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Folk Legends from Tono: Japan's Spirits, Deities, and Phantastic Creatures
Boldly illustrated and superbly translated, Folk Legends from Tono captures the spirit of Japanese peasant culture undergoing rapid transformation into the modern era. This is the first time these 299 tales have been published in English. Morse’s insightful interpretation of the tales, his rich cultural annotations, and the evocative original illustrations make this book unforgettable.
In 2008, a companion volume of 118 tales was published by Rowman & Littlefield as the The Legends of Tono. Taken together, these two books have the same content (417 tales) as the Japanese language book Tono monogatari.
Reminiscent of Japanese woodblocks, the ink illustrations commissioned for the Folk Legends from Tono, mirror the imagery that Japanese villagers envisioned as they listened to a storyteller recite the tales.The stories capture the extraordinary experiences of real people in a singular folk community. The tales read like fiction but touch the core of human emotion and social psychology. Thus, the reader is taken on a magical tour through the psychic landscape of the Japanese “spirit world” that was a part of its oral folk tradition for hundreds of years.
All of this is made possible by the translator’s insightful interpretation of the tales, his sensitive cultural annotations, and the visual charm of the book’s illustrations. The cast of characters is rich and varied, as we encounter yokai monsters, shape-shifting foxes, witches, grave robbers, ghosts, heavenly princesses, roaming priests, shamans, quasi-human mountain spirits, murderers, and much more.
In 2008, a companion volume of 118 tales was published by Rowman & Littlefield as the The Legends of Tono. Taken together, these two books have the same content (417 tales) as the Japanese language book Tono monogatari.
Reminiscent of Japanese woodblocks, the ink illustrations commissioned for the Folk Legends from Tono, mirror the imagery that Japanese villagers envisioned as they listened to a storyteller recite the tales.The stories capture the extraordinary experiences of real people in a singular folk community. The tales read like fiction but touch the core of human emotion and social psychology. Thus, the reader is taken on a magical tour through the psychic landscape of the Japanese “spirit world” that was a part of its oral folk tradition for hundreds of years.
All of this is made possible by the translator’s insightful interpretation of the tales, his sensitive cultural annotations, and the visual charm of the book’s illustrations. The cast of characters is rich and varied, as we encounter yokai monsters, shape-shifting foxes, witches, grave robbers, ghosts, heavenly princesses, roaming priests, shamans, quasi-human mountain spirits, murderers, and much more.
170 pages, Paperback
First published June 5, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 4, 2015
I've always wanted to visit the Tohoku region, now I want to even more. These tales were a lot of fun to read, and surprisingly, many of the "sightings" described in the book are from the late Meiji era, even some from the Taisho.
A few of them:
In Wasedochi, there is a small persimmon tree that never bears any fruit. Sometime in the 1150s, there was a battle between the Minamoto and Taira family clans, and many warriors died. It is said that this persimmon tree was planted on top of the mound where the corpses of the soldiers were buried. Legend has it that this is why, even though the souls of these soldiers make the tree’s flowers bloom, there is never any fruit.
----
The deep pool of water called onabe-ga-fuchi (cooking pot pool) in Masuzawa village is on the Sarugaishi River. The story is that during the feudal days of the Asonuma family (around 1600), a concubine learned that her master had been killed in battle, so she drowned herself in this pool of water clutching her baby. There is a large white rock in the middle of the water pool. Before a flood, a woman wearing a white dress and combing her hair has been seen on top of this rock. About twenty-five years ago during a flood, two or three people saw her.
----
There is a place called Kotoge (small pass) on the road from Ayaori village to Miyamori village. Near Mt. Kasanokayo there is a person named Kyasha, who it is said digs up corpses and then takes them somewhere to eat them. Also, during funeral ceremonies, it is said that he follows around behind the caskets. One account of this can be found in the Tono Kojiki (Old Records of Tono, 1763), a three-volume account of Tono history, customs, and religion compiled by Ubukata Koryu (1688–1768). Kyasha is probably a monster. Several people have also seen a weird woman walking near Kasanokayo. It is said that she has a red purse hanging from her front waistband. An old person from Miyamori village came across this woman when he was young. Just as he had heard, she had a purse attached to her waistband. He thought it would be quite a feat to capture her alive, and when he grappled with her, his hands and legs became numb and he couldn’t move. It is said she escaped.
----
Temple gods often help the peasants in their work. One year, during the riceplanting season, everyone in the caretaker’s family of the Juodo Temple in Ege was sick with a fever and couldn’t work. Villagers noticed that the caretaker’s rice fields were the only ones that were still mud and hadn’t been planted. Neighbors were concerned, and one morning they went to take a look at the caretaker’s fields. They were surprised to find that the fields had now been planted. They also found the caretaker’s family still suffering in bed, not capable of doing any field work. Suspicious, they peeked into the Juodo Temple and found several Buddhist statues covered in mud from doing the planting.
----
Some time ago, there was a fire in Muika-machi in Tono and a small child appeared out of nowhere carrying a waterproof bamboo basket. He worked very hard to put out the fire. Once the fire was out, he disappeared. Because his behavior was so amazing, everyone was curious about where he had come from. Before long, they found the wooden floor of the Aoyanagi bathhouse in Shimoyoko-cho dotted with small muddy footprints. They followed the footprints to where they stopped in front of the family Buddhist altar. Inside the altar there was a small Amida Buddha statue sweaty and covered in mud from head to toe.
