Strange Humanoids of Kyoto: Eyewitnesses Report “White Aliens” and a Bizarre Creature from Japanese Folklore

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While most famous alien encounters seem to happen overseas, Japan has its own share of chilling and bizarre sightings. The ancient city of Kyoto, known for its serene temples and rich history, has recently become the backdrop for a series of unsettling encounters with strange, humanoid entities. From snow-white beings leaping over shrine walls to a creature straight out of centuries-old folklore, something otherworldly appears to be lurking in the shadows of Japan’s old capital.

Case #1: The “Snow-White Alien” at a Kyoto Shrine

The first account comes directly from the archives of the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON), filed under case number 93805. The incident occurred late at night on March 11, 2018. The witness, believed to be a foreign tourist staying at a local Airbnb, was walking through the grounds of a shrine around 11:40 PM.

As they crossed a courtyard, a humanoid figure suddenly vaulted over a wall just 30 to 50 feet (9-15 meters) away. The witness described a being that was 3 to 4 feet (0.9-1.2 meters) tall with skin as white as snow. It had thin, emaciated limbs, large, black, triangular eyes, and pointed ears. This was clearly not a human child.

The creature, accompanied by another of its kind, darted around the corner of a building. When the startled witness followed, one of the beings turned back, making direct eye contact before disappearing again. Terrified, the witness abandoned the chase. Curiously, they noted that the shrine’s security alarms never went off.

Case #2: The “Shirime” Yokai Encounter

A second, even stranger report surfaced on the cryptozoology news site, Cryptozoology News. The witness was Toriki Watanabe, a 36-year-old English teacher from Tokyo. On November 30, 2015, while driving to Kyoto for a wedding, Watanabe pulled over for a break on the outskirts of the city.

At around 10:00 PM, while smoking a cigarette in front of a small roadside shop, he noticed a humanoid figure about 60 meters away in the woods. This creature was approximately 1.8 meters (6 feet) tall, with grayish skin and a muscular, unclothed body. It was hunched over, dragging its feet as it walked. Its face was obscured by trees.

The being moved in a distinctly non-human way and did not react when Watanabe called out to it. After about 40 seconds, it vanished into the forest.

Watanabe believes he may have encountered a yokai—a class of supernatural spirits and monsters from Japanese folklore. Specifically, he thinks it was the Shirime (尻目), which literally translates to “buttocks eye.” This bizarre entity, famously depicted in the 18th-century Buson Yokai Emaki scroll, is a faceless humanoid whose most prominent feature is a single, glowing eye located where its anus should be. According to legend, it once appeared in Kyoto, surprising a samurai by dropping its kimono to reveal its startling eye.

An Ancient City’s Modern Mysteries

Are these strange humanoids visiting aliens, undiscovered cryptids, or ancient yokai re-emerging in the modern world? Kyoto is a city where history and myth are woven into the very fabric of its streets. While tourists flock to see its beautiful temples and gardens, these recent eyewitness accounts suggest that something much older and stranger may be watching from the shadows. The ancient capital is keeping its secrets, leaving us to wonder what else might be hiding in plain sight.

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