#little miss paintbrush

Did you know that there’s a Japanese version of the Loch Ness monster too?  

Issie is a Japanese lake monster that is said to live in Lake Ikeda on the island of Kyushu. According to the myth, Issie was a white female horse that lived on the island with its little foal. 

One day, her foal was stolen by a samurai, and after being unable to find it, Issie jumped off a cliff into the lake in despair. 

Her grief transformed her into a black cryptid monster with two humps on its back, which resurfaces every now and then to try to find her lost foal. #JLMyōkaioftheday#japanloverme Art by @littlemisspaintbrush 

#JLMyōkaioftheday : Baku, or the “Dream Eater” ☁️☁️ 

With a trunk and tusks like an elephant, feet like a tiger’s, and tail like an ox’s, the baku is a legendary yōkai that protects people from nightmares, by devouring bad dreams. 

If a person wakes up and doesn’t remember what their dream was, or if they don’t remember having a dream at all, it is said that they must have had a nightmare and that the baku ate it. 

In some areas in Japan, children are even taught to chant “Baku-san, please eat my dreams” if they get scared of nightmares! ✨But be careful though, because asking the help of the baku too much may result in it devouring even your hopes and dreams, leaving you empty inside. #japanloverme Art by @littlemisspaintbrush 

#JLMyōkaioftheday : Onikuma or “demon bear”  

The onikuma is a bear yōkai who lives deep in forests and mountains, rarely seen by humans. It only comes out of hiding to snatch livestock, which is its primary food source. 

It is said that the onikuma is extremely large and strong, and can carry both a cow and a horse on its back! When its home in the mountains is threatened, it launches large round boulders down the slope to harm its attackers. #japanloverme Art by @littlemisspaintbrush