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For the next nine years,until the incident at the hospital, Thkamine never said a word about her, not even to me. Given his age and position in society, he could have married well. yer he never did. If anything, he becameevenmore strict in matters ofpersonal conduct than he had been in his student days. But I have akeady said enough. Although their graves are in different places---rcne in the hills of Aoyama, one downtown in fanaka-the countess and Docror Thka_ mine died togerher,one after the other, on rhe sameday. Religious thinkers of the world, I pose this question ro you. Should these two lovers be found guilty and denied entrance inro heaven?

"

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rr K0ya Man nfMount IheHoly

(Kayahijiri, 1900)

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"I knew it wouldn't do much good to take anorher look. But because of my the road had becomeunimaginably difficult, I lifted the sleeves kimono, made hot to the touch by the sun's rays, and reachedin for the ordinance survey map that I had brought with me. "There I was on an isolated byt"y, making my way through the deep mountains between Hida and Shinsh[. Not a single tree offered the comfort of its shade;and on both sideswere nothing but mountains, rising so closeand so steeply that it seemedas though I could reach out and touch them with my hand. Despite the towering heights of thesemountains there rode still others beyond them, each raising its crest above the next, blocking both bird and cloud from sight. "Between earth and sky, I stood alone, the crystalline rays of the blistering midday sun falling white around me as I surveyed the map from beneath the brim of my sedgehat." Saying this, the itinerant monk clenched both fists, placed them on his pillow, bent forward, then pressedhis foreheadagainst his hands'

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\7e had become traveling companions in Nagoya. And now, as we were about to retire for the night in Tsuruga, it occurred to me that he had mainsainedthis humility with perfect consistency, and that he had shown none ofrhe airs ofthe self-righteous. I rememberedhow we met on the train. I was traveling wesr on the main line rhat connecrsthe cities of the Pacific Coasr, when he got on ar Kakegawa.He sat at the end of the car with his head bowed, and because he showed no more life than cold ashes, I paid him little attention. Bur rhen the train reachedNagoya, and everyoneelsegot off at once,as if by previous arrangement,leaving only rhe monk anc myself to sharerhe coach. The train had departedfrom Tokyo at nine-rhirty the nighr before and was scheduledro arrive in Tsuruga rhat evening. As it was noon when we reached Nagoya, I purchasedfrom the srarionvendor a small box lunch of sushi,which happenedto be whar the monk also boughr. \7hen I eagerlyremoved the lid, however,I was disappointed to find only bits ofseaweedscatreredon rop ofrhe vinegar-flavoredrice and knew immediarely rhar my lunch was sushi of the cheapesrkind. "Nothing but carrots and gourd shavings," I blurted our. The monk, seeingthe look on my face,couldn't help bur chuckle. Since we were the only two passengers in the car, we naturally began a conversation.Alrhough he belonged to a differenr sect, he told me thar he was on his way ro visit someonear Eiheiji, the great Zen monastery in Echizen, and planned ro spend the nighr in Tsuruga. I was rerurning home ro tVakasa; and becauseI also had ro srop over in the same rown, we decided to become traveling parrners. He told me he was affiliated with Mount KOya, headquarters of the Shingon sect.My guesswas thar he was abour forty-five or -six. He seemeda genrle, ordinary likeable sort. Modestly dressed,he wore a woollen traveling cloak with ample sleeves,a white flannel scarf, a pillbox hat, and knitted gloves. On his feet he had white socks and low, wooden clogs. Though a man of the cloth, he looked more like a poetry master or perhapssomeoneof even more woddly interests. "So where will you spend the night?" His quesrion prompted a deep sigh from my lips as I contemplated the drearier aspectsof staying alone in a srrangeplace: the maids who dozeoffwirh their serving trays still in hand; the hollow flameryof desk clerks; rhe way everyone staresat you whenever you leave your room and walk the halls; and, is over worst of all, how rhey snuff out the candlesas soon as dinner and order you ro bed in the dim shadowsof lantern light. I'm the sort who doesn't fall asleepeasily,and I can't begin to describethe lonelinessof being abandoned like that in my room' And now that the prenights had gotten longer, ever since leaving Tokyo I had been occupiedwith how I was going to make it through that night in Tsu,rrgu. I suggestedto the monk that, if it was no bother, we might spend the night together. He nodded cheerfully and added that whenever he traveled through the North country he always rested his walking staff at a place called the Katoriya. Apparenrly the Katoriya had been a travelers' inn until the proprietor's only daughter, well liked by all who knew her, suddenly died. After thar, the family took down their shinwere alwayswilling to accomgle and, though no longer in business, the elderly couple still provided people, such Lodure old friends. For familylike hospitality. The monk suggestedthat if such a situation "But," he started were agreeablero me, we would be welcome there. "the only thing you might get ro say,then pausedfor dramatic effect, \(ith that, he burst into gourd shavings"' for dinner is carrots and the monk had quite a sense laughter. Despite his modest appearance' of humor.
i

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2
In Gifu, the sky was still clear and blue, but once we entered the North Country famousfor its inclement weather,things beganchanging. Maibara and Nagahama were slightly overcast-the sun's rays pe.,.tr"ted the clouds only weakly and a chill seepedinto my bones' it started to rain' As my winbnt by the time we reachedYanagase with something white' mixed dow grew steadily darker, the rain "It's snowing." "So it is," the monk said, not even bothering to look uP at the sky' If he found the snow uninreresting, neirher was he concernedwith the ancient battleground at Shizugatakeor the sceneryat Lake Biwa' As I pointed them out, he onlY nodded. \7e neared Tsuruga, and I prepared myself for the annoying' or should I say frighrening, tenacity of the solicitors who lie in wait at KiYa Ihellalyllland lllount I Al

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the station for potential customers.As I expected,they were there in droves, waiting for us to step off the train. They lined the road that led away from the srarion, forming an impenerrable wall around the travelers.As they closed in on us wirh their lanrerns and umbrellas, all emblazoned with rhe names of the inns they represented,they called our and demanded we stay rhe night with them. The more brazen ones even snatched up people's luggage and shouted out, "Thanks! This way, please!" No doubt, those suffering headaches would have found their heads pounding becauseof rhis inrolerable behavior.Bur, as always, the monk kept his head bowed and calmly slipped unnoticed through rhe crowd. No one bothered to srop him, and, luckily, I followed righc behind, emitting a sigh of relief once the station was behind us. The snow showed no signs of letting up. No longer sleer, its dry, light flakes brushed my faceas they fell. Though ir was still early in the evening, the people ofTsuruga had already bolted their doors for the night, leaving the streersdesertedand quier. r')(/e cut acrosstwo or three wide intersecrions, then walked for anorher eight blocks through the accumularing snow unril we sropped beneath rhe eaves of an inn. \7e had arrived at the Karoriya. The alcove and sirting room had no decoration to speak of. But the pillars were impressive, rhe tatami new, and rhe hearrh spacious. The pot hook dangling over the hearrh was decorated wirh a wooden carp so lustrous I wondered if it were made of gold. Set inro the earthen oven were rwo huge pots, each big enough to cook half a bushel of rice. It was a solid, old house. The master of the inn was a short-cropped, hard-to-read sort of fellow, who had a habit of keeping his hands tucked inside his cotton jacket even when sitring in front of a brazier. His wife, in conrrasr, was charming, the kind of person who saysall rhe right things. She laughed cheerfully when my companion told the story about carrots and gourd shavings and prepared a meal of two kinds of dried fish and miso soup with bits of seaweed. I could rell by the way she and her husband acred that they had known the monk for a long time. Becauseof their friendship, I felt very much at home. Eventually we were taken to our beds on the second floor. The ceiling was low, but the beams were huge, unmilled logs, two arm-

