Korean Folklore, Daltokki, the Moon Rabbit.

 

The origins of the Moon Rabbit myth can be traced back to ancient China, know as the Jade Rabbit. However Japan and Korea have similar talis of this immortal bunny. ( will have a post on the Japanese and Chinese version up  soon)

The Korean version of the Moon Rabbit starts with three animals—a rabbit, a fox, and a monkey they all share a similar goal to become the  embody of the virtues of Buddhism. To test their commitment, the Emperor of the Heavens  comes down  to earth and disguises himself as a  beggar, seeking food. The fox gives him a fish,  the monkey gives him some  fruit. But the rabbit, unable to find food, decides offer up himself as a meal and  to sacrifice himself by jumping into a fire. Moved by his act of selflessness, the Emperor appointed the rabbit as the guardian of the moon, immortalizing its noble act  among the stars and placing an image of the rabbit on the moon for All to see.

In Korean folklore, the Moon Rabbit, known as “daltokki” (달토끼), is often depicted standing beneath a gyesu tree (Korean laurel or cinnamon tree).

diligently pounding rice in a mortar to make rice cakes. 

The image of  Moon Rabbit’s Making rice cakes is heavily association with rice cakes with the Korean autumn festival called Chuseok. 

This holiday emphasizes family unity, gratitude, and the sharing of food, mirroring the rabbit’s virtues of selflessness and communal harmony. Families gather to prepare and enjoy songpyeon (half-moon-shaped rice cakes), reflecting the rabbit’s celestial activities and reinforcing the cultural importance of togetherness.There is also a  children’s song inspired by this hard working bunny  called “Half Moon” (“반달”), written in 1924 by Yoon Geuk-young.

In Chinese myths he is called the Jade Rabbit and is a friend) companion to Chang's the moon goddess, is job on the moon is to create the elixir of life. In the Japanese version he makes sticky rice cakes ( mochi).

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The  first version of this tail comes the second century. The earliest version was included in a Chinese  collection of poems  called  the Chu Ci. The poem in question suggested that during the Warring States Period (475 BCE–221 BCE), there was a mythical hare living on the moon and pounding herbs for celestial beings. In the 10th century, Chinese scholars compiled the Taiping Yulan, an ancient encyclopedia that also mentioned the hare on the moon. However there were no rabbits in China at the time, the original moon animal was the hare, and it was called “Jade Hare” or “Gold Hare.”

The earliest known version of the story in Japan appeared in the Konjaku Monogatarishū, a collection of ivery 1,000 poems written  into the Heian period (794–1185)

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The rabbit symbolizes  immortality, self-sacrifice, and the eternal cycle of life.

The Al mi-ràj /Almiraj .

 The Almiraj is another jackalope like rabbit cryptid. 

It's described as a small rabbit like animal usually said to have yellow fur and a long black unicorn like horn growing from the top of it's head.

According to Arabic lore, unlike a standard herbivore dite of a typical rabbit the Almiraj   is a fearsome carnivores animal  that can be found on Dragon Island / Sea serpents island (Jazirat al Tinnin located in the Indian Ocean .

It's mentioned in in Qazwin's The Wonders of Creation... Marvel's of things created and miraculous aspects of things existing from 1260 AD. Tough the oldest copy of Qazwini in the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek (BSB) currently located in Munich is dated a 464

 It shows a miniature painting of the dragon and a horned rabbit 

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 The dragon is shown eating bull's filled  with, sulfur left as a trap by Alexander the great as a means of killing the dragon.

It was successful and as a reward he was gifted a horned rabbit as thanks.

This little bunny has also been featured in several videogames, anime and DnD.

Paranormal, Easter Bunny 🐰...Or is it?...

 

  

For many people Easter is a joyous occasion, family gatherings, a long weekend and for kids it also means a visit from the Easter bunny. But what if I hat sweet little rabbit is more then he seems?

