The Demon Shuten Dōji

As one of the most famous, influential, and widely reproduced works of medieval
Japanese fiction, The Demon Shuten D̿ji (Shuten D̿ji) tells how the great Heian-
period warrior Minamoto no Yorimitsu (948–1021), better known as Raik˷, and his
small band of samurai took on the rapacious demon Shuten D˷ji in his remote
mountain fortress. Like Minamoto no Yoshitsune (1159–1189), a hero of the Genpei
War (1180–1185), both Raik˷ and Shuten D˷ji are staple characters in medieval and
early modern Japanese fiction and drama; for example, Raik˷ and his retainer Wata-
nabe no Tsuna figure in The Tale of the Dirt Spider, and Shuten D˷ji’s human youth
and demonic transformation are the subject of The Demon of Ibuki.
Although the earliest recorded version of The Demon Shuten D̿ji is preserved
in ˔eyama ekotoba (Mount ˔e in Pictures and Words, late fourteenth century), the
early-Edo-period base text of this translation closely follows the medieval painter
Kan˷ Motonobu’s Shuten D̿ji hand scrolls (ca. 1522), which, unlike the earlier
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locates Shuten D˷ji’s cavern-palace on Mount Ibuki rather than Mount ʈe. Shuten
D˷ji’s mountain home is a magical, otherworldly domain that stands in direct contra-
position to the human emperor’s palace in the city; and like Raik˷, who commands
a small cohort of principal retainers known as the Four Heavenly Kings, Shuten D˷ji
oversees his own Four Heavenly Kings: a handful of devoted demon lieutenants
whom he dispatches to the human capital to kidnap beautiful young noblewomen
for his sensual and gustatory delight.
Like Tawara T˷da Hidesato in the final part of The Tale of Tawara T̿da, Raik˷
and his men employ strategy and deception, rather than relying on their own brute

The translation and illustrations are from the five-scroll Shuten D̿ji e picture scrolls (ca. Kan’ei period [1624–
1644]) in the Mount Ibuki textual line, in the collection of the T˷y˷ University Library, typeset and annotated
in ʈshima Tatehiko and Watari K˷ichi, eds., Muromachi monogatari s̿shi sh͓, Shinpen Nihon koten bungaku
zensh̎ 63 (Tokyo: Sh˷gakukan, 2002), 268–325.

31
 force of arms. They disguise themselves as mountain ascetics in the Shugend˷ Bud-
dhist cult, whose legendary founder is reported in early Japanese sources to have
subjugated demons, and they show that, ultimately, religious devotion may be
the greatest weapon of all. Raik˷ and his retainers are the putative heroes, but they
behave in some seemingly less-than-heroic ways, complicating readers’ sympathies
for Shuten D˷ji and the men who defeat him. They may win in the end, but as
characters they lack Shuten D˷ji’s power and charisma—his ability to capture the
medieval imagination—and it is surely no accident that their story, like the older
Tale of the Dirt Spider, came to be named after the monster they slay rather than
themselves.

Japan, the Islands of Autumn Harbors, is a divine land. In the age of human sover-
eigns following seven and five generations of heavenly and earthly deities, Prince
Sh˷toku bestowed his mercy by becoming a mother of the country, nurturing
the people so that he might introduce Buddhism to our land.1 From that time until
32 the age of Emperor Sh˷mu and the Engi lord,2 Japan thrived with the Buddhist and
Kingly Law. The righteous rule of the emperors as they conferred their merciful
compassion excelled even the ancient reigns of Tang Yao and Yu Shun.3 Thus the
winds blew gently without making the branches creak, and the rains fell softly, leaving
the clodded earth unbroken. The land was at peace, and pleasant prosperity extended
to the population at large.
In particular, despite their being in this latter age, the years leading up to the era
of Emperor Ichij˷ were ones in which the Kingly Law was all the more distinguished
and the Buddhist Law flourished again, as it had before.4 Since the realm was spared
the ravages of wind and rain, the five grains ripened in abundance, and the entire
country knew well-being. And since the realm was spared the calamity of fires, the
capital filled with houses with little space between them. It was thus that some re-
markable people, including the loyal retainers of warrior houses, nobles, and even

1. Prince Sh˷toku (Sh˷toku Taishi; 574–622) was the founder of H˷ry̎ji Temple in Nara and an early cham-
pion of Buddhism in Japan.
2. Emperor Sh˷mu (701–756) reigned from 724 to 749. The emperor of the Engi era (901–923) was Daigo
(885–930, r. 897–930).
3. Yao (traditionally ca. 2356–2255 b.c.e., r. 2333–2234 b.c.e.) and Shun (traditionally ca. 2294–2184 b.c.e.,
r. 2233–2184 b.c.e.) are two fabled emperors of ancient China renowned for their benevolent rule.
4. Emperor Ichij˷ (980–1011, r. 986–1011) is best known today for presiding over the court in which the
authors and poets Murasaki Shikibu, Sei Sh˷nagon, Izumi Shikibu, and Akazome Emon served.

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

physiognomists gifted in the arts of divination, came to be assembled in this world.
No one had ever imagined the likes of them, not in ancient or recent times. With all
under heaven enjoying wealth and success, the people would say of the days in
which they lived, “Never would I have thought that I’d see an age like this!”
Yet strange things were happening in the capital. Beautiful women were disap-
pearing at random, and in large numbers. At first, when only five or ten of them had
vanished, people thought that the women themselves must have been at fault, or
that perhaps they had run away to take Buddhist vows. Families grieved among
themselves, but it was not enough to raise a general alarm. Still, the cases continued,
and as more and more women disappeared, the realm became ridden with anxiety
and the people lamented in a way that was beyond expression. Whoever was ab-
ducting them, even if it was some demonic being—if they could only find that out,
then they might make sense of it as a kind of Buddhist lesson! But without that
knowledge, the people could only grieve and wonder what to do. Thus, as the situa-
tion surpassed the powers of the ruling authority and the strength of the warrior
houses, there was nothing to be done.
Now there was a man known as the Ikeda Middle Counselor Kunikata.5 He was
beloved by the emperor, and being fabulously wealthy, everything went as he wished.
He had a single daughter who was beautiful of face and form, and since she had such 33
a marvelously excellent disposition, he doted on her with the utmost care, as if there
were no one like her in all the world. However, one night she disappeared in the mid-
night hour. Her parents and nursemaid were extraordinarily grieved. They turned
their faces to the heavens and lay on the ground, writhing and pining, but it was all
for naught. Due to the intensity of their anguish, perhaps, they visited celebrated
temples and shrines, made a variety of vows, and demonstrated their devotion in
disparate ways as they supplicated in sorrow. It is the nature of people high and low
to fret for a child, and even for those with five or ten children, the heartache can be
severe. So how much worse it must have been for Kunikata and his wife to have lost
their one and only daughter! Their distress was beyond reason.
At that time, there was a master diviner by the name of Seimei.6 He could show
auspicious signs as if he were pointing at his own palms, and when he divined with

5. The woodblock-printed Shuten D̿ji (ca. 1716–1729) published by Shibukawa Seiemon identifies him as
Kunitaka, rather than Kunikata. See ʈshima Tatehiko, ed., Otogiz̿shi sh͓, Nihon koten bungaku zensh̎
36 (Tokyo: Sh˷gakukan, 1974), 444; and, for a translation of Shibukawa’s edition, R. Keller Kimbrough,
trans., The Demon Shuten D̿ji, in Traditional Japanese Literature: An Anthology, Beginnings to 1600, ed. Haruo
Shirane (New York: Columbia University Press, 2007), 1123–38.
6. Abe no Seimei (921–1005) was a yin-yang master who became legendary for his feats of wizardry. He
appears as a character in numerous tales and is cited, in this volume, in The Tale of the Mouse and Lady
Tamamo.

