Early Modern Japanese Literature: An Anthology, 1600–1900

by Shirane, Haruo, ed.

  When both guest and host were feeling the effects of drink, Manago raised her cup to Toyoo. Her face was like the surface of a pond that warmly greets the spring breeze and reflects the limbs of the cherry, laden with luscious pink blossoms; and her voice was as bewitching as the song of the warbler, fluttering from treetop to treetop, as she said: “If I keep my shameful thoughts to myself and fall ill as a result, which god will carry the undeserved blame?44 Do not imagine that I speak flippantly. I was born in the capital but lost my parents early and was reared by my nurse. Already three years have passed since I married a man named Agata, an assistant to the governor of this province, and came down here with him. This spring, before completing his term, my husband died of some trifling disease, leaving me with no one to rely on. When I learned that my nurse, back in the capital, had become a nun and set out on ascetic wanderings, that place, too, became for me an unknown land. Take pity on me. From your kindness yesterday as we took shelter from the rain, I know that you are a truehearted man, and so I ask that I may devote the rest of my life to serving you. If you do not dismiss me in disgust, let us initiate, with this cup, a vow of one thousand years.” Since in his agitated longing for her he had hoped for exactly this, Toyoo felt his heart leap with joy, like a bird soaring from its roost, but then he remembered that he was not yet on his own and did not have permission from his father and brother. Now joyous, now afraid, he could not find words with which to reply right away. Seeing his hesitation, Manago looked forlorn and said, “I am ashamed at having spoken, from a woman’s shallow heart, foolish words that I cannot take back. Miserable creature that I am, it was a grave sin for me to trouble you instead of sinking beneath the waves. Although I did not speak flippantly, please take my words as a drunken jest and cast them into the sea.” Toyoo: “From the first I thought that you were a high-ranking lady from the capital, and I was right. How often can someone who has grown up on this whale-haunted shore expect to hear such joyful words? I did not answer straight away because I still serve my father and my brother and have nothing to call my own but my nails and hair. I can only lament my lack of fortune, for I have no betrothal gift with which to welcome you as my bride. If you are willing to put up with all adversity, then I will do anything to become your husband, forgetting filial obedience and my status for the sake of the mountain of love, where even Confucius stumbled.” “What joyful words I hear,” she said. “In that case, do please come and stay from time to time.45 Here is a sword that my late husband cherished as his greatest treasure. Wear it always at your waist.” She handed it to him. Decorated with gold and silver, it was a wonderfully tempered antique. To refuse a gift at the start of their relationship would be inauspicious, he thought, and so he accepted it. “Stay here tonight,” she said, eager to detain him, but he replied, “My father would punish me if I slept away from home without his leave. I shall make some clever excuse tomorrow night and come.” With this he departed. That night, too, he lay awake until dawn.

