Kamada Matahachi and Kikuno 鎌田又八と菊野

Kamada Matahachi and Kikuno (鎌田又八と菊野) are a tragic pair from Japanese ghost lore—loyalty personified and later transformed into a dual haunting that exposed the corruption of their masters.

Meaning and Origin

The names are those of traditional retainers during the Edo period. Kamada Matahachi (鎌田又八) was a legendary figure of immense physical strength, while Kikuno (菊野) was a loyal concubine or servant.

The origin of their ghost story is a tale of False Accusation. According to the legend (and the 1855 Kabuki play that popularized it), their master, a samurai named Kanemitsu, was having an illegal affair with a nun. Matahachi and Kikuno accidentally discovered the secret. To silence them, the corrupt master accused them of having an illicit affair. As a “moral” punishment, they were tied together in a single large basket and thrown into a river to drown. Their transformation into ghosts was the result of this total betrayal of their loyalty.

Characteristics

In their ghostly forms, Matahachi and Kikuno are rarely seen apart. They often appear as a “blur” of two spirits entwined, dripping with river water and shrouded in the seaweed and silt of their watery grave.

Matahachi represents the “Strong Spirit”—his supernatural strength remains even in death, allowing him to throw heavy objects or create localized tremors in the homes of his enemies. Kikuno represents the “Vocal Spirit,” her ghostly voice perpetually reciting the truth of their innocence, a sound that can drive a guilty person to madness. Together, they are a spirit of Exoneration; they do not haunt to kill, but to make the truth impossible to ignore.

Legends

The most famous retelling occurs in the kabuki play Kamata Matahachi to Kikuno no bōrei. In the climax, the ghosts appear during a grand banquet held by their murderer, Kanemitsu.

While the master is celebrating his rise in status, the two spirits emerge from the floorboards, still tied together in their drowning-basket. The sight is so horrifying that the master’s accomplice, the nun Kyodai, breaks down in a fit of hysterical guilt and confesses their crimes in front of the assembled samurai. With the truth revealed and their names cleared, the two ghosts are said to have untied their spectral bindings and ascended to peace, proving that even a river cannot wash away a lie.