REFERENCE

0190594^
.VPUBUCUBBARV

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3 3333 01 196 4901

OLD-WORLD JAPAN

Old-World Japan
Legends of the Land of the Gods * * Re-told by Frank
Rinder
*

With

Illustrations

by T. H. Robinson

IS.

The

spirit

of Japan

is

as

the

fragrance of the wild cherryia/ ID,' 'tfee!'' idawn of the

'

'

rsng
t

Vi

sun,
>
i
.

London: George Allen

156 Charing Cross Road
1895

TIE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY

^0

ASTOR LENOX AND TILDEN FOUNDATIONS

. ,

Printed by Ballantyne,

Hanson

&

Co.

At

the Ballantyne Press

Preface
TTISTORY
Japanese
within
life

and mythology,

fact

and

fable,

are closely interwoven in the texture of

and

thought
recent

indeed,

it

is

relatively

years

only

that
able,

exact

comparative

criticism

has

been

with some degree of accuracy, to divide the one from the other. The accounts of the

God-period .contain^
in

the

Kojiki

and

the Nihongj^-T '^RecQids of Ancient Matters"

compiled,
Christian

'the,"

eighth
:

century
outline the

of

the

eia'

profess

to

events

of
of

the

vast

cycles

of years

from the time

birth
in

Ame-no-mi-naka-nushi-no-kami's
Plain

the

of

High
and

Heaven,
like

''when
floating

the
oil,

earth,

young

unto

drifted

about medusa-like," to the death of

A.D.

the

Empress Suiko,

628.

PREFACE
The
first

six

tales

in

this

little

volume

are founded on

some of the most

this

significant

and picturesque incidents of

God-period.

The opening
deities,

legend

gives a
of the

brief relation

of the birth of several

great

Shinto
of the

of the creation of Japan and

world, of the Orpheus-like descent of Izanagi

to

Hades, and of his subsequent demons.

fight with the

That Chinese

civilisation

has

exercised

profound influence on that of Japan, cannot be doubted. A scholar of repute has indicated
that
in

evidence of
so

this

is

to

be found

even

Kojiki and the a single^ instance only: Nihongi. give the curved jewels, of -which Ih'-a remarkable
writings
early as
^ f r
'

the

To

'

necklace of Ama-terasu was made, have never

been found
not

in

Japan, whereas .the stones are

in

uncommon
is

China!.

This
sider the
folk-tale

not

the

place

critically

to

con-

wealth of myth, legend,

to

fable,

and

be

found
literature,

scattered

througho

out
in

Japanese
Japanese
the

and
it

represented
to
say,

art

suffice

that

to

student

and

the
VI

lover

of

primitive

PREFACE
romance, there are here vast
unexplored.
fields practically

The
been

tales

contained
with

in

this

volume have

selected

view rather to their

beauty and charm of incident and colour, than with the aim to represent adequately
the

many-sided
those

subject

Moreover,

only

Japanese lore. have been chosen

of

which are not familiar to the English-reading public.

Several

of

the

classic

names

of Japan have been interpolated in the text. It remains to say that, in order not to

weary the reader,

to

it

has been found necessary

abbreviate

the

many-syllabled

Japanese

names.

The
are too
fessor

sources

from

which

have

drawn
Prointi-

numerous
Basil

to particularise.

To

Hall

Chamberlain,

whose

mate and scholarly knowledge of all matters Japanese is well known, my thanks are
especially due,

as also the expression of

to

my

indebtedness

other

writers

in

English,

from

Mr.

A.

B.

Mitford to

Mr.

Lafcadio

" Unfamiliar Japan" Hearn, whose volumes on

appeared

last

year.
Vll

The

careful

text

of

PREFACE
Dr.

David
Junker

Brauns,

and

the

studies

of F.

A.

von

of great

service.

Langegg, have also been The works of numerous

like-

Japanese art have wise been consulted with advantage.

French writers on

FRANK KINDER.

Vlll

Contents
PAGE

THE BIRTH-TIME OF THE GODS THE SUN-GODDESS THE HEAVENLY MESSENGERS

PRINCE RUDDY-PLENTY

15

25
35

THE PALACE OF THE OCEAN-BED

45
57

AUTUMN AND SPRING

THE STAR-LOVERS

67

THE ISLAND OF ETERNAL YOUTH

RAI-TARO, THE SON OF THE THUNDER-GOD

...
.

77
87

THE SOULS OF THE CHILDREN THE MOON-MAIDEN THE GREAT

FIR

97
103
.
.

TREE OF TAKASAGO

113
121

THE WILLOW OF MUKOCHIMA

THE CHILD OF THE FOREST

THE VISION OF TSUNU
PRINCESS FIRE- FLY

129
141
151

THE SPARROW'S WEDDING THE LOVE OF THE SNOW-WHITE FOX

NEDZUMI
.
.

161
.

-171 -l8l
,

KOMA AND GON

ix

189

List of Illustrations

" Heading to The Birth-Time of the Gods When he had so said, he plunged his jewelled
seething mass below

"...
spear into the
greatly when
.
.

PAGE 3

.......
"

Heading

to

"

The Sun-Goddess

17

Ama-terasu gased into

she

the mirror,

and wondered

saw
"

therein a goddess of exceeding beauty

.21
27

Heading
As
the

to

The Heavenly Messengers"

Princess Under-Shining, stood before

...
him
. .

Young Prince alighted on the sea-shore, a beautiful earth29

37
to the

spirit.

Heading
But
"

to

"

Prince Ruddy-Plenty
is it

"

the

fair Usume went fearlessly up

giant,

and said:
.

Who
to

that thus impedes our descent from heaven ?"

39
47
5 I

Heading

"The

Palace of the Ocean-Bed"

reflection of

...
for none found
. .

Suddenly she saw the

Prince Fire-Fade in the water

Heading
One

to

"

Autumn and Spring "

eyes
. .

59

after the other returned sorrowfully home,

favour in her

Heading
The

to

"

The
to

Star Lovers

"

.....
and tender messages
.

.63
69
71

lovers

were wont, standing on the banks of the

celestial
.

stream,

waft across

it

sweet

Heading

to

"The

Island of Eternal

Youth"

...
.
.

79
83

Soon he came

to its shores,

and landed as
xi

one in a dream

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
PAGE

Heading
The

to

"

Rai-Taro, the Son of the Thunder-God

"
.

89

birth of Rai-taro

93
"
.

Heading Heading
At
one

to

"

The

Souls of the Children

-99
105

to

"The Moon-Maiden"
the surface of the sea, the next her
.

moment she skimmed

tiny feet touched the topmost branches of the tall pine trees

109
115

Heading
Heading

to

"
"

The Great

Fir Tree of of

Takasago

"
.
.

to

The Willow

Mukochima "
.

.123
I3 1

Heading

to

"The
.

Child of the Forest"

Kintaro reigned as prince of

creature
. .

the forest, beloved of every living

1

35

Heading
On

to

"The

Vision of Tsunu"

143

a plot of mossy grass beyond the thicket, sat two maidens of

surpassing beauty

-147

Heading
But

to

"Princess Fire-Fly"
shall call

...
"Only
he

153

the Princess -whispered to herself,

who

loves

me
'55

more than

life

me bride"
"
. .

Heading Heading

to

"
"

The Sparrow's Wedding The Love

of the

.163
. .

to

Snow-White Fox"
to the

i?3
177

With two mighty

strokes, he felled his adversaries

"

ground

Heading
Heading

to

"
"

Nedzumi

...

.183
191

to

Koma and Gon "

The Birth-Time
of the Gods

DEFORE
created,

time

was, and while

yet the world

was unreigned.

chaos

The
the

earth and the waters,

light

and the darkness,

the

stars

and

the firmament, were intermingled in a vapoury

liquid.

All things

were formless and confused.

;

No

creature existed

phantom shapes moved

It

as clouds on the ruffled surface of a sea.

was the birth-time of the gods. The first deity sprang from an immense bulrush -bud,

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
which
rose,

spear-like,

in

the

midst of the

boundless disorder.

Other gods were born,

but three generations passed before the actual separation of the atmosphere from the more
solid

earth.

Finally,

where the

tip

of the

bulrush points upward, the Heavenly Spirits

appeared.

time their kingdom was divided from the lower world where chaos still prevailed.
this

From

To

the fourth pair of gods

create the earth.

was given to These two beings were the

it

powerful

God

of the Air, Izanagi, and the

fair

Goddess of the Clouds, Izanami.

sprang
all life.

From them

Now

Izanagi and Izanami wandered on the

Floating

Bridge

of

Heaven.

This

bridge

spanned the gulf between heaven and the unformed world

it
;

it

was upheld

in

the

air,

and

stood secure.

The God

of the Air spoke

to the

Goddess of the Clouds:

"There must

needs be a kingdom beneath us, let us visit it." When he had so said, he plunged his
jewelled spear into the seething mass below.

The
spear

drops that

fell

from the point of the

congealed

and

became the

island

of

When

he had so said, he plunged his jewelled spear into the seething mass below.

THE BIRTH -TIME OF THE GODS

Thereupon the Earth- Makers descended, and called up a high mountain peak, on whose summit could rest one end of the
Onogoro.

Heavenly Bridge, and around which the whole

world should revolve.

The Wisdom

of the

Heavenly

Spirit

had

decreed that Izanagi should be a man, and Izanami a woman, and these two deities decided to

wed and
befitted

dwell together on the earth.

their august
birth,

But, as

the wooing

must

be solemn.

Izanagi skirted the base

of the

mountain
left.

to the right,

Izanami turned to the

When
God

the Goddess of the Clouds saw

off,

the

of the Air approaching afar

she

cried,

enraptured:
'

"Ah,

what a

fair

and

lovely youth

what a

Izanagi exclaimed, "Ah, " and lovely maiden As they met, they clasped hands, and the marriage was ac!

Then

fair

complished.

But, for

some unknown

cause, the

union did not prove as happy as the god and goddess had hoped. They continued their work
of creation,

but Awaji,

the

island

that

rose

from the deep, was little more than a barren waste, and their first-born son, Hiruko, was a
weakling.

The

Earth- Makers placed him

7

in

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
a
little

boat woven

of reeds,

and

left

him

to the

mercy of wind and tide. In deep grief, Izanagi and Izanami recrossed

Floating Bridge, and came to the place where the Heavenly Spirits hold eternal audithe
ence.

From them

they learned that Izanagi

first

should

have been the

to

speak,

when

the gods met round the base of the Pillar of

Earth.

They must woo and wed anew.

Izanami to the
left

On
went

their return to earth, Izanagi, as before,

to

the right, and

"
:

of the

mountain, but now,

when they
what
a

met,

Izanagi

exclaimed

Ah,

fair

and lovely
responded,
"
!

maiden
"

' !

and

Izanami joyfully

and lovely youth They clasped hands once more, and their happiAh, what a
fair

began. islands of the

luxuriant

ness

They created the eight large Kingdom of Japan first the

;

Island of the Dragon-fly, the great

Yamato; then Tsukushi, the White-Sun Youth; lyo, the Lovely Princess, and many more.

The rocky

islets

of

the

archipelago

were

formed by the foam of the rolling breakers as they dashed on the coast-lines of the
islands already created.

Thus China and the

THE BIRTH-TIME OF THE CODS

remaining lands and continents of the world

came
the

into existence.

Now

were born

to

Izanagi
the

and
J

Izanami,

Ruler of the

Rivers,

Deitv of the
of the Trees,

Mountains, and,

later,

the

God

and a goddess

to

whom was

entrusted

the

care of tender plants and herbs.

Then
created

Izanagi and Izanami said

the

"We
trees

have

mighty

Kingdom
must

of the

Eight
;

Islands, with mountains, rivers,

and
be,

yet

another

divinity

there

who

shall

guard and

rule this fair world."

As
them.

they

spoke,

daughter was born to

dazzling,

and her regal bearing betokened that her throne should be set high above the clouds. She was none
other than Ama-terasu,

Her beauty was

The

Heaven-Illumi-

nating Spirit.
greatly

Izanagi and

when
"

they

Izanami rejoiced beheld her face, and

shall

exclaimed,
the

Our

daughter

dwell

in

Blue Plain of High Heaven, and from there she shall direct the universe." So
they led her to
tain,

the

summit of the moun-

and over the wondrous bridge. The Heavenly Spirits were joyful when they saw

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
Ama-terasu,
into the
shall
soft

and

said

"
:

You
sweet

shall

mount

blue of the sky, your brilliancy

illumine,

and

your
be

smile

shall

gladden, the Eternal Land, and

all

the world.

Fleecy

clouds

shall

your

handmaidens,

and sparkling dewdrops your messengers of

peace."

The
was a
the

next
son,

child

of

Izanagi
also

and Izanami
beautiful, with

and as he

was

dream-like

beauty of the evening, they

placed him in the heavens, as co-ruler with

his sister Ama-terasu.

His name was Tsuku-

The god Susa-no-o is yomi, the Moon-God. another son of the two deities who wooed
and wed around the base of the
Earth.
Pillar

of

Unlike

his

brother and

his

sister,

he was fond of the shadow and the gloom. When he wept, the grass on the mountainside

withered,

the

flowers

were
little

blighted,

and
this

men
son,

died.

Izanagi

had

joy

in

nevertheless he

made him

ruler of

the ocean.

Now
life

that the world

was

created, the

of the

God

of the Air and the

over.
10

happy Goddess

of the Clouds

was

The

consumer, the

THF: BIRTH-TIME

OF THE GODS
Izanami
died.

God

of

Fire,

was born, and

into

She vanished

the deep solitudes of the

Kingdom
Kii,

of

the

Trees,

in

the

and disappeared thence

country of into the lower

regons.
Izanagi was sorely troubled because Izanami

had been taken from him, and he descended

in pursuit of

her to the portals of the shadowy kingdom where sunshine is unknown. Izanami o
fain

would

have

left

that

place

to

rejoin
spirit

Izanagi on the beautiful earth.

Her

came

meet him, and in urgent and tender words besought him not to seek her in those
to

cavernous regions. not be warned.

