CONTENTS

A red decorative flourish composed of a line spiraling into a knot at the center.

KWAIDAN original: "Kwaidan" (Japanese for "Ghost Stories" or "Strange Tales")

THE STORY OF MIMI-NASHI-HŌÏCHI original: "Mimi-nashi-Hōïchi" (Hōïchi the Earless) . . . . 1

OSHIDORI original: "Oshidori" (The Mandarin Duck; a symbol of marital fidelity) . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

THE STORY OF O-TEI . . . . . . . . 27

UBAZAKURA original: "Ubazakura" (The Milk-Nurse Cherry Tree) . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

DIPLOMACY . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

OF A MIRROR AND A BELL . . . . . . 51

JIKININKI original: "Jikininki" (Ghouls or "man-eating ghosts" in Buddhist folklore) . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

MUJINA original: "Mujina" (A shape-shifting creature often appearing as a badger or raccoon-dog) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

ROKURO-KUBI original: "Rokuro-kubi" (Beings whose necks stretch to great lengths at night) . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

A DEAD SECRET . . . . . . . . . . 101

YUKI-ONNA original: "Yuki-onna" (The Snow Woman) . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

THE STORY OF AOYAGI original: "Aoyagi" (Green Willow) . . . . . . . 119

JIU-ROKU-ZAKURA original: "Jiu-roku-zakura" (The Sixteen-Day Cherry Tree) . . . . . . . . . 137

THE DREAM OF AKINOSUKÉ . . . . . 143