For most people Easter is celebrated around the world as a religious holiday commemorating the resurrection  of Christ.

But for others especially children it's a time of excitement and anticipation as they await the arrival of the Easter bunny and a basket of goodies . Colorful eggs and chocolate delivered by a kind magical bunny.

 what's not to like about that!

All fun and games, right?

However, for years now there have been sightings of a "Easter Bunny"  that is a lot creepier then common depiction would suggest.

Many have claimed too see a large human or near human sized rabbit, sometimes with intimidating red eyes and sharp teeth not exactly the kind and cuddly bunny we often think of.

Now, many would argue that what is being seen is nothing more then a prankster in a costume or a young child's imagination going a bit overboard. However some of these sightings seem to exhibit supernatural qualities like the  human sized bunny appearing out of nowhere or having ghost like  abilities ranging from  being semi transparent or walking through walls sometimes even disappear at a moments notice.

If these sightings where only a few that would be one thing, but there have been similar accounts around the world. Some believe this is a coincidence or possibly even a form of mass hallucinations. Other believe it to be a type of tulpa.

A tulpa is a creature created by thought alone either by a intense   concentration by an individual or through mass beliefs by a large number of people. Basically if enough people believe in something it is essentially willed into existence ... Though they are hard to control and often dangerous as they will eventually take on a will of their own...

Others claimed this is nothing more then an  urban legend, in any case it's still interesting to think the simple fact that people believe is enough to make it a reality. 

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In America, the original Easter Bunny tradition we celebrate today can be traced back to German immigrants who  brought there Folklore and tradition with them, in pagan times the rabbit was a sign of spring and fertility along with the egg. During the christianization of Europe many pagan customs where incorporated to gain more followers. The original Easter Bunny was the Osterhase Easter Rabbit .

The Angelo Saxon Goddess of spring fertility was called Ostara or Eostre her symptoms were the egg and the hare representing fertility. The colored eggs and bunny are still used to this day in our Easter celebration.

And modern pagans still hold a festival for the Goddess Eostre during the spring equinox.

Anyway Hope you all have a good weekend and Happy Easter. 

✝️🐇🥚🐣

Paranormal folklore, The Rasselblock

 

 

 Mythic horned rabbits.

Most of us have heard of the jackalope, an American cryptid that is basically a hare with antlers.

but this creature or at least one very similar can be found in several other countries,

Today's post will be about the Rasselblock.

but there are several other similar antler bunny's.

The Austrian rauracl, the Hessian dilldapp and the western alpine dahu, the Wolpertinger (winged rabbit with horns) and the  dahu (a mountain goat like cryptid) are also associated with the rasselbock.
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The Rasselbock (German: [ˈʁasl̩ˌbɔk]), sometimes called  raspelbock, is a rabbit cryptid from German, Austrian and Bavarian folklore often found in  hunting lodges as a display / hunting trophy. 

It looks just like an average rabbit with the exception of the noticeable horns on top of its head. Its antlers look like those of  a  deer. 

The female rasselbock is called the Rasselgeiß, they have smaller antlers. Some rasselbocks have been shown with small canine teeth, unlike normal rabbits. 

Their young are called Waldrasslinge. 


They have been seen in the Harz Mountains and  near Schwarzatal, the Schmücke, and Auerhahn, a forest town near Stützerbach and Ilmenau. Some even claim to find footprints in the snow, though this could just be a normal bunny in the winter. 

These little guys have also been spotted several times in or near the Thuringian Forest.

This little cryptid was even featured on money at one point and  can be found on the 1921 Blankenhain Notgeld: A banknote from Blankenhain.

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Other rabbit cryptids 🐇🐰

The Jackalope..

https://theparanormal411.blogspot.com/2023/04/the-jackalope-wild-west-cryptid.html

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And 

The Wolpertinger

https://theparanormal411.blogspot.com/2023/04/wolpertinger-german-jackalope.html

The Green Children of Woolpit

 

In old British Folklore there's a tale of two strange or even otherworldly children that suddenly appeared one day near the  village of Woolpit in Suffolk England.  