But the bold god would

He

pressed

forward,

and,

by the light struck from his comb, he sought

for his loved

one long and earnestly. Grim forms rose to confront him, but he passed Sounds as of them by with kingly disdain.
the wailing of lost souls struck his ear, but
still

he persisted. After endless search, he found his Izanami lying in an attitude of untold despair, but so changed was she, that he gazed
intently into her eyes ere he could recognise
her.

Izanami was angry that Izanagi had not

1 1

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
listened to her
fruitless

commands,
his

for

she

knew how

would be

efforts.

Without the

sanction of the ruler of the under-world, she

could not return

to

earth,

and

this

consent

she had tried

in vain to obtain.

by the eight monsters who guard the Land of Gloom, had to flee for his life. He defended himself valiantly with
his

Izanagi, hard pressed

sword

then

he threw down
into

his

head-

dress,

and

it

was transformed
;

bunches of

purple grapes

he also cast behind him the

comb, by means of which he had obtained light, and from it sprang tender shoots of bamboo. While the monsters eagerly devoured
the luscious grapes and tender shoots, Izanagi

gained the broad flight of steps which led At the top he paused and back to earth.
cried to Izanami
is

"
:

All

now

at

an end.

hope of our reunion Our separation must be

eternal."

Stretching far beyond Izanagi lay the ocean,

and on

its

surface

was

reflected

the face of

his well-beloved

daughter, Ama-terasu.

She

seemed

to

speak, and beseech him to purify

himself in the great waters of the sea.

12

As

THE BIRTH-TIME OF THE GODS

he bathed, his wounds were healed, and a
sense of infinite peace stole over him.

The
done.
children,

life-work

of

the

Earth-Maker
world

was
his

He

bestowed

the

upon

and afterwards crossed,

of the Air

for the last

time,

the many-coloured

Bridge of Heaven.
his
in

The God
with
the

now spends

Heaven-Illuminating

Spirit

days her

sun-glorious palace.

The Sun-Goddess

AMA-TERASU,
seated
in

the

Sun-Goddess,
Plain of

was

the
as a

Blue

Heaven.

Her

light

came

celestial deities.

message of joy to the The orchid and the iris, the

blossom,
the rice and
to her smile.

cherry and the plum

the

hemp

fields

answered

The

Inland Sea was veiled in soft rich colour.

Susa-no-o, the brother of Ama-terasu,

had

resigned his ocean sceptre reigned as the Moon-God, was jealous

17

who and now

of
B

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
his sister's glory

and world-wide sway. The Heaven- Illuminating Spirit had but to whisper

and she was heard throughout her kingdom. o o even in the depths of the clear pool and in
the

heart

of

the

crystal.

Her
in

rice-fields,

whether
valley,

situated

on

hill-side,

sheltered

or by running stream,
harvests,

yielded abun-

dant
with
not

fruit.

groves were laden But the voice of Susa-no-o was

her
his

and

so

clear,

smile was
fields

not

so radiant.
his

The
his

undulating

which lay around

palace were
rice

now

flooded,

now

parched, and

crops

were

often

wrath and jealousy of the bounds, yet Ama-terasu was

The Moon-God knew no

destroyed.
infinitely patient

and forgave him many things. Once, as was her wont, the Sun-Goddess
sat in the central court of her glorious

home.

weaving maidens surrounded a fountain whose waters

plied

She

her

shuttle.

Celestial

were fragrant with the heavenly lotus-bloom they sang softly of the clouds and the wind
:

and the

lift

of the sky.
fell

Suddenly, the body

of a piebald horse
at their feet
:

the

"

through the vast dome Beloved of the Gods" had

18

THE SUN-GODDESS
been
"

flayed with a

backward Haying" by the

Ama-terasu,
trembling
pricked her finger with
and,

envious

Susa-no-o.

at the horrible sight,

profoundly indignant at the cruelty of her brother, withdrew into a cave and closed behind her the door
of the

the

weaving

shuttle,

Heavenly Rock Dwelling. The universe was plunged in

darkness.

Joy and goodwill, serenity and peace, hope and love, waned with the waning light. Evil spirits, who heretofore had crouched in

dim

corners,

came

forth

and roamed abroad.

discordant tones

Their

grim

laughter
all

and
hearts.

struck terror into

Then
safety
thing,

it

was that the gods,

for

fearful

for their

and

the
in

life

of

every

beautiful

assembled
of

the bed of the tranquil

River

dried up.

Heaven, whose waters had been One and all knew that Ama-terasu
But how
allure

alone could help them.

the

Heaven-Illuminating Spirit to set foot in this world of darkness and strife ? Each god was
eager to
aid,

and a plan was

finally

devised

to entice her from her hiding-place.

Ame-no-ko uprooted the holy sakaki

19

trees

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
grow on the Mountain of Heaven, and planted them around the entrance of the
which
cave.

High on

the

upper
of

branches

were

hung the

precious

string

curved jewels

which Izanagi had bestowed upon the SunGoddess. From the middle branches drooped
a

mirror wrought
mine.

of the rare metals of the

celestial

Its

polished
of

surface
sun.

was as
Other

the

dazzling

brilliancy

the

gods wove, from threads of hemp and paper mulberry, an imperial robe of white and blue,

which

was

placed,

as

an

offering

for

the

goddess, on the lower branches of the sakaki. A palace was also built, surrounded by a

garden

in

which the Blossom-God

called forth

many

delicate plants
all

and

flowers.

Now
forward,

was ready.
in

Ame-no-ko stepped
loud
voice,

and,
to

entreated

Ama-terasu
was
in

show

herself.

His

appeal

vain.

The

great

festival

began.

Uzume,

the goddess of mirth, led the dance

and song. Leaves of the spindle tree crowned her head club-moss, from the heavenly mount Kagu, formed her sash her flowing sleeves
; ;

were bound with the creeper-vine

20

and

in

her

Ama-terasu gazed into the mirror, and wondered greatly when she saw therein a goddess of exceeding beauty.

THE SUN-GODDESS
hand she carried leaves of the wild bamboo
and waved a wand of sun-grass hung with Uzume blew on a tiny melodious bells.

bamboo
deities

flute,

while the eight hundred myriad

accompanied her on wooden clappers and instruments formed of bow-strings, across

which were rapidly drawn stalks of reed and Great fires were lighted around the grass. cave, and, as these were reflected in the
face of the

mirror,
"

of eternal

night

"the long- singing birds began to crow as if the

day dawned. The merriment increased. The dance grew wilder and wilder, and the gods laughed until the heavens shook as if with o
thunder.

Ama-terasu,

in

her

quiet

retreat,

heard,

unmoved, the crowing of the cocks and the

sounds of music and dancing, but when the heavens shook with the laughter of the gods,
she peeped from her cave and said:

"What
Uzume Uzume
is

means
dances

this

thought

heaven and earth

is

were dark, but now there

light.

and
"
:

all

the
is

gods
in

laugh."
I

answered
the

It

true that

dance and that

our midst
a

gods laugh,

because
23

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
goddess Behold

whose splendour equals your own.

"
!

Ama-terasu gazed into the mirror, and wondered greatly when she saw therein
a goddess of exceeding beauty. She stepped from her cave and forthwith a cord of
rice

-straw was
fled

drawn across
from
the

the

entrance.

Darkness

Central
light.

Land

of

Reed-Plains, and there was

Then
"

the

eight hundred myriad deities cried:

O,

may

the Sun-Goddess never leave us again."

24

The Heavenly Messengers

I^S=
r
-

^Siii -rr,~.<(!W

-^^^^^^^ ^/

HP HE
spirits

gods looked down from the Plain of Hio>h Heaven and saw that wicked earthO

peopled the lower world. Neither by day nor by night was there peace. Oshi-homi, whose name is His Augustness Heavenly-

go and govern the set foot down on the Floating Bridge, he heard the sounds
27

Great-Great-Ears,

was

commanded earth. As he

to

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
of strife and confusion,
said,

so he returned,

and

to

would have you choose another deity do this work." Then the Great Heavenly
I

"

Spirit

and Ama-terasu

called
deities

together
in

the

eight hundred myriad

the bed of

the Tranquil

River of Heaven.

The Sundisorder.

Goddess spoke:
Reed-Plains there

"In the Central Land of

is

trouble

and

A
for
is

deity must descend to prepare the earth

our grandson Prince

to

rule over

it.

Ruddy-Plenty, who Whom shall we send ?

'

The
"

eight

hundred

myriad

deities

replied,

Let Ame-no-ho go to the earth." Now Ame-no-ho descended to the lower

world.

There he was

so

happy

that

the

charge of the heavenly deities passed out of He lived with the earth-spirits, his mind.

and confusion

still

reigned. o

For three years the Great Heavenly Spirit and Ama-terasu waited for tidings, but none
came.

Then they

said

"
:

We

will

send Ame-

He will waka, the Heavenly Young Prince. Into his hands they surely do our bidding."
gave the great heavenly deer-bow and the heavenly feathered arrows which fly straight
28

As

the

Young

Prince alighted on the sea-shore, a beautiful earth-spirit,

Princess Under-Shining, stood before him.

THE HEAVENLY MESSENGERS

to

the

mark.
the
into

"

With these you

earth-spirits,

shall

war
bring

against

wicked
the

and
the

order

land."

But

as

Young

Prince alighted on the sea-shore, a beautiful

earth
-spirit,

Princess

Under- Shining, stood

bewitched him.

before him.

Her

loveliness

He
his

looked upon her, and could not withdraw

eyes.

Soon they were wedded.

Eight

years passed. time in revelry and feasting.

The Young
establish

Prince spent the

Not once did

and
order
at
;

he

attempt

to

peace

moreover, he desired to place himself

the

head of the
deities,

earth-spirits, to defy the

and

to rule

heavenly over the Land of Reed-

Plains.

Again
assembled

the
in

eight

hundred

myriad

deities

the bed of the Tranquil River

of Heaven.

The Sun-Goddess spoke: "Our

tarried
in

messenger has

the

lower world.

Whom
of this
ful
?

shall
'

we send to inquire the cause Then the gods commanded a faithhen:

Ame-waka, and 'The Heavenly Deities sent you to the say, Central Land of Reed-Plains to subdue and
pheasant
to

"Go

pacify

the

deities

of that
31

land.

For eight

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
years

you have been

'

silent.

What
of

is

the

cause

The pheasant
on
the

flew swiftly to earth,

and

perched
the

branches

a wide-

spreading cassia tree which stood at the gate

of
Prince's
palace.

She spoke every

word of her message, but no reply came. Again she repeated the words of the gods,

Now Ama-noagain there was no answer. sagu, the Heavenly Spy ing- Woman, heard
the
call

of the
Prince,
ill.

pheasant

she went to the

"

Young
and
kill

and

said,

bird bodes
it."

Take thy Then Ame-waka,

fled

The cry of this bow and arrows

in wrath, shot

the bird through the heart.

The heavenly arrow

ward.
the
feet
air,

upward and onit

Swift
it

as

the

wind

sped

through
at the

pierced the clouds and

fell

of the

Sun-Goddess as she

sat

on her

throne.

Ama-terasu

saw

that

it

was one of the

arrows that had been entrusted to the

Young

Prince, and that the feathers were stained Then she took the arrow in with blood.

her hands and sent

it

forth:

"If

this

be an
evil

arrow

shot

by

our

messenger

at

the

THE HEAVENLY MESSENGERS

spirits, let
it

not hit the Heavenly Prince.

If

he has a

foul heart, let

him

perish."

At
the
its

moment Ame-waka was resting after The arrow flew straight to harvest feast.
this

mark, and pierced him to the heart as he Princess Under-Shining cried aloud slept.

when she saw the dead body of the Young Her cries rose to the heavens. Then Prince. the father of Ame-waka raised a mighty storm,
and the wind carried the body of the Young
Prince to the Blue Plain.

great mourning-

house was
nights

built,

and

for eight

days and eight

lamentation.

there

was wailing

and
and

The

wild goose of the river,

the heron, the the

kingfisher,

the

sparrow

pheasant

mourned with a great mourning. When Aji-shi-ki came to weep

brother, his face

for

his

was so

like that of the

Young
said
is
:

Prince that his parents

fell

upon him, and

"My

child

is

not dead, no!

My

lord

not

But Aji-shi-ki was wroth because He they had taken him for his dead brother. drew his ten-grasp sabre and cut down the
dead, no!"

mourning-house, and scattered the fragments

to the winds.
33

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
" TakeThen the heavenly deities said Mika shall go down and subdue this unruly
:

land."
forth

company with Tori-bune he set and came to the shore of Inasa, in the
In

country of Idzumo.

They drew

their

swords

and placed them on a crest of the waves. On the points of the swords Take-Mika and
Tori-bune
sat,

cross-legged
earth-spirits,

thus they

made

war against the

them.

and thus subdued

land once pacified, their mission was accomplished, and they returned to the
Plain of

The

High Heaven.

34

Prince

Ruddy- Plenty

AMA-TERASU,
1

from her sun-elorious

palace,

spoke to her grandson,

"
:

Ninigi, Prince Rice-Ear-Rucldy-Plenty

You

must descend from your Heavenly Rock Seat and go to rule the luxuriant Land-of- FreshRice-Ears."
precious

She gave him many presents

the

stones from

heaven,

crystal balls of purest whiteness,

mountain steps and

of

the cloud-sword which her brother, Susa-no-o,

had drawn from the

tail
37

of the terrible dragon.

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
She
also entrusted to Ninigi the mirror
"
:

whose

splendour had enticed her from the cave, and

said

Guard
into

this
it

mirror

faithfully

when
face."

you look

you shall see my number of deities were commanded

to ac-

company Prince Ruddy-Plenty, among them the beautiful Uzume, who had danced till
the heavens shook with

the laughter of the

gods.

The
clouds.

great

company

broke

through

the

Before them, at the eight-forked road of Heaven, stood a deity of gigantic stature,
with his large and fiery eyes.

The courage

of the gods failed at sight of him, and they

turned backward.
fearlessly

But the

fair

Uzume went
"
:

up

to the giant,

and said

Who

is it
"
?

that thus impedes our descent from

heaven

The

deity,

well pleased at the gracious

mien

of the goddess,
earth-spirit,

made answer

"I

am

a friendly
I

the

Deity of the Field- Paths.

