Category: Folklore

Show Notes for episode 92 of our Podcast – The Descent of Ninigi. Story Notes The grandchild of Amaterasu was known as Ninigi, or Amatsuhikohohoninigi for his full name. This boy was a child through the sun kami’s son Masayaakatsukatsuhayahi Amanooshihomimi and his wife Takuhatachihime A meeting is held by[...]

Show Notes for bonus episode 23 of our Podcast – The Demon Candlestick. Story Notes Now this particular tale I came across when doing research into the yokai from the Konjaku Hyakki Shūi by Toriyama Sekien. And notes alongside this creature in the book I was using also led us[...]

Show Notes for bonus episode 22 of our Podcast – A Dead Secret. Story Notes A long time ago, in the province of Tamba, there lived a rich merchant named Inamuraya Gensuké. He had a daughter called O-Sono. As she was very clever and pretty, he thought it would be[...]

Show Notes for episode 80 of our Podcast – Hoichi the Earless. Story Notes More than seven hundred years ago, at Dan-no-ura, in the Straits of Shimonoséki, was fought the last battle of the long contest between the Heiké, or Taira clan, and the Genji, or Minamoto clan. There the[...]

Show Notes for episode 79 of our Podcast – The Plague of Emperor Sujin. Story Notes These notes are taken from the corrosponding page concerning the Emperor, with some ommisions. Emperor Sujin (崇神 天皇) was the 10th Emperor of Japan also known as Mimakiiribikoiniye (御眞木入日子印恵命) or Mimaki Irihiko Isachi. He[...]

Show Notes for episode 78 of our Podcast – The Song the Sea God Sang. Story Notes The Song the Sea God Sang is said to be a critique on the connections that exist between humans and the kamui (gods of the Ainu). For this particular story it revolves around[...]

Show Notes for episode 77 of our Podcast – To Live Forever. Show Notes This is another story by Yei Theodora Ozaki, a woman who sorely deserves her own episode on our show some time soon! Long, long ago there lived a man called Sentaro. His surname meant “Millionaire,” but[...]

Show Notes for episode 70 of our Podcast – Making Withered Trees Bloom. Story Notes Long, long ago there lived an old man and his wife who supported themselves by cultivating a small plot of land. Their life had been a very happy and peaceful one save for one great[...]

Show Notes for bonus 18 of our Podcast – The Horse Slaying Sword. Story Notes Today a look into the sword which was known as the ‘zanbato.’ Was this sword real? Or is it merely the stuff of legend? Well lets look into that today. Now first lets look at[...]

Show Notes for bonus episode 16 of our Podcast – The Crucifixion of Sogoro. Story Notes The Crucifixion of Sogoro occoured to the man known as Sakura Sōgorō (佐倉 惣五郎) also known as Kiuchi Sōgorō (木内 惣五郎) was a peasant living in the village of Kozu, now close to modern[...]

Show Notes for bonus episode 15 of our Podcast – The Courtesan’s Abyss. Story Notes The story of The Courtesan’s Abyss take places in a gorge/waterfall located in Yamanashi Prefecture. In Japanese it goes by the name of Oiran Buchi. The area is known from an event from around the[...]

Show Notes for episode 67 of our Podcast – The Song the Marsh Demon Sang. Story Notes The Song the Marsh Demon Sang involves the kamui Okikirmui and Apehuchi, an important kamui in charge of the fire and hearth. One day the Marsh Demon poked his eyes out from under[...]

Show Notes for episode 66C of our Podcast – Tattooing – The Suikoden. Story Notes So lets us bring to a close our episodes on the history of tattoos.  We have mentioned throughout the popularity of the heroes from the Suikoden so I feel it makes sense to bring it[...]

Show Notes for episode 66B of our Podcast – Tattooing – Animal Imagery. Story Notes Well today I must start off by saying the Dragon which I was calling Yamato no Orochi is Yamata no Orochi. I completely misread the name and have been doing so for years!   So[...]

Show Notes for episode 65 of our Podcast – Urashima Taro the Fisher Lad. Story Notes Long, long ago in the province of Tango there lived on the shore of Japan in the little fishing village of Mizu-no-ye a young fisherman named Urashima Taro. His father had been a fisherman[...]

Show Notes for episode 64 of our Podcast – To Hell and Back. Story Notes Listeners discretion advised for this episode. It is gory, and graphic, and due to the age of the document translated, sexist.   Now you may recall this from Yasuke, but I mentioned a tale known as[...]

Show Notes for episode 63 of our Podcast – Turtle Folklore. Story Notes There are four divine beasts in Chinese culture, and it’s from this that Japanese culture derives some of the basis for its own turtle folklore   The four divine beasts are the dragon, bird, and tiger. Each of[...]

