Japanese Folk Tales

My Lord Bag of Rice

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Once upon a time,  there lived, in Japan a brave warrior named Tawara Toda, or "My Lord Bag of Rice." His real name or given name was Fujiwara Hidesato, and there is a very interesting tale of how his name changed.  

One day he journeyed forth in search of exciting adventures. He did so because he could not sit lazily and do nothing, he felt that he should go out and venture out to the world in search of something amusing and exciting.  So he brought his two swords and his large wooden bow, something that was even taller than him.

 He had not even went that far yet when he encountered a bridge of Seta-No-Karachi standing one end of the alluring and marvellous Lake Biwa. 

Curiosity filled him, so he took the path of the bridge. Not long after he walked, he saw a huge serpent on the other side of the bridge. The serpent was absolutely enormous, and it shocked Hidesato. The serpent was big enough to occupy the width of the other end of the bridge fully! Afraid that he might anger the beast, Hidesato did not know what to do. But after a while, he realised that the humongous beast seemed to be in a deep sleep, with smoke coming out of his huge nostrils and its body curled up.

Like the brave man he was, Hidesato took this chance and treaded onwards, not minding the beast. Eventually he got so close to the beast, that he was almost stepping on it. Still, he went on. 

Hidesato breathed a sigh of relief, up until he heard someone calling him. He turned, and to his surprise, the great beast was no longer there! 

Instead, there was a strange man, who was now bowing*, with his head planted on the ground. The man's eye-catching red hair flowed by his shoulders, and he wore a crown that symbolised a dragon's head. This man was also wearing a sea-green hued formal clothing, with shells and waves as its pattern. Hidesato was confused, 'Who might this man be? Where is the great beast? Is he perhaps the dragon?'

"Did you call me?" Hidesato asked, trying not to show his nervousness. The man stood up and bowed slightly. "Yes, I was the one who called you," he replied. "I have a request, and I think it might be firing for you. Do you think you are able to grant my wish?"

"If I am able, I will not hesitate," Hidesato replied. "But first, who are you?"

"I am the Dragon King of the Lake," the man said. "I live in these waters,  just under this very bridge."

"What is your request?" Hidesato said in a loud voice. 

"I would like you to kill my enemy, the centipede," the Dragon King gestured towards the peak of the mountain that was on the opposite side of the lake. "He lives there. I want you to kill him for he has caused terror and fear in my family for many years. He has kidnapped my children every night, one by one. Not only do I want revenge for this, but I will become his target soon. The strong men that have come in this land have all fled in fear of me, and you are the only one that was brave enough to cross. Dear traveller, will you help me and kill that centipede?"

Feeling very sorry for the events that the Dragon King had to go through, Hidesato agreed without hesitation and promised to defeat the centipede.

The Dragon King was happy that he had finally found a brave warrior to defeat the centipede. He then led Hidesato to his palace under the Lake. "The centipede appears at a specific hour of the night, and he terrorises my family by kidnapping one of my children or grandchildren." 

Hidesato listened closely to the instructions of the Dragon King, but the underwater palace almost diverted his attention. The water divided into two, allowing both of them to pass. When they were passing, his clothes did not even feel damp or wet.