spansin diamerer.The roof slanted down at an angle so you had to be careful not to bump your head on the ceiling where the roof met the walls along the edgesof the room. Still, it was comforting to know rhat even if an avalanchecame tumbling down the mountain behind us, it would not disturb such a sturdily built structure' I jumped right into bed, happy to see that our bed warmer had aheadybeen prepared for the night. In order to make the most of the heated coals, our bedding had been laid out at right angles so we could both take advantage of the warmer. The monk, however, pulled his futon around besidemine, intending ro sleepwithout the comfort of the smoldering fire. \i/hen he finally got inro bed, he didn't even bother to remove his sash.much lesshis robe. Still wearing his clothes, he curled himself into a ball and quickly backed feetfirst into his quilts. As soon as his in his upper quilt, he pressedhis hands to the arms found rhe sleeves and lowered himself onto his pillow. unlike him marrress benearh you or me, the holy man slept facedown. Before long he stopped stirring and seemedto be falling asleep' As I had rold him many rimes in the train, I find it hard to get to sleep before the night grows late; and so I askedhim, begging like a child, ro take piry on me and tell me abour some of the interesting things he had experiencedon his many pilgrimages' He nodded, and added that since middle age he had always slept facedown bur rhat he was still wide-awake. Like me, he too had dif"So you wanr ro hear a story? Then Iisten to ficulty falling asleep. "And remember that what you what I'm about to tell you," he said' hear from a monk isn'r alwaysa lecture of a sermon." It was only later that I learned he was none orher than the renowned and revered Monk Sh[chd of the Rikumin TemPle.

;f

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,.The join us owners of this inn mentioned that someoneelse might "A man from wakasa, salne as you. here tonighr," the monk began. He's young, but I know him lacquerware. and sells He travels around to be a good, serious fellow, quite unlike a young man I once met

24

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when making my way through the mountains of Hida. This other person was a Toyama medicine peddler whom I happened to run into at a teahousein the foothills. \fhat a disagreeable,difficult fellow!" I intended to make it all the way to the pass rhat day, and I had set out from my inn at abour three o'clock in the morning. I coveredfifteen miles or more while it was still cool. But by the time I made ir to the teahouse, the morning mist had burned offand it was starting to get hor. I had pushed myself at a fast pace and my throat was as parched as the road beneath my feet. I wanted ro ger somerhing to drink right away but was told the kettle wasn'r boiling yet. Ofcourse, there was no reason to expect the teahouse to be ready for business as so few pass by on such mountain paths. In a place as isolated as thar, smoke from the hearth rarely rises while the morning-glory blossomsare still blooming. As I waited, I noriced an inviting brook running in fronr ofrhe srool on which I had taken a sear.I was about to scoop up a handful ofwater from a bucket nearby when something occurred ro me. Diseasespreadsquickly in the summer months, and I had just seenpowdered lime sprinkled over the ground at the village called Tsuji. "Excuse me," I called to the girl in the teahouse. I felr a bit awkward asking, but forced myself to inquire. "Is this water from your well?" "Its from the river," she said. "Down Her answer alarmed me. the mountain I saw signs of an "I epidemic," I said. was jusr wondering if this brook comesfrom over by Tsuji." "No, it doesn't," she replied simply, as though I had nothing to worry about. I should have been happy to hear her answer, but lis6gn-5srng6ns else was already at the teahouse.The young medicine peddler I just mentioned had been resting there for quite some rime. He was one of those vulgar pill salesmen.You've seenthem dressedin an unlined, striped kimono, a cheap sash,and the obligatory gold watch dangling in front. Leggings and breeches, straw sandals, a square medicine chest tied to the back with a pale yellowish-green cotton cloth. Add an 28 I lzuml Kyfika

umbrella or an oilskin slicker, fotded up and tied to the pack with a flat sanadasrring, and there you have it, the typical traveling salesman. They all look the 5ams-gtra1 serious, knowing look on their faces. But as soon as they get to their lodgings for the night, they change loosely tied' into loud, large-patternedrobes.And with their sashes laps. they sip cheapwine and try to get their feet onto the maids'soft "Forgive "Hey, start' very the from me insulting Baldy," he called, me for asking this, but I need to know something' Here you are' You know you're nevergoing to make it with the ladies,so you shaveyour head and becomea monk, right? So why worry about dying? That's a little odd, don'r you think? The truth is, you're no better chanthe rest of us.Just like I thought. Take a look at him, miss. He's still attached to this floating world." The two looked at each other and burst into laughter. I was a young man at that time, and my face burned red with shame.I frozethere with the scoopof water still in my hands' "lwhat are you waiting for? Go ahead,drink till you drown' If you come down with something, I'll give you some of my medicine' That's why I'm here. Right, miss?It's going to cost you' though' My 'the gift of the gods.' But if Mankintan's threesena packer. It may be you want it, you buy it. I haven't done anything bad enough to make me want to give it away. But maybe we can fix that' How about it' girl? Maybe I should have my way with you"' He pamed the young woman on the back. I was shocked by the man! lewd behavior and quickly got away from there. Of course, someoneof my age and profession has no businessgoing on abour the seduction of teahousemaids, but since it's an important part of the story. . . .

4
I was so furious I rushed down the road that led through some rice paddies in the foothills. I had gone only a short distance when the p^th rose steeply. Looking to the side, I could seeit going up the side just started the of.h. rrro,rrrtain like a rounded, earthen bridge' I had pedclimb, my eyesfixed upward uPon my goal, when the medicine me' to overtake along hurrying came dler I had encountered earlier l(OYa t ofMount Ihellolyltlan 27

The road forked ar that poinr. One of rhe two parhs was e*rremely steep and headeddirectly up the mounrain. Ir was overgrown wirh grasson borh sidesand,w3und-around a huge cypresstree fouq maybe even five, spansaround, then disappeured b"ehind a number of jucting boulders rhar were piled one on top of the orher. My guesswas rhar this wasn'r the road to rake. The wide, genrly slopinj one that had brought me this far was, no doubt, rh. --uin road, and if I just stayed on it for anocherfive miles or so, it would surely take me into the mounrains and evenrually ro the pass. Bur what was this? The cypressI menrioned archedlike a rainbow over the desertedroad, exrending into rhe endlesssky above rhe rice paddies. The earth had crumbled autay from its base, .*poring "n impressivetangle ofcounclesseel-like roots; and from there a srream of warer gushed out and flowed over the ground, "floodingright down the middle of the road I had decided ro take, ,-h. .n,ir. "r." before me. Ir was a wonder rhe water hadn,r made a lake of the rice paddies. Thundering like rapids, the torrent formed a river thar stretched for more rhan two hundred yards, bordered on the far side by u grorr..-I was glad ro seea line of rocks thar crossedthe warer like " io-"of srepping-stones.Apparently, someone had gone to a Ior of trouble ro pur them rhere. The water w,rsn't so deep that I would have to strip down and wade. Still, it seemeda bit roo difficult to be rhe main road, as even a horse would have had a hard rime of it. The medicine peddleq too, had hesitated because of rhe siruation.

footsteps. Ifhen I reached rhespot, t.o,rii,..,rr,ii.

