Kimodameshi, from Japan: what it is and what people believe

Kimodameshi is a Japanese activity in which a group goes out at night, usually in summer, to an eerie place such as a cemetery, a haunted house or a lonely forest path, and carries out set tasks there. It is a test of courage, and the lesson drawn is that a group can face fear together.

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A night-time group outing to a cemetery, haunted house or forest path, usually in summer
In Ōkagami only Fujiwara no Michinaga dared the haunted house, bringing back a sword-cut post
School clubs and summer camps sometimes run it, with members posted to scare the rest
Trespassing, vandalism and coercion rules can apply under Japan's Penal Code

What it is

Kimodameshi is a Japanese custom in which a group sets out at night to an unsettling place and completes tasks there. The place may be a graveyard, a haunted house, or a lonely path through woods. The purpose is to face fear and come through it, and the exercise is meant to show that a group working together can do that. It sits among summer amusements rather than among spells: nothing is cast, and the thrill comes from the setting itself and from the people who arrange scares along the way.

Where it comes from

The earliest hint of the idea appears in Ōkagami, a historical tale from the early twelfth century. It tells of Emperor Kazan sending three sons of Fujiwara no Kaneie to a house said to be haunted by oni, at three in the morning. Only Fujiwara no Michinaga managed the visit, and he came back with a wooden post hacked by a sword as his proof. The episode suggests that a test of courage was already known near the end of the Heian period.

How it is done

The shape of the custom is simple. A group goes out after dark, usually in summer, to a place chosen for its unnerving reputation. Once there, each person has a mission to carry out: fetching something, reaching a point, or simply going in and coming back. In organised versions somebody prepares the route and others hide along it to frighten the participants. What the group takes away is the experience of going through fear together rather than alone.

Kimodameshi, drawn and placed

Emblem With the flame shape. Drawn from this page, not a photograph.

Living
Revived
Fading
Historical
Legendary
Performed

Standing: Living Practised today by communities who hold it as their own. This says whether people still do it, not whether it works.

A flame: fire as it is used in rites of cleansing, offering and passage, from household hearths to great festivals.

Lineage: Japanese summer custom and school or camp amusement
Timing: at night, usually in summer

Where it sits The tradition it belongs to, and when it is done.

What it is for

The stated aim is courage. By entering a place that feels frightening and finishing the task, participants are taught that fear can be handled, and that a group can handle it better than one person. Places are picked for atmosphere rather than for any power: cemeteries, haunted houses, and quiet forest tracks. The custom belongs to summer leisure, at school clubs and camps, rather than to a system of spellwork.

Who does it

Nobody needs a special calling to take part. Those who go through the course are usually young people, and the event is often arranged by a school club or a summer camp. In those organised settings the work is divided: some people prepare the route and set the tasks, while others take on the part of frightening those who come along. The same group of organisers commonly fills both roles.

Peoples and places

Kimodameshi is described as a Japanese activity, and everything recorded about it is set in Japan: a court story from the Heian period and, in the present, school clubs and summer camps. The kinds of place it uses are local ones of the eerie sort, a cemetery, a haunted house, a quiet forest path. The custom is a home-grown pastime, run by the groups who take part in it.

At a glance: who, where and when

Peoples

Japanese

When it is done

Kimodameshi is done at night. It is usually placed in summer, when school clubs and camps have time for it, and the old tale of Emperor Kazan's test sets its haunting at three in the morning. The timings belong to holiday schedules and to darkness itself, which the custom needs for its effect.

Cautions and what is closed

Kimodameshi leads people into places chosen for being frightening, and some of those places can be dangerous in fact. The custom also puts pressure on whoever is reluctant, and Japanese law treats intimidation or coercion of an unwilling person as an offence. A prank taken too far, or a participant pushed past refusal, is where a summer game crosses into crime.

Compare and confuse

In English it is known as a test of courage. Related pastimes named beside it include ghost hunting, the haunted house, kaidan (Japanese ghost stories), the Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai, and legend tripping.

Law and persecution

Japanese criminal law reaches into the custom when it is badly handled. Entering private ground can count as trespassing under Article 130 of the Penal Code, damaging property as vandalism under Article 261, and pushing or threatening someone who does not want to take part as intimidation or coercion under Articles 222 and 223. The list stands as a warning about how a night out can turn into an offence.

Today

Today the custom lives mostly through school clubs and summer camps. Organisers may prepare the route and the missions in advance, and members of the group may be posted to frighten the rest as they pass. That division of labour, some arranging and some scaring, is what the modern form gives to the older idea of a night visit to an eerie place.

Questions people ask about Kimodameshi

What is kimodameshi?

A Japanese activity in which a group goes at night, usually in summer, to a frightening place such as a cemetery, a haunted house or a forest path, and carries out set missions there. It is a test of courage, meant to show that a group can overcome fear together.

Where does it come from?

The earliest hint is in Ōkagami, an early twelfth-century tale in which Emperor Kazan sends three brothers to a house said to be haunted by oni; only Fujiwara no Michinaga succeeds. That suggests a test of courage existed near the end of the Heian period.

When is it held?

At night, and usually in summer, when school clubs and camps have time for it. The old tale sets its night visit at three in the morning.

Who organises it?

School clubs or summer camps may oversee it, preparing the tasks in advance, while other members take the role of scaring the participants as they go through.

Can it break the law?

It can, if badly handled. Japan's Penal Code covers trespassing under Article 130, vandalism under Article 261, and intimidation or coercion of unwilling participants under Articles 222 and 223.

Good reading and sources

Where this page comes from

The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Kimodameshi", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). EveryJaadu rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.

It may contain mistakes. Names and customs differ from one community to the next, and some knowledge is closed to outsiders and left out here. This page describes belief and practice. It does not say that any of it works, it is not a how-to, and it is not medical advice. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-20.

Kimodameshi