Aka Manto
Aka Manto (赤マント, Red Cloak),[1] also known as Red Cape,[2] Red Vest,[1] Akai-Kami-Aoi-Kami (赤い紙青い紙, Red Paper, Blue Paper),[3] or occasionally Aoi Manto (青マント, Blue Cloak),[3] is a Japanese urban legend about a masked spirit who wears a red cloak, and who appears to people using toilets in public or school bathrooms.[3] Accounts of the legend vary, but one consistent element of the story is that the spirit will ask the occupant of a toilet a question. In some versions, he will ask if they want red paper or blue paper, though other versions identify the choices as a red cloak or a blue cloak, or as a red cape or a blue cape. Choosing either option will result in the individual being killed, so the individual must ignore the spirit, run away, or reject both options in order to survive.
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The legend and its variations
Aka Manto is described as a male spirit, ghost, or yōkai who haunts public or school bathrooms.[4] Aka Manto is often said to haunt female bathrooms specifically, and in some versions of the legend, he is said to haunt the last stall in such bathrooms.[4] The spirit is said to wear a flowing red cloak and a mask which hides his face, and is sometimes described as being handsome and charming beneath his mask.[3][4]
According to legend, if a person is sitting on a toilet in a public or school bathroom, Aka Manto may appear, and will ask them if they want red paper or blue paper.[3][5] Depending on the version of the story, the spirit may ask them to choose between a red cloak and a blue cloak,[6] or between a red cape and a blue cape. If they choose the "red" option, they will be lacerated in such a manner that their dead body will be drenched in their own blood.[7] The specific manner in which the person is lacerated differs depending on the account of the legend, including the person being stabbed or flayed.[1] If the individual chooses the "blue" option, the consequences range from that person being strangled to all of the person's blood being drained from their body.[8]
If an individual attempts to outsmart Aka Manto by asking for a different color of paper, cloak or cape, it is often said that they will be dragged to an underworld or hell as a result.[9][10] In some versions, choosing a "yellow" paper, cloak or cape will result in the occupant's head being forced into the toilet.[1][11] Ignoring the spirit, or replying that one does not want or prefer either kind of paper, is said to make the spirit go away.[11] In some accounts, rejecting both options and running away from Aka Manto will also result in the individual's survival, although sometimes Aka Manto will simply block the exit.[1]
History
Author and folklorist Matthew Meyer has stated that the Aka Manto has been recorded as a schoolyard rumor dating back as early as the 1930s.[1] In that time, the word manto commonly referred to a sleeveless kimono-style jacket, whereas in the modern day, manto is the Japanese word for cloak or cape.[1] Because of this, different generations have had differing views of Aka Manto's supposed physical appearance.[1]
In popular culture
The 2003 video game Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow features an enemy known as "Killer Mantle", which may have been based on the Aka Manto legend.[12]
The 2019 video game Aka Manto, developed and published by Chilla's Art, is based on the legend.[13][14]
See also
- Akaname, a Japanese yōkai said to lick the filth in bathrooms and bathtubs
- Hanako-san, a Japanese urban legend about the spirit of a young girl who haunts school bathrooms
- Kuchisake-onna ("Slit-Mouthed Woman"), a Japanese urban legend about a disfigured woman
- Miss Koi Koi, an African urban legend of a ghost who haunts schools
- Teke Teke, a Japanese urban legend about the spirit of a girl with no legs.
References
- Meyer, Matthew (31 October 2016). "Aka manto". Yokai.com. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
- "Japanese Scary Stories: Aka Manto". Japan Info. Japan Info Co., Ltd. 11 June 2015. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
- Grundhauser, Eric (2 October 2017). "Get to Know Your Japanese Bathroom Ghosts". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
- Bathroom Readers' Institute 2017, p. 390.
- Joly 2012, p. 55.
- Briggs, Stacia; Connor, Siofra (16 June 2018). "Weird Norfolk: The haunting of Hardley crossroads". Eastern Daily Press. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
- Vago, Mike (15 May 2016). "Don't fall for Japan's urban legends". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
- "トイレの花子さんは時代遅れ? いまどきの学校の怪談とは" [Is Hanako-san in the toilet obsolete? What is the ghost story of the school of today?] (in Japanese). 18 June 2014. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
- Yoda & Alt 2013, p. 237.
- Bricken, Rob (19 July 2016). "14 Terrifying Japanese Monsters, Myths And Spirits". Kotaku. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
- Bathroom Readers' Institute 2017, p. 391.
- Gilbert, Brian David (25 November 2018). "I wasted 3 weeks of my life finding Castlevania's hottest monster - Unraveled". YouTube. Polygon. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
- "Aka Manto | 赤マント on Steam". Steam. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
- Shohei, Hay (20 February 2020). "『事故物件』『赤マント』『雪女』。Steamで話題の兄弟ホラーゲームクリエイター"Chilla's Art(チラズアート)"インタビュー。なぜレトロ和風ホラーを作り続けるのか". Famitsu (in Japanese). Retrieved 29 July 2020.
Bibliography
- Bathroom Readers' Institute (2017). Uncle John's OLD FAITHFUL 30th Anniversary Bathroom Reader (Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Annual). Portable Press. ISBN 978-1684120864.
- Joly, Dom (2012). Scary Monsters and Super Creeps: In Search of the World's Most Hideous Beasts. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-0857207647.
- Yoda, Hiroko; Alt, Matt (2013). Yokai Attack!: The Japanese Monster Survival Guide. Tuttle Publishing. ISBN 978-1462908837.
Further reading
- 文芸 [Literature] (in Japanese). 21. 河出書房新社 (Kawade Shobo Shinsha). 1982.
- Tanemura, Tokihiro (1989). 日本怪談集 [Japan ghost story collection] (in Japanese). 1. 河出書房新社 (Kawade Shobo Shinsha).