Spiritual anime | 21 Anime List You Must Watch (2023)

Anime is so varied and multi-dimensional that it caters to large and diverse audiencesaudience. Some watch anime for light entertainment, some for the thought-provoking storylines, and some to escape reality.

Spiritual anime takes the phrase "escape from reality" to the next level by immersing yourself in a fantastical world full of supernatural creatures, evil spirits and mythological figures.

Usually there is little room for realism in spiritual anime from a world-building point of view.

But most of these anime contain realism from the mind and point of viewemotions. You can still empathize with the inner thoughts and actions of the characters in the story.

Today we take a look at the best spiritual anime to watch!

Remark:The availability of some anime on the listed platforms may vary depending on your region.

21. Ghost Dog

• Genre: Supernatural, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Psychological, Suspense
• Number of episodes: 22
• MAL-score: 7.42
• Watch Ghost Hound at: Funimation, Amazon Prime Video

This unique ghost story takes place in the town of Suiten, where eerie and bizarre occurrences become commonplace.

Ghosts are lurking in the mountains, and the priest's daughter is having strange visions. Meanwhile, our 14-year-old main character, Tarou Komori, has disturbing dreams.

Due to the trauma of the kidnapping eleven years ago, Tarou has been able to suppress those memories, keeping them locked away and not letting what happened all those years ago come to the surface.

Yet they return when he sleeps, along with encounters beyond the world of dreams.

While the mystical andpsychologicalRealms mingle, three children try to bridge the gap between the spiritual and material worlds as they fight their inner demons.

20. Kekkaishi

• Genre: Shounen; Supernatural, Adventure, Romance, Mythology
• Number of episodes: 52
• MAL-score: 7,60
• Watch Kekkaishi at: Crunchyroll

Yoshimura Sumimura is a high school student who comes from a family of 'Kekkaishi', gifted individuals with supernatural powers who possess the ability to exterminate humans.Ayakashi.

Ayakashi are demons that invade the mortal world and thrive on the power flowing from the land of Karasumori.

This place also happens to be where Yoshimura's school is located. He has no choice but to protect his loved ones, school and town.

Fortunately, he's not alone. Tokine Yukimura, his childhood friend and neighbor, is there to fight alongside him and fend off the demons that threaten their city.

Although they come from rival clans, the two make the perfect team. The two team up as more ominous dangers cloud the horizon.

19. Shounen Onmyouji

• Genre: Shoujo; Supernatural, action, fantasy, mythology
• Number of episodes: 26
• MAL-score: 7,55
• You can watch Shounen Onmyouji at: Buy DVD on Amazon

The protagonist of Shounen Onmyouji, or The Young Spirit Master, Masahiro is the grandson of Abe no Seimei, the well-known onmyouji.

The sixth sense is vital to an onmyouji, as it allows them to see supernatural beings. Unfortunately, Masahiro has lost his sixth sense and has no choice but to pursue a different career path.

One day, however, a Mononoke appears before him, making him realize his true potential after a battle with a demon.

With the Mononoke now at his side, whom he calls "Mokkun," young spirit master Masahiro embarks on the journey to become the most powerful onmyouji.

18. Ghost Stories

• Genre: Supernatural, Horror, Mystery
• Number of episodes: 19
• MAL-score: 7,72
• Watch Ghost Stories at: Crunchyroll

Also known as Gakkou no Kaidan, the plot of Ghost Stories revolves around two siblings who lost their mother and are still recovering from their loss.

They move to their mother's hometown, and when they learn that their new school is an old building haunted by ghosts, they dismiss it as a mere rumor.

However, they soon realize the rumor is true, and the ghosts seek revenge, having been banished by a student years ago.

From here on there is a constant battle for the two siblings, their new friends and their pet cat to survive ghostly attacks at the haunted school.

17. Kamisama Hajimemashita

• Genre: Shoujo; Fantasy, romance, comedy, mythology
• Number of episodes: 13
• MAL-score: 8.08
• Bekijk Kamisama Hajimemashita op: Crunchyroll, Funimation

Nanami Momozono is a high school student who is now homeless after her father went into debt and disappeared.

