- KAPPA - 河童 / かっぱ / カッパ - Legends -
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- Fukushima 福島県 Kappa legends 河童 カッパ かっぱ
河童伝説 Kappa folktales -
Fukushima Prefecture (福島県 Fukushima-ken)
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region on the island of Honshu.
The capital is the city of Fukushima.
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !
Some legends are about the water yokai 水の伝説.
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福島県 Fukushima prefecture
Once upon a time
Father and Mother Kappa lived in the river together on friendly terms with the village children.
One day one of the bad kids poured the water out of the Kappa's plate. From that day on, the Kappa were not seen any more. But every year during the O-Bon festival for the ancestors in late summer, when people floated the lanterns for the dead 盆に川灯籠を流す, there never was a river accident with any casualties.
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The relationship between Kappa and the cucumbers is close, here it is even called
Kappakyuuri かっぱきゅうり.
It is also related to the 天王祭 Tennoo Sai Festival on June 15.
kyuuri tenno sai きゅうり天王祭 Tennoo Festival with cucumbers
also celebrated in other prefectures, for example in Yamagata at Yasaka Jinja 八坂神社.
「きゅうり天王さん」Kyuri Tennoo San, 「きゅうり天王さま」Kyuri Tenno Sama
Kappa Matsuri「かっぱまつり」。
At first people offer cucumbers and pray for health and protection of disasters for the coming year.
- source : www.yachi-hachiman.jp
山形県西村山郡河北町谷地224
. The Deity Tennoo, Gozu Tennō (牛頭天王) and the Gion Festival .
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At the temple 玉泉寺 Gyokusen-Ji there is the grave of the warlord 大積伊賀守隆鎮
source : moji-blog.seesaa.net
大積隆鎮の墓 Ozumi, the former Lord at 門司城の主 Moji Castle.
If horses eat a bit from the moss growing on the grave, a Kappa will not be able to pull them into water.
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In the deep river water there live the Kappa who pull the children's chinchin (penis).
In the deep mountains there lives the Old Woman of the Mountain, Yamanba 山姥.
So you should never go to the river alone or go to the mountains alone.
In the mountains also wear a bell (as usually done to protect against bears.)
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福島市 Fukushima city
On the 4th day of May at Moniwa, people throw one mochi rice cake into the river for the Kappa. (It seems to be a botamochi).
Moniwa Lake - Naka Moniwa 中茂庭
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12月1日
On December 1 is the day of Kappare カッパレ（川入り） going into the water.
Once upon a time a mother was worried about her son who went to the beach swimming every day. She worried he might be eaten by Kappako かっぱっこ（河童）. So she made him many botamochi ぼた餅 rice cakes to feed to the Kappa and spare his life instead.
. botamochi 牡丹餅 "peony rice balls" .
(round glutinous rice balls covered in bean paste)
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Fukushima 福島市 飯坂町 Iizaka
12月1日
December 1 is the day of Kappare カッパレ, Kapparia カッパリヤ.
People do not work but go to the river and throw botamochi into the water.
Children who eat botamochi offered to the Buddhist alter on this day will not have a water accident caused by a Kappa in the coming summer.
Once the father of a Kappa was very ill and would only survive if he could eat the raw liver of a child. So the Kappa was trying to capture a child, but when they gave him botamochi instead, he gave those to his ill father - and oh wonder - he was healed.
So even now people eat botamochi on this day and will not be pulled into the water by a kappa.
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双葉郡 Futaba gun 双葉町 Futaba village
. . . as of March 2011
the entire population was evacuated as a result of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster. Since 2013, only 4% of the town has been open to visitors.
One day in summer a long time ago
when a farmer was cutting weeds, a Kappa grabbed the tail of the horse. The horse was surprized and run away. When the farmer found the horse, the Kappa was still hanging on to it but near death. So the good farmer let the Kappa escape into the river.
