Serpent Tales: Snakes in Japanese Mythology and Folklore

Yamato Totobi Momoso cries out in surprise at finding a snake in her comb box. (© Satō Tadashi)

Offerings of eggs and bottles of sake at the Minokami sugi. (© Pixta)

Inasa Beach and the Sea of Japan beyond. (© Pixta)

Two views of the Hii River. The important waterway is the setting of the Yamata no Orochi myth. (Photographed in 2024; © Hirafuji Kikuko)

Clouds over Lake Sakuraorochi glow with the colors of the rainbow in a phenomenon known as saiun. (Photographed in 2021; © Hirafuji Kikako)