He didn't have anything to say this time. Even if he had, I doubt I would have responded. Thoroughly accustomed ro looking down on other people, rhe peddler ,rr^d. u po;nt of giving _. " .onr'"_pruous glance as he passedby. He pr.rr.j fo*"rj to the top of a small hill, where he sropped,holding his opened umbrella in one hand. Then he disappeared down the orher side. I followed him, climbing the steep slope unril I made it to the top. Then I proceeded ahead. The peddler had already made it down the other side and was standing on the road,.looking rhis way and that. I suspected f,. _igt, be planning some mischief and *u, on guard as I continued in his

iJ;il.

But then he made his decision and started climbing rhe hill to the right, where he disappeared behind the cypresstree. \fhen he reappeared he was five feet or so above me. "Hey, this is the road ro Matsumoro," he called down, rhen saunteredanother five or six steps. Half-hidden behind one of rhe huge boulders, he called out in a jeer"'Watch ing tone. our or the rree spirirs'll get you! They don't give a damn if it's still daylight!" Then he entered rhe shadeof rhe boulders and eventually disappeared into the grass growing farrher up the slope. After a while, the tip of his umbrella reappeared higher up the mountain, bug rhen, just as ir reachedthe same level as the treerops, it disappearedagain into the undergrowrh. That was when I heard someone behind me. I rurned ro see a farmer hopping acrossthe stones laid out acrossthe flowing water, encouraging himself with a relaxed-sounding DoAkoisho. He had a short reed skirr tied around his waisr and carried a shoulder pole in one hand.

5
Needlessto say,from the rime I left the reahouse unril rhat momenr, I hadn't mer anyone but rhe medicine peddler. As the peddler went his way, I paused to consult my map-the one I was relling you about earlier. It occurred ro me thar even though rhe grass-grown parh seemedlike the wrong road, the peddler, who was a professionaltraveler after all, ought to know his way around thesemountains. "Excuse me," I said to the farmer. "Yes," "How he replied. may I help you?" Mountain people are especiallypolire when talking with monks, as you know. "Sorry to borher you about such an obvious matrer," I said. "But this is rhe main road, isn't it?" "You're going to Matsumoto?" he asked. "Then yes, rhis is the 'We've right road. had a lor of rain this year, and the whole place has turned inro a river. But rhis is ir." "Is it like this all the way?" "Oh, no. Just what you see here. It's easy enough to cross.The water goes over ro that grove there. On the other side, it's a regular road. Up to the mounrains, it's wide enough for two carts to passeach IhcllulyMan ufilountKdya t

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other with no problem. A doctor once had his mansion in rhat grove there, and this place, believe ir or not, used to be a village. A flood came through thirteen yearc ago and washed everything away. Many people died. Since you'r: monk, sir, maybe yo.r.or.ilj pr"1, i", ,r,. L dead as you walk through.,, th: good man gave me more information than I had asked -for. Now that I had the details, Io,^ .o_f*t.d to know which was the right road' Yet at the sametime, his instrucrions meanr that someone else had gone the wrong way. "Then may I ask where this other road goes?,, I inquired about the left fork thar rhe medicine peddler h; .;". "That s the old road people used to take fifty years ago. It,ll ger you to ShinshDall right, and ir cuts offa good sevenreen miles overall. But you can't ger through anymore. y,ri, i*, year,a family on pil_ grimage wenr rhar way by mistake. It-was terrible. They _;;;;^ beggars.But since every soul is precious,we felt we should try ro find them' sze got a search p^rry Lgeth.r-,h... locar consrablesand twelve people from che villageland -.rr. in,o the mounrains ro bring them back our' sir, *o-uta.r', r.. roo "-birious and decide ro take rhar shortcur. Even ifI rhe long.r"roJ is more tiring and makes you spend a night under the ,.urr, I wouldn,t take the chance. Well, rake care now and have a good trip.,, I said goodbye ro the farmer and started acrossthe line ofstep_ ping-srones thar had been set in the river. Buc then I stopped. $'har would becomeof the medicine peddler? I doubred the old road was nearly as bad as the farmer had de_ scribed' But if it were rrue' it wourd u. tt e retting the man die before eyes.Anyway, as one who had renounced the wodd, I had no :nyvery business worrying about whether I could find an inn beforenighrfall or not. And so I decided to go and bring the medicine peddler back. Even if I didn't find him and end:d ,e ,j<;; the old road all the way, it wouldn't be as bad as all rhat. This *"s.r't"the seasonfor wild dogs prowling or for forest spirits lurking about. .,Sowhy nor?,, I thought. $Zhen I turned around, I saw that Je kind farmer had already disap_ peared from sight. "I'll do it," I said to myself and stamed up the steeppath. Ir wasn,r that I wanted ro be a hero or rhac I was g.*ing aheadof myself. Judg_

ing from what I've just told you, you might rhink I'm some sort of enlightened saint. But the truth is that I'm really a coward. I didn't even dare drink the river warer. So you're probably wondering why I decided to take the dangerous path. To rell the truth, I wouldn't have cared thar much about someone with whom I'd exchangedonly a few words of greeting. But because the peddler had been such a disagreeable person,I felt I would be purposely letting him take the wrong road. In short, my conscience made me do it. The Monk Sh[chd, still lying facedown,brought his hands rogether "I in prayer. just didn'r think letting him die would be worthy of rhe nenbutw I chant." he added.

s
"So, listen to this."

I walked past the cypresstree, rhen made my way through rhe boulders and ended up on the trail above them. Passingrhrough a stand of trees, I entered a parh in the thick grass that seemed ro go on forever. Before I knew it, I had climbed rhe mountain and was approaching another. For a while a meadow opened up, and rhe path sloped gently and becameeven wider than the main road I had just lefreasily wide enough to accommodatea daimyo's procession.The two roadswere running parallel to eachother. One was slightly to the east and the other situated a bit ro rhe wesr. with rhe mountain in the middle. Even in this broad plain, though, I could seeno sign of the medicine peddler, not even a speck the size ofa poppy seed.Every once in a while, a small insect would fly across the baking sky. I felt even more insecure, walking in the open where everything was empty and unfamiliar! Of course,I had heard about travel in rhe Hida Mountains before-how fey inns rhere were along the way, and how if you got millet-rice for dinner you were doing well. I was prepared for rhe

