151 Tales From Japan

Once upon a time in Bingo province, there was a great temple called Mitanidera. When the temple was built, there was no gold for adorning the image of the Buddha. The people of the province went to meet a priest called Kosai Osho. They asked the priest to take the different kinds of produce by […]

Long ago, it was believed that there lived a brutal ogre in the city of Kyoto. The people of the city said that the ogre haunted the gate of Rashomon at twilight and he killed everyone who passed through the gate. So, no one used that gate. During this time, there lived a general named

A beautiful Princess Yaegiri and a samurai Sakata had a son named Kintaro or the Golden Boy. To protect his son from the fight going on between Kintaro’s dad and uncle, Yaegiri decided to take Kintaro to Mt. Ashigara. Kintaro was very strong from the day he was born. One day, he went out with

Long ago, Fujiwara Hidesato went out in search of adventure and came across a bridge. He saw a huge serpent coiled around it. He walked ahead and stamped on its head. The serpent vanished and in its place stood a beautiful woman. She said, “I have been waiting for years to find a man brave

Once upon a time, there was a wicked pigeon. He was disobedient and never listened to his mother. Whatever she said, he did the opposite. If she asked him to go to the mountains, he would go to the field. When his mother was on her deathbed she thought, ‘I want to be buried on

Long ago, the tail of the monkey used to be thirty-three fathoms long. One day, the monkey went to the bear’s house and asked him the best way to catch numerous river fish in one go. The bear advised, “On a cold night, go to the river. Look for the deepest place in the river

Once upon a time, the Queen of the Dragon Palace was about to have a baby. She had a weird craving. She wanted to eat a monkey’s liver. The Dragon King wanted to fulfil her wish. He called the turtle and asked him to get the liver of a monkey. He, at once, went out

Long ago, there lived a young white fox named Fukuyémon. After reaching a certain age, he decided to marry. He got rid of his forelock and started searching for a beautiful bride. One day, his aunt came to meet him. She told him about a beautiful young lady fox who was famous all over for

Once upon a time, in Shinshin in Japan, there lived a monkey-man who used to travel to different places and showed monkey tricks. This was his only source of income. One evening, when the man returned home, he was in a very bad mood. He told his wife to send for the butcher the next

Once, there lived an honest man with his wife. They loved their pet dog and raised him with affection. One day, when the old man was working in the garden, the dog began barking. The old man began digging there. They found a box full of gold pieces. The stingy neighbour heard the story and

Long ago, in Japan, there lived two brothers. Hoori was generous and a happy hunter. He hunted to feed the family. Hoderi was greedy. He spent his days fishing only for himself. There was always a silent competition between them. One day, their deity parents gave a magical hook to Hoderi and a magical bow

Once upon a time in Japan, there was an awful goblin. He roamed about in the woods of a province known as Adachigahara. People were afraid of the goblin as he killed everyone who came in its way. The goblin also had the ability to transform itself. It often took the garb of an old

Long ago, a couple lived in the remote part of Japan with their only daughter. She was beautiful and they loved her tenderly. One day, the father had to go to Kyoto for business. Before leaving, the father told his daughter that if she behaved properly and listened to her mother, he would get a

A very long time ago, a rich man named Toyonari Fujiwara lived in Nara, the ancient Capital of Japan. His wife was a kind and beautiful woman named Murasaki (Violet). When they were young, they were married according to the Japanese customs. Since then, they had happily lived together. Their only cause of sorrow was

Long ago, there lived an old bamboo cutter named Taketori no Okina. One day, while walking through the forest, he saw a glittering stalk of bamboo. He went and picked it up. Wanting to know what made it shine, he cut it open. Inside was a beautiful and tiny little girl, about 7 centimetres tall.