Beast

Beasts (妖獣, Youjuu; 魔獣, Majuu) are animals that have become youkai.

Beasts in Touhou

Beasts are animals with "too much power and wisdom" (as defined in Perfect Memento in Strict Sense) and may act as leaders to their non-youkai counterparts or live alongside them. (In the case of Tewi Inaba or Aya Shameimaru, they are very protective of their kind despite the latter treating them as a tool) Some are considered to be a threat to humans as they may have a taste for human flesh. Youkai variants of humans like magicians can also pose an average level of threat to regular humans as they steal things from livestock to children. While beasts are intelligent enough to communicate with humans, they appear to still be primitive in nature; youkai crows like tengu however, are more advanced compared to the humans of Gensokyo.

Hieda no Akyuu classifications of beasts refer only to the mammal youkai. Youkai like Wriggle Nightbug and Mystia Lorelei are not seen as beasts to Akyuu likely because of the older way of thinking that only mammals are animals while humans are not mammals but an unique existance. This may also be why Akyuu called the Lunarians as human.

According to Kasen Ibaraki in Oriental Sacred Place chapter 16, once an animal has become a youkai, it is unable to return to normal.

Types of Beasts

While many other species of youkai animals exist, only those who are officially classified as beasts are listed here.

Nekomata

Main article: Nekomata

Hakutaku

Main article: Hakutaku

Bake-danuki

Main article: Bake-danuki

Okuri-inu

Main article: Okuri-inu

Inugami

Main article: Inugami

Kuda-gitsune

Main article: Kuda-gitsune

Characters under this Bestiary

While there are many other characters who are youkai animals, only those who are officially classified as beasts are listed here.

• Chen (Nekomata)
• Ran Yakumo (Youkai Kitsune)
• Keine (were-Hakutaku)
• Tewi Inaba (Youkai Rabbit)
• Reisen Udongein Inaba (This is likely false as Hieda no Akyuu had no idea Udongein was a moon rabbit.)
• Unnamed bake-danuki
• Unnamed okuri-inu
• Unnamed kuda-gitsune
• Mamizou Futatsuiwa (Bake-danuki)

See Also

• Wikipedia entry for Beasts
• Wikipedia entry for Majuu (Japanese)