After she helps a man troubled by a dog, he returns the favor by giving her his home, an ancient shrine.

She tries to leave, but is intercepted by two shrine spirits and a familiar fox named Tomoe, who mistake her for their land god, the man who helped Nanami.

She relents and performs shrine duties, but Tomoe refuses to serve her.

Once trouble arises, Nanami and Tomoe must work together to fend off the threats and protect their home.

16. Blue Exorcist

• Genre: Shounen; Fantasy, action, mythology
• Number of episodes: 25
• MAL-score: 7,51
• Watch Blue Exorcist at: Crunchyroll, Funimation, Netflix

In Ao no Exorcist, or Blue Exorcist, Assiah and Gehenna are the worlds of humans and demons respectively.

The ruler of Gehenna, Satan, remains imprisoned in his world because he cannot find a suitable ship to own and therefore cannot travel between the two worlds.

With no other option left, Satan sends his son to Assiah with the intention of growing into a worthy host for him to possess.

Interestingly, Rin Okumura, an ordinary teenager and also the son in question, is unwilling to agree to Satan's twisted plan when he learns about it.

Instead, he trains to become an exorcist to protect Assiah along with his brother Yukio.

15. Pearl

• Genre: Supernatural, Horror, Mystery, Psychological
• Number of episodes: 26
• MAL-score: 7,62
• Watch Hell Girl at: Amazon Prime Video

When midnight strikes, a sinister web domain called Hell Correspondence becomes available.

If someone enters the name of someone they want revenge on, the Hell Girl, Ai Emma, ​​appears and makes it clear that she will take the target's soul to Hell.

But here's the catch: the applicant will share the same fate if he or she dies. Emma uses three straw dolls to complete the task.

Whether you choose to pay the price by going to Hell after death or not, Emma will always appear for those seeking vengeance when she is needed to drag the target's souls to Hell.

14. One more

• Genre: Supernatural, Horror, Mystery, Suspense, Gore
• Number of episodes:
• MAL-score: 7,48
• Check out another one on: Crunchyroll, Netflix

The story follows Kouichi Sakikabara, a transfer student in grades 3-3 at Yomiyama North Middle School, who returns from a month-long sick leave.

When Kouichi sees the same eyepatch girl named Mei Misaki that he met in the hospital, he approaches her and tries to befriend her.

When he asks his classmates about the girl, to his confusion they refuse to acknowledge her existence and warn him to do the same.

Not knowing the dark secrets and the curse that haunts class 3-3, Kouichi tries to delve deeper into the mystery to learn more about Misaki and the reason for his classmates' strange behavior.

13. Spook hunt

• Genre: Shoujo; Supernatural, horror, mystery
• Number of episodes: 25
• MAL-score: 7,77
• Watch Ghost Hunt at: Crunchyroll, Funimation

Mai Taniyama and her friends are used to sharing ghost stories at school.

One day, while talking about an abandoned building on their school campus, a mysterious man interrupts them.

It turns out that he is a 17-year-old ghost hunter and president of the Shibuya Psychic Research Company, Kazuya Shibuya, who had come to the school at the request of the principal to investigate the abandoned building.

The next day it happens that Mai somehow breaks Kazuya's camera, hindering the investigation.

His assistant is also injured. Kazuya then forces Mai to pay for the camera and work as his assistant, bringing an unexpected twist to Mai's normal life.

12. Jibaku Shonen Hanako-kun

• Genre: Shounen; Supernatural comedy
• Number of episodes: 12
• MAL-score: 7,85
• Bekijk Jibaku Shonen Hanako-kun op: Crunchyroll, Funimation

Among Japanese Urban legends, Hanako-san, one of the "Seven Wonders," is well known in Toliet. It is said that Hanako-san is a young girl who haunts the school bathrooms.

Should anyone successfully summon Hanako-san, she will grant any wish. However, so far all attempts have failed.

But when Nene Yashiro, a girl seeking romantic happiness, successfully summons Hanako-san one day, she discovers that the supposedly "young girl" is actually a "young boy."

After a series of unfortunate events involving her romantic pursuit, Nene can no longer escape the world of supernatural beings, now as Hanako's assistant and friend.

