What the old hag is looking for

Saya's comment: this dream is one of Japanese urban legends and it is said to be dreamt mostly by children.

In the dream you are standing inside a room. And there you see an old hag who is frantically looking for something, rummaging through drawer after drawer.

You ask her, "what are you looking for?"
The old hag turns around and spreads out her hand.
"I am looking for my little finger."
You look at it and sure enough her little finger is missing.
Then the old hag asks you, "can you help me find it?"

If you have the above dream, make sure you say yes to her request, and find her little finger.
Because if you can't find her little finger, you will never be able to wake up again.

Comments

Anonymous said…
ohhh!!! so desu ka?
:0
Anonymous said…
Old hag: I'm also looking for Atlantis and the lost civilization of Lemuria.

now, you're screwed big time. :D
Anonymous said…
Hi Saya! As always, I enjoy the stories you post here!...I was wondering, would you ever be up to translating any of the stories from haunted haikyo websites? I've run across a few, and can read some of them, but generally end up using an online translator for bits and pieces, and those are...well, lame, most of the time. ;) For example, how about the bloody story of Hachioji Castle, and its haunted grounds? Your average tourist visiting Japan doesn't know THAT side of the story, I bet! ^_^
Unknown said…
I am indeed in the debt of the person who returned you to us, Ms. Saya. Another gem. Does this have roots in folklore? If so, do you know where? Thanks!
Hello people!

anti-zombie - I hope you don't appear in my dream, dear!

Dateline Osaka - yes I find haikyo stories very interesting and I was thinking to translate one of them recently, but I've been too lazy! I would like to visit those ruins, take a few pictures and write reports myself but I don't have anyone to go with (and it's not safe to go to those places alone, especially a woman!)
But yes I will try to translate some haikyo stories in the near future!I don't know much about Hachioji Castle, dear, but I'll find out about it too.

William - I don't know it it has any roots in folklore. Sorry to disappoint you, dear. But if you see a Japanese person with a little finger missing, he might be an ex-yakuza. As is the custom a yakuza needs to chop off his little finger by himself if he wants to quit being yakuza.
Anonymous said…
So, where do you get your stories Ms. Saya? I would be happy to share some urban legends, ghost and unexplicable stories from our third world hovel if you want me to.
Hello again, anti-zombie!
I get these stories from various Japanese horror-story and paranormal sites. They have tons and tons of interesting stories and my ambition is to translate all of them into English!(though it would take a life time to do so!)
And yes, it would be nice to share your stories too, anti-zombie! But I must ask you first why you are anti-zombie, dear!
Anonymous said…
I'll be one of the avid readers of your translated stories.

anti-zombie? i dunno. maybe i just watched too many george romero flicks and too much playing "left 4 dead," "resident evil."

and also, too much "thriller" by michael jackson.

btw, my nick is an oxymoron. and i'm also a moron. :D
Anonymous said…
Ms. Saya,
where in Japan are you?
Anonymous said…
Zombie's disclaimer: "I," "mine," etc does not refer to me

This story of mine is the scariest thing that I have ever experienced. It happened during my college years. I was with my family and friends during the course of the summer vacation. My mother and sister were with the other oldies of the family as they went to visit our relatives in the province. We would meet them half way to our grand parent's house the next morning where we planned to visit the old folks.

Within the confines of my room, surrounded by religious icons, I felt safe. I was alone in the bedroom since my friends went out to enjoy and get fresh air. Standing on top of the mountain looking at the starry night sky is truly breathtaking but I was tired from the travel and preferred to stay inside the room and rest for a bit.

Sitting in bed, I was reading a book while trying to relax my mind from all the university worries. I then started to feel a presence walking near the room.

I couldn't tell if the energy I was sensing was living or not. At first, I just calmly ignored it and continued reading my book. As the minutes passed, I heard somebody calling my name. It sounded like a soft caring voice. It sounded very familiar to me yet I couldn't quite put my finger on who it was. I knew that this was not normal since the voice came from every corner of the room. Also there was a smell of sulfur in the air.

Amidst the soft angelic voice, I sensed a very malicious entity. My hand started to shake uncontrollably and my heart beat faster. I felt the temperature in the room drop. It then said to me "I...KNOW...WHO YOU ARE". Then, in a faint voice filled with rage and disgust, it mentioned my last name.

Upon hearing this, I dropped the book I was reading. I closed my eyes and proceeded to distance my mind from what was happening around me. I repeated the following phrase in my head "As I walk to the valley in the shadow of death I shall fear no evil for thy rod thy staff they comfort me".

