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2015-08-16

nakodo matchmaker

- BACK to the Daruma Museum -
. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 - Introduction .
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nakoodo, nakōdo 仲人 Nakodo, legends about matchmakers for marriage



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- quote -
A nakōdo (仲人 matchmaker) serves the role of a go-between for families in the miai process. A nakōdo is not necessary for all miai. The nakōdo can be a family member, friend, or matchmaking company.
Professional organizations have begun to provide go-between services for inquiring candidates. These professional nakōdo are known as puro (pro) nakōdo.
The nakōdo is expected to play a variety of roles throughout the miai process. The first is the bridging role, hashikake (橋架け), in which the nakōdo introduces potential candidates and families to each other. The second role is as a liaison for the families to avoid direct confrontation and differences in opinions between them by serving as an intermediary for working out the details of the marriage.

miai (見合い, "matchmaking", lit. "looking at one another")
or omiai (お見合い) is a Japanese traditional custom
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !


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nakoodo isha 仲人医者 doctors as matchmakers for marriage
keian 慶庵 / 桂庵 Keian matchmaker
Named after the famous matchmacer-doctor Yamato Keian 大和慶庵 (around 1653).

A Nakodo go-between was necessary for a regular marriage in Edo.
Some doctors with a bad medical reputation could fall back on this kind of "business". Once the marriage was fixed, he would get quite a bit of "thank-you money".

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Yokai - Monsters having a miai meeting -



Look at the full scroll of the Monsters having a Miai and Wedding
Bakemono Konrei 化物婚礼
- source : Toyo Daigaku -


In the Yokai world, animals like fox, tanuki, serpent or Kappa are also Nakodo.


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- - - - - ABC List of the prefectures :

.................................................................. Fukushima 福島県 ....................................................................
会津若松市 Aizu Wakamatsu

tori no tobu yoo na oto 鳥の飛ぶような音 sound of a bird flying off

In the family of a matchmaker the wife had died and for about one month every day from the Tokonoma alcove the sound of a large bird flying off was to be heared.
When the husband looked, there was nobody.


.................................................................. Gifu 岐阜県 ....................................................................
和良村 Waramura

kitsune 狐 Fox
The bride of the house had already been on her way when the Nakodo came to pick her up. In fact it was a fox who had shapeshifted as the bride and walked at the top of the group.



.................................................................. Ishikawa 石川県 ....................................................................
河内村 Kawachimura

mujina むじな Tanuki badger
Once a Nakodo went to pick up the bride at her home. But out of the bushes there came a badger, with leaves on his head like the headgear of a bride. The Nakodo pretended not to suspect fraud, went close to the "bride" and hit the "Tanuki bride" with his long umbrella, until the Tanuki was dead.
Then the Nakodo carried the Tanuki to his home and postponed the wedding.



.................................................................. Miyagi 宮城県 ....................................................................
栗駒 Kurikoma - 馬橋坂 Umahashisaka

Umahashisaka no Mansukegitsune 馬橋坂の万助狐 Mansuke Kitsune the Fox
Mansuke is the most well-known fox in this region.
At the time of the cultivation of the 桧沢岳 Hisawadake region there was a man named Sato who had lost his wife and was working all alone.
One evening a Nakodo came and offered to find a new wife for him. The deal was fixed in a few days, the relatives invited for the wedding celebration. When all were drunk the bride, the Nakodo and the visitors suddenly showed her real form and all disappeared, including the feast in front of his eyes.

The bride of Mansuke was お花 O-Hana from Mount 花館山. People walking the path between the two mountains often got tricked by the fox couple.


A fox on a tea pot


Umahashisaka no Manjuuroo 馬橋坂の万寿郎狐 Manjuro the Fox

A legend of another fox called Manjuro tells of 宗作爺 Grandfather Sosaku. Once he went to some relatives to help putting new reeds on the roof. He got some rice cakes 月形餅や撒餅 for his help and was on his way home. When he passed the school the children came to him and asked to see the contents of his packet and wanted some to eat. He felt quite elated and wanted to share them with the children. When he tried to open the packes it suddenly disappeared and all the children were gone . . . Manjuro had played a trick on him!



.................................................................. Nagano 長野県 ....................................................................
山ノ内町 Yamanouchi

kitsune 狐 Fox
A samurai was asked to expell a fox from the village.
But the fox asked him instead:
"I was asked to be the Nakodo and bring the bride to the home of the groom. On the way she suddenly asked to take a bath and I don't know what to do. Can you do it in my place?"
When he tried to help the fox and went to the bath he suddenly found himself sitting in a puddle of mud instead . . .






.................................................................. Niigata 新潟県 ....................................................................
松之山町 Matsunoyama

hebi 蛇 serpent
The serpent wanted the princess of the pond 蒲生池 / 蒲生の池 Kamo-no-ike as his bride. But the Nakodo was refused. In his anger he killed all the members of the family.
He borrowed the famous serpent-cutting sword 蛇切丸 and fought with the enemy.

This is a famous sword jagirimaru 蛇切丸 with more legends in other regions of Japan.
- reference -

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.................................................................. Kappa legends 河童 ...............................................................

. Welcome to the Kappapedia ! .


Once a Kappa from the bridge 宮川橋 Miyagawakyo became a bride. The Nakodo was from 二の橋 Ninohashi.
The "Kappa" in this tale is in fact a prostitute from a tea stall. Ninohashi was famous for the Aimaiya, Aimai-Ya 曖昧屋 , a kind of tea stall, eatery or lodging, keeping aimai women 曖昧女(おんな) prostitutes.

Aimai chaya 曖昧茶屋, Aimai yado 曖昧宿.

aimai 曖昧 is a normal word of the Japanese language, it means ambiguous, not clearly defined, obscure, vague . . . (you can google for more).


. chaya 茶屋 tea shop, tea stall business in Edo .
fuuzoku, fûzoku 風俗 Fuzoku, entertainment and sex business




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今さら意味を聞けない日本語1000
explaining a lot of "aimai" words with ambiguous meanings.
一言居士、かなぼうひき、ゆめゆめ、烏の行水、あまつさえ、まめまめしい、度し難い、益体も無い……大人なら使ってみたい曖昧で間違いやすい言葉の数々。
(available at amazon com.)

yokai database 妖怪データベース  - source : www.nichibun.ac.jp -

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. kitsune densetsu 狐と伝説 fox legends .

