Terrifying and Bizarre Stories from Old Edo （New release in August 2025 / 2025年8月新刊）
――From the Secret Records of Magistrate Yasumori Negishi:
The "Mimibukuro" Chronicles (English Ukiyo-e version)
Author: Midori Nishida
English Translator: Team Hokusai ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・
■Bookstore edition: None / 書店販売書籍：なし
■eBook: ¥1,800 (excl. tax) / 電子書籍: \1,800 (消費税別)
Published August 6, 2025 → Purchase on Amazon here / 2025年8月6日発行 →アマゾンでの購入はこちら
■POD (Print-on-Demand) edition: ¥1,800 (incl. tax / B5-variant size,
138 pages / ISBN 978-4-910056-71-5) / POD書籍: \1,800 (税込/B5変形判138頁）
First edition published August 6, 2025 → Purchase on Amazon here / 2025年8月6日初版発行 →アマゾンでの購入はこちら
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◎ About this book
This book, known as "Mimibukuro," is a collection of stories
heard by Edo period magistrate Negishi Yasumori (1737-1815).
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This book, known as "Mimibukuro," is a collection of stories heard by Edo period magistrate Negishi Yasumori (1737-1815). The author, who was a magistrate at the time, served as the Sado magistrate from March 1784 to July 1787. This collection of nearly 1,000 stories, spanning 10 volumes, is a highly confidential collection of stories. The author, who held the important position of magistrate at the time, collected the facts, even though they were heard from the public, and recorded them as accurately as possible, along with proper names of places and people, without any forced interpretations.
[About the Editor and Translator]
Midori Nishida
Midori Nishida is an editor and author holding a Ph.D. in literature. She received the prestigious Ruikotsu Prize from Chūgai Nippō for her work Makoto and the Savior: Kume Kunitake’s Comparative Cultural Theory. After teaching at Shibaura Institute of Technology, Gakushuin University, Taisho University, and other institutions, she is now active as a freelance scholar and writer.
Her major publications include Writing with Structure and Logical Writing Techniques, as well as edited and translated volumes such as Ikai Kenbunroku 6: A Modern Retelling of Hirata Atsutane’s “The Rebirth of Katsugorō” and Discovering the Self Through Narratives: Participatory Research in High School with Dr. Shinichiro Kumagaya of the University of Tokyo (all from Chigensha). She is also the author of Extraordinary Experiences with Sai Baba and The Miracles of Amma, the Hugging Saint (Tokuma Shoten), and Journeys with Shamans (Hikaruland), among many others.
●Contents
Prologue: What Mimibukuro Is — The Curious Chronicles of Magistrate Negishi
Part I: Tales of the Mysterious and the Auspicious
Chapter 1: Talismans, Deities, and Gifts of Fortune
Chapter 2: The Courtesan’s Marriage
Chapter 3: Saving a Life, Changing One’s Fate
Chapter 4: Was It the Cat’s Doing?
Chapter 5: Even Plants May Possess Intent
Chapter 6: Passages to the Otherworld
Chapter 7: Signs of Prophecy
Chapter 8: Curious Tales Beyond Classification
Chapter 9: The Eccentric Art of Longevity
Part II: What the Dead Have to Say
Chapter 10: "I Had to Thank You"—A Posthumous Visit of Gratitude
Chapter 11: When the Dead Refuse to Move On—"I Can’t Leave Yet"
Chapter 12: A Vengeful Spirit Appears — “I Curse You”
Chapter 13: A Visit from the Dead — "Well, I Guess We Just Ran Into Each Other"
Chapter 14: The Dead Who Came Back to Life
Chapter 15: Facing Down the Fox Spirit with Fierce Resolve
Afterword by the Editor and Translator
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Prologue: What Mimibukuro Is — The Curious Chronicles of Magistrate Negishi
Part I: Tales of the Mysterious and the Auspicious
Chapter 1: Talismans, Deities, and Gifts of Fortune
Prologue
The Phallic Talisman That Brought Prosperity
A Statue Unearthed, a Mind Unmoored
The Talisman That Found Its Way Home
A Hidden Fortune Beneath the Floorboards: How an Antique Trunk Transformed a Family’s Fate
“Why Is This Man So Unusually Fortunate?”
