The Doujouji Maiden

Dancing to the Serpent's Tune

 

With the cherry blossoms in bloom and the spring heat on the rise, the pleasantness of the season drew to sojourn at Wakayama. After a few-well earned days of leisure, I received a most anxious correspondence regarding the renovations of a state university: a university, which happened to be located outside the grounds of the infamous Doujou Temple. As I was already more or less in the vicinity, I hastily agreed to investigate the situation, and found myself outside the pristine campus the very next day.

Walking under an ornate archway, I was delighted to see a more traditional take on the contemporary notion of a university. Many students had indulged formal garb, and I was handily greeted by a lovely performance, provided pro bono by the school dancing troupe. Flitting about with fans in hand, several of the women in the group might as well have been plucked straight from Heian era, and transfixed before me in the present.

My glee at the sights and sounds was short-lived however, as I observed the key landmark of the college: a great brass bell. Remembering the tales of old, I shuddered to think of what fiend might come to claim this metallic prize for themselves, and resolved to discuss the matter with the dean. Thankfully, the elder gentlemen, one Mr. K-----, obliged me an audience, and though he appeared skeptical of my worries, he generously agreed to let me camp out underneath the great bell.

Night fell, and I made camp directly under the titanic structure. Unfortunately, the soothing evening air coupled with the occasional knell of the wind on the brass instrument lulled me into a half-sleep, until I was awakened in full by the purr of a young lady's voice. Unnerved by this eerie development, I moved to creep out from under my stoop. At that moment, the ground beneath me shook, and I yelped in terror as I registered the snapping of rope overhead.

Special Features and History

 

The figure of the Doujouji Maiden dates back as far the eleventh century, having first been recorded in a collection of Buddhist myths and teachings. According to these bygone sources, a local priest had become the romantic fascination of a nameless peasant girl, who either sought him out independently, or was otherwise casually goaded into courting the young man. Regardless of her motivations, the poor girl's feelings were rejected by the devout youth, who fled from her rage after denying her request for marriage.

Whilst chasing the errant priest, the girl was overcome with a wicked, otherworldly energy, that altered her physical form into that of a giant serpent. Terrified, the priest sought refuge under the great bell at the Doujou Temple, and took a misplaced comfort in the Buddha's willingness to shield him from harm. Having caught up with he that spurned her, the vengeful spirit coiled itself around the bell until it fell from its restraints onto the ground, and then proceeded to sear the metal such that the entire piece melted into puddle of ore, incinerating the priest to ashes. 

After this initial incident, other sources and individuals have spoken of the maiden's return each time the temple attempted to replace its damaged property. And, each time a new bell was acquired, it was doomed to suffer the same heated fate. Despite numerous accounts of the tale, it seemed that at any one time, the resident priests failed to screen, much less forbid the passage and temporary of several traveling women, who turned out to bear scaly, ulterior motives.

Closing Remarks and Parting Advice 

 

In light of all the ruckus that came from outside the bell itself, I was quick to depart into the open air. The instant I did so, the great brass artifice came crashing down behind him, causing me to leap up for fear. Turning about, my horror was further magnified by the sight of one of the dancers from before. Now however, she was through with her dancing, and had instead taken to an elastic embrace of the downed bell. Contorting to an unnatural degree, the young woman howled with delight, and her skin began to bubble and blue before my eyes.

Soon, the air grew thick and warm, and sweat swiftly blanketed my person. Smoke began to trail forth from the bell, as the sight of flesh warped into a stark emerald scales. Flames licked at the fine metalwork, and the woman-turned-aberration let slip an episode of unrestricted cackling. I cried out, attempting to reprimand the spirit for her violent actions, yet I soon found a pool of liquid metal lashing out at my feet. 

Thankfully, my boots are lead-lined, and though I was greatly uncomfortable with the present temperature, I was not seriously harmed. Sadly, the substance cooled at such a rate that I found myself utterly rooted in place. When I looked up in search of the demoness once more, she had seemingly vanished, leaving the misshapen mass of the bell sprawled all over the floor. 

In the end, my imprisonment lasted the duration of the eve, and into the following morning, at which point I had a great deal of explaining to do for the benefit of campus security. After a period of much more institutionalized jailing, I was deemed innocent of any offense, and forcefully removed from the site, with a warning not to come "skulking" around in the future. 

Alas, though she caused me a deal of discomfort and disgrace, the mysterious Doujouji Maiden, in the pursuit of her single goal, is not so awful as some of her other counterparts. Such being the case, I deem her to be a B-Class Threat: typically harmful only to bells, and the occasional pair of  galoshes. Until next time, dear readers, be sure to keep any open line of communication in all potential relationships, and be not so trusting of any musical fixture, no matter how charming it may be.

Sincerely,

C.V. Hastings

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 Thanks and Acknowledgements To:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%C5%8Dj%C5%8Dji_(Noh_play)
Six Kabuki Plays, translated by Donald Richie and Miyoko Watanabe