Legends of Japan Read online

  Legends of Japan

  Representatives

  For Continental Europe:

  BOXERBOOKS, INC., Zurich

  For the British Isles:

  PRENTICE-HALL INTERNATIONAL, INC., London

  For Australasia:

  PAUL FLESCH & CO., PTY. LTD., Melbourne

  For Canada:

  M. G. HURTIG, LTD., Edmonton

  These legends are printed with permission of the Mainichi

  Daily News, in which they previously appeared.

  Published by the Charles E. Tuttle Company, Inc

  of Rutland, Vermont & Tokyo, Japan

  with editorial office at Osaki Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 141-0032

  © 1972 by Charles E. Tuttle Co., Inc.

  All rights reserved

  Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 73-188013

  ISBN: 978-1-4629-0772-4 (ebook)

  First printing, 1972

  Printed in Japan

  Table of Contents

  INTRODUCTION 7

  1. The fishermen's battle 11

  2. Wrestling a serpent 17

  3. The lost chance 21

  4. The reed-mower and the lady 25

  5. The iron hat 29

  6. The demon's spittle 32

  7. A piece of straw 37

  8. The hunter's trick 43

  9. No melon to spare 48

  10. A water sprite 52

  11. The ogre's horses 56

  12. The dragon king's palace 62

  13. The bishop's kick 66

  14. The long-nosed goblins 69

  15. Bewitched by a boar 74

  16. A cat-hater 80

  17. The flying water jars 85

  18. Grave of the chopstick 89

  19. The bell thieves 93

  20. The monkey's gratitude 98

  21, The lost dinner 103

  22. Reunion with death 106

  Introduction

  MOST OF THE stories contained in this book take their material from Konjaku Monogatari (Tales, Ancient and Modern) written in the Heian period (794-1185), one of the classical literary masterpieces of Japan, as valued as the works of Shakespeare and Goethe. Unfortunately, however, Konjaku Monogatari is less known to foreign readers than the famous Genji Monogatari (The Tale of Genji) and Makura no Soshi (The Pillow Book), though they were written in the same period. Even among Japanese readers, this work has been hitherto less popular than the latter two, because it was not written in their accomplished style, and in addition it did not deal with such enthralling subjects as gorgeous court life or high society of the day. Konjaku Monogatari is composed of thirty-one volumes presenting Japanese, Chinese, and Indian legendary tales, each tale beginning with the familiar phrase "Long, long ago."

  The stories range from Buddhist moral tales to humorous anecdotes and fairy tales. A great variety of characters appear in this legendary literature, such as Buddha himself, Shinto deities, noblemen and common people, and even goblins and animals, who act humorously, cruelly, or erotically in the stories. They all live in a world of disorder. The Japanese heroes and heroines live in the chaotic years of the late Heian period, when the nobleman-ruled social structure was being supplanted by the newly budding medieval feudal system. With national police no longer able to exercise authority in the provinces or in the capital, both the nobility and the masses struggled helplessly, their life and property threatened by bands of robbers day and night. In such a state of utter confusion, only the wicked could successfully seize an opportunity to survive, their consciences already paralyzed by evil influences. The honest and weak had no recourse but struggle in the abyss, madly seeking some miserable means of staying alive. Some could protect themselves from danger by using force, by exercising intellect, or by asking the help of merciful Buddha, and some others met a tragic end.

  "... for several years, Kyoto had been visited by a series of calamities—earthquake, typhoon, great fire, and famine. And so the capital was deserted. Old records say that shattered wooden images of Buddha or the accessories of household Buddhist shrines, with red lacquer, gold, or silver leaf still sticking to them, were piled up on the roadside and sold for firewood. The whole capital being in such a state, there was, of course, no one who took the least interest in the repair of the decayed Gate of Rashomon. Profiting by the devastation, foxes and other wild animals came to inhabit the gate. Thieves made it their den. Finally it even became customary for people to bring unclaimed corpses to this gate and leave them there. Scared by its ghostliness, the people of Kyoto would not come near the gate after sunset."