I

come
to

meet Ninigi that him and be his guide.

to

may pay homage Return and say to

the

august god that the Prince of Saruta I am this Prince, O Uzume." greets him.

The Goddess

of Mirth rejoiced greatly

38

when

But the

fair

Uzume went
that thus

fearlessly

up

to the giant,

and said

Who

is it

impedes our descent from heaven?"

PRINCE RUDDY-PLENTY
she heard these words, and said:

"The com;

pany of gods
will

shall

proceed to earth
to you."
:

there

Ninigi be

made known

Then
"

Let spoke the army of gods alight on the mountain of

the

Deity of the

Field-Paths

Takachihi,
its

in

the country of Tsukushi.

On

peak

shall await

them."

Uzume
the

returned to the gods and delivered

When Prince Ruddy-Plenty message. heard her words he again broke through the eightfold spreading cloud, and floated on
the

Bridge

of

Heaven

to

the

summit

of

Takachihi.

Now

Ninigi, with the

Prince of Saruta as

his guide,

travelled

throughout the kingdom

to
rule.

over which he

was

He

saw the
great
the

mountain
reed
rivers
is

ranges

and
the

the
vast

lakes,

the

plains

and

pine

forests,

and the
land

valleys.

Then he

said

"It

straight,

whereon the morning sun shines a land which the evening sun illuthis

mines.
place."

So

When
The

an exceeding good he had thus spoken, he built

place
is

a palace.

pillars

rested on

the nether-

most rock-bottom, and the cross-beams rose

41

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
to the Plain of

High Heaven.

In this palace

he dwelt.

Again Ninigi spoke:

Field-Paths shall
return

"The God
to
his

of

the

home.
he
shall

He
wed
shall

has been our guide, therefore

the beautiful goddess,

Uzume, and she

be priestess in his

obeyed the honoured in Saruta

own mountain." Uzume commands of Ninigi, and is greatly

for

her courage, her mirth,

and her beauty.

happened that as the Son of the Gods walked along the sea-coast, he saw a maiden
It

of exceeding

loveliness.

He

spoke to

her,
"
?

and said

"
:

By what name
:

are you

known

She

replied

"I

am

the daughter of the Deity

Great-Mountain-Possessor,

and

my name

is

Ko-no-hane, Princess Tree-Blossom."

loved the
of the
fair Princess.

Ninigi

He

went

to the Spirit

Mountains, and asked for her hand.

Long-as-the-Rocks, who was than her sister. He desired that

But Oho-yama had an elder daughter, Ihanaga,

less

Princess
fair

the offspring of Prince

live eternally
ish as the
like

Ruddy- Plenty should unto the rocks, and flourtrees.

blossom of the
42

Therefore

PRINCE RUDDY-PLENTY
Oho-yama
in

sent both his daughters to Ninigi

rich

attire

Ninio-i O

loved

and with many rare presents. the beautiful Princess Ko-no-

hane.

would not look upon Iha-naga. She cried out in wrath "Had you chosen
:

He

me, you and your children would have lived long on earth but as you love my sister all
;

your descendants will perish blossom of the trees." Thus

life
is

rapidly as
it is

the

that

human

compared with that of the earlier peoples that were gods. For some time, Ninigi dwelt happily with
so
short

Princess

Tree-Blossom
lives.

then

cloud

came
charm

over their
grace, the

Ko-no-hane had the

delicate

morning

freshness, the subtle

of the cherry blossom.

She loved the sunShe loved the

night.

shine and the soft west wind.

cool rain,

and the quiet summer

retired
to

But

Ninigi grew jealous.

In anger Princess Tree-

Blossom
entrance,

her palace, closed up the

it

and

set

on

fire.

The
little

flames

rose

higher

and

higher.

Ninigi
three

watched
boys

anxiously.

As he
father.

looked,

sprang merrily out of the

for

flames and called

their

Prince
43

Ruddy -Plenty was

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
glad

once more, and when he saw

Ko-no-

hane, unharmed,

her forgiveness. deri, Fire-Flash

move towards him, he asked They named their sons Ho;

Ho-suseri, Fire-Climax

and

Ho-wori, Fire-Fade.
After

many

years, Ninigi divided his king-

dom between two

of his sons.
to the

Then
Plain of

Prince

Ruddy-Plenty returned Heaven.

High

44

The

Palace of
the

Ocean-Bed

IT O-WORI,
son
of

Prince
the

Fire- Fade,

Minim,

was a
caught

great hunter.
'

He
of

things

rough
of

hair

and

things

soft

hair.'

His elder

brother

Ho-deri,

Prince Fire-Flash,
'

was a
of
fin

fisher

who caught
47

things broad
But, often,

and things narrow of

fin.'

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
when
the wind blew and the waves ran high,

he would spend hours on the sea and catch no fish. When the Storm God was abroad,
Ho-deri had to stay at home, while at nightfall Ho-wori returned laden with spoil from Ho-deri spoke to his brother, the mountains.

would have your bow and arrows and become a hunter. You shall have my fish-

and said

"

hook."

At

first

Ho-wori would not consent,

no

but finally the exchange was made.

Now Prince Fire Flash was He could not track the game, nor
-

hunter.

nor take good

aim.

Day
sea.
fish.

run swiftly, after day Prince

In vain he threw

Fire-Fade went out to

his line
clay,
;

he caught no
lost

Moreover, one

he

his

brother's fish-hook.
"
:

Then
There
is

Ho-deri came to Ho-wori, and said

is

the luck of the mountain and there

the

luck of the sea.

his luck."

Let each restore

:

to the other

Ho-wori replied
fish

"I did not catch

a single

with your hook, and

now

it

is

lost in the sea."

The

elder brother

was very

angry, and, with

many hard

words,

demanded

the return of his treasure.

Prince Fire-Facle
in

was unhappy.

He

broke
48

pieces his

good

THE PALACE OF THE OCEAN-BED

sword and made
five

hundred fish-hooks which

he offered to his brother.

But

this

did not

appease the wrath of Prince Fire- Flash, still raged and asked for his own hook.

who

Ho-wori could

find neither comfort nor help.

one day by the shore and heaved a deep sigh. The old Man of the Sea heard the sigh, and asked the cause of his sorrow.
sat

He

Ho-wori
and of

told

him of the

loss of the fish-hook,

his

brother's displeasure.

Thereupon

the wise
plaited

man promised to give his help. He strips of bamboo so tightly together

that

water could not pass through, and fashioned therewith a stout little boat. Into
the

this

boat Ho-wori jumped, far out to sea.

and was carried

After a time, as the old

his boat
it

man had

foretold,

began

to sink.

sank,

until at last

Deeper and deeper he came to a glittering

In front of
it

palace of fishes' scales.

well,

was a
Prince

shaded by a great cassia tree.

-

Fire

Fade

sat

among
;

the

wide

spreading
she

branches.

He
the

looked down, and saw a maiden

well
in

approach

her

hand

car-

ried a jewelled

bowl.
49

She was the

lovely D

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
Toyo-tama,
Wata-tsu-mi,
Peerless Jewel,
the

the

daughter of

Sea- King.

Ho-wori was
beauty,

spell-bound by her strange wave-like

her long flowing hair, her soft deep blue eyes. The maiden stooped to fill her bowl. Suddenly, she

saw the
;

reflection of Prince

Fire-

Fade

in

the water
it

she dropped the precious

a thousand pieces.
father,

bowl, and

fell

in

tama hastened
"

to her

Toyoand exclaimed,

sits

man, with the grace and beauty of a god, in the branches of the cassia tree. I have
in

seen his picture

the waters
that
it

of the well."

The

Sea- King

knew
-

must be the great

forth

hunter, Prince Fire- Fade.

Then Wata - tsu mi went

under the cassia
wori,
tree.

and stood

He

looked up to Ho-

and said:

"Come

down,

Son

of the

Gods, and enter

Bed."
the

my

Palace of the

Oceaninto

Ho-wori

obeyed,

and was led

palace and seated on a throne of seaasses' skins. A banquet was prepared in his

honour.
coral,

The

hashi were delicate branches of

and the plates were of silvery motherThe clear-rock wine was sipped of-pearl.
from

cup -shaped

ocean
50

blooms

with

long

Suddenly, she saw the reflection of Prince Fire-Fade in the water.

THE PALACE OF THE OCEAN-BED

Ho-wori thought that before had there been such a banquet.
slender stalks.
it

never

When
to the

was ended he went with Toyo-tama

that

roof of the palace.

waters
the

Dimly, through the blue moved above, he could discern

Sun-Goddess.

He saw

the

mountains
forests

and valleys of ocean, the waving

tall

of

sea-plants,

the

homes of the shakd and

loss

the kani.

Ho-wori

told

Wata-tsu-mi of the

of
all

the fish-hook.
his

Then
together

the Sea- King called

subjects
fish

and questioned them.

of the hook,
but,

No

knew aught

said

the lobster:

"As
rocks,

sat

one day
tai

in

my

crevice

among
without

the

the

passed

near me.

His mouth

was

swollen,

and

he went

giving greeting." then noticed that the tai had not answered
his

me

by Wata-tsu-mi

summons.

messenger,

fleet

of

fin,

was

sent to fetch him.

lost fish-hook

When

the tai appeared, the

in

was found was

his

mouth.

It

restored

poor wounded to Ho-wori, and

his bride,
fish-scale

he was happy. Toyo-tama became and they lived together in the cool
palace.
53

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
Prince Fire-Fade
secrets of the ocean,

came

to

understand the
its

the cause of

anger,
of

the cause of the

its

joy.

The Storm- Spirit

upper sea did not rule in the oceanand night after night Ho-wori was bed, rocked to sleep by the gentle motion of the
waters.
tides

Many
in

had ebbed and flowed,

when,

the quiet of the night, Ho-wori heaved a

sigh.

deep
her

father

Toyo-tama was troubled, and that, as Ho-wori dreamt of

visit

told
his

home on

the earth, a great longing had

it

come

over him to

once more.

Then Wata-

Ho-wori's hands two great jewels, the one to rule the flow, the other to rule the ebb of the tide. He spoke thus
tsu-mi gave into
:

"

Return to earth on the head of

Restore the
is still

my

trusted

sea-dragon.
deri.

lost fish-hook to

Ho-

wroth with you, bring forth the tide-flowing jewel, and the waters shall If he asks your forgiveness, cover him. bring
If

he

forth the tide-ebbing jewel,

and

it

shall

be well

with him."

Ho-wori

left

the

Palace

of

the

Oceanland.

Bed, and was carried swiftly to his

54

own

THE PALACE OF THE OCEAN-BED

As he
his
set

foot

on the shore,
tied
it

sword,

and

round
said:

he ungirded the neck of

the

sea-dragon.

Then he

"Take

this

to the

Sea- King as a token of

my

love and

gratitude."

55

Autumn and

Spring

FAIR

maiden

lay

asleep in a rice-field.

The sun was

weary.

at its height,

and she was

the

Now a god rice-field. He knew

maiden came from

looked

down upon
it

that the beauty of the

within, that

mirrored the

He knew that beauty of heavenly dreams. even now, as she smiled, she held converse
with the
spirit of

the wind or the flowers.

59

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
The god descended and asked
maiden
to

the dream-

be

his

bride.

She

rejoiced,

and

they were wed.

wonderful red jewel came

of their happiness.

Long, long afterwards, the stone was found

by a farmer, who saw that

rare jewel.

He
about
at
it

prized

it

was a very highly, and always

it

carried

it

with

him.

Sometimes,

as

he looked
it

in the pale light of the

moon,
discern

seemed

to

him

that

he

could

eyes in its depths. Again, in the stillness of the night, he would awaken and think that a clear soft voice called him
sparkling

two

by name.

One

day, the farmer had to carry the midhis

day meal to

workers

in

the

field.

The sun

was very
bowls of
beans.

hot,
rice,

so he loaded a

cow with the

stood in

the millet dumplings, and the

Suddenly, Prince

Ama-boko
for
kill

was angry, the farmer was about to

the path.

He

he thought that
the cow.
of
denial
;

The
his

Prince would

hear

no word
farmer

wrath increased.

The

became more
took
the

and

more

terrified,

and,
60

finally,

precious stone from his pocket and presented

AUTUMN AND SPRING

it

as a peace-offering to the powerful

at

Prince.

Ama-boko marvelled
jewel,

the brilliancy of the

to

and allowed the man

continue his

journey.

The
forth

Prince returned to his home.

the
treasure,
into

He

drew

and
a

it

was immediately
of

transformed
beauty.

goddess
rose

surpassing
him,

Even

as

she

before

he

loved her, and ere the

moon waned

they were
his

wed.
want.

The goddess
She prepared
is

ministered to

every

delicate dishes, the secret

of which

known

only

to

the gods.

She

made wine from

the juice of a myriad herbs,

taste.

wine such as mortals never

But, after a time, the Prince

became proud

and overbearing.
ful

He

began

to treat his faith-

wife with
sad,

cruel

contempt.

The goddess
not

was
of

and
I

said:
will

"You
paid no

are

worthy

my

love.

leave you and go to

my

father."

Ama-boko
fulfilled.

heed

to

these

words, for he did not believe that the threat

would be

was and

in earnest.
fled to

But the beautiful goddess She escaped from the palace

is still

Naniwa, where she

61

honoured

as Akaru-hime, the Goddess of Light.

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
Now
the Prince was wroth

when he heard

that the goddess

had

left

him, and set out in

pursuit of her.

But when he neared Naniwa,

the gods would not allow his vessel to enter the

haven.

Then he knew
lost

that his priceless red

for

jewel was
his

to

him

ever.

He

steered

ship

towards the north

at

coast

of Japan,
well

and landed
received,

Tajima.

Here he was

the

and highly esteemed on account of treasures which he brought with him.

had costly strings of pearls, girdles of precious stones, and a mirror which the wind

He

and the
remained

waves

obeyed.

Prince

A ma-boko

at Tajima,

and was the father of a

mighty

race.