. minwa 民話 folktales / densetsu 伝説 Japanese Legends .
- Introduction -

- Yookai 妖怪 Yokai Monsters of Japan -
- Introduction -

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. Join the friends on Facebook ! .

- #nakodo #nakodolegends -
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[ . BACK to DARUMA MUSEUM TOP . ]
[ . BACK to WORLDKIGO . TOP . ]

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2015-08-12

Taira no Masakado

- BACK to the Daruma Museum -
. Legends - Heian Period (794 to 1185) - Introduction .
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Taira no Masakado 平将門 / 平將門
(? – 940) - 延喜3年(903年)? - 天慶3年2月14日(940年3月25日)

A lot has been written about this hero of old !

Shoomonki, Shōmonki 将門記 Shomonki - The Records of Masakado, Masakado Chronicle


CLICK for more photos !

He was a kokushi 国司 governor of Shimosa.
(for kokushi, see below)

He revolted against the government in Kyoto because of the ruthless attitude of the Kokushi in the Kanto region, squeezing the poor farmers to ever more taxes.
After a great earthquake and the eruption of Mount Fuji the farmers of Kanto were in even more distress and many left the region.
So Masakado stepped in to help them.

He also invented the curved Japanese sword, more suited to kill the enemy while riding a horse.
He had enough metal mines in his region.
In a dream he saw a messenger from Michizane, asking him to stand up and fight.

. Sugawara Michizane 菅原道真 (845 - 903) .

Masakado was (most probably) the only one in Japanese history who proclaimed himself as
New Emperor, Shinoo, Shin-Oo 新皇 in the Eastern Region in 939.

939年(天慶2)11月21日に常陸国府を制圧した将門は,12月19日に上野の国司を追放して国庁に入り,弟や従者を伊豆と関東諸国の受領(ずりよう)に任じたが,このとき - a messenger of Hachiman Daibosatsu 八幡大菩薩の使と口ばしる昌伎 (kamunagi) から位記を授けられ〈新皇〉と称するようになる。同書はこれ以後の将門を新皇と記すが,一方で京都の朱雀天皇を〈本皇〉〈本天皇〉としているので,新皇とはもともとの天皇に対する新しい天皇の意味であろう。

新皇将門 / 平新皇
- source : wikipedia -

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He also had a lot of kagemusha 影武者 doubles (probably 7) to protect his own whereabouts.

During the final battle, the wind was on his side in the beginning, the first Southern Wind of the Season, Haru Ichiban 春一番. He almost won the battle, but then the wind turned and one arrow of his enemy hit him in the head (the eye) . . . that was the End!.


Tawara Tōda 俵藤太 "Rice-bag Tōda" - Tawara Toda cut off the head of Masakado
Fujiwara no Hidesato alias Tawara Tota (Toda)
. Fujiwara no Hidesato 藤原秀郷 .
Hidesato became friendly with 桔梗の前 Kikyo, the mistress of Masakado and asked her to tell him to distinguish between the many kagemusha doubles. She told him and then and became a huge serpent at 菅沼 Sugenuma.
To kill the "real" Masakado, Hidesato had to aim his arrow at the one that cast a shadow.
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On his way to Kyoto to deliver the head with the helmet, he encountered many strange things and eventually burried the box with the helmet. This place is now called Koosan 甲山 Kosan, "Mount Helmet".



. Masakado's Rebellion 平将門の乱 - Heian History .
A detailed account !

. Kanda Myojin Shrine 神田明神 . - Tokyo
The three deities enshrined are Daikokuten, Ebisu, and Taira no Masakado.


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- quote -
平将門 Taira no Masakado

APPEARANCE:
Taira no Masakado was a samurai of the Heian period, a powerful warrior, and a great leader. He was born either in the late 800s or early 900s CE and was killed in 940. After his death, his spirit is said to have returned as a vengeful ghost and brought destruction across the country. Along with Emperor Sutoku and Sugawara no Michizane, he is one of the Nihon San Dai Onryō — Three Great Onryō of Japan.
Though Taira no Masakado’s birth date is unknown,
he is believed to have been born sometime around when Sugawara no Michizane died. A Meiji period biography of Taira no Masakado suggests that he may have been Sugawara no Michizane’s reincarnation; his revolt against the emperor may actually have been a continuation of Michizane’s curse.

ORIGIN:
Taira no Masakado was born into the Kanmu Heishi, the clan of Taira descended from Emperor Kanmu. It was an elite family. Masakado had a privileged childhood in the capital, after which he settled down in Shimosa Province in Eastern Japan, northeast of modern day Tokyo. His troubles only began after his father died. Inheritance laws at this time were not firmly established, and his uncles tried to steal most of his father’s land. They claimed their royal lineage gave them the right to do so.
In 935 CE,
the dispute with his family members broke into outright battle. Masakado was ambushed by one of his uncles and a number of Minamoto warriors. But Masakado was a powerful warrior. He quickly defeated them, and then took his revenge by burning their lands, ravaging the countryside, and slaughtering thousands. This brought him into conflict with other relatives by blood and by marriage, who brought their dispute to the emperor.
Taira no Masakado
was summoned to court to answer charges of the relatives of the dead Minamoto warriors. Masakado was not only brave, he was also smart. He had taken great pains to remain within the law and proved that he had good reason for his killings. After only a few months, he was fully pardoned when the court offered a general amnesty in commemoration of Emperor Suzaku’s coming of age.
Taira no Masakado
returned to his home, but soon found himself under attack. This time, it was his father-in-law and his relatives. Again, Masakado quickly defeated them. To avoid stirring up more political trouble, Masakado received a warrant to apprehend his attackers. Now, with legal sanction for his military action, he stormed into their lands on a quest for revenge.
In 938 CE, Taira no Masakado received another court summons for questioning about a quarrel with one of the cousins who had attacked him. This time, Masakado ignored the summons. He raised a large force and invaded Hitachi Province. He conquered eight provinces: Shimotsuke, Kozuke, Musashi, Kazusa, Awa, Sagami, Izu, and Shimosa. The whole time, he maintained his innocence, insisting that his campaign was legal under the terms of his warrant.
The government was seen as ineffectual and the nobles as abusive by the peasants of the time. Taira no Masakado, on the other hand, treated the peasants of his conquered domains much better than their former masters did. His insurrection was seen as a salvation by many peasants. They welcomed him gladly. The court feared that Taira no Masakado was preparing to overthrow the government and declare himself the new Emperor of Japan. He was condemned as a rebel and a traitor.
A number of warriors — including Masakado’s ally Fujiwara no Hidesato and some his own relatives— were commissioned by the government to take his head. They caught up with Masakado’s army in Shimosa province on the fourteenth day of the second month of 940 CE. They attacked during a night ambush and quickly defeated the rebels. Masakado’s men were outnumbered ten to one. Masakado was beheaded, betrayed by his friends and family. The head was brought back to Kyoto to be displayed in the east market as a message to would-be rebels.