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worst, and becausemy legs were strong, I kept up the pace without flagging. As I made my way, the rnountains began closing in until I was walled in on both sides and rhe trail before".rre,or. rr?.Off" From here I knew I'd be crossing the notorious Amd pass, and so I did what I could to prepare myself for the climb. Readjusting my straw sandals, I gaspedfor breath in the blistering hear. Yearslarer I heard about a wind cave in the passthat sendsair all rhe way to the Rendai Temple in Mino; brrr at th"t time, of course, I had no desireto go seeit. I was so intenf on crimbing that I was obrivious to rhe sceneryand to whatever narural wonders mighr lie along rhe way. I didn't even know_if it was cloudy or sunny. Concenrrating only on getting to rhe top, I crawled .rp .n" incline. Now this is the parr I really want to tell you. you see,rhe trail gor much worse. Not only did it seem i*porritf. fo, u ;;;;.;#r" climb, but there was somerhing .rr.., more horrible: snakes.They were buried in rhe grass,rheir headson one side ofrhe trair and their rails on rhe other, writhing like bridges across my parh. The first rime I encounreredone, my breath ,urhJd fro_ _y lungs and my knees gave way beneath me. I.crumpled to the ground, my sedgehar srill on head and my walking staff still in riv hand. Ty I've always been afraid, or maybe I should say rerrified, of snakes. Thar first rime, the crearuredid me the favor of slowly slithering away.It raisedits head, then disappearedinro the grass. I gor to my feer and conrinued aheadanother five or six hundred yards, only ro find anocher snake sunning irs belly, irs cail and head also hidden in the grasson eirher side ofthe path. I.slloyted and jumped back, and rhis one, too, slithered away.Bur , the third snake I encountered was in no h,r.ry to move. you should have.seen how big around ir,was! I g.r.rJ.har if the thing srarred crawling, it would take a full five minures before its tul fi;"i, appeared.Having no other recourse, I forced _rr.ii; r;^;;;:, thick body' My stomach turned and I felt as rhough my hair and all my pores had turned into scales. I closed my eyesand imagined my face turning as pale as che creatures bellv. I could feel myself breaking our in a cold swe"t. My legs losr their strengrh' Barely able to keep my feer under me, I stumbled down the trail, my heart pounding with fear. And again, anorher snake appeared.

This one had been cut in half. All that remained was the length from belly to tail. The wound was tinged with blue, and, as the snake twitched on the path, a yellow fluid ran from where it had been severed. That was when I finally panicked and started running back the other way. But then I came ro my senses and remembered the other snakesI had just passed.No doubt they were lying in wait for me. And yer I would rather be killed rhan jump over another one. I knew in my heart that if the farmer had said, even in passing, that there were snakeslike this on the old road, I wouldn'r have taken this way though it might have meanr suffering in hell for abandoning the medicine peddler. Baked by the sun, I felt rears come ro my eyes. "Save me, Merciful Buddha!" Even now rhe thoughr of that experience makes me shudder. The monk pressedhis hand to his florehead.

7
But losing conrrol wasn'rgoing to help, so I did my best to regain my composure.It was not the time to be turning back. I would only run into the severed body of rhe dead snake, abour three feet long. This time I left the parh, deep into the grass,in order ro get around it. And as I did, I panicked again, fearing thar the orher half would appear and coil imelf around me. My legs grew stiff and I stumbled over a stone. Apparently, that's when I rwisred my knee. From there I had to limp along the trail as best I could. I knew that if I collapsed on rhe road, I would be killed by the steamy heat. So I made up my mind thar I was going to make ic and pressedon. The hot stench of rhe grass was menacing. And underfoot I was constantly stepping on what felt like large birds' eggs strewn abour. For the next five miles, the road twisted and turned up rhe mountain in a seriesof switchbacks.Reaching the heart of the mountain, I turned the corner around a huge boulder and worked my way through a tangle of tree roots. This was when I stopped to look ar the map, for the trail had become impossibly difficult. It was the same road, all right-wherher you hear abour it or see lhc llnlyl[anuf ilountKdya : 33

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it on a map. There was no mistaking ir was the old road, though knowing this was no consolation. The map was reliable, but all it showed was a sign for "wilderness area" with a red line drawn over ir. Maybe ir was too much to ask for notations that would indicate the true difficulties of the trail-the snakes,rhe insects, the birds' eggs, and rhe suffocating odors of the grass. I folded the map, stuffed it into my kimono, took a deep breath, and, with the nenbutsu on my lips, started off again. I had the best of intentions, but before I had taken another step, another snakecrossedmy path. "No use,"I thought, wondering for the first time if rhis mighr not be the doing of the mounrain spirirs. I threw down my staff, got on my knees,and placed both handson rhe baking earth. ,.I'm truly sorry to bother you," I fervently implored the gods. ..Bur pleaselet me pass. I'll go quierly, I promise. I won't disturb your afternoon nap. Look, I've already thrown aw^y my walking stick." I was rruly at wit's end. lVhen I raisedmy head, I heard a terrifiiing, rushing sound. This time, I thought, it must be a gigantis snaks-ghree, four, five feer long, maybe more. Before my eyes,the grassmoved in a straighr line that gradually approached the ravine ro my left. Then rhe peak towering above me, indeed rhe entire mounrain, began swaying back and forth. Sfith my hair smnding on end, I froze in my rracksasa coolness pierced my bones.It was then that I realized ir was not a giant snake at all but a mountain gale, and the sound I was hearing was rhe wind s echo. It was as if a whirlwind had originaced deep in the mounrains and had suddenly rushed our an opening it had created for itself. Had the mountain gods answered my prayer? The snakeswere nowhere ro be seen and the heat dissipared. Courage returned to my heart, and strength to my legs. Before long I learned why the wind had suddenly grown so chilly: just ahead was a deep foresr. There is a saying abour the Am6 pass-that it rains there even on a cloudless day People also talk abour the remore forests that haven'r beentouched by an ax since the age ofthe gods. up to this poinr there hadn'r been many trees, but noq/Scepping into the cold, damp woods, I thought about how rhere would be crabs rather than snakescrawling around now. As I walked ahead, it becamedark. Cryptomeria, pine, Chinese nettle_there was just enough light ro allow me to tell rhe trees apaft. sflhere the shafts

of weak sunlight touched the earth, the mountain soil was pirch black. Depending on how the sun pierced the canopy of treerops, though, the light was also mottled blue and red. Some of the places were textured and very beautiful. Occasionally my toes would get caught in the threadlike rivulets that had formed from the water dripping from the leaves.These drops had traveled from branch to branch, originating high up in the forest canopy. They were joined by the steadily falling evergreen leavesand the rustling of some other trees that I couldn't identify. Some leaves fell on my hat, and some landed behind me where I had just walked. They, too, had collected on the branches, and it was my guess that some had taken decadesto reach the forest floor.

I
I don't have to tell you how despondentI was. But I supposea dark place like that is better than daylight for strengthening one's fairh and pondering the eternal truths, even for a coward such as myself. Ac least it wasn't as hoc as before. My legs were beginning to feel much stronger, and so I walked much more quickly, thinking I was already three-quarters of the way through the woods. But just then something fell, apparently from rhe branches five or six feer above my head, and landed on my hat. It felt like a lead sinker. Perhapsit was the fruit ofa tree. I shook my head once,twice. But it stuck to my hat. I reachedup and grabbed it. \Thatever it was, it was cold and slimy. In my hand it looked like a sliced-openseaslug with no eyesor mouth. It was alive, no question about that. And how repulsive! I tried to fling it away, but it only slid down and dangled from my fingers. \fhen it finally fell off, I noticed bright red drops of blood dripping. Surprised, I brought my hand up to take a closer look and discovered another creature, similar to the first, dangling from my elbow. It was about half-an-inch wide and three inches long. It looked like an enormous mountain slug. As I examined the creature in stupefied amazement, it sucked blood from my arm, swelling larger and larger from the tail up. It had

