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VII
LEGENDS TOLD BY A FISHERMAN ON LAKE BIWA, AT ZEZE Two
or three interesting little legends (truths the old senior
fisherman
called them) I got, either from himself or from his son while visiting
his
trap, or sitting under his willow, fishing myself — for stories. 'Surely
the Danna San could not be interested in the simple old stories of
bygone days?
Even my sons do not care for them nowadays!' 'I
care for anything of interest,' I said. 'And you will greatly please me
by
telling me any fishermen's legends of hereabouts, or even of the
north-western
end of the lake if you know any.' 'Well,
there is our Fire Ball,' said the old fisherman. That is a curious and
unpleasant thing. I have seen it many times myself. I will begin with
that.' The Fire-Ball or 'Shito Dama' of Akechi 'Many
years ago there was a Daimio who had constructed at the foot of the
southern
spur of Mount Hiyei a castle, the ruins of which may still be seen just
to the
north of the military barracks of the Ninth Regiment in Otsu. The name
of the
Daimio was Akechi Mitsuhide, and it is his shito dama that we see now
in wet
weather on the lake. It is called the spirit of Akechi. 'The
reason of it is this. When Akechi Mitsuhide defended himself against
the Toyotomi,
he was closely invested; but his castle held out bravely, and could not
be
taken in spite of Toyotomi's greater forces. As time went on, the
besiegers
became exasperated, and prevailed upon a bad fisherman from Magisa
village to
tell where was the source of water which supplied Akechi's castle. The
water
having been cut off, the garrison had to capitulate, but not before
Akechi and
most of his men had committed suicide. 'From
that time, in rain or in rough weather, there has come from the castle
a
fire-ball, six inches in diameter or more. It comes to wreak vengeance
on
fishermen, and causes many wrecks, leading boats out of their course.
Sometimes
it comes almost into the boat. Once a fisherman struck it with a bamboo
pole,
breaking it up into many fiery bits; and on that occasion many boats
were lost.
'In
full it is called "The Spider Fire of the Spirit of the Dead Akechi."
That is all, sir, that I can tell of it — except that often have I seen
it myself,
and feared it.' 'That
is very interesting,' said I, 'and quite what I like. Can you tell me
any
more?' 'Perhaps,
if Danna San found interest in that simple story, he would like to know
the
reason of why we always have such a terrible storm over the lake on
February
25: so I will tell of that also.' O Tani San's Tub Gets Swamped LEGEND 'Long
ago there lived in the village of Komatsu, on the south-eastern side of
the
lake, a beautiful girl called O Tani. She was the daughter of a wealthy
farmer,
and of a studious nature as far as it was possible for a girl to be so
in those
days; that is to say, she was for ever wishing to learn and to know
things
which were not always within the province of women to know. With the
intention
of inquiring and learning, she frequently crossed the lake in a boat
alone, to
visit a certain talented and clever young monk, who was the chief
priest at one
of the smaller temples situated at the foot of Mount Hiyei San, just
over there
where you are looking now. 'So
deeply impressed was O Tani San with the priest's knowledge, she lost
her heart
and fell in love with him. Her visits became more frequent. Often she
crossed
the lake alone, in spite of her parents' protests, when the waves were
too high
for the safety even of a hardy fisherman like myself. 'At
last O Tani could resist no longer. She felt that she must tell the
good priest
of her love for him, and see if she could not persuade him to renounce
the
Church and run away with her. 'The
monk was greatly sorrowed, and did not quite know what to say, or how
to put
the girl off. At last he thought that he would give her an impossible
task.