  Tarō rose early to assemble the net boys.46 Glancing into the bedroom through a gap in the door, he saw Toyoo in bed and, beside the pillow, a sword glittering in the lingering lamplight. Strange, where did he get that? Suspicious, he opened the door roughly, and Toyoo awoke to the sound. Seeing Tarō there, he said, “Do you need me for something?” Tarō said, “What is that glittery thing beside your pillow? Valuables have no place in a fisherman’s house. How Father would scold you if he saw it.” Toyoo: “I did not spend money to buy it. Someone gave it to me yesterday, and I have placed it here.” Tarō: “Who in these parts would give you such a treasure? If you ask me, even these bothersome Chinese writings that you collect are a terrible waste of money, but I have held my tongue until now because Father has said nothing about it. I suppose you plan to wear that sword in the procession at the Great Shrine Festival. Have you lost your mind?” He spoke so loudly that his father heard him. “What has that useless boy done? Bring him here, Tarō,” he called. Tarō replied, “Where could he have gotten it? Buying a glittery thing such as a general should wear—it is not right. Please call him and ask him about it. As for me, the net boys are probably loafing.” With this he went out. The mother summoned Toyoo. “Why did you buy such a thing? Both rice and cash belong to Tarō. What can you call your own? We have always let you do as you please, but if Tarō were to turn against you over something like this, where in the world would you live? How can one who studies the wisdom of the past fail to understand a matter as simple as this?” Toyoo: “Truly, I did not buy it. Someone gave it to me for a good reason, but Brother was suspicious when he saw it and said what he said.” The father: “And what have you done to deserve such a gift? I am even more suspicious now. Tell us the whole story this moment,” he shouted. Toyoo: “I am too embarrassed. I shall explain through someone else.” His father said roughly, “To whom can you speak if not to your parents and brother?” Tarō’s wife, the mistress of the house, was seated to one side. She said, “Inadequate though I am, I shall listen to his story. Come with me.” Thus making peace among them, she stood and led Toyoo out of the room. “I had planned to tell you secretly, even if Brother had not seen the sword and questioned me, but I was scolded before I could. A certain man’s wife,47 now left defenseless, asked me to care for her and gave me the sword. For me to proceed without permission, when I am not on my own, could bring the heavy penalty of disinheritance, and so I regret all the more what I have done. Please, Sister, take pity on me.” The mistress of the house smiled. “For some time I have felt sorry that you sleep alone. This is very good news. Inadequate though I am, I shall put in a good word for you.” That night she explained the situation to Tarō. “Don’t you think it very fortunate?” she said. “Please speak with Father and work things out.” Tarō knitted his brows. “Strange. I have never heard of an assistant to the governor named Agata. Since our family is the village head, we could hardly have failed to hear of such a person’s death. Anyway, bring the sword here.” She returned immediately with the sword, and Tarō examined it closely. Heaving a great sigh, he said, “This is terrible. Recently a court minister presented a great many treasures to the avatar when his prayer was fulfilled, but the sacred objects quickly vanished from the shrine treasury, whereupon the head priest appealed to the provincial governor. In order to find the thief, the governor sent the vice governor, Fun’ya no Hiroyuki, to the head priest’s mansion; and I have heard that he is now devoting all his attention to this matter. However you look at it, this is not a sword that a mere provincial official would have worn. I shall show it to Father.” Taking it to him, he explained the dreadful circumstances. “What should we do?” he asked. His father blanched. “This is a wretched business indeed. What retribution from a former life could have aroused such evil thoughts in a boy who, until now, never stole so much as a hair? If this matter is exposed by someone else, our family could be wiped out. For the sake of our ancestors and descendants, I shall harbor no regrets over one unfilial child. Turn him in tomorrow morning,” he said. Tarō waited for dawn, then went to the head priest’s mansion, where he explained matters and displayed the sword. Astonished, the head priest said, “This sword was indeed an offering from the minister.” The vice governor heard and said, “We must find the other missing objects. Arrest him.” Ten soldiers set out with Tarō in the lead. Toyoo knew nothing of this and was reading when the soldiers rushed in and arrested him. “What is my crime?” he asked, but they paid no attention and tied him up. Now that it had come to this, father, mother, Tarō, and his wife all were lost in grief. “A summons from the government office! Hurry up!” the soldiers cried as they surrounded Toyoo and pushed him along to the mansion. The vice governor glared at him. “Your theft of sacred treasures is an unprecedented crime against the state. Where have you hidden the various other treasures? Tell me everything.” Finally understanding, Toyoo began to weep and said, “I have stolen nothing. For this and that reason, the wife of a certain Agata gave the sword to me, saying her late husband had wo
rn it. Please summon this woman, right away, and you will understand my innocence.” “We have never had an assistant named Agata. Such lies will only make your crimes greater.” “Why would I lie, when I have already been arrested like this? I beg of you, please find that woman and question her.” The vice governor turned to the soldiers and said, “Where is the house of Agata no Manago? Take him with you, arrest her, and bring them back here.”