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brown stripeson its dull black skin, like a cucumber with warts. Now I could seeit for what it was-a blood-sucking leech! There was no mistaking it for anything else, though it was so huge that I hadn't recognized ir at first. No rice paddy, no swamp, however famous for its grotesqueries, had leecheslike this. I gave my elbow a vigorous shake, but the animal was firmly attachedand wouldn't let go. Even though it was the last thing I felt like doing, I grabbed the leech with my other hand and pulled until it finally came off with a sucking sound. I couldn't bear the thought of the leech touching me a moment Ionger and immediately flung it ro the ground. Thesedumb crearures had taken over the woods by the rhousands,and the dank, sunlessforest had beenpreparedespeciallyfor that purpose.\fhen I rried ro squash the thing under my foor, the ground was soft and rhe leech merely sank into the muck. It was impossible ro crush. Already my neck had srarted to irch. There was anorher one! I tried to brush it off, bur my hand only slipped over irs body. Meanwhile, another had worked its way into my kimono and was hiding oo my chest. I examined ir wirh horror and discoveredstill another on my shoulder. I jumped up and down. I shook my entire body. I ran our from under the large branch in order ro ger away. As I ran, I franrically grabbed at the ones that were sucking away at my blood. I was under the impressionthar rhe leeches had fallen from one particular branch, but when I looked back at rhe rree, I saw that the whole rhing was swarming wirh them. On the righr, on the left, on rhe branch in front-they were everywhere! I lost control and shouted our in terror. And then what do you think happened?Even as I stood there watching, a shower of chin, black leeches began raining down on me. They covered rhe tops of my sandaled feet and piled themselves one on top of rhe other. They stuck to the sidesof my feet and made my toesdisappearbenearhtheir disgusting mass.As I watched those blood-sucking crearures squirming and pulsing and heaving, I srarted to feel faint. It was then that the strangesrrhought occurred ro me. These terrifiring mountain leecheshad been gathered there since the age ofthe gods, lying in wait for passersby. After decades and cen-

ruries of drinking unrold quantities of human blood, they would have their fill and disgorge every ounce! Then the earth will melt. one by one, the mountains will turn into vast, muddy swamPsof blood' And ar the sametime, all theseenormous rrees,large enough to block out even the midday sun, will break into small piecesthat will then turn Yes.That's exactly what will happen! into even more leeches.

s
The destruction of mankind will not come with the rupture of the earth's fragile crust and with fire pouring down from the heavens. Nor will it come when rhe waves of the ocean wash over the land. and Rarher,ir will begin wirh rhe forestsof Hida turning into leeches only muck. and blood in end wirh the black crearuresswimming then will a new generation of life begin. It was rrue rhar norhing had seemedso unusual about the forest just when I first entered ir. Bur once I had, conditions were as I've rotwere trees the that described.IfI conrinued on, I would discover There every one' ting from the roots up and had rurned into leeches, woods! the in killed to be fate my was It me! for was no hope of those thoughts the are such me that Suddenly it occurred to I anyway' perish to who sensethe approach of death. If I was going of thought, I might:at least try to reach the shore of this vast swamp blood and muck, to seewith my own eyesa place that ordinary PeoPle couldn,t imagine in their wildest dreams. The decision made, I became oblivious to the ghastlinessof my situation. The leechesstuck to my body like beads to a rosary; but my hands found them and plucked them off one after anorher. \vith arms flailing and legs marching, I made my way like a madman dancing through the forest' At first my body swelled and the itching was unbearable' But then I felt as though I'd been reduced to pain-racked skin and bone. continued. As I pressedon, rhe attack ofthe blood-sucking leeches to collapse' about was I as though My sight grew dim and I felt a fa|nt I caught But just as I reached the height of my tribulations, glimpse of the distant moon' as if I had reachedthe end of a tunnel' At last, I emerged from the leech-infested forest'

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$Zhen I saw the blue sky above me, I threw myself down on the road and began smashing the creatures to pieces. I wanted nothing more than to reduce them to the dust of the earth. I rolled on rhe ground, not caring ifit were covered with gravel or needles;and afrer scraping off more than ten, I rumbled aheadanother thirty feet before I stood up with a shudder. My friend, those creatures had had their way with me. Here and there in the surrounding mountains, the evening cicadas were chirping against the backdrop ofthis foresrthat was so intent on turning irself into a gre^tswamp of blood and muck. The sun was low in the sky. The bottom of the ravine was already dark with shadows. There was a chanceI might becomefood for wild dogs, bur even thar would be an improvemenr over being sucked to d.".i'by leeches. The road slopedgently downhill. Carrying my bamboo walking srick on my shoulder,I made a hasty escape. If only I hadn't been suffering such indescribable rormenr_ar once so painful, irchy, and ricklish-I would have danced down rhe road through rhe Hida Mounrains, chanting a surra as my accompaniment' But I had recoveredenough to be able to think "tou, .h.*ing one of my Seishinranpills and applying rhe paste to my wounds. I pinched myself. yes, I really had returneJ from the d."d. E.,r.n ,o, I wondered what had become of the medicine peddler from Toyarna. My guesswas thar he was in the swamp behind me, long sincereiuced to blood, his corpse norhing bur skin and a skeleton,lying in some dark spot in the woods wirh hundreds of the filrhy, disguJri.,g .r."_ tures srill sucking on his bones.It would be useless .o ,ry ,o dissolve them with vinegar. \ilC/ith my mind filled with such thoughts, I con_ tinued down the slope, which wenr on for some distance. $Zhen I finally reached rhe bottom, I heard the sound of running water. There, in the middle of nowhere, I came upon a small earrhen bridge. r$fith the music of the-warer in my ears,I immediately thought of how wonderful it would feel to throw my sucked_over Uoay n.inrrt into the river below and to soak it there. If the bridge coliapsed as I tried to crossover, so be it. Giving no thought to the danger, I started across. The bridge was a bit unsteady,but I made it. On rhe orher side, the trail ,or. sl".ply again. Yer anorher climb. Is there no end to human suffering?

tI
Tired as I was, I didn't think I could make it over one more hill. But then, coming from up ahead,I heard the echoing sound of a neighing horse. \Vas it a packhorsedriver on his way home? Or a horse passing by? Not much time had passed since my chancemeeting with the farmer that morning, yet I felt as rhough I had been denied the company of my fellowmen for at least several years. If that was a horse I heard, there should be a village nearby.Given new courageby the thought, I pushed ahead. Before I knew ir, I was standing in front of a secludedmountain cottage. As it was summer, all the sliding doors had been left open. I couldn't locate a front gate, but directly before me was a dilapidaced veranda.On it sat a man. \7hat kind of man, I couldn't really tell. "Excuse me. Excuse me." I called out in a pleading voice, as if imploring him to help me. "Excuse me," I said again, but receivedno reply. He looked like a child. His headwas cocked to one side so that one ear almost touched his shoulder. He staredat me with small, expressionless eyes.He was so listless it seemedhe couldn't even be bothered to move his pupils. His kimono was short, the sleeves only coming to his elbows. His vest was properly starched and tied in front, but his stomach protruded from the kimono like a huge, smooth drum, and his belly button stuck out like the scemof a pumpkin. He fingered it with one hand, while waving the other in the air as if he were a ghost. His legs were sprawled out as if he had forgotten he had them. Had he not been seatedsquarely on the veranda,I'm sure he would have toppled over. He appeared to be about twenty-two or -three yearsold. His mouth hung open, his upper lip curled back. His nose was flat and his forehead bulged. His hair had grown out and was long like a cockscombin front, flipped all the way back to his collar and covering his ears.lJfas he a mute? An idiot? A young man about to turn into a frog? I was surprised by what I saw. He presented no real danger to me, but what a bizarre sight! "Excuse me," I said again. Despite his appearance, I had no choice but to try to communicate with him. My words of greeting, though, made little difference. He lfiya Ihellolyilan ol Mount t

