vetala; corpse demon; ghoul
A Buddhist supernatural being that inhabits or animates corpses; often translated as vetala, corpse demon, or ghoul. Domain-specific religious term.
Vetalas appear in Buddhist legends.
A shiki is considered a type of demon that possesses corpses.
Standard kanji spelling for this Buddhist term.
Kana spelling may be used for clarity or in contexts where the kanji are obscure.
From Buddhist terminology; the kanji 屍 (corpse) and 鬼 (demon) directly describe the entity. The reading しき is the on'yomi.