I repeated this for a few minutes and listened only to my voice and drew everything else in my mind. For some reason I could feel my body starting to heat up. My hands felt like they were burning and my ears were ringing. My head felt light and my eye sight was a little blurry. I felt very disoriented and drained. I did not know which was up and which was down.

I can hear it laughing but this time the voice sounded sadistic. It also sounded like a mix of both male and female. I can't really explain why but I knew this was NOT a ghost. I tried with all my might to ask what it wants from me but the pure malicious and murderous intent that I was sensing kept any voice from coming out. I was frozen in fear.

I was trying desperately to remove the fear inside of me. I know that if I can't control my emotions I WILL DIE IN THIS ROOM. That thought echoed through my mind and broke what little concentration I had left. I was so certain about it. I can still remember how desperate I felt that night.

I then started seeing horrible images in my mind. Tortures, murder, pagan worship, all of these images were in my head. I tried blocking my mind by thinking random thoughts. I could hear this entity hissing and laughing.

I was now lying in bed with my entire body feeling numb and drained. I knew that I couldn't break its hold on me by just using my crude method. I knew I needed God's help.

In a final outburst of adrenaline I was able to turn to my side and reach for the holy rosary that I always keep in my back pocket. I grasped it as tight as I could. My hands were so numb that I could not feel the rosary in my hand. I can sense this entity moving around the room. It was moving so fast that I could not get an exact fix on its location.

I prayed our Lord's Prayer while tightening my grip on the rosary. For a few seconds I could not sense it any longer. My voice got louder but then I can hear it saying the prayer with me. It sounded like this entity is right near my ear whispering. It prayed with me in a mocking voice as if playing with me. It slowly changed into praying in Latin which later I recalled was the PATER NOSTER - Our Lord's Prayer in Latin. It was a prayer that my grandfather taught me back when I was still a kid.

It was this time that I remembered an advice given to me by a priest that was a close friend of my mother. He told me that when faced with a problem that questions my faith always remember that Jesus Christ died for all of us. He endured torture and crucifixion so that our souls can be saved. He will not abandon us when we need Him the most.

I then changed my prayer to the Apostle's Creed. It is a prayer that professes the faith of a Christian. I prayed it with all my heart. I wanted this entity to know where my loyalty stands. This creature fell silent. I can slowly feel the fiend's grip on me starting to weaken. The fear in me was slowly dissipating. I slowly stood up. I could feel my hands trembling and my knees shaking. I was slowly but surely regaining my strength. During this time I could sense the entity moving wildly in the room.

It let off a hissing, a sound and then everything went silent. The sadistic voice that I was hearing was now gone. I could no longer sense the evil, malicious, and murderous mist that filled the sulfuric smelling air that night. It was this time that I noticed the blood dripping down my left hand. I clasped the rosary too tightly that it got lodged into my palm.

I went to the bathroom to apply first aid on my minor flesh wound. Looking at the mirror while washing the blood off my wound I noticed a dark hooded figure standing behind me. This entity has been with me through all my paranormal experiences. In a calm voice I told it that I am fine then I proceeded on applying bandage to my wound to prevent any infection.

About 30 minutes after this nightmarish encounter of mine I could hear screams coming from the outside corridor. They were my friends and cousins. They were trembling in fear as they told me that something scary happened to them. One of my friends was bleeding so I knew that this was serious. My cousin asked me what happened to my hand and I just told her that I cut myself while trying to open a bottle of beer.

I sat down with them as they told me that when they got back looking at the night sky they went into my friend's room over at the guest house and played with an Ouija board variation called SPIRIT OF THE GLASS. One of my friends knew how to do the opening ritual so it was only a matter of time before they made contact.

It introduced itself as CALEB. As first CALEB seemed fine. But it quickly turned nasty and started spelling out profanities. My friend tried to do a closing but CALEB was much too strong. The glass shattered and a fragment caught my friend on the hand.

They screamed as chairs in the room were tossed around and the windows vibrated. They tried to get out of the room but they couldn't get the door open. Everything suddenly went silent and calm but they were still stuck in the room. After a solid 45 minutes of sheer terror they got out of the room. Needless to say, they all slept in our room and I ended up sleeping in the couch!

Now here's the weird thing. The experience I had started right about when they had their own scary experience. My friend that facilitated the SPIRIT OF THE GLASS told me outside later that night that she smelled sulfur in the air right after she did the opening ritual. The smell lingered in the air throughout their experience in that room and also she could hear laughter while the chairs were tossed around.

