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5 Scariest Japanese Urban legends
- mysterious world
- May 9, 2022
- 4 min read
Japan is a beautiful country attracting thousands of tourists because of its food, nature, culture and festivals. One other thing Japan is unfortunately really famous for are the creepy legends and hauntings. There are many abandoned places, towns, forests etc. If you are looking for paranormal in Japan and you know where to look, chances are you will find it.
Hanako-san
One of the most infamous Japanese urban legend is of Hanako-san. This legends is about the spirit of a young girl name Hanako-san that haunts school bathrooms. Like many other urban legends, personal accounts and backstory of this urban legend varies from people to people. The legend of Hanako-san has gained a lot of popularity in Japanese schools where students dare each other to try and summon Hanako-san. Hanako-san is described as having a very pale white skin and always wearing a red skirt. Her hair is short and black, done in an old fashioned style. Accounts of her behavior also vary. Sometimes she is described as a vengeful spirit who can harm people, other times she is said to protect children who are being bullied. According to the legend, you can summon her if you stand very close to the third stall in bathroom, knock three times and ask, “are you there Hanako-san? “.If you are alone you would hear a voice saying “Yes I am here”. What happens after that depends on which school you are in. In some schools people say a hand will grab your inside the toilet stall and kill you, other school students say that if you open the stall slowly you will see hanako-san there. The stories about how this legend came into existence also vary. There are several stories. According to one story, she lived during World War II and while playing she hid in the bathroom. While she was in there a bombwas dropped on that area leading that part of the school to collapse on her. In another such story she was murdered by a stranger, some people say she committed suicide after getting depressed because of getting bullied. The legend dates back to as early as 1950 and became even more famous because of schools.
Teke Teke
This story dates back to the world war 2. According to this legend, a young woman or a schoolgirl was thrown on the railway tracks and a train ran over her body cutting the body into half. As it was winter time she did not die immediately but screamed in pain and agony for the whole night. Ever since then the ghost of this young girl or woman is said to haunt the bathroom stalls and railway tracks throughout the country. She travels by using hands as her lower body is missing and if someone encounters her, she would ask for her legs. She is said to chase people and slice their body in half. As she drags her body by using hands one can hear a scratching or teke-teke like sound hence the name.
Kuchisake Onna ( slit mouthed woman)
According to this legend, people walking alone in the streets might encounter a woman carrying a pair of scissors and wearing a face mask. She would ask the passerby whether he thinks she is attractive, If the passerby says yes she would remove her mask revealing her mouth that has been slit from one corner of the face to another. If the passerby says no then she would instantly kill them and if the passerby says yes then she will slit the person’s face with the pair of scissors. People believe that in order to survive they have to run away before she asks anything or make her confused.
In Japan, everyone knows about Kuchisake Onna. The legend started in the 1970s and after the origin of the internet it became famous all around the world. There are many stories about how this demonic spirit as it is known around the world came into existence. The most famous one perhaps is during the feudal times a samurai after finding out that his partner has cheated on him slit mouth from end to end and the woman would later commit suicide. She would then come back as a vengeful spirit and hide in dark streets and alleyways waiting for its victims.
Kunekune
Kunekune is an urban legend that originated in 2003 when it was mentioned around the internet and quickly became famous. People started telling stories about how they witnessed it. A Kunekune is tall, slender white sheet like humanoid being said to be found during the afternoon on warm summer days in the countryside. It lingers in extended rice fields or sometimes in open seas. It can only be visible from a distance. A person who is close to it cannot see it but a person who is far away can see it close to that person . If a person tries to look carefully at it or tries to come close they are driven insane or the kunekune kills them. If someone does not try to approach it or does not acknowledge it then Kunekune also ignores them.
Okiku doll
In 1918, a boy bought this doll for his younger sister. The sister got really infatuated with the doll. Sadly after sometime, the girl passed away because of an illness. Soon the family noticed that the doll’s hair has started to grow. They came to believe that their daughter’s restless spirit resides within the doll and they gave it away to Manne-ji temple in Hokkaido where it resides to this day. It is said that it’s hair continues to grow and the priests at the temple regularly trim the hair.
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