Explore Japan by Prefecture
We list 2 places in Saitama where yokai, cryptids and legends are told or sighted, and 2 related encyclopedia entries.
Please note Trespassing on private property or restricted areas is prohibited by law. Please be considerate of local residents.
Positions on the map are a rough guide to the area where a legend or sighting is set. Most pins are placed at representative points of a municipality or prefecture (outside Japan, a city position rounded to about 10 km, or the country), not at the exact place.
Municipality points: Geolonia address data (CC BY 4.0), based on the Address Base Registry (Digital Agency of Japan) / Country points: Natural Earth
A children's song about an exchange between a parent and child walking the narrow path to a Tenjin shrine and the gatekeeper. Because it says going is fine but coming back is scary, many dark meanings have been suggested, such as abandoning children, human sacrifice and checkpoint inspections.
The quintessential Japanese yokai, with horns on its head and a tiger-skin loincloth. It is familiar from the Setsubun bean-throwing festival and the folktale Momotaro. Its appearance is said to come from the "ushitora" direction of the demon gate.
