User:CiaelShiroi/Oni

Lead
An oni is a kind of yōkai, demon, orc, ogre, or troll in Japanese folklore. '''Oni can be men or women but have been predominantly male throughout history. Oni women are sometimes referred to by the name Yamauba. They are believed to live in caves or deep in the mountains . Oni are known for their superhuman strength and have been associated with powers like thunder and lightning along with their''' evil nature manifested in their propensity for murder and cannibalism. Notwithstanding their evil reputation, oni possess complex aspects that cannot be brushed away simply as evil. They are typically portrayed as hulking figures with one or more horns growing out of their heads, '''with three eyes sometimes. The third eye being in the center of the forehead and have massive teeth . Stereotypically, they are conceived of as red, blue, black, or yellow colored skin''', wearing loincloths of tiger pelt, and carrying iron kanabō clubs. Their looks may vary, one constant though is they all have two to three fingered hands and toes with overgrown nails . They are creatures which instill fear and feelings of danger due to their grotesque outward appearance. '''Oni have been said to change their looks to fool their victims into trusting them. So, when they go to eat the human there is little they can do to fight back. When in disguise Oni are capable of changing into the physiognomy of a man or women regardless of their gender. As monstrous as Oni are they have been linked to bringing good fortune and wealth .'''

They are popular characters in Japanese art, literature, and theater and appear as stock villains in the well-known fairytales of Momotarō (Peach Boy), Issun-bōshi, and Kobutori Jīsan. Although Oni have been described as frightening creatures, they have become tamer in modern culture as people tell less frightening stories about them like Oni Mask and Red Oni Who Cried.

Shuten-dōji has been regarded as the most famous and strongest oni in Japan. The legend of Shuten-dōji has been described since the 14th century in various arts, traditional performing arts and literature such as emakimono, jōruri, noh and kabuki. The tachi (Japanese long sword) "Dōjigiri" with which Minamoto no Yorimitsu decapitated Shuten-dōji' in the legend is now designated as a National Treasure and one of the Tenka-Goken (Five Greatest Swords Under Heaven).

'''I also kept the above last two paragraphs the same in the lead because they work really well. It was just the beginning part of the overview that needed work. ^'''

Article body
Description[edit]

Sessen Doji Offering His Life to an Ogre (Japanese Oni), hanging scroll, color on paper, c. 1764. Painting by Soga Shōhaku (1730–1781).

Depictions of yokai oni vary widely but usually portray them as hideous, gigantic ogre-like creatures with a single horn or multiple horns emerging from their heads, with sharp claws, wild hair, and fang-like tusks.

They are often depicted wearing tiger-skin loincloths and carrying iron clubs called kanabō (金棒). This image leads to the expression "oni with an iron club" (鬼に金棒, oni-ni-kanabō), that is, to be invincible or undefeatable.

Their skin may have various colors, but red, blue, and green are particularly common. They may sometimes also be depicted as black-skinned, or yellow-skinned.

They may occasionally be depicted with a third eye on their forehead, or extra fingers and toes.

They are predominantly male but can be female. Females becoming oni has been attributed to them being overcome with grief or jealousy.

Oni can come in many different sizes ranging in both weight and height.

'''I believe this to repetitive in the main article because it is gone over in the lead. Thus, needing to be removed completely. ^'''

Etymology [edit]
An old etymology for "oni" is that the word derives from on, the on'yomi reading of a character (隠) meaning "to hide or conceal", due to oni having the tendency of "hiding behind things, not wishing to appear". This explanation is found in the 10th century dictionary Wamyōshō, which reveals that the oni at the time had a different meaning, defined as "a soul/spirit of the dead".

The character for oni, 鬼 (pinyin: guǐ; Jyutping: gwai2) in Chinese also means a dead or ancestral spirit, and not necessarily an evil specter. Accordingly, Chinese (Taoist) origins for the concept of oni have been proposed. Particularly powerful oni may be described as kishin or kijin (literally "oni god"; the "ki" is an alternate character reading of "oni"), a term used in Japanese Buddhism to refer to Wrathful Deities.

The oni was syncretized with Hindu-Buddhist creatures such as the man-devouring yaksha and the rakshasa, and became the oni who tormented sinners as wardens of Hell (Jigoku), administering sentences passed down by Hell's magistrate, King Yama (Enma Daiō). The hungry ghosts called gaki (餓鬼) have also been sometimes considered a type of oni (the Kanji for "ki" 鬼 is also read "oni"). Accordingly, a wicked soul beyond rehabilitation transforms into an oni after death. Only the very worst people turn into oni while alive, and these are the oni causing troubles among humans as presented in folk tales.

Some scholars have even argued that the oni was entirely a concept of Buddhist mythology.

Oni bring calamities to the land, bringing about war, plague/illness, earthquakes, and eclipses. They have the destructive power of lightning and thunder, which terrifies people through their auditory and visual effects.

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'''Going to keep this piece of the article the same because it is good for the etymology part of the article, and I can work on the origins section. I took out the ending paragraph to this because it was repeating information in the lead.^''' =====

= Origins = '''Most Japanese folklore come from the Kojiki (古事記, "Records of Ancient Matters" or "An Account of Ancient Matters") and Nihongi (日本紀, "Japanese Chronicles"). These stories are the history and development of Japan in ancient times. Takamagahara (高天原, "Plane of High Heaven" or "High Plane of Heaven) the beginning of it all was created. With three virgin births Amenominakanushi (天之御中主, The Central Master or "Lord of the August Center of Heaven"), Takamimusubi (高御産巣日神, "High Creator"), and Kamimusubi (神産巣日 The Divine Creator) . This was the beginning of time and space. These three divine beings were known as Kami . All three of these Kami are sometimes referred to as Kotoamatsukami (別天神, literally "distinguishing heavenly kami"). Later two more Kami joined the group of deities Umashiashikabihikoji (宇摩志阿斯訶備比古遅神, Energy) and Amenotokotachi (天之常立神 Heaven) . These two Kami never helped in the creation of the mortal realm that was left to the elder Kami Kotoamatsukami who manifested the whole universe .'''

'''Finally, two lesser Kami were made to establish earth. These Kami are known as Izanagi (イザナギ/伊邪那岐/伊弉諾, meaning "He-who-invites" or the "Male-who-invites") and Izanami (イザナミ, meaning "She-who-invites" or the "Female-who-invites"). These two were brother and sister. They also are married and had many children, one of them being Kagutsuchi (カグツチ, Fire). Kagutsuchi upon birth wounded Izanami beyond the point of being able to be healed. When Izanami died, she went to Yomi (黄泉, 黄泉の国, World of Darkness) she was transformed from a goddess of the earth to a Kami of death. Izanami who gave life in the physical world also did in the underworld where they were all thunder Kami. The very first oni.'''