The Demon Shuten Dōji

 divination cards, he was never mistaken. Regarding evil spirits and malevolent be-
ings, he was not even slightly wrong.
Lord Kunikata summoned him and said, “I was born into affluence, I have known
a surfeit of glory, and I have attained rank and position as I saw fit. I have never
lacked for anything I desired. But even so, I have an only child who means more to
me than myself and all my precious treasure, and though I wanted to shield her from
every hardship—even the gusting wind—she has been missing like this, vanished
into darkness, since the night of the first of this month. It’s terribly mysterious. Re-
cently many women have been disappearing from the capital, and when I think that
the same thing may have happened to my own daughter, it leaves me sad beyond
words. If you can, please divine for us, summon her with your cards, and let us see
her one more time! If you do, I’ll be happy to give you endless treasure in reward.
First, let me give you something to use for the ritual.” With that, Lord Kunikata pre-
sented Seimei with an assortment of precious gifts.
Seimei divined for seven days and seven nights, whereupon he presented his
findings to Lord Kunikata. Seimei’s letter read: “There is a rocky cavern at a place
called Hundred Mile Peak at Ibuki to the north of the capital.7 It is a demon’s lair.
That demon is the one who took your daughter. She is still alive. I inscribed the
34 monster with my divination cards, so she has escaped being killed in his evil cavern.
She will have the joy of seeing her parents again.”
Being a great favorite of the emperor, Lord Kunikata would bring all manner of
things to his attention. He therefore took Seimei’s divination letter and presented it
to His Majesty. The nobles held a meeting, and they received reports from various
houses. One minister spoke, saying, “I have heard that this kind of thing happened
in the past. Many people were abducted in the age of Emperor Saga,8 causing un-
speakable lamentation in the land. At that time, the emperor commanded K̎kai to
enact a curse,9 and it was thanks to that, perhaps, that people stopped disappearing.
There is no monk in the land today who is capable of invoking such a spell. Upon
careful consideration, it seems to me that we might start by having Raik˷ launch an
attack.10 Why? Because Raik˷ is a descendant of Emperor Seiwa and the chief of the
warrior clans. He’s stronger than everyone, and no one is as brave. Not even Fan
Kuai could have compared.11 Raik˷’s eyes flash with a fearsome light, he commands

7. Mount Ibuki, the central peak of the Ibuki Mountains, stands at the border of present-day Shiga and Gifu
prefectures. According to Shibukawa’s Shuten D̿ji and other sources, Shuten D˷ji’s palace was on Mount
ʈe in Tanba Province rather than on Mount Ibuki in ʈmi.
8. Emperor Saga (786–842) reigned from 809 to 823.
9. K̎kai (K˷b˷ Daishi; 774–835) was the founder of the Shingon school of Japanese esoteric Buddhism.
10. Raik˷ is the sinified reading of the personal name of Minamoto no Yorimitsu (948–1021).
11. Fan Kuai ( J. Hankai) was a celebrated Chinese warrior of the third and second centuries b.c.e.

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

miraculous powers, and he can see the good and bad in himself and others as clearly
as his own hands. That’s why even the gods protect him. Evil beings probably fear
him, too. If he is awarded an imperial edict, he’s sure to destroy any enemy he faces.
He’s a warrior for the ages.” All the other nobles agreed, and they summoned Raik˷
to the palace.
Wearing only light armor over a hitatare of red-backed brocade and attended by
his Four Heavenly Kings—Tsuna, Kintoki, Sadamitsu, and Suetake—Raik˷ made
his way to the Southern Hall.12 Lord Kunikata bore the emperor’s instructions, and
descending the stairs to the courtyard, he announced: “It is a certain fact that count-
less times in this present reign, Our subjects have been called upon by their Sover-
eign to subdue the enemies of the court, enact Our glory throughout the realm, and
extend Our authority to all places near and far. This time, We call upon you for the
sake of the warrior houses, the state, and the people. As the Master of all the land
and the four seas, We are the mother and father of the masses. We therefore feel
compassion for the realm and bestow Our mercy on it. As We were wondering what
to do, these things occurred in this present age, and We have become concerned for
the lamentations of the people. There is a demon at a place called Hundred Mile
Peak at Ibuki, and he is Our bitter enemy. He has abducted any number of Our
citizens! Therefore, being a matter of critical importance to the realm, and that 35
demon being an unparalleled enemy of the people, you shall make haste to that
place, destroy the evil fiend, quell the outrage in Our state, and safeguard the people
in their grief. For Us, your deed shall be an act of unrivalled loyalty, and for you, it
shall be a credit to your name. Now go, without delay, and slay the demon!”
Without probing into the particulars of the matter, Raik˷ gave his humble assent
and withdrew. He immediately returned to his lodgings, where he discussed the sit-
uation with his Four Heavenly Kings. “Giving it some thought,” Raik˷ said, “it seems
to me that we can’t succeed by ordinary human power. We should entreat the
buddhas and deities for their aid. Since it will be for the state and ourselves, why
wouldn’t they deign to help?”
The men agreed to offer prayers to their individual clan deities. Raik˷ made a
pilgrimage to Yawata Shrine,13 where he ensconced himself for three days and three
nights. He received a miraculous dream, and he sponsored services in thanks. Then
he went back home. Tsuna and Kintoki visited Sumiyoshi Shrine, and Sadamitsu

12. The Southern Hall is another name for the Shishinden Ceremonial Hall in the Imperial Palace in Kyoto.
The Four Heavenly Kings were Raik˷’s four most trusted retainers: Watanabe no Tsuna, Sakata Kintoki,
Usui Sadamitsu, and Urabe Suetake.
13. Yawata Shrine is another name for Iwashimizu Hachiman Shrine on Mount Otoko near Kyoto.

The Demon Shuten Dōji

36

and Suetake traveled to the mountains of Kumano,14 where they pressed their heads
to the ground in reverent supplication and sponsored prayer rites.
Later, Raik˷ addressed his men, saying, “I have an idea. It won’t do for us to enter
in large numbers, so I should take you four alone. We ought to have H˷sh˷ join us,
too.”15 Each of the six warriors prepared for the journey and donned a wooden
pack. In his own pannier, Raik˷ had placed a scarlet-laced corselet along with a hel-
met known as the Lion Lord. He also carried a pair of swords called the Cloud Cut-
ters, as well as a two-foot, one-inch sword named Blood Sucker. H˷sh˷ had packed a
purple-laced corselet and a short halberd called Stone Cutter. The halberd was a lit-
tle more than two feet long, with a shaft finely wrapped in horsetail hair and cut off at
a length of three fists. Tsuna had packed a corselet with yellow-green lacings, and a
two-foot-plus striking sword named Demon Slasher. Each of the others packed their
own accoutrements as they saw fit. In addition, the men cut lengths of bamboo into

14. Sumiyoshi Shrine is in present-day Osaka. The Kumano mountains are the site of the Kumano triple shrine
complex on the Kii Peninsula.
15. H˷sh˷ is the sinified reading of the personal name of Fujiwara no Yasumasa (958–1036).

