vi. Minatoya's Child-Rearing Ghost Candy Shop, or "みなとや幽霊子育飴本舗" (みなとやゆうれいこそだてあめほんぽ)

Location: Higashiyama Ward (near Kiyomizu-Gojo Stn., Keihan Line), Kyoto City; about 60 min. from Osaka or about 10-15 min. from Kyoto + 8 min. walking time

Associated with: A type of yurei known as a child-rearing ghost

There are many graveyards in the vicinity of Higashiyama, but not far from Rokudo Chinno-ji temple there is a confectionery store that has stood for centuries. Sometime in 1599, a woman began to appear each night to buy candy. After a time the shop owner suspected something was amiss when he discovered leaves in the coin box (an old shapeshifter trick). Thinking a fox may be duping him, he decided to follow the woman. Her moonlit form led him through the alleys and into a graveyard, where he lost sight of her. He was just about to leave when he noticed a movement out of the corner of his eye. Amidst the decaying corpses was a newborn baby; it's tiny writhing form lying alongside the body of a recently deceased woman. Dumbfounded, he took the baby home to raise him, and the ghostly woman never appeared again. The supernatural tale of the mother keeping her child alive spread and the shop's wares became known as "child-rearing ghost candy" (as in, the candy of ghosts who raise children).

That's weird enough, but the candy has a rep for being lucky if you're seeking a promotion. It just so happens that the baby grew up to be a great Buddhist monk. I suppose going from a baby left for dead to adopted son of a candy shop owner to a great monk is a promotion of sorts. 

Comments: This stretch along the Higashiyama Mountain Range is a must-see for anybody who has even one day in Kyoto, and the area here east of Kiyomizu-Gojo Stn. is in the thick of some of the best sites to be had. The granddaddy of them all is of course Kiyomizudera, and Minatoya's Child-Rearing Ghost Candy Shop is a relatively minor detour on the way to or from the temple. 

Getting There

The starting point on the Midosuji subway line is Yodoyabashi Stn. Our destination is Kiyomizu-Gojo Stn. on the Keihan Line. 

Subway Yodoyabashi Stn. is one stop south of Umeda. At the north end of subway Yodoyabashi Stn. you'll find the Keihan Line. From Yodoyabashi, the Keihan Main Line runs all the way into Kyoto. To get to Kiyomizu-Gojo, you can jump on the fastest service there is: the Limited Express. If your hotel is in the Kyobashi area or anywhere near Osaka Castle Park, then I recommend you make your way to Kyobashi and commence your journey from Kyobashi Stn. (Keihan Line).

From JR Kyoto Stn. you can take the JR Nara line and go one stop to Tofukuji, where there is an adjacent Keihan station. You can also walk from Kyoto Stn. to Shichijo Stn. in about 15 minutes and take the train one stop up from there.

Getting Your Bearings at Kiyomizu-Gojo Station

At Kiyomizu-Gojo, come out at Exit 5. This will have you facing north. Walk along in the same direction and take the first right, following the map below. Note that the main drag to Kiyomizudera is better accessed from Exit 4.

Map courtesy of Google Maps

Image courtesy of Google Maps

Information on Minatoya's Child-Rearing Ghost Candy Shop

The shop is open from 10:00 until 16:00, closed on Mondays unless Monday is a national holiday, in which case the shop will close on the following weekday. Keep in mind that sometimes Japan has national holidays strung together, so if it happens that Monday and Tuesday are national holidays, then the shop would close on Wednesday (for example).


Driver Gragma (yokaitourbus "at" mail "dot" com)

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The Master List (Kyoto)
http://yokaitourbus.blogspot.jp/2015/08/6-c-master-list-kyoto.html

(yurei) Child-Rearing Ghost or Kosodate-Yurei (子育て幽霊)
Site: Minatoya's Child-Rearing Ghost Candy Shop (みなとや幽霊子育飴本舗)
Nearest Station: (Keihan Line) Kiyomizu-Gojo Stn. (清水五条駅)
Google Map Search: "みなとや幽霊子育飴本舗" <-- A search for the Japanese will bring up the location.