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only stirred slightly and flopped his head over so it now rested on his left shoulder,mouth still agape. I couldn't anticipare what he mighr do. But I did feel that if I weren'r careful he might suddenly grab me, and then, while fiddling with his navel, lick my face instead of answering my inquiries. I stepped back. But rhen I thoughr that no matter how our_ofthe-way this place might be, no one would leavesuch a person alone. I stood on tiptoe and spoke a little louder. "Is anyonehome?" I heard the horse whinny again. The sound came from behind the cottage. "\Who is itZ" Ir was a woman's voice, coming from the srorage room. My goodness!$/ould she come slirhering our, scales on her whire neck, trailing a rail behind her? I fell back anorher step. And rhen she appeared-a petite, atrracrive woman with a clear voice and a gentle manner. "Honorable Monk," she greeted me. I ler out a huge sigh and srood srill. ,.yes,"I hnally said, and bowed. Shesar down on the verandaand leanedforward, looking ar me as I stood in rhe evening shadows.,,Isrhere somerhing I can dffir you?,, She didn't invire me ro sray the night, so I assumedher husband was our. Ir seemsrhey had decided not ro take in any travelers. I quickly stepped forward. If I didn't ask now, I mighr lose my chance. I bowed polirely. "I'm on my way ro Shinsh[. Can you rell me how far it is to the next inn?"

I knew that the horseI had heard couldn't be fine." I said this because possibly belong to anyoneelse. The woman consideredmy request for a moment. Suddenly she turned, picked up a cloth bag, and started pouring rice from it into a pot at her side. She emptied the bag as if it were filled with water. \7ith one hand steadying the pot, she looked down and scoopedup the rice with the other. "\7e "You have just enough can stay here tonight," shesaid at last. rice. Mountain cortageslike this get cold at night, but it's summer and you should be fine. So, please.\Won't you come in?" As soon as she said this, I plunked myself down on the veranda. "But, Sir. There is one thing I have to ask The woman got to her feet. you." of Shewas so forthright that I expectedher to set down some impos"Yes," "\7hat is it?" I said nervously. sible condition. "Norhing that important. It's just that I havea bad habic of wanting to know what's going on in the city. Even if you're not in the mood to talk, I'll keep asking you question after question. So you mustn'r tell me anything, not even by a slip of the tongue. Do you undersrandwhat I'm saying?I'll keep pestering you if you do. So you I just mustn't say anything. Even if I beg you, you have to refi.rse. wanted you to know that." There seemedto be some hidden reasonbehind her request.It was the soff of thing you might expect to hear from a woman living in an isolated cottage where the mountains are tall and the valleys immeasurably deep. As it seemedan easyenough requestto fulfill, I nodded. "That's fine. \Thatever you say." \With this, the woman immediately becamefriendlier. "The house is a messbut pleasecome in. Make yourself at home. Should I get you some water so you can wash up?" "No, But I could use a washcloth. And that won't be necessary. would you mind geming it wet and wringing it out for me? I ran into a little trouble along the way. I feel so sticky I'd like to wash up, if I could trouble you for that." "You do look hot. It must have been hard traveling on a day like this. If this were an inn, you could take a bath. They say that's what travelers really appreciate most. I'm afraid, though, you won't get even a cup of tea, let alone a tub of hot water. If you don't mind going lhelldyilannl ilum Kdya I

fl
"I'm afraid you srill have ninereenmiles or more to go.,' "Then perhaps you might know of a place nearby where I could stay the night?" "I'm afraid I don't." She stared into my eyeswithout blinking. "I see.\fell, actually, even if you were ro tell me that I could find lodging nearby, and that they'd put me up in their best room and fan me all night asan act ofpiety, I really don't think I could take another step. Please, I beg you. Even a shedor the corner ofa horsestall would

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down the cliff behind the house, though, there's a beautiful stream. You could go there and wash." "That sounds Hearing those words, I was ready to fly to the river. perfect." "Then let me show you where it is. I have to wash the rice anyway." The woman picked up the pot, placed it under her arm, then Stooping over, she looked under the veranda put on her straw sandals. and pulled out a pair of old wooden clogs,which she clapped together to shake off the dust. She set them down on the ground for me' "Please, wear these.Leaveyour straw sandalshere." "That's very kind I pressedmy hands together and thanked her. of you." "Your "must have been determined by a staying here," she said, former life. Don't hesitate to ask for what you need." My friend, she was a most hospitable woman.

'\7ell, if it isn't and stopped' in his teeth, he came up to the woman a monk." "May I ask how at the man' The woman looked over her shoulder it went?" "Oh, you know. He's one stupid jackass'all right' Nobody but a that's where I come in' I'Il do my fox could ever ride that horse' But should fix you up for two or three best to geta fairprice' A good deal months." "That would be nice"' "So where You headed?" "Down to the water"' "Don't go falling ln with the young monk now' I'll be on the lookdown on the veranda' out here." i{e leanedover and sat "Listen to him talk"' She looked at me and smiled' "Maybe I should go by myself"' I stepped to the side and the old man laughed "Hurry up and get going, You two'-. "'We've already frad"twJvisitors today"' she said to the old man' ,,rirho knows? Maybe we'll have another. If somebody should come know.what to do' Maybe you could whileJiro's herealone,they won't until we get back"' ,.uy und make yourself comfortable "Sure." The man moved over to the idiot and whacked him on the idiot looked as if he might cry but back with his ..,or-ot's fist' The chengrinned didn't seemto be bothered Horrified, I turned away' The woman by ic at all' , -^:^- -^ ..-.t tl . "\X/hile you're away' r, I'm going to steal thrs The man laughed' husband ofYours"' "\fell "Good for you," she said and turned to me' then' Shall

t2
"Please follow me." \7ith the rice pot in her hand, the woman tucked a small towel into her narrow sash.Her rich, lovely hair was tied up in a bun and held in place with a comb and an ornamental hairpin. I noticed she had a beautiful figure. I quickly removed my sandalsand put on the old clogs. \fhen I stood up from the veranda and looked around, there was Mr. Idiot still staring in my direction and babbling some sort of nonsense. "Sister, dis, dis." He slowly lifted his hand and touched his tousled "Monk. Monk?" hair. A smile formed on the woman's face.She gave him quick nods. "Mmm," then grew limp and started playing The young man said with his navel again. Out of sympathy for the two, I didn't raise my head but merely stole a glance at the woman. She didn't seem to be bothered at all. Just as I was about to follow her, an old man appeared from behind a hydrangea bush. He had come around from the back. A carved ivory netsuke dangled from a long pouch string tied around his waist. Holding a pipe

we go?" was watching us from behind I had the feeling that the old man a s l f o l l o w e d t h e w o m a n a l o n g a w a l l l e a d i n g a w a y f r o m . t h e h ywas dran ato be the back gate' To the left geas. \(e reached *tt"t "t-J ofa horse kicking at the walls' It horse stable. I couldhear the sound was alreadYstaffing to get dark' "\fe'tl take this putfr do*t'' It's not slippery' but it is steep' Please be careful."