We told my relatives what happened that night but they said they heard NO screams and NO sounds of chair hitting the walls. However, when we got into the room it was evident that something scary happened that night. The entire room was a complete mess and one chair was broken in half. My aunt quickly called a priest to do a blessing on the room.
Anonymous said…
^ comment on the above:

my country is populated predominantly by roman catholics so you'll read lotsa biblical and christian references in the above story.
Anonymous said…
Zombie's notes: This is an infamous "red tag" story that took place in one of the oldest universities (which happens to have a hospital ) in Manila.

doctor and a nurse boarded the elevator.
When suddenly a hysterical woman in a hospital gown was running towards them waving her arms screaming, “wait! wait! hold the door!
Just when the woman was about to get in, the doctor frantically pressed the “close” button.

The nurse, annoyed by the doctor’s insensitivity, glared at the doctor and said,
‘I cant believe you did that! You can see she was rushing to get in and you did not even bother to “hold” the door. That was really rude of you, doctor!

The young doctor, his face pale from disbelief, beads of cold sweat forming in his forehead; turned to the nurse and said,
“ Didn’t you notice the tag on her wrist?” SHE WAS WEARING A RED TAG!
She was my patient and she died a couple of hours ago”

The nurse, sensing the fear in the young doctor’s voice; slowly raised her hand so that the doctor can see her wrist.
“ RED TAG? You mean, like this one?”
Thank you very much for sharing your stories anti-zombie! I was thoroughly entertained!!
It looks like this CALEB thing was a devil trying to lure the story-teller away from his faith? I found the references to Roman Catholic practice fascinating.
I loved the red-tag story too! No doubt the nurse and the patient had been injected with T-virus!

Your got me thinking that maybe I should ask people reading my blog to tell me their stories too and I could start another blog publishing these stories I collected.That would be superb wouldn't it?

btw I live in Yokohama in Japan.
Thanks again, dear!
Anonymous said…
Interesting story, as always. I find the subject of dreams to be particularly fascinating. There's just something about them... the limitlessness... the supernatural/paranormal aspect... the question of how they relate to your mind, body, and real life...
Anonymous said…
Saya: That would be a very good idea. Stories of spook from all corners of the world
Anonymous said…
Saya, if someone reads the story above about the old hag, how many times will they dream about meeting the old hag?
Anonymous said…
Saya, love your stories!

You should call in to Iain Lee's radio show again, you were awesome on that!

Now he is on Absolute Radio at 10pm (UK time) on Sunday nights.

http://www.absoluteradio.co.uk/
Bryan - it's nice to see you here again, sir.:D I love stuff about dreams too! I have more stories about dreams in store! You will be reading those in the near future!

Mr Anonymous - thank you for the info about Ian's show!! I knew he left LBC but didn't know where he went after that! Thanks!
美B said…
oh so that's what i found...
Anonymous said…
Is this dream story really true?
美B - you found the little finger? Good for you!

Sean - I hope it's not true! Luckily I haven't had this dream myself!
Anonymous said…
Hey Saya, I have another question. If someone doesn't find the missing finger and according to the story never wakes up, how does anyone else know what his dream was about? After all, isn't the dreamer the only one who knows the dream?
Sean, dear. With stories like this, you mustn't think too deeply or look for consistency. I know full well that some stories I translate here don't make sense. And mind you, they don't have to. Just have fun reading it.
Anonymous said…
What happen if u say no?
Hi Sugar!
If you say no you won't wake up ever again, meaning you will die! Scary!
Anonymous said…
Saya, from which website did you get this story and the uba yo sare story you posted in 2007?
Anonymous said…
Oooohh!(Eyes widen in disbelief)
I wouldn't wanna dream that.....
Paul - I got to know this story recently through a TV programme featuring urban legends. And I read the uba-yo-sare story on a boys magazine when I was a kid. I'm sure there are websites about both stories but they would be probably in Japanese. Sorry to be unhelpful!
Anonymous said…
I dreamt that.
Except she was looking for a corndog she lost last month.
I found it, handed it to her, and ate both her hand and the mouldy corndog.
Tani said…
I'm the reason she's there. I thought her little finger was a cookie and I ate it. Then she got mad and attacked me and I accidentally pushed her into the Dream Dimension. Ooops.
Unknown said…
Oh god, I'm not good at finding things. But thank you for telling me this!
Yoku said…
Okay, I hope I NEVER have that dream!For one thing, when I see someone, I'm most likely to be found hiding!

And I don't think I would say yes, or no.I would scream my head off.XD
Ernest said…
i think saya was right, the CALEB was most likely a devil, or more notably a demon. since he also mentioned twice the scent of sulfur. and demons have been known to be associated with sulfur, as they usually leave traces of it behind whenever they appear
Unknown said…
hi... isn't the original legend about this story that if you read it, you will have the dream within a week?