Japanese Traditional Stories |
Japanese stories and it's history have lived down through the ages and will continue to do so. Two major themes are found in Japanese stories. Emotion and sensitivity. Before reading the following stories, there are some Japanese terms you should be familiar with that will help you to better understand how the Japanese think. The three concepts are ON, GIRI, and NINJO. ON and GIRI are associated with returning favors and carrying out one's duty. NINJO is a feeling exemplified by the deep sensitivity the Japanese have. If you have have a traditional Japanese story that relates to one of these concepts, please share it with us.
Stories About ON
The first story is about ON. ON is basically a downward favor, traditionally thought to be received from either the emperor, one's parents, or one's teacher. ON is not a favor for which any return favor is expected. The idea of ON is to give and give, not to give and take.
TSURU NO ON-GAESHI
The Crane's Repayment of ON
Once upon a time there was a young farmer named Yohyo. One day, on his way home from the fields, Yohyo found a crane which had been seriously wounded. He treated the crane's wounds and then set it free.
Later, one midnight, when the snow was falling quietly, a woman traveller knocked on the door of Yohyo's humble cottage. The single Yohyo was surprised at the visit of a beautiful woman. He invited her in and gave her a warm bed. The next morning when he got up she was working in the kitchen. After breakfast she told Yohyo that she had woven a garment and told him to go to town and sell it. He was surprised to find out that the townspeople would pay a great deal of money for this garment. As soon as he had the money in his hand Yohyo became a different person. No longer the gentle soul who would help a helpless crane, instead he became greedy and selfish. He implored the woman to make another garment of the quality of the first. He pretended to be the same unselfish Yohyo as before and it made her happy to bring him joy. She told him that she would weave as many as he wanted. Again he went to town to sell them for a high price.
At last Yohyo became the richest man in town. He became cruel and demanded that she weave more and more. Now the one thing she had asked Yohyo was not to look upon her while she was weaving. For this purpose he made her a room adjoining the house. But greedy Yohyo wanted one day to accuse her of laziness and therefore decided to look in upon her. To his surprise there was no woman, but a crane. The crane's feathers were almost all gone for it had plucked the feathers out, weaving from them a beautiful garment. The crane announced to Yohyo that it was the same crane that he had saved. It had come back to do something nice for Yohyo. But now the promise had been broken and the crane would have to leave. Having said all this, it flew away.
Stories About GIRI
GIRI is in a sense a duty to one's name, one's honor, one's loyalty. It differs from ON in that ON can be applied to any situation.
BUKE GIRI MONOGATARI
Two samurai friends had a custom of visiting each other's homes and talking about matters of the arts and intellectual things. They had continued this custom until now they were old men. On the promised day one samurai waited for his friend. Outside the snow was falling deep. When the friend did not arrive on time the samurai wished that his friend would not risk the journey in such weather. Later in the evening, however, the friend arrived. He had not forgotten the promise and humbly apologized for being late. He had walked fourteen hours in the snow.
KONJAKU MONOGATARI
There once lived an old couple in a province near Kyoto. They had a daughter for whom they had selected a mate but soon after their marriage he died. The daughter refused to marry again despite the attempts to persuade her otherwise. SHe argued, "Since my husband died so soon after my marriage, it is meant for me to be single." Her parents were heartsick. To comfort them she said, "There are two swallows in the caves of our house. Please capture the male and leave the female alone. If it comes back next year bringing a mate then I will marry again." Her father did as she asked. The next year the swallow returned alone. The daughter remained single until her death.
To the Japanese, these two stories above are models of human behavior. The ideal type of human behavior is to GIVE AND GIVE. When a person in Japan is condemned for not knowing GIRI, it means that he is a person who does not know the sincerity and depth of human relationships.
Stories About NINJO
The next story is about NINJO. The direct translation of NINJO is HUMAN FEELING. It is sort of a spiritual sensitivity towards people and things.
KENSHIN and SHINGEN
The following is an actual historical event.
In the age of the civil wars around the middle of the sixteenth century, Uesugi Kenshin of Echigo, and Takeda Shingen, Lord of kai, rivaled each other for the military power of Japan. After several years of fighting it became evident that the Province of Kai was in serious need of salt. It seem that another rival of Shingen had cut his route from the sea. Kai was a mountainous country and therefore had no way to get salt on its own. When Kenshin heard of the plight he sent a letter to Shingen: "We have fought fairly thus far. We shall fight as Samurai, not with foul play." Kenshin then sent salt to the people of Kai. Later, when Kenshin heard of the death of Shingen, he spit out all the food in his mouth, and offered a prayer for his worthy enemy.
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