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t3
A grove of extremely tall, slender pine trees, their trunks clear of branches for about fifteen or rwenry feet from the ground, marked rhe path that we were apparently going to take down ro the river. As we passedthrough the rrees,I spotted something white in the rreerops far above. It was the thirreenth night of rh. n.* month, and though it was rhe samemoon I had always seen,tonight it made me realizehow far from rhe world of human habirarion I iad come. The woman, who had been walking ahead of me, disappeared. $Zhen I looked down the hill, holding onto one ofrhe rrees,i rport.d her below. Shelooked up at me. "It gets a lot steeperhere so please be careful. Maybe I shouldn't have given you those clogs. rtrZould you like my sandals?" Sheobviously rhought I was lagging behind because ofthe steep_ nessof the path, but really, I was more than willing to tumble down the slope to ger that leech filth offmy body. "I'll come down barefoot if I have ro," I said. ,,I'm fine. Sorry ro make you worry Miss." "Miss?" Sheraisedher voice slighrly and laughed. It was a charming sound. "That s what I heardthe man call you. Bur maybe you're married?,, "Eirher wag I'm old enough to be your aunc.Now, come. euickly. I'd give you my sandalsbut you might srep on a rhorn. They,re soak_ ing wet, anyway.You wouldn't like the way they felt on you, f..t.,, She turned away and quickly lifted rhe hem of her kimono. I could seeher white ankles in the darkness.As she walked ahead they disappeared like the frost at dawn. were making good progress down the hill when a toad slug_ Ye gishly emergedfrom a clump of grasson the wayside. "Disgusring!" she lifted her heelsand jumped to the side. "can't you see I have a guest? Let go of my feer. Back to your bugs!,,She turned to me. "Come right along. Don't pay attention to him. In a place like this, even the animars wanr arrention." She turned back to the toad. "To think I'd be flattered ro know you. Go awayt,,

The toad slowly moved back into the grass, and the woman started ahead. "You'll have to climb up here.The ground's too soft." In the grass appearedthe trunk ofa tree, round and huge. I got up on it and had no trouble walking, even in my clogs. As soon as I had reachedthe end, the sound of rushing water was in my ears,although the river was still a distanceawaY. 'When I looked up I could no longer seethe pine trees.The moon ofthe thirteenth night was low on the horizon, nearly half-coveredby the mountain. Yet it was so brilliant I thought I could reach out and touch it, even though I knew its height in the heavenswas immeasurable. "It s this way." Shewas waiting for me, just a bit farther down the slope. There were boulders all around and pools createdby the water flowing over them. The stream was about six feet across.As I approachedit, the flowing water was surprisingly quiet, and its beauty was that of jewels broken from their string and being washed away. From farcherdownsrreamcame the terrifiiing echoof the water crashing againscocher boulders. On the opposicebank roseanother mouncain. Its peak was hidden in the darkness,but its lower reacheswere illumined by the moonlight spilling over the crest of the mountain acrossthe way. I could see boulders of various sizesand shapes-some like spiral seashells, others angular and truncated, and still others resembling spearsor balls. They continued as far as the eye could see,forming a small hill at the water! edge.

t4
lWe can bathe up here without lucky the water's high today. going down to the main stream." Shedipped her snow-white feet into the water rhat coveredthe top ofa boulder. The bank on our side was much steeperthan the other, and tight against the river. \7e were apparently standing in a small, boulderfilled cove.It was impossible to seeeither directly upstream or downstream, but I could make out some water winding tortuously up the "rVe're

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rock-strewn slope acrossfrom us. The stream gradually grew narrower, each bend bathed in moonlight so its water gleam.Jtik. plates of silver armor. closer to where we stood, its waves flutrered whire rike a shuttle being taken up ar the loom. "tUThat a beautiful srream." "It is. This river begins at a waterfalL.people who travel through these mountains say they can hear a sound like the *irra uto*l.r!. I don'r supposeyou heard something along rhe way?,, I had indeed, jusr before I entered ihe leech_filled forest. ,.you mean rhar wasn'r the wind in the trees?,, "That s whar everyone thinks. Bur if you rake a side road from ylel fou were and go about sevenmiles, you come to a large warer_ fall. People say it's the largest in Japan. Not .u.r, one in ten has ever made ir that far, rhough. The road is steep. So, as I was saying, this river flows down from rhere. "There was a horrible flood about rhirteen years ago,,,she conrin_ ued' "E-venrhesehigh places were covered with warefand the village in the foorhills was swepr away_mountains, houses,everyrhing uL leveled' There used ro be twenty homes hereat Kaminohora. But now they're gone' This srream was created then. See rhose boulders up there?The flood deposited them." Before I realized it, the woman had finished washing the rice. As she srood and arched her back, I caught a glimpse of the ourlines of her breasrs,showing at rhe loosened iott"r"of trer kimono. St. g"r.d dreamily ar rhe mounrain, her lips pressed togerher.I could seea mass of moonlit rocks thar rhe flood f,ui a.pori,.a halfway up rhe _or'rn_ tainside. "Even now just rhinking abour ir frighrens me,,, I said asI stooped over and began washing my arms. It was then that she said, ..If you insist on such good manners, your robes will get wet. That,s nor going to feel very good. Vhy not take them ofP I'll scrub your b".k io, vlr.,, "I wouldn't"$Zhy not? Look how your sleeveis getring in the warer.,,She sud_ denly reachedfrom behind and put her-hand lr -y sash.I squirmed, but she kept going until I -^s compl.tely naked. My master was a strict man, and, as one whose calling it is to

recite the holy sutras, I had never taken offmy clothes, not even the sleevesof my robes. But now I was standing naked in front of rhis woman, feeling like a snail without a shell. I was too embarrassed even to talk, let alone run away. \fhile she tossed my clothes onto a nearby branch, I hunched my back and stood with my kneestogether. "I'll put your clothes right here. Now. Your back. Hold still. I'm 'Miss.' going to be nice to you because you called me Now don't be naughty." She pulled up one ofher sleevesand held it between her teeth to keep it out of the way. Without firrther ado, she placed her arm on my back. It was as smooth and lustrous as a jewel. For a moment, she only looked. "Oh, my." "Is something wrong?" "These bruisesall over your back." "That's what I was saying. I had a terrible time in the woods."Just remembering the leechesmade me shudder.

t5
"So you were in the forest. How awfuM've She looked surprised. heard travelers talk about leeches falling from the trees. You must have missed the detour and gone right through their nesring grounds. You're lucky to still be alive. Not even horses and cows make it. It must really itch." "Now it only hurts." "Then I shouldn't be using this cloth. It'll make your skin peel." She touched me gently with her hands. She poured water over my body and stroked my shoulders,back, sides, and buttocks. You would think the cold river water would have chilled me to the bone, but it didn't. True, it was a hot time of the year, but even so. Perhaps it was becausemy blood was aroused. Or maybe it was the warmth of her hand. Anyway, the water felt perfect on my skin! Of course,they say that water of good quality is always soothing. But what an indescribablefeeling! I wasn't sleepy,but I began to feel drowsy. And as the pain from my wounds ebbed away, I gradually

