Once Upon a Time in Japan

by Japan Broadcasting Corporation NHK

  “But look, eat a rice ball and what’s left of it? Nothing. A persimmon seed, on the other hand, will give you fruit every year.”

  The crab was in two minds, but eventually she traded the rice ball for the seed.

  She planted the seed the moment she got home, then she and her children watered the plant, waving their pincers about and singing this song …

  “If you don’t hurry and sprout We’ll snip you right out! Hurry and sprout, hurry and sprout Hurry little seed … hurry and sprout!”

  Believe it or not, a little sprout sprouted right out of the ground and started to grow leaves.

  Before they knew it, the sprout was a tree and the tree was bearing fruit over all its branches. The mother crab and her children were jumping for joy. But, try as she may, she just couldn’t climb up the trunk of the tree. Just when they were wondering what they could do, the monkey came by.

  “Leave the picking to me,” he said.

  The monkey dashed up the tree, and the crabs watched helplessly as he picked the sweet ripe red persimmons and made a pig out of himself, eating all of them, tossing the hard bitter green ones down to them.

  Some of the hard fruit landed on the mother crab’s head, injuring her. So the children crabs scampered off in a huff to fetch help from their friends — the mortar, the bee and the chestnut.

  The mortar, the bee and the chestnut came back in no time, deciding that they would give the monkey his due in his own home.

  When they got there, the monkey was out. So the mortar rolled up to the roof, the bee hid under the lid of a big water pot and the chestnut half-buried itself in the ashes of the open hearth.

  The monkey came home and went right to the open hearth.

  “Brrr, it’s freezing!” he said, rubbing his hands over the hot ashes … when suddenly, the chestnut burst open with a loud bang and sailed smack into the monkey’s face.

  “Ow, that burns! Ow ow ow!” he shrieked, scurrying over to the water pot and lifting its lid … when suddenly, the bee flew out and stung him right in the face.

  “Ow, that stings! Ow ow ow!” he shrieked, rushing outside …

  … when suddenly, the mortar came tumbling down, aiming straight for his head.

  “I’m sorry. I’ll never be bad again,” said the monkey, bowing in front of all of them on his hands and knees.

  After that, the monkey and the crabs lived in peace with each other forever and a day.

  The Magical Hood

  Once upon a time there lived a young man who was a very hard worker. He was on his way home as usual one night after a long day’s work when he happened upon some children who were being cruel to a fox cub they had caught by the side of the road.

  “Hey!” shouted the young man, chasing the children away. “Stop torturing an innocent animal like that!”

  Then he turned to the cub.

  “Now, take care you don’t get caught again,” he smiled.

  The cub seemed to smile too as she headed for the hills.

  The young man was on his way home from the fields the next day when the very same fox cub and her mother appeared as if out of nowhere by the side of the road.

  “Thank you very much for saving my child. Please accept this hood as a token of my gratitude,” she said, handing him a well-worn little hood.

  “This is no ordinary hood. If you put this hood on your head you will be able to understand what animals are saying to each other.”

  Before he knew it, the fox and her cub were gone.

  The young man wasn’t sure if he believed his ears, so he immediately put the hood on his head. No sooner had he done this than he heard the voices of young women.

  “There’s plenty of rice for the taking in that paddy over there.”

  “Oh, really? Then I’m going to be there first thing in the morning to eat some.”

  “Yeah, but just make sure you don’t get shooed away by that scary old lady!”

  The young man looked up and saw two little birds chirping away to each other. It was that chirping that he had overheard!

  “Hmm, this is fascinating,” he thought. “I’m going to listen in as much as I can.”

  Two crows were cawing to each other in the branches. The young man put the hood on his head again.

  “Hey, long time no see,” said one of the crows in a deep husky voice. “So, what’s been happening in your village, eh?”

  “You’ve got to hear this,” said the other crow. “I mean, the rich merchant’s daughter got sick as a dog, and a snake got caught in the roof when they were re-thatching it.”

  “You don’t say! So the snake must have had something against them for getting caught and took it out on the daughter.”

  “Yeah, for sure. All they’d have to do is set the snake free and she’d be right as rain. But, you know, human beings have such thick skulls they just don’t get it. I feel so sorry for them!”

  “This won’t do!” thought the young man as he hurried off to the merchant’s home, before long standing before its main gate.

  “A little bird told me that the merchant’s daughter isn’t well,” he said to the gatekeeper. “Give me the chance and I can make her better.”

  The merchant, who had been at a total loss for what to do for his daughter, immediately invited the young man into his home.

  “There’s a snake caught in the roof that you’re re-thatching,” the young man told the merchant, “and he’s in a lot of pain. If you save the snake, your daughter will get better in two shakes of a lamb’s tail.”

  The rich merchant sent one of his servants up into the roof where, sure enough, a snake was caught between it and the ceiling. The servant freed the snake, which had gone all limp.