To show his gratitude, the Kappa taught him how to make a good medicine for broken bones and wounds 骨接ぎの妙薬.
The medicine uo no me no kusuri 魚の目の薬 - is also good for corns on the sole of feet (lit. "eye of a fish")
双葉郡 Futaba 浪江町 Namie village
. . . as of March 2011
the entire population was evacuated as a result of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, and the town is effectively a ghost town.
Around 1675 延宝年間,
the child of a farmer played with a Kappa at the river near Takasemura 高瀬村の川 and received a cup. But the Kappa told the child never to talk about it, and if he did he would die.
Every day the child could pull out one piece of gold from the cup and now the kid was able to buy a lot of things. But his parents soon got suspicious and thought he was stealing things. They asked the kid and when he finally told the story, he tonshi 頓死 fell dead after telling it all.
The cup is now a treasure at the temple Yakushi-Ji 薬師寺.
The Kappa were quite active in this region, but the large water snake 大蛇 was even more dangerous.
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いわき市 Iwaki Town
One day in summer a long time ago
when a farmer was cutting weeds, a Kappa grabbed the tail of the horse. The horse was surprized and run away. When the farmer found the horse, the Kappa was still hanging on to it but near death. So the good farmer let the Kappa escape into the river. The medicine is still made and sold by the family.
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Before doing a wrestling match 相撲を取る with a Kappa you have to make sure the water is spilled from its plate on the head.
Or eat the Buddhist rice offerings before the bout.
. buppan 仏飯 Buddhist rice offerings - .
and other things a Kappa dislikes and fears 嫌物
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Once two young brothers played at a narrow riverside. They were about to catch a frog when they fell into the river and disappeared. Other kids called the parents and all began to search for them. When they finally found their dead bodies in a deep waterhole, they had burning wounds on their anus and all the innards were taken out.
- This was the deed of a Kappa!
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南会津郡 Minami Aizu
An old grandfather lived in a small hut near the river. One day he heard a voice outside asking for fire. It was the sweet voice of a child. But the grandfather knew what to do.
"Kappa I will give you fire" 河童火をやろう he shouted and at once someone jumped the river.
南会津郡 Minami Aizu 桧枝岐村 Hinoematamura
A Kappa shapeshifted into a broom 箒 made of brushwood and enjoyed himself sweeping. The poeple of this home caught him and made him promise never to come back. The Kappa even had to sign a contract 詫誓文 on this before they let him go.
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石川郡 Ishikawa gun 平田村 Hirata village
There are two stones by the river which have a dent as if two Kappa had been sitting there for a long time. They are called 親河童の石、子河童の石 - stone of Father Kappa and stone of Son Kappa.
Nowadays people try to throw pepples into these dents and if they hit, it will bring good luck to them.
. Kappa ishi 河童石 Kappa stone legends - Introduction .
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大沼郡 Onuma gun 金山町 Kaneyamamachi
At 大栗山の弁天沼 the Benten swamp near Mount Okuriyama there live Kappa.
The Kappa from river 只見川 Tadamigawa like cucumbers.
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If you eat cucumbers before going into a river, a Kappa will pull out your anus ゲス（尻）.
This is maybe a story to teach children to keep the stomach warm in summer.
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Kappa ishi 河童石 Kappa stone legends
. かっぱの湯 Kappa no Yu .
At the river Nojirigawa 野尻川 there was a Kappa stone.
At the river pool called Araifuchi 洗い淵 people come to wash the horses. . . .
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白河郡 Shirakawa gun 表郷村 Omotego Mura
At the Genpatsunuma ゲンパツ沼 / 源八沼 Genpatsu swamp (Genpachi swamp) a Kappa used to pull horses into the water.
After a priest had prayed at the swamp, the Kappa did not appear any more.
Another version knows that the priest made the Kappa sign a contract not to harm horses any more.
and
On a rainy night the Kappa would shapeshift into a lady and lure people who walked along there. The Zen priest Genno 源翁禅師 from the temple 常在院 Jozai-In lectured the Kappa about evil deeds and then the Kappa never did anything bad again.