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

 37
Raikō receives an imperial command to slay the demon Shuten Dōji. (From Shuten Dōji e, courtesy of
the Tōyō University Library)

what are known as “decanter tubes,” filled them with saké, and strapped them to
their packs.
Setting out from the capital, Raik˷ and his companions traveled through ʈmi
Province. When they came to Ibuki, they sought out the great mountain, asking every-
one they met how to get to Hundred Mile Peak. However, the people only answered
that they did not know. Crossing an endless succession of ridges and plains, the men
fell into a daze, unsure of what to do. With their eyes and hearts wavering, suffering in
body and mind and broken to the marrow, and with vast distances spreading out
before and behind them, they greeted the night in mountains and fields as they made
their way forward. They came to a broad moat, and when they approached it for a
look, they saw a country dwelling. There were three men standing there, two of whom
were over the age of fifty and one of whom was a yamabushi mountain ascetic.
“Those fellows look like the demon’s retainers,” Tsuna said. “Let’s grab them and
make them talk.”
“No, we mustn’t do that,” Raik˷ replied. “It won’t help us if we set them on
their guard. First, we should draw them to us, make their acquaintance, put them

The Demon Shuten Dōji

 in a good mood, and then ask them about the fortress and what to expect as
we go.”
Raik˷ and his companions approached the three men and spoke: “We are as-
cetics on a journey through the provinces, but we have lost our way and come
here. What is this place called? And can you please tell us how to get to a major
road?”
“Oh, how dreadful!” the three men exclaimed. “What kind of people are you to
visit such a remote place? This is the famous Hundred Mile Peak, the site of the de-
mon’s stony cavern. Ordinary people never come this way. Look over there—that
mountain across the moat is the peak. It’s a hard place even for birds to fly. The
demon’s den is on the other side. Since it’s so near, the monster’s retainers are always
coming out to cavort. You should go back! And don’t be thinking that we’re that
demon’s attendants—someone dear to us, too, was abducted, and we’re here to seek
revenge. But we can’t do it by our powers alone, so we’ve spent months and years by
the mountain. Don’t be reserved with us! Looking at you all, we can see that you’re
not average men. Come in here! We’d like to have a word.” With that, they invited
Raik˷ and his companions inside.
As the three men drew their guests closer, they all relaxed and began to converse.
38 “We would like to offer each of you a drink,” Raik˷ said, taking out a decanter tube
of saké. Seeking to ingratiate himself with his hosts, he offered one to the apparent
leader of the group, an old man sitting in the seat of honor.
The old man set down the cup and spoke: “Now that I’ve had a better look at you
all, I can see that you’ve invoked great long-standing vows. Don’t hold back—tell us
everything! We’ll do our best to help. What’s more, we know all about the demon’s
lair, and we’ll give you the details. Even if you were to attack him with a thousand or
ten thousand riders, it wouldn’t be enough. But with the aid of the gods and a clever
plan, you’ll see him destroyed.”
Because the old man spoke with such obvious sympathy, Raik˷ and his men took
his penetrating perception and candid compassion to be nothing short of miracu-
lous. Suspecting that their hosts were mountain gods or their own clan deities come
to lend them their strength, they placed their trust in them and spoke freely of what
they intended. The three men likewise showed extraordinary consideration. Raik˷
was deeply moved, and he said, “Well, then, I shall be pleased to join you, too.”
The old man sitting in the seat of honor spoke: “Those monsters love saké,
and they don’t realize that drinking it ruins them. It loosens them up and makes
them talk.” He brought out some wine and poured it into the men’s empty decanter
tube. “You should make them drink as much of this as you can. But you must be
extremely careful not to take the slightest sip yourselves. It’s poison.” Next, the old

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

man took out a cap-helmet and offered it to Raik˷.16 “You should wear this under
your cloth cap. The demon has supernatural sight, and when he stares at people,
he can see what’s in their minds. But if you wear this helmet—even just this—he
shouldn’t be able to see your thoughts. He makes various vows, uses different tricks,
and puts people to the test, so if you are going to beat him, you can’t be afraid.” The
old man told them all about these and other things that were likely to happen.
“Well, then, let’s be off!” the three men exclaimed. Raik˷ and his companions
stood up and set out with their hosts leading the way. They were nine in all. They
approached the moat and saw that it was big, broad, and too deep to see the bottom.
“This will be difficult for you to cross,” the three hosts said, whereupon they leaped
over the chasm, picked up an enormous fallen log, and placed it over the moat as a
bridge. “Quickly, cross this,” they said, and the six men did.
Looking up at Hundred Mile Peak, they saw huge rugged rocks trailing clouds in
the sky. There were chilly crags blue with lichen, and there was no path. As the men
were wondering what to do, their three hosts stepped onto the sheer stone slope,
leading the way. They put handholds and footholds into the rock, and when the way
became too steep, they pulled the men up by hand. Thus by various and sundry
means, the men scrambled up cliffy formations that even birds were hard put to
ascend. 39
The group came to the mouth of a rocky cave. The three guides acted unlike any
mortal men, and since they behaved in the manner of demons or gods, Raik˷ and
his companions felt all the more encouraged. When they stepped inside the cavern,
they could not see a path anywhere. The place was frightening beyond expression.
As the men were wondering what would become of them now, their three hosts
stepped forward to lead the way. They continued on, but there was still no trail. It
dawned on the men that things could hardly have been worse for even Holy Teacher
Yixing when he bore the punishment of exile and headed down the Dark Tunnel
Road.17
After they had walked for what seemed like about a mile, they came upon a path
in the cave. A single valley stream was flowing there. The three guides spoke: “You
should follow this creek upstream. We will join you again inside the fortress, where
we will be pleased to lend you our strength. We are true manifestations of the Hachi-
man, Sumiyoshi, and Kumano deities.” And with that, they vanished without a trace.

16. A cap-helmet (b̿shi kabuto) is a simple round helmet without a visor or a decorative crest.
17. According to The Tale of the Heike (thirteenth century), Yixing was an eighth-century Chinese monk who
was made to walk to the land of Kara on the Anketsu (Dark Tunnel) Road. See Helen Craig McCullough,
trans., The Tale of the Heike (Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 1988), 61–62.

The Demon Shuten Dōji

 Raikō and his men encounter a young woman washing a blood-stained robe. (From Shuten Dōji e,
courtesy of the Tōyō University Library)

40

Raik˷ and his men took heart, and with their newfound strength, their fighting
spirits soared. They proceeded upstream until they found an eighteen- or nineteen-
year-old girl. She was exceptionally beautiful, and she was washing something at
the side of the creek. “Who are you?” the men asked as they approached. The young
lady did not say a word; she only cried. After a while, she stifled her tears and said,
“Oh, how dreadful! What kind of people are you to visit this place? No one normal
ever comes here.”
The young lady seemed to be so frightened that the men imagined her to be one
of the demon’s retainers, changed into human form in order to deceive them. All of
them were agitated at the thought. Tsuna stepped forward and spoke: “Who are
you? And what is this place called? Tell us the truth. If you don’t, we’ll kill you on
the spot.”
“I am from the capital,” the young lady explained through her tears. “I was taken
in the spring of last year. The demon should have devoured me already, but for some
strange reason my life lingers on. There have been more than thirty other women
kidnapped from the capital. My dear friend, the daughter of Lord Kunikata, has
been here, too, since the first of this month. The demon keeps us captive like this;
loves us as he will; and then, when he grows tired of us, puts us in a place called the

