Kappa

The Kappa is a water-dwelling yokai from Japanese myth. Its name can be translated as “river child.” Sometimes, the Kappa are revered as a form of water gods. They are often depicted with scaly skin that is red, green, or blue. Their faces consist of bulging eyes and turtle beaks. Commonly they have a bowl-like dip in the top of their skull meant to hold water. They’re amphibious or reptilian and move effectively in water, but are clumsy on land. They have webbed hands and feet that lack thumbs, and a turtle shell on their backs. Oddly they have an elastic-like waterproof skin that smells like fish and can be removed, three buttholes, and arms that are attached inside the shell and can be pulled to affect the length of the other. They range from the size of a toddler to that of a young teenager, despite this, they are known to be strong and capable fighters, and Kappa becomes indebted to any who beat them. They are stubborn but honorable and refuse to break a promise. They live in rivers, streams, and shallow pools of muddy water. Younger Kappa live in groups and older Kappa live alone. They are most active in warm months, and sometimes pull horses or oxen into the water to drown. Some myths say they must maintain contact with the water but can go on land if they keep some amount of water in a dip in their skulls.  If this water pours out though, the Kappa loses all its strength and may even die. They can be tricked into losing the water in their head if you bow very low at them, and they will be obligated to bow back in return due to etiquette. They’re typically seen as malicious creatures that attack humans, either eating them entirely or taking a passing bite out of them. Often they attempt to eat the liver, or the “Shirikodama” which is some mysterious body part hidden in the anus. Stories frequently say they wait until people get close to the water and pull them down, wrestling them until they drown. In other situations, they challenge people to finger wrestling and then throw these people into the water. They may challenge people to wrestle, which seems easy because they’re small, though along with their strength, they have a unique form of wrestling. Occasionally they befriend other Yokai or humans as they are intelligent and capable of learning the language of humans. They also have great knowledge of medicine and setting bones, which the Kappa taught to humans. Many stories say they can be appeased with offerings of watermelons, cucumbers, and eggplants. Writing someone’s name on a cucumber and tossing it to a Kappa will convince them to not harm that person.  They’re still mischievous creatures that fart loudly in public and look up women’s kimonos. 

Citations:

Maberry, Jonathan. Vampire Universe: The Dark World of Supernatural Beings That Haunt Us, Hunt Us, and Hunger for Us. United States, Kensington Publishing Corporation, 2006.

Meyer, Matthew. The Night Parade of One Hundred Demons: A Field Guide to Japanese Yōkai. United States, Matthew Meyer, 2015.