The Story of Mimi-nashi-Hoichi

When the sound of the biwa awakens the dead, one of the most classic Japanese ghost stories begins.

"The Story of Mimi-nashi-Hoichi" tells the tale of Hoichi, a blind biwa player summoned by the ghosts of the Heike clan due to his mastery of The Tale of the Heike. To protect him, a priest covers his entire body with sutras but forgets his ears, leading to a terrifying and sorrowful conclusion. The story tightly weaves together music, war memories, Buddhist protection, and the obsession of the dead.

Lafcadio Hearn adapted this folk tale into English, making it a representative piece for global readers to understand Japanese ghost stories. Hearn's wandering life and cross-cultural position allowed him to turn local legends into literary works that feel both strange and resonant. He does not treat ghosts as mere scares, but as echoes of historical trauma.

Analogous to modern works, this piece can be read alongside Natsuhiko Kyogoku's reconstructions of folklore and knowledge, or compared with the treatment of the gaze of the dead and the sense of impermanence in the Heike Monogatari anime. It is the perfect starting point for an introduction to Japanese ghost stories.