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. In wonder, the man took her home to show it to his wife. They named her Kaguya-hime. From now on, whenever the old man cut a stalk of bamboo, he found gold and gems in it. Soon, he became a rich man and Kaguya-hime grew into a beautiful girl of normal size. The word of her beauty spread and suitors from all over came to marry her. But she refused to take any husband. The Emperor came to know about Kaguya-hime and requested her to appear in the court. She refused. Then, the Emperor visited her and, upon seeing her, he fell madly in love with her.
Princess Moonlight
The Emperor wanted to marry her and take her to the palace. But Kaguya-hime always refused him. She was sad and shy and never left the house. One day, she told the bamboo cutter that she had come from the moon. She was Princess Moonlight and finally would have to return home. Suddenly, the sky grew darker and the carriage manned by luminous beings descended to the Earth. It was time for her to go back. Kaguya-hime gave a letter and a small bottle of Elixir of Life to the bamboo cutter for the Emperor. The Emperor was filled with sorrow on reading the letter. He wrote a letter to Kaguya-hime and ordered his men to climb to the top of the Great Mountain in the Suruga Province and burn both the letter and the Elixir of Life. Thereafter, the Great Mountain came to be known as immortality which is translated as Fuji. Even today, it is believed that whenever there is smoke upon Mount Fuji, it is the letter and elixir.
