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Japanese superstition gave life to the mysterious by transforming it into sentient beings. It was a world full of supernatural wonders, where spirits hid in every shadow and creatures roamed alongside humans.
10. Getting Disoriented at Night
According to ancient beliefs, the dangers of the supernatural to Japanese travelers at night were as real as threats from wild animals and thieves. Without a lantern, the only guidance came from the moon and stars, leading many to lose their way in the darkness. Superstition, however, attributed their misdirection to a monstrous entity.
The nurikabe was a yokai—a Japanese monster—manifesting as a wall that obstructed the paths of travelers. Normally invisible, it would completely block the road, forcing people to take a detour. Like many other yokai, however, the nurikabe was a prankster. Even if a traveler tried a different route, the wall would stretch or mysteriously shift position. Legend had it that anyone who met a nurikabe could wander for days before finding their way again.
The idea that a nurikabe could suddenly materialize and obstruct a traveler’s path first appeared in Japan, but at least one report exists from a different region. The creator of the popular yokai manga GeGeGe no Kitaro mentioned in one of his yokai encyclopedias that he had encountered a nurikabe during his military service in Papua New Guinea’s jungles. Naturally, such an encounter should be taken with skepticism. In keeping with the tradition of earlier yokai encyclopedists, the author left several of his tales unverified, suggesting they were likely fabricated by him.
9. Unexplained Footsteps from an Empty Room
In ancient Japan, large houses featured open spaces with rooms divided by shoji screens. Sounds would easily travel and often appear to come from unexpected places. If rustling or footsteps were heard from an empty room, it was believed that a spirit known as a zashiki-warashi was residing in the house.
Translated roughly as “parlor child,” zashiki-warashi were child-like spirits that resided in empty rooms. Typically no older than 12, they would occasionally make their presence known to the inhabitants of the house. Though the sounds they produced were often mysterious and their sudden appearances might have startled most families, zashiki-warashi were believed to bring good fortune and prosperity to those who lived alongside them.
However, when the zashiki-warashi left, they also took the good fortune with them. The spirits were known to move from place to place at their own discretion. In one tale, a family had two zashiki-warashi living with them, bringing prosperity while they stayed. Yet, when the spirits departed, tragedy struck—the family perished after servants accidentally served them a meal of poisonous mushrooms. The next household the zashiki-warashi moved into quickly became prosperous. This connection to fortune has led to speculation that zashiki-warashi were used to explain the sudden rise and fall of wealthy families.
8. Disappearing Children
There were various explanations for the mysterious disappearance of children, but according to ancient Japanese superstition, many missing children were believed to have been taken by a creature called an ubume. An ubume, originally a bird-like being, transformed into a woman who would abduct children after its feathers were shed. These creatures were thought to be the spirits of women who died during childbirth, or sometimes even while pregnant. Regardless, their grief over losing their own children led them to compulsively steal other children to fill the void they felt.
Another form of the ubume is depicted as a topless woman holding a baby. Appearing at dusk near crossroads and bridges, the ubume would ask passersby to look after her child while she stepped away. Over time, the child would grow heavier and heavier until the person holding it recited a Buddhist prayer. At this point, the ubume would return, expressing gratitude for bringing her child back into the world of the living. In some stories, the ubume searched for guardians to care for her child after her passing, while in others, she would visit the town to buy supplies with coins that transformed into dried leaves after her disappearance.
7. Disappearing Lantern Oil
In ancient Japan, oil lamps were the main source of light during nighttime work. However, the preferred oil—fish oil—was also loved by mice and cockroaches. These pests would drink the oil, forcing the worker to spend time warding them off. Sometimes, when the amount of oil lost seemed too great for the creatures to have consumed, superstition held that the oil was taken by a monster known as the himamushi-nyudo.
According to the legend, the soul of a person who wasted their time would transform into a himamushi-nyudo, or “oil licker,” and disrupt the work of others at night. Despite this superstition, the connection to cockroaches was not lost on yokai catalogers. The monster was often depicted alongside cockroach imagery, as the insect was once believed to emerge from the cracks in kama (Japanese scythes). As a result, the himamushi-nyudo was commonly shown with symbols such as cockroaches, mugwort, and chickens—believed to ward off the pests. This connection led to the theory that himamushi-nyudo could be giant anthropomorphic cockroaches.
6. Dirty Ceilings and Winter Chills
Without modern heating and insulation, ancient Japanese homes were often quite cold during the winter. The rooms with high ceilings also tended to grow dark at night. According to superstition, both the cold of winter and the darkness were the result of a monster known as the tenjo-name. This creature was said to float in the upper corners of the room, bringing down the temperature and casting shadows on the ceiling. It was described as a tall, thin being with a long tongue, which it used to lick the ceilings. Strangely, when the tenjo-name licked the ceiling, it made it dirtier, not cleaner.