The kids wore odd cloths and  spoke an unknown language however the most noticable difference was there green skin.

As the story goes, One day   two children, a boy and a girl, were found near a pit, possibly a wolf pit/den, in the village of Woolpit in 12th century ..1135-1154 .

The sister seemed to be in better health then the brother.

At first they both refused to eat any food  offered to them besides broad beans , though they eventually,  learned to eat other foods, and soon after their skin became normal.

Not long after there discovery, the boy passed away. 

The girl later named Agnes adjusted to her new life, but she was considered to be "very wanton and impudent". After she learned to speak English, the girl explained that she and her brother had come from a land where the sun never shone, and the light was like twilight. According to one version of the story, she said that everything there was green; according to another, she said it was called Saint Martin's Land.

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Full story, or at least the only two near contemporary accounts come from   William of Newburgh's Historia rerum Anglicarum and Ralph of Coggeshall's Chronicum Anglicanum, written in about 1189 and 1220, respectively.

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At harvest time one day during the reign of King Stephen (r. 1135–1154), according to William of Newburgh, the villagers of Woolpit discovered two children, a brother and sister, beside one of the wolf pits that gave the village its name.

Their skin was green, they spoke an unknown language, and their clothing was unfamiliar. Ralph of Coggeshall reports that the children were taken to the home of Richard de Calne. Ralph and William agree that the pair refused all food for several days until they came across some raw broad beans, which they consumed eagerly. 

The children gradually adapted to normal food and in time lost their green colour.

 It was decided to Baptis the children, but the boy, who appeared to be the younger of the two, was sickly and died before or soon after baptism.

After learning to speak English, the children—Ralph says just the surviving girl—explained that they came from a land where the sun never shone and the light was like twilight. William says the girl called their home St Martin's Land; Ralph adds that everything there was green. According to William, the children were unable to account for their arrival in Woolpit; they had been herding their father's cattle when they heard a loud noise (according to William, it was like the sound of the bells of Bury St Edmunds abbey and suddenly found themselves by the wolf pit where they were found. Ralph says that they had become lost when they followed the cattle into a cave and, after being guided by the sound of bells, eventually emerged into our land.

According to Ralph, the girl was employed for many years as a servant in Richard de Calne's household, where she was considered to be "very wanton and impudent". William says that she eventually married a man from King's Lynn, about 40 miles (64 km) from Woolpit, where she was still living shortly before he wrote.

Based on his research into Richard de Calne's family history, the astronomer and writer Duncan Lunan has concluded that the girl was given the name 'Agnes' and that she married a royal official named Richard Barre.

To this day nobody really know where he kids actually came from, one theory is that they were Flemish immigrants and the green skin could be due to chlorosis, a condition caused by iron deficiency, which would clear with a healthier diet. As it later did 

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🍀 Happy St. Patrick's Day 🍀

 

May your troubles be less and your blessings be more and nothing but happiness come through your door.

Happy St. Paddy's Day 

🍀🪙🇮🇪💚 

Japanese Folklore and Yokai, Chisai Ojisan

 

 Chisai Ojisan / Chiisai Ojisan or Tiny Uncle , Little Mister, Little Old Man" is a popular Japanese urban legend.

This little guy is usually considered benevolent and even Lucky to encounter.

Sightings have been posted online at least so far back as 2009, but older tales date back a lot farther.

There are several stories about him and countless eyewitnesses that claim to have seen him 

All the accounts talk about encountering a very small man apparently middle aged man. His hight seems to range anywhere from 10cm -50cm tall

Some legend say that spotting these little men will give you  good luck. If more so if the speak too you. 

In some versions they dress in normal clothes, in other's the wheat a suit..

These Yokai are basically  Japanese Leprechauns.

They have been featured in multiple shows and manga.

