Onigajo (demon) - Onigajo

...The Izumo no Kuni Fudoki already contains a story about a one-eyed demon that preys on farmers who work in the fields, and the Otogi-zoshi story Shuten-doji best describes the life of such demons. Demons generally live deep in the mountains far from civilization or on islands far out in the sea, and it is said that demons have castles there. In addition, it became common for demons to live in Buddhist thought and faith in the thunder god, and the idea that the prison guards in hell, where criminals go after death, and the thunder god in heaven were demons spread. ...

*Some of the terminology that mentions "Onigajo (demon)" is listed below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

…早くも《出雲国風土記》に田を耕す農民を食ってしまう目一つの鬼の話が記されており，御伽草子〈酒呑（しゆてん）童子〉の物語は，このような鬼の生態をもっともよく描き出している。鬼のすみかは一般的には，人里離れた山奥や海原遠くにある島などで，そこに鬼ヶ城があるともいう。また仏教思想や雷神信仰と結合し，死後に罪人が行く地獄の獄卒や天上界の雷神を鬼とみなす考えも広まった。…

※「鬼ヶ城（鬼）」について言及している用語解説の一部を掲載しています。

出典｜株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典 第２版について | 情報