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So sometimes in Anime and Manga when someone is acting crazy or out of
character when on a rant they wear a headband with two flashlights or lit
candles pointing up.

[![Anime's Character wearing headband with flashlights
](https://i.stack.imgur.com/g6zYr.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/g6zYr.jpg)

I am wondering what the reason for this is or if it symbolizes something.


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tropes
Why do people wearing a headband with two flashlights or candles when acting crazy or out of place?


It originates from _[Ushi no toki
mairi](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ushi_no_toki_mairi)_

[![Konjaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki
](https://i.stack.imgur.com/wxqm7.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/wxqm7.jpg)

Picture taken from [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:SekienUshi-
no-tokimairi.jpg)

**Wikipedia Explanation**

> Ushi no toki mairi refers to a prescribed method of laying a curse upon a
> target that is traditional to Japan, so-called because it is conducted
> during the hours of the Ox (between 1 and 3 AM). The practitioner—typically
> a scorned woman—while dressed in white and **crowning herself with an iron
> ring set with three lit candles upright,** hammers nails into a sacred tree
> of the Shinto shrine. In the modern-day common conception, the nails are
> driven through a straw effigy of the victim, impaled upon the tree behind
> it. The ritual must be repeated seven days running, after which the curse is
> believed to succeed, causing death to the target, but being witnessed in the
> act is thought to nullify the spell. The Kibune Shrine in Kyoto is famously
> associated with the ritual.
>
> **The woman performing the curse is generally portrayed as dressed in white,
> with disheveled hair,wearing an iron "crown" that holds three burning
> candles** , suspending (from her neck) a mirror upon her chest (which lies
> hidden) and wearing a pair of tall clogs (geta), She would then nail a straw
> doll representing her target to a sacred tree (神木 shimboku) at the Shinto
> shrine.
>
> **The iron "crown" that she wears is actually a tripod (五徳 gotoku) (or
> trivet, a stand for setting cooking pots, etc., above a heat source) which
> she wears in inverted, slipping the iron ring over her head and sticking
> candles on its three legs.**

In Anime and Manga, this kind of action tells the Audience of the current
genre. Usually this action in Anime/Manga is a joke (for entertainment
purposes) not to mention the character you showed us wants to curse someone
(except the genre of the manga/anime is a thriller or horror).


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The other answer is incorrect, or possibly overshooting the reference. Note
that the Ushi no Toki Mairi is always represented with a voodoo doll and
hammer, absent in depictions of characters "just going on a rampage" that you
see. Also note the trend of being heavily armed, and wearing ammo belts across
the chest.

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/54DuE.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/54DuE.jpg)

In fact, we have to go back to 1938. Mutsuo Toi (都井 睦雄) murdered 30 people in
a rural village, in what is known as the Tsuyama Massacre (津山事件). Feeling
ostracized due to his tuberculosis, he carried out his grisly revenge heavily
armed, wearing flashlights on his head. Presumably so he could see at night,
but maybe in crude imitation of the Ushi no Toki Mairi. Still, this isn't
quite it yet.

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/RgSVx.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/RgSVx.jpg)

In 1951, Seishi Yokomizo (横溝 正史), the famous mystery novelist, wrote a novel
called The Village of Eight Graves (八つ墓村). It concerns a family cursed with
bloodshed, including one massacre of 32 people - modeled on the Tsuyama
Massacre. This book was turned into a film by the same name in 1977. It stars
Tsutomu Yamazaki (山崎 努) as Yôzô Tajimi (多治見 要蔵).

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/Y8PZQ.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/Y8PZQ.jpg)

In the climax of the movie, Tajimi becomes possessed with the spirit of his
bloodthirsty father and goes berserk, slaughtering men, women, and children to
the tune of bizarrely heroic music. Somehow, it's framed as an avenging
spirit's righteous final stand.

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/hI835.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/hI835.jpg)

And this iconic scene is what stuck in the minds of the Japanese public.
They're even making a figma of the character! From the flashlights to the
weapons and ammo belts, this is it.

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/FlZWR.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/FlZWR.jpg)

**So to make it clear: Yozo Tajimi, of the film "The Village of the 8
Gravestones".**

Now, there was another film in 1983, The Village of Doom (丑三つの村), which wasn't
based on Yokomizo's novel but the actual original incident. Since they share
the same inspiration, the main character looks similar, but I think it's clear
that Tajimi is the one people reference.

[![enter image description
here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/Krmre.jpg)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/Krmre.jpg)

For more references see this [twitter
thread](https://twitter.com/poondonkus/status/1024800899053572096).


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