Folklore and Mythology, The Four Leaf Clover 🍀

The four leaf clover is commonly considered a good luck charm in many places around the world.

The shamrock itself is wildly recognized as a symbol of Ireland largely do to St. Patrick's use of it's three leaves as a symbolic representation of the holy Trinity. 

However  the four leaf clover  is associated with Ireland just as much and also has use dating back to ancient Celtic times .

The four leaf clover was used as a way to see fairies,Irish Folklore claims carrying this charm would allow the holder to see through glamours ( fairy illusion magic) or to recognize witches in the crowd.

During the middle ages it was used as a protective charm to ward off not just bad luck but curse's as well, the same way the ancient Celtic druids did.

 St Patrick used a three leaf clover to symbolize the Holy Trinity (the father, the son and the holy spirit) but because of the popularity of the four leaf even after the christianization of Ireland the church also accepted the four leaf as a symbol of hope, faith love and luck.

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Another old saying is that  four leaf clovers were "gathered at night-time during the full moon by sorceresses, who mixed it with vervain and other ingredients, while young girls in search of a token of perfect happiness made quest of the plant by day.".

In an 1877 letter to St. Nicholas Magazine an 11-year-old girl wrote, "Did the fairies ever whisper in your ear, that a four leaf clover brought good luck to the finder? 

The Clover has also been used as the logo for many companies and advertising around the world.

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A survey done in multiple European countries figured The odds of finding a four leaf clover on average.

 The odds of finding a four leaf clover are around 5000 to 1 (one 4-leaf clover for every 5076 normal 3-leaf clovers), almost twice the commonly stated probability of 10,000 to 1. According to this survey, the frequency of a 5-leaf clover is 24,390 to 1, and that of a 6-leaf clover is 312,500 to 1.

Happy (early) St. Patrick's Day 🍀

The Hopkinsville Goblin's

 

Just over 70 years ago,a strange possibly extraterrestrial encounter took place on a rural farm in Kentucky.

On the night of August 21, 1955, five adults and seven children arrived at the Hopkinsville police station claiming that small goblin like alien creatures from a spaceship had been attacking their farmhouse and that they had been holding them off with gunfire "for nearly four hours". Two of the adults, Elmer Sutton and Billy Ray Taylor, claimed they had been shooting at a few short, dark figures who repeatedly popped up at the doorway or peered into windows.

 The Kentucky New Era, the first paper to report the incident, increased the number of creatures to "12 to 15," and this continues to be the number most often reported.

The report of gunfire and unknown creatures triggered a large police response that included local city police officers,  state troopers, deputy sheriffs, and even four military police officers from the nearby United States Army Fort Campbell  to the Sutton farmhouse located near the town of Kelly in Christian County.

There were dozens of eyewitnesses to the incidents, which included two families present at the farmhouse and others in the area; other civilians, some of whom had no connection to the families and even one in another state. the witnesses also included several local policemen and a state trooper who saw and heard strange phenomena including unexplained lights in the night sky and noises the same night.

The family present in the farmhouse all claimed that they were terrorized by several creatures similar to gremlins, which have since often been referred to as the "Hopkinsville Goblins" in popular culture. 

The possibly otherworldly creatures were described as about three feet tall, with upright pointed ears, thin limbs (the beings' legs were said to be almost non functional or devolved, even in a state of atrophy), long arms and claw-like hands or talons. The creatures were either silvery in color, or wearing something metallic. ( Skeptics claim the witnesses were seeing large owls and simply mistook them for something else)

Their movements on occasion seemed to defy gravity with them floating above the ground and appearing in high up places, and they "walked" with a swaying motion as though wading through water. Although the creatures never entered the house, they would pop up at windows and at the doorway, waking the children in the house up to a hysterical frenzy. The families fled the farmhouse in the middle of the night to the local police station and sheriff Russell Greenwell noted that they were visibly shaken. 