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

‘people pen,’ where he squeezes us for our blood. He calls it saké and drinks it.
When he has killed us, he cuts away our flesh for food. Two or three years ago, he
abducted the daughter of a certain Minister of Central Affairs from around Eighth
Avenue, and he just squeezed her for her blood today. When she stopped breathing,
he used some medicine to keep her alive. Since it was my turn to be on duty today,
he sent me here to wash her robes. When I think that the same thing is probably
going to happen to me sometime, I don’t feel like I can take it anymore!” The young
lady writhed on the ground in tears, and the men felt very sorry for her.
“You say you’re from the capital,” Raik˷ inquired, “so who exactly are you?”
“I am the daughter of Hanazono from near the Great Middle Gate.18 There are
other ladies here like me with whom I am close. We catch one another’s eyes, but
everything’s so frightening that we don’t put it into words or show it on our faces.
Nobody speaks. If we’re ever overcome with sorrow and weep, the demon glowers at
us with his huge eyes. It’s a shock, and it puts a chill in our bones. If we could just
die, then we wouldn’t have to suffer those awful stares! But our fleeting lives go on,
and they’re indescribably horrid and sad. If it’s possible for you men to return to the
capital, then please take a message for me. Tell my mother and father that I miss
them so much, I don’t know what to do!” And again, she was convulsed with grief.
“Oh, you poor girl!” Raik˷ exclaimed. “Who do you think we are? We’ve come 41
here under imperial command. Tell us everything you know about the demon’s
dwelling and the inside of his fortress. If you do, we’ll destroy him, wreck his strong-
hold, and escort you and the other ladies back to the capital.”
Raik˷ spoke with such confidence that the woman was overjoyed. Letting down
her guard, she said, “At the head of this stream, there is a stone wall with a large gate
defended on the inside and out by twenty or thirty terrible guards. Behind that is an
elevated foundation of layered rocks on which there is an encircling stone wall with
an iron gate. Inside, the four sides and four corners are planted to show each of the
four seasons. The spring is set with willows. If you open the east–west doors, you
can hear birds chirping freely in their branches. The willow fronds appear to flutter
and pull in subtle ways while a gentle breeze wafts among the flowers, spreading
what seems to be the scent of plum blossoms planted near the eaves. On the sum-
mer side, a pond has been dug and filled with water. It is stocked with fish, and birds
are made to float on its surface. It is called the Cool Chalice. If you open the door on
the south side, there are jeweled pillars inlaid with silver and gold, and you can see
the cool pond in the garden. The shadows of the pillars fall at the water’s edge,

18. The Great Middle Gate (Naka no Mikado, also Taikenmon) was a central gate on the eastern side of the
greater palace compound.

The Demon Shuten Dōji

 looking like water birds and floating logs. The autumn side is planted with myriad
trees sporting autumn leaves. It is called the Spread of Broken Branches. If you open
the door to the west, there is a bamboo grove fine enough to commune with Meng
Zong.19 In the clear light of an ample moon, you can find yourself pining for some-
one there. At the cries of the insects, we shed tears of longing for the capital, and
they vie with the dew on the grasses in drenching our sleeves.
“There is a place called the Chamber of Wives, and that’s where the demon has
the women who live here take turns caressing and massaging him through the night
in groups of more than ten while he rests with nothing on his mind. He has his retain-
ers dance and play throughout the day and night, and they look after him with the
utmost care. They feast on a cornucopia of delicacies of the land and sea, such that
even the pleasures of the heavens could not compare.
“The demon has four retainers named Gog˷, Kiri˷, Ah˷, and Rasetsu, and they
are called his Four Heavenly Kings. Fleet of foot and deft of hand, they dash across
oceans and rivers and smash boulders and stones. He also has two youths named
Kanakuma D˷ji and Ishikuma D˷ji.20 They’re a pair of monsters with tremendous
strength. The two of them stick close to their master, and whatever happens, they’re
the ones who serve him. At night, they keep a stern lookout over the entrance to
42 the chamber. They may be demons, but to human eyes they look pale and plump, like
magnificent, handsome, overgrown adolescents. Their master is named Shuten D˷ji.
He is immensely powerful and majestic.
“What with those gates and stone and iron walls and ramparts, and in the midst
of all those retainers, I don’t know how you’ll ever break in! Moreover, the demon
has posted guards everywhere. So how could you possibly slay him? It’s hard to
imagine, even for the fiercest sort of demon-god. And for you all to have thought to
do this as a group of only six . . . how strange! Still, since you’re here under imperial
command, Hachiman and the Sun Goddess Amaterasu may indeed protect you,
and if they do, then why wouldn’t the emperor’s edict have its effect? For one, you
have your luck as warriors, and if the buddhas’ and gods’ vows to help sentient beings
are true, then there’s no reason why they wouldn’t grant you their protection. In that
case, how could you have any problem breaking into the fortress and killing Shuten
D˷ji? It’s really quite hopeful . . .” The woman told them everything she knew as she

19. Meng Zong was one of the so-called Twenty-Four Exemplars of Filial Piety. He is known for having dug
up bamboo shoots, which sprouted in the winter snow as a result of his tears, for his old and ailing
mother.
20. “Youth” (d̿ji) is a term for a child or a sacred being with cropped and unbound hair in the manner
of that of a boy before his coming-of-age ceremony, but it was also frequently used in the medieval period
to signify demons (oni) with similar hairstyles.

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

led them along the path, through a succession of gates, and up to the demon’s stony
lair. Then, she went on her way.
The men followed the creek upstream until they came to a great roofed wall.
There was an iron gate, to the front of which, on either side, stood some strange, mis-
shapen beings. When the men took them to be demons, they looked like people, and
when they took them to be people, they looked like demons. Some horrifying ones
with big eyes and long noses caught sight of the men, whereupon they all rushed out
and surrounded them, apparently intending to devour them where they stood. The
men’s courage fled. Their valiant hearts were turned upside down, and in any event,
there was nothing they could do. But then one of the monsters addressed his
fellows, saying, “Take it easy, you lot! To have such rare and wondrous visitors . . . we
can’t just finish them off on our own! We have to tell the master first and see what
he decides. It wouldn’t be right for us to dispose of them here.” With these words,
the demons settled down.
When the demons told Shuten D˷ji the news, he was overjoyed. “How marvel-
ous!” he exclaimed. “Just the other day, I was thinking about how we keep only
women around here for our wine and food. It’s a comfort, but it’s not so special
anymore. Men, on the other hand, have strong bones, firm flesh, and some interesting
bits. These ones must have been terrified by your appearance, in which case they’ll 43
be wasting away, their meat thinning and their blood drying up. Do whatever you
can to fool them and win their favor. And if they come from the capital, ask them how
things are there, and find out if they know of any beautiful women. But first, bring them
inside. Then from tomorrow you should put them in the people pen one at a time,
fix them up nicely, and serve them to me.”
Having received their instructions, the demons ran back outside the gate. Al-
though they had previously scrambled over one another to seize the men, they now
seemed to treat them with humble deference and good will. It was wholly unex-
pected. The men entered through the gate, whereupon the demons installed them in
what seemed to be a guardhouse.
“I think I’ll meet with them, too,” Shuten D˷ji announced, heading outside. “I
can fool them while I see what kind of men they are and ask about the capital. Of
course, if they shrink and tremble in fear of my authority, I’ll truss them all up
and put them in the people pen, one by one. In any case, I’m going to meet with
them now.”
Shuten D˷ji stepped outside with more than ten retainers who looked like fore-
runners assigned to clear the way. They were unlike any normal attendants, having
long noses and three eyes each. In fact, they were freakishly frightening sorts of crea-
tures. The men were waiting deferentially in a courtyard when they felt a shaking

The Demon Shuten Dōji

44

from deep inside the fortress, and a strong, warm wind begin to blow. It made their
hair stand on end and their blood run cold.
After a while, Shuten D˷ji emerged like the sun. Staring at his shining, sparkling
figure, the men took him to be around ten feet tall. He was pale, portly, and hand-
some, and he wore his hair loose and bobbed in the manner of a child. He seemed to
be about forty years old, and he sported a woven small-sleeved robe with a red
hakama trouser-skirt, the trailing ends of which he tread on as he stepped. Leaning
on the shoulders of his two youths, he surveyed his surroundings like a stag on a
stroll, occasionally shading his eyes with an open hand at his brow. His power, pres-
ence, and sweeping magnificence as he swaggered out before the men exceeded ev-
erything they had heard. He was terrifying beyond description. Nevertheless, the
six men did not appear agitated in the least.