Though the idea of blaming dirty ceilings, winter chills, and darkness on a monster might seem far-fetched, it’s uncertain how widely this tale was actually believed. Today, many historians believe that the first mention of the tenjo-name in a historical yokai encyclopedia was more of a fictional creation by the author, rather than an actual belief in its existence. Some suggest it was purely invented for the sake of storytelling.
5. The Sensation of Being Watched
In ancient Japan, seeking shelter in a deserted house was often necessary to escape the harsh elements, but it was also a disconcerting experience. Many reported feeling the unsettling sensation of being observed by an invisible presence. Rather than attributing this to mere imagination, superstition suggested that the house itself was the culprit. Known as a mokumokuren, the abandoned house would sprout hundreds of eyes that would fixate on the unsuspecting guests.
The concept of the mokumokuren, while eerie, had a somewhat playful twist. It is thought to have been another creation of the same artist who invented the himamushi-nyudo. While the latter was more terrifying and grotesque, the mokumokuren’s eyes were said to appear more bewildered than menacing. According to the artist and cataloger Toriyama Seiken, this bizarre creature was inspired by the game of go, where both the board squares and pieces were referred to as 'eyes' in Japanese. This led to the joke of the mokumokuren being covered with countless eyes. Over 80 of Seiken’s yokai were fabricated, often as a satire of corrupt monks and Japan’s red-light districts.
4. Unexplained Noises From The House
In modern Japanese, yanari refers to the shaking or rattling of a house, often associated with an earthquake. However, the term's origins lie in folklore and superstition. In ancient times, any strange noise within a house was attributed to a monster known as yanari, who would shake, hammer, and pound the walls. Earthquakes were common in ancient Japan, but it was not known that many low-intensity tremors occurred throughout the day without being felt. So, when a house shook inexplicably, it was thought to be the mischievous yanari at work.
Even modern homes produce noises as they settle into their foundations, and as the temperature drops at night, the materials contract and creak. Given that ancient Japanese houses were often built from bamboo, wood, thatch, and packed earth, it is likely that they were quite noisy at night. Wind and any animals that found their way inside would have only added to the chaos, making the yanari a particularly active and troublesome creature.
3. Sleep Paralysis
Sleep paralysis is relatively common in Japan compared to other countries, with approximately 40 percent of the population experiencing it at some point in their lives. However, its prevalence may be more cultural than genetic. Known as kanashibari, which translates to 'being bound by metal,' this phenomenon is well-known in Japan, with many blogs and TV programs dedicated to it. As a result, Japanese people are more conditioned to recognize kanashibari than people in other parts of the world. In some cases, the inability to move while half-awake in bed is believed to be caused by spirits.
Children, including college students, often recount experiences of seeing ghosts or intruders entering their rooms and pinning them down while they sleep. Some children believe that sleeping with a stuffed animal or lying on their back attracts the binding ghost. Others think it’s due to being unkind or overstudying. Despite its commonality, some are intrigued by kanashibari and deliberately employ these methods to invite the terrifying sensation of being 'bound' by a spirit.
2. Falling Down
The notion that someone could simply fall down for no apparent reason didn’t sit well with superstitious Japanese people, who believed that a monster was responsible for these accidents. Kamaitachi, or 'sickle weasels,' were packs of monstrous weasels that rode the wind and inflicted cuts and scrapes on unsuspecting victims.
The kamaitachi worked in swift, coordinated groups of three. The first would knock the victim down, the second, armed with sickles, would slash at them, and the third would follow to heal the wounds. These creatures were blamed for all sorts of falls, and when someone would stand up only to find themselves cut, they would claim that a sickle weasel had attacked them. They became a convenient excuse for injuries someone might not want to explain, with many individuals attributing their wounds to these mythical creatures rather than admitting the real cause.
1. Disappearances
In ancient Japanese folklore, animals were often seen as more than simple creatures. Foxes, in particular, were known to cause all kinds of supernatural mischief. Though their pranks were usually harmless, they were also believed to be behind more sinister acts, including arson and kidnapping. One of the most common beliefs was that, after nightfall, foxes would transform into beautiful women to seduce men and lead them away from their families.
One tale speaks of a man who, while strolling around town at dusk, encountered a stunning young woman. She agreed to accompany him to her home, and they spent the night together. The next morning, he vowed to love her forever, completely forgetting his old life. His new wife soon became pregnant, and nine months later, she gave birth to a son.
Meanwhile, the man’s family had been searching for him for nearly two weeks. When they finally gave up hope, they prayed to the goddess Kannon to bring them his body. In response to their prayers, Kannon made the man emerge from beneath the floorboards of the family’s storehouse, while the magical family of foxes that had abducted him fled in haste.