The families returned to the farmhouse with Sheriff Greenwell and several officers, yet the occurrences continued. Police saw evidence of the struggle and damage to the house, as well as seeing strange lights and hearing noises themselves. The witnesses additionally claimed to have used firearms to shoot at the creatures, with little or no effect, and the house and surrounding grounds were extensively damaged during the incident. There are no known photographs of a Hopkinsville Goblin.

The Michigan Gnome.

 

 Michigan Gnome.

One of the most well known cryptids in the state of Michigan is the Dogman, but did you know there have also been several other cryptids sighted there including a gnome.

 Most of these sightings seem to come from the Southeastern parts of Michigan. 

The Gnome is usually described as standing  between 3 to 5 feet tall and  human like in appearance, most often spotted  at either dawn or dusk. 

Several reports claim that once  spotted the gnome will freeze up, standing perfectly still as if you can no longer see him if he doesn't move. 

Unlike other gnome or fay the Michigan gnome doesn't seem to be aggressive of mischievous. Unlike it's less pleasant cousin in Chicago (Nain Rouge (The Red Dwarf): A famous Detroit legend dating back to 1701 .)

There also seems to be a colony or at least a good size family of them living in the region as young and loder gnome have been seen there.

Though the Southeastern part of Michigan seems to be the most active area, gnomes have seen in multiple areas around the state. There have been reports in forests, nature reserves, parks and cities.

Some of the other locations.  

Aside from wooded areas gnomes have been seen in and around Detroit as well as Bowers School Farm, Rolling Hills Park Dearborn-(also lots of dogman sightings there)   and several other locations throughout the state.

So if your out and about in the Michigan woods keep a good lookout you never know what you may encounter .

The Beast of Seven Chutes

 

In June of 1995 a man sightseeing in Quebec snapped 76 photos and made 4 videos of an area known as Parc des 7 Chutes, or Seven Chutes Park, near Saint-Georges de Beauce, Quebec. While looking through the pictures, something odd caught his eye in photo number 32. 

When he enlarged the photo, he noticed a tall brown figure with a baboon like snout standing in the tree's looking up at him. 

Not only that, it also seemed to be holding a white dog.

He had not seen it when he took the pictures. The photographer (who wishes to remain anonymous) went back to the area and had photos taken with a man standing in the same spot for comparison, as well as to see if there could be another explanation.

Whatever was in the photo that day was much larger then the man .

Some people claim the photos show nothing more than an odd rock formation however other photos of the area do not support this claim.

Others suggest it's a case of pareidolia, the phenomena of seeing faces or other distinct images in objects such as clouds, tree formations ect. 

The picture shows a large bipedal Bigfoot like  creature (gugwe /face eater)   or possibly a werewolf/dogman .

Fornax, Roman Goddess of baking

 

Ancient Rome is full of Gods and Goddesses for nearly every occasion or occupation.

Fornax is the patron goddess of baker's.

She is the goddess of ovens and baking, responsible for bread, buns, toast, muffins, and bagels. She was also essential for preventing burnt offerings and house fires. 

Originally, Roman ovens were used for toasting grain, while the  hearth was used for  baked bread. Though as ovens became more commonly used for baking instead of a Traditional Hearth , Fornax myth was eventually merged with the goddess Vesta. 

Fornacalia is a festival held in honor of Fornax, where grain is toasted for the salted meal mola salsa. 

Originally she was the patroness of bakers, and a goddess of baking. She ensured that the heat of ovens did not get hot enough to burn the corn or bread.

People would pray to for help whilst baking.

 Her festival, the Fornacalia, is  celebrated on February 17.

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 Vesta  is the virgin goddess of the hearth, home, and family in Roman religion, most often depicted as a flame and on rare occasions in a human form.

More on her in a later post.

Japanese Folklore: Tamamo no Mae: The Nine tailed fox

 

 

 Tamamo no Mae, One of the strongest and most feared Yokai.




