[Episode 1] Take Village (Part 2) — A Kokkuri-san Séance!? A Full Investigation of the Cursed Ghost Village

Part 2 of Episode 1, “The Fourth Person.” As the investigation of Take Village continues, the crew attempts a séance using Kokkuri-san, a Japanese table-turning game.

The direct trigger for the village’s haunted reputation is said to be the legend of the six Jizō statues at the entrance: after they were moved, misfortune reportedly followed. Combined with the eerie quiet typical of abandoned villages, the story spread. Yet why the village emptied is an ordinary story shared by mountain communities across Japan: poor access and depopulation.

This part shows the Kokkuri-san attempt made at the ruins. Such séances are staged for the video, and we do not encourage viewers to imitate them. Take Village is sometimes said to be one of the models for the village in the horror game SIREN, but we have found no record of the game’s creators confirming this.

What to Watch For

The center of Part 2 is the Kokkuri-san séance. Rather than the ritual itself, pay attention to where it took place. Six Jizō statues stand at the entrance, and a shrine called Jūnisha Jinja is said to remain deeper in. Keeping in mind that this was a village dotted with places of prayer changes how the setting feels.

Our Take

This is our speculation, but performing Kokkuri-san in an abandoned village seems to strengthen a cycle in which rumors attract visitors and visitors produce more rumors. Here is a village where places of prayer survive but the people who prayed are gone, and a different, prayer-like ritual is performed in their place. There is something ironic in that contrast. The shrine is also said to remain a place of worship today, and our position is that visitors should refrain from treating it as a thrill spot.