A Journey Through Okinawa's Ghost Stories: Spooky Ghost Stories, Folk Tales, and Legendary Spots in Okinawa

Once the damp, rainy season ends, summer will finally begin in earnest.
The secret to surviving the hot summer isn't shaved ice or chilled ramen. It's, without a doubt, scary stories that send chills down your spine—that's right, ghost stories!

This time, we have a special plan to help you beat the heat. We'll introduce you to famous ghost stories, scary folk tales, and legends from Okinawa. And of course, it won't end with just stories! We'll also take you to the actual locations where these stories took place.

Both that story and this one actually take place right next to popular tourist spots!?
Now, let's leave our air-conditioned rooms and embark on a journey to visit haunted spots that will cool you down to the core!

<Table of Contents>
1. The Story of Onimochi (Moochi) | Naha/Shuri
2. The Memorial Fire at Shikina-zaka | Naha/Shuri
3. Ear-Cutting Monks | Naha/Shuri
4. Seven Graves | Naha, Makishi
5. Former Sugenji Temple Stone Gate | Naha, Tomari
6. Next to everyday life...

1. The Story of Onimochi (Moochi) | Naha/Shuri

Mochi (rice cakes), a soul food of Okinawa, often appears in Okinawa Lab.
On the 8th day of the 12th month of the lunar calendar, there is a "Mochi Day" where people eat mochi wrapped in ginger lily leaves to pray for the health and well-being of their family and the healthy growth of their children.

This mochi can be written in kanji as either "餅" or "鬼餅".
While the character for "oni" (demon) is often used as a good luck charm in various parts of Japan, the origin of Okinawa's "oni mochi" (demon rice cake) is a rather surprising and frightening story...

The story takes place at Uchikanagusuku-taki, where the large Akagi tree of Shuri's Kinjo Stone Pavement is located.

Long ago, a brother and sister lived in Kinjo, Shuri.
Her brother eventually transformed into a demon that devoured people and livestock, and secluded himself in a cave. His sister, heartbroken and desperate to do something, prepared rice cakes—her brother's favorite food—with iron mixed in, and went to visit him. There, she cleverly lured him to the top of a cliff, saying, "Let's eat some delicious rice cakes together."

Seeing her brother transformed into a terrifying demon, both in appearance and spirit, his sister decided to defeat him. She then ate a rice cake laced with iron, which made the demon flinch, and she pushed him off a cliff.

The younger sister was thanked by the people, and the rice cake that defeated the demon came to be called "Oni-mochi" (demon rice cake). And so, they all lived happily ever after... or did they?

I can't honestly say "happily ever after"; there's a profound darkness about it.

There are several versions of the story behind Onimochi (demon rice cake), with differences in the ingredients kneaded into the rice cake and how the demon is defeated. Some versions are too intense to tell children, but the basic premise of the brother becoming a demon and the sister defeating him remains the same. The setting for this demon-slaying story is "Uchikinjodake."

There are two utaki (places for prayer) at Uchikinjo-dake, one large and one small, and it is said that the horns of a demon that was defeated are enshrined in the smaller utaki.

My brother, who had turned into a demon, is said to have fallen to his death from the cliff (or rather, a slight drop) to the right of this small sacred grove.

What's scary about this story, from what I've researched, is that there's "no clear reason why the older brother turned into a demon." Perhaps it's a warning that you never know when or where a person might turn into a demon.

Did he become a recluse because he turned into a demon, or did he become a demon because he became a recluse? Did her brother even really turn into a demon in the first place? If the sister simply "got rid" of her troublesome brother... the more you let your imagination run wild, the scarier it becomes, which is the real charm of ghost stories.

[The place where Onimochi originated (Uchikinjodake)]
■Location | 6-minute walk from the entrance to Kinjo-cho Stone Pavement (both Shuri Castle side and Kinjo Dam side)
　*It is also famous as a power spot with a 300-year-old Japanese red tree.
■Nearby attractions | Shuri Castle and Kinjo-cho Stone Pavement

2. The Memorial Fire at Shikina-zaka | Naha/Shuri

With a shiver running down my spine at the sight of Moochi, I made my way down the cobblestone path in Kinjo-cho and arrived at Shikinazaka, which is just across the road from Kinjo Bridge.

This area is a quiet residential neighborhood, but it is known as one of Okinawa's famous ghost stories, "Shichinadabira nu Ininbi" (the lingering spirits of Shichinadaka). Ininbi refers to the lingering feelings left behind by the dead, and Ininbi refers to the spirits of the dead.

While there are slight differences depending on the version, this ghost story generally tells the tragic tale of a married couple.

Once upon a time, there was a very close couple who ran a tofu shop.
The beautiful and hardworking wife would come from Shikina to Shuri every day to sell tofu. And her kind-hearted husband made it a daily routine to worry about her return and go to meet her.

Someone who saw the two of them together, out of mischief, lied to the husband, telling him that his wife was having an affair. The husband was so shocked that he threw himself into the river and died. When the wife found out, she followed suit and threw herself into the river as well.

Since then, it is said that two memorial flames appear at dusk, drifting side by side from the top of the hill to the riverbank where Kinjo Bridge is located.

It's not... a cause for celebration.

What a nuisance of a prank!
Actually, my husband was more than just careless; he jumped to conclusions!

At the foot of Kinjo Bridge stands the "Shikinazaka Memorial Monument," and the information board also describes the story of the burning fire. For the people of Okinawa, "The Burning Fire of Shikinazaka" is a famous ghost story told in a real place. In terms of imagery, it might be similar to "Yotsuya Kaidan" or "Oitekebori."

Am I the only one who finds traditional ghost stories, while simple, gradually unsettling?