Among

his children's children

was a princess

so renowned for her beauty that eighty suitors

sought her hand.

One

after the other returned

sorrowfully home, for none found favour in her

eyes.

At

last,

two brothers came before

her,

the

young God of the Autumn, and the young

of the Spring.
of

But the urged his suit. He went to his younger princess refused him. " The princess does not brother, and said

God God

The

elder of the two, the

Autumn,

first

62

One

after the other returned sorrowfully

in her eyes.

home,

for

none found favour

AUTUMN AND
heart."

SPRING

love me, neither will you be able to win her

But the Spring God was full of hope, and replied "I will give you a cask of rice
:

wine
to be
to

if

do not win
bride,

her,

but

if

she consents

my

you

shall give a cask of sake

me."

Now
and

the

God
all.

of Spring went to his mother,

told

her

She promised

to

aid him.

Thereupon she wove, in a single night, a robe and sandals from the unopened buds of the
lilac

and white
flowers

wisteria.

Out of the same

delicate

she

fashioned

arrows.
his

Thus

clad, the

God

of

bow and Spring made

a

way to the beautiful princess. As he stepped before the maiden, every bud
fragrance
that
filled

unfolded, and from the heart of each blossom

came a
the

the

air.

The
to

princess was overjoyed, and gave her

hand

God of the Spring. The elder brother, the God

with rage

of

Autumn, was
his brother

filled

when he heard how

had obtained the wondrous robe.

He

refused

When the to give the promised cask of sak mother learned that the god had broken his
word, she placed stones and
65

salt in

the hollow
E

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
of a

bamboo cane, wrapped it round with bamboo leaves, and hung it in the smoke. Then she uttered a curse upon her first-born
son
you.
"
:

As the leaves wither and fade, so must As the salt sea ebbs, so must you. As

the stone sinks, so must you."

The terrible curse fell upon her son. While the God of Spring remains ever young, ever fragrant, ever full of mirth, the God of Autumn
is old,

and withered, and

sad.

66

The

Star - Lovers

H OKU JO,
of

the

daughter Sun, dwelt

father

with

her

on

the banks of the Sil-

ver River of Heaven,

which

we

call

the

Milky Way.

She was a

lovely maiden, graceful and

winsome, and her eyes were

tender as the eyes
of a

dove.

Her
much
of the
air.

loving

father,

the

Sun,

was

troubled because Shokujo did not

share in the youthful pleasures of the daughters

over her,

melancholy seemed to brood but she never wearied of working

soft
69

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
for the

good of

others,

busy herself at to be called the Weaving Princess.

;

and especially did she her loom indeed she came

The Sun bethought

well
;

him,

that

if

he could

give his daughter in marriage,

all

would be

her dormant love would be kindled into

a flame that would illumine her whole being

and drive out the pensive

pressed her.

spirit

Now

there lived,

which ophard by, one

Kingen, a right honest herdsman, who tended his cows on the borders of the Heavenly
Stream.
his

The Sun- King proposed

on

to

bestow

Kingen, thinking in this way to provide for her happiness and at the same time to keep her near him. Every
daughter
star

beamed

approval,

and there was joy

in

the heavens.

The
to

love that bound Shokujo and

Kingen

one another was a great love. With its awakening, Shokujo forsook her former occupations,

nor did she any longer labour indus-

and danced, and sang, and made merry from morn till The Sun- King was sorely grieved, for night.
triously at the loom, but laughed,

he had not foreseen so great a change.

70

Anger

The

lovers were wont, standing

to waft across
it

on the banks of the

celestial stream,

sweet and tender messages.

THE STAR-LOVERS
was
in

his

eyes,

and he
of
this,

"
said,

Kingen
I

is

surely

the

cause
to the

therefore
side

will

banish

him

other

of the

River

of Stars."

When
were
to

Shokujo and Kingen heard that they be parted, and could thenceforth, in

accordance with the King's decree, meet but once a year, and that upon the seventh night
of the seventh month, their hearts were heavy.

The
one,

leave-taking

between

them was a sad

and great tears stood in Shokujo's eyes In as she bade farewell to her lover-husband.
answer
to the behest of the

Sun- King, myriads

of magpies flocked together, and, outspreading their wings, formed a bridge, on which Kingen

crossed the River of Heaven.

that his foot touched the

The moment
leaving

opposite bank, the

chatter,

birds

dispersed

with a

noisy

poor

Kingen

solitary

exile.

He

looked

wistfully towards the

weeping figure of Sho-

kujo,

who

stood on the threshold of her

now

desolate home.

Long and weary were

the succeeding days,

spent as they were by Kingen in guiding his oxen and by Shokujo in plying her shuttle.
73

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
The Sun-King was gladdened by
industry.
his daughter's

When

night

fell

and the heavens

were bright with countless lights, the lovers were wont, standing on the banks of the celestial

stream, to waft across

it

sweet and tender

messages, while each uttered a prayer for the

speedy coming of the wondrous night. The long-hoped-for month and day drew
nigh,

and

the

hearts

of

the
:

lovers
for

were

troubled lest rain should

River,
full

fall
is

the Silver

at

all

times,

at

that

season

often in flood,

and the bird-bridge might be

swept away. The day broke cloudlessly bright. It waxed and waned, and one by one the lamps of heaven were lighted. At nightfall the magpies assembled,
delight,

and Shokujo, quivering with crossed the slender bridge and fell
arms of her
lover.

into the

Their transport

of joy was as the joy of the parched flower,

when the raindrop falls upon it but the moment of parting soon came, and Shokujo
;

sorrowfully retraced her steps.

Year
in

follows year,
far-off

and the lovers

land
74

still

meet

that

starry

on

the

seventh

THE STAR-LOVERS
night of the seventh month,

save when rain

has
the

swelled the
crossing

Silver

River and rendered

impossible.
still is
fills

The hope
them
as

of

permanent reunion Star-Lovers, and

the hearts of the a

to

sweet

fragrance and a beautiful vision.

75

The

Island of

Eternal Youth

CAR
horizon,
lies

beyond the
grey
of

faint

the
in

somewhere

the shadowy

Unknown,
dwellers

the Island of Eternal Youth.

the

The
East

on

rocky

coast
at

of

the

Sea

of

Japan
can waves.
all

relate

that,

times,
rising

a wondrous tree

be

discerned
It
is

high above the the tree which has stood for

loftiest

ages on the

peak of Fusan, the

Mountain of Immortality.

Men

rejoice

when

they catch a glimpse of its branches, though as a vision at the glimpse be fleeting dawn. On the island is endless spring the
:

79

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
air is

ever sweet and the sky blue.

fall

Celestial

upon every tree and Bower, and carry with them the secret of eternity.
softly

dews

bryony never loses its firstday freshness, the scarlet lily cannot fade. Ethereal pink blossoms enfold the branches
delicate white

The

of the sakuranoki; the pendulous

fruit

of the

orange bears no trace of age. Irises, violet and yellow and blue, fringe the pool on whose surface float the heavenly-coloured lotus blooms.

From day
joy.

day the birds sing of love and Sorrow and pain are unknown, death
to
hither.

comes not
it

The

Spirit

of this

island

is

who whispers

to the

sleeping Spring in

every land, and bids her arise. Many brave seafarers have sought Horaizan but have not reached its shores. Some have
suffered shipwreck in the attempt, others

have
the

mistaken

the

heights

of

Fuji-yama

for

blessed Fusan.

Now
China.

there once lived a cruel

Emperor
life

of

So

tyrannical

was he
was

that the

of

his physician, Jofuku,

in constant danger.

One
said
:

day, Jofuku spoke to the Emperor, and

"

Give me a

ship,
80

and

will sail to

the

THE ISLAND OF ETERNAL YOUTH

Island of Eternal Youth.

There

will
it

pluck

the herb of immortality and bring

you,
that you

back to

for ever."

may rule over your kingdom The despot heard the words with
sail

pleasure.

Jofuku, fully equipped, set

and

came

to

Japan

thence he steered his course

towards the magic

years passed.

Days, months, and Jofuku seemed to be drifting

tree.

on the
visible.

ocean of heaven,

for

no

land

was

At

last,

far in the distance,

hill

rose the

dim

outline
;

of a

such as he had never

seen before
its

and when he perceived a tree on summit, Jofuku knew that he neared Horai-

zan.

Soon he came
in

to its shores,

and landed

as

one

dream.

Every thought of the

Emperor, whose days were to be prolonged by eating of the sacred herb, passed from his

upon the beautiful island was so His glorious that he had no wish to return.
Life

mind.

story

is

told

by Wasobiowe, a wise man of

Japan, who, alone

among
in

mortals, can relate

the wonders of that strange land.

Wasobiowe
of Nagasaki.

dwelt

the

neighbourhood

loved nothing better than to spend his days far out at sea, fishing from a
8l

He

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
little

boat.

Once, when the eighth

in
is

full

moon
"

rose

which
"

moon and Wasobiowe

bean Japan is called the the most beautiful of all on

a

started

long

voyage

in

order to be absent from Nagasaki during the festivals of the season. Leisurely he skirted
the coast,

and rejoiced

in

the

bold

outlines

of the rocks seen by the light of the moon.

without warning, black clouds gathered overhead. The storm burst, the rain poured
But,

down, and
lashed driven
into
swift

darkness
fury,

fell.

The waves were

little

and

the

boat

was

as

an

arrow before the wind.

nights

For

three

days

and

the

hurricane

raged.
ing, the

As dawn broke on
wind was
stilled,

the fourth morn-

the sea

grew calm.
in

Wasobiowe, who knew

the course of the stars,

saw that he was

far

from his home

Japan.
tides.

He

was

at the

mercy of the god of the

until

For months Wasobiowe

caught
those
in his net,

ate the fish which he

his

boat drifted into

fish

black

waters

where no
;

can

live.

He

rowed

and

rowed

his
left

strength

was

almost spent.

Hope had
82

him, when, sud-

denly, a fragrant

wind from the land played

TOM
jofftav

Soon he came

to

its

shores,

and landed

as one in a dream.

THE ISLAND OF ETERNAL YOUTH

He seized the oars, and about his temples. soon his boat reached the coast of Horaizan.

Even

as

he landed,

all

remembrance

of the dangers and privations of the voyage

vanished.

Everything

spoke
the

of

The hum
tree-frooo

of

cicala,
call

joy and sunlight. the whirr of the

of the bright-green
ear.

darting dragon-fly, the

sounded

in

his

Sweet scents
;

came from the pine-covered hills was a flood of glowing colour.

Presently a

everywhere
It

man approached

him.

was

none other than Jofuku. biowe, and told how the

He

spoke to Wasoof the gods,

filled

elect

who peopled

those remote shores,

their

days with music and laughter and song. Wasobiowe lived contentedly on the Island
of Eternal Youth.
flight

of years, for

nothing of the where there is no birth, no

He knew

death, time passes unheeded.

But,

after

many hundred

years,

the

wise

man
ence.

of Nagasaki wearied of this blissful exist-

longed for death, but the dark river He would does not flow through Horaizan.
wistfully follow the

He

outward
85

flight

of the birds,

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
till

they became

mere specks

in

the
:

sky.

One day he spoke to a pure know that the birds alone can

white stork

"I

leave this island.

Carry me, I pray you, to my home in Japan. I would see it once more and die." Then
he mounted upon the outstretched wings of
the stork, and was carried across the sea and

through many strange lands, peopled by giants and dwarfs and men with white faces. When

he had visited

all

the countries of the earth, he

came

beloved Japan. In his hand he bore a branch of the orange which he planted.
to his

The

tree

still

flourishes

in

the

Mikado's

Empire.

86

Rai-Taro, the Son

of the Thunder- God

A **

foot of the

snowy mountain of
Haku-san,
vince
wife.
in

the prolived

of

Echizen,

peasant and
for

his
little

They were very

of

poor,

their

strip

barren

mountain -land
89

yielded

but

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
one scanty crop a year,
bours
in

while

their

neigh-

the valley gathered two

patience,

rich harvests.

With unceasing
cock
-

Bimbo worked from

of

crow

until

the

barking

the

foxes
laid

warned him

that

night

had

fallen.

He

out his plot of ground in terraces, surrounded

them with dams, and diverted the course of

the mountain stream that
fields.
it

might flood his

But

when

no

rain

came
failed.

to

swell

the brook,

Bimbo's harvest

Often as

he

sat in his

hut with his wife, after a long

day of hard work, he would speak of their The peasants were filled with grief troubles. that a child had not been given to them.

They longed

to adopt a son, but, as they

had

barely enough for their

own

simple wants, the

dream could not be

realised.

day came when the land of Echizen was parched. No rain fell. The brook was
evil

An

dried up.

The young
heavily

rice-sprouts withered.

Bimbo sighed

over his work.

He

looked up to the sky and entreated the gods to take pity on him.
After
overcast.

many weeks
Single

of sunshine, the sky

was

clouds
90

came

up

rapidly

RAI-TARO, SON OF THE

THUNDER-GOD
in

from the west, and gathered

angry masses.

strange

silence

filled

the

air.

Even
was

the

voice of the cicalas,

who had

chirped in the
stilled.

trees during the heat of the day,

Only the cry of the

audible.
hill,

mountain

hawk was
valley

murmur passed over

rustling of leaves,
fir.

and

a faint

a whispering
Fu-ten, the

sigh in the needles of the

Storm-Spirit, and Rai-den, the

Thunder-God,

were abroad.

Deeper and deeper sank the

at
first

clouds under the weight of the thunder dragon.

The

rain

came

in

large cool drops,

then in torrents.

Bimbo

rejoiced,

and

worked

steadily

to

strengthen the of his farm.

dams and open

the conduits

A
on

vivid flash of lightning, a

!

mighty roar of

thunder

Terrified, almost blinded,

Bimbo

fell

thought that the claws of But he the thunder dragon were about him. was unharmed, and he offered thanks to
his knees.

He

Kwan-non, the Goddess of

tects mortals

Pity,

who

pro-

from the wrath of the Thunder-

God.

On

the spot where the lightning struck

little

the ground, lay a

rosy boy

full

of

life,

91

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
who
held out his

arms and

lisped.

