Uncanny Japan

It's Obon and today I want to read to you an essay by Lafcadio Hearn. He wrote it about the town he would stay at during summers, the town I've lived in for 25 plus years. Here he talks not just about...

15 Elo 202133min

How do you build a bridge that stands up to storms and floods? Well, you have to appease the nature gods, of course. But how do you do that? Human sacrifice seemed to have worked in the past. Today I'...

30 Heinä 202121min

The Tofu Kozo is a seemingly innocent little yokai who appears on rainy days offering a plate of tofu to unsuspecting people. What could possibly go wrong? Visit the Uncanny Japan website to read the...

15 Heinä 202111min

Let's say you have a plague of insects, like millions of cicada awakening after a years-long slumber. Or worse, bugs that would rather devour your crops. And let's say this is happening 200 years ago ...

29 Kesä 202113min

We're being visited by UAPs, Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon. Or you might be more familiar with their older name: UFOs. There is a lot of interesting news coming out these days. You've probably seen i...

15 Kesä 202112min

Today I'll read to you, "The Bamboo Cutter and the Moon Princess" called Kaguya Hime in Japanese. It's an old tale that some believe talks about otherworldly visitors. Was the Moon Princess an extrate...

1 Kesä 202144min

Who are Fujin and Raijin (the Japanese Wind God and Thunder God), where did they come from, and what do they do? Today I'll tell you about their origins in India and a Japanese Goddesses' decaying bod...

16 Touko 202114min

Today's Story Time is one I found in an old collection of Japanese folklore. It's about a couple of conniving kappa and an innocent young girl. It's called "The Kappa's Abyss." Visit the Uncanny Japa...

2 Touko 202130min