books, I have kept this section brief.

First, this book is not meant for children. It contains information about ghosts and monsters with unsettling natures and graphic origins.

Next, I am not a folklorist, just someone who loves paranormal folklore. I think I would stop loving them if I treated them as research topics. Clearly, I don’t intend this book to be a formal work. The information presented here is drawn from various sources: books, online content, and personal anecdotes. I enjoyed the entire process of writing and publishing this book and approached every step with child-like curiosity.

Throughout the book, I don't differentiate between singular and plural nouns of an entity by adding s, es, or ies at the end. For example, Khyah is a mythical creature from Nepalese folklore. I don't write "Khyahs or Khyahes for the plural form. To simplify, the plural version is also Khyah."

Also, I didn’t use italic font for foreign words because if I did, this book would be full of italicized terms, and it would be quite bothersome to read.

Finally, this is the second book out of a trilogy of the series Illustrated Book of Asian Ghosts and Monsters. To get updates about my book releases, subscribe to my author's website SNLINN.COM.

Contents

1.Jenglot

2.Jerakong

3.Jiangshi

4.Jikininki

5.Jilaiya

6.Jorogumo

7.Jubokko

8.Jurig Bonge

9.Kage Onna

10.Kanabhulo

11.Kantanod

12.Kantasma

13.Kaperosa

14.Kappa

15.Kasa Obake

16.Kasha

17.Katawaguruma

18.Kawahime

19.Kejoro

20.Kemamang

21.Keukegen

22.Khyah

23.Kibaan

24.Kichkandi

25.Kinduri

26.Kinnara

27.Kitsune

28.Koan kroach

29.Kokuri baba

30.Kosodate yurei

31.Kowai

32.Krasue

33.Kubikajiri

34.Kuchisake Onna

35.Kudan

36.Kuman thong

37.Kumao

38.Kurote

39.Kyet

40.Kyokotsu

41.Laman lupa

42.Lampong

43.Langsuyar

44.Lu Chout

45.Luo Tou Shi

46.Lusar Lal

47.Ma Da

48.Ma Ga

49.Ma Lai

50.Ma Phae Wah

51.Ma Than Vong

52.Ma Tranh

53.Ma Vu Dai

54.Mae Nak Phra Khanong

55.Mattitima

56.Maha Sona

57.Mahsuri

58.Makuragaeshi

59.Mandurugo

60.Mangmangkit

61.Mansalauan

62.Mantahungal

63.Manuthiha

64.Mariaban

65.Markupo

66.Mechho Bhoot

67.Mekurabe

68.Mhin Sar

69.Mikoshi-nyudo

70.Miminashi Hoichi

71.Mokumokuren

72.Moo-Sin-A

73.Moryo

74.Naale Baa

75.Naga

76.Nang Ta-Khian

77.Nat

78.Noppera-bo

79.Nukekubi

80.Nuno Sa Punso

81.Nure Onna

82.Nuribotoke

83.Oat Da Sount

84.Obariyon

85.Okuri inu

86.Oni

87.Onryo

88.Orang Minyak

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About the Author

1

Jenglot

Indonesia

Jenglot are mummified carcasses of alleged mythical creatures, used as protective amulets and lucky charms. But some view jenglot as sinister objects, and for good reason, as the ritual required to keep one is unsettling.

A person who owns a jenglot must feed it blood, either their own or that of an animal. Accounts of feeding methods vary. Some suggest that drops of blood must be fed directly into the jenglot’s mouth, while others claim leaving a glass of blood near it would do the trick. If left unfed, the jenglot turns on its owner and their family.

According to folklore, jenglot were once hermits who devoted their lives to practicing forbidden magic. As punishment for pursuing dark knowledge, the earth itself was said to reject their bodies after death. Their corpses did not decay but became mummified humanoids, trapping their spirits within.

In appearance, jenglot have features of both humans and various animals, with snake and fish characteristics being the most common. Their sizes vary, ranging from as small as three inches to as large as an adult’s forearm. Some accounts even claim that jenglot grow larger over time.

In reality, most jenglot are taxidermized creations, crafted by mixing animal parts to make them appear otherworldly. In some cases, human remains—such as deceased fetuses or infants—were allegedly used to create a jenglot. Despite the grisly nature of these amulets, buyers remain eager to own one, believing that the use of these morbid materials enhances their mystical powers.

Today, one can easily purchase a jenglot online at varying price points. Those made with animal remains are more expensive than those crafted with inorganic materials such as clay, resin, and wood.

