Above the city of Himeji, the castle shines so white that it has long been called the White Heron. Its keep rises 46.4 meters over a complex of 83 structures, rebuilt by Ikeda Terumasa between 1601 and 1609. It survived a firebomb that failed to explode in 1945 and the Great Hanshin earthquake in 1995. Near the end of the visitors’ route sits a fenced stone well. They call it Okiku’s Well.
The legend of Banshū Sarayashiki tells of Okiku, a court lady caught in a scheme over the castle’s succession. When she refused the retainer Tetsuzan, he framed her for losing one of ten treasured plates, punished her cruelly over the well, and threw her in. Soon, the story goes, a voice rose from the depths each night, counting plates to nine, then shrieking for the tenth that was never there. No record shows Okiku was real, and one scholarly study notes the castle’s well may have no true connection to the original folklore. Yet the tale endured, through puppet theater and kabuki, through Hokusai’s prints, and into Ring, whose ghost Sadako climbs from a well of her own.
Himeji Castle is open daily, with tickets sold at the gate. Come in summer, near Obon, when spirits are said to walk. Lean over the fence and listen. If you hear counting from below, shout “Ten!”
Story Source: blog.gaijinpot.com
Address: 68 Honmachi, Himeji, Hyogo 670-0012, Japan
Accessibility Rating: Open to All — Freely accessible to the public with no advance requirement. Includes hotels, restaurants, bars, and public historic sites where visitors may walk in without prior booking.
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What Others Have Experienced
While others admired the castle’s architecture, one traveler made straight for Okiku’s Well and photographed it from every angle. The coins visitors had tossed through the grate struck them as an odd wishing-well habit for a place tied to such a dark story, and they came away calling the visit both beautiful and suitably spooky.
— from I Wrote ‘Dis
Returning to Himeji Castle after earlier trips, a folklore blogger found the grounds far busier than before. The constant shuffle of tour groups left little time to linger and take in the keep’s interior.
— from Gragma’s Yokai Tourbus
