Onmyōji (literary series)

Onmyōji (陰陽師) is a series of historical fantasy short stories and novels written by Japanese author Baku Yumemakura. It follows the story of a fictionalized version of the Heian period onmyōji Abe no Seimei, a master in onmyōdō, a traditional Japanese form of cosmology.

Most of the series was originally published as individual short stories, the first of which, originally titled just "Onmyōji", first appeared in the September 1986 issue of the publisher Bungeishunju's magazine All Yomimono, and they have since appeared across a wide variety of publications, before being republished in collections. In addition to the short stories, the series also includes novels and picture books.

A manga adaptation by Reiko Okano was serialized from 1993 to 2005; it won two major prizes (the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize and the Seiun Award), and begot a sequel, Onmyōji: Tamatebako, serialized from 2010 to 2017. Another manga series, Onmyōji: Taki Yashahime, by Munku Mitsuki, was serialized from 2012 to 2015.

The original stories and novels have also inspired several live-action adaptions: a Japanese television drama series was broadcast on NHK G in 2001; two films directed by Yōjirō Takita were released; Onmyoji in 2001 and Onmyoji II in 2003; two TV movies were broadcast on TV Asahi in 2015 and 2020; a Chinese live-action film directed by Guo Jingming was released in 2020. An original net animation (ONA) series adaptation by Marvy Jack premiered in November 2023 on Netflix.

A Chinese video game loosely based on the series was released in 2018, and this in turn inspired a different Chinese live-action film, directed by Li Weiran, released in 2021. It also been adapted for the stage several times.