Tradition / Region: Japanese Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Mountain dweller
The Myth
Shishikori is a terrifying monster said to lurk in the mountains of Japan. It has a monstrous appearance resembling other fearsome yōkai known as Otoroshi and Odoroodoro. According to an illustrated scroll depicting strange creatures, Shishikori was six shaku tall and possessed an enormous mouth measuring eleven jō across.
The creature became infamous in the village of Narabayashi in Buzen Province, where the cattle and horses belonging to local farmers began disappearing night after night. Every villager suffered losses except a man named Tōsuke. However, one night, a foul, fishy stench filled the air before the monster finally entered Tōsuke’s stable and swallowed one of his cows whole.
Terrified, Tōsuke fled and reported the incident to the village headman. The following day, the villagers organised a hunt through the surrounding mountains. Following the terrible stench, they discovered a rocky cave where the monster was hiding. Armed with bamboo spears, they attacked and killed the beast.
Afterward, an elderly villager identified the creature as a Shishikori. Its enormous mouth and habit of devouring livestock had made it a deadly threat to the surrounding countryside. The tale remembers Shishikori as a monstrous mountain-dweller whose hunger brought terror to an otherwise peaceful farming village
Sources
TYZ-Yokai Blog contributors. (n.d.). 獅子狩 (Shishikori). In TYZ-Yokai Blog, from https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1010654244.html