2

Jerakong

Indonesia

Imagine sleeping soundly at night when you are jolted awake by noises coming from your kitchen. You can hear someone opening cabinets and rummaging through their contents. Heart pounding, you cautiously make your way to the kitchen and peek through the doorway.

There, in the dark, you see a skeleton nonchalantly eating something. Doubting if you are fully awake, you blink. Sure enough, the skeleton is still there, munching on an egg. With its bony hands, it takes egg after egg from your open fridge and shovels them into its mouth. As the eggs enter the skeleton’s maw, their content vanishes without a trace.

You rub your eyes again, making sure you really are awake. When you look again, the skeleton is gone. It takes a moment to recover from the shock, but you convince yourself it was just a hallucination and head back to bed.

Morning arrives, and as you brush your teeth, you recall the strange dream from the previous night. Out of curiosity, you check the egg carton in your fridge—it’s still full. You chuckle and brush off the dream as mere nonsense. Now, it’s time for breakfast, and you grab an egg to whip up an omelet. Then you notice something odd. The egg feels unusually light. You crack it into a bowl, only to find it completely empty inside.

Frowning, you pick another egg—also empty. One by one, you check the rest, but every single egg in your fridge is nothing more than a hollow shell. You have just been robbed by a jerakong—an egg-stealing skeleton from Indonesian folklore.

Jerakong are specters with only two purposes: stealing eggs and eating them on the spot. They sneaked into homes either through ordinary means or by transforming into smoke to slip through walls. Once inside, jerakong search for eggs, consuming them while leaving their shells eerily untouched.

According to local belief, jerakong were once egg-stealing humans. In death, they emerged from their graves as jerakong, cursed to continue their pilfering. Since they rarely attack humans, they are considered more of a nuisance than a threat.

One can get the service of a shaman to get rid of a pestering jerakong. An alleged method involves placing coconut shells inside the jerakong’s grave. When the jerakong returns to its grave, it becomes trapped in a shell. A talisman is then placed on the grave to seal the jerakong. As the sun rises, the shell bursts, destroying the jerakong with it. If one were to examine the shattered shells, they would find scattered bone fragments mixed within.

3

Jiangshi

China

Jiangshi are vampiric corpses that feed on human blood—or, in some accounts, life force. Their unique trait is the way they move by hopping on their legs with their arms outstretched. This peculiar way of moving is necessary because their bodies are stiff with rigor mortis.

As reanimated bodies, their appearance varies, ranging from an ordinary-looking person to a horribly decomposed corpse, depending on when they rise as a jiangshi. Most jiangshi are depicted as having grayish-white skin and with dark circles around their eyes. Their mouths have fangs, and their hands feature razor-sharp fingernails. Jiangshi typically wear clothing from the Qing Dynasty: a black robe and a brimmed hat, which were commonly worn by Chinese officials of that period.

Similar to vampires from Western folklore, jiangshi avoid sunlight and come out only at night. They pursue victims by hoping after them to drain their blood. Despite their stiff bodies, jiangshi possess remarkable speed. Jiangshi are strong too, capable of breaking through thick wooden doors using only their outstretched hands. Escaping a jiangshi unharmed is no easy feat, but there are ways to defend against them.

One of the most effective methods is attaching a talisman with sacred symbols inscribed in chicken blood to the jiangshi’s forehead, which renders it motionless. If the talisman is removed, however, the jiangshi will immediately attack anyone nearby, even in the daytime, provided they are in a location sheltered from the sunlight.

Another method is to hold one’s breath since jiangshi are said to detect human energy through breathing. However, this technique has its limitations. Since jiangshi are neither blind nor deaf, they can still see and hear movement, making it effective only when a person remains hidden from view.

Since jiangshi are afraid of their own reflections, forcing them to look into a mirror can temporarily scare them away. They also have an aversion to glutinous rice, so scattering uncooked glutinous rice grains repels them. Victims injured by a jiangshi turn into jiangshi themselves, but treating their wounds with raw glutinous rice is believed to prevent the transformation.

Jiangshi are said to rise from their graves for various reasons. A person killed by a jiangshi is doomed to become one, and those who die violent or unnatural deaths, such as through murder or suicide, have a high risk of becoming jiangshi. The spirits of wicked individuals are also believed to remain trapped within their rotting corpses, transforming them into jiangshi. If a deceased individual did not receive a proper burial, their corpse might return as a jiangshi, either through possession by a wandering spirit or by absorbing yang energy from their surroundings. Additionally, necromancers can use black magic rituals to raise the dead as jiangshi.

Historically, however, jiangshi are believed to have originated from the way the deceased were transported in the past. Chinese believed the dead could only rest in peace if they were buried in their hometowns.