Seven Demon Stories from Medieval Japan

by Noriko T. Reider

  mented. The yamauba responded, “That’s the smell of a head I threw away

  into the valley just a moment ago. The smell comes with the gust you

  brought.” At this the oni laughed. There is nothing false in the words of

  demons, they say.31 Laughing, the oni returned to his place on the peak

  of Mt. Fuji. After the demon had left, the woman pulled the princess

  from the pit. “If you go as you are, people will be suspicious,” she said.

  “I’ll let you wear my clothes that I put aside during summer because it’s

  so hot. Here, wear this. This will make you look old. If you go over that

  peak, you’ll see a river flowing from the south. Don’t go downstream, but

  follow the river upstream instead. Then you’ll see smoke in the distance.

  If you go in the direction of the smoke, you’ll find a human habitation.

  When someone comes out and talks to you there, stay in that place.” The

  yamauba accompanied the princess through the mountain and sent her in

  the right direction.

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  After the yamauba left, the princess pressed on as instructed. Indeed,

  she soon saw smoke in the distance. Relieved, she thought to herself, “How

  strange that I can finally reach a human habitation. It’s a miracle that I’m

  alive, without becoming prey for oni.” As she did not know exactly where to

  visit, she was a little apprehensive. But she trod on, step by step, and soon

  she reached a house. Remembering what the yamauba said, the princess fol-

  lowed the white water ( shiromizu, water that has been used to wash rice) and

  arrived at the small back gate of the middle councilor’s house. She could

  hear lively voices at the front gate of the house and wondered if anyone

  would come outside. Looking at the splendid house, she thought to herself,

  “My father’s house is by no means inferior to this. What a hateful world this

  is.” While the princess stood at the back gate and rested for a moment, a

  maid came out and looked carefully at the princess, who was disguised as an

  old woman. The maid asked kindly, “Old lady, where did you come from?

  Would you like to build up the fire each morning and night for this house?”

  The princess thought to herself, “How will I do this? I have never done

  such a thing before.” As she had nowhere to go, tears started to well up in

  her eyes once again.

  The maid, whose name was Akino, happened to be a compassionate

  woman, so she took pity on the princess and brought her to her house. That

  night the maid told the princess, “This is the house of the middle councilor,

  a splendid gentleman. My work is to make hot water, but I am so busy that

  I want you to make a fire for this pot, please.” “How can I decline this

  woman’s request?” the princess thought. “The maid is a kind person, and I

  believe I can rely on her.” So, even though she had never made a fire before,

  she accepted the request.

  “oh, I’m happy you agree. Please put water in the pot and make the

  fire.” Akino thought, “What kind of person could this old lady be? She looks

  a little feeble.” Nevertheless, Akino tenderly taught the princess to build the

  fire and made her a sleeping place beside a cooking pot. The princess got up

  while it was still dark outside and made the fire for cooking. It was a pitiful

  sight, but as her job was only to make a fire at the back of the house where

  nobody came, she did not have to worry about people’s eyes. Still, her tears

  came down constantly at the drudgery of such unfamiliar work.

  The year passed and the New Year arrived. Various celebrations were

  held at the middle councilor’s house, and people came and went in splendid

  clothes. “If I weren’t in this state, I could be like them, too,” thought the

  princess and wept without being noticed by anyone. Time passed quickly,

  and it was already the fifteenth of the first month. The middle councilor, the

  lady, and their four children gathered for an incense-smelling gathering, with

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  various blends of fine incense and censers. Saké was offered. After the mer-

  rymaking was over, each gentleman went back to his quarters. But Saishō, the

  youngest son, feeling a little lonesome, did not return to his room. Instead,

  he played the flute, amusing himself by gazing at the hazy moon in the spring

  night’s sky. When everyone had gone to bed and he was thinking about going

  to his room as well, he saw a faint light in the distance. He thought it strange

  and quietly stepped outside and walked in the direction of the light. He could

  dimly see an oil lamp that barely lit a small untidy area in the hedges. Curious,

  Saishō approached and peeped in. There he found a graceful maiden four-

  teen or fifteen years of age, combing her long hair with a lacquer comb. She

  had a lovely complexion with a sublime charm about her eyes—her beauty

  might be painted but could not possibly be described with words. There was

  no defect about her whatsoever. Her exquisiteness might be compared to a

  shining jewel. “As long as I live in this fleeting world,” he thought, “I want

  to make love to a maiden like that just for the memory. How come such a

  beautiful young lady is in a place like this? So strange.” Saishō wished to get

  a closer look at the young maiden, but on further consideration he thought,

  “What if the maiden is really a supernatural being out to trick me? I should go

  back now and return here tomorrow night to find out.” Reluctantly and with

  a great deal of effort, Saishō returned to his room.