A Prayer to the Goddess of Enoshima—and an Unlikely Rise to Power
A Prayer to Daikokuten: How a Destitute Couple Found Fortune Beneath Their Floorboards
Chapter 2: The Courtesan’s Marriage
Prologue
The Honest Courtesan Called "Kekoro"
A Courtesan on the River: How a Boat-Dwelling Woman Earned a Husband and a New Life
Chapter 3: Saving a Life, Changing One’s Fate
Prologue
The Fortune-Teller Who Predicted Death
A Sword, a Murder, and a Samurai’s Fatal Reckoning
“Why Would Someone Help Us?” — A Brush with Invisible Kindness
The Bookseller and the Bride Rumored to Be a Rokurokubi
Chapter 4: Was It the Cat’s Doing?
A Calico Cat’s Final Act of Devotion
A Woman Who Loved Cats Too Much—and Became One
"How Regrettable": The Talking Cat That Spoke in a Samurai Household
Chapter 5: Even Plants May Possess Intent
Prologue
A Pine Tree Refuses to Move: A Story of Botanical Resistance and Modern Insight
Chapter 6: Passages to the Otherworld
Prologue
The Talking Box of Shugendo: A Curious Artifact of the Sacred Path
A Promise Kept Beyond Death: The Child Who Returned, Just as She Said She Would
The Grandson Who Moved to the Realm of the Tengu
The Mountain That Calls Lost Children Home
Chapter 7: Signs of Prophecy
Prologue
The Fire That Came as Foretold by a Humble Servant
The Girl Who Read Omens: “The Guardian Spirits Send Warnings Through Objects”
Prophecy in a Pulse: The Village Saved by a Doctor’s Warning
The Five-Needle Healer: A Quirky Acupuncturist’s Prediction Comes True
Chapter 8: Curious Tales Beyond Classification
Prologue
A Pickled Kappa and the Limits of What We Know
When a Woman Became a Man—and Other Transformations
The Stone That Rang Out in the Garden
The Stone That Drew Water—and Housed a Dragon
When a Dream Becomes a Wound: A Wife's Bruise Spans the Distance
Boiling Water and Unshaken Faith: A Magistrate Witnesses the Power of Shinto
A Leek, a Powder, and a Breath Restored: The Curious Case of a Man Revived from Drowning
Chapter 9: The Eccentric Art of Longevity
Prologue
Never Eat Until You’re Full
The Unusual Longevity of Eccentrics: When Long Life Favors the Odd
Part II: What the Dead Have to Say
Chapter 10: "I Had to Thank You"—A Posthumous Visit of Gratitude
Prologue
A Ghostly Gratitude: The Spirit Who Returned Simply to Say "Thank You"
“You’ve Grown So Much”: A Mother’s Spirit Returns for a Final Visit
“Please Tell Him I Was Grateful”: A Ghost’s Message from Beyond the Grave
Chapter 11: When the Dead Refuse to Move On—"I Can’t Leave Yet"
Prologue
Haunted by Her Own Love Letters
“Is My Two-Year-Old Being Cared For?”: A Mother’s Ghost Returns in Worry
A Ghost’s Last Request: The Woman Left Behind in a Runaway Love
Chapter 12: A Vengeful Spirit Appears — “I Curse You”
“I Was Cast Into a Ravine”: A Murdered Wife Returns to Reveal the Truth
A Mistress’s Final Plea: Asking the Wife for Memorial Rites
Shattered by Jealousy: The Wife Who Destroyed Her Predecessor’s Spirit
Blood on Her Hands: A Vengeful Spirit Haunts a Faded Teahouse
Chapter 13: A Visit from the Dead — "Well, I Guess We Just Ran Into Each Other"
“I Just Wanted to See You, Uncle”: A Boy’s Spirit Stops By to Say Goodbye
A Familiar Face on the Bridge: A Boy Servant Seen After Death
A Visit to the Lord of Death: A Final Glimpse of a Dying Man
Ghost or Delusion? A Widow’s Apparition and the Mind’s Unquiet
Chapter 14: The Dead Who Came Back to Life
“I’ll Send You Back”: A Monk in Red and a Return from the Dead
“I Didn’t Know Where to Go, So I Called Out to a Passing Monk…”
“I Woke Up Inside a Coffin—It Was Completely Dark…”
He Came Back to Life in the Coffin — Thanks to a Child’s Plea
Born from the Dead: A Monk's Prophecy and a Child's Miraculous Birth
A Man Who Couldn’t Die—No Matter How Hard He Tried
A Woman Awaits Death—Then Recovers, to Her Great Inconvenience
Chapter 15: Facing Down the Fox Spirit with Fierce Resolve
Prologue
The Best Way to Handle a Monster Is to Stand Your Ground
A Widow Returns, but Not as She Was: The Fox Spirit That Drained a Samurai’s Soul