  “There, there, you poor little thing,” said the merchant, giving the snake water and letting it go in the garden. “Everything’s going to be fine now.”

  And what do you know! The face of his daughter turned from a pale white to a rosy-cheek red before their very eyes … and by day’s end she was up and about and feeling her old self again. The merchant was beside himself with joy.

  “Young man, you’ve managed to save my daughter and I thank you. She owes you her life. This is a sign that you two were meant for each other. How about it? Would you take my daughter’s hand in marriage and look after her forever and ever?”

  And that is how the young man and the merchant’s daughter became husband and wife … and lived happily ever after.

  Sleepyhead Taro and the Children

  Once upon a time a very poor mother and son lived happily together, farming the land. The son was called Taro. They barely made enough to live on, though they both worked without rest, day in and day out. The land was barely fertile, and they were so plagued by droughts that they ran out of things to eat. Taro’s mother fell ill and died from exhaustion, leaving him all alone.

  Overcome by sadness, Taro wept and wept and went on weeping until long after her funeral … and then he fell into a very deep sleep.

  He slept and slept and slept some more. The neighbors were sick with worry and came to visit him, but he was dead to the world. They cooked food and brought it to him, and he did eat it, but without waking up even for a second.

  Village officials arrived and hollered in Taro’s ears, but he remained sound asleep. The children from around there came and tickled his feet. His feet jiggled about, but he himself didn’t so much as blink an eye.

  Before anyone knew it three years had passed, and the fields and paddies by Taro’s house were blanketed in weeds.

  Then, one morning, Taro suddenly woke up. He went straight out into the fields and paddies, got rid of the weeds that had grown as tall as he was, and threw himself into tilling the soil. People were shocked to see him.

  “Sleepyhead Taro has come out of his three-year sleep!” they cried.

  The drought in the village was as bad as it had ever been, and when Taro became aware of this, he headed out to the river with a hoe over his shoulder. A man fro
m the village asked him what he was planning to do at the river. “I’m going to dig a channel for the water,” he replied.

  “But the river is far away from here,” laughed the man. “You’re crazy if you think you can dig a channel with a single hoe.”

  Taro went on his way nonetheless.

  “Hey, let’s all lend Taro a hand!” said the village children when they heard about what he was going to do. They all lined up behind Taro and followed him to the river.

  Taro sunk his hoe deep into the earth by the river. He dug and he dug and he dug some more, and the children dug too, just like him.

  The children’s parents were anxious about them and went to the river. They were deeply moved to see Taro and the children clutching their hoes and digging a water channel as if their lives depended on it, and they pitched in themselves alongside their children.

  The sun was sitting on the western horizon by the time the channel finally reached the rice paddies in the village. Water from the river came streaming along the channel, bursting into them.

  “We did it!” they all cried out to each other. “Thank you, Taro. Thank you so much!”

  After that, the village boasted wonderful rice harvests, even when there was a drought. It was all thanks to the water that ran from the river along the channel to their paddies. The village prospered. And Taro continued to work the earth, living in perfect harmony with everyone around him.

  The Fox and the Otter

  Once upon a time, there was a fox who lived in the mountains and an otter who lived by a river. One day, the fox paid a call on the otter. “Brother Otter,” he said, “have you got anything good to eat?”

  The otter generously caught a big mess of fish and served it to the fox.

  When he had eaten his fill, the fox said, “Mm, that was delicious. Next time I’ll treat you to a mountain feast.”

  The next day, the otter visited the fox. “Well, Brother Fox, I’m here. Bring on the feast!” But the fox just lay staring up at the ceiling without a word. The otter went home in a huff.

  The next day, the fox called on the otter again. “Oh, Brother Otter! Sorry about yesterday. The god of the house ordered me to guard the ceiling, so I couldn’t chat.”

  “I see. Well, since you’re here, won’t you have some fish?” The otter generously treated the fox again. When he was full, the fox said, “Mm, that was delicious! Drop by tomorrow and I promise you a real mountain feast.”

  The next day, the otter went back to the fox’s den. “Hello, Brother Fox, I’m here for the feast!”

  This time the fox just kept looking down at the ground and wouldn’t answer. The otter went home furious, thinking he had been tricked again.

  The next day, the fox went to see the otter. “Sorry about yesterday, my friend,” he said. “The god of the ground ordered me to guard the ground, so I couldn’t chat.”

  Brazenly he went on, “Tell me, Brother Otter, how can I catch a lot of fish, the way you do?”

  “Nothing to it,” said the otter. “On a freezing cold day, go to the river and dangle your tail in the water. Hold perfectly still, and you’ll get a bite in no time.”

  So one cold day, the fox went to the river and dangled his tail in the chilly water. The sun went down, and soon it was pitch dark. The river water became even colder. Just then the fox felt something brush his tail. “Hurrah! I’ve caught a fish!”

  The fox wanted a big catch, so despite the cold he lingered on, dangling his tail in the freezing river until finally it was so heavy he could hardly move it.

