Spirited Away in the Forbidden Yawata no Yabushirazu

This forest is not only said to be haunted, but also strictly forbidden for humans to enter. The legends claim that if you dare venture into the haunted Yawata no Yabushirazu, a place for the spirits and the gods, you may never return.

Just a short 30-minute journey from the bustling heart of Tokyo lies a place that belies its proximity to the metropolis—the eerie bamboo forest of Yawata no Yabushirazu, often simply referred to as Yawata (藪知らず).

The secluded forest of mostly moso bamboo around 17 or 18 meters wide and long is found close to the modernized and urban landscape of Ichikawa city in the Chiba Prefecture. The city has close to 500 000 people but has managed to preserve this little plot of holy land for a long time. It has been there at least from the Edo period when it was mentioned in travel guides and historical writings and hasn’t changed much in size, however, it is said they had to cut down a fair bit to widen the highway that goes alongside it.

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This forest is not only said to be haunted, but also strictly forbidden for humans to enter. The legends claim that if you dare venture into the haunted Yawata no Yabushirazu, a place for the spirits and the gods, you may never return.

Far from a tranquil retreat, Yawata has gained notoriety as one of the most haunted locations in Japan, where stories of mysterious disappearances and sinister occurrences have given rise to an aura of fear and fascination.

Spirited Away to a Forbidden Realm

Unlike the conventional ghost sightings associated with haunted places, Yawata’s legends revolve around a chilling concept—the belief that those who enter this bamboo forest are spirited away, or kamikakushi, never to be seen again.

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The Yawata no Yabushirazu forest is not very big and without something else, not very easy to get lost in either. The very name became a synonym for mazes and is today another saying or idiom for “to get lost.”

They believe that Yawata no Yabushirazu is a type of kinsokuchi. This is translated to Tabooed land is a sacred space, normally close to a shrine or other holy and spiritual significant place. It is believed that divine spirits live and are not for people to enter. There are even entire mountains and islands that have become a tabooed land.

This phenomenon, reminiscent of the famed movie trope of Spirited Away by Studio Ghibli, has woven a tapestry of folklore that has captivated the imagination of locals and paranormal enthusiasts alike.

The Travels of Mito Kōmon into the Yawata

The sinister reputation of Yawata no Yabushirazu has sparked various theories regarding its origins, each more haunting than the last.

One of the most well known stories is how a Tokugawa Mitsukini (徳川光圀,) ventured into the forest alone and met up with many monsters or yokais on his way. He was also known as Mito Kōmon (水戸黄門) and was a daimyo living in the 1600s Edo period.

It was written about him in a dramatization of his life in the Meiji period about his travels where he was masquerading as a commoner and investigated strange and evil powers in Japan. One of them was Yawata no Yabushirazu, but he managed to escape.

According to the stories, a young woman appeared, or perhaps it was an old man with white hair and said to just overlook it all this one time. Why is unclear. He managed to escape and when he got out he ordered the locals to make it a tabooed land without giving too many details about what had happened inside.

The Vengeful Ghost of a Samurai

There is also said that the forest is actually the final resting place for a vengeful ghost of a samurai.

This samurai warlord that supposedly haunts the forest was Taira no Masakado (平将門) from the 10th century Heian Japan. He was ruling the area and was the leader of a rebellion against the emperor that ended in a bloodbath. He won and took control of parts of the east in Japan until he too was killed by his cousin, Sadamori in the Battle of Kojima in 940. His cousin took his head to the capital.

It is said that after his death, Masakado became a vengeful ghost, and people think that he was buried around Yawata no Yabushirazu, or at least his head. Although there is said that the head ended up in Shibasaki fishing village, present day Ōtemachi and is one of Tokyo’s oldest parts. It was said his grave was placed on a hill looking out toward Tokyo Bay.

Many legends surround this story about his head, even one about his trusted vassal who defended his cut off head until it decomposed and turned to mud.

Throughout the years the people of Japan spent a lot of respect to his shrine to appease his vengeful spirit, and people believed throughout the Edo period that their fortuned corresponded with how much the paid respect to his shrine, and even today it is well kept, although it is found facing the Imperial Palace in Tokyo’s financial district, not in the forest.

Other Legends of the Haunted Forest

So old and mysterious is the forest that countless tales and legends come from that it makes it difficult to trace their origin story at times, and for what reason they are being told.

There is also a story about the sound of weaving emitting from the haunted forest of Yawata no Yabushirazu. People claim that young women come around the neighborhood every night to borrow tools for weaving. The next day the tools are returned, however they are all stained with blood.

Depending on who you ask, the forest’s malevolent nature is attributed to samurai ghosts seeking vengeance or the whispers of a more scientific explanation involving poisonous gasses permeating the air. Some say that there is a bottomless pit within the forest that gives off poisonous gas or some sort of swamp that is very dangerous.

Another theory is that Yawata no Yabushirazu is actually a burial ground for the nobles from this place, like a family grave or that the plot was used as Yamato Takeru’s encampment and therefore a place of wonder and godliness.

The lack of a definitive answer only adds to the mystique surrounding Yawata, leaving its secrets to the realm of speculation and folklore.

A Fence Against the Unknown of Yawata no Yabushirazu

Local residents take the legends of Yawata seriously, and evidence of this lies in the formidable stone fence that surrounds the forest, effectively barring entry to anyone daring to set foot inside. The barrier not only serves as a physical impediment but also symbolizes the collective awareness and caution that the community exercises concerning the mysteries hidden within the bamboo groves.

As stories of Yawata no Yabushirazu persist, the forest stands as a forbidden realm, a place where the line between reality and the supernatural blurs. The tales of those who have ventured into the bamboo thickets and never returned remain both a warning and a testament to the haunting allure of this enigmatic location at the threshold of the ancient and modern world.