Photos: (original)
​Source: ChatGTP)

1. The Legend of Jōren Falls & the Jorōgumo
 (伊豆・浄蓮の滝の女郎ぐも伝説)
Source(s): The まんが日本昔ばなし database — “浄蓮の滝の女郎ぐも” 
Also from local legends and blogs. 
The Tale (English Translation / Adaptation)
Once upon a time, in the region of Izu, there was a famous waterfall called Jōren Falls (浄蓮の滝), where a deep basin of water gathered after the drop. Locals believed that a Jorōgumo (女郎蜘蛛, spider spirit) dwelt in the depths of the falls.

One day, a woodcutter (樵, kikori) was passing through and paused by the waterfall to rest. He carried with him a hatchet (鉈, nata), which he accidentally dropped into the deep pool. He resolved to dive in and retrieve it.

As he plunged underwater and sought his lost axe, a beautiful woman appeared before him. She retrieved the axe and handed it back, saying:

“Take this, but you must never speak of what you saw here to anyone.”

The woodcutter, amazed, accepted the axe and surfaced. He promised to keep the matter secret.

Some time passed. One evening, during a village gathering, the woodcutter was overcome by drink and gossip, and he spoke of the strange encounter at the falls. No sooner had he done so than he fell into a deep, unnatural sleep, from which he never awoke.


In another version of the tale, a woodcutter rests by the base of the falls and dozes. He sees a large, beautiful Jorōgumo wrapping his muddy foot in spider silk, thinking it is a branch. He gently unwinds the thread and transfers it to a tree stump where he was sitting. Then he resumes work. But as he rises, the stump is yanked away — it is dragged into the deep water of the falls, and the man cries out in shock.

In still another telling, the woodcutter whispers the encounter to someone else, and as a result, he is drawn into the falls, never to return.

Thus the legend warns: do not reveal what you see in the domain of the Jorōgumo — for to speak is to invite one’s doom. The locals thereafter regarded the vicinity of the waterfall with caution. 


Interpretation & Notes

• The theme of “don’t tell what you see” is common in many folklore types, especially in tales of encounters with supernatural beings; breaking the taboo invites the curse.
• The use of web/spider silk binding is symbolic: the spider seeks to entangle the human, but the human may trick the spider (by shifting the web to a substitute).
• The beautiful woman and spider-spirit duality expresses the motif of hidden danger behind beauty.
• The waterfalls, deep pools, and remote settings intensify the isolation of the victim.
• In local tourist spots near Jōren Falls, you can still see signboards referencing “女郎蜘蛛伝説.”  

2. Spider Woman (蜘蛛女)
 — Tōhoku / Iwate Variant
Source(s): Minwanoheya (Iwate folk tale) “蜘蛛女” 
Also Manga Nihon Mukashibanashi “蜘蛛女”
The Tale (English Translation / Adaptation) by
Once there lived a peddler (行商, gyōshō) who carried small wares and goods from village to village. Inside his pack, unbeknownst to him, a female spider (女郎蜘蛛, jorōgumo) had settled.

One day, as he traversed a mountain pass in the rain, a storm overtook him. He sought shelter and stumbled upon a deserted old temple (古寺), where he decided to rest for the night.

As night fell, a mysterious woman appeared at the temple. She offered to perform for him on a shamisen (三味線, a stringed instrument). He accepted, and she played a beautiful melody. Entranced by the music, he did not notice strange webs gradually weaving around him.

At some point, the traveler realized too late: the woman was not human but a spider in disguise. Threads wrapped around his limbs, pulling him toward a deadly end. He struggled, but the webs were strong.

According to some variants, a brave priest or heroic figure intervenes and severs the strands, revealing the spider’s true form, and the traveler escapes. In other versions, he survives by his own wits, cutting free and fleeing into the night, never to look back.

This tale emphasizes the deceptive beauty and malicious intent of the spider spirit, using music and the guise of hospitality to ensnare its victim. 


3. “Kuwayu Nyōbō / 食わず女房” (Variant of Monster Bride / Spider Bride Motif)
Though not always explicitly about Jorōgumo, some 食わず女房 (kuwazu nyōbō, the “wife who doesn’t eat”) tales include transformations that echo spider or monster-bride motifs.

Source(s): Wikipedia entry on 食わず女房 
Also in the Yōkai Database: cases where women are revealed as spiders when “defeated.” 

The Tale (English Summary)
A man marries a strange woman who claims she never needs to eat. Though odd, the man accepts her. But when he is away, he notices that meals vanish, or there is noise and movement in the home. Curious, he returns secretly and sees something horrifying: the wife, in her human guise, opens a mouth in her hair or elsewhere and devours food (or people). When confronted, she reveals her monstrous self — sometimes a spider-like creature — and flees or is driven off.

In some versions recorded in yōkai databases, when the monster is driven away, it reverts to a spider. 

This story motif overlaps with the Jorōgumo theme: supernatural woman, disguise, hidden appetite, transformation.

4. Classical Yōkai Collections: 
Gazu Hyakki Yagyō
 / Tonoigusa
 / Taihei Hyakumonogatari
Beyond these folk tales, Jorōgumo appears in classical collections of yōkai/kaidan:

• In Gazu Hyakki Yagyō by Toriyama Sekien, 絡新婦 (jōrōgumo) is pictured as a spider-woman commanding smaller fire-breathing spiders.  
• In Edo-period kaidan compilations (like Taihei Hyakumonogatari), there is a story “Magoroku deceived by a Jorōgumo”: Magoroku is approached by a youthful woman who invites him to court and marriage; upon fleeing, he returns and finds a small jorōgumo web near the eaves of his home, implying he had been ensnared.  
• In Tonoigusa, a young warrior is visited by a woman claiming to be his mother; when he refuses her advances, he wounds the creature, it flees to the attic, and next day they discover a dead spider and many victims it had devoured.  

These narratives reinforce the motif: a young man tempted by a lot woman, who is in truth a spider yōkai, then exorcised or slain.