Tono is a city surrounded by deep mountain range, located in the southeastern part of Iwate prefecture."Mysterious beings" such as spirits and monsters appear in the book "The Legends of Tono" which is what made this land famous. It is all non-fuction, recollected from various legends and old sayings of Tono. The mysterious world of the legend still lurks in the city, even after more than 100 years.
About "The Legends of Tono"
In 1910, Kunio Yanagida, the founder of Japanese folklore, wrote down Tono's legends, religion and old sayings that he had heard from Kizen Sasaki, a native of Tono. There are various "mysterious beings" that appear such as the "Kappa," a yokai demon who lives in the river and tricks people, and "Zashiki-Warashi," a spirit that lives in people's houses and brings wealth.
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Five hundred arhats carved on stones in a dry stream
Gizan, the 19th monk of Daji-ji Temple, carved the images of 500 arhats (disciples of Buddha) on natural stones during the Tenmei era (1781-1789) as a memorial service for those who died of starvation.
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Continued stones - prehistoric megalithic ruins
A torii-like megalithic creation in the middle of a cedar forest, it is 7 meters wide, 5 meters deep, and 2 meters thick on top of two huge stones lined up side by side.
It is said that this mysterious continuation stone is not a natural one, but a tomb of ancient man.
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Unetori Shrine
The custom remains that if one can tie a red cloth to a branch of a tree on the grounds with one hand, one will be blessed with a good marriage and a man and a woman will be united.
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Kappa Fuchi - Hasuike River
In Tono, there are many folk tales about Kappa that have been passed down through the generations. Kappa Fuchi is the most famous tourist attraction in Tono as a place that symbolizes the image of these folk tales.
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Kunio Yanagita (1875-1962)
Born in Tsujikawa, Fukusaki-cho, Hyogo Prefecture in 1875, Yanagida graduated from Tokyo Imperial University, and while working in the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce, he published “Tales of Tono” in 1910, which is also called the monument of the birth of Japanese folklore. He devoted himself to the development of Japanese folklore.
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Kizen Sasaki (1886-1933)
　Born in Tsuchibuchi-machi, present-day Tono, in 1886 (Meiji 19). On November 4, 1908, while a student at Waseda University, he met Kunio Yanagida. Kizen told Kunio Yanagida about the mysterious folklore of Tono, and “Tales of Tono” was born. Thereafter, he immersed himself in collecting folklore materials and conducted research on Oshirasama and Zashikiwarashi. From the Taisho era (1912-1926) to the early Showa era (1926-1989), he wrote many collections of folktales, including “Esashi-gun Mukashi Monogatari”, “Oo-no-Yotan”, and “Kikimi-zoshi”, and was called the “Grimm of Japan” for his pioneering achievements
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Tono can be accessed by transferring between the Shinkansen and local trains.
Tohoku Shinkansen / Tokyo to Shin-Hanamaki Transfer to Kamaishi Line from Shin-Hanamaki and get off at Tono Station.
Please come visit us in Iwate and Tono!
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