----
The ghost called norikoshi (or mikoshinyudo) is a large Japanese monster (yokai). It looks like a shadow figure resembling a Buddhist priest with a long neck. It appears on paths at night, on bridges, and above trees. At first norikoshi looks like a small Buddhist monk–like figure with a shaven head. Since the image is not distinct, you have to bend over and look carefully. Then if you look up, it grows larger and larger as your gaze rises. Because of this, when norikoshi appears, you should always look at the head first and then move your eyes down until it shrinks and disappears. The following happened when Gonzo, an apprentice blacksmith from Tsuchibuchi village, was going to visit his master blacksmith. He was on his way back from somewhere late at night, and as he approached the house he could see the master’s wife had the light on bright and she was sewing inside. A man seemed to be peeping into the house through a crack in the sliding doors. Wondering who it was, Gonzo got closer. The man gradually drew back into the corner of the roof and then suddenly grew taller and taller until he was higher than the roof. Then he disappeared into the dark.
----
A long time ago, in the Atsuraku family of Tajiri, almost every night after the head of the family had died, he would appear outside the room his wife was sleeping in. He would tell his wife, “I can’t attain Buddhahood if I leave you behind. Come with me.” Family members were suspicious and quietly went around to the back of the house. They saw a big fox pressed up against the window. They approached from behind and killed it with an ax. It is said that from then on, the head of the household didn’t show up anymore.
A few of them:
In Wasedochi, there is a small persimmon tree that never bears any fruit. Sometime in the 1150s, there was a battle between the Minamoto and Taira family clans, and many warriors died. It is said that this persimmon tree was planted on top of the mound where the corpses of the soldiers were buried. Legend has it that this is why, even though the souls of these soldiers make the tree’s flowers bloom, there is never any fruit.
----
The deep pool of water called onabe-ga-fuchi (cooking pot pool) in Masuzawa village is on the Sarugaishi River. The story is that during the feudal days of the Asonuma family (around 1600), a concubine learned that her master had been killed in battle, so she drowned herself in this pool of water clutching her baby. There is a large white rock in the middle of the water pool. Before a flood, a woman wearing a white dress and combing her hair has been seen on top of this rock. About twenty-five years ago during a flood, two or three people saw her.
----
There is a place called Kotoge (small pass) on the road from Ayaori village to Miyamori village. Near Mt. Kasanokayo there is a person named Kyasha, who it is said digs up corpses and then takes them somewhere to eat them. Also, during funeral ceremonies, it is said that he follows around behind the caskets. One account of this can be found in the Tono Kojiki (Old Records of Tono, 1763), a three-volume account of Tono history, customs, and religion compiled by Ubukata Koryu (1688–1768). Kyasha is probably a monster. Several people have also seen a weird woman walking near Kasanokayo. It is said that she has a red purse hanging from her front waistband. An old person from Miyamori village came across this woman when he was young. Just as he had heard, she had a purse attached to her waistband. He thought it would be quite a feat to capture her alive, and when he grappled with her, his hands and legs became numb and he couldn’t move. It is said she escaped.
----
Temple gods often help the peasants in their work. One year, during the riceplanting season, everyone in the caretaker’s family of the Juodo Temple in Ege was sick with a fever and couldn’t work. Villagers noticed that the caretaker’s rice fields were the only ones that were still mud and hadn’t been planted. Neighbors were concerned, and one morning they went to take a look at the caretaker’s fields. They were surprised to find that the fields had now been planted. They also found the caretaker’s family still suffering in bed, not capable of doing any field work. Suspicious, they peeked into the Juodo Temple and found several Buddhist statues covered in mud from doing the planting.
----
Some time ago, there was a fire in Muika-machi in Tono and a small child appeared out of nowhere carrying a waterproof bamboo basket. He worked very hard to put out the fire. Once the fire was out, he disappeared. Because his behavior was so amazing, everyone was curious about where he had come from. Before long, they found the wooden floor of the Aoyanagi bathhouse in Shimoyoko-cho dotted with small muddy footprints. They followed the footprints to where they stopped in front of the family Buddhist altar. Inside the altar there was a small Amida Buddha statue sweaty and covered in mud from head to toe.
----
The ghost called norikoshi (or mikoshinyudo) is a large Japanese monster (yokai). It looks like a shadow figure resembling a Buddhist priest with a long neck. It appears on paths at night, on bridges, and above trees. At first norikoshi looks like a small Buddhist monk–like figure with a shaven head. Since the image is not distinct, you have to bend over and look carefully. Then if you look up, it grows larger and larger as your gaze rises. Because of this, when norikoshi appears, you should always look at the head first and then move your eyes down until it shrinks and disappears. The following happened when Gonzo, an apprentice blacksmith from Tsuchibuchi village, was going to visit his master blacksmith. He was on his way back from somewhere late at night, and as he approached the house he could see the master’s wife had the light on bright and she was sewing inside. A man seemed to be peeping into the house through a crack in the sliding doors. Wondering who it was, Gonzo got closer. The man gradually drew back into the corner of the roof and then suddenly grew taller and taller until he was higher than the roof. Then he disappeared into the dark.
----
A long time ago, in the Atsuraku family of Tajiri, almost every night after the head of the family had died, he would appear outside the room his wife was sleeping in. He would tell his wife, “I can’t attain Buddhahood if I leave you behind. Come with me.” Family members were suspicious and quietly went around to the back of the house. They saw a big fox pressed up against the window. They approached from behind and killed it with an ax. It is said that from then on, the head of the household didn’t show up anymore.
June 19, 2020
I read the first edition a few years ago and only recently learned this is practically a sequel to that, with more and different short, vignette-like tales. Unlike the first book, where yanagita kunio rewrote the stories so they were more presentable, the ones here have only a minimal amount of editing, more closely resembling the original material as it existed in the region of tono. My favorite tale is probably the one about this retired master thief who could steal people's pants while they were wearing them.
March 12, 2018
Certainly not as concise as the first book, but there are still many interesting and amusing stories to be found. I think that the editing that Morse did to rearrange the stories by theme helps tremendously.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews