The Japanese Myths

A Guide to Gods, Heroes and Spirits

Joshua Frydman

Thames & Hudson 2022

Hb, 224pp, £14.99, ISBN 9780500252314

The burgeoning worldwide exploitation of Japanese fantasy – especially in the popular genres of manga, anime, videogaming and J-horror movies – has left discerning Westerners wanting to know more about the origins of these seemingly alien legendary characters and creatures from Japan’s mythological histories. Until recently, your choice was rather limited to classical sources (like Jean Herbert’s Shinto, 1967) or the few recent books on yokai (specifically supernatural animals and monsters); today, Joshua Frydman’s handsome tome fills the gap splendidly. Buddhism did not reach Japan until around the 6th century AD, when it added layers of Vedic and Chinese notions of magic, mythology and morality to the native religion, Shinto. Fyrdman’s method is to show how the ancient elements of Shinto (essentially animism combined with ancestor worship) have survived and adapted to remain a vital part of the modern Japanese imagination.

Frydman – a linguistics professor – writes in an engaging style, and he clearly knows his modern examples. Whereas the kami, the spirit forms of gods, trees, mountains and everyday objects, are clearly rooted in Shinto animism, many of the other spirit entities such as demons, evil animals and vengeful ghosts have more Buddhist characteristics, such as working out their karmic fate.

The final chapter focuses on the influence of these elements on modern literature and entertainment, what he calls “the new mythologies”: how their modern superheroes are drawn from the protagonists in ancient cultural histories, and so much more. It’s all so eminently readable, interesting and authoritative that you almost don’t mind that the many fascinating illustrations are, sadly, only in blue monochrome. Highly recommended.

Bob Rickard

★★★★★