Kurikara Pass and the “Flaming Ox Stratagem” — The Mystery of a Night Raid That May Have Used 500 Real Cattle

Kurikara Pass rises along the border between Oyabe City in Toyama Prefecture and Tsubata Town in Ishikawa Prefecture. A battle fought here at the end of the Heian period is famous as a surprise attack that destroyed a great army in a single night. Above all, it is remembered for the “Flaming Ox Stratagem” — the tale that as many as 500 oxen had torches tied to their horns and were driven charging into the enemy camp. But a careful reading of the historical sources suggests this stampede of cattle was most likely a later invention. We looked into what actually happened in this battle, and how the legend came to be.

Origin — The Surprise Attack That Destroyed the Taira Army in a Single Night

In 1183, the warrior Kiso Yoshinaka (also known as Minamoto no Yoshinaka), who was expanding his power from a base in Shinano Province (present-day Nagano Prefecture), had become a major threat to the Taira clan, which controlled the capital in Kyoto. To halt Yoshinaka’s advance, the Taira sent a great army — said to number as many as 100,000 horsemen — into the Hokuriku region under the overall command of Taira no Koremori. Forced into retreat in battle after battle elsewhere, Yoshinaka finally confronted the Taira’s great army at Kurikara Pass on May 11.

Yoshinaka first lulled the Taira army into carelessness with minor skirmishes during the day, then, under cover of night, sent a detached unit to circle around behind the enemy. Suddenly attacked from the rear in the darkness, the Taira army fell into chaos, and the soldiers scrambled to flee. But what lay ahead of them was the sheer cliff of Kurikara Pass, opening onto a deep valley. With nowhere left to run, Taira soldiers are said to have fallen one after another into the valley below, destroying a great army said to have numbered more than 70,000 horsemen.

The “Flaming Ox Stratagem” — Where Did the Legend Come From?

Whenever this battle is told, the “Flaming Ox Stratagem” invariably appears. The Genpei Josuiki, a war chronicle written in a later era, records a dramatic episode in which Yoshinaka tied torches to the horns of 400 to 500 oxen and drove them charging all at once into the Taira army, forcing them off the cliff. A herd of oxen racing through the mountain pass at night with flames flickering on their horns is a striking image, even just to imagine.

However, no mention of the Flaming Ox Stratagem appears in any of the texts of the Heike Monogatari, which was compiled at roughly the same time as the battle itself. What’s more, a nearly identical tactic — setting cattle ablaze and driving them into an enemy camp — appears in a much older Chinese account from the Warring States period, in which the general Tian Dan of Qi is said to have defeated the army of Yan this way. Current historical research holds that this Chinese story likely made its way to Japan in later centuries and was added on as dramatic embellishment for Kurikara Pass’s already dramatic victory.

Kurikara Pass Today

The area around Kurikara Pass today has been developed into Kurikara Prefectural Park, a tourist destination dotted with facilities displaying materials about the battle, a memorial to the fallen, and stone markers describing the events of the time. Every year, local festivals are held in honor of Yoshinaka and the Flaming Ox Stratagem, and regardless of whether the legend is historically true, it continues to be cherished as a point of local pride.

Reflection — Why the Story Endures Even Once We Know It’s Fiction

In our view, even now that we know the Flaming Ox Stratagem is most likely a later invention, there is a reason this tale continues to be loved. The Battle of Kurikara Pass itself is dramatic enough as a historical fact on its own — an army of more than 70,000 horsemen collapsing in a single night. Our speculation is that, wanting a clear explanation for why such a great army fell apart, later generations reached for a visually striking device — a herd of blazing cattle — and grafted it onto that drama.

In our view, there is no need to flatly reject a story simply because fact and fiction have become intertwined in how it is passed down. If anything, thinking about why that fiction arose and why people kept accepting it is exactly what makes engaging with history three-dimensional. The Flaming Ox Stratagem of Kurikara Pass may be a valuable case study — one that teaches us less about “the facts themselves” and more about what people wanted when they reshaped a story.

