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Still Better Than Most Fantasy Media With The Same Creatures Over And Over Again - Blog Posts
Glad to finally know that this guy actually exists and isn’t just some random made up demon to be filler hoping nobody notices.
Don’t know if this is a stupid question, but with the Raidou remaster shown and older demons given new life, I’d like to ask, what is an Enku?
I know it’s a Preta, but I can’t find sources on Enku specifically, and I thought one of the guys that found the myths of obscure demons would find him.
Questions about demons are never stupid!
It is really difficult to find specific info on the Enku. This is about the best I could find in a reasonable timeframe that's also not just repeating SMT compendium info:
The sixth section tells how Ananda (J: Anan), another of Shakyamuni’s ten great disciples, heard about the suffering of a hungry ghost who continuously belched flame (engu gaki) and taught the ghost an incantation from Shakyamuni to achieve salvation. The seventh section recounts how Ananda passed on this method of salvation to the monks, who then began the ceremony of offering food and drink to the spirits of the dead (segaki).
The Enku's definition as a type of Preta that belches flame and exists in the Preta realm really seems to be about it. Essentially, it's a being that exists as a kind of punishment should you be wicked and end up reincarnating in the Preta realm. The idea/formula behind the enku gaki is, in sum:
you hear about the enku gaki
then get frightened of reincarnating as one
thus you become more devoted to following Buddhist teachings
That's how they get ya!
Enter Der Hungergeister:
