. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 - Introduction .
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nekomata 猫又と伝説 Legends about the Nekomata cat monster
猫また / 猫股 / 猫胯 / ネコマタ
Nekomata are a kind of cat yōkai described in Chinese and then Japanese folklore, classical kaidan, essays, etc.
There are two very different types:
- those that live in the mountains and - domestic cats that have grown old and transformed.
Nekomata are often confused with Bakeneko.
- quote wikipedia-
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. bakeneko 化け猫 / 化猫 "monster cat" .
- Introduction -
. bakeneko 化け猫 / 化猫と伝説 Legends about monster cats .
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- - - - - ABC List of the prefectures :
......................................................................................... Ehime 愛媛県
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If a cat walks over a dead body, it will become 猫股 a Nekomata.
The family must take care and watch that no cat enters the room where a dead body is kept.
......................................................................................... Fukushima 福島県
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双葉郡 Futaba district 浪江町 Namie town // 赤猫
akaneko yashiki 赤猫屋敷 Mansion with a red cats
There was a lonely cat in the home and when the woman was left alone home, the cat begun to sing a song for her.
"But you must not tell anybody about my songs, lest you die!" the cat warned her.
When the other family members came back, they heard the woman sing and asked, where she had learned the song.
So the woman told them about the cat, but she died the next night.
......................................................................................... Ishikawa 石川県
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小松市 Komatsu city // 赤猫
The grandfather of a certain family cherished his akaneko 赤猫 a red cat. One day the red cat said: "When 「前田利常 Lord Maeda Toshitsune (1594 - 1658) dies, there will be a great storm at his funeral. There will be flowers from gold and silver decorated around him, so you have to wait until all the other people have gone and then take the gold and silver home!"
Grandfather did as the cat had advised him and lived a luxury life ever after.
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Ishikawa 能美郡 Nomi district 白峰村 Shiramine village
Once a Samurai wanted to drive out a nekomata 猫又 monster cat.
He shot an arrow at it and hit its hip. The cat fell from the tree and run away.
Soon after an old woman named お菊 O-Kiku was about to die.
When the Samurai touched her robes, he found his arrow.
The old women died soon afterwards.
13 years ago, the nekomata 猫又 monster cat had killed the old woman and shape-shifted into her form.
......................................................................................... Kagawa 香川県
If a cat turns old, it becomes 猫また a Nekomat with two tails and dances on its hind legs.
People give it fish with Tofu and put a red tenugui 手拭 hand towel on its head. Thus the cat wll leave the home.
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Priest 隠元 Ingen (1592 - 1673) from the temple 大滝寺 Otaki-Ji went upstream the river 吉野川 Yoshinogawa, where a fisherman attacked him and tried to kill him. But he was helped by a cat.
After three years keeping the cat, it turned to 猫また a Nekomata. It lived in the main hall of the temple and drove out all the mice. Soon it became a disciple of Priest Ingen.
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A cat that had been kept well by an old woman turned to 猫また a Nekomata. It killed the old woman and ate it.
Then it shape-shifted to the old woman, but was killed by the son of the old woman.
......................................................................................... Kanagawa 神奈川県
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Kanagawa 相模原市 Sagamihara
If a dog attacks a human and eats it, that means the dog is ill and has a fire in his intestines, that get away with the human meat.
If a cat dies, an ill person will get better again.
If a person has died, the cat of the home has to be put into a cage, otherwise the dead will come back to life, drink some water and will turn into a nekomata 猫又 monster cat.
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Kanagawa 津久井郡 Tsukui district
If a cat sits on a dead body, it gains special powers.
If a cat drinks waster from a bamboo ladle in the kitchen, it gains the power of 1000 people.
If one hits such a cat with a broom, it will fall down from the dead body. Thus a broom should be placed nearby.
......................................................................................... Kyoto 京都府
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南丹市 Nantan city
In the shade of a valley there lived a nekomata 猫又 monster cat, which was much feared by the local villagers.
Then came the Samurai 伊藤基 Ito Motoi and killed it.