This is only our own imagining, but we suspect there was something more than mere narrative embellishment behind the addition of the dramatic Flaming Ox Stratagem. The event of more than 70,000 people falling to their deaths in a valley in a single night was so senseless and so overwhelming in scale that it may have been difficult for people of the time to pass down as it actually happened. By inserting a visually striking, “visible enemy” — a herd of blazing cattle — they may have just barely managed to give some narrative shape to a reality too heavy to explain: mass death with no clear reason.

The fact that a memorial still stands at Kurikara Pass today shows that this battle is not simply consumed as a tourist attraction or a tale of heroism. It is said that weapons and human remains may still lie unearthed at the bottom of the valley, and the fact that a staggering number of the dead — more than 70,000 — rest beneath the peaceful scenery of a well-kept park leaves visitors with a quiet weight. We want to record this place not only as the setting of a dramatic surprise attack, but as the resting place of a great many dead who are still, even now, being appeased.

A Nearby Recommendation — Habu Gokoku Hachimangu Shrine

At the foot of Kurikara Pass, known for the Flaming Ox Stratagem, stands Habu Gokoku Hachimangu Shrine, said to be where Kiso Yoshinaka prayed for victory before the battle. Its worship hall, designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan, still draws many visitors today who come to pray for victory in competitions or success in exams, following the story of Yoshinaka offering prayers here before heading into battle. It may be worth stopping to offer a quiet prayer of your own, right beside the setting of the night raid said to have involved 500 charging oxen.

A Note for Visitors

The old Kurikara Pass battlefield is also a historic site where many soldiers actually lost their lives. Although it has been developed as a tourist destination, visitors are asked to treat the memorial and historic sites with respect and avoid behavior driven by mere curiosity. Because the mountain pass road runs through mountainous terrain, we recommend checking weather and road conditions in advance before visiting.

Related reading
Keta Taisha’s “Forbidden Forest” — The Sacred Ground Even Priests Couldn’t Enter for 400 Years
Sado Island — Why Did One of the “Three Exiles” Survive the Executioner’s Blade at the Last Moment?

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What was the Flaming Ox Stratagem?

A. It is said to have been a tactic in which torches were tied to the horns of oxen, and a large number of them were driven charging all at once into the enemy camp, throwing the enemy into chaos and forcing them off a cliff. The legend that Kiso Yoshinaka used this tactic at the Battle of Kurikara Pass is especially famous.

Q. Did the Flaming Ox Stratagem really happen?

A. It needs to be viewed with caution. It does not appear in the Heike Monogatari, a record compiled around the same time as the battle, and is found only in the later-written Genpei Josuiki. Because it resembles an old Chinese battle legend, it is considered likely to be a later invention.

Q. What was the Battle of Kurikara Pass?

A. It was a battle fought in 1183 between Kiso Yoshinaka’s army and a great Taira army at Kurikara Pass, on the present-day border of Toyama and Ishikawa prefectures. Yoshinaka is said to have thrown the Taira army into confusion with a night raid, driving many soldiers off the cliff at the pass for a decisive victory.

Q. Where does this battle correspond to today?

A. It took place around Kurikara Pass, on the present-day border of Oyabe City, Toyama Prefecture, and Tsubata Town, Ishikawa Prefecture. The area is now a nationally designated historic site developed as Kurikara Prefectural Park, a tourist destination with a museum and a memorial.

Q. Why does a story that may not be historically accurate continue to be told today?

A. The dramatic course of the battle itself is confirmed as historical fact, and it is thought that adding the clear, memorable episode of the Flaming Ox Stratagem made it easier for later generations to keep the story alive.

We plan to introduce the Battle of Kurikara Pass and the Flaming Ox Stratagem in video form as well. Please also check out our YouTube channel.

Q. Has Karasu Channel filmed on location at Kurikara Pass and the Flaming Ox Stratagem?

A. No, Karasu Channel has not filmed there yet; a visit is currently under consideration. Location footage for other haunted spots and kaidan stories can be viewed on Karasu Channel (YouTube).