The temple of the legend of the "Bunbuku Chagama," which boiled water that never ran out. The monk Shukaku who used it is said to have been a thousand-year-old tanuki; the tea kettle is still kept as a temple treasure, and tanuki statues line the approach.
Legend Site
Morinji Temple (Bunbuku Chagama)
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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
| Encyclopedia | Bunbuku Chagama |
|---|---|
| Location | Gunma Tatebayashi |
| Type of place | Historic site or landmark |
| Map position | Approximate position (Municipality), not the exact place |
The legend of a magical tea kettle at Morinji Temple in Tatebayashi, Gunma Prefecture, that never ran out of hot water however much was drawn from it. The monk who used it turned out to be a tanuki. It later spread as the folktale of a tanuki that turned into a tea kettle and walked a tightrope.