Japanese Fairy Tale Series 01 #08- The Fisher-boy Urashima

TKE FISHER.NY URISKiil.

long

jong,

'on of

the

Japan

named

of

coast

a

a

the

lived

sea

fisherman

young

Urashima,

and clever with

there

ago

kindly

lad

and

line.

his rod

one day he went out

Well,

boat to

his

think he

big

Bat instead of

fish.

catching any

fish,

caught?

tortoise,

in

what do you

Why!

hard

a

with

a great shell

and such a funny wrinkled old face

and

must

tell

a

tiny

you

Now

tail.

something

I

which

very likely you don't know;

and

that

live

is

that

tortoises

a thousand years, ese

tortoises

do

for

my

at least

Japan-

So Urashima

do.

thought to himself:

always

"

A

fish

would

dinner just as well as

should

itself for

the

kill

and prevent

thing,

ing

go and

I

it

another nine hundred

I won't

be so cruel.

mother

wouldn't

the

poor

from enjoy-

No, no!

and ninety-nine years?

And

Why

in fact better.

this tortoise,

I

like

am me

sure to."

with these words, he threw

back

tortoise

into

the

sea.

The next thing that happened was in

that

his

those

almost

Urashima went to sleep

boat; hot

for

it

summer

was

one of

when

days

everybody enjoys

a

nap

of an afternoon.

And

there

as he slept,

came up from beneath the

waves a beautiful

girl,

who got

into

the boat and

"I am the daughter of God, and I in

the

Dragon

the waves. that

live

It

with

the

my

Palace

was not a

you caught

just now,

said:

Seafather

beyond tortoise

and so kindly threw back water instead of myself.

My

had sent

me

killing

father to

see

were good or bad.

it.

the

into the It

was

Sea-God

whether you

We now know

that

who

good, kind boy to

you are a doesn't

do cruel things; and so

come

to

fetch

marry me, will

live

thousand

if

you.

you

happily years

You

like;

the

have shall

and we

together in

I

like

for

a

Dragon

Palace beyond the deep blue sea,"

So Urashima took one the

Sea-God's

other;

oar,

and

daughter took the

and they rowed, and they

rowed, and they rowed

till

at last

Palace they came to the Dragon

where the Sea-God as

King

and the

over tortoises

lived

and ruled

the

dragons

all

and the

fishes.

Oh it

dear

wasl

were

The walls of the Palace

of

emeralds

coral,

for

silver,

leaves

trees

had

and rubies

and the dragons'

of solid gold.

very

most

things

that

tails

Just think of the beautiful,

glittering

you have ever

and put them together,

the

the fishes' scales were

for berries,

of

what a lovely place

!

all

seen,

and then this it

you

Palace all

will

looked

belonged

to

know like.

what

And

TJrashima;

for

was he not the son-in-law of

the

Sea-God, the husband of the

I lovely

Dragon Princess?

for three

trees

with

ruby

berries.

emerald

want to

and a

sisters.

short

go,"

much

Just

time,

said

happen.

see

let

me go

I'll

my for

soon be

"I don't

like

"I

am

she;

I

and brothers

and

afraid that

ful will

Still

go home and

back again." to

here.

happy

"I

wife:

his

to

and mother

father

and

leaves

But one morning

Urashima said very

beautiful

the

among

day

happily

wandering about

years,

every

am

on

lived

they

Well,

you very

something dread-

However,

if

you

go,

there

is

no help

Only you must take be very If

you

careful

open

it,

for

this box,

not

you

to

open

will

be able to come back here."

it.

and it

never

So

Urashima

promised

open

then,

rowed

it

not

on any account;

and

box,

into

getting off,

take

and

great care of the to

to

and

the shore of his

at

his

landed on

last

own

he

boat,

country.

But what had happened while he had been away? Where had his

father's

cottage

What had become where

he

used

gone

to?

of the village to

The

live?

as

mountains indeed

were

there

the

trees

on them

before;

but

had been cut down. brook

that

ran

close

The

by

little

his

cottage was

father's

in

it

any more.

seemed very strange thing

should

much

in

as

two

have

three

men

me

please

ma?"

years.

So

said:

where

moted

said

so

to

they;

to

"Can you Urashima's stand here,

to?" -"Urashi-

drowned

out

it

"why!

four hundred years ago

was

pass

Urashima went

cottage, that used

has been

changed

chanced

along the beach,

tell

It

that every-

short

up to them and

running;

women wash-

but there were no

ing clothes

still

that

fishing.

was lie

His

parents, their

and

his

grandchildren

long ago.

It is

an

brothers,

are old,

all

and dead

old story*

How

can

you be so

ask ^fter his pieces

foolish as to

cottage?

hundreds

of

It

years

fell

to

ago."

Then

it

Urashima's mind

across

Palace

Sea-God's waves, its

with

ruby

with

tails

fruits

day there

and

three

and

walls

its

and

the

the

dragons

of solid gold, must that

be

one

was probably as long

a year in

his

that

beyond

coral

its

part of fairy-land,

as

flashed

suddenly

this

world,

so

that

years in the Sea-God's

Palace had really been hundreds of years.

Of

course

no use in staying that

all

his

at

friends

there

was

home, now were

dead

and buried, and even the village

bad passed away. was to

in

his

a great hurry to get back the

wife,

beyond the the

So Urashima

with no

But which was

sea.

He

way? one

Dragon Princess

couldn't

to

show

thought

"Perhaps/'

find

it

it

to him.

he

"if I

open the box which she gave me, I shall

So he to

be able to find the way." disobeyed her the

open

he forgot

he

was.

the

think

box,

them

?

box;

came

or

foolish

Anyhow and

orders not

he

what out

perhaps

boy

that

opened do of

you it?

Nothing but a white cloud which floated

away over

shinia

shouted

stop,

to

the

the

cloud

for

now what

his

and how,

after

he remembered

wife had told him,

opening the box,

he should never be able

But

to

rushed about and screamed

with sorrow;

to

Ura-

sea,

the

Sea-God's

Palace

to

go

again.

soon he could neither run

nor shout any more.

Suddenly his

hair

grew

and

his

back bent

Then

very old man.

of a

that

like

breath

his

stopped short, and he

down

fell

dead on the beach.

He

Poor Urashimal

had been

he

cause

If only

disobedient.

as

was

he

lived

the

the

waves,

lives

Dragon

and

Dragons the

like

fishes,

rules as

and

the

to

Palace

where

be-

and

he had done

thoisand

another

see

foolish

he might

told,

Wouldn't you

died

the

have years.

go

and

beyond Sea-God

King over the tortoises

where the trees

and have

emeralds for

for

berries,

are tails

of all

and

leaves

where the

silver

and

rubies

fishes'

the

dragons'

of solid gold?

fritted by the

tails

Kobunsha in Tokyo, Japan.