Bimbo

was greatly amazed, and his heart was glad, for he knew that the gods had heard and answered
his never-uttered prayer.

The happy peasant

took the child up, and carried him under his

rice-straw coat to the hut.
wife,
"

He
is

called to his

Rejoice,

our wish
child.

fulfilled.

The
him

gods have sent us a

Rai-taro,

We

will

call

the

Son of the Thunder-God, and

fondly tended the

bring him up as our own."

The good woman

dutiful

boy.

Rai-taro loved his foster-parents, and

grew up

and obedient.

He

did not care to play

with other children, but was always happy to

work

in

the fields with Bimbo, where he would

flight

watch the

of the birds, and listen to the

sound of the wind.

discern

Long

before

Bimbo could

any sign of an approaching storm, When it Rai-taro knew that it was at hand.
near, he fixed his

drew

gathering clouds, he
roll

eyes intently on the listened eagerly to the

of the thunder, the rush of the rain, and

he greeted each Hash of lightning with a shout

of joy.
Rai-taro

had come as a ray of sunshine

92

The

birth of Rai-taro.

RAT-TARO, SON OF
into

THE THUNDER-GOD

Good poor peasants. fortune followed the farmer from the day that
the lives of the

he carried the
coat.

boy home in his The mountain stream was never

little

rain-

dry.

The

land was

harvests of rice

fertile, and he gathered rich and abundant crops of millet.

Year by year, his prosperity increased, until from Bimbo, 'the poor,' he became Kanemochi,
'

the prosperous.'

About eighteen summers passed, and Raitaro

still

lived with his foster-parents.

Sud-

denly, they
ful

knew

not why, he

became thought-

and

sad.

Nothing would rouse him.

The

peasants determined to hold a feast in honour of his birthday. They called together the
neighbours,

and

there

was

much

rejoicing.

many tales of other days, and, out of finally, of how Rai-taro came to him As he ceased, a strange far-off the storm.
told

Bimbo

look was

in

the

Thunder-God.
parents,
well.

eyes of the Son of the He stood before his foster"

:

and

said

You have
faithful

loved

me
kind.

You have been

and

But the time has come

Farewell."
95

for

me

to leave you.

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
In a

moment
As
it

Rai-taro was gone.

white

cloud floated upward towards the heights of

Haku-san.
mountain,

it

neared the summit of the

took the form of a white dragon.

the dragon soared,
until,

Higher
it

still

at last,

vanished into a castle of clouds.

The
sky.

peasants

looked wistfully up to the

that Rai-taro might return,

They hoped

but

he had joined his father, Rai-den, the Thunder-God, and was seen no more.

96

The

Souls of
the Children

\mi

w
'']

CAI-NO-KAWARA,
the

Dry Bed
of
Souls.

of the

River

Far

below the roots of the

mountains, far

below the
sea
is

bottom

of

the

the

course of this river.

its

Ages ago
of Eter-

current bore the souls of the

blessed dead to the

nal Peace.

Land

The wicked

oni were

angry when they saw the good spirits pass out of their reach on the
breast of the river.

They mutthroats

tered

curses

in

their

as the stream flowed on

day

by day, year by year. snow-white soul of

The
a
99

</

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
tender child came to the bank.
lotus

A
the

bloom

waited

to

carry

cup-shaped little one

swiftly,

to through the dark cavernous region,

the

kingdom

of joy.
spirit of

The

oni gnashed their

teeth.

The

heart was young,

a kindly old man, whose would thread his way un-

harmed,
float

through the horde of demons, and

Heavenly-Bird-Boat to the unknown world. The oni looked on in wrath.

on the

But the oni stemmed the River of Souls at its source, and now the spirits of the dead

must wend

their way, unaided, to the country

that lies far beyond.

Jizo,

The Never-Slumbering,
little
is

is

the

god who

guards the souls of

of pity, his voice

children.

He

is full

doves on Mount

gentle as the voice of the Hasa, his love is infinite as

the waters of the sea.

in

To him
calls

the

Land

of the

Gods

every child for succour

and protection.
In

Sai-no-Kawara,

The Dry Bed

spirits

of the

River of Souls, are the

children.

of countless

Babes of two and three years old, babes of four and five, children of eight and
ten.

Their wailing

is

pitiful IOO

to hear.

They

THE SOULS OF THE CHILDREN

cry for the mother
for

the
for

father

who bore them. They cry who cherished them. They

is

cry
love.

the

brother

Their cry

they heard throughout Sai-no-

and

sister

whom

Kawara, a cry that rises and falls, and falls and rises, rhythmic, unceasing. These are the words that they cry"

Chichi koishi

haha koishi

Their voices grow hoarse as they

still

cry,

and

they cry onChichi koishi

!

"

haha koishi

"
!

While day

lasts,

they cry and they gather

stones from the bed of the river,

and heap

them together

as prayers.

Tower
:

of Prayer for the sweet mother,

as they cry

A Tower of Prayer for the father, as they cry A Tower of Prayer for brother and sister,
as they cry
"
:

From morning
Chichi koishi

till

evening they cry " haha koishi

!

and heap up the stones of prayer.

At
say
:

nightfall "

come the om\ the demons, and

cry,

Why

do you
in the

why do you pray ?

Your parents

Shaba- World cannot hear

101

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
you.

Your prayers

are lost in the strife of

tongues.
earth
is

lamentation of your parents on So the cause of all your sorrow."

The

saying, the wicked oni cast

down

the

Towers

of Prayer, every one, and dash the stones into

great caverns of the rocks. But Jizo, with a great

love

in in

his

eyes,

comes and enfolds the

little

ones

his robe.

To

the babes
his

forth

who cannot walk, he stretches The children in Sai-noshakujo.

him,

Kawara gather round

his

sweet words of comfort.

and he speaks He lifts them in

father
in

arms and caresses them, for Jizo is and mother to the little ones who dwell

the

Dry Bed of the River of Souls. Then they cease from their crying they cease to build the Towers of Prayer. Night
:

has come, and the souls of the children sleep

peacefully, while

The Never-Slumbering

Jizo

watches over them.

102

The Moon -Maiden

was early spring on

C aSt
f

the

SUI

"

Ua

'

Tender

green

flushed

the

bamboo

thickets.

rose-tinged

cloud from heaven had fallen softly

on the branches of the cherry tree. forests were fragrant of the spring.
remote shore.

The

pine
for

Save

the lap of the sea, there was silence on that

far-off

sound became audible

105

it

might be

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
the song of falling waters,
voice of the awakening wind,
it

might be the
it

might be the
strange

melody of the music rose and

cadence of the
the music

clouds.
fell
:

The

sweet

the cadence was as the Slowly,

imperceptibly,

sea.

came
the

nearer.

Fuji-yama a Nearer snow-white cloud floated earthwards.

lofty

Above

heights

of

and nearer came the music.

voice

A
a

low
lay

clear

could

be

heard

chanting

that

breathed of the peace and tranquillity of the

moonlight.

The

fleecy

cloud was borne toit it

wards the shore.

to
rest

For one moment

seemed
melted

upon the sand, and then

away.

By

the sea stood a glistening maiden.

In

her hand she carried a heart-shaped instrument, and, as her fingers touched the strings, she sang a heavenly song. She wore a robe
of feathers, white and spotless as the breast of

the wild swan.

The maiden

looked at the sea.

Then she moved towards

that fringed the shore.

the belt of pine trees

Birds flocked around

perched on her shoulder, and rubbed their soft heads against her cheek.
her
;

they

06

THP:

MOON-MAIDEN

She stroked them gently and they flew away full of The maiden hung her robe of joy.
feathers on a pine branch,
in

and went to bathe

the sea.
It

was

mid-clay.

fisher sat

down among
Suddenly, his

the pines to eat his dumpling.

eye
it is

fell

" on the dazzling white robe. Perhaps a gift from the gods," said Hairukoo as he to
it.

robe was so fragile that he almost feared to touch it, but at last he took it

went up
down.

The

The

feathers were wondrously

woven

together,

and slender curved wings sprang " I will take it from above the shoulder.
home, and we

Now
him.

be happy," he thought. Haithe maiden came from the sea.

shall
until

rukoo heard no sound

she stood before

Then

a soft voice spoke:

it

"The
to

robe

is

mine, good fisher, pray give

me."

The

man

stood awestruck, for never had he seen

so lovely a being.

She seemed

to

come from
is

another

your name, beautiful maiden, and whence do you " She answered, " I am one of the come ?
said,

world.

He

"

What

virgins

who
of

attend the moon.

come with a
I

message

peace

to
107

the

ocean.

have

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
whispered it into his But heavenward."
ear,

and now

must

fly

Hairukoo

replied,

"I

would see you dance The moon-maiden answered: "Give me

feather
robe,

before you leave me."

my

and

will

dance
"

celestial

dance."
I

The

peasant refused.
"
:

Dance and

will

give you your robe."

ing virgin was angry

Then the glitterThe wicked oni will

take you for their own, if you doubt the word I cannot dance without my of a goddess.
robe.

Each

feather has been given to

Birds.

me by
trust

the

Heavenly

Their love

and

support me."

As

she thus spoke the fisher

" I have done wrong, was ashamed, and said, and I ask your forgiveness." Then he gave

the robe into her hands.

The moon-maiden

put

it

around

her.

And now
touched

She she rose from the ground. the stringed instrument and sang.
It
It

Clear and infinitely sweet came the notes. was her farewell to the earth and the sea.
ceased.

She

broke
to

into

merry

trilling

song, and began

dance.

At one moment

she skimmed the surface of the sea, the next

her tiny feet touched the topmost branches of
1

08

At one moment she skimmed the surface of the

touched the topmost branches of the

sea, the next her tiny feet

tall

pine trees.

THE MOON-MAIDEN
the
tall

pine trees.

Then she sped

past the

fisher

and smiled as the long grass rustled

beneath her.

She swept through the

air,

in

and out among the trees, over the bamboo thicket, and under the branches of the blossoming cherry.
Still

the music went on.

Still

the maiden danced.

Hairukoo looked on
it

in

wonder
dream.

he thought

must

all

be a beautiful

But now the music changed. longer merry. The dance ended.

It

was no

The maiden

sang of the moonlight, and of the quiet of

evening.

She began to first, then more

circle in

swiftly,

Slowly at she floated over the

air.

the

woods towards the

distant

mountain.

The

music and the song rang in the ears of the The maiden was wafted farther and fisher.
farther

Hairukoo watched until he away. could no longer discern her snow-white form
the sky.

in

But

still

the music reached him on

it

the breeze.
fisher

At
left

last

too died away.

The
sound

was

alone

alone with the

of the sea, and the fragrance of the pines.

The

Great Fir Tree

of Takasago

"""HE cherry tree has

blossomed
times
lived

many
father

since

O-Matsue
her

with

and mother on the sandy

coast of the Inland Sea.

Takasago was sheltered by a tall

fir

The home

at

tree of great

age
it

god had planted

passed
that

as he

way.

O-

Matsue was

beautiful, for

her mother had her

to

taught
sea,

love

the

and the

birds, the trees,

and every

living

thing.

"5

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
Her eyes were like a pool on a summer day.
as
clear

deep
of

ocean-

Her
surface

smile

was

the

sunshine

on

the

Lake
a soft

Biwa.

The
time,

fallen

needles of the

fir

made

couch on which O-Matsue sat

plying

for

hours at a

her shuttle,

the peasants around.

weaving robes for Sometimes, she would

go

to sea with the

fishers,

and peer

into the

depths to try and catch a glimpse of the Palace of the Ocean Bed the fishers would
;

her the story of the poor jelly-fish who lost his shell, or of the Blessed Island of
tell

Eternal Youth, whose tree could at times be

discerned from the coast.

The

steep

shore of

Sumi-no-ye

is

many

leagues distant from Takasago, but a youth who dwelt there took a long journey. Teoyo " I will see what lies beyond the mounsaid,
tains.
I

will

see

the

country to which the

heron wings his way across the plain."

travelled through

He

many

provinces, and at last

came

to the land

of Harima.

One day he
sat
in

passed by Takasago. shade of the fir tree.

O-Matsue
116

the

She was weaving, and

THE GREAT FIR TREE OF TAKASAGO

sang as she worked.
her song
"
:

These are the words of

No man When Come

May

so callous but he heaves a sigh

o'er his

fluttering

head the withered Cherry flowers down. Who knows ? the Spring's

soft

showers

be but tears shed by the sorrowing sky."

Teoyo heard
"
It
is

the

sweet song,
a
spirit,
"

and

said,

like

the song of

and how

beautiful the

maiden

is

For some time he

watched her as she wove.

ceased, he
"
I

Then her song

her,

moved towards
far.
I

and spoke
fair

have travelled
maidens,
to

have seen many

so
as

fair

but

not

one

you.
I

Take me

your father
with

and mother that

may speak

them."

Teoyo asked the

their daughter,

peasants for the

hand of

and

they gave their consent.

There
received

was

great

rejoicing.

O-Matsue
wedding-

many

presents, and, as the

day approached, a great feast was prepared. Bride and bridegroom drank thrice of three
cups of sakd which

made them man and

on.
"

wife,

and the

feast

went

Now Teoyo

said,

This country of Harima

117

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
is

a good land.

Let us stay here with your

father

and mother."

O-Matsue was

glad.

So

they dwelt with the old people under the great fir tree. At last, the father and mother died.

O-Matsue and Teoyo

shelter of the tree.

still

lived beneath the

They were very happy.

Summer, autumn and winter passed over the land of Harima many times. Their love was
always in its spring. furrowed their brows,

The
but

"

waves of age
hearts

"

their

re-

mained young and tender, green as the needles Even when their eyes had grown of the pine.
dim, they went to the shore to listen to the

waters of the Inland Sea,

gathered,

or

together they
the
fallen

with

rakes of bamboo,
fir.

needles of the

crane

came and
tree,

built

in

the

topmost

branches of the

and

for

many

years they

watched the birds rear

"

their young.

torsaid,

toise also dwelt beside them.

O-Matsue

We

are blessed with a

fir

tree, a crane, and

a tortoise.