  Thus a dark picture of the destitute people in the decaying capital was painted by Ryunosuke Akutagawa (1892-1927), a literary genius, in his work Rashomon, which took its material from stories contained in Konjaku Monogatari. The screenplay for the world-famed Japanese film Rashomon was based on a mixture of his two stories, Rashomon and In a Bamboo Grove.

  Konjaku Monogatari was written with an excellent realistic touch and therefore is highly valued as the first example of realism in Japanese prose literature. Though of unknown authorship, it is said to have been written by a court noble named Minamoto Takakuni (1004-1077), or rewritten later using his Uji Dainagon Monogatari (The Tales of Uji Dainagon) as the original.

  Two of the stories, "The Iron Hat" and "The Lost Dinner," are from a second source, Tsurezure Gusa (Jottings of a Hermit), one of the master-works written in the era of military dictatorhip at Kamakura (1192-1333). It was written by the monk Kenko (1283-1350) around 1330. Popularly called Kenko Hoshi, the monk was of noble birth and versed in Japanese and Chinese classics. He was also a renowned waka composer of his time. Tsurezure Gusa contains 243 tales, each different in length and indicative of his philosophy. They can be divided into three categories—lessons on life, culture, and miscellaneous observations.

  These stories, and illustrations by Masahiko Nishino, were selected from a series originally published in the Mainichi Daily Mews.

  —HIROSHI NAITO

  1. The fishermen's battle

  LONG, LONG AGO, in the province of Kaga (now Ishikawa Prefecture), there lived a group of seven fishermen who always carried weapons of war, such as bows and arrows, as they went fishing.

  One day they went out in a boat, as usual. While they were fishing at sea, black clouds suddenly covered the whole sky and the wind began blowing in violent gusts.

  "A storm is coming!"

  "Let us return to the shore at once."

  They immediately stopped fishing and tried to row their boat with all their strength back to the shore. The wind blew harder and the boat was tossed about by angry waves. All the fishermen felt miserable. They soon found their boat was drifting toward the open sea. Gripping the edge of the boat in order not to be thrown out into the sea, they prayed to Holy Buddha for their safety.

  As the storm blew over, the seven men did not know how long they had been adrift. They suddenly sighted an island out on the horizon. "Land!" they cried delightedly, and tried to row their boat toward the island. Strangely, the boat automatically began running toward it as if it were attracted by a magnet. It was not long before their boat reached the island. The fishermen landed on the shore and congratulated one another on their safety.

  "What is the name of this island?"

  "I have never heard of this island."

  "Hey, look! There are many trees heavy with fruit over there."

  Though they felt relieved to reach the island, they soon felt uneasy about it. Just then, a good-looking young man suddenly appeared from nowhere and addressed them: "Welcome to you all. I have been expecting your arrival. To tell the truth, it is I who have called you to this island." The fishermen could not understand what the young man had said, so they just stared at one anot
her. One of them said that while fishing, they were overtaken by a storm which blew them to the island. Then the young man said it was he who had caused the storm to blow. At that, the fishermen imagined that he must have been more than an ordinary person, and looked at him nervously.

  The young man cried something in the direction from which he had come, and the next instant there appeared many men carrying a chest. As the fishermen opened the chest, they found in it a sumptuous meal which the young man offered to them. Since the fishermen were very hungry, they gratefully ate it all.

  Then the young man said, "Now, I want to ask a big favor of you. There is another island far away from here. The king of that island has tried to kill me many times because he wants to take this island from me. Tomorrow he will come again to fight our decisive battle. So, I have called you here to ask for your help."

  The fishermen felt very interested in his story and promised that they would be glad to help him win a victory.

  "How many men will come with him?"

  "Oh, they are not human beings. I am not a human being either. You will find out what I am tomorrow."