LEGENDS:
Strangely, Taira no Masakado’s head did not decompose. Many months after it was first displayed in the east market, it still looked as fresh as the day it was severed. The eyes had grown fiercer, and the mouth twisted up into a hideous grimace. Night after night the head would call out,
“Where is my murdered body!? Come here! Reattach my head and let me fight once again!”
「斬られた体を呼び戻し、再び一緒になって進軍するぞ」
And then things got really strange.
One night the head began to glow.
It flew off into the sky, across the country, towards Shimosa. The head eventually grew tired and landed to rest in a fishing village called Shibazaki (which would one day grow into the city of Edo). The villagers who found the head cleaned it and buried it. A shrine was erected over the grave and named Kubizuka—the mound of the head. Masakado was honored and worshipped by the peasants as a true warrior, a symbol of justice who stood in heroic defiance of a corrupt and lazy nobility. He was seen as an underdog who was repeatedly betrayed and eventually murdered by those he should have been able to trust. Despite his deification and popularity among the lower classes, his ghost was not appeased. A few years after his head was buried, the ghost of a samurai began to be seen in the neighborhood of his shrine.
In the early 1300s,
a great plague struck Edo. Many people died. The plague was attributed to Taira no Masakado’s anger. In order to appease him, his spirit was moved from his small shrine to the larger and more prestigious Kanda Shrine. He was designated one of the main gods, and his spirit was placated—for a while. In 1874, Emperor Meiji visited the Kanda Shrine. It was viewed as inappropriate for an enemy of the imperial family like Masakado to be honored when the emperor was visiting, and so his deity status was revoked. His shrine was moved to a smaller building outside of the main shrine.
Taira no Masakado’s anger returned in 1928.
After the Great Kanto Earthquake 関東大震災 destroyed much of the city, the site of his Kubizuka was chosen as the temporary location for the Ministry of Finance 大蔵省本庁. Shortly afterwards, the Minister of Finance became sick and died. Over a dozen other employees died, and even more became sick or were injured in falls and accidents in the building. Rumors about the curse ran began to spread. The Ministry of Finance building was demolished and a memorial service for Masakado was held at the Kanda Shrine.
Throughout the 20th century,
a number of other accidents, fires, sicknesses, and mysterious sightings were attributed to the curse of Taira no Masakado. Each time, purification rituals were performed. Finally, in 1984, in response to public pressure, his deity status was reinstated. Today, great pains are taken not to anger his ghost. For example, it is common practice for television stations to visit the grave of his head, still located in what is now Otemachi, Tokyo 東京都千代田区大手町. They pay their respects to him before his character appears on any show. The Kubizuka is maintained by an organization of local businesses and volunteers who have taken on the responsibility of upkeeping of his grave.
- source : yokai.com -


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. goryoo, onryoo 御霊、怨霊 vengeful spirits .
- Introduction -

Sudo, Sudoo Tenno 崇道天皇 (? - 785) and his son,
Iyo Shinno 伊予親王.
his mother, Fujiwara Fujin, 藤原婦人
Fujiwara Hirotsugu, 藤原広嗣
Tachibana Hayanari, 橘逸勢
Bunya no Miyata Maro 文室宮田麻呂
Kibi no Makibi 吉備真備
Sugawara Michizane 菅原道真

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. Nine Stars Crest 九曜紋 ... Kuyoo Mon / kushitsu 九執 .

Masakaso was a grest believer in the star constellations and brought the belief of Myoken and the nine constellations to many parts of Japan.


Taira no Masakado (平将門)
(?–March 25, 940)

was a member of the Kammu Taira clan of Japan. He was the son of Taira no Yoshimochi, Chinjufu Shogun. His childhood name was Sōma Kojirō. Taira no Masakado was a powerful landowner in the Kantō region.
He is regarded as the first bushi because he was the first to lead a self-governing party.

The Taira Masakado Insurrection of 939-940 - known in Japanese as Jōhei - Tengyō no ran,

In 939, during the Heian period of Japanese history, he rebelled by attacking the outpost of the central government in Hitachi Province, capturing the governor. In December of that year he conquered Shimotsuke and Kōzuke Provinces, and claimed the title of Shinnō (New Emperor). Masakado killed his uncle Kunika who was part Taira. The central government in Kyoto responded by putting a bounty on his head, and fifty-nine days later his cousin Sadamori, whose father Masakado had attacked and killed, and Fujiwara no Hidesato, killed him at the Battle of Kojima (Shimōsa Province) in 940 and took his head to the capital.

His tomb (which contains only a monument to his head) is near exit C5 of Tokyo's Ōtemachi subway station.

When Masakado was preparing for his revolt, a vast swarm of butterflies appeared in Kyoto, considered a portent of the upcoming battle.

Over the centuries, Masakado became a hero and even a demigod to the locals who were impressed by his stand against the central government, while at the same time feeling the need to appease his malevolent spirit. The fortunes of Edo and Tokyo seemed to wax and wane correspondingly with the respect paid to the shrine built to him at the kubizuka — neglect would be followed by natural disasters and other misfortunes. Hence, to this day, the shrine is well maintained, occupying some of the most expensive land in the world in Tokyo’s financial district near the Imperial Palace.