  The soldiers bowed respectfully and, pushing Toyoo along once more, went to the house. The posts of the imposing gate were rotting, and most of the roof tiles had fallen off and shattered; ferns had taken root and were trailing from the eaves.48 The place did not appear to be occupied. Toyoo was dumbfounded. Soldiers went around and assembled the neighbors. Old woodcutters, rice huskers, and the like knelt in terror. A soldier said to them, “Who lived in this house? Is it true that the wife of a man named Agata lives here?” An elderly blacksmith came forward and said, “I have never heard of a person by that name. Until three years ago, a man named Suguri lived here, and a lively, prosperous place it was, but then he sailed for Tsukushi with a load of merchandise and the ship was lost. After that, the remaining people scattered, and no one has lived here since. But the old lacquer maker here says he was surprised to see this boy go inside yesterday and then leave a little while later.” “Let us take a good look, in any case, and report to our lord,” said the soldiers. They pushed open the gates and went in. The house was even more dilapidated than the exterior. They moved farther inside. In the spacious landscape garden, the pond had dried up, and even the water weeds had withered. A giant pine, blown over in the wind, lay ominously in the drooping thicket on the wild moor. When they opened the shutters of the guest hall, a reeking gust of air came at them, and everyone fell back in terror. Toyoo was speechless with fear and sorrow.

  Among the soldiers was a bold one named Kose no Kumagashi. “Follow me,” he said as he went in, stomping roughly on the floorboards. An inch of dust had piled up. Amid the rat droppings, beside an old curtain stand, sat a blossom-like woman. Addressing her, Kumagashi said, “The governor summons you. Come quickly.” When she did not reply, he approached and tried to grasp her. Suddenly there was a clap of thunder as violent as though the ground itself were splitting open. They had no time to escape; everyone toppled over. When they finally looked up, the woman had vanished without a trace. Something glittered on the floor. Creeping forward, they found Korean brocades, Chinese damasks, shizuri weavings, katori weavings, shields, halberds, quivers, hoes, and the like—the lost sacred treasures.49 Gathering up these objects and carrying them back, the soldiers recounted the strange events in detail. The vice governor and the head priest, recognizing the work of an evil spirit, relaxed their investigation of Toyoo. Nevertheless, he could not escape his obvious offense, possession of a stolen sword. He was sent to the governor’s mansion and confined in jail. The Oya family made large payments in an attempt to redeem him and were able to obtain a pardon after about one hundred days. Toyoo said, “Under the circumstances, I would be ashamed to mingle in society. I would like to visit my sister in Yamato and live there for a while.” His family replied, “Truly, one is likely to fall gravely ill after such a dreadful experience. Go and spend some months there.” They sent him off with attendants.

  Toyoo’s elder sister, the Oyas’ second child, lived in a place called Tsubaichi with her husband, a merchant named Tanabe no Kanetada. They were delighted to have Toyoo visit them and, taking pity on him for the events of the past few months, consoled him warmly, saying, “Stay here just as long as you like.” Tsubaichi was near Hatsuse Temple.50 Among the many Buddhas, that of Hatsuse in particular was known as far away as China for its wonderful effectiveness and so drew many pilgrims from the capital and from the countryside, especially in the spring. Since the pilgrims always stayed here, travelers’ lodgings lined the streets. The Tanabe family dealt in lamp wicks and other goods for the sacred flames. Into the crowd of customers came a beautiful, aristocratic lady with a servant girl, apparently on an incognito pilgrimage from the capital, asking for incense. Seeing Toyoo, the servant girl said, “The master is here!” Startled, he looked up—it was Manago and Maroya. Crying out in terror, he fled to the back. “What is going on?” asked Kanetada and his wife. “That demon has followed me here. Do not go near it,” said Toyoo, desperately looking for a place to hide. “Where? Where?” cried the other customers. Manago went among them and said, “Do not be startled, people. My husband, do not be afraid. In my sorrow at having incriminated you through my own imprudence, I wanted to seek out your home, explain the circumstances, and put your heart at rest. I am overjoyed that I could find this place and meet with you again. Shopmaster, please listen carefully and decide for yourself. If I were some kind of monster, could I appear among this crowd of people and, moreover, at noon on such a tranquil day as this? My robes have seams; when I face the sun, I cast a shadow.51 Please consider the truth of what I say and throw off your doubts.” Feeling more like himself again, Toyoo said, “It is clear that you are not human, for when I was arrested and went with the soldiers, we found the place in a shambles, utterly unlike it was on the day before, and there, in a house befitting a demon, you sat alone. When the soldiers tried to capture you, you caused a clear sky suddenly to shake with thunder, and then you disappeared without a trace. All this I saw with my own eyes. Why have you come chasing after me again? Go away at once.” Weeping, Manago said, “Truly, it is no wonder that you think this way, but listen now a little longer to my words. Hearing that you had been taken to the government office, I approached the old man next door, to whom I had shown some kindness in the past, and persuaded him to transform the place quickly into a house in the wilderness. Maroya contrived to have thunder sound when they tried to arrest me. After that we hired a boat and fled to Naniwa.52 In my desire to learn what had become of you, I prayed to the Buddha here. It is through his great compassion that with the sacred sign of the twin cedars we have flowed again together on the rapids of joy.53 How could a woman have stolen those many sacred treasures? That was the doing of my late husband’s evil heart. Please consider carefully and try to grasp even a dewdrop of the love I feel.” The tears streamed down her face. Now suspicious, now sympathetic, Toyoo could find nothing more to say. Kanetada and his wife, seeing Manago’s reasonableness and feminine demeanor, no longer harbored the slightest doubt. “We were terrified by Toyoo’s account, but surely such things could not occur in this day and age. We are deeply moved by the feeling you have shown in your long search and shall let you stay here, even if Toyoo does not agree.” They showed her to a room. Ingratiating herself to them during the next day or two, she entreated them, and they, moved by the depth of her determination, prevailed on Toyoo and finally arranged a wedding ceremony. Toyoo’s heart melted day by day; he had always rejoiced in her beauty, and as he exchanged thousand-year vows with her, clouds rose by night on Mount Takama of Kazuraki, and the rains subsided at dawn with the bell of Hatsuse Temple.54 Toyoo regretted only that their reunion had been so long delayed.

