Maung Tig Thun - World-famous Japanese stories

A beautiful girl and a strange kimono

Once upon a time, in a small village in Japan, there was a fisherman named Rohaku. He was taking care of his elderly mother who was sick. He and his son lived in a small hut on a beach called “Mio no Matsubara.” Their hut was the only one by the sea. The beach was very beautiful. The soft white sand extended into the clear blue sea. During the day, the waves gently rolled up and down the beach, creating a rhythmic dance.

Along the coast, large pine trees grow in abundance. The green pine leaves flutter in the spring breeze. Behind the large pine trees, the majestic Mount Fuji rises into the sky. The top is covered in snow.

Rohaku and his mother always spoke of their beautiful beach life. They were very poor. Rohaku's mother had been bedridden for many years.

But they are happy to live in this place of natural beauty.

Rohaku is an honest person. He is a hard worker.

One morning, Rohaku woke up before dawn as usual. Then he left the house to go fishing in the sea. When he reached the shore, he pushed the boat into the water. The sun had already reached the top of Mount Fuji. The sun's rays turned the white snow on the slopes of the mountain pink. Soon, the sky and the sea were illuminated by the light, and the sun shone golden on the white sand of the beach.

The light was scattered in the morning air, making the white rocks on the beach and the leaves on the trees clearly visible.

Admiring the beautiful morning, Rohaku rowed his boat through the white snow and out to sea. The white snow was still misty on the water.

Suddenly, he saw a strange, glowing object among the pine trees growing on the beach.

“What, I’ve never seen it before,” he wondered. He wanted to know what the shiny object was. So he turned the boat around and quickly rowed back to shore. As soon as he stepped onto the beach, he could smell the sweet scent of flowers and hear the sounds of music.

Rohaku is

"Am I dreaming? If I wake up, how will I be able to hear the music on this beach? I won't smell the sweet flowers anymore. There's nothing here except the sea and the pine trees. This must be just my imagination," he said to himself. Then Rohaku saw a shining object on a pine branch. He moved closer to the pine tree. Then he saw that the shining object was a kimono. The kimono was light and the fabric was as soft as wool. The colors were beautiful and vibrant, shining in the sunlight.

Rohaku crawled closer to the kimono, and when he reached the pine tree, he gently pulled the kimono from the branch.

"I must take this kimono home and show it to my mother. She will be so surprised when she sees it. This kimono must be the most beautiful kimono in the world," she thought happily.

Then he ran back home, wrapping up his kimono. At that moment, he suddenly heard a voice calling him. It was a gentle voice. He

"Please wait a moment, fisherman."

Rohaku stopped at the sound of his voice calling to him and looked back.

Then he saw a girl standing behind him. Rohaku looked at her in amazement. He had never seen such a beautiful girl in his life.

The girl walked towards him. She looked like she was floating peacefully on the sand.

The girl told him

"Please give me back my kimono. This is my Hagoromo-colored kimono. Without this cloth, I would not be able to fly to heaven."

"Please give me back my kimono, I will return to heaven," she said, crying.

Hearing the girl's words, Rohaku felt sorry for her. However, Rohaku did not want to return the beautiful kimono.

Therefore, Rohaku sent a message to the girl from heaven.

"If you give me something in exchange for the kimono, I will give you back your Hagoromo cloth," he said.

However, the girl became very sad when she heard Rohaku's words. "I have nothing to give you in return," she said.

But the girl seemed to have an idea. She raised her head, smiled, and

"O fisherman, if you will give me back my Hagoromo, I will dance for you a heavenly dance that no human on earth has ever heard or seen, and that dance will bring you peace and happiness," he said.

Rohaku was worried that the girl would hit him. So Rohaku told the girl

"If I give you back Hagoromo, what if you run away with Goromo? Then I won't be able to see the celestial dance anymore."

He said.

Then the girl replied, "I promise you that I won't do that. No one in heaven lies, and we only tell the truth."

Rohaku was quite embarrassed by the words of the girl from heaven. He didn't say anything else and handed the kimono to the girl.

The girl, as promised, began to dance in the sky. Rohaku heard the beautiful music he had heard when he first came to the beach. A bright light was shining around the dancing girl. Rohaku thought that the beach where he used to fish every day was really there. Everything was strange and wonderful. Rohaku was very happy.

Finally, the girl slowly flew into the air, even while dancing.

Then the girl said to Rohaku,

"Rohaku, may God bless you and may you find eternal peace and happiness in your home," he said.

The girl flew up into the sky, smiling at Rohaku. Rohaku also stared at the girl with all his eyes. Finally, the girl disappeared from Rohaku's sight.

Then Rohaku felt himself returning to his original state, as if he had just woken up from a dream. He remembered that he was standing on the beach. The sun was sinking into the sea and it was already evening. He realized that he had been watching the girl dance for a whole day.

Rohaku ran home quickly. The evening breeze was cool. He felt guilty for wasting the day. He hadn't caught any fish all day. But he remembered that he could tell his mother about a wonderful experience he had had.

Rohaku was very surprised when he saw his little house through the pine trees. His mother was standing outside the house, waiting for him. His old mother had been ill and had been bedridden for a long time. Now he could not believe his eyes that he saw his mother in good health. When his mother saw Rohaku, she walked over to greet him with joy. Her face was filled with joy.

The mother and son sat together and talked. Rohaku told his mother about the beautiful girl from heaven and the bright kimono he had seen. That girl was the girl who kept her promise. Now, true to her promise, Rohaku's mother was able to get out of bed, become a man, and get married. Isn't her mother as healthy as a housewife? So the mother and son were very grateful to the girl from heaven.

Later, Rohaku and his mother lived happily ever after in a small house among the pine trees. If you ever go to the beach of "Miho no Matsubara" in Japan, look for the pine tree that holds the girl's kimono, which is brightly colored from heaven. If you find that kimono, you will be very lucky.

[Takashi Shimaoka e Princess Moonlight and Other Stories, Folk Tales From Japan osząco The Shining Kimino]