urban legends

Kashima Reiko

Kashima Reiko is the ghost of a woman from Japan. Poor Kashima Reiko was attacked by a group of men who beat her and abused her, then left her to die. No one knows who these men were or why they would do such a horrible thing, but the important part is what happens next. Also, some versions of the story say that she was left in a bathroom to die, which makes sense as bathrooms became her choice place to haunt.

Anyway, Kashima Reiko didn’t die there. She started to crawl around, screaming for help. But no one was around to hear her cries. Searching for aid, she managed to crawl around for quite some time. Unfortunately, she didn’t find any help at all, and then she proceeded to pass out on top of some railroad tracks belonging to the Meishin Expressway. Eventually a train came along and ran over her, cutting her in half at the waist, and killing her.

As with many Japanese ghost tales, she was abused, died in agony, and became a vengeful spirit. Ever since that night, Kashima Reiko’s malevolent ghost has wandered the world in search of her missing legs. She is most often reportedly encountered in school bathrooms, but she might also appear in your very own bathroom at home. Are you regretting reading this story yet?

What to Do if You Meet Her

So what happens when Kashima Reiko shows up? Does she just scare you? Kill you? Maim you? Well, if she does show up – you do have a chance to survive if you answer her questions correctly. At least according to legend anyway.

Should you encounter her in your friendly neighborhood bathroom, this is what goes down. Upon entering the bathroom, Kashima Reiko will show up, scare the poop out of you (you are in a bathroom after all), and ask you some questions. If you cannot answer her questions correctly, she will tear off your legs.

If she asks you “Where are my legs?”, you should answer with “On the Meishin Expressway”.

If she asks “Who told you that?”, you should reply “Kashima Reiko told me”.

Sometimes she’ll ask other questions too, like “Do you know my name?”. The name you should tell her is “Mask Death Demon”. Ka-shi-ma equates to ka (kamen/mask), shi (shinin/dead person), ma (ma/demon), so that’s how that works out.