By Rebecca
Bad dreams, everybody has them. Sometimes they stick with you throughout the
day, making it hard to concentrate. Like the first slumber party I went to and some
genius suggested that we watch “Poltergeist”. Nightmares are a common
occurrence and their effects are universal. It is no wonder that in Japan and
China bad dream equals bad luck for the dreamer. Fortunately, they know what
to do to prevent this. Call on the baku.
The baku is a creature of spirit, a chimera that eats bad dreams. Talk about a
specialized skill set! Oddly, it’s ugly enough to cause me nightmares. Many tales
say the baku resembles a tapir. A what? I know, I had to look it up. I’ll save you
the hassle. Tapirs are a roughly pig-like mammal found in Central America, South
America, and Southeast Asia. Others describe it as having a large body like an
ox, a long snout like an elephant, with tiger’s limbs, an ox tail, and small rodent-
like eyes. There’s a variant where the body is more like a bear, with all the same
features as before. Still other tales describe the baku as having spines on its
back, sharp pointy teeth, an elephant’s trunk and tusks, and a lion's mane. Are
you confused yet? Don’t worry, more important than what a baku looks like is
what it does.
You wake up from a bad dream. Immediately you call upon the baku to come and
eat your bad dream. This spares you from the bad luck associated with having a
nightmare. I don’t think it matters how you ask, just that you do. Some stories
instruct you to say “I give my bad dream to the baku to eat”, others tell you to say,
“Devour them, O Baku.”
If you want to try to prevent bad dreams, keep an image of a baku in your
bedroom. Some people write the baku’s name on a piece of paper and put it
under their pillows before bedtime. Others take no chances and write the baku’s
name on the pillow itself! Of course, if you are concerned, you can set up an altar
to the baku in your bedroom. There you can leave small gifts and offerings to him
to insure pleasant dreams.
How wonderful is it that such an odd, and perhaps scary looking creature can in
fact help humans with their nightmares? Perhaps the baku is so frightening
looking that nightmares dare not show up. No matter why it happens, the baku is
a benevolent creature, if unusual looking being. Pleasant dreams.
Baku: Eater of Nightmares