. Gennō Shinshō 源翁心昭 Genno Shinsho .
(1329 - 1400)
源翁禅師 Genno Zenji, 心昭空外 Shinsho Kugai, a monk of the Soto sect of Zen Buddhism who also smashed the "murder stone"and is subject to many legends.
Even Matsuo Basho visited the famous "murder stone" 殺生石.
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Once the malicious Kappa from Genpachinuma swamp, who alwayas pulled horses and children into the water, got caught. He had to promise to deliver food trays お膳 when people needed them for celebrations, before the farmers let him go.
This went on for some time, until someone forgot to bring the trays back.
From then on, the Kappa was not seen any more.
A similar legend is know in Aichi:
. Kappa legends from Aichi prefecture 愛知県 .
Zenwanbuchi 膳椀淵 "river pool for trays and bowls".
and more about food trays and bowls for celebrations.
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耶麻郡 Yama gun 高郷村 Takasatomura
４月７日
If people go swimming in the river on April 7, they will be pulled into the waster by a Kappa.
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When children go to the river in Summer, especially July and August they should not eat cucumbers before going into the water, otherwise a Kappa would pull them into the water.
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福島県 田村市船引 Tamura Town
. 芸の里かっぱ村』 Kogei no Sato - Kappamura .
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福島県岩瀬郡 Iwase gun 天栄村 Teneimura, Tenei-mura
Kappabuchi 河童淵（天栄村）
Kappa no wabi shomon 河童のわび証文 The pledge of excuse from the Kappa
In the Edo period there lived a Lord named 馬場八郎左工門 Baba Hachirozaemon who liked to play Go 碁, a kind of Japanese chess.
One day he forgot all about the time when playing Go with the priest at temple 女郎寺 and and was on his way to the castle during the evening dusk. Suddenly his beloved horse 愛馬大月 jumped in fear and when he turned around he saw a Kappa trying to grab at the tail of his horse and pull it into the river.
The Lord got quite angry and wanted to kill the Kappa on the spot. But the Kappa pleaded apologetically while shedding tears:
"I have a family and many children to feed. If you kill me now, they will hve all to wander along the roads to survive. Please, do not kill me!"
source and more photos : fukuzo555jp
So the Lord let him go but he had to promise to protect the local children from water accidents. The Kappa came to sign a contract in stone which was then buried deep in the ground with a heavy boulder on top. Next a sanctuary build atop of it. This was the shrine Akazu Jinja 不開神社 あかずじんじゃ "Shrine not to open", now written 赤津神社 あかつじんじゃ Akatsu Jinja .
The Kappa here is a deity to protect from water accidents.
Even in our times there is flooding in the area once in a while, but never have there been human accitents or animals killed in the water. People still come here to pray for protection. But now there is just a simple torii gate in the fields.
- reference -
shared by Hayato, Kappapedia facebook
. Go game, Igo 囲碁 - Japanese Chess .
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Kankichi かん吉
Fukushima 福島県を流れる片貝川
. Kappa Mascots from Tohoku .
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- - - - - reference - - - - -
怪異・妖怪伝承データベース
- source : www.nichibun.ac.jp
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. - - - Join my Kappa friends on facebook ! - - - .
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Kappa is holding a flag
genpatsu hantai 原発反対 No Nuclear Power Plants
by 馬場牧子
another spring -
can the Kappa survive
radioactivity ?
Gabi Greve, March 11, 2015
. The Big Earthquake March 11, 2011, 14:46 .
東北地方太平洋沖地震
magnitude 9:0
Facebook - Tohoku Information
Sharing what we can !
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. Kappa densetsu 河童伝説, Kappa minwa 河童民話 - Legends - Introduction .
. Mingei 民芸 Regional Folk Art from Japan .
- #kappafukushima #fukushima -
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