If a you hear a tree fall in the woods, but can't find any sign of that fallen tree, is it the work of a tengu, a creepy dead guy ghost, or something else?
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Uncanny Japan is author Thersa Matsuura. Check ou ... Show More
Jun 1
The Ghost-Playing Actor Who Became a REAL Vengeful Ghost: Kohada Koheiji (Ep. 191)
Not all Japanese revenge ghosts are wronged women. Meet Kohada Koheiji: a failed Edo-period actor who became famous for playing ghosts, only to be murdered, drowned, and returned as the very thing he once performed. In this episode, we explore the tangled history of the “real” Ko ... Show More
30m 56s
May 18
All That Flows: Benzaiten, White Snakes, and Human-Headed Serpents
In this episode of Uncanny Japan, we follow Benzaiten — also known as Benten — from her origins as Saraswati to her place among Japan’s Seven Lucky Gods. Along the way: Enoshima’s five-headed dragon, white snakes as divine messengers, snake-skin wallets, house snakes, and Ugajin, ... Show More
22m 30s
May 4
Everyone Has a Throat Buddha / What is it and Why? -- Nodohotoke & Story Time: "The Buddha Bone" (Ep. 189)
Have you ever heard of the nodo-hotoke, or “throat Buddha”? In everyday Japanese, it usually refers to the Adam’s apple. But after death, especially in the context of cremation, the nodo-hotoke becomes something else entirely, the actual seat of your soul. In this episode of Unca ... Show More
32m 51s
Apr 2021
223A-Samurai Legends: The Devil went down to Kyoto
Three connected stories of samurai from medieval Japan. On the first, Kintaro, a buff eight-year-old, discovers his destiny. On the second, Watanabe no Tsuna, a samurai warrior in his prime fights a demon that's been terrorizing a gate in Kyoto, and on the third he's recruited by ... Show More
40m 24s
Feb 2021
214-Japanese Folklore: Take Your Lumps
<p>Two short stories from Japan. On the first, an old man is in a tree surrounded by demons and faced with a desperate choice. On the second, a man has a pet that his wife is not thrilled about, so she makes that known. With scissors.</p>
<p>The creature is a sad cow! Or a vamp ... Show More
32m 58s
May 2021
223B-Samurai Legends: Dinner Party
<p>There's a killer on the loose in Kyoto. Young women are disappearing from the streets, never to be heard from again. Minamoto no Raikō, the legendary samurai, knows that it isn't merely a serial killer, but the demons. After he and other samurai like him drove the demons away, ... Show More
50m 7s
Oct 2020
199-Japanese folklore: Moonlight
A story from Japanese folklore of Princess Moonlight, from Japanese folklore, where a bamboo cutter finds one of those magical heaven babies in a bamboo stalk (you know, those extremely common glowing children found in plants) and it changes his life, and the whole empire, foreve ... Show More
40m 16s
Mar 2022
262-Japanese Folklore: Fatal Attraction
Three stories from Japan about love gone wrong. On the first, the fairest youth in all the land is set to marry the daughter of a rich noble. The problem? His father kind of oversold his looks... On the second, we'll see why moths and other nighttime bugs go toward the light, and ... Show More
41m 9s
Feb 2021
215-Scandinavian Legends: Madness
The story that inspired Shakespeare's Hamlet, the tale of Amleth, the prince of Denmark. A ton of death, some cryptic non-riddles, and copious amounts of poop smearing serve as the starting point for one of the greatest works in the English language. The creature this week is a s ... Show More
35m 21s
Jun 2023
History of Everything: The Legend of Houdini
Harry Houdini was an American escape artist, magic man, and stunt performer, noted for his escape acts. His pseudonym is a reference to his spiritual master, French magician Robert-Houdin. Truly though his story is wild and with many twists and turns.
Travel to Japan With Me her ... Show More
1h 32m