Once you touch a little on Japanese folklore and mythology, you immediately understand that these people know a lot about demons. In their stories, beliefs and legends there is a demon for every taste and color. Do you love cats? Does your mime meter go off scale at the sight of these ears, noses and tails? And if the cat is also a werewolf, then it’s absolutely chic, right? If all this is about you, then you should not only visit the Black Cat clan, but also be sure to continue reading this article, because it will talk about bakeneko - a demonic werewolf cat. According to very important statistics, taking into account the opinions of real demon pros, the werecat ranks honorably third among all werewolf animals in Japan. The first two places are given to kitsune (were-foxes) and tanuki (were-raccoons or raccoon dogs). We have already written a little about them on our website, take a look if you are interested.
Description
Japanese folklore states that any cat can turn into a magical creature if it lives more than 13 years, weighs 3.75 kg or more, and has a long tail. To turn into a mystical creature, it is enough to fulfill one condition. If a long-tailed beast becomes a demon, the tail will fork. Such a creature has its own name - nekomata. The werewolf's powers are great: bakeneko creates balls of fire, walks on two legs, and revives the dead by jumping over a corpse. If the owner angers the animal, the bakeneko will eat it and take on its appearance.
Mysterious werewolves
A separate interesting part of mythology is the story about the nekomata. This demon with a forked tail came from China and spread myths throughout the Japanese islands. It is believed that youkai live not only in human houses, but also in the mountains. These nekomata are wild and especially strong. Presumably the story takes its roots from veterinary medicine: it has long been known that animals can contract rabies. In Japan, painful diseases are called “nekomata diseases.” It is assumed that the legend about youkai comes from the impressions that ancient people formed when observing cats with rabies.
More often bakeneko become tricolor cats. Being werewolves, they often transform into women rather than men. Sometimes bakeneko is the spirit of a dead woman who wants revenge. Often, youkai gather in a flock to provide the leader with all the opportunities for revenge.
Yokai
Occasionally bakeneko help people, but they are cunning and insidious, they only do what is beneficial to themselves. Sometimes they take the form of incredible beauties and invite travelers to mountain springs. Those who agree become cats and cannot return to the human world.
Nekomata is a type of bakeneko.
Nekomata is a creature whose name has three decodings: “cat again”, “cat with a double tail”, or the random use of the final hieroglyph, consonant with the established word. Japanese culture is closely related to geographical features, so the term may be due to the widespread distribution of monkeys in mountainous areas.
The mountain magic cat originated in China. In Japan, it is found in the “Notes of a Clear Moon”: supposedly in 1233 in Nanto, a demon swallowed several residents. Mountain nekomata have cat-like eyes and an elongated body, like a dog's. “Notes from Boredom” tells that creatures live deep in the mountains. Tales of the Night Watch describes the ability of demons to turn into humans. Over the centuries, people have imagined nekomata to be larger: in 1749, a story was recorded about the capture of a youkai similar in size to a wild boar. In 1775, in Wakun no Shiori, youkai were described as being comparable in size to leopards, and in 1809, in Guiso, the body length was designated as 2.8 meters. Presumably, the legends are associated with attacks on people by large wild cats in the Fukushima region.
Demon cat
The collection “Cocoon Temonshu” first mentions domestic werecats. He tells how one animal, who lived in the mountains in a house on the edge of a cliff, grabbed a sword-amulet and ran away with it. Although the owners chased the animal, the cat successfully escaped. In the Edo era, they believed that old domestic cats turned into youkai, so they did not keep the animals for long. Modern researchers have established that the legend stems from the fact that in aging cats, the skin hanging from the back creates the illusion of a second tail.
Nekomata
For the Japanese, cats are associated with death, so in the past they were treated cruelly. There was a belief that the clan of a cat killer receives a curse for 7 generations. It was believed that youkai cats were more evil and more dangerous than other werewolves. They are carnivorous, smell rot from afar, and are not afraid of the dead. They believed that the powers of a youkai depended on how cruelly the living beast was treated. To prevent turning into a demon, cats had their tails cut off.
Skills, powers and abilities
Bakeneko have magical powers and necromancy abilities. They raise the dead with dances and gestures, jumping over the corpse.
Creatures can:
- summon ghostly balls of fire;
- take the form of an absorbed person;
- speak humanly;
- curse.
Mystical cats
Where did you actually come from?
Bakeneko is just one chapter in the long history of Japanese cat folklore. Today, the concept of a woman under the influence of a cat can be seen in many horror films. Researcher Michael Crandol writes for the Encyclopedia of Japanese Horror Films: "Tales of Bakeneko were the single most popular theme of Japanese horror films from the beginning of cinema until the 1960s, and by 1970 more than sixty such films had been released." Back in 1938, The Ghost Cat and The Mysterious Shamisen was released, followed by the 1968 post-war modern classic Black Cats in the Bamboo. The bakeneko subgenre of Japanese horror is a testament to its ubiquity. Not to mention the appeal of mysterious intrigue.
Director Kaneto Shindo's Black Cats in the Bamboo asks a universal question: Will my cat eat me when I die?
From this point of view, the origins of cat girls seem rather vague. In fact, looking solely through the lens of the traditional understanding of bakeneko is a rather limited approach. Maybe they are not all evil women possessed by vengeful spirits? But what else?
