Tenka (kaika)
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Tenka (天火) are a type of
atmospheric ghost light Atmospheric ghost lights are lights (or fires) that appear in the atmosphere without an obvious cause. Examples include the onibi, hitodama and will-o'-wisp. They are often seen in humid climates. Tsunoda 1979, pages 11-53 According to legend, so ...
told about in various areas of Japan. It is written about in the collection of fantastic stories, the
Ehon Hyaku Monogatari The , also called the is a book of ''yōkai'' illustrated by Japanese artist Takehara Shunsensai, published about 1841. The book was intended as a followup to Toriyama Sekien's ''Gazu Hyakki Yagyō'' series. Like those books, it is a supernatura ...
from the
Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...
and in the essay Kasshi Yawa by Seizan Matsuura and other writings, but it is also told as the folklore of various areas.


Folklore

In the
Atsumi District was a district located in southern Aichi Prefecture, Japan, located on the Atsumi Peninsula in Mikawa Bay. As a result of various consolidations and mergers of municipalities, the district was incorporated into the cities of Toyohashi and Tah ...
,
Aichi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,461,111 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the ...
, when one's path ahead when on a road at night becomes bright like at noon, it is called a "tenbi" (天火), and in the Ibi District,
Gifu Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Gifu Prefecture has a population of 1,910,511 () and has a geographic area of . Gifu Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture to the north; Ishikawa Prefecture ...
, the mysterious fires that make a great noise in the evening sky in the summer and fly are called "tenpi" (天火). In the
Higashimatsuura District is a district located in Saga Prefecture, Japan. At the present it has only one town. As of April 1, 2021, the district has an estimated population of 5,211 and a density of 145 persons per square kilometre. The total area is . Municipalities * ...
,
Saga Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. Saga Prefecture has a population of roughly 780,000 and has a geographic area of . Saga Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northeast and Nagasaki Prefect ...
, the weather became better once a tenka appeared, but the homes it entered were stricken by illness, so it is said that they are beaten by a
kane Kane or KANE may refer to: Art, entertainment and media Fictional entities *Kane (comics), the main character of the eponymous comic book series by Paul Grist * Kane (''Command & Conquer''), Tiberium universe character in the ''Command & Conquer'' ...
and driven out. In the Tamana District,
Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture t ...
, it is a mysterious fire that falls from the heavens and has a size about that of a paper lantern. It is said that a conflagration results when it falls on the roof of a house. In the
Saga Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. Saga Prefecture has a population of roughly 780,000 and has a geographic area of . Saga Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northeast and Nagasaki Prefect ...
region, they were thought of as a premonition for a conflagration, and were detested. It is said that tenka were once thought of as a type of
vengeful spirit In mythology and folklore, a vengeful ghost or vengeful spirit is said to be the spirit of a dead person who returns from the afterlife to seek revenge for a cruel, unnatural or unjust death. In certain cultures where funeral and burial or crem ...
(
onryō In Japanese traditional beliefs and literature, are a type of ghost () believed to be capable of causing harm in the world of the living, injuring or killing enemies, or even causing natural disasters to exact Revenge, vengeance to "redres ...
), and in the document on folk customs "Amakusatō Minzokushi" from the
Amakusa islands , which means "Heaven's Grass," is a series of islands off the west coast of Kyushu, the southernmost of the four main islands of Japan. Geography The largest island of the Amakusa group is Shimoshima, which is 26.5 miles long and 13.5 mil ...
, Kumamoto Prefecture, there is the following legend. A certain man went to Oniike village (now
Amakusa city is a city located in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 72,243 in 36029 households, and a population density of 110 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Amakusa covers the majority of t ...
) to fish, but the villagers treated him as an outsider and treated him ill, and due to that, he died from an illness. From then on, a ball of fire came flying in Oniike every evening, and moved on to burn a brush, and without even a chance for the villages to try to extinguish the fire, it spread, and completely burned down the houses of the village. The villagers feared this as the deed of that man's vengeful spirit, and built a jizō at the place where he was ill-treated, and it is said that his spirit is mourned for every winter.いずれも原典には「天火」の名がないが、天草のものは後掲『竹原春泉 絵本百物語 桃山人夜話』で、『筆のすさび』のものは『妖怪事典』()で天火と解釈されている。 When a tenka flies, there is the theory that it makes a "shan shan" sound like the janjanbi of the
Nara Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Nara Prefecture has a population of 1,321,805 and has a geographic area of . Nara Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Osaka Prefecture to the ...
, and thus it is also called a "shanshanbi" in the
Tosa Province was a province of Japan in the area of southern Shikoku. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Tosa''" in . Tosa bordered on Awa to the northeast, and Iyo to the northwest. Its abbreviated form name was . In terms of the Gokishichidō syst ...
(now
Kōchi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Kōchi Prefecture has a population of 669,516 (1 April 2023) and has a geographic area of 7,103 km2 (2,742 sq mi). Kōchi Prefecture borders Ehime Prefecture to the northwest and Tok ...
).


Classics

According to the "Kasshi Yawa", when the people of Saga found a tenka and left it alone, their homes caught on fire, so it was driven away by gathering around and reciting a Buddhist prayer, causing the tenka to change its direction and flee. At the end, in the suburbs, it disappeared in the middle of vegetation. Also, it is said that tenka could be driven away by fanning them with a
setta *Brandon Setta, American musician from band Nothing *Morena Silva de Vaz Setta Baccarin, or Morena Baccarin, American actress *Nick Setta, former professional Canadian football placekicker and punter *Salli Setta, American restaurateur and busin ...
(a type of sandal), and in the collection of fantastic stories "Fude no Susabi" from the
Ansei was a after '' Kaei'' and before ''Man'en''. This period spanned the years from November 1854 through March 1860. The reigning emperor was . Change of era * November 27, 1854 (): The new era name of ''Ansei'' (meaning "tranquil government ...
period, there was one that told about someone in the
Hizen Province was an old provinces of Japan, old province of Japan in the area of the Saga Prefecture, Saga and Nagasaki Prefecture, Nagasaki prefectures. It was sometimes called , with Higo Province. Hizen bordered on the provinces of Chikuzen Province, Ch ...
who lost their home due to a fire and "the fire fell on someone else's home, and the resident of that home used a setta to drive away that fire, resulting in my home catching on fire instead, so I'd like for the residents of that home to pay the expenses for a new home", and implored for a settlement from the
daikan ''Daikan'' (代官) was an official in ancient Japan that acted on behalf of a ruling monarch or a lord at the post they had been appointed to. Since the Middle Ages, ''daikan'' were in charge of their territory and territorial tax collection. In ...
(administrators of the Edo period). In the collection of fantastic stories "Ehon Hyaku Monogatari" from the Edo period, it was written about as "tenka" (天火), and according to this, there are those here and there who die by fire when their homes catch on fire. According fantastic story from this same piece of writing, there was a heartless daikan at a certain place, and due to his selfish desires, he ill-treated his subordinates, and got a bad reputation even among his superiors, and when he came down from his seat of daikan next month, a fire came from somewhere that should have had no trace of fire at all burned his house, and he also died from the fire, and all the gold and silver, treasures, and clothing turned to smoke in a flash. When this fire occurred, it is said that someone witnessed the sight of a lump of fire falling from the sky.


See also

*
List of legendary creatures from Japan The following is a list of Akuma (demons), Yūrei (ghosts), Yōkai (spirits), Kami and other legendary creatures that are notable in Japanese folklore and mythology. A ...


References

{{Reflist Atmospheric ghost lights Japanese folklore