大化け (obake: big changing in the literal meaning): it's often the case that obake generally means phenomena whose size and effect have increased; Ancient Shinto, which is connected with Japanese folk belief, has a concept of value by which it is thought that the higher ranking divine spirits reside in bigger things, such as himorogi (temporarily erected sacred space or "altar" used as a locus of worship) and iwakura (dwelling place of a god, usually in reference to a large rock): a tree which has grown to a greater extent than others or a rock which is larger than others can be a house of (bakeru [change to]) the divine spirit.
お化けには、大化けという表現があるように、総じて大きさや効果が増大する現象をいう場合が多いが、日本の民間信仰でもある古神道も、同様の価値観があり、大きいものほど宿る神霊の位が高いとする価値観があり、巨木や巨石を信仰するものとして、神籬（ひもろぎ）・磐座（いわくら）があり、大きく成長した木または、通常より大きい岩に神が宿る（化ける）とされる。