An Ancient “Killing Stone” In Japan Said To Contain An Evil Fox Spirit Has Split In Half
A legendary stone in Japan said to contain an evil fox spirit has split in half.
A legendary stone in Japan said to contain an evil fox spirit has split in half.
According to Japanese mythology, the Sessho-seki, or “Killing Stone”, in the volcanic mountains of Nasu in Tochigi Prefecture is the transformed corpse of Tamamo-no-Mae, a beautiful woman who is actually an evil nine-tailed fox.
Tamamo-no-Mae had been plotting with an evil feudal lord to kill Emperor Toba and take his throne but was killed by a famous warrior, and her corpse became the Sessho-seki.
The stone, which contains toxic volcanic gas, is said to kill anyone who comes into contact with it.
Last week, it was found split in half, with a tweet by user @Lily0727K showing the split rock going viral.
“I came alone to Sessho-seki, where the legend of the nine-tailed fox remains,” the tweet read. “The big rock in the middle wrapped around with a rope is that… It was supposed to be, but the rock was split in half and the rope was also detached. If this is a manga, it means that the seal is broken and it’s possessed by the nine-tailed fox, and I feel like I’ve seen something that shouldn’t be seen.”
The user, Lillian, told Almost they had traveled to Nasu, with the purpose of seeing the stone and had also planned to visit the hot spring and zoo.
When they arrived to see the stone at the popular sightseeing destination, however, they struggled to find it.
“At first, I got confused since I couldn’t find the stone. It took a while until I understood that the stone was split into two. However, I still couldn’t believe it,” Lillian said.
Lillian said they shared a photo of the stone on Twitter, thinking that it would probably be mentioned in the news but had no idea it would go viral worldwide.
The tweet has since gained almost 80,000 retweets.
Local officials have confirmed that cracks had appeared in the rock over recent years and it seems to have split naturally, according to local media.
“Almost all the reactions are about the nine tail fox (Tamamo-mae). I saw lots of people saying ‘ominious’, but actually, I’m thinking quite optimistically,” Lillian said. “It is possible that I got some mysterious power from the legendary stone!”