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

 45

Raikō and his men join Shuten Dōji for a bite to eat. (From Shuten Dōji e, courtesy of the Tōyō University
Library)

Shuten D˷ji sat down on his knees, facing sideways, about six feet from his
guests. He smiled. He and the men caught one another’s eyes as they sat, wonder-
ing what to do. “Well,” Shuten D˷ji said, “what business brings you here? These
mountains are deep and craggy, and I don’t see how you could have lost your way
on the road when there isn’t even a road.” He glanced all around, periodically shad-
ing his eyes with a hand, frightening beyond words. After a while, he turned to his
attendants and said, “Anyhow, these are some rare itinerant priests, so bring them
a drink!”
Having received their charge, Shuten D˷ji’s retainers put some saké in a large ves-
sel and brought it into the room. Looking at the so-called drink, the men saw that it
was human blood and that it had stained the vessel black. Shuten D˷ji took a sip
first and then set the bowl before Raik˷. This is the origin of what is known as

The Demon Shuten Dōji

 “demon-sipping.”21 Raik˷ immediately picked up the bowl and drank, no less eagerly
than his host. Next, the bowl was placed before H˷sh˷, who also drank. After that, it
was Tsuna’s turn. Without the slightest trepidation, they all received the brimming,
sloshing bowl and drank.
“Do we have any special nibbles?” Shuten D˷ji cried. Taking this as his cue, Kiri˷
produced a pale, beautiful, bloody thigh—freshly cut, it seemed—and set it out
with a bit of salt. “Prepare that and serve it to the men,” Shuten D˷ji said, where-
upon Raik˷ stepped over, unsheathed the dagger at his waist, and casually shaved a
strip of flesh from the limb. He added salt and ate it. “A rare treat!” he exclaimed.
“How excellent!” Tsuna ate some, too, every bit the equal of his master. The other
men did not partake, claiming to be yamabushi mountain ascetics who were main-
taining vows of monastic purity.
Shuten D˷ji was so surprised by Raik˷ and Tsuna’s behavior that he stared at
them and said, “You gentlemen certainly enjoy our kind of saké! You’re no ordinary
fellows. Please accept our hospitality.” In order to plumb the men’s hearts, he enter-
tained them in the most extraordinary ways. But neither Raik˷ nor his men were
carried away with drink, and undaunted by the demon’s power, they showed not the
slightest sign of fear. For this reason, Shuten D˷ji began to look annoyed.
46 “In order to honor the mendicant monks we meet,” Raik˷ said, “it’s our practice
to carry what we call ‘decanter tubes.’ So what could be the harm? We’d like to offer
you a drink.” Shuten D˷ji was pleased. “I was just wishing for some saké from the
capital,” he said, cracking a smile, “so how nice of you to offer!”
Raik˷ took out the saké and let him drink. Tsuna poured. After imbibing two or
three times, Shuten D˷ji was in high spirits. Tsuna therefore added more of the poi-
soned wine to the vessel, and he pressed it on him so congenially that the demon
drank and drank, indulging a full ten times. In an excess of glee, perhaps, Shuten
D˷ji said, “There are some women I adore above all the others. I’ll call them here for
a taste of your saké from the capital.” With that, he summoned the daughters of Lord
Kunikata and Hanazono and had them sit to his left and right.
Now the saké that he was drinking was poison. As Shuten D˷ji became increas-
ingly drunk, his mind reeled and he became befuddled. He put down the wine bowl
and spoke: “I am truly glad that you all have made your way here. I’d like to put you
up and entertain you.” He paused. “Who do you think I am? I’ve lived in this place
since long ago. I have my retainers bring me fine ladies from the capital for my plea-
sure, and I have them fetch me all manner of precious things. I drink, eat, and enjoy
myself beyond words. There’s absolutely nothing that I lack! That said, there was

21. Demon-sipping (oni-nomi) is the practice of taste-testing saké and other beverages for poison.

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

once an imbecile by the name of K̎kai who put a curse on me, driving me out of
this place to wander. I was always looking over my shoulder in the directions of
ʈmine and Katsuragi,22 constantly wondering how I might survive. But that scoun-
drel sealed himself up in a place called K˷ya,23 and since then there haven’t been any
villains like him around, which is why I’ve been living here now for more than a
hundred years.
“I don’t want for anything at all. In my splendor, I summon delightful people from
the capital to indulge my fleshly pleasures. And when I’m bored, I have whatever I
want—anything ever seen or known to man—brought to me for my diversion. These
ladies, too, have recently joined me from the capital. I have lots of women here, but
these are my favorites, and we’re sure to be pledging our troth until the end of time.
“Looking forward, there’s nothing that worries me at all. However, in the capital,
there’s a rat by the name of Raik˷. Whether in the past or the present, there’s never
been a warrior like him. He’s righteously inclined, and he protects the realm. He’s
stronger than other men, and his eyes flash with light. He’s never failed to destroy an
enemy of the court who’s dared to take him on. Lately my retainers have been talking
about him a lot, and it’s a sure thing, I suppose, that he’ll be causing us some trouble.
Still, we’ve been taking powerful precautions, and since I have my minions keep a
strict guard, he won’t be able to break into this fortress, no matter what kind of evil 47
demon-god he might be. Look around, you men! The fortifications of this place—”
Shuten D˷ji stopped, and then he spoke: “When I take a good look at you all,
you look like that Raik˷ and his men. Oh, how dreadful!” Raik˷ was wearing the
cap-helmet, and so although Shuten D˷ji tried to peer into his mind, his vision was
obscured. “So this is why the old man gave it to me,” Raik˷ thought to himself.
“Well,” Raik˷ said, “what kind of man is that Raik˷? This is the first I’ve ever
heard of him. I haven’t got wind of anyone like that, but the capital’s a big place, so
perhaps it’s true. We are yamabushi mountain ascetics from Haguro in the province
of Dewa, and we passed the New Year at Kumano. We visited the capital for our first
time, and we were heading home now, but we lost our way and ended up here.” He
spoke with an earnest tone.
“It may be true that I’m addled by the saké,” Shuten D˷ji replied, “and that I got
carried away in the moment. But I have penetrating sight, and when I look at some-
one, I’m not the least bit mistaken. You’ve got a light in your eyes, and I can see that

22. Mount ʈmine and Mount Katsuragi in Nara Prefecture are important sites in the Shugend˷ cult
of Buddhist mountain asceticism.
23. Mount K˷ya is the site of Kong˷buji Temple, headquarters of K̎kai’s Shingon school of esoteric Bud-
dhism. In 835, K̎kai is said to have entered a state of prolonged meditation on Mount K˷ya that will con-
tinue until the advent of Miroku (Skt. Maitreya), the Future Buddha.

The Demon Shuten Dōji

 each of you is hiding something. Even your traveling companions look like what I
hear are Raik˷’s Four Heavenly Kings. Especially that one there,” he said, pointing at
Tsuna, “—the ferocity of his countenance is extraordinary.”
The six men maintained their composure. “It’s probably true,” Shuten D˷ji con-
tinued, his senses scattered by the wine. “But why should those men come here? Just
drink more saké! We’ll have a good time.” And saying such things, he doted on his
guests as he did before. He had been suspicious like that, probing the men’s inten-
tions, because he had remembered how K̎kai had once punished him so severely. It
had occurred to him that some such swine might have come here now, which is why
he said what he did.
Because of his intemperance, perhaps, Shuten D˷ji lost all sense of shame, and he
let slip some secrets. He revealed his heart so plainly that the men knew just what
they faced. “Let’s have a piece of entertainment,” he cried, “for these marvelous men
from the capital!” Gog˷ leaped up and sang:

miyakobito Oh capital men—

ikanaru ashi no on what sorts of feet
mayoi nite do you wander lost,
48 sake ya sakana no to become our
ejiki to wa naru chow of nibbles and drink?