  Saishō went to bed, but with the princess’s stunning beauty remaining

  in his eyes, he could not sleep. “I have seen many people lately but never

  such a beauty,” the young man thought. “I haven’t had anyone that I have

  cared for, but since I saw her by chance, I can’t help thinking of her. I won’t

  be able to give her up. If only I can spend one night with her—even if she

  is a demon—I don’t care if I die.” on the following morning, he waited for

  the day to end. Before long, it was dark. Saishō called Matsuwaka-maru, his

  page, and said, “I want to tell you something. Don’t tell anyone.”

  Matsuwaka-maru humbly replied, “Whatever it is, I will never reveal

  your secrets. I will swear to the gods.”

  “Good. Then I’ll tell you,” Saishō continued. “When night comes, I will

  go somewhere to visit someone. You will wait here as usual. I shall be fine,”

  Saishō reassured his page, and he waited for people’s voices to subside.

  After the people of the house laid down to sleep and the house became

  quiet, Saishō silently left his room. Entering the princess’s hut, he peered

  with the faint oil light. The princess was chanting the Kannon Sutra from her

  gold-painted scripture with a crystal rosary on her hands. After that, she

  went on to intone the “Devadatta Chapter” [ Daiba bon].32

  “Great Compassionate Kannon, please have mercy on me. With the

  merits of the Kannon Sutra, let me see my father once more. With the

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  merits of the ‘Devadatta Chapter,’ may my mother in the netherland attain

>   Buddhahood immediately.” Thus she prayed for the repose of her mother’s

  soul and wiped her tears with her sleeve. She then composed a poem:

  Hito shirezu

  Nobody knows

  namida no kakaru

  of my tears

  waga sode wo

  My sleeves

  hosu hima mo naki

  are ceaselessly wet—

  haru ni au kana

  Alas, this spring.

  She closed her eyes and leaned on a nearby hedge. Thinking this a great

  opportunity, Saishō went quietly through the hedge and approached her.

  The princess noticed a sudden waft of a familiar scent. Thinking it strange,

  she opened her eyes. There, standing in front of her, was a good-looking

  young gentleman. Shocked by the sudden appearance of a man, she imme-

  diately put out the oil light.

  Saishō whispered, “Please don’t make a noise. We are destined to meet

  each other, so I came.” He came closer and behaved affectionately. The prin-

  cess felt ashamed and frightened at the same time. She cast her eyes down—

  her tears were brimming over. Her body was like a supple green willow in

  spring yielding to the wind. He pulled her toward him and spoke softly, “This

  must be our fate from a previous life. By accident I saw you last night and

  fell in love with you. Since then you’ve filled my heart. I waited until it got

  dark to come here and watched you intoning the sutra secretly from here. I

  heard your recitation—every word of your memorial service. You must be

  the daughter of a gentleman. I heard your poem. Please allow me to recite a

  poem in reply. Your sleeve may be wet, but I will dry it for you:

  Sa nomi tada

  Simply like that

  namida ni nururu

  wet from the tears

  kimi ga sode

  the sleeves of yours

  haru no hikage ni

  Let me dry them

  hosazarame ya wa

  in the spring sun.

  Saishō talked lovingly to her, but she was too embarrassed to say any-

  thing and tears kept welling up her eyes.

  Looking at the princess Saishō said, “You must be very cautious. I’ll

  let you know who I am. Do you know the master of this house? He is an

  aristocrat formerly attending the imperial court in the capital. But there

  was something unpleasant happening in the capital, so he moved to this

  province where he had connections. He is Middle Councilor Tadafusa, and

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  I am his youngest son, Saishō. You can see I am not a demon or anything

  evil. Please yield to me,” he begged. The princess thought it would be too

  unkind if she did not respond, so she murmured, “It must be so. But I am

  of humble origin and I don’t know how you look at this. I am so embar-

  rassed. If you don’t forget me, please stop by again, but please leave now.”

  She then looked down.

  Saishō was determined. “How could I possibly forget you—whatever

  you say?” He pleaded, “How can you make me anxious forever?” He took

  off his silk garment and laid down with her on it. Although this took the

  princess completely by surprise, drowned in a current of sympathy and

  affection, she yielded to him. Saishō was in rapture. Although he wanted

  the night to last forever, the spring night was short and birds started to

  chirp. As Saishō wished to keep his love affair a secret, he very reluctantly

  parted with her. As for the princess, she started to make the fire. Then

  Akino came to get hot water. Although the princess knew Akino was

  unaware of anything that had transpired, she felt so embarrassed and sad

  that as soon as she finished making the fire, she went back to her place

  and laid down. Akino said sympathetically, “Are you all right, old lady?

  You must be feeling unwell. Please take care of yourself. I will make a fire

  tonight then.”

  The princess sat worrying about her situation. She said to herself,

  “There is nothing more bitter than a woman. I hear that a man swears his

  everlasting love just to have one night’s passion. I don’t think he will visit

  me again. What will happen to me if this incident is ever revealed? Should

  I throw myself from a cliff?”

