Never Too Old to Change古き物には
There once was an old woman who lived in a rundown manor in the capital. One night, while she was peeling some chestnuts to roast by the fire, she was startled by a hand rising out of the ashes of her sunken hearth and gesturing as if it were begging for something.
Startled, the woman threw a chestnut in its direction, and the hand slipped back under the ashes. But after a short while, it appeared again...and again...and again, on and on it went until the dawn had broken.
Wondering what could have caused this, the old woman inspected the area around the hearth whereupon she found an old ladle.
Now, when an item has been used for a hundred years, it is believed to acquire a tsukumogami, or bound spirit. As if to symbolize the idea that "old things will take on new forms," the ladle in this story appears to have been inhabited by just such a spirit.
Oh dear, this house has certainly seen better days. But I suppose that's to be expected. It was built hundreds of years ago, after all.
I shouldn't complain, though. I've had many happy years here. But my husband is dead, and my children have all left home, so perhaps it's time for me to move on.
...Oh, if it isn't my good neighbor! What brings you here? What's that? Chestnuts! And so many of them, too! Why, thank you! They look delicious.
Well, that was very nice of her... Mm? What was that? Oh, this old mind must be playing tricks on me. I could have sworn I heard something rustling about the hearth.
やれやれ。この家もあちこちにガタが来てるね。 まあ、もう何百年も昔からあるっていうから 無理もないか。 死んだじいさんや巣立った子どもたちとの思い出も あるけどぼちぼち引っ越しかねぇ。 ……おや？ お隣さん、どうしたんだい？ え？ おすそ分け？ まあ、これは栗だね？ それもこんなにたくさん。 どうもありがとうね、おいしくいただくよ。 ……はて？ 気のせいかしら。 何か家の中から物音がしたような…。
Dear me! I nearly jumped out of my skin! Here I was, just peeling some chestnuts to roast, when suddenly a hand came out of the ashes of my little hearth!
...Hm? Can it be...? By the way it's gesturing, I could swear it's asking for a chestnut. Well, if that's what it takes to get rid of the thing, so be it. Here, take one and be gone! Shoo!
This is getting very tiresome! No matter how many chestnuts I give it, that hand keeps coming back for more! It's just so demanding! At first, I'll admit I was frightened, but now I'm just sick of the sight of the accursed thing!
Look, here it comes again! Yes, yes, I get it. Here you go! Now off with you!
So that hand has finally stopped appearing. Well, good riddance! It made off with all of my chestnuts, the grubby creature! But how did it ever get into the ashes of my hearth? It didn't seem to be particularly malicious, but I'd hardly say it was a welcome guest. Still, I wonder where it came from?
...Goodness gracious! Here's that ladle I lost a while back. So that's where it was!
Ho ho, this ladle has been in this house longer than I have. So long, in fact, that it must have acquired its own spirit!
- Where
- South of Gojo Street - West
- Map
- Eastern Kyoto
- Region
- Eastern Kyoto
- Hand in to
- Lady Murasaki, Yasaka Shrine
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