Show Notes for episode 62 of our Podcast – The Exploits of Okuninushi. Story Notes Now we haven’t been here since Episode 44, a long time ago now, but we will be continuing on with the story of Shinto.   And so we left it off last time with Susano-o having[...]

Show Notes for bonus 13 of our Podcast – Jimmu’s Successors. Story Notes Here follows the events, as detailed in the nihongi, of Jimmu’s Successors. These are the reigns of the 2nd to 9th Emperors of Japan. There are a few extra pieces of information from other sources as well.[...]

Show Notes for episode 59 of our Podcast – The Bamboo Cutters Daughter. Story Notes Long, long ago, there lived an old bamboo wood-cutter. He was very poor and sad also, for no child had Heaven sent to cheer his old age, and in his heart there was no hope[...]

Show Notes for bonus episode 12 of our Podcast – The Vampire Cat. Story Notes This is an old tale, from 1871 by A.B.Mitford. Due to the age of the tale it is now out of copyright and so we have the entire original story here for you to enjoy.[...]

Show Notes for episode 58 of our Podcast – The Yokai behind Pokemon. Story Notes Pokemon is a world wide phenomenon which was first thought up around 1989 by Pokemon executive director Satoshi Tajiri when the Game Boy was released. And the item behind Pokemon came from a popular hobby[...]

Show Notes for episode 56 of our Podcast – The Tongue Cut Sparrow. Today we read the translation from 1901 by Yei Theodora Ozaki. As it is now in the public domain here is the story in full for you. Story Notes Long, long ago in Japan there lived an[...]

Show Notes for episode 54B of our Podcast – Divine Crow. Story Notes Reading through my notes and the books again to double check everything before todays episode I came across a mistake from the last episode so lets quickly rectify that.   We talked about Naga-sune-hiko and how he attacked[...]

Show Notes for episode 53 of our Podcast – Kettles and Sparrows. Story Notes Today we had two folktales from a very old source, The Folk Lore Record dating to 1878. So sit back and enjoy the tales. The Bewitched Tea-Kettle This story is originally called the Bunbuku Chagama. A[...]

Show Notes for episode 52 of our Podcast – The Love of Asagao. Story Notes This story originally came from 1913 and so is available free of copyright and so we can include the story in full for you here today. “The morning gloryHer leaves and bells has boundMy bucket-handle[...]

Show Notes for episode 51 of our Podcast – Kintaro the Golden Boy. Story Notes Long, long ago there lived in Kyoto a brave soldier named Kintoki. Now he fell in love with a beautiful lady and married her. Not long after this, through the malice of some of his[...]

Show Notes for episode 49 of our Podcast – The Sacred Regalia. Story Notes Today I wanted to try and piece together the history of the Sacred Regalia in Japan. Where as England has their crown jewels for example, in Japan they have these Regalia, or the Sanshu no Jingi[...]

Show Notes for bonus episode 9 of our Podcast – Momiji Meat. Story Notes All the way back in Episode 16 we heard of a poem from Sarumaru Taifu that went as follows.  (From the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu.) 奥山に 紅葉踏みわけ 鳴く鹿の 声きく時ぞ 秋はかなしき  Okuyama ni momoji mireba naku shika no koe kiku toki zo aki wa kanashiki  In[...]

Show Notes for episode 46 of our Podcast – The Peony Lantern. Story Notes I There once lived in the district of Ushigome, in Yedo, a hatamoto called Iijima Heizayemon, whose only daughter, Tsuyu, was beautiful as her name, which signifies “Morning Dew.” Iijima took a second wife when his[...]

Show Notes for episode 44 of our Podcast – Yamata no Orochi. Story Notes So finally Susano-o is leaving Heaven, he has caused offence, he caused the sun kami to flee for a time causing the land to fall into darkness, and generally he has proven to be not a[...]

Show Notes for episode 43 of our Podcast – Kappa. Story Notes Names The Kappa (河童) has had various name throughout it long history including Midzuchi, Kawatarō and Kawa-warawa just to name a few. Appearance and Interests When it comes to appearance for this creature which is particular to the[...]

Show Notes for bonus episode 8 of our Podcast – Imaro and the Wani. Story Notes Imaro and the Wani is a short myth written down in the Izumo Fudoki. A kind of record and history of the old Japanese Province of Izumo.  We have talked about this document before[...]

Show Notes for episode 40 of our Podcast – Cat Folklore #1. Cat Folklore covers so much in Japan, and there is no way we could do it all in one episode for you all, so lets delve into a little part of the Cat Folklore that fills Japan. Story[...]

Show Notes for episode 37 of our Podcast – The Song the Black Fox God Sang. Story Notes The Woman Behind the Stories  The stories are through the work of Chiri Yukie, collecting tales she heard from her family. This book, the Ainu Shinyoushuu was the first of its kind[...]

Show Notes for episode 36 of our Podcast – A Brief History of Rice. Story Notes What is rice? How is it grown?  The rice plant is a grass. The product, also called rice, is a cereal grain, and the scientific name is Oryza sativa. It is usually grown in[...]