Other shrines which he is deity of include Kanda Shrine (神田明神 Kanda-myōjin) (located in Kanda), and Tsukudo Jinja (which has multiple locations.)

Taira no Masakado's legacy in folklore does not stop with Masakado himself; his daughter, Takiyasha-hime (Princess Takiyasha), also features in Japanese myths.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !


CLICK for more photos of Masakado

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Masakado no kabuto 将門の兜 the helmet of Masakado

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Taira no Masakado, Yin Yang and Tokyo
When Tokugawa Ieyasu, the founder and first Shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty (1603-1868), seized power in 1600 he started building the city of Edo, now known as Tokyo, copying the ancient city of Kyoto and based on the Chinese philosophy of Yin Yang.

Ieyasu first moved the front gate of his palace (now known as the imperial palace) close to Taira no Masakado's "Kubizuka" (resting place of his cut-off head) located in today's financial district of Otemachi. Taira no Masakado, a warlord from the middle Heian period and the grandson of Taira no Takamochi who founded the Heike family, was killed by Fujiwara no Hidesato in 940 and became one of the most feared "Onryo" (ghost) in history. Because it was believed that ghosts turn into guardian gods if enshrined with deep respect, Ieyasu decided to use Masakado's ghost to protect his city.

Ieyasu also used other sites related to Masakado. He moved the Kanda Myojin Shrine which worships Masakado to its current location which lies towards the northeast direction of the imperial palace. According Yin Yang philosophy, northeast is an ominous direction know as "Kimon" (Demon's gate) from which plague flows in. Ieyasu tried to block this direction by using Masakado's power.



Other sites such as the Kabuto Shrine (enshrines Masakado's "kabuto" or warrior helmet), the Yoroi Shrine (enshrines Masakado's "Yoroi" or armor) and the Tsukudo Shrine (enshrines the bucket in which Masakado's cut-off head was once placed) were all placed in the important locations of the city of Edo.

In addition, the Zojo-ji Temple was moved to its current location, again, based on Yin Yang philosophy. The current location of the Zojo-ji Temple was close to the Tokaido route (one of the five main routes of the Edo period) which lead to Mt. Fuji. Mt. Fuji is the most sacred place of Yin Yang philosophy and the location of the Zojo-ji Temple was considered to be where energy from Mt. Fuji was flowing into the city of Edo.
- source : discover-tokyo.blogspot.jp-

In fact, the shrines in Edo relating to Masakado are arranged in the form of Hokuto 北斗 the Big Dipper, the Pole Star. Tokugawa Ieyasu thus made sure the Heavens would help protect his town.



1. Torigoe shrine 鳥越神社
2. Kabuto shrine 兜神社
3. Masakado no Kubi-zuka 将門の首塚
4. Kanda shrine 神田明神
5. Tsukudo shrine 筑土八幡神社 - 津久戸明神 Tsukudo Myojin
6. Mizuinari shrine 水稲荷神社
7. Yoroi shrine 鎧神社 


- source : quest-for-japan.com -


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The famous head mound of Masakado in Tokyo
Shoomonzuka 将門塚(しょうもんづか) Shomonzuka (Shomon is another reading of Masakado)

- quote -
The body of Taira Masakado, first buried in what is now Marunouchi, was stolen by his friend and buried somewhere near the shrine Kanda Myojin. His head was severed by Fujiwara no Hidesato and had been buried in variousl places in Edo, carrying its curse with it ... Masakado has a shrouded Force, best left alone...

For one thing, you don't want to mess with Taira no Masakado.
A warrior whose exploits are recorded in the historical work "Taiheiki," Masakado led a rebellion against the throne. After being killed in battle in 940, his severed head was sent to Kyoto as a war trophy and hung from a tree for all to see. But what they saw, so the story goes, was the face continuing to grimace and roll its eyes . . . before the head flew back to eastern Japan under its own power.

Masakado's kubizuka (the mound beneath which tradition says his head still rests) is located in the grounds of a powerful samurai's residence in Edo (present-day Tokyo). When the new Meiji government's finance ministry took over the property in 1869, a small stone monument bearing the legend "Taira Masakado" and the prayer "Namu Amida Butsu (Save us, merciful Buddha)" was erected there.

- - - - - Read the full story - HERE ! - - - - -




WIKIPEDIA : Taira no Masakado



. kubizuka 首塚 head mounds .
- Introduction -

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男ぶり将門公の更衣
otokoburi Masakado koo no koromogae

what a man !
Masakado changes
his robes


. 川崎展宏 Kawasaki Tenko .
Born 1927 in Hiroshima


. koromogae 更衣 changing of the robes .
- - kigo for summer - -

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将門の首を洗ふや新松子
角川春樹


ありやなしや将門の首男郎花
逸見真三


将門の走り抜けたる雁渡し
太田土男


将門が顔して神田祭衆
愛澤豊嗣

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CLICK for more books about Masakado !

平将門 - 竜崎攻

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- - - - - More Legends - - - - -

The souls of the defeated warrior Taira no Masayori 平将頼 (? - 940)
was left on the battlefield and cursed the place for more than 480 years.
Then a pupil of Saint Ippen named 真数坊 Shinsubo build a hermitage and prayed for his soul.
He also made the brother of Masayori, Masakado, into a deity to appease him.
So the bad one who cursed the Kanto region for so long was in fact not Masakado, but his brother Masayori.

Masayori became 下野守 Shimotsuke no Kami regent of the Shimotsuke region after Masakado declared himself as the "New Emperor". He was also called "Ason" 朝臣, another title bestowed by the New Emperor.
After the death of Masakado he was also killed in Sagami (Kanto region). - source : wikipedia -

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. 八幡大菩薩 Hachiman Daibosatsu and Masakado .

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.................................................................. Tokyo 東京都  ....................................................................

In 1928 the newspaper 報知新聞 Hochi Shinbun published an article about
the "Curse of Masakado" 将門のたゝり, which led to a lavish ritual to appease his soul.

.......................................................................

When Mitsui Bussan tried to build an office 三井物産ビル, they wanted to buy the land with the Kubizuka of Masakado. But they were afraid of the curse of Masakado 将門の祟り and bought a different plot.

