Japanese folklore
Men dressed as namahage wear ogre-like masks and traditional straw capes called mino. They make rounds of homes in an annual ritual on the Oga Peninsula area of the Northeast region. These figures masquerade as kami looking to instill fear in children who are lazily idling around the fire. This practice remains a particularly colorful example of folk practice still kept alive today.
A parallel custom exists in the secretive ritual of the Yaeyama Islands, Okinawa. This tradition does not allow itself to be photographed by outsiders. Many households maintain a kamidana or small Shinto altar shelf within their home. Households with kamidana showed a decline from 62 percent in 1984 to 43.9 percent in 2006. Only 26.4 percent remain in metropolitan areas today.
The Shinto version of the kitchen god is the Kōjin, a deity of the hearth enshrined in the kitchen. Syncretic Buddhist versions also exist alongside these domestic shrines. Popular cults sometimes center on paying respects to sacred sites like Mount Fuji. Pilgrimage to these places declined after the Edo period but has recently become fashionable again.
The name mukashi-banashi applies to common folktale stories that typically open with the formula Mukashi. This phrase functions akin to Once upon time in Western storytelling traditions. These tales close with some set phrase like dotto harai or Dondo Hare.
These stories had been told in local dialects which may be difficult to understand for outsiders. Differences arise from intonation and pronunciation as well as conjugations and vocabulary choices. Many folktales collected from the field are actually translations into standard Japanese. Some versions merge several collected iterations into one narrative form.
Classic folktales such as Momotaro can be traced to picture-books printed during the Edo period. Their prototypical stories may go back much further than those printed books. The versions retold by children's story author Sazanami Iwaya had a strong hand in establishing forms known today. He lived between 1870 and 1933 and is often considered the Perrault of Japan.
A great deal of interest currently gravitates towards Japanese monsters taken from traditional sources. Some yōkai or strange beings are the stuff of folklore orally transmitted among the populace. But many beings were spun and deliberately invented by professional writers during the Edo Period.
These invented creatures are not folkloric in the strict sense according to academic definitions. Two creatures are particularly known for their abilities to transform into humans or other beings. The kitsune fox and tanuki raccoon dog appear frequently in humorous tales.
Animals like the tanuki could shapeshift into objects such as teapots in stories like Bunbuku Chagama. A raccoon dog half transformed into a cauldron hangs from a jizai kagi hook over an irori hearth in artwork from the 1840s. These transformations form major categories within the oral tradition framework.
The Mingei movement spearheaded by Yanagi Sōetsu sought to appreciate folk craft from an aesthetic viewpoint. Some well-known craft objects include netsuke and raccoon dog earthenware classified as Shigaraki ware. Articles of daily household use amassed by Keizo Shibusawa became the Attic Museum collection.
This collection is now mostly housed in the National Museum of Ethnology in Suita, Osaka. Representative art includes ema wooden plaques with paintings of horses on which wishes are written. Kogin-zashi represents quilted clothing from Aomori Prefecture while bandori serves as colorfully woven back straps for carrying loads.
Textiles and articles of clothing remain essential for understanding traditional Japanese culture. The type of material used forms part of folklore itself. Straw-woven footwear called waraji and bushy capes made from rice straw were common rain gear. Snow boots also were woven from rice straw for winter protection.
Vestiges of geomancy introduced into Japan from China through Onmyōdō persist in modern customs. The word ogre's gate colloquially refers to anything that a person may have constant ill luck with. In its original sense it designates the northeasterly direction considered unlucky or dangerously inviting of spirits.
A widely known taboo advises against sleeping with your head faced north though few heed this prohibition today. Some people believe it rather than not be seen during sleep. Little piles of salt have been placed at shrines to purify and gain the gods' protective presence.
Salt-scattering is generally considered purifying and employed in sumo tournaments as a well-known example. A restaurant frequently has its Fuji-cone of caked salt by the door-jamb to clear defilement left by unwelcome patrons. Lighting sparks with flint just as someone leaves the house was considered lucky instead of bad omens.
Common questions
What is the namahage ritual on the Oga Peninsula?
Men dressed as namahage wear ogre-like masks and traditional straw capes called mino to make rounds of homes in an annual ritual on the Oga Peninsula area of the Northeast region. These figures masquerade as kami looking to instill fear in children who are lazily idling around the fire.
How has the use of kamidana changed since 1984?
Households with kamidana showed a decline from 62 percent in 1984 to 43.9 percent in 2006. Only 26.4 percent remain in metropolitan areas today.
Who was Sazanami Iwaya and what did he do for Japanese folktales?
Sazanami Iwaya lived between 1870 and 1933 and had a strong hand in establishing forms known today through his retelling of classic folktales such as Momotaro. He is often considered the Perrault of Japan.
Which creatures can transform into humans or other beings in Japanese folklore?
The kitsune fox and tanuki raccoon dog appear frequently in humorous tales and are particularly known for their abilities to transform into humans or other beings. Animals like the tanuki could shapeshift into objects such as teapots in stories like Bunbuku Chagama.
Where is the Attic Museum collection currently housed?
This collection is now mostly housed in the National Museum of Ethnology in Suita, Osaka. Representative art includes ema wooden plaques with paintings of horses on which wishes are written.