Superstitions and concerns are on the rise in Japan after a volcanic rock steeped in demonic folklore erupted.
Snopes confirmed that located in the city of Nasu, about 190 kilometers north of Tokyo, the "Killing Stone" is a famous rock that was broken into two pieces on Saturday. This sparked a wave of fear and anxiety among locals and online, as the stone was believed to contain an evil spirit. The split is believed to have happened within the last month.
According to 12th-century legends, the Killing Stone contains the spirit of an evil nine-tailed fox named Tammo-no-mae. She allegedly took the form of a prostitute and conspired to kill Emperor Toba, who ruled from 1107 to 1123, but was foiled and killed by the famous warrior Miura-Nosuke.
After his defeat, his soul was either trapped in the Killing Stone or became part of the volcanic stone itself, depending on legend, which says it kills anyone who touches it. The stone is now broken, leading some to believe that the spirit is free to wreak havoc once again.
九尾の狐の伝説が残る、殺生石にひとりでやってきました。
— Lillian (@Lily0727K) March 5, 2022
縄でぐるっと巻かれた真ん中の大きな岩がそれ…
のはずなのですが、なんと岩は真っ二つに割れて、縄も外れていました。
漫画だったらまさに封印が解かれて九尾の狐に取り憑かれるパターンで、見てはいけないものを見てしまった気がします。 pic.twitter.com/wwkb0lGOM9
The fractured rock, also known as Seisho-seki, caused panic among visitors over the weekend. A Twitter user known only as "Lillian" shared his story on Saturday.
"I came alone to Seshoiseki, where the legend of the nine-tailed fox remains," wrote the user. "There's a big rock in the middle that's wrapped with a rope... It's supposed to be there, but the rock split in half and the rope split too... I feel like I've done something like this." Have seen what should be seen." cannot be seen."
Other versions of the legend paint a much less gruesome picture of the Killing Stone. According to one, as highlighted in a report in The Guardian, the stone is said to have been destroyed centuries ago and spread throughout Japan, in which a Buddhist monk performed an exorcism on the evil spirit within. did.