The Legend of the Demons' Mound

from the 9/02 paper Ibaraki Report

A long time ago, villagers living in Kashima were periodically pestered and attacked by demons. These demons killed many people, burned their homes, and stole food, and many people started to leave the region. They needed to find a solution so after some deliberation, they decided the best way to get rid of the demons would be to send a group of young, strong villagers to kill them. The young men left the village and promised they would come back with the heads of the demons, but no one returned, The villagers sent more and more young villagers, but they all disappeared.

Finally the chief of the village decided to recruit a hunter to put an end to the malediction, and offered a gold reward for the one who could kill the demons. Many people accepted the mission but once again, no one returned.

One day, a tall and strong man arrived in the village and said he would deliver the village from the plague forever. He told them he would return with all the demons' heads within three days. All the villagers trusted him, and believed only he could bring back peace to the region, but was never to be seen again. Many challengers from all over Ibaraki came again to fight the demons, but all of them died or disappeared.

The chief of the village was in despair and decided to stop sending travelers or villagers to kill the demons. Things worsened over time, and demons started to appear in many other villages. More and more people were killed. Horrible stories about murdered people spread throughout the whole of Ibaraki.

Villagers went to pray to the divinities every day to make the demons disappear. At this time a God living in Ibaraki was traveling in different villages to punish men that acted badly. He arrived in Kashima and heard about the terrible situation. He told the villagers he would kill the demons with his sword, but no one really believed him as so many young and strong warriors had tried and failed. The god went to the demons' lair, and seeing that he was alone, they laughed at him and said they would keep on killing people after they killed him. However, the God was a master warrior and killed all the demons.

He buried all their bodies in a mound and celebrated a prayer for their souls. He ten built a Shinto shrine for the souls of all people who had been killed by the demons. His name was Takemikazuchinomikoto (武甕槌神). He became the guardian of the shrine, known today as the Kashima Jingu (鹿島神宮), a place where people today go to pray for strength.