Magical Creatures in Japanese Mythology

Kami, which are the spirits that inhabit all things, can take many forms in Japanese myths. Beginning with the origin of the Japanese islands, several important creatures have contributed to the mythology of Japan. 

Izanagi and Izanami created the islands of Japan, after stirring the waters of the earth with a jeweled spear. They pulled the spear from the water to see if it had gathered sediment, and droplets of salt fell from the blade. These droplets formed the island known as Onogoro. The two settled on the island, then birthed eight children who became the other islands of Japan. 

There are also monkey-like creatures that the Japanese call kappa. The kappa live in ponds and rivers around Japan, and they are said to carry water with them in a hollow at the top of their heads. This water helps the kappa retain their magical powers, but if the water is spilled the kappa becomes powerless. 

Kappa are mostly polite creatures, but they are known to feast on the blood of humans and other animals. They have a tendency to bow when they meet new creatures, which also has the unintended effect of spilling the water in their skulls. Humans have been known to outsmart kappa by forcing them into promises they cannot keep, as kappas are known for fulfilling any promise they make. Kappa also eat cucumbers, and it is said that a family attacked by a kappa can write their names on a cucumber and throw it to the creature to save themselves.

The Legend of the Maiden’s Tower

Perhaps you’ve heard the story of Rapunzel? This is one of the earliest stories related to the concept of a “Maiden’s Tower,” and historians suspect the fairytale archetype relates to Istanbul. Popular myth tells of an emperor with a daughter. He loved his daughter, but an oracle prophesized that she would be bitten by a venomous snake on her 18^th birthday. 

The father responded by locking her away in the tower. He hid her from public view, designating himself as the only visitor allowed in the area. On her eighteenth birthday, the emperor brought her a basket of flowers and fruits as a gift. Upon reaching into the basket to retrieve a fruit, she was bitten by a poisonous asp that was hiding.

The legend ends with the girl dying in her father’s arms, thus fulfilling the prophecy.

There is another story about the tower in which Hero, a priestess of Aphrodite, lived. She was courted by a young man named Leander, who would swim the river each night to be with her. Hero would light a lamp to show him the way. Leander tried for many evenings to get Hero to give him her virginity. She finally succumbed, and gave him a summer’s worth of delights. 

One night as winter came, Hero’s lamp burned out as Leander swam. The waves were vicious, and carried him out to see where he drowned and was lost forever. In her grief, Hero threw herself from the tower.