A Ghost’s Sobering Request: When a Wife’s Spirit Enlisted a Fox Spirit to End Her Husband’s Drinking Habit
Afterword by the Editor and Translator
Prologue: What Mimibukuro Is — The Curious Chronicles of Magistrate Negishi
“Mimibukuro”—literally, “Ear Bag”—is a remarkable anthology compiled by Yasumori Negishi (1737–1815), a high-ranking magistrate during Japan’s Edo period. The work gathers “stories heard firsthand,” chronicling curious events and instructive anecdotes told by visitors, acquaintances, and passersby. In this volume, we refer to the collection as Mimibukuro (pronounced “Mimibukuro”), reflecting its modernized interpretation and commentary.
What ties the accounts together is the author's unwavering claim: every story is true. These are not fables or tall tales, but reports, or articles, as we call them, of real events. Negishi began collecting these while serving as magistrate on Sado Island from 1784 to 1787—a position with ample free time, it seems. The afterword reveals his guiding intent:“This book compiles the strange and useful stories I collected while stationed at the Sado office.”“Strange,” in this context, refers to the uncanny or inexplicable. The “useful” ones are tales of fortune, redemption, and moral insight—prescriptions for good luck and transformation.
Upon returning to Edo and taking up the post of chief accountant (kanjō bugyō), Negishi found himself too busy to continue regularly. Still, he persisted, completing ten volumes—each comprising roughly one hundred entries—over the span of nearly thirty years. The final entry dates to June 1814, just a year before his death. In total, he recorded 983 stories.
After writing the third volume, Negishi shared a few chapters with close associates, igniting widespread fascination. Even Hayashi Jussai, a prominent Confucian scholar of the era, asked to borrow it. However, Negishi was reluctant to lend out the manuscript. He feared unauthorized publication—a valid concern, as pirated copies had begun to circulate. Despite his reservations, he occasionally made exceptions for those to whom he owed a personal debt. But the borrowing term was strictly five days. Desperate readers reportedly copied the manuscript by hand, forgoing sleep and meals to finish in time—an extraordinary feat in a pre-photocopier world. These copies begat further copies, creating multiple handwritten manuscripts.
The original manuscript was kept at Shōheikō, the government academy that would later become part of the University of Tokyo. After the Meiji Restoration, it was transferred to the university’s Historical Archives. Yet at some point, the original disappeared from Shōheikō’s vaults—likely removed unofficially by someone too eager to read it.
What distinguishes Mimibukuro is its plainspoken, factual tone. Negishi, a seasoned magistrate and intellectual, documented each event with specificity—naming people and places, avoiding conjecture or embellishment. He trusted only credible sources: those within his social and official orbit. This lends the work a quiet authority that continues to resonate today.
In editing this edition, we drew from the complete collection as published in Nihon Shomin Seikatsu Shiryō Shūsei, Volume 16 (San’ichi Publishing, 1970), and consulted the Tōyō Bunko editions of Mimibukuro I & II (Heibonsha, 1972). We selected 63 accounts aligned to thematic chapters, with commentary and historical context woven directly into the text.
This volume is divided into two parts. Part I consists of nine chapters featuring tales of mystery and moral instruction. Part II explores six chapters devoted to supernatural beings: ghosts and fox spirits. Each entry reads like a compact short story—glimpses into a strange and sympathetic Edo-era world that still echoes in ours.
For the English edition,we have also included a generous selection of ukiyo-e,a traditional form of painting.We hope you will enjoy them as well.