The God

of

Lon^ o

Life has taken

us under his care."

When, at last, at and O-Matsue died,

the
118

same moment, Teoyo

withdrew into

their spirits

THE GREAT FIR TREE OF TAKASAGO

the
tree

which had

for

so

long

been

the

witness of their happiness.

To

this

day the

pine tree

is

called

"The

Pine of the Lovers."

On

moonbright
in the

nights,

when

the coast wind

tree,

whispers

branches of the

O-Matsue

and Teoyo may sometimes be seen, with bamboo rakes in their hands, gathering together
the needles of the
fir.

Despite the storms of time, the old tree stands to this hour eternally green on the high
shore of Takasago.

ir;

The Willow of
Mukochima

\TOT

from Matsue, the great city of the Province of the Gods, there once dwelt a
far

widow and her

son.

Their wooden hut looked

upon the Shinji Lake set in a framework of mountain peaks. Ayame was true to the old
worship of the descendants of Izanagi and Izanami. Long ere the sun rose above the chain of hills, she was up, and, with
religion,

the

Umewaki's hand clasped closely went down to the verge of the

they laved their faces
123

in

her own,
First

lake.

in the cool water, then,

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
turning

towards the

east,

they clapped
"

their

hands four times and saluted the sun.

nichi

Kon-

Sama!

All

hail

to thee,

Day-Maker.

Shine and bring joy to the Place of the Issuing of Clouds." Then, having turned towards the
west,

mother and son blessed the

;

holy,

im-

memorial shrine of Kitzuki

towards the north

to the

and the south they turned and prayed

gods, unto each one,

who

dwell in the blue

Plain of Hio;h Heaven. o

had been dead many years, and the love of the mother was centred upon

Umewaki's

father

her son.

He was
;

in

the open air from sun-

sometimes by Ayame's side, sometimes alone, watching the heron or the

rise to nightfall

crane,

or listening to

the

sweet

call

of the

yamabato.

The

hut was in a remote spot, but

Ayame

felt

that her son

was

safe in the keep-

ing of the good gods. It was a beautiful summer morning.

and

Ayame Umewaki awakened soon after dawn. Hand in hand they went to the shore of Lake
It still

Shinji.

slept beneath the faintly-tinged

haze.

The Lady

of Fire had not whispered

124

of her approach to the soft mists that veiled

THE WILLOW OF MUKOCHIMA

the
hills.

Mother and son waited

patiently.

As
"

Day- Maker appeared, they cried, Konnichi Sama! Great Goddess, shine upon
the

thy land.

Then

beauty and peace and joy." mother and son returned to the hut.

Give

it

Ayame

plied

her shuttle, and

in

Umewaki

left

her to wander

the woods.

Noon came.
cutter
;

"

My boy

has met some woodin

he talks with him

"

the shade of the

the evening drew

pine trees," she thought.

on, she said,

As

He

is

with

little

Kime,

his play-

mate, but

shall
"

soon hear his

soft footstep."

Night

fell.

Once only has he been

to

so late

when he went

Matsue with the good

Shijo."

She looked through the paper window, and

then stepped out. The hills cast a mysterious shadow on the surface of the lake. Still there

was no sign of Umewaki.

his

The mother

called

name.
her

No

of

own

response came save the echo voice. Now she searched far

and near.
question,

To every "Have you

returned

peasant she put the seen my Umewaki?"

But she always received the same answer.

last

At

she

home weary
for
125

"He may
It

be there waiting

me," she thought.

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
was midnight the hut was empty. Ayame was heavy at heart, and as she lay upon
:

wept bitterly, and cried to the So the night gods to give her back her son.
her mat she

morning she learned that a band of robbers had been seen among the
passed.
In the

mountains.

Poor Umewaki had,

the robbers.

He

been stolen by was watched night and day,

in truth,

From town to and had no chance of escape. town they travelled. Through strange villages where the name of Buddha was upon the
lips

of

the

people,

across great

plains

un-

sheltered by mountains.

and autumn came.

let

Still

The summer passed, the men would not

treated

Umewaki

go.

They

him

cruelly,

and he began to pine away. Then the robbers knew that he was of no use to them. As they
neared Yedo, they
left

him, faint and weary,

on the roadside.
found the poor
his

A
little

kind

man

of

Mukochima
to

fellow

and carried him

home.

On

But Umewaki had not long to live. the fifteenth day of the third month, the
to his

day sacred he opened

the awakening of the Spring,

eyes,

and
126

called to

the

good

THE WILLOW OF MUKOCHIMA

woman who tended
that
I

him,

"

Tell

my dear mother
I

love her, and would stay with her, but

the Great Light calls me, and

the

Lady of

must obey." Ayame had

left

her quiet hut by the lake of

Shinji to follow the

men who had

stolen her son.

The autumn and

still

the winter had gone by, and

she persevered.

As

she passed through

Mukochima, she heard that a poor boy was dead, and soon found that it was her son.

She went
cared
for,

to

the house where

he had been

and the woman gave her Umewaki's

message. o
In the evening,

when

all

was

quiet,

Ayame
it

crept to the graveside of her child.

Near

sacred willow was planted.

The

slender tree

moved
sound
to the
:

in

the wind.

There was a whispered

the voice of

Umewaki speaking
his

softly

mother from

place of rest.

She

was happy.

Every evening she came

sighing of the willow.

to

listen

to

the
lay

Every evening she

to her son.

down happy

to

have spoken

On

the

fifteenth

day of the third month,

the day of the awakening of the Spring,

127

many

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
pilgrims visit the resting-place of
it

Umewaki.
"

It

rains

on that day, the people

willow

say,

Umewaki

weeps."

The
gods.

under the protection of the Storm and rain can do it no hurt.

is

128

The

Child of
the Forest

AKATO-NOTOKI-YUKI
was a brave warrior
at

the court of Kyoto.

He

fought for the Mina-

moto against the Taira, but the Minamoto were defeated,

and
Sakato's
last

days

were

spent

as

He died of a broken heart. wandering exile. His widow, the daughter of a noble house, escaped from Kyoto, and fled eastward to the
No one knew rugged Ashigara mountains. of her hiding-place, and she had no enemies

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
to fear

save the

wild

beasts

who

lived

in

the forest.

At night she found

shelter in a

rocky cave. A son was

bom
with

to

her

Kintaro, the Golden Boy.

little

whom she named He was a sturdy

fellow,

laughing eyes. bed among the

ruddy cheeks and merry Even as he lay crowing in his

fern,

the birds that alighted

trustfully

on

his

shoulder

peeped

into

his

eyes,

and he smiled.

Thus

early the

child

and the birds were comrades.

and the downy moth would breast, and tread softly over
body.

The
settle

butterfly

his

upon his little brown

Kintaro was not as other children

there

was something strange about him.

fell,
;

When

he

far

he would laugh cheerily if he wandered into the wood, he could always find his way
;

home

and,

when

little

more than a chubby

hills

babe, he could swing a heavy axe in circles

round his head.

In the remote

he had

no human companions, but the animals were He was gentle and his constant playfellows.
kind-hearted, and would not willingly hurt any
living creature
;

therefore
132

it

was that the birds

THE CHILD OF THE FOREST

and
all

the forest people looked upon Kintaro

as one of themselves.

Among
bears

Kintaro's

truest

friends

were the

who

dwelt in

the

woods.

mother
to

bear often carried

him on her back

ran
out and

her

home.
joyfully,

The cubs

greeted

him

for

and they romped and played together hours. They wrestled and strove in
rivalry.

friendly

Sometimes

Kintaro

would

clamber up the smooth-barked monkey tree, sit on the topmost branch, and laugh at the
vain attempts of the shaggy
follow him.
little

fellows to

Then came supper-time and

the

feast of liquid honey.

But the Golden Boy loved best of all to fly through the air with his arms round the neck
of a gentle-eyed stag.

Soon

after

dawn, the

deer came to awaken the sleeper, and, with a farewell kiss to his mother and a morning
caress to the stag, Kintaro sprang on his back

and was
tain side,

carried, with swift bounds,

up moununtil the

through valley and thicket,

in

sun was high

the

heavens.

When

they

came
the

to a leafy spot in the

woods and heard

the stag grazed

sound

of falling water,
133

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
among
the high fern while Kintaro bathed in
the foaming torrent.

Thus mother and son lived securely in their home among the mountains. They saw no human being save the few woodcutters who
penetrated thus far into the forest, and these

simple peasants
birth.

did

not

guess
as

their

noble

The mother was known

Yama-ubaMountain,"

San,

"The Wild Nurse

"
Little

of the

and her son as

Wonder."

Kintaro reigned as prince of the forest, beloved of every living creature. When he
held his court, the bear and the wolf, the fox

and the badger, the marten and the squirrel, and many other courtiers were seated around
him.

The

birds, too, flocked at his call.

The

eagle and the

hawk

flew

down from
the

the distant

swept over the plain, and feathered friends without number thronged the branches of the cedars.
heights
;

the

crane

and

heron

He

listened as they told of their joys

and
all,

their
for

sorrows,

and

spoke

graciously

to

Kintaro had learned the language and lore of the beasts, and the birds, and the flowers, from
the Tengus, the wood-elves.
134

Kintaro reigned as prince of the

forest,

beloved of every living creature.

THE CHILD OF THE FOREST

The Tengus, who
live in the

rocky heights

of the mountains and in the topmost branches

of lofty trees, befriended Kintaro and

his teachers.

became

As he was

he had nothing to fear Tengus are dreaded by deceitful boys, whose

;

and good, from them but the

truthful

tongues they pull out by their roots and carry

away.
with the strange beings body of a man, the head of a hawk, long, long
:

These

elves are

and two powerful claws on their hairy hands and feet. They are hatched from eggs, and, in their youth, have feathers and wings
noses,
:

later,

they moult and wear the garb of men.

On

their feet are stilt-like clogs

about twelve

inches high.

They

stalk

proudly along with

head thrown back, and long nose held high in the air hence the proverb, " He has become a Tengu."
crossed arms,
;

The

headquarters of the tribe are

in

the

Oyama

mountain,

where

lives

the

Dai-

He is Tengu, their leader, whom all obey. even more proud and overbearing than his
followers,

and

his nose

is

so long that one of

it

his ministers

always precedes him that

may

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
not be injured.
to his girdle,

long grey beard reaches

mouth
hand.

to

his

and moustaches hang from his His sceptre is a fan of chin.

in
is

seven feathers, which he carries

his

left

He

rarely

speaks,

and

thus

ac-

counted wondrous wise.

is

The Raven-Tengu

his

chief minister

instead of a nose and

mouth, he has a long beak. Over the left shoulder is slung an executioner's axe, and
in

his

hand he bears the book of

Tengu

wisdom.

The Tengus

are fond of games, and their

in

long noses are useful

many

ways.

They

serve as swords for fencing, and as poles on

the point of which to balance bowls of water

noses joined together form a tight-rope on which a young Tengu, sheltered by a paper umbrella and leading a
with
gold-fish.
little

Two

jumps through hoops an old Tengu sings a dance-tune the while and another beats time with a fan. Some
;

dog, dances and

among

the older

Tengus are very

all
is

wise.

The
is

most famous of

he who dwells on the

less

Kurama mountain, but hardly the Tengu who undertook the

138

wise

education

of

THE CHILD OF THE FOREST

he carried the boy to the nest in the high rocks. Here he was taught the wisdom of the elves, and the speech of all
Kintaro.
nightfall

At

the forest tribes.

One

day,

Little

Wonder was

at play with

some young Tengus, but they grew

tired

and

flew up to their nest, leaving Kintaro alone.

He
with

was angry with them, and shook the

all

tree

his strength, so that the nest

fell

to the

ground.
in

The mother soon

returned, and

was

great distress at the loss of her children.

Kintaro 's kind heart was touched, and, with the

little

ones

in his

arms, he

swarmed up

the tree

and asked pardon. Happily they were unhurt, and soon recovered from their fright. Kintaro
helped to rebuild the nest, and brought presents to his playfellows.

Now

it

happened
fought so

that,

as the hero Raiko,

who had

bravely against the oni,

forest,

passed through the

he came upon

Little

Wonder

wrestling with a powerful bear.

An

admiring circle of friends stood around. Raiko, as he looked, was amazed at the strength and
courage of the boy. The combat over, he asked Kintaro his name and his story, but
139

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
the child could only lead

him

to his mother.

When

she learned

that the

man

before her

was indeed Raiko, the mighty warrior, she told him of her flight from Kyoto, of the birth of
Kintaro, and of their secluded
life

among
the

the

mountains.

Raiko wished

to

take

boy

away and
the forest.

train

him

in

arms, but Kintaro loved

his

When, however,

mother spoke,
words

he was ready to obey.

friends, the beasts

He
to

called together his

and the

birds, and, in

that are
all

remembered

this day,

bade them

farewell.

The mother would

great hero, often of his childhood.

not follow her son to the

land of men, but Kintaro,

when he became

came

to see her in the

home
tell

The peasants of The Wild Nurse of

Wonder.

the Ashigara

still

of

the Mountains and Little

140

The

Vision of

Tsunu

\A7HEN
VV
five

the
tall

pine trees on the

windy heights of Mionoseki were but

tiny shoots, there lived in

Kingdom home was in

the

of the Islands a pious man.

His

a remote hamlet surrounded by

mountains and great forests of pine. Tsunu had a wife and sons and daughters. He

was a woodman, and

his

days were spent

in

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
the forest and on the hillsides. In

summer he
patiently, in

was up

at cock-crow,

and worked

the soft light under the pines, until nightfall.

Then, with

burden of logs and branches, he went slowly homeward. After the evenhis

ing meal,
legend.

he

would

tell

some

old

story or
relating

the

Tsunu was never weary of wondrous tales of the Land

Best of
all

of

the

Gods.

yama, home.

he loved to speak of Fujithe mountain that stood so near his

In times gone by, there was no mountain

where now the sacred peak reaches up

the sky
sunlight
;

to
in

only a far-stretching plain bathed

all

day.