They also offered a gamagaeru ガマガエル toad to Kanda Myojin shrine.

In aonther office building, many workers became ill with high fever all of a sudden after moving to their new seats near the windows. Checking for the reason they found the seats had turned their backside toward the Kubizuka.
So all the desks and seats at the window side were changed to face the Kubizuka . . . and the workers were well again.

Mitsui Bussan and the 若王子信行 Wakaoji Nobuyuki (1933 - 1989) kidnapping in the Philippines:
. Edo - Kanda 神田 Kanda district  .

.......................................................................

When the American army アメリカ軍 after the war tried to clear some land for a camp in Chiyoda, the driver of the bulldozer and a few other workers died in mysterious circumstances. Investigating they found it was too close to the land of the Kubizuka.

.......................................................................

One 旗本家 Hatamoto samurai family from Yotsuya once got the kabutohelmet of Masakado by some of his descendants in exchange for money. On the first night in the new home, the house begun to scream and squeek and shake, so next morning they gave it back to its owner.


.......................................................................
渋谷区 Shibuya

At the temple 荘厳寺 Shogon-Ji there is a statue of 不動明王 Fudo Myo-O. 藤原秀郷 Fujiwara Hidesato came here to pray for victory and to partake of the power of this statue.

. Hatagaya Fudo  幡ヶ谷不動 Shogon-Ji .


.......................................................................
奥多摩 Okutama

Masakado Jinja 将門神社 Shrine for Masakado
Masakado no Miya 将門宮



The shrine was built by his son, Taira no Yoshikado 平良門, to pray for his soul.
Further up the mountain there is

Masakadoyama Fudo-Son 将門山不動尊



将軍太郎良門 Shôguntarô Taira Yoshikado
- reference - Taira Yoshikado -


.................................................................. Chichibu 秩父 Saitama 埼玉県 ...................

Joomine Jinja 城峯神社 shrine Jomine Jinja



Masakado is venerated here as the Deity in Residence.
Masakado fled to this region in the Chichibu mountains when he was fighting with Fujiwara no Hidesato.
Legend knows he built a castle at 城峯山 Jominesan and hid there. But Hidesato found him and his retainers and they had to flee again.
To appease his soul, the villagers built this shrine.

At 皆野町 Minano in the temple compound of 日野明徳寺 Myotoku-Ji, there is a stone marker on a natural boulder. This is said to be the grave of the favorite horse of Masakado.


.................................................................. Chiba 千葉県  ....................................................................
成田市 Narita

. Narita Fudo 成田不動尊 Chiba .

- quote -
Narita San 成田山 Shinshō-ji 新勝寺 "New victory temple" 
The temple was established in 940 to commemorate the victory of the forces dispatched from the Heian capital to suppress a revolt by the powerful Kantō region samurai, Taira no Masakado.

The Shingon priest 寛朝大僧 Kanchō accompanied the force, bringing with him an image of Fudō myōō from the Gomadō (Fire Offering Hall) of Takao-san Jingo-ji in Kyōtō. Shingon founder 弘法大師 Kōbō Daishi himself was said to have carved the image and used it in Goma sacred fire rituals that helped stop a rebellion during his era. The rebellion in 940 also came to an end just as Kanchō completed a three-week Goma ritual with the same image.


source : naritasan.or.jp

According to legend, the image of the Unmovable Wisdom King became too heavy after the victory to move back to its home base, so a new temple on Narita-san, named Shinshō-ji (New Victory Temple), was built to enshrine it on the spot.
The temple maintains that the original image is enshrined in the Main Hall, where it is displayed on special occasions, but art historians date the current image to no earlier than the 13th century.
- source : wikipedia -



.................................................................. Gifu 岐阜県   ....................................................................
不破郡 Fuwa district - 矢通村 Yadori "Shot by an Arrow"

Mikubi Jinja 御頭神社 "Honorable Head Shrine"
On his way from Kyoto back to Kanto, Masakado's head flew over Gifu and someone shot an arrow at it.
To appease Masakado, this shrine was erected.



Now people come here to be healed from diseases of the head, like headache and stroke.
People buy amulets for prevention or offer a hat when they got healed.

- More photos are here:
- source : gifu-net.com/kutikomi-t -


.................................................................. Kyoto 京都府  ....................................................................

There is a 銀杏 Gingko tree in the town where the head of Masakado got hooked up on his flight to Kanto.
This kind of legend is also known in other regions on his way.



.................................................................. Nara 奈良県  ....................................................................

During the Rebellion of Masakado, the statue of the Nio at the gate (Shitsu Kongoo Shin 執金剛神) of the Hokke-Do hall at Todai-Ji 東大寺法華堂 suddenly disappeared.
After the rebellion it returned to its cabinet, but one of the feathers behind its head was missing. Now people knew that this deity had become a bee 蜂 and helped the army 征討軍.
The statue is therefore also called 蜂神 "Bee Deity".
But it a "Hidden Statue" and not shown to the public.


source : wikipedia


. Masakado's Rebellion 平将門の乱 - Heian History .



.................................................................. Shiga 滋賀県   ....................................................................
愛知郡 Aichi district

There is a mound called "Shogunzuka" 将軍塚 which is said to be for Masakado.
(Other souces say it is an old Kofun.

Another famous Shogunzuka is in Kyoto.



.................................................................. Yamanashi 山梨県 ................................................................
大月市 Otsuki

Gorinzuka 五輪塚 "Mound of five rings"


source : kyukaidou-tougemichi

Near the pass 松姫峠 Matsuhimetoge.
Legend knows that special mementos of Masakado are burried here. In former times people prepared new straw sandals every year at the O-Bon festival for the ancestors to come here and clean the place. But then a white serpent appeared and claimed it as a sacred spot. People did not enter after that.

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北都留郡 Kitatsuru district

nakane no kin なかねの金 nakane gold
The ancestors of the 川久保 Kawakubo family once found some nakane no kin near the old hunting ground (kariba カリバ). Legend knows it was lost there by Masakado and cursed, so they should bring it back to its place. Since that time, people come here to bring ritual offerings on the 17th day of the 11th lunar month, the day of kariba カリバの日.

