Shuten-dōji: Demon of Mount Ōe, Kyoto Legend Sites

In the Otogi Bunko telling, Raikō's band does not march straight to the mountain. First the group decides to pay homage at three shrines: Iwashimizu Hachimangū, Sumiyoshi and Kumano. Iwashimizu Hachimangū, in the city of Yawata, is the first named. The warriors ask for divine help before they ever see the ogre. The shrine's grounds are now a National Historic Site, and it remains an active Shinto shrine.

Visitor guidance: An active shrine in Yawata, Kyoto Prefecture.

Sumiyoshi Shrine is the second of the three shrines. In the legend the gods of the three shrines meet the party disguised as old men and give Raikō a flask of sake described as a "divine elixir, poisonous to demons". That gift decides the whole story. Sumiyoshi Taisha is the main shrine of all Sumiyoshi shrines and is famous for its huge New Year's Day crowds.

Visitor guidance: An active shrine in Sumiyoshi-ku, Osaka.

The oldest text says the party left Kyoto in 995. Pretending to be priests, the warriors convince the ogre-king to give them lodging. In the Otogi Bunko version his palace lies inside the Demon's Cavern, Oni no iwaya. Raikō offers the sacred sake, which leaves Shuten-dōji incapacitated, and the warriors cut off his head. The Ōeyama range is best known for this legend, and the Japan Ogre Exchange Museum, opened in 1993, stands at its foot.

Location precision: Some say the legend's Ōe is a mountain in Nishikyō-ku, Kyoto, not this range; the pin marks the Ōeyama range near Fukuchiyama.

Visitor guidance: The Japan Ogre Exchange Museum at the foot of Ōeyama covers the legend.

In the oldest text the heroes return in triumph to Kyoto with the ogre's head. Even severed, it was still alive and snapped its jaws, aiming at Raikō's head. The head was then laid to rest in the Treasure House of Uji at Byōdō-in. Byōdō-in is a Buddhist temple in Uji, built in the late Heian period, and its Phoenix Hall and the great statue of Amida inside are national treasures.

Visitor guidance: A temple open to visitors in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture.

Local legend gives a different ending. On the way back, at Oi-no-saka, a roadside image of Jizō warned the party: "don't bring something unclean into the capital". The head could no longer move, so they buried it right there. The burial spot is said to perform miracles for illnesses in the head.

Location precision: This is a local tradition that competes with the Byōdō-in version, and the exact spot is not pinned.

One last trace of the legend is a pair of objects. Nariaiji temple is said to preserve the sake bottle and sake cup allegedly used to pour the sake that poisoned Shuten-dōji. The temple sits on a hillside overlooking Amanohashidate, one of Japan's three scenic views, and is the 28th stop on the 33-temple Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage.

Location precision: The relics are only said to be those of the legend; the story does not set a scene at the temple.

Visitor guidance: A pilgrimage temple in Miyazu, Kyoto Prefecture.