The

peasants in the district

were astonished, one morning, to behold a mighty hill where before had been the open It had sprung up in a single night, plain.

Flames and huge stones the peasants were hurled from its summit
while they slept.
;

feared that the

demons from the under-world

had come
But
for

wreak vengeance upon them. many generations there have been

to

peace and silence on the heights.

The good

Sun-Goddess loves Fuji-yama.

144

Every evening

THE VISION OF TSUNU

she
last
in

lingers

on

his

summit,

and

when
is

at

she leaves him, his lofty crest

soft

bathed
the

purple

light.

In

the

evening

higher and higher into the skies, until no mortal can tell
rise

Matchless Mountain seems to

the place of his

rest.

Golden clouds enfold

morning.
Pilgrims

Fuji-yama come from

in

the

early

far

and

near, to gain blessing

and

health for themselves and their families from

the sacred mountain.

the self-same night that Fuji-yama rose out of the earth, a strange thing happened in
the

On

mountainous

district

near

Kyoto.

The

inhabitants were

awakened by a

terrible roar,

which continued throughout the night. In the morning every mountain had disappeared not
;

one of the
seen.

hills

that

they loved was to be

It

blue lake lay before them.

was

none other than the lute-shaped Lake Biwa. The mountains had, in truth, travelled under
the earth for

more than a hundred

miles,

and

now form the sacred Fuji-yama. As Tsunu stepped out of his

hut in the

morning, his eyes sought the Mountain of He saw the golden clouds, and the Gods.
145

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
the beautiful story was in his
to his work.

mind

as he

went

One day
in a

the

woodman wandered
forest.

farther

than usual into the

At noon he was
air

very lonely spot.

The

was

soft

and

sweet, the sky so blue that he looked long at

it,

and then took a deep breath.

Tsunu was

happy.

eye fell on a little fox him curiously from the bushes.

his

Now

who watched The creature

"
I

ran

away when
little

it

saw

that the man's attention

had been
follow the

attracted.

Tsunu

thought,

will

fox and see

in pursuit.

Off he started

where she goes." He soon came to

slender stems

a bamboo thicket.

The smooth
pale

waved dreamily, the

green leaves still But it was sparkled with the morning dew. not this which caused the woodman to stand
spellbound.

On
sat

a plot of mossy grass beyond

the

two maidens of surpassing They were partly shaded by the beauty. waving bamboos, but their faces were lit up Not a word came from their by the sunlight.
thicket,
lips,

yet

Tsunu knew

that the voices of both

must be sweet as the cooing of the wild dove.

146

On

a plot of mossy grass beyond the thicket, sat two maidens of

surpassing beauty.

THE VISION OF TSUNU

The maidens were
willow, they

graceful

as

the

slender

were

fair

as the blossom of the

cherry tree.

men which

Slowly they moved the chesslay before them on the grass.

to breathe, lest

Tsunu hardly dared

disturb them.
hair,

he should

The

breeze caught their long

sun
still

the sunlight played upon it. ... The still shone. The chess-men were
.

slowly

moved

to

and

fro.

The

woodman gazed

enraptured.

"But now," thought Tsunu, "I must return, and tell those at home of the beautiful
maidens."
Alas,
his

knees

were

stiff

and

weak.

"

Surely

have stood here

for

many

hours," he said.
his

He
that

leaned for support upon

into
dust.

axe

it

crumbled

Looking
beard

down,

he

saw

a flowing

white

hung from his chin. For many hours the poor woodman
in

tried

vain to

reach

his

home.

wearied, he

came

at last

Fatigued and O to a hut. But all

faces

changed. ously at him.

was

Strange

peered

curi-

was

unfamiliar.

The speech of the people " Where are my wife and

149

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
my
his

children

"
?

he

cried.

But no one knew

name.

poor woodman came to understand that seven generations had passed since
Finally, the

he bade farewell to his dear ones

morning.
ful

in

the early

While he had gazed

his
wife,

at the beauti-

maidens,

his

children,

and

his

children's children,

had lived and

years

died.
life

The few remaining

of Tsunu's
to

were spent as a pious pilgrim

his well-loved mountain.

Fuji-yama,

Since his death he has been honoured as

a saint

who

brings prosperity to the people of

his native country.

150

Princess Fire -Fly

in

the pinky petals of a lotus bloom

in the castle

that
in

grew

moats of Fukui,

Echizen, lived Hi-O, the King of the FireFlies. In this beautiful flower his daughter,
Princess

the

Hotaru,

passed

her childhood

exploring

every

shady

nook

and

fragrant

corner of the bell-like palace, listening to the buzz of life around, and peeping over the edge
of the petals at the

wonderful

world which

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
lay mysteriously beyond.

Hotaru-Hime had

few youthful companions, but, as she daily bade her father farewell, she dreamed of the
time
her

when

she,

too,

would would

fly

abroad,

and

brilliant

light

attract

universal

admiration.

Gradually, a beautiful sheen o'erspread her

body

night by night

it

became

brighter, until

at last

her home, in the hours of darkness,

a

was

as

globe

of

coral

wherein

shone

lamp of gold.
sickle

So

glorious
it,

was her
a
cloud

light

that the stars paled before

and the bright

from

moon withdrew behind

allowed
to

jealousy.

Hime was now

home,
fields,

fly

from her
rice

to

loiter

among
the

the

pleasant

and

to

explore

indigo

meadows

which lay far off on the horizon. She had no lack of friends and would-be lovers
thousands of
light,

insects,

attracted
their

by her magic

came and
never
and,

offered

Hime
blood,

forgot

homage, but that she was of royal

found
a
into

while she haughtily thanked her

many
heart.

suitors,

none

way

her

But the Princess whispered to

life

herself,

"

Only he who loves me more than

bride."

shall call

me

PRINCESS FIRE-FLY

One evening
her court.

the

Princess,

seated

on

throne formed by the heart of the

lotus,

held

Soon the

faint roseate petals of the

flower were thronged with a host of ardent

lovers.
self,

But the Princess whispered to her"Only he who loves me more than life

shall call

me

bride."

The
feet,

o-olden beetle laid his fortunes at her o the cockchafer wooed her in passionate

words,

the

dragon-fly

proudly proffered his

Countless other insects
her answer was
fire,

hand, and the hawk-moth humbly, yet persistently,

addressed her.
audience,

gained

but

ever
I

the same,

"Go, and bring me

and

will

be your bride." One by one they took wing, enraptured by the hope of success, and unconscious that
they were
all

bent on the selfsame errand.

entered the Buddhist
the
love,

The hawk-moth
and
circled
until,

round and round

in

tall

Temple wax
to

lights,

an ecstasy of
"

he flew win

into

the

flame,

exclaiming,

Now

the Princess or meet

my

death!"

His poor

singed body
beetle

fell

heavily to the ground.

The

watched

intently, for a
157

moment

or two,

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
the log
fire

crackling on the hearth, and then,

of
his
fate,

regardless

boldly

caught

at

tongue of flame he hoped to carry to Himebut his end was that of the hawk-moth.

The
the

dragon-fly,

notwithstanding
not
fulfil

his

sunlit

splendours,

could

the
;

bidding

of
fell

Lady
prey

of the Lotus

Bloom
tried

he also

to

her

imperious command.
to
steal

Other
from

lovers

there

were who
his

the
their
to

diamond

heart of

fire,

who winged
in

way

to

the summit of Fukui, or sped

the

depths of the valleys

that

search

of

the

talisman

was
rose

to
in

make Hime

their

bride.

morning splendour over untold numbers of dead bodies, which

alone

The sun

remained to

tell

of

the

great

devo-

tion that

had inspired the lovers of Princess

Hotaru.

Now

tidings

came

to

Hi-Maro, a Prince of

the Fire-Flies living hard by, that the Princess

Hotaru was exceedingly beautiful whereupon he flew swiftly to her home among the lotus
;

flowers.
light,

Even

as,

with a

flood

of golden

he entered, the charms of

Hime were

not

dimmed.

One

look passed between the youth

158

PRINCESS FIRE-FLY
and the maiden, and then each
great love
filled their hearts.
felt

that a

Hi-Maro wooed
lived

and wed, and

with

for

many
in

years
the

happily

Hotaru-Hime

castle

moats of

Fukui. Centuries have passed since

his
bride,

Hi-Maro won
fire-fly

and

still

the

dazzling
in

Princesses
of
fire.

send their insect lovers

search

'59

The

Sparrow's

Wedding

the heart of a forest of

that
lay
in

pine-trees

remote corner of the Land

of

the

Dragon

Fly,

dwelt

Chiyotaro,

prosperous sparrow,

who was honoured and

beloved alike by his family and friends. had many beautiful children, but not
with

He
one
heart

manners more distinguished,

true,

or

more
life

than
little

Tschiotaro.

He
;

was

the
the

of

the

household
163

merry as

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
summer-day
is

long,

and talkative as only a

afar

sparrow can be. Tschiotaro would

woods,

fly

through

the
;

and

across

indeed, at times,
sight of the
less

surrounding plains he would even come within

the

the
his

towering peaks of the MatchMountain. With the first whisper of approach of sundown, he would wing
to
forest

way homeward,
in

delight

the

loved
story

ones
of

the
day's

pine

with

the

his

adventures.

Laughter
to

and

sounds of glee echoed through the

as the

twilight,

sparrow

family

listened

Tschio-

taro's chatter.

Then came
in

the hush of night,

and there was silence

wood.

the depths of the

Tschiotaro chirped his farewell, and flew off he knew not whither.

One sunny morning

last,

At
boo
cut

he

alighted

in

the

shadowy bamthe
the

grove
sparrow,

where
dwelt.
in

Kosuzumi,
Truly
his

tongue-

gods
to

had
this

favoured
spot.

him

guiding

flight

Kosuzumi

was

beautiful,

but

her

daughter Osuzu was even more lovely.

She
;

was

blithe,

warm

hearted,
164

and

winsome

THE SPARROW'S WEDDING

simple,
too,

was

the
in

maiden
cool

whose
shade of

days
the
to

had

been

spent
thicket.

the

bamboo
was
a

Tschiotaro

had
it

only
true,

see her to love her.

little

At

first,

is

he
the

shy,

and

hopped

around

one with mute appeal in his tiny sparkling eyes but when he saw that Osuzu smiled and peeped coyly at him, he grew
beautiful
;

bolder,
Little

and even ventured

by
:

to

address

her.

little

the

talk

became more
and mutual

ani-

mated

reserve

vanished,

confi-

dences passed. Tschiotaro and Osuzu had, in truth, entered the Garden of Bliss, which
is

known

in

as Okugi.

Japan Time sped apace, and the hour

all

the

feathered

world

of

of parting

came

too quickly.

Tschiotaro
return.
air,

assured

Osuzu

that

he would soon
the

As he
laden

travelled

through
heart

summer

with the fragrance of myriad

filled

flowers,
zest

a deep joy
to
his

his

and added
in

flight.

Osuzu,

happy

her
to

newsleep
in

found love,

was rocked peacefully

by the swaying of the bamboo branches

the soft breeze.

Tschiotaro lost no time

165

in

making known

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
to
his

father

his

love

for

the

beautiful

daughter
she,

of

Kosuzumi,
other,

and

declared

that
bride.

and none
old

should
the

be

his

The
prise.

one

heard

news

with

sur-

Rich and respected as he was, he could not permit his son to marry the first but maiden with whom he fell in love
;

as

Chiyotaro
of
his

sat

contentedly

in

quiet
for

nook
his

rustling

home,
to

his

love

son,

and the desire

see

him happy,

outweighed all other considerations. "If Osuzu be good and true, said,
not refuse
fore to

He
I

will

give

my

consent."

Even
to

be-

he

heard

that

Osuzu

belonged

family honoured far and wide, that her

home

was

dainty,

and

that

her

mother was the

Chiyotaro had should cloud his

famous

tongue-cut
that

sparrow,

determined

nothing

son's happiness.

After
taro's

the lapse of a day or two, Tschio-

glowing story was confirmed by the Father and wise ones among the sparrows.

mother were content, and, according custom, an envoy was despatched

parents
of

to

old

to

the of

Osuzu

with
1

formal

offer

66

THE SPARROW'S WEDDING

marriage.
after

The
All

family in the

bamboo

thicket,

due

deliberation,

consented
well.

to

meet

Chiyotaro.

went

The wedding
all

day was speedily preparations were

event.

fixed,

and
for

manner of
auspicious

made
was
to

the

The home
in

that

shelter

Tschiotaro

and Osuzu was

the

built

with

the

greatest care

tree,

upper branches of a beautiful cherry whose pure white petals in blossom-time

would lend fragrance and peace to the happy retreat. Many were the gifts which arrived
to adorn,

and add comfort

to,

the

new abode.

Sparrows from far and near vied with one another in the delicacy and variety of their
offerings,
until

the

dwelling was wondrously

enticing.

Just

before
at

the

wedding

day,
gifts

Osuzu

re-

joiced

the arrival of rare

Tschiotaro.
in

from her

beloved

An

obi

of

dewdrops,
;

which held

them the

secrets of the sun

a head-dress, fashioned of the slender petals of a mountain flower and tiny moss san;

dals,

so
at

soft

them

and exquisite that she donned once for very love and pride
1635,

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
these

and many other gifts did Tschiotaro bestow. Nor were Osuzu's parents unmindful

grand robe of ceremony, woven of the pinky blossom of the peach, as well as sakd and luscious fruit, were
duties.

of their

sent to Tschiotaro.

The morning

of the marriage dawned.

By

the time the sun touched with glory the peak

of Fusi-yama, the sparrow families were busy

preparing for the day's

the purple shadows had
leys,

festivities.

Long

ere

lifted

from the val-

the wedding procession

copse,

had assembled

from

and

Never

before

hedgerow, and woodland. had such a concourse of

Tschiotaro was widely

sparrows been seen.

noised abroad.

beloved, and the beauty of Osuzu had

become

On

arrival at their

new home,

the bride and

bridegroom sipped thrice of the three cups of rice wine which consecrated their union, and
afterwards
to

the whole

company drank

freely

the

health
pair.

wedded
lasted

and well-being of the newly Sounds of revelry and rejoicing

;

until

the late evening

his
1

and long
farewell
to

after

the sun

had bade

daily

the

68

THE SPARROW'S WEDDING

cherry grove the sparrows
twittered.
still

chattered and

As
died

the moon, with her attendant maidens,

rose slowly in the heavens, the festal sounds

away and
of

silence reigned.