Show Notes for episode 34 of our Podcast – Oni. Story Notes Translated over time as demon, ogre or devil. And we can find reference to them as far back as the 8th century. Perhaps former Shinto kami and there can be both male and female Oni, though female Oni[...]

Show Notes for bonus episode 5 of our Podcast – Peacock Power. Story Notes This is a tale on En no Ozunu, from Episode 22. This tale can be found in the nara ehon, now this is an over all term from what I can tell for woodblock printed book[...]

Show Notes for episode 33 of our Podcast – Mirrors. Story Notes The first mirror story takes us to a sculptor known as Hidari Jingorō (左 甚五郎). As well as being a sculptor, he was also comedian, actor, stroyteller and painter. Now interestingly enough he might not even have exisited[...]

Show Notes for bonus episode 3 of our Podcast – Zenki and Goki. Story Notes Zenki and Goki (前鬼 & 後鬼) are two well known Oni with strong associations with the founder of the Shugendō Religion, En no Gyōja. Said to have dwelt in the mountains ranges close to Nara,[...]

Show Notes for episode 28 of our Podcast – Shark Man. Story Notes So today is yet again another link to one of the places we seem to be growing a fondness for. And that is the area around Lake Biwa outside of Kyoto. Honestly, at this point I think[...]

Show Notes for episode 27 of our Podcast – Legends of Himeji. Story Notes So today I wanted talk a little about some of the history of Himeji Castle. Castle in Japanese being pronounced Jō. As some of you many recall I visited Nagasaki during November last year when my[...]

Show Notes for episode 26 of our Podcast – Okiku and the Nine Plates. Story Notes Today I wanted to tell a story, this one in particular being a ghost story – The story of Okiku and the Nine Plates. Now this is one of Japanese better known Ghosts stories[...]

Show Notes for episode 23 of our Podcast – The Worms that Speak to Ten-tei. Story Notes Todays episode was a three in one combo for you all. Not three separate topics, but three different topics all which I discovered linked into one another. So lets start with a Yōkai[...]

Show Notes for bonus episode 1 of our Podcast – Shippeitaro. Story Notes The story of Shippeitaro is an interesting folktale from Japan around the theme of human sacrifice. Mukashi mukashi, long long ago there was a warrior who weary from travelling took shelter one night in a lonely and[...]

Show Notes for episode 18 of our Podcast – The Bell of Miidera.   We know of several stories surrounding the Bell of Miidera. Story Notes Kanesama One relates how women were forbidden to touch the bell as it was feared that it would cause the bell to go dull.[...]

Show Notes for episode 17B of our Podcast – Hitobashira.   Story Notes Human Sacrifice known as Hitobashira, literally translates as ‘Human Pillar,’ and is a purported form of Human Sacrifice carried out in Ancient Japan. However, we have no physical proof that such a thing ever occoured. In times[...]

Show Notes for episode 17A of our Podcast – Human Sacrifice.   Story Notes Archaeologically speaking, the act of human sacrifice has never been documented in Japan. So I want to look into the old tales told of this practise. The Bow In times long past there was the belief[...]

Show Notes for episode 16 of our Podcast – The Devil’s Gate.   Story Notes We have portrayals of the Yokai known as the Oni, which Heather mentioned in the previous episode about Momotaro. You can find his depiction in his Yokai compendium called the Konjaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki. He[...]

Show Notes for 15 of our Podcast – Son of a Peach. Also known as the Peach Boy.   Story Notes Mukashi, mukashi, there lived an old couple. This couple was very happy, but they never had a child. They spent their days on their farm doing chores.  Now, the[...]

Show Notes for EP14B of our Podcast – Hei! Say my Name. Tales of Fuji. Story Notes Lake Motosu Now, after researching this lake I have been unable to find any stories linked to it. So if I am missing something, and if you’re listening an no I story I[...]

Show Notes for EP13 of our Podcast – Palace Sparrows. Story Notes I wanted to talk today about Fujiwara no Sanekata, a member of the Fujiwara Clan he was an accomplished poet in his time. And we can find 68 of his poems in imperial waka anthologies. During his life[...]

Show Notes for EP11 of our Podcast – Superstitions. Story Notes There are many Superstitions in Japan. Numbers The numbers 4 and 9 in Japan have associations within bad luck. The number 4 四 can be associated with death as this can be pronounced shi. The same pronunciation for death.[...]

Show Notes for EP6 of our Podcast – Lord of Rice. Story Notes Fujiwara Hidesato, also known as Tawara Toda, wished for adventure and so one day set out. Reaching Seta-no-Karashi Bridge on Lake Biwa he finds a serpent-dragon sleeping across it. Undeterred he walks over the Dragon, afterwards, the Dragon changes into a[...]