kaidan

is a Japanese word consisting of two kanji: 怪 (kai) meaning "strange, mysterious, rare, or bewitching apparition" and 談 (dan) meaning "talk". A female spirit, rises from the depths of the underworld, to conjure fortification of revenge, usually onto a bewitching male wronging an enslaved female witch. Overall meaning and usage In its broadest sense, kaidan refers to any ghost story or horror story, but it has an old-fashioned ring to it that carries the connotation of Edo period Japanese folktales. The term is no longer as widely used in Japanese as it once was: Japanese horror books and films such as Ju-on and Ring would more likely be labeled by the katakana . Kaidan is only used if the author/director wishes to specifically bring an old-fashioned air into the story. Examples of kaidan Banchō Sarayashiki (The Story of Okiku) by Okamoto Kido Yotsuya Kaidan (Ghost Story of Tōkaidō Yotsuya) by Tsuruya Nanboku IV (1755–1829) Botan Dōrō (The Peony Lantern) by Asai Ryoi Mimi-nashi Hōichi (Hōichi the Earless) Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai and kaidanshu Kaidan entered the vernacular during the Edo period, when a parlour game called Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai became popular. This game led to a demand for ghost stories and folktales to be gathered from all parts of Japan and China.The popularity of the game, as well as the acquisition of a printing press, led to the creation of a literary genre called kaidanshu. Kaidanshu were originally based on older Buddhist stories of a didactic nature, although the moral lessons soon gave way to the demand for strange and gruesome stories.