  “Oh boy! I hit the jackpot!” The fox tried to jerk his tail up — but it wouldn’t budge. He turned around and was shocked to see that the river had turned to solid ice.

  The fox stayed that way till morning, unable to move. Then the villagers discovered him and came storming up. “Look, there’s the rascally fox that’s always raiding our crops! Catch him! Don’t let him get away!”

  Frantic to escape, the fox pulled and pulled with all his might.

  Then what do you think happened? The tail tore right off, and the fox went running back to the mountains, yelping in pain all the way home.

  The Gratitude of the Crane

  Once upon a time, there was a kind young man who lived all alone. One winter morning, he went outside and saw a crane caught in a trap, struggling desperately to free itself.

  “Wait a moment and I’ll set you free,” he said.

  As soon as the young man undid the rope, the graceful bird rose into the sky, circled overhead three times, and flew off toward the mountains.

  One evening a few days later, someone tapped at the young man’s door. He opened the door to find a beautiful young woman standing there.

  “Sir,” she said, “I am a traveler, but it grew dark before I could find an inn. Please, may I stay here for the night?”

  The young man let her in, saying, “By all means.”

  The young woman set right to work and made herself useful. She was sweet-natured besides. In no time, the young man was smitten.

  “I’d like you to stay forever,” he said. She nodded, and soon they were married

  One day, the young man’s wife said she wanted to weave some cloth, and asked for thread. After he went and fetched her some, she said, “I will do my weaving at the loom in the shed. You must promise never to look.”

  The young man promised. She disappeared into the shed, and soon he heard the clackety-clack of the loom.

  The next day she went to the shed again and stayed there all day.

  After two or three more days, she came out holding pure white cloth — the most beautiful cloth he had ever seen.

  “Take this to town and sell it,” she said.

  In town, the cloth sold for a very high price. The young man was delighted. From then on, every time his wife wove cloth, he would take it to town and sell it. Her cloth became the talk of the town, and its price soared.

  The young man wondered how on earth she could weave such beautiful cloth, but since she had forbidden him to look in on her, he resisted the temptation to peek.

  However, he could not help noticing that each time she wove a cloth she appeared thinner and more worn.

  One day, after she had gone to the shed as usual, the young man’s curiosity got the better of him. Very quietly, he slid the door open a crack and peered in.

  Imagine how astonished he was when he saw, sitting at the loom, not his bride, but a crane!

  The crane was plucking out its feathers and weaving them into cloth. The young man gulped and hurriedly closed the door.

  After a while, his wife came out of the shed carrying a bolt of snow-white cloth. Quietly she said, “Now you know. I am the crane whose life you saved. I wanted to stay with you forever, but now that you have seen me in my true form, I can no longer remain. This cloth is the last I will ever weave. Please take it to town and sell it. Thank you for everything. I wish you well.”

  Then she changed into a crane, flew up into the sky and circled overhead three times before winging her way toward the mountains. The young man stood watching after her, on and on until he could see her no more.

  The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter

  Once upon a time, there was an old man who cut bamboo to weave baskets.

  One day he went into the bamboo forest as usual, and came upon a stalk that was glowing with a mysterious light.

  Nestled inside it was a darling, tiny girl. The old man carried her home in his hands, and he and his wife brought her up like their own daughter.

  In just three months, the girl grew into a beautiful young woman. Her beauty lit up every corner of the house, so the old couple named her “Princess Kaguya,” which means “Shining Night.”

  Five noblemen heard of Princess Kaguya’s beauty and came forward to ask for her hand in marriage. The old man asked her to choose one of them herself.

  She would rather have turned them all down, but in order to please her father, unwillingly she said that she would marry w
hoever brought her what she asked of him. All of her requests were next to impossible.

  One of the suitors, a prince, she told to go to legendary Mount Horai and bring back a branch from a tree with a trunk of gold, branches of silver, and fruit of white jade.

  Instead, he had fine craftsmen prepare a fake. It was so well made that the princess was stunned. Just as she was thinking she might have to marry the prince after all, the head craftsman came along demanding to be paid, and the trickery was exposed.

  Another suitor was told to bring her a jewel from a dragon’s neck, and sent his men off in search of it. A year went by with no word from them, so he decided to set out on his own.

  His boat ran into a terrible storm and he was tossed to and fro in the waves, barely making it back alive.

  A different admirer was given the task of fetching a cowrie shell laid by a swallow. While he was removing one from a swallow’s nest in a pillar in the palace kitchen, he lost his footing and fell. In his hand he held not the shell, but a piece of swallow poop.

  The remaining two suitors also failed. One was supposed to bring her a Buddha’s begging bowl that glowed, but his bowl didn’t glow at all.

  The other was supposed to bring her an unburnable bag, but his bag burned to a crisp.

  Finally the emperor himself heard about the princess and came calling. Struck by her beauty, he went up to her, but she melted away like a shadow. So even the emperor was forced to give up.