Key Points

- Soul of the deceased 

- Remains in purgatory until proper funeral rites are given. 

- Afterwards retirns every August for the Obon Festival

Brief Bio 

Reikon (霊魂) refers to the soul or spirit of a person. It's the entity that leaves the body upon death and, according to traditional beliefs, enters a state of purgatory. Proper funeral rites are believed to be crucial for the reikon to join its ancestors and become a protector of the living. However, if death is violent or traumatic, or if the deceased is consumed by strong negative emotions like revenge, the reikon can become a yūrei, a wandering ghost that remains tied to the physical world.