Kasha

The kasha (obsolete spelling: kwasha; Japanese: 火車, literally "fire cart" or "burning chariot," alternatively written 化車, "changed wheel") is a yōkai (supernatural creature) from Japanese folklore that is feared for stealing corpses, particularly from funerals or graveyards. Contemporary depictions generally portray the kasha as a monstrous cat-like creature—often described as an enormous feline wreathed in flames or pulling a burning chariot—reflecting Japanese folklore's association between cats and supernatural or sinister phenomena. However, earlier archetypes and accounts described kasha as more demon-like entities without specific feline characteristics, suggesting that the creature's form evolved over time as Japanese folklore traditions developed and consolidated various supernatural beliefs about corpse-stealing spirits into the now-familiar cat demon form. The kasha's primary role in folklore is to appear during funeral ceremonies or at burial sites to snatch away the bodies of the deceased, particularly those of wicked individuals whose sins have attracted this malevolent spirit, creating both horror at the supernatural violation and serving as a cautionary moral function warning against evil behavior that might attract such posthumous punishment.