Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: Gonroku-danuki, Shushushinai no Gonroku Tanuki
Category: Marten
The Myth
Gonroku Tanuki is a shape-shifting raccoon dog from the region between Rumoi and Mashike in Hokkaido, Japan. It lives near Shushushinai, a place whose Ainu name refers to a riverbank lined with willows. One moonlit night, after eating fish at Abun Beach, Gonroku passed the home of an elderly man named Yohei and noticed that the lights were still burning. Looking inside, he saw the old man crying because the following day marked the seventh anniversary of his wife’s death, yet he lacked the money to pay for her memorial service. Moved by the man’s sorrow, Gonroku decided to help him.
The tanuki placed a Japanese knotweed leaf on his head, recited a magical spell, and transformed himself into a gold coin worth a quarter gold piece. The next morning, Yohei discovered the unexpected money and believed it had been bestowed by the gods. Delighted, he immediately travelled to Ryuenji Temple in Mashike to arrange the memorial service. There, he handed the coin to a young monk named Kirigaku, who tucked it into his pocket. Gonroku, trapped in his disguise, found himself unable to escape.
The young monk boarded a ferry across the Shinsunagawa River, carrying the disguised tanuki away from Shushushinai. Realizing that he would soon be too far from home to return, Gonroku panicked. He bit the monk’s hand and leapt from his grasp, revealing his true form. The sudden appearance of the enormous raccoon dog caused chaos aboard the ferry, and with nowhere else to flee, Gonroku plunged into the river. The current carried him out toward the sea, and he was never seen again at Abun Beach.
Sources
“Gonroku Tanuki.” 新版TYZ 妖怪図鑑 (New TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia). https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1075303214.html