Okiku
Banchō Sarayashiki (番町皿屋敷), or The Dish Mansion at Banchō remains one of the best known Japanese ghost stories (or kaidan) even to this day. The story is also known to most as Okiku and the Nine Plates. There are several versions to the story, but the plot and the core themes remain the same. The origins of the story are unknown, but the earliest it appeared in was in a Japanese theatre in 1741. Since then, the story has been adapted into a kabuki play, bunraku and numerous other forms of entertainment.
Traditional Version
Okiku was a beautiful servant under the samurai Aoyama Tessan. Aoyama was smitten with her beauty and wanted Okiku to be his lover, but Okiku refused his advances towards her. So Aoyama, decided to trick Okiku into being his lover by making her believe that she lost one of his family's ten precious decorated plates. When she went to count the plates, Okiku only counted nine. In a frenzy she counted and recounted them over and over many times, but she could never find the tenth plate. For she knew that if she didn't find the tenth plate she faced a cruel fate, shame and death. Finally She went to Aoyama in guilty tears. The samurai offered to overlook Okiku's carelessness if she would become his lover. Facing certain death, she still refused him. Enraged, Aoyama threw Okiku down a nearby well where she fell to her death. Okiku became an onryō who tormented Aoyama by counting the nine plates and then giving a terrible shriek when she came to the tenth plate.
Alternatively, in other stories, Okiku could not move on to the otherside before finding the tenth plate. Her spirit would count the nine plates and scream in terrible agony when she could not find the tenth plate. Some versions of the story end with an excorcist shouting "ten" at the end of her count at which Okiku's spirit finally finds peace.
Bunraku Version
Katsumoto, lord of Himeji Castle has fallen gravely ill and will soon die. The heir presumptive, Tomonosuke, plans to give the Shogun a set of ten very fine plates to ensure his succession after he dies. Tomonosuke’s chief retainer, Taketsune is engaged to marry Okiku, a lady in waiting. Katsumoto's chief retainer, Tetsuzan however, plots to take the lordship for himself by forcing Okiku to help him murder Tomonosuke. Tetsuzan has a minion of his steal one of the plates and then orders Okiku to bring the box containing the ten plates to his chamber. When Okiku arrives, he attempts to seduce her but she refuses his advances because she loves Taketsune. He then tells Okiku to count the plates. She does and only finds nine of them. He accuses her of theft and offers to overlook the matter if she will become his mistress. When Okiku still refuses, he orders her to be beaten with a bokken. Tetsuzan then has her suspended over a well where he finds great pleasure in lowering her into it and then raising her and beating her relentlessly. Finally, he demands Okiku become his mistress and assist him in murdering Tomonosuke. She still refuses him. Tetsuzan then strikes Okiku a fatal blow with his sword sending her corpse into the well. As he cleans his sword, the sound of her voice can be heard from inside the well, counting the plates. The play ends with Tetsuzan looking contemptuously as Okiku’s spirit rises from the well.
Kabuki Version
Harima, a vassal of the Shogun falls in love with a beautiful servant girl named Okiku. Harima is engaged to marry Okiku when a marriage proposal is received from his aunt. Harima tells Okiku he will refuse the proposal and marry her instead. Okiku doesn’t believe him and decides to test his love. She smashes one of his family’s ten treasured plates, the consequences of which would normally be a death sentence. Harima pardons Okiku believing that she broke the plate on accident. When she reveals she did it to test his love, he becomes enraged and kills her on the spot and throws her body down a well. After that, Okiku’s spirit enters Harima’s house and counts the plates up to nine. When Harima encounters her spirit in his garden, he realizes she is not an onryō. He takes courage from this, regretting what he did, he commits seppuku to join her in death.
Misc.
-Sadako from the Ringu series dies in a similar manner to that of Okiku.
-The Japanese named a worm-like insect found in the old wells of Japan after Okiku. They believed the insect was the reincarnated spirit of Okiku. They named it Okiku mushi (Okiku bug).
-Okiko-Ido (Okiku's Well) is a popular tourist attraction at Himeji Castle.
Japanese Culture
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| Religion |
| Buddhism - Shinto |
| Japanese Ghosts/Creatures |
| Funayūrei - Goryō - Hitodama - Ikiryō - Onryō - Ubume - Yōkai - Yūrei |
| Specific Japanese Ghosts/Creatures |
| Oiwa - Okiku - Yuki-onna |
| Terms |
| Dosojin - Grave Mound - Hannya Mask - Higanbana - Jizo - Kaidan - Miko - Mukoyōshi - Sanzu River - Shimenawa - Toro-Nagashi - Wara Ningyo |
| Locations |
| Northeastern Japan - Shizuoka - Sugisawa Village - Tono |
| Media and Entertainment |
| Kagome, Kagome - Ringu |