Hannia (mask)

The name "Hannya" (般若) is a Sino-Japanese word for conveying the Buddhist concept of prajna or enlightened wisdom. One tradition claims that this name is given to a mask named after the artist, the monk Hannya-bo (般若 坊), who is said to have improved her appearance. ^{[2] [1]} Another explanation is that the perfect wisdom of the sutras and their variations was considered especially effective against female demons. According to an alternative explanation, the master needs a lot of skill in order to create this mask. ^[2]

Hannah is used in many Japanese theater plays but also kyogen , as well as in Shinto ritual dances of the kagura . ^{[3] The} mask depicts the soul of a woman who has turned into a demon due to obsession or jealousy. The spirit of a woman abandoned by her beloved for the sake of another or deceived by him comes in this form to take revenge on her rival. Among the productions in which the mask is found, the most famous are Aoi-no Ue (葵 上) and Dojo (道 成 寺); Hanny's eye-catching and frightening appearance makes her one of the most recognizable masks of the Noh theater.

Hannah comes in different colors: a white mask indicates a woman of aristocratic status (for example, Lady Rokujo in the second part of Aoi-no-Ue), a red mask represents a woman from the lower classes (found in Dojo) and a burgundy, dark red mask depicts actually the demons that have entered the female body (shown in the productions of " Momizigari " and " Kurozuka "). ^{[4] [5]}

• Hannya is a fictional character in the manga " Rurouni Kenshin ".
• In the Sekirei manga, Miya Asama, Sekirei No. 1, is nicknamed Hannya Severa, since when she wants to scare other characters, a spectral image of Hannah often appears behind her.
• Hugh Cornwell and The Stranglers , a full-size mask of Hannia (from K. Kaneko), is shown on the internal insert of the Nosferatu album (1979).
• Samurai Yagyu Jubei Mitsuyoshi in The Yagyu Ninja Scrolls manga wears a Hanni mask, helping the women of the Hori clan realize their revenge.
• In the “ Toriko ” manga, the protagonist can intimidate others by creating an image of Hannah.
• In the Team Fortress 2 video game, there is a similar mask as an accessory for the Spy class called Noh Mercy .
• In the video game "Dead Secret" on the wall with Asian masks, this mask hangs.
• In the video of the famous Korean rapper Bang Yong-guk "Yamazaki", the mask flickers on the artist's face in some fragments of the video.
• In the Yakuza video game series, Goro Majima's character has a tattoo on his back featuring this mask.
• Hannya is a character in Onmyoji like Shikigami.