He danced to this verse two or three times. With the word “chow,” he meant that he
would turn the men into tidbits and wine. Listening to Gog˷’s song, the men were
amused.
“That’s just what a nasty lout would say,” Tsuna thought. “Shuten D˷ji’s raving
drunk, and now he seems to be out of his mind. If that’s how it’s going to be, I’ll stab
him through the middle, and when he shrinks and cowers, I’ll chase him down and
cut off his head. If I do, none of the other brutes will give us any trouble. I’ll settle
this here in the reception hall.” Tsuna ground his teeth in fury; his cheeks tightened,
and his eyes filled with blood. When Raik˷ saw Tsuna’s veins bulge, and when he
saw him place his hand on his two-foot, one-inch striking sword, he understood. He
shot him a calming glare, and Tsuna relaxed.
Kintoki was famous in the capital for his dancing, and grasping the situation, he
pushed himself forward and said, “Why shouldn’t we provide you with a bit of en-
tertainment, too?” He jumped up beside where Shuten D˷ji sat and began to dance:

toshi wo furu Spring has come

oni no iwaya ni to the old demon’s

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

 haru no kite stony lair.
kaze ya yo no ma ni The wind, it seems, shall
fukiharau ran sweep it clean in the night.

He danced to this verse two or three times, moving in ways that were beyond the mind
to conceive or words to express. Shuten D˷ji listened intently, but perhaps because he
was so inebriated, he did not pay any mind to the song. He simply watched with plea-
sure, entranced by Kintoki’s steps and the lovely sound of his voice.
Shuten D˷ji’s Four Heavenly Kings on the wide veranda, and even his retainers
sitting in the courtyard below, all got the gist of Kintoki’s verse. They even muttered
among themselves about the look of determination in Tsuna’s eyes. However, not
wishing to oppose their master, they pretended not to notice. “Take good care of our
guests,” Shuten D˷ji instructed. “I am extremely drunk from your saké. In return, I’ll
leave these two women with you. Ladies, pour the men some wine and treat them
well.” He withdrew inside.
Now Gog˷, Kiri˷, and Shuten D˷ji’s other Four Heavenly Kings, as well as Shuten
D˷ji’s closer retainers, showed no signs of warming toward the men. But not wish-
ing to act against their master’s directions, some of them brought out saké and side
dishes, and they entertained the men in assorted ways. It was a moment that would 49
seal their fate. Taking all of Shuten D˷ji’s lackeys to be scoundrels, Raik˷ and his
men produced the poisoned wine from before and variously pressed them to drink.
And how could even a single drop fail to lay them low? Thus, although they intended
to drink only once, the demons never left their seats—they were soon rolling on the
floor in a drunken daze. Others cradled their heads in their arms and fled, until in
the end the only ones who remained behind resembled the dead. Whatever might
happen, they did not look like they would get up again.
By and by, the women spoke: “The Horie Minister of Central Affairs was awash
with riches; he didn’t want for anything at all. He had a beloved daughter, and he
took a son-in-law. Three years later, she was carried off to this rocky cavern. It’s
been another three years since then. She stopped breathing when the demons
squeezed her for her blood, but they used some medicine to bring her back to life.
That was two or three days ago, and they served her leg and arm for today’s nib-
bles. Among all the women here, it was her turn this time. How sad to become a
side dish!”
Raik˷ beckoned the two women and questioned them carefully about the series
of fortress doors and the layout of the lair. “The demon-retainers were saying that
Shuten D˷ji let down his guard,” the women explained, “and that he revealed things
he should have kept secret. They said, ‘He told you things he shouldn’t have, and it’s

The Demon Shuten Dōji

 no small matter. He lost himself in that saké, which is sure to bring us grief, too.
Once the night’s grown late, those men are certain to be passed out drunk. We’ll
sneak up and slaughter them, one after another. If we don’t, they’ll be too much for
us to handle, which would be awful.’ Then they were whispering various things
about what might happen to them in the end. Oh, please be careful!”
“What could they possibly do?” the men replied. “Even if it’s true that Shuten
D˷ji is a formidable foe, the rest of them don’t amount to much.” The men asked
the two women who they were, and if they had been in this terrifying place for
long.
“I am the daughter of the Ikeda Middle Counselor Kunikata,” one of the women
said. “Because I am an only child, my parents loved me especially dearly. I had never
been away from my mother. For whatever blessed reason, she raised me with the
utmost care. But then late one night, I heard a voice saying that she was calling, and
thinking it was my nursemaid speaking, I went right out. Someone grabbed me
on the way. ‘Who are you?’ I demanded, but there was no one to stop him. I was
brought here in the night. Since we’re so close to the capital, I can’t imagine that my
family would have given up the search, but it’s been thirty days already. When I
think about how much my mother, father, and nursemaid must be mourning and
50 grieving, I don’t feel like I can stand it. There’s nothing more hateful than being a
woman! If I were a man, I’d find some way to escape, and then why shouldn’t I be
able to return to the capital? I’ve seen terrible things these days—things I’d never
seen before—and without a guardian or a nursemaid to comfort me. How my mother
and father must miss me! The demons are fast asleep tonight, so if you can, please
take us back to the capital!” She fell to the floor in a spasm of despair.
“We’ve come on the emperor’s orders,” Raik˷ explained. “We didn’t have any
particular plan, but we were able to get inside and meet with Shuten D˷ji. We got his
retainers drunk, just as we had hoped. Please hold on until later in the night. Once
we get through the run of fortress doors and into his den, we should be able to cut
him down, whatever kind of demon-god he might be.” He spoke with such reassur-
ing indifference that the two women exchanged joyful glances. “Then you really are
Raik˷, aren’t you?” they said. “What heartening news! In that case, please be on
your way. We’ll lead you to his lair.”
The night deepened, and all the demons were sunken in their cups, dead to the
world. Now that everything was quiet, each of the six men clad themselves as they
saw fit. Raik˷ wore a scarlet-laced corselet and the cap-helmet that the old man had
given him; he fastened the cords of his five-plated helmet, the Lion Lord, on top of
that, and he carried the two-foot, eight-inch sword known as Blood Sucker. H˷sh˷
wore a purple-laced corselet, and he armed himself with a striking sword by the

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

name of Stone Cutter.24 Each of the others donned their own particular armor,
whereupon the two ladies led them through the series of fortress doors.
The stone walls and iron gates were usually closed up tight, but because Shuten
D˷ji’s retainers had passed out drunk on the evening wine, not a single passage was
secure. Even Shuten D˷ji’s most vigilant retainers had been overcome by the poi-
soned saké, and they seemed to be utterly unable to rise. Thus, with no one to chal-
lenge them, the men passed through a number of stout doorways. Climbing to the
top of a stone bridge, they saw a gated iron enclosure. But the portal was open, and
the men proceeded inside. There they saw a massive iron cell, the great doors of
which were sealed shut from the inside with wooden stoppers and a crossbar. To all
appearances, not even the most powerful demon-god could break his way in.
Peering into the cell, the men could see lamps burning brightly at the four sides
of the room. There was a large battle-ax by Shuten D˷ji’s pillow, placed there, it
seemed, in case of attack. At his feet were a studded iron club and a row of huge
halberds. Gazing at Shuten D˷ji where he lay, the men saw that he was completely
changed from the day before—a demon now from head to toe. His hair was like a
tangle of gooseberry bushes, and his eyelashes bristled like lines of needles. He also
sprouted hair from his arms and legs, like a bear. Before, he had looked to be about
ten feet tall, but now he appeared to be more than twenty. He was lying face-up with 51
his arms and legs stretched out in the four directions while more than ten ladies
stroked and caressed him. Snoring peacefully on his high pillow, he seemed utterly
unaware of his surroundings.
Spying the men outside, the ladies in the cell were overjoyed. They wished to
open the doors at once, but because they were cast of iron, to do so would have been
beyond the strength of even a hundred men. For women, it was impossible. The
ladies simply clamored for help, utterly dejected.
The doors were shut fast, and having no way to get inside, the six men wracked their
brains wondering what to do. Suddenly, they saw their three guides from before: the
old men and the yamabushi. Handing the men four lengths of iron chain, the guides
said, “Wrap these tightly around Shuten D˷ji’s arms and legs and attach them to the
pillars at the four sides of the room. Five of you should set on him from the left and
right, whereupon Raik˷ should cut off his head.” The three men then stepped forward
and opened the iron doors, and they did it with such force that the crossbar broke and
the wooden stoppers shattered. “Now go inside,” they said. “You’ll fail if you don’t pull
yourselves together and give it all you’ve got.” With that, they vanished into the air.

