Reading Diary A: Japanese Fairy Tales (Ozaki)

Yoshitoshi Fujiwara no Hidesato, by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1890)

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In the story of My Lord Bag of Rice, a warrior with the title Tarwada Toda, or "My Lord Bag of Rice", whose real name is Fujiwara Hidesato, agrees to destroy the enemy of the dragon spirit of lake Biwa: a centipede.
   Happy that Fujiwara accepted the task, the dragon spirit hosts a feast for the warrior. However, their feast is interrupted by the approach of the giant centipede itself from it's home (Mount Makimi). Using his bow and three arrows, the Hidesato attempts to kill the centipede, his first two arrows hitting it in the middle of the head between the eyes. Both glance off harmlessly, but then Hidesato remembers that human spit is lethal to centipedes. So he licks his last arrow and lets it fly, and it kills the centipede: piercing its brain.
   Afterwards, Hidesato was gifted five items by the Dragon King, each one having a magical power: a bell, a bag of rice, cooking pot, a roll of silk, and a big bronze bell. It turned out that the bag of rice would never empty, and so the warrior and his family never ran out of food.

Next in the unit are the Adventures of Kintaro, which features Kinataro, a boy with incredible strength. Kintaro was born to a widowed mother, who raised him alone in the forests, fearing the people who killed her husband. While growing up in the woods, Kintaro became friends with all the animals there: a monkey, a deer, a rabbit, and a bear. One day, they all decided to have a wrestling tournament.
   The hare beat the monkey, but the monkey felt cheated because his foot slipped. Kintaro allowed the monkey to re-challenge the hare. The monkey actually wins with the second round. And then the deer challenges the hare to the wrestling game, and the hare consents. After the day's game, it became late and the group started back on their way home. However, the have to cross a river, which has become a raging torrent. However, Kintaro, with his phenominal strength, topples a tree to make a bridge and saves the day.

Link: Table of Contents for the Unit