S T A G E D
Kokkuri-san
Kokkuri-san is the most famous scary game in Japan. It is similar to the ouija board and is mostly played by Japanese schoolchildren who want to summon a spirit"
"Kokkuri-san, Kokkuri-san, tell me, when is the date of my death"
Two Japanese girls watch in breathless anticipation as the 10 yen coin begins to slide across a sheet of paper, slowly spelling out the answer.
Kokkuri-san is Japan's answer to the Ouija board and it has been played in schoolrooms across the country for years. The game became so widespread in Japan that it sparked several hysterias in the media and many schools officially banned students from playing Kokkuri-san
Using a ouija board can be dangerous because it can accidentally summon demons or open people up to the possibility of being possessed. Kokkuri-san is much less dangerous since the spirit who is usmmoned is a trickster spirit from the Shinto religion.
Kokkuri-san is the name of the spirit who is summoned during the game and provides the answers. It is an animal spirit that is a mixture between a fox, a dog, and a raccoon. Kok = Kitsune (fox), Ku = Inu (dog), and Ri = Tanuki (Raccoon). The fox can be iether a trickster or a teacher, the dog is loyal and protecting, and the raccoon dog is full of mischief but also a bringer a good luck. All of these qualities are combined in Kokkuri-san
You people ask many questions, like, "Kokkuri-san, who loves me?" or "Kokkuri-san, will I become rich and famous?", but just remember that there are some questions you are better off not knowing the answer to.
To play Kokkuri-san, you need at least two people, a sheet of paper, and a pen and a coin.
1. Take a blank sheet of paper and draw a "torii" (a traditional Japanese gate) at the top in red ink. Write "YES" and "NO" on either side of the torii. Beneath this, write one row of numbers (from 0 to 9) and three rows of letters (from A to Z)
2. Open a window or a door so that Kokkuri-san will be able ot enter the room. The torii represents the gateway to a Shinto shrine and the spirit will enter and exit through it.
3. Place a coin on the red torii. Each person should put their index finger on the coin.
4. Call the spirit by saying, "Kokkuri-san, Kokkuri-san, if you're here, please move this coin."
5. You can ask Kokkuri-san whatever questions you like. It will move the coin the spell out the answer.
6. To end the game, you must ask Kokkuri-san to leave by saying, "Kokkuri-san, Kokkuri-san, please return home." The coin will move to YES and then come to a rest on the red torii.
7. When you are certain Kokkuri-san has left, you must destroy the paper. Either tear it to pieces or burn it. You must also spend the coin you used before the end of the next day.
WARNING: Kokkuri-san is not dangerous and it is a much safer alternative to the ouija board. However, I still don't recommend that you play it. Many people become upset and depressed if they receive answers they do not like. Also, always rememebr that Kokkuri-san is a trickster spirit and can easily lie to you.
Recollections of Doitara Rui
September 1, 2010
I was walking to school with my two friends, Aoyama Yoko and Miyazaki Nana. The three of us live in the same apartment complex, you see. While we were walking, Yoko started talking about "Kokkuri-San", you know, the game. She took a board out of her bag that she said she had made the past night. She said we should play it after school. Nana was always the careful one, she was from a very "religious" family. She said we shouldn't mess with this stuff, but me and Yoko laughed it off.
After school, the three of us sat at Yoko's desk. She took out the board and a 10 yen coin. We started chanting, "Kokkuri-San, Kokkuri-San, please answer us!". Nothing happened. Yoko asked is anyone was here. The coin moved to yes. Of course she asked the other two of us if we were moving it, but we both said no. I asked it if it was a ghost, it turned to yes. The other two kept saying this like "creepy" or "weird". Yoko and I convinced Nana to ask it a question, she asked if she would ever get a boyfriend. It said yes. Suddenly Yoko took her finger off the coin and said she forgot about some extra homework. I took my finger off it too. Nana kept saying that she heard that if you take your finger off the coin before saying goodbye to Kokkuri-San, then something bad would happen. Of course, me and Yoko ignored the warning. So Yoko packed up her bag and ran out of the school ahead of us. Me and Nana walked home in silence.
September 3, 2010
The previous day was normal, so I have nothing to tell you about it. But the next morning, Yoko was late coming to meet us. We almost left without her but she ran up to us with blood-shot eyes, like she hadn't slept in a while. She complained about a banging on her bedroom wall next to her bed. You see, that side of her room is on a corner, so she has no one on that side, but I decided not to say anything. Something was bothering Nana, a lot. But I didn't say anything about that, either.
September 10, 2010
The only things that happened in this time is that Yoko's condition was getting worse. She was more and more tired, and she seemed to be hallucinating, speaking of a shadow person in her room. Nana's eyes seemed to get a little red, but she didn't seem any different. But.. *starts crying a little* we just left without her that morning, thinking she would be following behind us, and yell at us for leaving her. But *cries louder* she was found in her room with a 10 yen coin in her hand. She doctors said it was a heart attack! But I know Yoko didn't have any heart conditions. She was found that night. We found out the same night, when we went to see what all the commotion was...
December 15, 2010
Nothing was fun. Nothing happened in those months. Nana and I went to Yoko's funeral. I didn't exchange any words with her. I only say her, clutching her mom's dress, crying horribly. She became a Hikikomori, she didn't leave her room for months. I had no one. It was this day... That *cries louder* Nana was found dead in her bed, also clutching onto a 10 yen coin. This time it was because she hadn't left her room and she starved to death, not excepting the food her mother gave her. I know that's not true. I know it had something to do with that stupid Kokkuri-San! Please help me!
After that conversation, we left. My friend told me that if you don't say farewell to Kokkuri-San, then you will be cursed. We planned to see Rui in a few days, but on January 5, 2011, she was found by her father, dead in her room. The examiner said it was blunt trauma to the head, from falling over and hitting her head on her desk. But the strange thing was, her father told us, is that she was holding a 10 yen coin.