Kawauso

Kawauso

The Kawauso (獺, River Otter) is a type of Japanese yōkai depicting by Toriyama Sekien in the gazu hyakki yagyō.

This creature is known to be a trickster and shapeshifter, able to take on human form, especially that of a beautiful woman who would try to bewitch unwary travellers.

The creature Sekien has depicted wears the rice-straw hat traditionally worn by sake-sellers to denote the first batch of the year, as well as carrying his own bucket of Sake. This might relate to the saying “sake no sakana,” (fish for sake).¹

External Links

• • View the Gazu Hyakki Yagyō online here: Gazu Hyakki Yagyō Online.

Footnotes

1. Yoda, H. and Alt, M. (2016) “Japandemonium: Illustrated: The Yokai Encyclopaedia of Toriyama Sekien.”. New York: over Publications, Inc.

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