Spirited Away to Tono

"Journeys in Japan"

"I imagine there are hundreds of other stories like these in Tono"

"and we really look forward to hearing more."

"In many mountain villages of Japan,"

"even areas deeper than that of Tono,"

"there are countless other legends about people and spirits in the mountains."

"Hopefully, by telling these stories,"

"we make the people of the lowlands shudder."

I've come to Tono in Iwate Prefecture today and just behind me,

we can see some beautiful scenery of a town surrounded by mountains.

What I just read from this book right now

is a collection of folk tales from this area.

It's called the "Legends of Tono" and said to be

the "Grimm's Fairy Tales" of the East.

Follow me as we explore this area

and follow along the stories from the "Legends of Tono."

The ancestors' stories unfurling to the present

and spinning into the future.

Hello.

Actor Jonathan Senior plunges into a world of wondrous folktales,

on "Journeys in Japan."

Spirited away to Tono

Tono is a hamlet deep in the mountains of Iwate,

some 430 kilometers north of Tokyo.

Sacred Mt. Hayachine, teeming with wildlife,

once even to roaming wolves, rises above the town.

First up, I've come to a place where they preserve old folk houses

because I was interested to see what kind of lives people used to live here.

And just over here, we have a beautiful house with a thatched roof.

It's pretty impressive.

The Nanbu Magariya architectural style features built-in stables

attached to a main building.

It was designed to protect treasured livestock during the long, harsh winters.

Oh, you can see that there is like a small horse over here.

Interestingly enough, it's in the same house.

Hey, buddy. Hi.

- Hello. Will you be showing me around?
- Absolutely.

Tomikawa Gaku, who relocated here from Tokyo,

has become a kind of ambassador for Tono,

producing events and books celebrating its attractions.

I guess it was convenient to have the horses under the same roof.

Yes. You could check on them any time.

Horses were like today's cars or tractors.

They were looked after and treated like family members.

OK. Let's go.

- Incredible home.
- It's huge, isn't it?

It's the largest in this village-museum.

It must have been freezing.

I can't even imagine. Tono gets so cold.

I heard they had to keep the fire going around the clock.

"Legends of Tono" is a collection of folktales handed down around the hearth

for hundreds of years.

Some 119 stories

were recorded by folklorist Yanagita Kunio

based on their retelling by a Tono-native,

Sasaki Kizen.

Born into a wealthy farming family, he began writing novels while in university,

but turned to compiling his town's oral histories.

The tales were not just populated with Tono's farmers and other villagers,

fantastical creatures, mountain gods,

"zashiki warashi" house spirits

and "kappa" water sprites also appear.

(Kappa water sprite)

Kataribe are master storytellers.

Horikiri Hajime is one of them.

Did you learn from a great storyteller? Was there one in your family?

I learned mostly from my grandfather. But everyone is different.

Why did you become a kataribe?

I don't really know.

But come to think of it, my great-grandmother was a storyteller.

Really?

I guess it's in my blood.

Though remote, the village was not completely isolated.

Old roads connecting inland areas to the coast ran through Tono.

Weary wayfarers, who had crossed treacherous mountain passes,

would rest in the post town.

They were farmers transporting goods on horses to supplement their meager income.

Terrifying and curious tales reached Tono

via these part-time couriers.

Could you tell me a scary story?

We're in the middle of the mountains here.

It's a perfect place to tell a tale about the mountain gods.

"A pilgrim monk is sleeping outside a village,"

"next to a miniature shrine."

"In the dead of night, two mountain gods appear"

"and talk about a baby born the previous night."

"They foretell that the child will die at the age of seven,"

"by an ax called the 'chona.'"

"Seven years later, the monk returns to the village, and..."

The village was in commotion.

He asked a villager what was going on.

"A carpenter put his child down for his nap and started working."

"Sometime later, he noticed a horsefly on the child's face."

"He thought he'd whisk it off with the ax in his hand."