......................................................................................... Miyazaki 宮崎県
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児湯郡 Koyu district 新富町 Shintomi town
Sometimes a cat goes wandering after being fed for one year in a home.
In the mountain forest it looks for the stump of matsu 松 a pine tree and rub the pine resin on its skin. Then it seeks a place with sand to dry.
That way no arrow or bullet will penetrate it.
After two or even seven years, it will come back to the home and haunt the people.
akaneko 赤猫 red cats are especially prone to become a nekomata 猫股 monster cat.
......................................................................................... Niigata 新潟県
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Nekomata Inari Shrine 猫又稲荷 / 土橋稲荷神社 Tsuchibashi Inari Shrine
It often came down to the village and caused great damage. The villagers complained at the government in Takada. Some officials were sent out to drive away the monster. At 中ノ俣 Nakanomata they fought with the monster but could not kill it, neigher with arrows or guns. So they asked the skilled hunter 吉十郎 Kichijuro to hit it and thus got rid of it. But Kichijuro got hurt himself and died soon after.
The monster was placed in front of the official residence. It was a cat as big as a small bull.
Later the bones were buried in a ground that became Tsuchibashi Inari Shrine, better known as 猫又稲荷 Nekomata Inari Shrine.
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akaneko 赤猫
Once a family had a Sake ricewine party when a yamabushi 山伏 mountain priest came along to drink with them.
Next morning the body of the priest lay on the ground, but the head was missing.
He had told the villagers that there would be a huge flooding and to prevent it, he would throw akaneko 赤猫 a red cat into the lake to prevent it. But the master of the lake, the Dragon God Ryujin 龍神 became angry and took away his head.
. ryuujin 竜神 /龍神 と伝説 Ryujin, Legends about the Dragon Deity .
......................................................................................... Okayama 岡山県
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岡山市
They wanted to capture the dead body of Grandpa Gomaya and decided to eat it.
The priest Gengo heard about this.
While the family was walking toward the graveyard, there was a loud thunder and all the people fled in fear.
In the black clouds there were the three cats, trying to get the dead body.
Now the priest from the temple Shozen-Ji hit the cat with his prayer beads.
The cat lost one eye and died soon after.
......................................................................................... Shimane 島根県
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松江市 Matsue city
Once the cat from a temple got old and turned into a nekomata 猫又 cat monster.
At night it took the priest's robes, put them on and walked in the villge, chanting religious songs.
Finally they drove the cat away from the temple.
Five days later, they found the body of a drowned cat in the pond behind the temple.
......................................................................................... Tokyo 東京都
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nekomatabashi 猫又橋 Nekomata bridge
In the outskirts of 小石川区 Koishikawa ward there was a bridge called Nekomatabashi. It had a bad reputation and children avoided to walk there.
Nekomata-zaka 猫又坂 Nekomatazaka slope
Bunkyo City, 13
- reference source : sakagakkai.org... -
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Around 1700 at the temple 徳水院 Tokusui-In in the compound of 増上寺 Zojo-Ji there was akaneko 赤猫 a cat with red hair.
Once it was hunting mice when it fell from the beam of the roof.
It called out a short prayer, so people thought it must be a nekomata cat monster.
Then it disappeared.
. Zoojooji, Zōjō-Ji 増上寺 Zojo-Ji .
the family temple of the Tokugawa family
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Around 1796, six friends had gathered at a tea house to drink.
When the owner of the tea house later went to one of guest's home to collect the money, they told him the man had died seven years ago.
The owner remembered that the guest had gulped down three pieces of fish, head and bones and all . . .
it must have been a nekomata 猫また monster cat.
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- reference : nichibun yokai database 妖怪データベース -
赤猫 OK
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. Kaido highway legends 街道と伝説 - - ABC list .
. animals and their legends 動物と伝説 - - ABC list .
. plants and their legends 植物と伝説 - - ABC list .
. Persons, People, Personen and their legends - - ABC list .
. Legends about Kobo Daishi Kukai - 弘法大師 空海 - 伝説 .
. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 - Introduction .
- Yookai 妖怪 Yokai Monsters of Japan -
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