11. Hanada Shounen-shi

• Genre: Shounen; Supernatural, drama, slice of life
• Number of episodes: 25
• MAL-score: 7,99
• Watch Hanada Shounen-shi at: Buy DVD on Amazon

Ichiro Hanada is a young brat who always enjoys teasing his sister, is rude to others and causes trouble for his parents and neighbors.

One day after playing a prank, he runs through the streets in front of his mother, steals a bicycle and heads down a dangerous path.

He is hit by a truck, but survives with nine stitches and a bald head.

The near-death experience gives Hanada the ability to see ghosts and dead people come to him to fulfill their dying wishes.

As each new soul wanders around and eventually approaches it, it learns something new from each of these thought-provoking experiences, making it a little wiser than before.

10. xxxHolic

• Genre: Signals; Supernatural, Drama, Psychological, Mystery
• Number of episodes: 24
• MAL-score: 7,99
• Watch xxxHolic on: Funimation

Kimihiro Watanuki is a high school student who can see ghosts and other supernatural beings and hates this ability.

On his way to his home one day he is haunted by the usual ghosts and has no choice but to enter a strange house.

In that house, Watanuki meets Yuuko, a mysterious lady who says she can free him from his ability to see and attract evil spirits.

But it comes with a price. She asks him to come and work in her "shop" that fulfills people's wishes, and from here begins his new life full of fantastic happenings.

9.Noragami

• Genre: Shounen; Action, fantasy, mythology
• Number of episodes: 12
• MAL-score: 7,96
• Watch Noragami at: Crunchyroll, Funimation, Netflix

The story follows Yato, a self-proclaimed "Delivery God" who appears as a young man and has no shrine dedicated to him.

He leaves his phone number in red in all places people can see and does odd jobs for no more than five yen.

His regalia, or weapon partner, soon tires of him and abandons him.

One day, a high school girl named Hiyori saves Yato from an accident, which causes her soul to randomly detach and detach from her body.

Since Yato needs regalia to fix her, Hiyori decides to help him find one, unknowingly triggering a bigger change in Yato's life.

8. Bakemonogatari

• Genre: Supernatural, Mystery, Vampire, Romance
• Number of episodes: 15
• MAL-score: 8.34
• Watch Bakemonogatari at: Crunchyroll, Funimation, Netflix

Bakemonogatari's stories follow Koyomi Araragi, a high school student who survived a vampire attack and gained superhuman healing despite being human.

Araragi continues to try his best to live his new life as before, with Tsubasa Hanekawa, his friend, by his side.

One day when his classmate Hitagi Senjougahara falls down the stairs, he catches her but feels no weight.

Ignoring Senjougahara's protests, Araragi takes her to an old building where a mysterious man with mysterious powers, Meme Oshino, lives.

The same man who saved Araragi from vampirism. The story progresses as Araragi continues to help others get rid of their supernatural ailments.

7. Hotarubi geen Morie

• Genre: Shoujo; Supernatural, drama, romance
• Number of episodes: 1 (movie)
• MAL assessment: 8.30
• Bekijk Hotarubi no Mori e op: Bilibili TV

The protagonist of Hotarubi no Mori e, Hotaru Takegawa, is a six-year-old girl who is deeply intrigued by the story of a mountain god.

Once when she is with her grandfather, she gets lost in an ancient forest, and that's when a masked boy named Gin helps her.

Not much later, Hotaru discovers that Gin lives with a curse: if a human touches him, he will disappear forever.

Despite Gin's warning never to return, Hotaru continues to visit him, and they eventually become best friends.

But as time goes on, suffering will inevitably come, given the curse that separates them.

6. Natsume Yuujinchou

• Genre: Shoujo; Supernatural, Drama, Mythology, Slice of Life
• Number of episodes: 13
• MAL-score: 8.32
• WatchNatsume Yuujinchou op: Crunchyroll, Netflix

Natsume Yuujinchou, or Natsume's Book of Friends, revolves around a high school student named Natsume Takashi, who can see ghosts called Youkai.

This ability was a burden to him, and now Natsume is used to keeping to himself.

