Abe No Seimei - in Fiction

In Fiction

His name appears in many works of fiction, often as a helpful, wise man and rarely as an enemy. There are exceptions such as Nurarihyon no Mago where Seimei was also a great ayakashi and the Lord of Darkness.

The first modern fictional work credited with bringing back popular interest to onmyōdō mysticism in Japan is the 1985 historical fantasy novel Teito Monogatari by Hiroshi Aramata. In the novel's story two of the primary characters, Yasumasa Hirai and Yasunori Katō, are descendants of Seimei and have inherited all his knowledge. Yasumasa Hirai is notable example because his appearance is modeled off classic depictions of Seimei and many of his actions are based on those of Seimei's from stories in the Uji Shui Monogatari. Yasunori Katō is also notable because his first name "Yasunori" is derived from the name of Seimei's legendary teacher and he proudly wears the Seiman (five pointed star) on his gloves and handkerchief. Unlike Hirai though, Katō's burning hatred for the Japanese Empire has transformed him into an oni. With one in defense of the Empire and one against it, the two men naturally become enemies.

In 1988, Baku Yumemakura started a novel series named Onmyoji with Seimei portrayed as a handsome young man who lived in a Heian-period world populated with mysterious beings. This was turned into a manga by Reiko Okano and became popular with teenage girls. In 2002, an NHK television series was made, based on the novels. A version of Abe has also been rendered by acclaimed Taiwanese manga artist Ethan, who has stated that he is a huge fan of the novel.

Since 1989, Abe no Seimei has been depicted as a bishōnen. He appears in Kouta Hirano's Drifters manga series leading a group of Magicians called Octobrist. He appears as a handsome young man and wears a beret.

The movie Onmyoji, starring Mansai Nomura as Seimei, was released in 2001 (2004 in the U.S.) by Pioneer (now Geneon). As with any other work featuring both Seimei and Minamoto no Hiromasa, the film was based on Yumemakura's novels. Despite Yumemakura having been involved, the manga adaptation and the movie adaptation are quite different in style and plot.

The horror/survival video game Kuon featured Seimei as a female exorcist who becomes a playable character near the end of the game.

To capitalize on the success of the Onmyoji films (a sequel was made in 2003), Fuji Television produced a miniseries in 2004, called Onmyoji: Abe no Seimei. This series has no ties to cinematic releases.

The character Hao Asakura from Hiroyuki Takei's Shaman King is directly based on Seimei. Hao is the author of a magical book called Chō-Senjiryakketsu, clearly inspired in Seimei's Senji Ryakketsu. They also share facts about their lives, such as their mother being called a demon fox and their ability to create oni since they were young.

Seimei can be seen in the anime Magical☆Shopping Arcade Abenobashi, which was released in 2004 in the U.S. by ADV Films. The show's focus was on the Onmyoji practice of changing events to avoid an ill occurrence and the misadventures of two youths. Seimei also appears in the anime Gintama as an onmyoji, as well as in the anime Shonen Onmyouji which is about his grandson. Seimei is a central character in the anime called Otogi Zoshi.

Abe no Seimei had been shown in a manga called Nurarihyon no Mago by Hiroshi Shiibashi, as an evil Nue, dark lord of the Ayakashi, born from an evil fox. Nurarihyon no Mago was adapted into an anime series starting on July 2010.

Abe no Seimei also appears in the manga Igyoujin Oniwakamaru as an evil spirit who plans to revive himself to begin his second life and rule over both humans and yokai.

Abe no Seimei was made a playable character in the PlayStation Portable version of Warriors Orochi 3.