Tamamo  is one of the most famous kitsune (Fox Spirits) in Japanese mythology.

A nine-tailed magical fox, she is also one of the most powerful yokai that has ever lived.

Her magical abilities were matched only by her sharp mind  and lust for power.

Tamamo lived during the Heian period, and though she may not have succeeded in her plan to kill the emperor and take his place, her actions destabilized the country and lead it towards one of the most important civil wars in Japanese history.

 For that reason, she is considered one of the Nihon San Dai Aku Yokai—the Three Terrible Yokai of Japan.

She  is mentioned in various old texts and has been a popular subject throughout Japanese history. Her story is portrayed in literature, 

Noh, Kabuki, bunraku, and other forms of art including modern mang, anime and evenK Dramas. 

There have been  several variations on her story throughout history.

According to Legends: Tamamo no Mae was born around 3,500 years ago in what is now China. Her early life is a mystery, but she eventually became a powerful sorceress.

 

A few hundred years later she became a white faced, golden furred kyubi no kitsune—a nine-tailed fox with the highest level of  magic powers.

She was also a very skilled liar and master  manipulator. She used her charms and intelligence to advance her standing and influence politics of the time .

During the Shang Dynasty she was known as Daji. She disguised herself as a beautiful woman and became the favorite concubine of King Zhou of Shang.

 

 
Daji was a model of human depravity. She held orgies in the palace gardens. Her fondness for watching and inventing new forms of torture are legendary.

Daji eventually brought about the fall of the entire Shang Dynasty. She managed to escape execution, and fled to the Magadha kingdom in India in 1046 BCE.

In Magadha, she was known as Lady Kayo, and became a consort of King Kalmashapada, known in Japan as Hanzoku.

She used her beauty and charms to dominate the king, she devoured children, murder priests, and commit other unspeakable horrors.

Eventually—whether because she ran out of  children to eat or because Kalmashapada began to turn away from her and towards Buddhism—she fled back to China.
...

During the Zhou Dynasty she called herself Bao Si, and was known as one of the most desirable women in all of China.

In 779 BCE she became a concubine of King You. Not satisfied as just a mistress, she manipulated the king into deposing his wife Queen Shen and making Bao Si his new queen. 

Though she was beautiful, Bao Si rarely ever smiled. In order to please his beautiful new wife, King You committed acts of such
evil and atrocity that eventually all of his nobles abandoned and betrayed him. Eventually, King You was killed and Bao Si captured and the Western Zhou Dynasty was brought to an end in 771 BCE. Somehow Bao Si managed to escape again, she went into hiding for many years.

Little is known of her activities until the 700s, when she resurfaced disguised as a 16-year old girl named Wakamo. She tricked the leaders of the 10th Japanese envoy to the Tang Dynasty—Kibi no Makibi, Abe no Nakamaro, and Ganjin—as they were preparing to return home to Japan.

Wakamo joined their crew and took the ship to Japan, where she hid herself away for over 300 years.

In the 1090s, she resurfaced once again. This time she transformed herself into a human baby and hid by the side of the road.

A married couple found the baby and rescued it, taking her in as their daughter and naming her Mikuzume.

She proved to be an exceedingly intelligent and talented young girl, and was so beautiful that she attracted to attention of everyone around her.

When she was 7 years old, Mikuzume recited poetry before the emperor. His imperial majesty immediately took a liking to her and employed her as a servant
in his court.

Mikuzume excelled at court, absorbing knowledge like a sponge. There was no question she could not answer, whether it was about music, history, astronomy,
religion, or Chinese classics. Her clothes were always clean and unwrinkled. She always smelled pleasant. Mikuzume had the most beautiful face in all of Japan, and everyone who saw her loved her.

During the summer of her 18th year, a poetry and instrument recital was held in Mikuzume’s honor. During the recital, an unexpected storm fell upon the palace. 