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- - - 平将門はなぜ殺されたのか?

- Reference in Japanese 歴史鑑定 BS TBS -

Shoomonki 将門記 Shomonki - The Records of Masakado
- reference -

- Reference in English -

yokai database 妖怪データベース
- source : www.nichibun.ac.jp -

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. Japanese Legends - 伝説 民話 昔話 – ABC-List .

- Yookai 妖怪 Yokai Monsters of Japan -
- Introduction -

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Masakado in our times - food and restaurants


CLICK for more photos !

Masakaso Senbei 将門煎餅

Masakaso Soba, Masakado Ramen . . .

. Senbei 煎餅 rice crackers .

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- quote -
Kokushi 国司, also read Kuni no tsukasa
were officials in Classical Japan sent from the central government to oversee a province from around the 8th century, after the enactment of the Ritsuryō system. Kokushi held considerable power and responsibility according to the Ritsuryō, including tax collection, etc. The highest level for a Kokushi was Kami (守). So, for instance, the chief kokushi (governor) of Kai would have the title of Kai no Kami (甲斐守). In some cases, the Kami himself was living directly in the province he was charged with, delegating his powers to lower ranking officials. The highest official effectively in charge of the province was called Zuryō (受領).

Kokushi lost their power during the Kamakura Shogunate and furthermore during the Muromachi Shogunate to the Shugo. In subsequent generations, especially in the Edo period, a kokushi title remained as an honorific title.

Ritsuryō (律令) Ritsuryo
is the historical law system based on the philosophies of Confucianism and Chinese Legalism in Japan. The political system in accord to Ritsuryō is called "Ritsuryō-sei" (律令制). Kyaku (格) are amendments of Ritsuryō, Shiki (式) are enactments.

Ritsuryō defines both a criminal code (律 Ritsu) and an administrative code (令 Ryō).
During the late Asuka period (late 6th century – 710) and Nara period (710 – 794), the imperial court, trying to replicate China's rigorous political system from the Tang Dynasty, created and enforced some collections of Ritsuryō. Over the course of centuries, the ritsuryō state produced more and more information which was carefully archived; however, with the passage of time in the Heian period, ritsuryō institutions evolved into a political and cultural system without feedback.

The ritsuryō system also established a central administrative government, with the Emperor at its head.

In 645, the Taika reforms were the first signs of implementation of the system.

Registration of the citizens (戸籍 koseki), updated every 6 years, and a yearly tax book (計帳 keichō) were established. Based on the keichō, a tax system was established called (租庸調 So-yō-chō). Tax was levied on rice crops but also on several local products (e.g. cotton, salt, tissue) sent to the capital.

The system also established local corvée at a provincial level by orders of the kokushi (国司), a corvée at the Capital (although the corvée at the capital could be replaced by goods sent) and military service.
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !


- quote -
... the total numbers of court ranks appearing in Shoku Nihongi (Chronicles of Japan, Continued)
112 ranks appearing in Shoku Nihongi in each of the forty maki.
- The Shoku Nihongi (Chronicles of Japan, Continued) is the official court history of eighth-century Japan. Presented to the court of Emperor Kanmu in two recensions, 794 and 797, it comprises the annals of the Japanese imperial court from 697 to 791. This voluminous chronicle, five volumes in the standard edition, contains an enormous amount of information on the imperial institution, economic and demographic history, and also a great amount of detail on the system of court ranks instituted in the Taihō Ritsuryō, promulgated in 701 and 702. ...
- source : Ross Bender - 2017 -


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. Kobayashi Issa 小林一茶 (1763 - 1828) - Introduction .

梅さくや平親王の御月夜
ume saku ya heishinoo no on tsukiyo

plums are blossoming -
this moonlit night
of Prince Taira


Hei Shinoo 平親王 is another tame for Taira no Masakado.
In 1810, Issa has been to the temple 西林寺 Sairin-Ji in memory of Masakado at least 9 times.



この句は文化7年(1810)12月23日一茶が西林寺を尋ねた時に詠んだもの ...
- reference source : t-aterui.jp/hitachi -


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. Join the friends on Facebook ! .

- #masakado #tairanomasakado #kokushi -
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2015-08-07

Heike Ochudo Legends

- BACK to the Daruma Museum -
. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 - Introduction .
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Heike Ochudo densetsu 平家落人伝説 legends about Heike Ochudo

. Heike densetsu 平家伝説 legends about the Heike clan .
- Introduction -

Heike no ochuudo 平家の落人 Ochudo, the defeated soldiers of the Heike
They are said to live in many parts of Japan, often in remote rural mountain regions.
They founded small communities, 平家の里 Heike no Sato.


source : shurakumachinami.natsu.gs

A map of the spread of the Heike families. 平家落人行動図. Most of them have their own 落人伝説.



Even in my valley in the center of Okayama prefecture, this is a Ochudo community with many family names like
Akihira, Hiraoka, Hiranuma, Shigehira, Ujihira and so on.

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Heike Ochudo Matsuri - Yunishigawa - Samurai Festival

- reference : heike ochudo festival -

- reference : 平家落人 祭り -

日光市 - 平家大祭

平家落人伝説由来の地「椎葉村」 Shiiba village, Miyazaki, Kyushu


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- - - - - ABC List of the prefectures :

.................................................................. Ehime 愛媛県 ....................................................................
城辺町 Johen

A villager had hidden some Ochudo families, but was betrayed and officials came to check. In the following fight, the Ochudo were killed. Before they all died, one of them uttered
この家は庭に植物を絶やさねば食うに困らなくなる.
"If you plant fruit and vegetables in your garden, you will always have enough to eat!"
And so it happened.

At temple 海禅寺 Kaizen-Ji in Uwajima someone begun to dig at the roots of a tree sacred to the Heike,
a Shii oak tree 椎の木. His face became swollen and his extremities limp. This was a curse of the Ochudo.
愛媛県宇和島市蒋淵1679, Temple Kaizen-Ji


source : yugami189/diary

. shii 椎 the Shii-oak, Pasania .
Often planted as a sacred 神木 shinboku in a shrine or temple.