Knowing that the weather on Lake Biwa towards the end of February is
nearly
impossible as far as the navigation of small boats is concerned, he
said,
probably not for a moment meaning it seriously: '"O
Tani San, if you successfully crossed the lake on the evening of
February 25 in
a washing-tub, it might be possible that I should cast off my robes and
forget
my calling to carry out your wishes." 'O Tani
did not think of the impossible, nor did she quite understand the depth
of the
priest's meaning; young and foolish as she was with her blind love, she
sculled
herself home, thinking that the next time she crossed the lake it would
be in
the washing-tub and to carry off the young priest as her husband. She
was
supremely happy. 'At
last the 25th of February arrived. O Tani had taken care that the best
and
largest washing-tub had been left near the borders of the lake. After
dark she
embarked in her frail craft, and without the least fear started. 'When
she was about half-way across a fearful storm broke over Hiyei
Mountain. The
waves arose, and the wind blew with blinding force. Moreover, the light
that
was usually burning on the Hiyei San side of the lake, which the priest
had
promised should be especially bright this night, had been blown out. It
was not
long before poor O Tani's tub was capsized, and in spite of her efforts
to keep
afloat she sank beneath the waves to rise no more. 'It
is said by some that the priest himself put out the light, so as to cut
off the
last possible chance of O Tani's reaching the shore, being over-zealous
in his
thoughts of good and evil. 'Since
the night that O Tani was drowned, every 25th of February has been wild
and
stormy, and fishermen fear to be out on that day. People say that the
cause is
the dissatisfied spirit of poor O Tani, who, though she did not fear
death,
died disconsolate at being deceived by the monk she loved. 'The
washing-tub that O Tani used drifted ashore at Kinohama village, in
Eastern
Omi. It was picked up by Gensuke, a match-maker, who split it up and
made
matches of it. When this became known to the villagers of Kinohama,
including
Gensuke himself, they resolved that every 25th of February should be a
holiday,
and that a prayer should be said at their shrine for the spirit of
Tani. They
call the day "Joya" (Dealer in Matches Festival), and on it no men
work.' 'That
is a capital story,' said I to the old fisherman; 'but I should greatly
have
liked to put the monk in another tub on the following 25th of February,
and
anchored him out, so that he should be sure of being drowned in the
same way.' 'Does
the Danna San know why all the little papers are tied in the black
rocks at
Ishiyama-dera?' 'No:
I do not,' I answered; 'and, moreover, when I went there no one would
or could
tell me.' 'Well,
it is not an uninteresting story, and I will tell it to you, for it is
short.' The Black Rocks at Ishiyama-dera Where Prayers Are Tied LEGEND 'As
the Danna San has been to Ishiyama-dera, he will know about the temple
and
monastery, which has a history eleven hundred years long;1
but few
people know the real reason why the bits of paper with prayers on them
are tied
to the black rocks. 'The
origin or the reason of tying these paper prayers — musubi no kami,
as
they are called — is pretty, if suicide for the romance of love can
make it so.
'Many
years ago in Baba Street of Otsu, then known as Shibaya Street, there
was a
teahouse called Kagiya, which kept very beautiful geisha. Among them
was one,
named O Taga hana, whose loveliness surpassed all imagination. Though
scarcely
seventeen, her heart was no longer her own. It had gone as completely
to her
lover Denbei as had his to her. It is difficult to imagine how this
desperate
affair came about at first, for Denbei was only the clerk of a
rice-merchant in
Otsu, and had but little money to spend on geisha, especially in such
an
expensive teahouse as Kagiya. 'Jealousy
and unhappiness crept . into the heart of Denbei, not on account of any
unfaithfulness on the part of O Taga hana San, but because he felt
jealous of
others being well enough off to go to the Kagiya teahouse and hear her
sing and
see her dance while they ate costly dinners. 'So
much did these sorrows tell upon Denbei's heart at last, he used to
falsify his
master's account-books, frequently taking money, which he spent, of
course, at
the Kagiya teahouse in seeing the beloved O Taga hana. 'This
state of affairs could not last long, and when Denbei told O Taga hana
how he
had procured the money to come and see her she was shocked beyond
measure. '"My
dearest," she said, "the wrong which you have done out of love for me
is sure to be discovered, and even were it not it would be wrong. Our
love is
so great that there remains but one chance for our future happiness —
shinju
(suicide together). Nothing else will enable us to become united, for
if I ran
away with you they would soon recapture me, most probably before a day
and night
had passed." '"Will
you leave with me to-night?" said Denbei. '"I
will meet you at two o'clock in the morning, when all are asleep, down
at the
flat-growing pine tree near the east end of the town. From there we
will go to
Ishiyama-dera, and after praying at that holy temple to our good
Kwannon we
will do shinju in the Hotaru Dani (Firefly Valley), and our souls will
depart
together." 'Denbei
bowed to his sweetheart, and spoke words of gratitude for her
faithfulness in
recognising his love for her as the cause of his sin, and he promised
that at
the appointed hour he would meet her by the pine tree near the lake and
take
her off to Ishiyama, there to carry out their final act and die
together. 'To
save time, Danna San, in telling this story it is only necessary to say
that
Denbei and O Taga hana met, and that, after passing over the flat and
uninteresting plain known as Awatsu, they reached and passed the Seta
Bridge,
and that shortly after, about daybreak, they found themselves at
Ishiyama.
There, in one of the teahouses, they remained some hours in bliss, and
then
went to the temple to pray to Kwannon. Then they went to the Hotaru
Dani, and,
after embracing each other for the last time on this earth, they each
wrote a
prayer on a piece of paper, twisted it into a piece of string, and
fastened it
in a double knot with their thumbs and little fingers through a small
hole
bored in the soft black rocks. Their being able to do this successfully
was
taken as an omen that all would be well with them after death, and was
an
answer to their prayer. 'Their
spirits passed away together, just as the leaves of fragrant flowers
blown off
by autumn winds pass together under Seta Bridge. 'That, Danna San, is the origin and reason of tying these pieces of paper to the black rocks and other places at Ishiyama-dera. The custom is still followed by many country folks, who go to worship and pray for the spirits of Denbei and O Taga hana in the Firefly Valley itself.'
_________________________________________
1 The temple
was founded A.D. 749 by the monk Ryoben Sojo at
the command of the Emperor Shomei. It is the thirteenth of the
Thirty-Three
Holy Places. |