Uncanny Japan - Japanese Folklore, Folktales, Myths and Language

The northernmost island of Japan, Hokkaido, also has its own brand of yōkai and mythical creatures. Here I talk about seven of them.

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Uncanny Japan is author Thersa Matsuura. Check out her books including The Book of Japanese Folklore by clicking on the Amazon link.  If you'd like to help support the podcast and have a bedtime story read to you monthly, please visit Patreon.

Dis...

Discover the intricacies of Japanese chopstick etiquette and lore. Learn about godly chopsticks, taboos that can bring death, and the concept of 'wa' (harmony) in Japanese culture. Avoid social faux pas and deepen your understanding of this seemingly simple yet complex utensil.

[This description contains Amazon affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.]

Uncanny Japan is author Thersa Matsuura. Check out her books including The Book of Japanese Folklore by clicking on the Amazon link.  If you'd like to he...

The joro spider, a colorful arachnid from Japan, is harmless but tied to folklore about shape-shifting brides who fatally ensnare lovers at waterfalls.

[This description contains Amazon affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.]

Uncanny Japan is author Thersa Matsuura. Check out her books including The Book of Japanese Folklore by clicking on the Amazon link.  If you'd like to help support the podcast and have a bedtime story read to you monthly, please visit Patreon.

Discord: ht...

Listeners who are sensitive to these topics should be aware that the episode contains potentially disturbing content:

TRIGGER WARNINGS: Blood & gore depiction, Body horror, Childhood Trauma, Death from exposure, Death from falling, Death of a child, Death and dying, Decapitation, Fear and anxiety, Graphic content, Injury and mutilation, Loss of limb, Mayonnaise as a pizza topping, Mental distress, Physical injuries, Supernatural and horror elements, Suicide, Violence, War

If you're ever walking alone on an empty street or path at night and you hear something distinctly not human following you, could it be the Beto Beto-san...

Have you ever had a premonition or a foreboding feeling that turned out to be true? Was it a parasitic insect living in your belly or a ghost trying to tell you something?

[This description contains Amazon affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.]

Uncanny Japan is author Thersa Matsuura. Check out her books including The Book of Japanese Folklore by clicking on the Amazon link.  If you'd like to help support the podcast and have a bedtime story re...

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?

[This description contains Amazon affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.]

Uncanny Japan is author Thersa Matsuura. Check out her books including The Book of Japanese Folklore by clicking on the Amazon link.  If you'd like to help support the podcast and have a bedtime st...

Today I'll read you Lafcadio Hearn's short story: The Mirror Maiden. 

[This description contains Amazon affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.]

Uncanny Japan is author Thersa Matsuura. Check out her books including The Book of Japanese Folklore by clicking on the Amazon link.  If you'd like to help support the podcast and have a bedtime story read to you monthly, please visit Patreon.

Discord: https://discord.gg/XdMZTzmyUb
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thersamatsuura
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The two-faced, eight-limbed giant named Ryomen Sukuna has been around since very early Japan, still is he a Buddhism-protecting hero or a cursed demon who tried to destroy Japan?

[This description contains Amazon affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.]

Uncanny Japan is author Thersa Matsuura. Check out her books including The Book of Japanese Folklore by clicking on the Amazon link.  If you'd like to help support the podcast and have a bedtime story read to you monthly, pl...

You'll often see ghostly-looking dolls strung up in windows in Japan on rainy days. What do they mean and why are they a little creepy?

[This description contains Amazon affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.]

Uncanny Japan is author Thersa Matsuura. Check out her books including The Book of Japanese Folklore by clicking on the Amazon link.  If you'd like to help support the podcast and have a bedtime story read to you monthly, please visit Patreon.

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Abe no Seimei was the greatest onmyōji in Japan. While he lived in Kyoto, he visited Shizuoka at some point and performed some magic, giving us another nanafushigi (seven mysterious things). 

[This description contains Amazon affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.]

Uncanny Japan is author Thersa Matsuura. Check out her books including The Carp-Faced Boy by clicking on the Amazon link.  If you'd like to help support the podcast and have a bedtime story read to you mont...