Jubokko vs Kodama (spirit)

Jubokko

The Jubokko (Japanese: 樹木子, "tree child") is a yōkai tree in Japanese folklore that appears in many books related to Japanese yōkai, including Shig...

The Jubokko (Japanese: 樹木子, "tree child") is a yōkai tree in Japanese folklore that appears in many books related to Japanese yōkai, including Shigeru Mizuki's works. According to folklore, it appears in former battlefields where many people have died, and its appearance does not differ that much from ordinary trees. Since it becomes a yōkai tree by sucking up large quantities of blood from the dead, it lives on human blood. When a human being happens to pass by, it supposedly captures the victim and, changing its branches into the shape of a tube, sucks the blood out of the victim. A Jubokko that sucks life out of human beings in such a way is said to always maintain a fresh appearance. When a Jubokko is cut, blood trickles out. It is said that a Jubokko branch could heal and decontaminate an injured person.

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Kodama (spirit)

Kodama (木霊, 木魂 or 木魅) are spirits in Japanese folklore that inhabit trees. The term is also used to denote a tree in which a kodama supposedly r...

Kodama (木霊, 木魂 or 木魅) are spirits in Japanese folklore that inhabit trees. The term is also used to denote a tree in which a kodama supposedly resides. The phenomenon known as yamabiko, when sounds make a delayed echoing effect in mountains and valleys, is sometimes attributed to this kind of spirit and may also be referred to as "kodama".

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