{{Short description|Concept in Japanese Shinto}} {{Italic title|reason=:Category:Japanese words and phrases}} {{No footnotes|date=November 2011}} {{Nihongo|'''''Reikon'''''|霊魂}}, in Shinto, is the equivalent to the soul or spirit in Western culture.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nelson |first=John K. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2ijECgAAQBAJ&dq=Reikon+in+Shinto&pg=PA188 |title=A Year in the Life of a Shinto Shrine |date=2015-08-03 |publisher=University of Washington Press |isbn=978-0-295-99769-8 |page=188 |language=en}}</ref>
==Japanese tradition== When a person dies, it is believed that their ''reikon'' will remain in a type of purgatory until they are given proper funeral rites. After which, the ''reikon'' will join their ancestors in the afterlife and only returning to the living world every August for the Obon Festival.
==''Yūrei''== When a person dies in an unexpected, violent or traumatic way, the ''reikon'' remains amongst the living as a ''yūrei'', or ghost, who must complete an unfinished duty amongst the living or be given a proper ritual to ease its passing into the next world. A ''yūrei'' is thought to be produced by violent means such as murder or suicide. These tend to take on a fixed desire such as revenge, love, jealousy, hatred, or sorrow while carrying out their hauntings.
==See also== * ''Mitama''
== Sources ==
Category:Buddhism in Japan Category:Ghosts Category:Shinto <references /> {{Shinto-stub}}