24. Previously, Stone Cutter was described as a short halberd rather than a striking sword. Likewise,
Blood Sucker was said to be only two feet, one inch long.

The Demon Shuten Dōji

Having reverted to his demonic form, Shuten Dōji
receives a massage in his private chamber. (From
Shuten Dōji e, courtesy of the Tōyō University
Library)

Raikō and his men attack Shuten Dōji as he sleeps.

(From Shuten Dōji e, courtesy of the Tōyō
University Library)
 The men were elated, and rushing in together, they bound Shuten D˷ji’s arms
and legs with the chains. But the monster only slept on like he was dead. Taking
heart, Tsuna and Kintoki leaped on him while Raik˷, approaching from behind,
struck at his neck with Blood Sucker. Shuten D˷ji neither woke at the first strike nor
flinched at the second. But then shouting, “There, I knew it!” he sat up with a start. The
men continued hacking, and with his third strike, Raik˷ lopped off his head. The body
tried to rise, snapping two of the iron fetters. The fortress was a strong one, but
it shook to its foundations as if it were going to collapse. The gods themselves had
provided those chains, but Shuten D˷ji easily pulled them apart. Wondering in dread
at the extent of his power, the five men cut his struggling carcass into shreds.
Shuten D˷ji’s arms and legs were chopped into pieces, but his head rose up in the
air and vomited poison on the men below. As the head ran out of bile, it seemed to
have exhausted its strength. After a while, it came down on Raik˷’s helmet, biting
hard. Without his inner helmet-cap, Raik˷ might have lost his life. The head bit
through the Lion Lord and clenched so tightly that it left teeth marks in the cap. The
deity had told Raik˷ that he would probably not survive if he failed to wear it, and
now, at last, Raik˷ understood. Truly, it was an excellent prediction.
Having taken Shuten D˷ji’s head, the men set out to slay his demon-retainers.
54 Tsuna picked up the battle-ax that Shuten D˷ji had kept at the ready and stepped
outside. The demons around the great courtyard wielded studded clubs and striking
swords, and raising a mighty cry, they attacked. Raik˷ and H˷sh˷ watched from a
high place, leaving the fighting to Raik˷’s Four Heavenly Kings.
Tsuna held his ground, standing and battling at the base of the stone bridge. He
had the strength of thirty men, and sparks flew as he fought. His opponent, Gog˷,
was fast, deft, and strong. Leaping and hopping in and out, he fought such that nei-
ther he nor Tsuna could immediately win. Tsuna kept a close eye on him and then
seized him with all his might. The two grappled and rolled. Then something must
have happened, because Tsuna found himself pinned. Just as he was about to meet
his end, Sadamitsu rushed over and hewed off Gog˷’s head.
Suetake swung a club, and lightning flashed as he fought. Kiri˷ was a skilled
fighter of tremendous strength, but as Suetake rained a torrent of blows on his
head, leaving him no chance to breathe, something must have happened, for
Suetake knocked him down on his back. Without allowing him a moment to
regroup, he pinned him to the ground and cut off his head. Two remaining mon-
sters stormed toward the men, and eventually spying Raik˷ and H˷sh˷, they flew at
them headlong. They seemed to be more than the six men could handle. But be-
cause things could not go on in this way, the men encircled them and attacked, and
without giving them time to find their footing, they struck them down.

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

 “These brutes are stronger than I thought!” Raik˷ exclaimed. “If things go on like
this, my Four Heavenly Kings are sure to be killed.” He ran into the great courtyard
and looked around. All the creatures who had seemed so ferocious the evening be-
fore were passed out drunk. He therefore went around stabbing and slashing them
as he saw fit, and because none of them arose, he slaughtered them all.
Now the demons who had been outside the great gate had not drunk the saké,
and upon hearing the commotion, more than twenty of them came rushing in. They
were strange, misshapen beings, and their shrieking cries as they charged were
like the simultaneous peal of a hundred thousand bolts of thunder. The Four Heav-
enly Kings burst into their midst, slashing all around in spider-leg, ribbon-knot, and
criss-cross patterns. Raik˷ and H˷sh˷, too, battled with reckless disregard for their
own lives. Shouting at the monsters to stand and fight, the six men cornered the re-
maining fiends and put them to the sword. Thus in no time at all, the demons were
destroyed.
The men thought that they should spend the day searching Shuten D˷ji’s abode,
and when they did, they found thirty female captives. Upon realizing that Shuten
D˷ji was slain and that his retainers were defeated, the women had been frightened
witless that the mountain and the cavern would collapse. But when they caught
sight of the men, they felt like sinners in hell who encounter the bodhisattva Jiz˷: 55
joyful beyond compare.25 Even in their jubilation, they were utterly choked with
tears. With these women showing the way, the men opened up the second and third
floors and looked around. The rooms in which the demon had stayed were inlaid
with gold and silver and adorned with a webbing of precious stones. The men beheld
a profusion of jewels and treasure, and then, in an instant, it disappeared. The views
of the four seasons and the magnificent ornamentation of the four sides were like-
wise reduced to a useless stack of boulders.
Looking around a broad open space in the cavern, the men found thousands
upon thousands of human skeletons, some old and some new. There were people
pickled in vinegar, and others drying in the sun. There were also the dismembered
heads, arms, and legs of beautiful ladies. Taking in the sight, the men pitied Shuten
D˷ji’s captives even more than they had before.
“This here is the daughter of the Horie Minister of Central Affairs,” the women
explained. “Over the last two or three days, the demons squeezed her for her blood.
She was still just breathing, but then they served her as yesterday’s snack, and this is
what happened.”

25. The bodhisattva Jiz˷ (Ch. Dizang) is widely revered for rescuing sentient beings who have fallen into hell.
See, in this volume, The Tale of the Fuji Cave.