"But he lost his grip and split the child's head with the ax..."

"It's awful, isn't it?"

The monk remembered the night seven years earlier.

"This is what..."

"...the mountain gods were talking about."

He had finally realized the meaning of their talks.

That's the end.

I can understand why they're called the "Grimm's Fairy Tales" of the East.

The people had to survive in a poor region.

The stories depict encounters with gods and spirits, sometimes resulting in death.

All were told realistically.

Tomikawa once worked for a major Tokyo advertising agency.

It took just one business trip to Tono and he was hooked.

I had no idea what I would find here, but it was full of fascinating wonders.

Like the stories of mountain gods and the kappa living here... I was surprised.

So, I started to study, and get immersed, in the local culture.

Tono is home not only to people of all generations but also to non-humans. It's a captivating place.

Oh, I can see some horses here.

I'm told that, in the summertime,

they bring the horses up into the mountains because it's nice and cool.

And apparently, it's not just one group of horses.

It's all different horses from different owners, so...

during the summertime, maybe there's a bit of love happening up in the mountain.

Everyone is dancing with such enthusiasm.

I think I can see Tomikawa-san dancing with them as well.

The Shishiodori dance.

"Legends of Tono" compiler Yanagita Kunio

glimpsed it by chance on a trip here.

The dance, performed for 400 years,

is a rite praying to the mountain gods for bountiful hunters' prey

and other forest blessings.

Well done!

You were so passionate.

Our performance is this weekend. So, we are putting our all into rehearsals.

What sets your group apart from others?

We have a long history, but welcome outsiders.

When I came to see rehearsals I was asked to join in. And I became a member before I knew it.

Troupe leader Nukamori Choichi

has been dancing the Shishiodori for 35 years.

Are your children here?

I have three daughters whose kids are now performers.

They can play the Shishi deer parts now.

We hope people are moved by our performance.

That would make us proud.

I've come to the hometown of Sasaki Kizen,

and just to my right is the house where he grew up.

Even today in Tono, you'll find lots of places that appear in the "Legends of Tono,"

just quietly watching over people as they live their daily lives.

(Traces of the Otsuchi Highway near Sasaki Kizen's birthplace.)

(Folktales reached Tono via these highways.)

Oshirasama are protective deities that come in pairs,

usually the head of a girl and a horse.

- Hello.
- Nice to meet you.

Unman Haruo has long been devoted to sharing the depth of Tono's folktales.

I see a person's face but also a horse.

They represent people.

What do you mean?

In the pages of the "Legends of Tono,"

there is a tragic story featuring Oshirasama.

It's about the bond between a girl and her horse,

which is broken when her father slays it.

Unman has heard another version

where the protagonists are the second or third sons of poor farmers.

The men, considered lowlier than horses,

fall in love with daughters of wealthy farmers

and unable to marry, commit lovers' suicide.

Parents felt very sorry for them.

They made the carvings of a girl and a horse so they could stay together in the afterlife.

The story differs from teller to teller?

That's right. Each settlement or residence has a different version of the story of Oshirasama.

No one knows which one is accurate.

But when it comes to folktales, if we get their message right, nothing else really matters.

That's intriguing.

Folktales as a way to communicate to future generations.

The annual Tono Festival, which takes place in September,

features dances unique to each of the city's districts.

And I think this is Tomikawa-san's group. Let's take a look.

Hello.

You look so cool!

Thanks.

The Shishiodori costumes represent a mountain deity that,

in form, is a fusion of beasts.

Whiskers from a horse's tail.

Strips of thinly shaved wood symbolizing hair or wings.

How is it with your mask on?

I've transformed from a human into another being. So, I want to move like an animal.

I can't wait to see your performance.

- Break a leg!
- I will try.

With darkness, the Shishiodori gets underway.

Samurai warriors dance alongside the Shishi to rouse them.

"At a shrine known as Tenjin,"

"a festival is held and a dance called Shishiodori is performed,"

"also known as the Dance of the Deer."