In May 2021, independent cartoonist Keiichi Tanaka posted a thread on Twitter asking where the familiar “cat girl” design might have come from:
Among the responses was Osamu Tezuka's character Hecate from the 1950s manga The Princess Knight , a shape-shifting young witch who takes on cat-like features without completely turning into a cat. Was it Tezuka who started catgirls, as he contributed to many other innovations in early anime and manga? Or are cat girls an underappreciated relic of the Edo period that appeared in Kuniyoshi's prints? What about classic 80s shoujo manga?
Cat Magic in Tezuka 's Princess Knight
As with many discussions in art history, the conclusion is ambiguous. Some would say that Kuniyoshi unintentionally invented "catgirls" in the 19th century. Others might say that Tezuka perfected that very concept. But of course, if we look at catgirls strictly through the lens of anime and manga, the ambiguity and debate about "origin" becomes less of a headache. Rather, in this case, we can rephrase the question: what works may have helped catgirls blossom into the anime phenomenon we know and love today?
Chibi Neko, a cat who thinks she is a girl
The manga Star of Cottonland by Yumiko Ashima was published in the shoujo magazine LaLa from 1978 to 1987. The main heroine, Chibi Neko (Baby), is a kitten who thinks she is a little girl. Because of this, the story is told from her point of view and depicts her as a human girl with cat ears. It turns out that Ashima is the possible creator of this extremely popular trope. In 1984, Star of Fuzzyland was an hour and a half OVA from Mushi Production, a studio known for adapting many of Tezuka's works.
Meanwhile, another OVA was released in 1984: Bugs, Monster of Mighty Nature . It was an original work written by Tezuka himself in response to the Japanese government's approval of research into gene recombination. The most famous of these was an anthropomorphic catwoman named Bugi, who was undoubtedly more cat than girl. Bagi tries to take revenge on humanity, while at the same time establishing a difficult relationship with the main male character.
Cyberpunk cat twins from Masamune Dominion
The Star of Fluffyland and Bugs are very different in their themes, however, both promote the concept of cat girls. Meanwhile, Masamune Shiro's 1985 sci-fi manga Dominion appears. Here we see android cat girls in a bold cyberpunk setting. The manga was adapted into an OVA series in 1988. Dominion: Tank Police introduces cougar twins, Anna and Uni, catgirls created as sentient love dolls. The flowing voluminous hair, the overtly sexualized design - they undoubtedly have more in common with the cruel Bagi than with Ashima's Baby.
Myths and legends about Bakeneko
A long time ago, a cat settled in an abandoned temple. When a traveler approached, she went out to the threshold, sat down and raised her paw, inviting him inside. The person received shelter, rested his soul and body. This legend is the brightest of those telling about bakeneko.
Bakeneko appears in popular belief
Another story is about the murder of a Go opponent, Ryuzoji Mataichiro, by Prince Nabeshima Mitsushige. The mother of the murdered man, consumed by the pain of loss, told about this to the domestic cat, who invited the woman to sacrifice herself. After drinking her blood, the cat became a werewolf. She visited Nabeshima every night, torturing him. The prince fell ill, lost his child, and then lost all his servants - they were killed by a huge cat. The monster was defeated by Nabeshima's loyal servant Chibu Motoemon. The tomb of the terrible cat is located near Shiroishi in Saga at Shurin-ji Temple.
Yamato Kaiiki is about a haunted house owned by a wealthy samurai. He tried to cleanse his home of otherworldly forces, called priests and shamans, but no one could help. One day a servant noticed a suspicious cat and killed it with an arrow to the head. It turned out that the animal had two tails; he has already converted to bakeneko. After defeating the beast, the subnormal phenomena disappeared.
Breed defects
Japanese Bobtails are a native breed, naturally formed. Therefore, animals have excellent health and a good immune system.
Tendency to diseases
These cats have no predisposition to diseases, including those of a genetic nature. With proper care and proper feeding, they almost never get sick. Short-tailedness does not have any effect on the general well-being and health of animals; they do not have problems with the spine. But the tail requires careful handling, because rough touches to it can be painful.
There are no genetic diseases in Japanese Bobtails.
At least once a year you need to visit a veterinary clinic for examination and tests (blood, urine, etc.)
Defects in appearance
The disadvantages of the appearance of Japanese Bobtails are:
- stocky, squat build;
- heavy heavy frame;
- round short head.
The following are considered defects in appearance that entail the disqualification of an animal:
- complete absence of a tail (no caudal vertebrae);
- the tail is slightly pubescent and does not have a pom-pom shape;
- tail is too long (more than 13 cm);
- the tail is of the “retracted bobtail” type - a long straight section of 6-7 vertebrae, and then a bend or squiggle.
The complete absence of a tail in a bobtail is a serious drawback.
The following colors of Japanese Bobtails are not recognized by the standard:
- lilac;
- chocolate (and all combinations with it);
- color point;
- faun;
- cinnamon;
- acromelanic colors.
Bakeneko in modern culture
Images of magical cats appear in popular works:
- Nurarihyon no Mago - a clan of mystical cats;
- Soul Eater - Blair the cat, who turns into a beautiful girl;
- Ayakashi: Japanese Classic Horror is a classic bakeneko.
The most popular image is nekomusume, a catwoman. Nekomimi (cat ears) and other animal attributes are often used in modern culture. This is especially noticeable in cosplay.
Neko cosplay
Table: pros and cons of the Japanese Bobtail breed
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