A spider hangs in a doorway in late summer, gold and black, its web catching the light. In Japan, that spider has a name that also belongs to a monster.

Jorogumo (絡新婦) is a demonic creature belonging to Japanese folklore. It is a Yokai (妖怪, "strange apparition") spirit whose body is that of an attractive woman and limbs that of a killer spider. The name is usually read as "entangling bride", and the older writing, 女郎蜘蛛, simply means "woman spider".

To learn more about Japanese myths and the various demons of Shinto folklore, our Yokai list from Japanese culture covers the whole family. But first, let's find out together what a Jorogumo really is. And why you should be wary of it.

What is a Jorogumo?

A Jorogumo is the evolution of a spider that receives magical powers when it reaches 400 years of life. Her anatomy changes dramatically. Her form evolves, and she transforms into a beautiful and attractive woman. She stops feeding on insects and begins to only devour humans. She attracts to her nests young men in search of one night stands. This spider demon draws them in with her beauty and the melodious music she plays with a biwa (琵琶), a short-necked Japanese lute.

When this Japanese creature is about to eat, it abandons its human form and transforms into a gigantic spider. Its size can reach two meters high, its legs joining to form its abdomen.

These spiders are solitary creatures that live in the depths of forests, in remote caves, or in abandoned houses, far from society.

The Jorogumo are highly intelligent, cunning and heartless beings with no feelings and an insatiable hunger. That mix of beauty and menace is exactly what mask makers love. It is also why the demon face keeps coming back in Japanese craft.

Magical powers

During the Edo period (1603-1868), it was very common to hear stories about a beautiful woman who lured men into her hiding place. Then the woman would begin to play her biwa, bringing a beautiful melody to life. This music had the ability to hypnotize her victim, while she wrapped him in her powerful web, from which it was almost impossible to escape.

In addition to their web, these Japanese spirits possess a deadly venom, which slowly weakens their prey. They eat men in the quietest of ways. Sometimes their victims are used for incubation of their future offspring. Or they keep their human for a future meal.

The Jorogumo have the ability to control other spiders with their magic, either to detect the location of a new victim, or to follow their trail. They also have the ability to spit acid, to burn the bones of their victims. This ability is used to cover their tracks if they feel threatened or know they are in danger of being discovered.

They run very fast and have great jumping power. This allows them to corner their victim if they try to escape. She can also build large spider webs to make hunting easier. She is able to climb walls and moves in near silence.

How do you escape a Jorogumo?

The Japanese legend tells that the only way to escape a Jorogumo is to love a person with all your heart. This way, it is impossible to fall under the spell of this seductive woman and her hypnotic music.

But if your heart belongs to no one, there is also the possibility of killing her by throwing diatomite at her. This is a fossilized powder made from algae. The magic powder will totally dehydrate the body of the arachnid.

The Jorogumo are also afraid of fire, so you can burn them to kill them. It is said that the samurai of the Edo period tried to kill them with a sword or a stake. The weapon must pierce the thorax or abdomen of this beast. This is the hardest method, as they are very powerful creatures. Another type of protection against these deadly creatures is to rub on a mixture of mint leaf oil with lemon and a little water. They hate the smell.

The Legend of Jorogumo

There are several stories involving this mythological creature. Here is the most popular one, set near a waterfall in the mountains.

A man was resting by a waterfall when he felt his feet stuck to a powerful spider web. The man acted quickly and managed to escape. Back in his village, he warned everyone of the creature's presence. They named the creature Jorogumo.

A woodcutter arrived in the area and lost his axe in the water of a lake. A beautiful woman appeared and returned his tool. Before she disappeared, she asked him not to tell anyone what had happened, since the village was spreading false rumors about her.

Time passed and the man got drunk one night and revealed his story. He fell asleep as usual but never woke up again. And this may be only the beginning of his nightmare. Retellings of this scene are why the spider woman still sits beside the Oni mask in the Japanese imagination: both are faces that hide a bite.

Jorogumo today

Today, this fantastic being is very popular in Japanese pop culture. The Spider Jorogumo has made appearances in television series, such as:

• Gravity Falls, which devoted an entire episode of the series to her, titled "Roadside Attraction".
• Another mention of the character can be found in the series "SOOS", in the chapter "The mountain of the secret", where she is mentioned.
• In the anime "Dororo", a Jorogumo appears as one of the main villains of this animation.
• In one episode of the anime series Love, Death + Robots, the episode Beyond the Aquila Rift tells the story of a ship lost in space. In reality the men on board are being devoured little by little by a spider woman who controls their minds.
• In the video game Nioh, some bosses are spider demons: jorogumo Nioh.
• Irezumi art: the jorogumo tattoo is a popular motif in traditional Japanese tattooing.

What do you think of the story of this terrifying creature? The important thing is that you now know how to act if you meet one. If the folklore stays with you, a carved Japanese mask is the simplest way to keep it in your home.

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