Tradition: Japanese Mythology
Alternative Names: 野鎌, Wild Sickle
Category: Object
The Myth
Nogama is a supernatural sickle associated with Kōchi and Tokushima prefectures in Japan. It belongs to the same general category of creatures as the Kama-itachi, supernatural beings associated with sudden cutting injuries. According to regional traditions, an ordinary sickle can become a dangerous yokai under certain circumstances, transforming a familiar agricultural tool into a source of unexplained harm.
In Tokushima Prefecture, it is said that throwing a sickle into a field can cause it to transform into a wild sickle that begins cutting people. On Mount Iya, people were warned that sickles and hoes used for digging graves or performing similar burial-related work could become Nogama unless they were left in the graveyard for seven days before being taken home. A traditional chant was recited after someone had been cut by the creature: “Under the foot of the Buddha’s left temple, this is a stump of black bamboo shoots. Do not feel pain, and the black stalk will grow quickly.” The words were intended to address the injury and encourage the wound to heal.
In Kōchi Prefecture, Nogama was likewise understood as a supernatural being formed from a sickle. When someone suffered a sudden, unexplained cut while travelling through the mountains, the injury could be attributed to a wild sickle. People described such incidents with expressions meaning that a wild sickle had eaten them or cut them. The tradition reflects the fear of invisible dangers in the landscape and offers a supernatural explanation for mysterious wounds encountered in the countryside.
Sources
“Nogama.” 新版TYZ 妖怪図鑑 (New TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia). https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1010653527.html