{"podcast":{"title":"Uncanny Japan","slug":"uncanny-japan-53805","podcast_index_feed_id":53805,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/uncannyjapan","website_url":"https://www.uncannyjapan.com/","image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/ce789110-6ed9-11f0-8407-37934f626e58/image/292cdc40479dd2ca3b3f4c150781b3ba.jpg?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"SpectreVision Radio","episode_count":198,"summary":"Uncanny Japan is a podcast about all the more obscure corners of old Japan, from strange superstitions, cultural curiosities, to creepy creatures. Here you can discover all the lesser known gems that author Thersa Matsuura digs up while doing research for her writing. Every episode is uniquely soothing, brought to life by immersive sound design or relaxing binaural soundscapes (ocean waves, autumn crickets, rice field frogs) all recorded right here in Japan. Thersa Matsuura is a writer, folklorist, and graduate of the Clarion West workshop. Drawing on her over thirty-five years of living in Japan, she is the author of The Book of Japanese Folklore. Her horror short story collection (The Carp-Faced Boy and Other Tales) was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award. Her forthcoming works include the Yokai Oracle Deck (Fall, 2025) and Legends of Japanese Mythology (Eyes Wide Editions, 2026). SpectreVision Radio is a bespoke podcast network at the intersection between the arts and the uncanny, featuring a tapestry of shows exploring the anomalous, the luminous, and the numinous. We’re a community for creators and fans vibrating around common curiosities, shared interests and persistent passio…","last_synced_at":"2026-07-08T00:17:59.449469+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/uncanny-japan-53805"},"episode":{"title":"Osechi: Japanese New Year Food Traditions (Ep. 184)","slug":"osechi-japanese-new-year-food-traditions-ep-184","published_at":"2025-12-09T13:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/uncanny-japan-53805/osechi-japanese-new-year-food-traditions-ep-184","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/uncanny-japan-53805","url":"https://uncannyjapan.com/podcast/osechi-japanese-new-year-food-traditions/","audio_url":"https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/PHTE3462211460.mp3?updated=1765303391","summary":"What if the meal sitting in those beautiful lacquered boxes held messages from the gods? In Japan, osechi-ryōri isn't just New Year's food—it's a sacred offering. Each dish carries specific wishes: black beans for health, herring roe for prosperity, lotus root for clear vision into the future. Families prepare them before midnight, then rest for three days while Toshigami-sama, the deity of the coming year, visits every home. But why can't you use knives during the first three days? What happens to the kitchen god? And why do martial arts schools break open mirror-shaped mochi in January? Thersa shares her in-laws' traditions of food exchanges, the evolution from handmade to convenience store osechi, and the deeper spiritual layers beneath each symbolic dish. This episode of Uncanny Japan is brought to you by Spectrevision Radio, a podcast network of creators and entertainers with a love for horror, the paranormal, and championing the \"other.\" Check out the rest of the podcasts at www.spectrevisionradio.com. [Please Note: Some of the links are affiliate links (both Amazon and other). This means that at no cost to you, if you use and purchase through them I receive a small compensation. This is paid by the retailer. It also helps support me and my artistic endeavors. Thank you.] Follow Uncanny Japan Patreon Uncanny Japan Website Thersa Matsuura Website Books on Amazon YouTube Facebook Instagram Buy Me a Coffee (one-time contribution) Subscribe on Spotify Subscribe on Apple Podcasts Credits Music by Julyan Ray Matsuura About SpectreVision Radio SpectreVision Radio is a bespoke podcast network at the intersection between the arts and the uncanny, featuring a tapestry of shows exploring creativity, the esoteric, and the unknown. We're a community for creators and fans vibr…","meta_description":"What if the meal sitting in those beautiful lacquered boxes held messages from the gods? In Japan, osechi-ryōri isn't just New Year's food—it's a sacred o…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1583,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/uncanny-japan-53805/episodes/osechi-japanese-new-year-food-traditions-ep-184/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/uncanny-japan-53805/osechi-japanese-new-year-food-traditions-ep-184.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}