  The Third Month came. Kanetada said to Toyoo and his wife, “Of course it does not compare with the capital, but it surpasses Kii: Yoshino, fair of name, is a lovely place in spring. Mount Mifune, Natsumi River—one would never tire of the views even if one saw them every day, and how fascinating they will be right now. Let us set off.” Manago smiled and said, “People of the capital, too, say that they regret not seeing the place that good people consider good,55 but since childhood I have suffered from an ailment that causes blood to rush to my head when I go among a crowd or walk a long distance, and so to my deep regret I cannot go with you. I eagerly await the souvenir that you will surely bring me from the mountains.” Kanetada and his wife encouraged her, saying, “Yes, walking would no doubt be painful. We do not have a carriage, but one way or another we shall not let your feet touch the ground. Think how worried Toyoo would be if you stayed behind.” Toyoo said, “Since they have spoken so reassuringly, you
cannot refuse to go, even if you collapse on the way.” And so reluctantly, she went. Everyone dressed gaily, but none could compare with Manago’s beauty and elegance. They stopped at a certain temple with which they had long been on friendly terms. The head priest welcomed them: “You have come late this spring. Half the blossoms have fallen, and the warbler’s song has grown a bit wild, but I shall show you where to find the good spots that remain.” He served them a beautifully simple and refreshing evening meal. The sky at dawn was thick with haze, but as it cleared they looked out from the temple’s high vantage point and could clearly see monks’ residences here and there below. Mountain birds were chirping everywhere; trees and grasses blossomed in a profusion of color.56 Although it was a mountain village like any other, they felt as though their eyes had been opened anew. Thinking that the falls offered the most for a first-time visitor, they employed a guide familiar with that area and set out. They wound their way down the valley. At the site of the ancient detached palace, the rapids crashing along the boulders, and tiny sweetfish struggling against the current delighted their eyes. They spread out their cypress boxes and reveled in the outing as they dined.

  The two women, Manago and Maroya, plunge into the falls. (From SNKBZ 78, Hanabusa sōshi, Nishiyama monogatari, Ugetsu monogatari, Harusame monogatari, by permission of Shōgakukan)

  Someone approached them, stepping from boulder to boulder. It was an old man with hair like a bundle of hemp threads but with sturdy-looking limbs. He came alongside the falls. Seeing the group, he eyed them suspiciously, whereupon Manago and Maroya turned their backs and pretended not to see him. Glaring at them, the old man muttered, “Disgraceful demons. Why do you go on deceiving people? Do you think that you can get away with this before my very eyes?” Hearing him, the two sprang to their feet and plunged into the falls. Water boiled up to the sky, and they vanished from sight.