平家屋敷跡 - 方城町 Hojomachi Fukuoka, with a Shii tree.
- source : senri.warbirds.jp -




.................................................................. Gifu 岐阜県 .................................................................

. Heike Jizo at 上宝村 Kamitakaramura 双六 Sugoroku village .




.................................................................. Kagawa 香川県 ....................................................................
Takamatsu, 東植田町 Higashiueta

Along the upper region of the river 春日川 Kasukagawa in the hamlet 神村 Kamimura there is a small sanctuary of かまとこ地蔵 Kamatoko Jizo.


- source : sanukimesatobuttestyle -

The defeated soldiers of the Heike had fled to here and hidden in a kiln for charcoal that had not been fired yet. The Genji in hot pursuit found out about it and closed the kiln firmly with a lid of earth to kill them all.
Since then strange and mysterious demonic things happened in the village and to appease the souls of the Heike, the small sanctuary for Jizo was built.




.................................................................. Kochi .................................................................

. 小松玉姫 Princess Komatsu Tama .




.................................................................. Kumamoto 熊本県 .................................................................




. Kappa Legends from Kyushu .

It tells about the defeated soldiers of the Heike, coming here and becoming Kappa.
平家の落人の霊魂は河童となり.

Yatsushiro 八代市 - Goka no Sho, Gokanosho 五家荘 "Five Villages
southern Kumamoto Prefecture
八代市泉町
椎原 Shiibaru、仁田尾 Nitao、樅木 Momiki、葉木 Hagi、久連子 Kureko 

source : shurakumachinami.natsu.gs


- quote -
Gokanosho - Secret Hiding Ground of the Heike
Johannes Schonherr
The roads leading up here are indeed very narrow, very steep and very curvy. The mountains reach up to 1700 meters and the roads lead over passes as high as 1100 meters. In the winter, the whole area is accessible only by four-wheel-drive vehicles and older locals will tell you about that one winter when Gokanosho depended for a whole month on helicopter supplies because the snow was too deep for any ground transport to reach the area.
The villages
are tiny and scattered over a wide area but most of them will have a minshuku (inn) where visitors can stay. In fact, in many cases, the inn will be the only large building in the village, usually also housing a small store and having a post box in front. Often the inn and the tool sheds attached to it are the village.
In the ancient times
before there were things like paved roads these steep mountains were impossible to conquer by any sizable army. This has made them an ideal hiding place - and in this case the final hiding place for a once very powerful clan closely associated to the royal court in Kyoto.
- snip -
Heike Legacy
In Japanese legends, Noh plays, songs, ghost stories and novels, however, the tragic fate of the Heike has left an enduring legacy. The best experience perhaps of this legacy in Gokanosho is the kagura at Heike no Sato (Heike Village), a performance space built in the design of a shrine.
Kagura
are traditionally raunchy farmers' dances re-enacting ancient tales of the Shinto gods. Takachiho in Miyazaki Prefecture, not far from Gokanosho, is most famous for this type of kagura.
At Heike no Sato,
however, the performances are of a rather somber type. The kagura is usually held in early to mid-November, the time when Gokanosho is in the midst of its intensely colorful autumn foliage. Burning torches light the nightly colors on the way to the open-air stage.
After the customary kagura dance designed to "clear the space for the gods," all further action is celebrating the sad fate of the Heike. Dances to songs bemoaning the Heike are performed by people from the village who may or may not be able to trace their ancestors right back to the old warriors of 800 years ago.
- - - - - Check out the photos and more links :
- source : japanvisitor.com -


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- source : www.nichibun.ac.jp -
02 平家落人 (02)
25 平家の落人 (01)

- reference : Heike Ochudo -

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. minwa 民話 folktales / densetsu 伝説 Japanese Legends .
- Introduction -

- Yookai 妖怪 Yokai Monsters of Japan -
- Introduction -

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. Join the friends on Facebook ! .

- #heikeochudo #heikeclan #ochudoheike -
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[ . BACK to WORLDKIGO . TOP . ]

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2015-08-06

Heike legends

- BACK to the Daruma Museum -
. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 - Introduction .
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Heike densetsu 平家伝説 legends about the Heike clan

- quote -
The Tale of the Heike (平家物語 Heike Monogatari)
is an epic account compiled long prior 1330 of the struggle between the Taira and Minamoto clans for control of Japan at the end of the 12th century in the Genpei War (1180-1185). Heike (平家) refers to the Taira (平) clan; "hei" being an alternate reading of the first kanji (character) of Taira.
Note that in the title of the Genpei War, "hei" is in this combination read as "pei" and the "gen" (源) is the first kanji used in the Minamoto (also known as Genji) clan's name.
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !


. Itsukushima Shrine (Itsukushima Jinja 厳島神社) .
Miyajima 宮島 - Hiroshima
It was renovated to its present splendor by Taira no Kiyomori 平清盛 in 1168.

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source : panteek.com/Chikanobu/pages...

Heroes and Heroines in The Tale of Heike, 1898
- - - Samurai Battles Oni Demon - - -

by Toyohara Chikanobu (Yoshu Chikanobu) 1838-1912

. Onipedia 日本の鬼 The Demons of Japan .


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. Taira clan 平 The Rise of the Taira .

. Taira no Atsumori 平敦盛 (1169 - 1184) .

. Taira no Kiyomori 平清盛 (1118 - 1181) .
- 10 legends to explore -

. Taira no Masakado 平将門 (? – 940) .
- 18 legends to explore -


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. Heike Ochudo densetsu 平家落人伝説 legends about the Heike Ochudo .

Ochudo, the defeated soldiers of the Heike
They are said to live in many parts of Japan, often in remote rural mountain regions.

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. Fireflies, firefly (hotaru) - Introduction .



Heike-botaru, heikebotaru 平家蛍 - Luciola lateralis (right)
Genji-botaru, genjibotaru 源氏蛍 - Luciola cruciata

To understand the deep appreciation of the Japanese for fireflies, you need to know a bit about Japanese history and the conflict between the clans of the Heike and the Genji around 1180, which ended in the fall of the Heike clan.

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. Crabs (kani 蟹) - Introduction .