  The fishermen felt very uneasy about the young man.

  He said, "Now, let us work out our fighting plan. When they appear, let them come ashore. Then I will come down from a hill beyond. As I fight the enemy king, I will give you a signal. Then you should immediately shower all your arrows on him. Since my enemy is a strong fighter, please be careful." He added that the battle would start at noon and that they should take their positions on a huge rock near the beach. With that, the young man disappeared into a wood beyond.

  The next morning the fishermen took their positions on the rock, as told. In the meantime, black clouds covered the sky, and a strong wind began blowing, and mountainous waves came dashing ashore. They thought the battle would start soon. All of a sudden they saw a couple of big fireballs appear above the horizon, and the next moment these balls began approaching the island. Something was swimming toward them. They soon found it to be a very big centipede about 100 feet long. The fireballs were his sparkling eyes!

  Just then, the fishermen heard the grass rustle on the hill beyond, and they saw an enormous serpent come down to the beach.

  After glaring at each other for a moment, the animals started a fierce battle, biting each other's bodies. They fought for nearly four hours. As the centipede's feet gave him an advantage, he finally held the serpent down on the ground. The fishermen, who were awaiting the serpent's signal, feared that he would be bitten to death. The serpent soon gave them a "help me" sign, so they showered all the arrows on the victorious centipede, who, though wounded, would not release the serpent. Thereupon the seven fighters assaulted the centipede with their swords, severing all the feet from his body and cutting the body to pieces. Thus the enemy king was killed. Meanwhile, the serpent disappeared from the battleground. The fishermen found their kimonos soaked with the monstrous centipede's blood. After a while, the young man came limping toward them. He looked very tired and on his face were many cuts. He thanked them for their help and burned the centipede's body on the beach.

  The young man invited them to live on the fertile island, which produced abundant fruit. It was indeed an attractive invitation, but as the fishermen had left their families in their province, they could not accept it at once. Then the man urged them to bring their families to the island.

  "It is really a good invitation. But we don't know how to bring our families here," they said.

  "Oh, it is an easy thing to do. I will blow your boat to your country. When you wish to return to this island, you should pray to the Kumata Shrine for assistance and the deity will blow your boat hither. The shrine is dedicated to my brother," said the serpent-man.

  So the fishermen decided to bring their families to the island, and immediately set sail for their country, bidding a temporary farewell to the man. As he had said, their boat was blown by a favorable wind and soon reached the shore of Kaga Province. Their families, which had been worried about them, were very happy to meet them again. The fishermen told them the story, and their families agreed to move to the island. Their neighbors also wished to go with them. One night they sailed from their country in seven boats. As they had prayed to the Kumata Shrine for assistance, the boats were blown by a divine wind and glided over the surface of the sea as swiftly as flying arrows. Soon they reached the island.

  Later the settlers named their island "Nekojima" (Gat's Island) and lived their long, happy lives there.

  2. Wrestling a serpent

  A LONG TIME ago, in the province of Tango, now the northern part of Kyoto Prefecture, there lived a sumo wrestler of great strength, named Tsuneyo.

  Near his house, there was an old marsh. It was not a big marsh, but it was so fathomlessly deep that its bed had never once dried up, even in a long spell of dry weather. Its surface was as smooth as a mirror, and its water very stagnant.

  One summer evening, Tsuneyo came out to the edge of this marsh for a stroll. When standing by a big tree, he saw floating weeds before him sway, though there was not even a puff of wind. All of a sudden, the water swelled, and the next moment the head of a huge serpent appeared. An ordinary person would certainly have been paralyzed with terror at such a sight, but Tsuneyo was so stout-hearted that he calmly gazed at it. The serpent also stared at him, shooting out its red tongue and waving it up and down. For a while, they continued this staring match. Then, the serpent turned its head and began to swim across the marsh toward the other side. It was indeed a very horrible sight to see the monstrous serpent swim off, zigzagging its body, which was as thick as the trunk of a big tree. Since the marsh was not very wide, the tail of the serpent remained on the near side even though its head had reached the other.