[The Memorial Fire at Shikinazaka]
■Location: 1 minute walk from the entrance to the Kinjo-cho cobblestone path (Kinjo Dam side)
■Nearby attractions | Shuri Castle and Kinjo-cho Stone Pavement

3. Ear-Cutting Monks | Naha/Shuri

Lullabies are sung with abundant love and affection, so that children can have peaceful hearts and sweet dreams. In Okinawa, there is a lullaby that can silence even a crying child.

♪At the corner of the Omura Palace　
A monk with his ears cut off is standing there.
I wonder how many people are standing there?
Three, four people standing
I have both a sickle and a small knife.
The ears of crying babies will be cut off in a slapping sound.
Hey yo, hey yo, don't cry♪

(*Lyrics translated from Okinawan dialect into standard Japanese)

No, it's scary!
That "gurgling" sound effect is strangely realistic!
Far from stopping crying, I actually want to cry, but if I cry, my ear will be cut off!

The "Omura Palace (now the site of the Nakagusuku Palace)" mentioned in that utterly unreasonable lullaby is located across from Ryutan Pond, which offers a view of the beautiful Shuri Castle.

The model for "Ear-Cutting Monk" is a real-life monk named Kurugani-za-shi. Kurugani-za-shi, who used sorcery and caused all sorts of mischief, lost a battle with Chatan-oji and had his ears cut off. After dying from those injuries, he is said to have continued to appear night after night as the Ear-Cutting Monk to take revenge.

As is common in ghost stories (in this case, lullabies), the Ear-Cutting Monk is also based on historical events. However, there seems to be disagreement as to whether Kurogane-zasu was actually evil.

Regardless of the truth of history, one thing is certain.
The ear-cutting monk is scary...

As of July 2018, the Omura Palace (now the site of the Nakagusuku Palace) is under development as part of environmental restoration work at Shuri Castle Park. You can walk around the palace site, but apart from Ryutan Pond, Shuri Castle, and an old well from the Nakagusuku Palace, only a portion of the stone walls remain.

However, after hearing the story of the ear-cutting monk, you're seized by a creeping sense of paranoia, wondering, "What if I bump into the ear-cutting monk with a sickle the moment I turn the corner...?"

Look, I can hear the song of the ear-cutting monk coming from somewhere...

[Ear-Cutting Monk (Nakagusuku Palace Ruins)]
■Location | 10-minute walk from Shuri Castle
■Nearby attractions | Shuri Castle

4. Seven Graves | Naha, Makishi

They fled from the ear-cutting monk and headed to Kokusai Street, a popular tourist spot.
First, I went to a hidden haunted spot that can be seen from Miebashi Station on the Yui Rail, a convenient mode of transportation for travelers in Okinawa.

In the rapidly developing area around Kokusai Street, a secluded grove of trees remains. From the platform of Miebashi Station, you can see the Okinawan tomb, known as a "kamekobaka" (turtle-shell tomb).

Although you cannot enter as it is private property, this is one of the places that has been the setting for ghost stories told in Okinawa since ancient times.

Long ago, near the Forest of Seven Graves, there was a shop run by an old woman. One day, a young woman began to appear at night and buy candy.

However, the money the woman left behind would turn into paper money (called uchikabi, money offered to spirits in Okinawa) the next day. The old woman, puzzled, followed the woman and saw her enter the forest of seven graves. The surprised old woman followed her and peered into the graves, where she saw a baby sucking on candy next to the woman's corpse.

Feeling sorry for the woman who had died leaving behind her tiny baby, people gave her a respectful burial, and the baby was lovingly raised by the community. It is said that the woman's spirit never came to buy candy again after that.

A ghost buying candy for a baby.
Similar stories exist all over the country, but the feelings of a mother who still longs for her child, even as a ghost, remain the same. It's a rather poignant ghost story.

[Seven Graves]
■Location｜You can see it from the platform of Miebashi Station on the "Yui Rail" line.
■Nearby Spots | Kokusai Street

5. Former Sugenji Temple Stone Gate | Naha, Tomari

Finally, let's head to the "Former Sogenji Stone Gate" to look for a famous Okinawan yokai (supernatural creature)!

Those of you who love Okinawa and ghost stories might notice something when you see this magnificent banyan tree. That's right, there's an Okinawan yokai (spirit), a Kijimuna, living in this banyan tree at the former Sugenji Temple stone gate (probably)!

The Kijimuna is said to be both a "spirit that brings happiness" and a "mischievous yokai." For more information, please see the featured article below.

There are many ancient banyan trees in Okinawa Prefecture that are said to be inhabited by the Kijimuna (a mythical Okinawan creature), but it is quite rare to find such a magnificent ancient tree.

Despite the magnificent banyan tree at the former Sogenji Temple stone gate, the grounds consist only of the banyan tree and the stone gate; there are no other buildings such as a temple hall. The former Sogenji Temple was completely destroyed by the fierce fighting during the Battle of Okinawa. The imposing stone gate, which evokes a sense of history, was apparently restored after the war.

Standing in a vast, empty green space and gazing at the banyan tree, I can't help but think that living humans might be scarier than monsters or ghosts...

[The banyan tree where the Kijimuna lives (the former stone gate of Sogenji Temple)]
■Location: 10-minute walk from Yui Rail Makishi Station or Miebashi Station
■Nearby Spots | Kokusai Street

6. Next to everyday life...

I hope this trip to Okinawa's haunted spots has helped to alleviate some of the heat for everyone.

Since ancient times, Okinawans have believed that souls and gods reside in everything around them, including living creatures and nature. This island, where a unique culture and view of life and death thrive, is full of ghost stories and mysterious tales!

Yes, always, right beside your everyday life, non-human beings are patiently waiting for you to notice them...

Author: mochiking