Kasha 火車

Kasha (火車), the “Fire Cart,” is a terrifying demon-cat that descends from the sky amidst lightning and smoke to steal the corpses of the wicked before they can be buried.

Meaning and Origin

The name Kasha literally means “Fire Cart” or “Burning Chariot.”

Originally, in Buddhist teachings, it was a literal flaming wagon sent from Hell to collect the damned. Over time, the legend merged with the folklore of the Nekomata (fork-tailed monster cats). By the Edo period, the Kasha was almost always depicted as a bipedal, human-sized cat wrapped in hellfire, acting as a “corpse-snatcher” for the underworld.

Characteristics

A Kasha appears during funeral services, especially those for people who lived particularly sinful lives. Its arrival is signaled by a sudden change in weather—dark clouds, violent winds, and thunderclaps.

The demon itself is a massive, flaming cat-like humanoid. It uses its supernatural strength to snatch the coffin or the body directly from the funeral procession, flying back to Hell with its prize. Once a body is taken by a Kasha, it is said that the person’s soul is lost to eternal torment.

Legends

Because the fear of the Kasha was so intense, many funeral traditions in old Japan were specifically designed to ward it off. In some regions, priests would hold “two-part” funerals: the first casket would be filled with heavy stones as a decoy, while the real body was hidden elsewhere in a plain, unmarked box to trick the demon.

In other parts of Japan, it was common to place a sharp razor or a pair of iron scissors on top of the coffin, as Kasha (being cat-based spirits) were said to fear cold iron. A famous story from Miyazaki Prefecture tells of a funeral where the sky turned black as a Kasha descended; the village priest stood his ground and chanted, “I will not let you eat this soul!” and the demon vanished in a burst of sparks, leaving the grieving family in peace.