The hall turns colors with your wish! Feel the original landscape of Japan at "Densetsuen" in Tono, Iwate.

  • Iwate
  • Experience Gifu
Oshira-do hall covered with colorful cloths
A slightly mysterious space with countless colorful cloths hanging. This is the Oshira Hall in the "Lore Garden" in Tono City, Iwate Prefecture. It is believed that if you hang a cloth on which you have written a wish to a god called Oshira-sama, your written wish will come true. Here are some of the attractions of this area, which was the setting of one of the most famous works of Japanese folklore, "Tales of Tono.

The home of folk tales where "Tales of Tono" was born

Tono City, the hometown of folk tales where Tono Monogatari was born, is an inland city located in southeastern Iwate. Tono City is known as the setting of "Tales of Tono" written by Kunio Yanagida, the founder of Japanese folklore, and the Tales of Tono contain anecdotes and folklore that have long been handed down in this region. There are descriptions of kappa, zashiki-do (children who sit on the floor of a house), and kamikaze, and there are many spots in the city that are associated with kappa and zashiki-do. Kappa Fuchi is a representative sightseeing spot in Tono City, and as its name suggests, it is a place where legend has it that the kappas living here startled people and played tricks on them. At the Lore Park, located about a 7-minute walk from Kappa Fuchi, you can purchase a "Kappa Catching Permit" that allows you to fish for kappas, so get your permit and try to catch a kappa before anyone else does!
Densetsuen in Tono City

Oshira-do", which is colored with wishes.

The Lore Park in Tono City, Iwate Prefecture, celebrates its 40th anniversary in June 2024. It is an important facility that passes on the lives of the people of Tono to future generations. The "Oshira-do" is located within the park. In this small hall (about 6 tatami mats in size), there are enshrined 1,000 "Oshira-sama," the god of silkworms, the god of agriculture, the god of horses, and the god who is said to give us good "news. At the Lore Garden, visitors can hang colorful cloths with their wishes written on them to Oshirasama, who has long been worshipped as a god related to daily life.
Oshira-sama enshrined in the hall

Feel the original landscape of Japan at the Lore Garden

The Lore Garden, with its rows of thatched-roof houses, is a place where visitors can feel close to the original Japanese landscape. Visitors can enjoy the colorful autumn leaves from mid-October every year. In addition, if you visit the garden in the fall, you should definitely see the persimmons hanging from the eaves of the houses. Dried persimmons are made by tying persimmons to strings and drying them on the eaves of the houses, and are produced from fall to winter when the air begins to dry out. About a 20-minute drive from the Lore Garden is Choutankei, a ravine where huge granite steps have been eroded into a staircase-like formation that resembles a tatami mat.
Dried persimmons in front of the eaves

How about a storytelling experience?

The Lore Garden offers a variety of events throughout the year, but the most recommended is the experience of experiencing old tales of Oshirasama, Zashiki Warashi, Kappa, etc. told by Tono storytellers. You can enjoy the stories that may have happened in the past in the Kikuchi family's house, which is designated as a National Important Cultural Property, while sitting around the hearth. The storytelling experience introduced here costs 7,000 yen per 30-minute session, and reservations must be made at least one week in advance.
Storytelling

Step back in time to the world of Tales of Tono at the Lore Garden.

At the Lore Park, where the lives of the people of Tono are handed down to future generations, visitors can get a close look at the history and culture that have been nurtured in this area. The Kikuchi family curving house and other historical buildings in the park are the original landscape of Japan's hometown, and a relaxing time that cannot be felt anywhere else flows through the park. We invite you to come to the Tono Monogatari Lore Garden, the birthplace of Tono Monogatari, and see for yourself what used to be commonplace.
Lore En's official website

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