That is until he breaks through an invisible barrier and frees a powerful youkai, Madara, in the form of a lucky cat.

Madara learns that Natsume possesses the 'Book of Friends', a book containing the names of the ghosts defeated by Natsume's deceased grandmother, and decides to stay by his side as a bodyguard.

In return, Natsume must hand over the book when the time comes.

5. Anohana: The flower we saw that day

• Genre: Supernatural, Drama, Slice of Life
• Number of episodes: 11
• MAL-score: 8.32
• Watch Anohana at: Crunchyroll, Funimation, Netflix

Jinta Yadomi spends his days playing video games, cooped up in his house away from school.

When his late childhood friend Meiko "Menma" Honma appears before him one summer and asks him to grant her dying wish, he brushes it off as a hallucination of the summer heat.

However, he soon realizes that it is actually Menma's ghost.

This seemingly unreal event reunites Jinta and his childhood friends, who had split years before after Menma's death.

Together they relive all the grief, suffering and tragedy as they do their best to put Menma's mind at rest.

4. InuYasha

• Genre: Shounen; Supernatural, Action, Fantasy, Comedy
• Number of episodes: 167
• MAL-score: 7,85
• Watch InuYasha at: Crunchyroll, Funimation, Netflix

InuYasha's female protagonist, Kagome Higurashi, is sucked into the well of her family's Shinto shrine on her 15th birthday and transported to the past, precisely, feudal Japan.

Kagome encounters many dangerous creatures who are after her because of the Shikon Jewel she carries without her knowledge.

One such encounter is with a half-demon boy, Inuyasha, who attacks Kagome, mistaking her for someone he detests.

But when he realizes they are in trouble, he helps her. Later, the Shikon Jewel breaks into pieces during one of the battles, and both try to retrieve the pieces before they fall into the wrong hands.

3. Gone witty

• Genre: Supernatural, Adventure, Mythology
• Number of episodes: 1 (movie)
• MAL-score: 8,78
• Watch Spirited Away on: Netflix

Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi, or Spirited Away, is an insanely popular Studio Ghibli movie that follows the story of a naive 10-year-old girl named Chihiro Ogino.

When Chihiro and her parents discover an abandoned amusement park, they cautiously enter it.

Yet their little adventure takes an unexpected turn when wild things happen.

Due to the appearance of ghosts and other events, Chihiro's parents turn into pigs.

Since Chihiro has unknowingly entered the spirit world and is trapped, she must team up with others she meets in the spirit world to turn her parents back into humans and return home.

2. Mononoke

• Genre: His; Fantasy, mystery, horror, psychological, mythology
• Number of episodes: 12
• MAL-score: 8.43
• Watch Mononoke at: Crunchyroll

The anime revolves around evil spirits in feudal Japan called "Mononoke", and a mysterious man called the "Medicine Seller", who locates and exorcises them.

But first he must learn the Mononoke's form, truth and reason so he can wield his exorcism sword.

There are five stories about different spirits linked together by the presence of the medicine seller.

The first begins in an inn room, where a pregnant woman has taken shelter, unaware of the deadly Mononoke plaguing the inn room.

With this, we set out with our main character to locate the correct form of each Mononoke and learn how to exorcise it.

1. Busy

• Genre:are; Supernatural, fantasy, mystery, adventure, slice of life
• Number of episodes: 26
• MAL-score: 8,67
• WatchMushishi op: Funimation, Tubi TV

In the world ofBusyMushi are rudimentary life forms that can imitate other life forms, such as plants, natural phenomena and also diseases.

These Mushi exist simply for the sake of existence, and most people are unaware of their presence.

Now "Mushi-shi" are people who study Mushi and their place in the hierarchy of life.

Our protagonist, Ginko, is one such Mushi-shi who traces events related to Mushi to unravel the mystery behind these life forms.

He tries to delve deeper into their mysterious powers, their impact on people's lives and, hopefully, the meaning of life itself.

Some other spiritual anime you can check out:

• Mokke
• Ryuugajou Nanana geen Maizoukin
• Natsuyuki Date
• Ghost Killers Ayashi