All of the candles in the recital room were snuffed, leaving the participants in the dark. Suddenly, a bright light emanated from Mikuzume’s body, illuminating the room.

 Everybody at court was so impressed by her genius and declared that she must have had an exceedingly good and holy previous life. 

She was given the name Tamamo no Mae. Emperor Toba, already exceedingly fond of her, made her his consort.

Almost immediately after she became the emperor’s consort, the emperor fell deathly ill. None of the court physicians could determine the cause, and so the onmyoji (Exorcist) Abe no Yasunari was called in. ( Not be confused with Abe no Yasuna, who is the father of the famous onmyōji Abe no Seimei , Similar title, Different people.)

Abe no Yasunari read the emperor’s fortune and divined that he was marked by a bad omen. After that, the highest priests and monks were summoned to the palace to pray for the emperor’s health.

The best prayers of the highest priests had no effect, however. The emperor continued to grow worse. Abe no Yasunari was summoned again to read the emperor’s fortune. 

This time, to his horror the onmyoji discovered that the emperor’s beloved Tamamo no Mae was the cause of his illness. She was a
kitsune in disguise, and was shortening the emperor’s life span in order to take over as ruler of Japan. Emperor Toba was reluctant to believe the diviner’s words, but agreed to test Tamamo no Mae just to be sure.

To save the emperor’s life, Abe no Yasunari prepared the Taizan Fukun no Sai, the most secret and most powerful spell known to onmyodo.

Tamamo  was ordered to perform part of the ritual. They reasoned that an evil spirit would not be able to participate in such a holy ritual.

Though she was reluctant to participate, the emperor’s ministers persuaded her. They told her that it would increase her standing an admiration among the court. She had little choice but to accept.

When the ritual was performed, Tamamo was dressed even more beautifully than normal. She recited the holy worlds as expected and played her part extremely well. But just as she prepared to wave the ceremonial staff, she vanished. Abe no Yasunari’s divination was confirmed. The court flew into an uproar.

Soon after, word arrived that women and children were disappearing near Nasuno in Shimotsuke Province.

The court sorcerers determined that Tamamo  was the cause, and it was decided that she must be destroyed once and for all.

The emperor summoned the best warriors in all of the land and then charged the most superb of them, Kazusanosuke and Miuranosuke, to find Tamamo no Mae.

The warriors gladly accepted the honor. They purified themselves and set out with an army of 80,000 men to slay the nine-tailed kitsune.

Upon reaching Nasuno the army quickly found the kitsune. 

The warriors chased her for days and days, but the fox used her magical powers and outsmarted them time and time again, easily escaping. The army grew weary, and frustration set in. It seemed that nothing they did was working. However, Kazusanosuke and Miuranosuke would not accept the shame of defeat and vowed to press on. They practiced harder, honing their tactics, and eventually picked up the kitsune’s trail.

One night, Miuranosuke had a prophetic dream. A beautiful young girl appeared before him, crying. She begged: “Tomorrow I will lose my life to you. Please save me.” Miuranosuke adamantly refused, and upon waking the warriors set out again to find Tamamo no Mae. 

Sure enough, the next day they caught
her. Miuranosuke fired two arrows, one through the fox’s flank and one through its neck. Kazusanosuke swung his blade. It was over, just as the dream had said.

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However, her evil did not end with her death. One year after she died, Emperor Konoe died, heirless. The following year, her lover
and former Emperor Toba died as well. A succession crisis ignited between forces loyal to Emperor Go-Shirakawa and forces loyal to former Emperor Sutoku.

 This crisis started the Fujiwara-Minamoto rivalry that led to the Genpei War, the end of the Heian period, and the rise of the first shoguns.

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As if that were not enough, Tamamo’s spirit haunted a massive boulder which killed every living thing that touched it.

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This boulder is know as the killing stone or  Sessho-seki.

 On march 5 2022, the boulder split in half. Presumably freeing the evil fox once more.

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Also, Happy Valentines Day.

💗🦊