The Demon Shuten Dōji

 “How awful!” everyone exclaimed. “Out of all the people here, it was her turn to
be butchered. If she had survived, why couldn’t she have returned to the capital and
seen her mother and father? But it’s hard to escape your karma.”
“The retainers also had dwellings,” Raik˷ said. “Please help us to search those, too.”
“Certainly,” the women replied.
As they examined various rocky dens, one after another, they came upon the two
youths Kanakuma D˷ji and Ishikuma D˷ji, each of whom was a match for a thousand.
They were fleet-footed fiends, skilled with arms and enormously strong. Having been
forced to drink the poisoned wine, they had vomited bile and passed out in their lair,
just like they were dead. When they awoke and heard what was going on, they cried
out in chagrin that they had seen it coming. They donned their armor and barricaded
themselves inside their hollow. Now, upon seeing that Tsuna and Kintoki would force
their way in, they stayed put and fought off the intruders six or seven times.
“Pretend to retreat,” Raik˷ commanded. “Draw them out and then surround them
and strike!” When the men fell back, the demons dashed outside to press their ad-
vantage. Choosing to rely on their strength, they threw away their armor and rushed
at the men with open arms. Tsuna and the other Four Heavenly Kings grappled with
them, held them down, and managed to take them alive. Because the demons were so
56 strong, the men bound them with seven ropes, forcing them to their knees.
Although it goes without saying for Shuten D˷ji, his retainers, too, possessed super-
natural powers, allowing them to run on broad oceans and rivers and to pulverize solid
boulders. They were accomplished with weapons and fast on their feet. Nevertheless,
they were defeated by the might of martial strategy, which was amazing indeed!
Because Shuten D˷ji had the all-powerful virtue and authority of a demon-god,
he had turned great boulders and the grottoes here and there into tall, stately halls,
just as he saw fit. The beautiful views of the four seasons were also visible from his
home. But after he was destroyed, his palace, stately halls, and gardens of the four
seasons all disappeared, becoming the caverns they had been before. Moreover, his
demon-retainers lost their extraordinary powers. They could neither rise into the
sky nor fly like birds, and each and every one of them was pitifully slaughtered. It
was hard to imagine that a mere six men, even with the superhuman powers of the
most ferocious demon-gods, could so easily subdue them. That they promptly
quelled such wicked fiends was a rare and marvelous thing, and it was sure to become
a fine story for future generations.
Shuten D˷ji’s lair was destroyed, and after demolishing all of the demon-retainers’
quarters and executing some of the captives, the Four Heavenly Kings set out
from the mountains bearing Shuten D˷ji’s head and the heads of his principal

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

lieutenants. Each of the more than thirty ladies seemed to be happier than the rest,
and they all departed together with the men. Still, they grieved the death of the Ho-
rie Minister’s daughter, and cutting off a bit of her sidelocks, they carried it with
them to present to her parents. Upon descending Hundred Mile Peak, the women
felt as if they had entered another world.
There was talk in the capital that Raik˷ and H˷sh˷ would be arriving with the
demon’s head, and all those who heard the news, not to mention the men’s own
retainers, came out to greet them. In addition to the major territorial lords, ten thou-
sand riders were reported to have gathered for the warriors’ entrance to the capital.
It was not the first time, but on this occasion everyone from the emperor to all his
many subjects praised the men not only for securing the safety of the realm, putting
an end to the people’s sorrow, and easing their sovereign’s fury, but also for accom-
plishing an incomparable feat of martial valor.
When the men entered the city, the streets from the Fourth Avenue riverbed
to the grand Third Avenue thoroughfare were thronged with palanquins, carriages,
and thousands of spectators of all social stations. “No one ever achieved anything
like this in ancient times,” the people said, “nor will they in ages to come.”
Word spread that the daughter of the Ikeda Middle Counselor Kunikata had re-
turned, and Kunikata and his wife and the girl’s nursemaid were overjoyed. The 57
people who went out to receive her spruced themselves up and waited. It was also
rumored that among the more than thirty rescued women, the daughter of the
Horie Minister, too, had returned. The people from her household asked after her
until one of the ladies told them that she had died. They went home in tears, their
grief now a deeper hue than it had been before.
The Horie Minister of Central Affairs summoned one of the women who had
been close to his daughter, and he questioned her about what had happened. She
told him in detail, recounting everything that had occurred from beginning to end,
after which she took out his daughter’s talisman and sidelocks and offered them to
him.26 “Although we had lost her,” the minister said, taking in the sight, “we always
hoped that she might yet come home. But now . . . these keepsakes won’t do us any
good! The year may end and the days may pass, but how will I ever see her again ex-
cept in a dream?” He twisted and writhed in anguish. Later, he is said to have built a
buddha hall at Suzaku,27 to have constructed bridges, and to have engaged solely in
the performance of various Buddhist practices.

26. The type of talisman (mamori) that the young woman carried is unclear.
27. Suzaku is in the central part of Kyoto, south of Fifth Avenue and west of Nishi Honganji Temple.

The Demon Shuten Dōji

 Previously, when Raik˷ received the imperial edict, he visited his clan deity at
58 Hachiman Shrine and prayed for assistance. Other people, too, said, “Except for the
protection of the gods, there was nothing he could really count on, and it was because
he prayed to them that he’ll leave a great name for future ages. It was an extraordinary
thing.” Furthermore, in regard to Seimei and the accuracy of his divination, every-
one from the emperor on high to the myriad people below happily praised him as a
most rare and remarkable physiognomist, whether in their own or ancient times.
One person said, “Emperor Ichij˷ is a manifestation of Miroku, and Raik˷ is an
incarnation of Bishamon.28 The emperor appeared in order to spread the dharma
and to save sentient beings. Raik˷ came to defend against the bitter foes of Bud-
dhism and to protect the state; he is the chief of the warrior clans. He is here, mar-
velously, wholly for the deliverance of the multitude of living beings in accord with
his great merciful vow. Shuten D˷ji was the Evil King of the Sixth Heaven. Scorning
the majestic laws of sagacious sovereigns, he became an enemy of Buddhism and
obtained the life span of a demon-god. All these things are explained in the holy
teachings.”
Indeed, even in ancient ages, the likes of these men’s deeds were largely unknown.
The men were an ally of the nobility, and among warriors they were supreme. Their

28. The bodhisattva Miroku is prophesied to appear in this world as the next human buddha after Shaky-
amuni. The heavenly king Bishamon (also Bishamonten, Skt. Vai˿rava଴a) is a Buddhist guardian deity.

MONSTERS, WARRIORS, AND JOURNEYS TO OTHER WORLDS

Raikō and his men return to the capital with Shuten Dōji’s head. (From Shuten Dōji e, courtesy of the
Tōyō University Library)

martial feats were outstanding. Along with the diviner Seimei, they were the most
extraordinary heroes. For this reason, the state has prospered, city and country 59
flourishing without calamities of wind and rain and without fear of conflagration.
Because these men so clearly displayed the virtue and authority of mantra kings,29 it
stands to reason that the people would maintain among themselves that they were
manifestations of bodhisattvas.
Now in all the past, the life span of demon-gods has not been fixed. Yet in these
times in which the buddhas bestow their blessings, the reduction of the human life
span has occurred faster than the turn of a heel!30

T R A N S L AT I O N A N D I N T R O D U C T I O N B Y K E L L E R K I M B R O U G H

29. Mantra kings (my̿̿) are emanations of buddhas and bodhisattvas in particularly fearsome forms,
taken on in order to subdue and save sentient beings who are especially resistant to Buddhism.
30. According to traditional Buddhist calculations, the human life span fluctuates between ten and
eighty thousand years in an endless cycle repeated every twenty kalpas. First, in the course of ten “decreas-
ing kalpas” (geng̿), the human life span decreases by one year every hundred years until it has fallen from
eighty thousand to ten years. Then, over ten “increasing kalpas” (z̿g̿), it increases by one year every
hundred years until it has again reached eighty thousand. See Sawai Taiz˷’s explanation in Ibuki D̿ji, in
Muromachi monogatari sh͓ j̿, ed. Ichiko Teiji et al., Shin Nihon koten bungaku taikei 54 (Tokyo: Iwanami
Shoten, 1989), 203n.12. A kalpa is a measurement of time that Nʴgʴrjuna (ca. 150–250) described in Daichi-
doron (Commentary on the Great Wisdom Sutra) as being greater than the time that it takes for a heavenly
being to wear away a forty-ri (hundred-square-mile) rock by brushing it with a delicate sleeve once every
hundred years.

The Demon Shuten Dōji