The Kokkuri demon is believed to be the spirit that responds to the Kokkuri game, a popular game and form of divination during the Meiji period of Japan. The people playing the game would arrange three bamboo rods into a tripod which would hold a pot covered with a cloth, after which they would ask a question to the Kokkuri. Its response was determined by whether or not the pot moved or stayed still. Despite being denounced as mere superstition by Japanese folklorist Inoue Enryō, the game remained popular among Japanese citizens.
