Oiwa お岩

Oiwa (お岩), the “Rock of Vengeance,” is the most famous and feared ghost in Japanese history—a woman whose betrayal and disfigurement at the hands of her husband created a curse that is still respected by actors and filmmakers today.

Meaning and Origin

The name means “Rock” (iwa), symbolizing her immovable and heavy will.

Her origin is the Yotsuya Kaidan (The Ghost Story of Yotsuya), a masterpiece of Kabuki written by Tsuruya Nanboku IV in 1825. While there was a real woman named Oiwa who lived in Edo, the “monstrous” legend was a fictionalized drama that tapped into the social anxieties of the time—specifically the plight of women in a society that gave men absolute power. Oiwa represents the “Explosion of the Oppressed,” the terrifying power that a woman can wield only after she has lost everything.

Characteristics

Oiwa is instantly recognizable by her Disfigured Face. After being poisoned by a cream sent by her husband, her right eye drooped and swollen, her forehead became a mass of blackened skin, and her hair fell out in bloody clumps.

In her ghostly form (Onryō), she manifests through household items. She is famously associated with the 提灯 (Chōchin) or paper lantern; her face often emerges from the burning candle of a lantern, staring with her one good eye. She also appears through the “Hair-Combing” scene—any time a woman combs her hair in a haunted house, she may find it falling out in clumps, just as Oiwa’s did. Her presence is always accompanied by a smell of rot and a crushing sense of dread.

Legends

The legend tells of Tamiya Iemon, a masterless samurai who grew tired of his poor wife Oiwa. He wanted to marry the granddaughter of a wealthy neighbor, so he plotted to murder Oiwa. He gave her a “medicinal” cream that was actually a slow-acting poison. Oiwa, believing her husband loved her, applied it, only to watch her beauty melt away in the mirror.

When she discovered the betrayal, Oiwa died in a fit of rage—some say she tripped on a sword, others that she simply died of a broken heart. Her ghost then systematically destroyed Iemon’s life. On his second wedding night, when he lifted the veil of his new bride, he saw the disfigured face of Oiwa; he struck out with his sword, only to find he had killed his new wife. This “hallucination of the face” followed him until he lost his mind and his life. To this day, it is a strict tradition that any actor playing Oiwa must visit her shrine to ask for her permission, or risk her legendary “curse” on the production.