The Emergence of Tsuchigumo as Yokai

From the Kamakura period onward, the Tsuchigumo appeared in texts and legends no longer as a derogatory term but as a giant spider yokai that uses deception and shape-shifting to lure human prey into its lair to eat. A work of illustrated fiction created by an unknown artist in the late 1300s known as Tsuchigumo-Zoshi (The Tale of the Dirt Spider) was the first piece to feature the Tsuchigumo as a terrifying and powerful yokai. In this tale, the warrior Minamoto no Yorimitsu, or Raiko, and his faithful retainer, Watanabe no Tsuna travel to a haunted estate where they encounter many strange creatures and a female monster spider with shape-shifting abilities. This tale falls under a larger genre of illustrated narratives created between the 1300 and 1600 hundreds known as Otogizoshi. Tsuchigumo-Zoshi embodies many themes and motifs typical of the Otogizoshi genre and has had a profound impact on various performing arts including Noh and Kabuki theater (Kimura, 25). The popularity of of Tsuchigumo-Zoshi inspired many other legends of the heroic Raiko encountering and slaying Tsuchigumo. However, when these legends are read considering the historical use of the word Tsuchigumo as a derogatory term and Minamoto no Yorimitsu as a real Japanese Warrior, we can begin to uncover the ancient human belief this monster quelling tale might have been trying to represent.

Tsuchigumo-Zoshi

Summary of Story: When Minamoto no Raiko and his faithful retainer, Watanabe no Tsuna, see a skull floating through the air they decide to follow the skull. They are then led to a strange, decaying mansion in the middle of no where. Raiko enters the house alone, and finds that the house is full of strange creatures and yokai including a two-hundred-and-ninety-year-old woman, a three-foot-tall woman with a remarkably large head, and animal-like objects. However, while in this strange house, Raiko finds a beautiful women and is instantly dazzled by her beauty. He soon realizes that she is not all she appears to be, as when he goes to approach her she throws a white ball at him. In response, Raiko pulls out his sword and tries to stab her, but she vanishes into thin air. As Tsuna meets up with Raiko, they notice a huge puddle of white blood on the floor. Following the trail of blood, they find themselves far off in the western mountains where they meet a gigantic spider nearly two-hundred-feet tall. It says, “What has happened to my body, it’s so painful” and Raiko realizes that the beautiful, mysterious women from the mansion is actually a horrific Tsuchigumo! A great battle ensues and Raiko is eventually able to decapitate the monster, effectively killing it. When they cut open its flank, numerous small spiders about the size of seven- or eight-year-old children spill out along with thousands of skulls of the Tsuchigumo's victims. The warriors dig a grave in the ground the skulls, burying the skulls and then set fire to the monster’s den (Reider, 57-58).

Relation Between "Tsuchigumo and Raiko" and "Imperial Court and Subjects"

As I mentioned before, the legends of Raiko's interactions with Tsuchigumo are extremely fascinating when you take into context the meaning behind Tsuchigumo's origin. Through Tsuchigumo-Zoshi and the other legends mentioned above, we watch the transformation of Tsuchigumo people being demonized through an ethnic slur into them actually becoming a demon spider-like creature through folktales. Although through these legends the Tsuchigumo becomes a yokai and gains super-natural abilities, the narrative of the Tsuchigumo is not very different than it is in the ancient texts such as the Kojiki and Nihonshiki. In those texts, the Tsuchigumo refuse to follow the emperor's rule and are therefore killed. In Tsuchigumo-zoshi and other legends, the Tsuchigumo refuse to live life following the rules of humans and are therefore slayed by Raiko. In all of these legends, Raiko and his retainers are greatly rewarded by the imperial court after the emperor hears of their great deeds. And like this a clear narrative is set, when you are loyal to your imperial court you will reap many benefits and live a life of comfort, but if you refuse to obey the emperor, you will suffer the consequences. As I was doing research, I found that many scholars debate the intended purpose of the Tsuchigumo. Some feel that the Tsuchigumo became detached from its origin as a derogatory term and instead became a mystical and powerful creature dissociated with indigenous people, while others feel that the transformation from a derogatory term into a yokai was one step further to warn Japanese subjects not to act like the Tsuchigumo Tribe. The legends were a type of warning, that if you disobeyed the emperor, you too could become like the Tsuchigumo.