Tschiotaro and
years

wedded sparrowhood.
cause
to

Osuzu spent many happy They had

their

children fair and graceful as themselves, and

never
union.

had

regret

loving

169

The Love of

the

Snow -White Fox

^^iMmiMmim

'

Idzumo,

the

Pro-

vince
are the

of the
foxes.

Gods,

many

There
in
oni,

wicked Ninko,
with
the

league

prowls about at nightfall

and

carries
little

away
chil-

the souls of

dren, he robs the poor

man
millet,

of

his

rice

and

and

bewitches

the maidens
his path.

who
173

cross

There, too,

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
is

his

enemy the

Inari

fox,

who

is

kind of

heart.

The

Inari

loves

the

children,

and
is

warns the anxious

near
;

mothers when

Ninko

he guards the store of the peasant, and comes to the aid of maidens in distress.

young She was snow-white, and her eyes were keen and intelligent. She was beloved
ago,
Inari fox.

Many

centuries

there lived

by all the good people for miles around. They were glad if, in the evening, she knocked
softly with her tail against the

window of

their

hut
the

when she entered she would

children,
trot

play with
fare,

eat of their

humble
Inari

and

then
those

away.

The god
kind
to

protected

who were

her.

The Ninko
Idzumo

foxes hated her.

There were hunters

in

the country of

who
white
life

thirsted
fox.

for

the

blood of the

beautiful

Once

or twice she nearly lost her

at the

hands of these cruel men.

afternoon,

One summer
about
friends,
in

she was frisking

woods with some young fox when two men caught sight of her.
the
fleet

They were
side.

of foot and had dogs by their

Off

ran

the

white
174

fox.

The men

THE LOVE OF THE SNOW-WHITE FOX

uttered an excited cry and gave chase.
In-

stead of going

towards the open

plain,

she

made

for

the

Temple
I

of

Inari

"There

surely

will

find a safe refuge

Daim-yojin. from

my pursuers," she thought. Now Yaschima, a young

house of Abe, was
meditation.
in

prince of the noble

temple,

the
fox,

deep

in

The
spent,

white

was almost

whose strength ran fearlessly up to him

and took refuge beneath the thick folds of his Yaschima was moved with pity, and robe.
did
all

in

his

power

to

soothe
"
said,
I

the
will

poor
pro-

frightened creature.
tect you, little

He

you have nothing to fear." The fox looked up at him, and seemed to
;

one

understand.
the

She ceased
went
to

to tremble.

Then

Prince

temple.
asked,
if

Two men

door of the great hastened up to him and

the

he had seen a pure white fox. must have run into the Temple of Inari.

"It

We

would have

its

blood to cure the sickness of

one of our family." But Yaschima, faithful to his promise, answered "I have been in
:

the temple

praying to the good god, but

fox."
'

can

tell

you nothing of the

175

The men

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
were about
to

leave him,

when, behind his

tail.

robe, they spied a white

bushy

Fiercely

they demanded

that

he should stand aside.

Prince firmly refused. But, intent on their prey, the men attacked him, and he was
obliged to draw his sword in self-defence.
this

The

At

moment Yaschima's
;

father,

a brave old

man, came up

he rushed upon the enemies of his son, but a deadly blow, which Yaschima
could not avert, struck him down.

Then

the

young Prince was very wroth, and, with two

mighty
strokes,

he

felled

his

adversaries to

the ground.

The
with

loss of his

beloved father

filled

Yaschima

grief.

He

did not break out into loud

lamentation, for the sorrow lay too near his

heart.

Then

a sweet song

fell

on

his ear.

It

came

from the temple.

As he

re-entered the sacred

building, a beautiful maiden stood before him.

She

turned,

and saw that he was

Prince told
cruel

trouble.
fox,

The

deep her of the snow-white

in

and the

hunters,

and the death of

his father

whom

he loved.
'
;

The maiden spoke

her voice was so

tender words of sympathy

176

.,--..
..-;.
,

--

;
<

-:

, '

''

V.',

With two mighty

strokes,

he

felled his adversaries to the

ground.

THE LOVE OF THE SNOW-WHITE FOX

soft
fort

and sweet that the sound brought comto him. When Yaschima learned that

the maiden was true, that her heart was as

pure and beautiful as her face, he loved her, and asked her to be his bride. She replied,
"

very gently,
that

already love you.

know
would

you are good and brave, and

solace you for the loss of your father."

They were wed.

that
his

Yaschima did not

wife had then

forget

the death of his father, but he

beautiful

remembered
been given
happily
lived

to him.

For some time they

together.

The days

passed swiftly.

Yaschima

ruled his people wisely,

and

his fair Princess

was ever by his side. Each morning they went to the temple, and thanked the good god
Inari for the joy that

had come
to

to them.

Now
Princess.

a son

was born

the

Prince and
of Seimei.

They gave him

the

name

Thereafter the Princess became sorely troubled. She sat alone for hours, and tears sprang to

her eyes when Yaschima asked her the cause One day she took his hand of her sorrow.

and
tiful.

said,
I

here has been very beauhave given you a son to be with you
life

''

Our

179

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
always.

The god

Inari

now

tells

me

that

must leave you.

guarded

me

guard you as you from the hunters at the door of

will
I

He

the great temple.

am none
life

other than the

snow-white fox whose

more she looked

Yaschima and

into

you saved." Once his eyes, and then,

lived

without a word, she was gone.

long in the Province of the Gods. They were greatly beloved, but the snow-white fox was seen no
more.

Seimei

80

Nedzumi

the Central

Land
Their

of

Reed-Plains
rats.

dwelt two

home was
farmstead

in

a lonely

surrounded

by

rice

fields.

Here
that

they lived happily for so many years who the other rats in the district,
constantly to change their quarters,

had

believed

that their neighbours were under the special

protection of

Fukoruku
183

Jin,

one of the Seven

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
Gods
Life.

of Happiness, and the Patron of

Long

These

rats

had a large family of children.

led the
little

Every summer day they

the
rice
fields,

ones into

where,
the

under shelter of the

rats

waving
history

stalks,

young

learned

the

and cunning of their people. When work was done, they would scamper away and
until
it

play with their friends

return home.

was time

to

The most

beautiful

of these

children

was

Nedzumi, the pride of her parents' heart. She was truly a lovely little creature, with sleek
silvery skin,

bright intelligent eyes, tiny up-

standing

ears,

and

pearly

white

teeth.

It

seemed

to the fond father

and mother that no

one was great enough to marry their daughter,

but,

after

much

pondering, they decided that

the most powerful being in the whole universe

should be their son-in-law.

The

parents discussed the weighty question

with a trusted neighbour,

who

said,

"If you

would wed your daughter

being
in

to the

most powerful

the universe, you must ask the sun to

marry

her, for his

empire knows no bounds."

184

NEDZUMI
they mounted through the skies, no rat can tell. The sun gave them audience and
listened

How

graciously as they said,

"

We
He

would
smiled

give you our daughter to wife."

and rejoined, "Your daughter is indeed beautiful, and I thank you for coming so far to offer her to me. But, tell me, why have you chosen

me

out of

all

the world

"
?

The

rats

made

would marry our Nedzumi to the answer, mightiest being, and you alone wield worldwide sway." Then the sun replied, "Truly

"We

my kingdom

is

vast,

but oftentimes,

when

would illumine the world, a cloud floats by and covers me. I cannot pierce the cloud
;

therefore you must go to

to be attained."

him

if

your wish

is

In no

way

discouraged, the rats

left

the sun

and came

to a cloud as
air.

he rested
cloud

after a flight

through the
less cordially
offer,

The

received

them

than the sun, and replied to their with a look of mischief in his dusky eyes,
are mistaken
if

"You

you think that

It is
I

am
I

the

most powerful being.

times hide the sun, but
force of the wind.

true that

some-

cannot withstand the

When
185

he begins to blow

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
I

am

driven away, and torn in pieces.

is

My

strength

not

equal

to

the

power
intent

of the

wind."

A
as

little

saddened, the

rats,

on

their

daughter's future prosperity, waylaid the wind

He swept through a pine forest. was about to awaken the plain beyond, to stir the grass and the flowers into motion.
he

The two
mission.

anxious parents made known their This was the whispered reply of the
is

wind:
drive

"It

true

that

have strength to
I

away the
the
wall

clouds,

but

am
build
if

powerless
to

against

which men
to

me

back.

You must go

him
in

have the mightiest being Indeed I your son-in-law.

as the wall."

keep would you the world for

not so mighty

am

The
to

rats, still persistent in their quest,

came
wall

the wall and told

I

their story.

The

answered, "True,

can withstand the wind,

but the rat undermines

through my very heart. if you would wed your daughter to the most I cannot overpowerful being in the world.

me and makes holes To him you must go

come the

rat."
186

NEDZUMI
And now the parent rats returned to their home in the farmstead. Nedzumi, their beautidaughter with the silken coat and sparkling eyes, rejoiced when she heard that she was to
ful

marry one of her own people, for her heart had already been given to a playfellow of the
rice fields.

They were
as

married, and lived for

many
world.

years

king and queen of the rat

187

Koma

and

Gon

JVyJANY moons
lived

ago,

teacher

of

music
faithful

not far

from

Kyoto.

serving-woman and a beautiful cat were his sole companions. Gon was a handsome fellow,
with
sleek
coat,

bushy

eyes that glowed in loved him, and would say as the cat purred " by his side in the evening, Nothing shall
part us, old friend."
191

and grass-green the darkness. His master

tail,

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
O-Ume was a
in

happy maiden whose home

lay

the midst of the plum groves.

little

Her

chief

pet was a
;

ways She blinked so

had very winning her mistress delighted to watch her.

cat.

Koma

she ate so daintily, she licked her rose-red nose so carefully with her
prettily,

tiny tongue, that

O-Ume
"

would catch her up,

are

and say

fondly,
I

Koma, Koma, you

sure

good
tears
shall
It
fell

cat.

am

your

ancestors
died.

shed

when our

Lord

Buddha

You

never leave me."

happened that Gon and Koma met, and Gon was deeply in love with one another.
that

so

handsome
gladly

would

any of the cats in the district have been his mate, but he

did not deign to notice one of them.

When

he saw the
quickly.

little

maid Koma,

his heart beat

The

cats

were

in great distress,

for neither

the music-master nor

parting with their pet.
willingly

O-Ume
Koma

would hear of

Gon's master would

to live with him,
this
;

have taken

but

O-Ume

would not hear of

nor were

Koma's
It

entreaties

more

successful.

was the seventh night of the seventh

192

KOMA AND GON

moon, the night sacred
of
to lovers in the

Land

Great

Peace,

Silver River of

when Kingen crosses the Heaven and Shakujo joyfully

embraces him.

Gon and
together. D

Koma
It

left

their

homes and
as they

fled

was a moon-

bright night, and the cats were light of heart

scampered through the

fields

of rice

and across the great open plains. When day broke, they were near a palace which stood in
a large park,
full

of stately old trees and ponds

covered with sweet lotus-blooms.

Koma
palace,

said,

"If only we could glorious it would be

live
"
!

in

that

how

As

she spoke, a fierce

dog caught sight of the cats, and bounded towards them angrily. Koma gave a cry of
terror,

and sprang up a cherry

"

tree.

not

stir.

Dear

Koma

shall see

Gon did that I am a

than run

hero,

and would rather lose

my

life

away." But the dog was powerful, and would have killed Gon. He was almost upon the
brave
cat,

when

a serving-man drove him

into the palace.

off,

and carried Gon

Poor
loss.

little

Koma was
The

left

alone to lament her

who lived in the palace was overjoyed when Gon was brought to her.
Princess
193

OLD-WORLD JAPAN
days passed before he was allowed out Then he hunted far and near for of her sight.

Many

his fair lover, but all in vain.

lost to

"My Koma

is

me

for ever,"

he sighed.
lived
in

Now
snake

the Princess

happiness.

splendour and She had but one trouble a great

;

loved her.

At

all

hours of the day and

and try to night the animal would creep up constant guard was kept, come near her.

but

still

the

serpent,

at

times,

succeeded

in

One aftergaining the door of her chamber. noon, the Princess was playing softly to herself
on the
koto,

when

the snake crept unobserved In a

bit
it

past the guards

and entered her room.

its

moment, Gon sprang upon

neck and

so furiously that the hideous creature soon lay The Princess heard the noise and dead.

looked round.
risked his

When

she saw that

Gon had
;

was deeply moved she stroked him and whispered kind words
life for

her, she

into his ear.

He

was praised by the whole

household, and fed upon the daintiest morsels But there was a cloud upon his in the palace.

happiness the loss of Koma. On a summer day he lay sunning himself

:

194

KOMA AND GON

door of the palace. Half asleep, he looked out upon the world and dreamed
before the
of the moonlight night

when he and Koma

homes.
a
little

escaped

from

their

former

In

the

park a big cat was

fragile to take care

ill-treating

one, too

of herself.

Gon jumped

up and flew
cruel cat
little

to her aid.
;

He

soon drove the

away
to

then he turned towards the

if

one

ask

she were hurt.

before

long-lost
sleek,

love,

stood

him

Koma, Not

his

the

beautiful

Koma

of other days, for she

was

thin

and

sad, but her eyes sparkled

when

she saw that

Gon was
went

her deliverer.
to the Princess.

The two

cats

They

told her the

story of their love,

their flight,

their separation,

and

their reunion.

She entered

whole-heartedly into their new-found joy. On the seventh night of the seventh

moon

Gon and Koma were

watched over them,

married.

The

Princess

and they were happy.

Many

years passed.

curled up together.

One day she found them The two faithful hearts

had ceased

to beat.

CENTRAL CIRCULATION
CHILDREN'S ROOM

Printed by BALLANTYNE,

HANSON &

Co.

Edinburgh and London