  The day came to an end, and again Saishō visited her. He continued to

  come for four or five days on end and promised their bond to the next life.

  Saishō then said, “People may start to suspect if I keep visiting here like

  this. I will move you to my nurse’s house so I can visit you with ease.” Thus,

  Saishō wrote to his nurse, “I have found someone in an unexpected place.

  Let her take lodging in your house. If it’s all right with you, I will come to

  your place with her this evening. Please reply.” Matsuwaka-maru carried the

  letter to Saishō’s nurse. When the nurse received the letter, she wondered

  who it was—“This is indeed an unexpected thing.” Although she asked

  Matsuwaka-maru who this person was, he had not the slightest idea. Since

  the master’s request was to be obeyed by all means, she wrote a reply and

  had Matsuwaka-maru take it to Saishō. Saishō was delighted to see a posi-

  tive response and went to the princess’s place after dark.

  “I have arranged for everything. Don’t worry, come with me,” said

  Saishō. The princess followed at his will and wrapped the yamauba’s clothes

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  carefully. “I must never be parted from these,” said the princess and held

  the bundle tightly. “I understand,” Saishō said and took it from her and

  carried it for her. Taking her hand, Saishō first went back to his room and

  chose for her a superior silk garment. He then put one on himself to look

  like a woman. Having Matsuwaka-maru carry his sword and letting him go

  first, the two left his quarters for the nurse’s house.

  At the nurse’s house, all day the nurse and her daughter, Chiyoi, had

  been preparing for the princess’s stay by dusting the tie beams and changing

  the tatami mat on the floor. The nurse put the oil light on at night and had

  been waiting. When she went out to welcome her master, Matsuwaka-maru

  came to inform her of his master’s arrival. She let Chiyoi show them directly

  to the guest room and joined them a little later. Saishō, in good spirits, said

  to his nurse, “I’m sorry to bother you, but please take good care of your

  guest. And you, Chiyoi, serve this lady well.”

  Saishō and the princess looked harmonious together. “What will hap-

  pen, I wonder,” the nurse thought to herself. “He hasn’t informed his par-

  ents of this matter.” As the nurse looked carefully at the princess, she, too,

  thought the young girl’s beauty and elegance might be artistically portrayed

  but could not be described in words. “No wonder my master has fallen in

  love,” was her thought. They celebrated the couple’s happiness with saké.

  After that, as Saishō visited the princess at the nurse’s house every night

  and his affection for her only increased, the nurse could not possibly treat

  her badly. The princess felt at ease, but the welfare of her father and nurse,

  Akashi, was constantly on her mind.

  Back in the pr
incess’s old workplace, Akino came the morning fol-

  lowing the princess’s departure and found no fire in the stove. Thinking

  it strange, Akino checked the girl’s room, but the princess was nowhere

  to be found. “I wonder where the old lady has gone—how piteous,” she

  sighed. A rice scooper said the old woman must have been a Buddha or

  some supernatural being who came to help Akino during her busy winter

  time. The scooper continued, “The rice never ran out in her utensil. I saw

  her making a little hole in the rice. The old woman didn’t even eat fish. She

  is purifying herself by abstaining from eating meat. In fact, nobody saw her

  eat at all. It is strange that the old woman vanished into thin air.” The rice

  scooper’s observation was nearly correct, for the princess had put a small

  amount of rice into an iron jar and had thus maintained her life.

  one day the middle councilor’s children gathered before their mother

  and had a banquet. All the gentlemen showed their refined accomplish-

  ments, like poetry and music, but among them, Saishō looked particularly

  superior. His mother felt proud and wished there were a suitable lady for

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  189

  Saishō—a parent’s fleeting compassion. Saishō, however, visited the prin-

  cess sometimes even during the day, but since she was at his nurse’s house,

  nobody suspected. One day when Saishō received a beautiful plum branch

  from an acquaintance, he thought it was so pretty that he wanted to show

  it to the princess. But as he could not share it openly, Saishō wrapped the

  branch in a thin paper and wrote a poem on it:

  Koishisa o

  Enveloping my love

  tsutsumite zo yaru

  I send to you

  ume no hana

  the plum blossoms

  nioi o tome yo

  hold their fragrance

  kimi ga tamoto ni

  in your sleeves, please.

  Then he had Matsuwaka-maru carry it to the princess. At the nurse’s

  house, Chiyoi received it and gave it to the princess, who looked at the gift

  and smiled shyly. Chiyoi also looked at the poem and said, “What a grate-

  ful heart.” Chiyoi brought an ink stone and paper and urged the princess,

  “Please write a poem in reply.” So the princess picked up the brush and

  after awhile she wrote:

  Ume no hana

  The plum blossoms

  morite kokoro no