Aobozu

Aobōzu (青坊主 Blue Priest?) are a type of Japanese yōkai (folk legend ghosts) that appear in 18th century artist Toriyama Sekien's bookGazu Hyakki Yakō.

The aobōzu is depicted in the Gazu Hyakki Yakō as a one-eyed buddhist priest standing next to a thatched hut, however as there is no explanation of the image, the aobōzu's specific characteristics remain unknown.[2]

It is believed that the aobōzu is the direct inspiration for the one-eyed priest hitotsume-kozō that is present in many yōkai drawings, such as Sawaki Suushi's Hyakkai-Zukanpublished in 1737.[3] There is also a theory that because the kanji ao (青) in its name also means inexperienced, it was depicted as a priest who has not studied enough.[4]

Ao-bōzu

青坊主 (あおぼうず)
Green Monk
other names: Me-hitotsu-bō

          When the wheat is green, the green monk is said to emerge from the verdant fields,

and children who dally on their way home will be carried off by this monstrous bonze.
Sekien Toriyama drew the ao-bōzu as an oddly-proportioned cyclops, which may have been inspired
by other tales of one-eyed demons in priestly vestments, of which there are many.1

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