"Here, a light cloud of dust rises"

"with glimpses of red visible against the green backdrop of the village."

"Men wearing masks with deer horns dance along with five or six children"

"who are dressed as warriors wielding swords."

"Legends of Tono" has a story about a goddess

who chooses to settle on Mt. Hayachine

and even gifts the mountain to her youngest daughter.

The forests at the foot of the mountain are the setting of a real-life story.

About 70 years ago,

second and third sons of poor farming families migrated here.

The place was named Taimagura, which means "a path going deep into the woods"

in the language of the indigenous Ainu.

Most settlers found life in this harsh, bitterly cold climate

unbearable and left.

Today, a few homes are scattered across the area.

We were just driving through the mountains just now,

and we've actually just driven past a little house.

Looks quite cute, so I want to see if we can go have a chat with the owners inside.

Hello.

I'm interested in this kind of lifestyle. May I ask you about your life here?

Sure. But wait a sec. I have to go get some firewood first.

Abe Chiho relocated from the Tokyo area about 30 years ago

and met her husband here.

This hut is the first the couple built together by hand.

And they use it as their studio.

My husband is a cooper.

Impressive.

Chiho's husband, Okuhata Masahiro, is from the Osaka area.

Falling in love with the locally crafted cedar tubs and barrels,

he jumped into the trade.

These are some of his works.

Rice tubs made of cedar, which locks in the moisture of steamed rice.

Did someone teach you this?

Yes. I did an apprenticeship with a master.

There's no school or textbook.

Different-sized rulers give each piece the ideal curve.

Masahiro received his tool collection from an artisan who had no successors.

He is now teaching his techniques to a young woman

who plans to make tubs for fermenting miso.

This technique has supported Japan's food culture by providing tubs for making vinegar, miso and soy sauce.

So we want to keep the craft alive even if on a small scale.

Those connections are so interesting.

Why did you choose this place?

I love hiking. I was hooked when I first came here to scale Mt. Hayachine.

I was fascinated by the abundant nature at the foothills.

Many people still lived here then.

And I really admired their lifestyle.

I realized I wanted to try living in a place like this. That's why I moved here.

I'm always attracted to homes in the mountains.

Location is important.

But equally important is having a clear vision of what kind of life you want to lead.

There's an old legend that I thought would be perfect for Taimagura.

It's an old legend of a story of how a poor family became rich.

"Once upon time, a poor man's wife went out to gather wood"

"and lost her way."

"She stumbled upon a home with a magnificent black gate,"

"but there was no one inside."

"Bowls had been set out and a kettle was over the hearth."

"It occurred to her that this might be the dwelling of a Mountain Man monster."

"Scared, she fled."

"Then one day, while she was washing things in the river,"

"a red bowl came floating down from upstream."

"She picked up the bowl, and then after that,"

"every time she used the bowl to measure grain,"

"the amount of grain never decreased."

The "Legends of Tono" concludes with the story.

"In Tono, a mysterious house in the mountains is called Mayoiga."

"Anyone who stumbles upon a Mayoiga"

"is permitted to take any of the goods or livestock in the house with them."

"The house appears in order to provide the person good fortune."

"Because the woman was not greedy and did not steal anything"

"when she first found the house,"

"the red bowl came floating down the river on its own accord."

The "Legends of Tono" tells many dark tales.

For me though, it's how they depict the very core of human nature,

telling not just the tragic things, but also the good things as well,

offering an honest look into what life used to be like.

I think Tono provides an opportunity for people to feel more grounded,

and it's easy to see why people traveled to Tono

and even migrated from other cities.

There's a common goal of passing down

rich history and culture from one generation to the next,

and I think this makes Tono special.

If I feel like I need to be more grounded in the future,

I'll definitely come back to Tono again.

To reach Tono from Tokyo,

take a Shinkansen bullet train to Shinhanamaki and transfer to a local line.

The total journey takes about four hours.