Heikegani 平家蟹 Heike crabs, Heikea japonicum



- quote -
Heikegani (平家蟹, ヘイケガニ) (Heikeopsis japonica)
is a species of crab native to Japan, with a shell that bears a pattern resembling a human face which many believed to be the face of an angry samurai hence the nickname Samurai Crab. It is locally believed that these crabs are reincarnations of the spirits of the Heike warriors defeated at the Battle of Dan-no-ura
as told in The Tale of the Heike.
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !


- quote -
The legend of Heikegani: the Samurai ghost crabs
Heikegani is a species of crab native to Japan, with a shell that bears a pattern resembling a human face. According to Japanese folklore, the Heikegani crabs contain the souls of the Heike samurai warriors who were slain at the Battle of Dan-no-ura in 1185 AD, a war over the Japanese imperial throne. The story goes that the Heike samurai, reincarnated into the Heikegani (Heikeposis japonica) crab, were showing their allegiance to their clan by donning a fierce mask on their shells.



The battle of Dan-no-ura (Dannoura), immortalized in the Heike Monogatari (the Tale of Heike,) was a pivotal moment in Japan’s history, which established the first shogunate (military dictatorship) and resulted in the death of a child emperor.
- snip -
Carl Sagan’s Theory of Artificial Selection
During an episode of the PBS science show, ‘Cosmos: A Personal Voyage’, Carl Sagon expounded on a theory put forward by Julian Huxley in 1952, to explain the strange face-like characteristics of the Heikegani crab shell. Huxley theorized that the crab’s samurai faces are the result of artificial selection. He proposed the fishermen fishing Japan’s waters would throw back any crabs whose shells looked like a samurai’s face out of respect for the fallen heike. This preserved the DNA of the heikegani with samurai-like faces while thinning the genetic lines of those without.
- - - - - more
- source : ancient-origins.net/myths-legends -


送り火やどちへも向かぬ平家蟹
okuribi ya dochi e mo mukanu heike-gani

bonfires for the dead --
in every direction
Heike crabs


Kobayashi Issa 小林一茶
Tr. David Lanoue


月の夜やなすこともなき平家蟹
井上井月

鈴となつても怨霊の貌平家蟹
下村ひろし

長恨の丹のいろうすれ平家蟹
中原道夫

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. Akama Jingu 赤間神宮 Akama Shrine .
Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi
In honor of the young Emperor Antoku (安徳天皇 Antoku-tennō) (1178 – 1185, died at age 16)

- - - - - In Shimonoseki crabs are also called
onigani 鬼蟹 demon crabs
kimengani 鬼面蟹 crabs with demon faces

kamo 鳧 duck - gan 雁 geese - Heikegani 平家蟹
At the Kameyama Hachimangu in Yamaguchi, during the festival on March 14, 15 where live animals are let free as offerings, farmers oberved that about three or four days before and after the festival there were no ducks and geese flying and at Akama more Heikegani than usual would come up.

In some villages the back shell of a crab 蟹の甲羅, which looks like a human face, is hung at the entrance of the home to ward off evil influence and disaster.


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Kagawa 香川県, Takamatsu, Yashima 屋島

Heike no boorei 平家の亡霊 the souls of the dead Heike

The poet Iwata Ryoto 岩田凉菟 (1659 - 1717) lived in Yashima, famous for the fight of the Genpei. When he saw his first Heikegani crabs, he wrote the following haiku about the namako (sea cucumber) and the Heikegani:
(There are various versions given in Japanese sources.)

なまじひに海鼠にもならで平家蟹 / なまじかに海鼠にならで平家蟹

But at night he could not sleep and thought he was cursed by the Heike for it.
So he re-wrote his poem:

海鼠ともならでさすがに平家なり / なまことも ならでさすがに平家なり
海鼠にもならで流石は平家也 / / 海鼠ともならで果てけり平家蟹

After this, the curse was taken away from him.
Ryoto was a student of Matsuo Basho. He was a Shinto priest, living in Ise Yamada.


and Haiku poet

Ryooshoo 蓼松 Ryosho (1762-1832)
dreams about being a sea slug harassed by hundreds of crabs:

水底に平家滅びて海鼠かな

on the seabed
the heike dying out
sea slugs


- Tr. Robin D. Gill -

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In other parts of Japan these strange-looking crabs have different names and legends to go:

- - - - - In Settsu 摂州 (now part of Osaka and Hyogo)

. Takebungani 武文蟹 Takebun crabs .
onigani 鬼蟹 demon crabs // kimengani 鬼面蟹 crabs with demon faces

(attributed to 秦武文 Hata no Takebun, who was killed in Hyogo Bay 兵庫湊.
also called Shimamuragani 島村蟹 - named after 島村武文 Shimamura Takebun


- Hata no Takebun - Photos -


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- - - - - In Aichi 愛知県

Osadagani 長田蟹, Osadagai 長田貝 Osada shells
They wash up at the shores of Mihama in Aichi - also at the shores of Kaga 加賀国 and Etchu 越中国 provinces.

They are attributed to 長田父子 father and son Osada, who where killed in Mihama by 源頼朝 Minamoto no Yoritomo. Not only the crabs, but also the shells have taken over the curse of the killed.

. Osada Tadamune 長田忠致 (? - ?1190) .
and the death of Minamoto no Yoshitomo at 野間大坊 Noma Daibo


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- - - - - ABC List of the prefectures :

.................................................................. Kagawa 香川県 ....................................................................
Takamatsu, 東植田町 Higashiueta

Heike no ochuudo 平家の落人 Ochudo, the defeated soldiers of the Heike

. Heike Ochudo densetsu 平家落人伝説 legends about Heike Ochudo .


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yokai database 妖怪データベース - reference
- source : Nichibun Yokai Database -
Heike 平家 63 entries (02)
Taira no Kiyomori 平清盛 10 entries
Heikegani (crabs) 平家蟹 12 to explore

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. minwa 民話 folktales / densetsu 伝説 Japanese Legends .
- Introduction -

- Yookai 妖怪 Yokai Monsters of Japan -
- Introduction -

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. Join the friends on Facebook ! .

- #heikelegends #heikeclan #heikemonogatari -
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