  Suddenly the creature flung its tail out of the water and extended its end toward the wrestler. The next instant, the monster began to wind its tail around the wrestler's left leg.

  "Gosh, this will be fun!" Tsuneyo muttered, deliberately letting the serpent do what it pleased. The serpent coiled its tail around his leg, from ankle up to knee, and then began to pull him with great force.

  "Well, she is going to drag me into the marsh!" he said to himself. He stood firm on the ground by stretching his legs and the serpent continued to pull him. In rivalry with the monster, Tsuneyo stood stauncher than ever before. The serpent with more strength drew the wrestler inch by inch, but the next moment the wrestler pulled back the distance he had lost.

  Thus they desperately continued to pull each other for half an hour, when the wrestler's clog straps suddenly snapped. Well, that was the worst possible thing that could have happened!

  The wrestler, with his steady posture giving way, was quickly drawn about two or three feet toward the edge of the marsh. But he lost no time taking off the broken clogs to get a steadier footing. His feet gradually rooted into the soil as much as six inches. Another half an hour passed.

  When the serpent tried to draw the wrestler with her utmost strength, her tail suddenly snapped off like a straw rope. At that, the wrestler fell on his buttocks with the force of his effort, because he had thrown all the strength of his body into his legs.

  "Oh, what a strong monster she is!" he exclaimed. After a while, his pupils came to gather around him. "What's happened, sir?" they asked.

  "Nothing. I've just had a contest of strength with a huge serpent. You should have seen it, boys," Tsuneyo laughingly replied.

  "Sir, your left leg..." one of them cried, pointing to Tsuneyo's leg. Tsuneyo looked down and found his leg clearly marked with a spiral line. It was the trace of the serpent's coiled tail. There were even some bloodstains on the skin. But the wrestler was as calm as if he knew nothing about what had happened to him.

  "The tail of the monster must be around here. You all look for it," he ordered. The pupils searched all over the place and found it in the bushes close by. Its length was well over six feet and its opening was as wide as one foot. It was bluish black and
greasy, and presented a forbidding appearance. All the pupils were astonished at the size of the tail.

  One day, local citizens who had heard the story asked Tsuneyo how strong the serpent was. Thereupon he had his left leg wound round by a thick rope and let a group of ten men pull it hard. The people asked whether the pullers' strength corresponded to that of the serpent. The wrestler, however, said more men were needed. The people therefore added new hands five by five, and finally the total number of the rope-pullers amounted to sixty. Now the wrestler said flatly that the serpent's strength was as great as that. But, since he had won the contest, his strength was apparently greater than that of the monster. The people thought that Tsuneyo's power must have equalled the strength of at least one hundred men.

  3. The lost chance

  LONG, LONG AGO, there lived in Kyoto a Buddhist priest who could use magic. For example, he could, with a yell, turn a worn-out straw sandal into a puppy, or he could plunge into the stomach of a horse and come out laughing.

  Next door to his temple, there lived a young man who was very envious of the priest's magical power and anxious to learn it. He often asked the priest to teach him this magic, but the priest just smiled off his request. Nevertheless, the young man was too zealous to give up his desire. At last the priest yielded to his entreaties and said, "All right, I will teach you the magic. But in learning it, you have to do several things. First of all, starting today you must purify yourself for a week. Then, make a pail and fill it with red boiled rice. After that, you..." the priest, suspiciously looking about, whispered in the young man's ear, "come with me. I will take you to my old teacher of magic."

  Now, the young man was very happy. He immediately set to work, purifying himself, making a wooden pail, and filling it with red boiled rice. The day at last came when he was to be taken to the teacher of magic. The priest came by his house, and said, "You must not carry cutlery with you. Its possession is prohibited in learning magic. If you should carry even a small edged tool, your earnest hope would be shattered. Remember that."