Krasue

The Krasue (Thai: กระสือ, pronounced [kra˨˩.sɯː˩˩˦]) is a nocturnal female spirit of Southeast Asian folklore. It manifests as the floating, disembodied head of a woman, usually young and beautiful, with her internal organs still attached and trailing down from the neck. The Krasue belongs to a constellation of similar mythological entities across different regions of Southeast Asia; these regional variations all share in common that they are characterized by a disembodied woman's head with organs and entrails hanging from its neck. Along with the Krasue, there is the Ahp (Khmer: អាប) in Cambodia; the Kasu (Lao: ກະສື, pronounced [kā.sɯ̌ː]) in Laos; the Kuyang, Pok-Pok, or Leyak in Indonesia, as well as the Pelasik, Pelesit, penanggalan or penanggal, the last four of which are also found in Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore; the Ma lai (Vietnamese: ma lai) in Vietnam; manananggal is the Tagalog counterpart or the Creature with its lower half body being detached, The head detaching creature for the Maranao people is called "Kalibadot" and for the Visayans they are knowns as "ok-ok, ungga-ungga or Wugwug (because of the sounds the organs make while swaying midair) all are in the Philippines respective. Japanese folklore also has yokai creatures called nukekubi and rokurokubi that are quite similar to their Southeast Asian counterparts. According to Thai ethnographer Phraya Anuman Rajadhon, the Krasue is accompanied by a will-o'-the-wisp-like luminescent glow. The explanations attempted about the origin of the glow include the presence of methane in marshy areas. The Krasue is often said to live in the same areas as Krahang, a male spirit of the Thai folklore. This spirit moves about by hovering in the air above the ground, for it has no lower body. The throat may be represented in different ways, either as only the trachea or with the whole neck....