In the folklore of northern Japan, the Amazake-babaa is a type of yōkai that takes the form of a hag, visiting local homes and asking if they have amazake (fermented rice drink) to spare. It is said that any response to the hag brings bad luck to the household, whether there is amazake or not.
The being is also known in the Bunkyō ward of Tokyo, but the legend is rather different from its northern counterparts. Here, the hag is not a harbinger of bad luck, but a kind of guardian god.
It is said that this Amazake-babaa was once a human, a well-known amazake seller in the neighborhood. She caught a common cold and died of coughing fits, and was later deified at the local temple called Nichirin-ji as a semi-deity that protects children from diseases. A statue of her, a rare visual depiction of the Amazake-babaa, continues to be revered to this day at this otherwise obscure temple.
