Bats in Japanese Folklore

Symbolism, yokai and art

Throughout history bats have made their way into the folklore of cultures around the world. This is no surprise considering there are fossils of bats from around fifty million years ago. Also, there are over one thousand different species found on every continent except Antarctica. Bats are unique animals because, despite carrying and feeding their young in a typical mammalian way, their ability fly is unlike that of any other mammals. This, along with their nocturnal habits, ability to navigate using echolocation and long life spans make them all the more mysterious and fascinating. In this post I will share how bats are viewed in Japan, some yokai bats, a variety of ukiyo-e art depicting bats in different ways, and some traditional haiku featuring bats.

‘Bat and Moon’ - Takahashi Biho, early 1900s.

Bat symbolism in Japan

Many people associate these liminal creatures with darkness, hauntings, vampires and ill omens. However, despite these negative associations in the west, things are quite different in Japan and East Asia. In China the word for bat contains the sound ‘fu’ which can also mean happiness or good fortune. As a result, bats came to be a symbol of both these things. Considering the significant influence Chinese culture had on Japan, it’s no surprise that these positive associations are also found there. In Japanese, bat is 蝙蝠 (komori) and the second character 蝠 can also be pronounced ‘fu’ or ‘fuku’ which means happiness. It is the same character found in the name of the lucky god Fukurokuju (福禄寿). Fukurokuju and another of the Seven Lucky Gods, Jurojin, are believed to be derived from the Taoist star gods Fu, Lu and Shou, particularly the latter who was often depicted with bats as a symbol of happiness as well as long life. I hope to write more about this in a future post.

Detail of Fukurokuju (or Jurojin) with bat, ca. 1800s

As a result of these connections and the influence of Chinese culture, bats in Japan were also viewed as an auspicious symbol of prosperity, happiness and longevity. In art, you will often see them alongside pine, bamboo and plums which symbolise long life and resilience. It is also common to see a bat with a full moon as both these things are symbolic of great happiness. Because of their connection to good fortune, bats were a common design motif on kimono and clothing. I have included a collection of woodblock prints below that show a range of designs featuring bats with the two women in the bottom row even appearing to have their arms and sleeves wrapped like a sleeping bat.

‘Thinking’ - Tomioka Eisen, ca. 1910.

Top three prints by Tomioka Eisen; bottom row Utagawa Kunisada, Utagawa Kuniyoshi, Utagawa Toyokuni II

Bat Yokai

Despite not being as common as many other animals found in Japanese folklore, there are three distinct yokai connected to bats. Be warned though, regardless of the fact that bats symbolise happiness and long life, neither of those outcomes would be likely should you happen to encounter one of these rather terrifying yokai.

Nobusuma

Nobusuma are believed to be bats that live to very old age and then transform into yokai. The idea of long-lived animals gaining supernatural powers is a common theme in Japanese folklore and bats are no exception. Nobusuma eat nuts and fruit just like regular bats, but they also feed on fire, and the blood sucked out of humans or animals. They prey on travellers walking at night by swooping down from trees. Sometimes they will just extinguish torches or lanterns, but more often they attach to their victim's face and begin sucking their blood. As if this prospect isn’t terrifying enough, when the Nobusuma grow even older they transform again into an even more dangerous yokai.

Kyoka Hyaku Monogatari, 1853

Yamachichi

After spending considerable times as a nobusuma, these extremely long-lived bats then transform into another yokai called yamachichi. Despite being a transformed bat, this pointy-faced monster actually resembles a large monkey. It visits people when they are sleeping and sucks the life force from their mouth. Before leaving they tap their victims on the chest, which apparently causes them to die the very next day. However it is said that if the yamachichi is interrupted while sucking out the victim’s life force, it means the person will have much longer life than expected instead.

Takehara Shunsen, 1841.

Nodeppo

There is another yokai known as nodeppo which resembles a flying squirrel and may actually be a transformed tanuki. In a similar way to the nobusuma, they swoop down from trees at night and latch onto people's faces in order to drink their blood. So you might be wondering what their connection to bats is. Well, nodeppo have the extraordinary ability to shoot swarms of bats out of their mouths. These bats fly towards their helpless victims, leaving them flailing blindly while the nodeppo approaches to suck out their blood.

Takehara Shunshen

While researching this article I came across two prints (below) featuring a swordsman battling a large bat. I discovered the man is Miyamoto Musashi, a famous Japanese swordsman, strategist and philosopher known for his undefeated record in duels and his development of a unique two-sword fighting style. He wrote The Book of Five Rings, a guide on swordsmanship, strategy and philosophy that is still studied today. While he was a real historical figure, many details of his life have been embellished and mixed with legend. Stories of his famous battles have been passed down for centuries and depicted in writing and art. There are many series of woodblock prints that include heroes and their encounters with supernatural creatures and one common depiction is Miyamoto Musashi and an enormous bat. I have included two examples below and I wonder if they allude to the nobusuma yokai mentioned above.

Tsukioka Yoshitoshi, Utagawa Kuniyoshi - 1852.

Bats in Japanese ukiyo-e art

Aside from the Japanese prints already included, I wanted to share several more that include bats. This ukiyo-e print below depicts small boys chasing bats in the evening. It is part of a print series depicting a collection of words containing the sound ‘fuku’ which means good fortune. The text on the print was translated for me as ‘Eastern customs, all good fortune, bat.’

Toyohara Chikanobu, 1887.

Utagawa Kuniyoshi was a prolific ukiyo-e artist with a great imagination who created many print series using animals instead of people. I included a selection of his prints in my previous post about tanuki that certainly showcased his talents in this respect. In the series below he uses anthropomorphic bats to depict a variety of humorous scenes.

Utagawa Kuniyoshi

Another common theme in ukiyo-e prints are parodies of scenes from The Tale of Genji, a novel written by Murasaki Shikibu in the early 11th century. The story was so popular and well-known during the Edo period that scenes were easily recognised. A convention known as mitate was used to create unexpected combinations and comparisons of these well-known scenes with other more modern and unrelated stories or images. My knowledge of this is quite limited but I wanted to include the print below as it just happens to contain a swarm of bats. Apparently it depicts a retainer called Oya Taro Mitsukuni who featured in a popular kabuki play at the time.

‘Otakutaro Mitsukuni’ from the series ‘Modern Parodies of Genji’ – Ochiai Yoshiiku, 1864.

Bats in haiku

I thought to finish this article I would include three translated haiku featuring bats. As mentioned earlier, the combination of elements such as bats, the moon and plums often appear together in both poetry and art to reinforce ideas of good fortune and happiness.

you too come out, bat:
all the birds amid the blossoms
of this floating world

Matsuo Basho (1644-1694)

A bat flits
in moonlight
above the plum blossoms.

Yosa Buson (1716-1784)

The bat
circling the moon
would not leave it

Kata Kyotai (1732-1792)

‘Bat and Moon’ - Yamada Ho gyoku, ca. 1830.

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‘Flying Bats’ - Ohara Koson, early 1900s.