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as if the woman's body, so close to mine, had enveloped lost my senses, me in the petals of its blossom. She seemed too delicate for someone living in the mountains' Even in the capital you don't see many women as beautiful' As she rubbed my back, I could hear her trying to stifle the sounds of her breathing. I knew I should ask her to stop, but I becamelost in the bliss of rhe moment. \was it rhe spirit of the deep mountains that made me allow her to continue? Or was it her fragrance?I smelled something wonderful. Perhaps it was the woman's breath coming from behind me. "Young man' since the lamp's over there Here Monk ShEch6paused. by you, I wonder if you could turn uP the wick a bit' This isn't the kind of story to be telling in the dark. I'm warning you' now' I'm going to tell it just as it happened." The monk's outline showed darkly beside me. As soon as I fixed the lantern, he smiled and continued his story. yes. it was like a dream. I felt as if I were being sofrly enveloped in that warm flower with its strange, wonderful fragrance-my feet, \When the legs, hands, shoulders, neck, all the way uP to my head' blossom finally swallowed me completely I stanled and collapsed on the boulder with my legs out in front of me. Immediately, the woman's arms reached around me from behind. "Can you tell how hot I am? It's this unbearableheat' Just doing this has made me sweat." \fhen she said that, I took her hand off my chest' I broke away "Excuse me"' from her embraceand stood up straight as a stick. "Not at all. No one's looking," she said coolly. That was when I lwhen, I don't know' But there noticed she had taken offher clothes. she was, her body softly shining like glossy silk. Imagine my surprise. "I suffer from the heat becauseI'm a little overweight' It's embar"'When gets hot like this, I come to the river two it rassing,"shesaid. or three times a day. If I didn't have this water, I don't know what I would do. Here. Thke this washcloth." She handed me a wrung-out "Dry your legs." towel. what was happening, she had wiped my body dry' knew I Before 48 I lzumlKyfka

"I'm afraid "Ha. ha"'The monk laughed' seeming a bit embarrassed' you"' this is quite a story I'm telling

ts
different' Her figure was volup\7ith her clothes off, she looked very tuous and full. in the shed back there"' she 'I had some businessto take care of "and now I've got horse's breath all over me' This is a good chance said, confiding in a brother or sister' to wash up a bit." Shespokeas if her hair' and wiped under her She raised on. huni to hold back and wrung out the towel with both arm with the other' As she stood this as if it had been purified by hands, her snowy skin looked woman perspiration of such a miracle-working water' The flowing the shadeof mountain flowers' could only be lighc crimson in color' "I'm really being a tomboy' What if hair' She began.ornUitff't' the people downstream think?" *o.rld I fell inro the river? $h"t "That you were a white peach blossom.'' I said what came to my mind. Our eyesmet' -y words' At that She smiled, as if pleased by ,-ottn'' -11' looking down at the water wich seemedsevenor eight'yeun yo"ngt" lathed in the moonlighc and envelan innocent shyness'rit' ng"tt' translucent blue beforea huge' oped in cheevening -i't, 'ti-'nered black by the spray from the smooth rock that ** iting moistened opposite bank. trouble seeing clearly' But.there It had grown dark, and I had musrhavebeena.u*'ro*.*rrerenearby,forjustthenanumberof began darting over our heads' ' . bats, creaturesas large as birds' "Stop that. Cu"'i yot' see I have a guest?" the woman suddenly cried out, and shuddered' clothes "Is I asked calmly' I had put my something -'ongl' back on. "No," she said as if embarrassed'and quickly turned away' runnrng gray animal the size of a puppy came Just then a small, sailed cliff' the from jumped out' it toward us. Before r t"l"fa shout hugging animal back' Nfith the through the air, and landed on her the waist up' from vanish her like that, she seemedto lllanufilouil K[Ya IhellolY I 43

Can't you see my guest.,, Now there was anger in her voice. "S7har insolence!,' When the animal peered up at her, she struck it squarely on the head. Ir let ouc a shriek, jumped backward inro the air, and,dangled by its long "* fro- rhe branch where she had hung my clothes' Then it did Jsomersaulr, flipped itself on cop of rhe branch, and scampered up the tree. A monkey! The animal jumped from branch to br"nch, ihen clirnbed . ,f,. rr.ry.op?,n. tall tree, sharing the rreetops with the moon rhar had risen high in rhe sky and was showing through ,fr. t."rr"r. The woman seemed to be in a pour becauseof rhe monkey,s misbehavior,or rather because ofthe pranks ofthe toud, the bats, and rhe monkey. The way her mood ,or.rr.d reminded _. of young _"rn.r, who get upset when their children misbeharre. As sheput her clorhes back on, she looked angry. Iasked no ques_ tions. I hid in the background "r,d trl.dto sray our of the wav.

"Beast!

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Shewasgentleyer srrong,lighthearted yer nor without a degree of firmness. Shehada f.ienJly d"ispositio. d,rt t.. aigniry wasunshak_ able,and her confidenr mannergaveme the impression rhacshewas a womanwho could handleany situarion. Nothing good couldcome of getting in her way if she*ere ""gt i k;;* that if I wereunforrunateenough ro get on herwrongside,i would beashelples, ;;;;;_ key fallenfrom its tree.ril7ith 6ur "nd ,.._iting, I timidly kepr my distance. But, asit turnedout, things *.r"n], asbadasall that. "You must havefoundir odd,,,i.,"ij,-r*lling good_naturedly, ,.Theret asif recallingrhescene. not.nr.r.hi.an do aboutic.,, Suddenly sheseemed ascheerful asbefore. shequickry ded hersash. "\Zell, shallwe go back?" Shetucked.t..1.. p* underher arm, pur on hersandals, andquickly started up the.irg. -Ci* me yourhand.,, "No. I rhink I know the *"y noi.,, I thought I waspreparedfor the ascent; but oncewe starredthe crimb, it wasa rot fartherto the top than I had expected. Eventuallywe crossed over the samelog. Lying in the grass, logs havean amazingresem_blance ,o ,.rp..rrr,?rie.iurty pine trees with their scalelike bark. $Zirh rhe .liff ;;;;;"uborr. us, it seemed as
50 I humifiydfta

though the fallen tree was indeed a slithering snake.Judging from irs girth, the serpent'shead would be somewhere in the grass on one side of the path and its tail on the orher.There it was, its contours brightly lit by the moonlight. Remembering the road rhat had brought me here, I felt my knees begin to quiver. The woman was good enough to keep looking back to check on "Don't look down when you crossover. Right there in the midme. dle, it s a long way to the bortom. You wouldn'r wanr to get dizzy." "No, of coursenot." I couldn't stand there forever, so I laughed at my timidity and jumped up on the log. Someonehad cut notchesinto it for traction, and as long as I was careful I should have been able to walk on it even wearing clogs.Neverrheless, because it was so like the back of a boaunsteady,soft, and slithery benearhmy clogs-I shoured our in fear and fell, straddling the log. "SThere's "Ir's your courage?" she asked. those clogs, isn'r it? Here, put theseon. Do as I say." By that time I had already developeda sound respecrfor her. For better or worse, I decided to obey, no marrer what she wanted. I put on the sandals,jusr as she asked. And rhen, lisren ro rhis, as she was purting on my clogs, she rook my hand. Suddenly I felt lighter. I had no trouble following her, and before I knew it we were back at the corrage. As soon as we arrived the old man greeted us wirh a shout. "I thought it'd take a little time. But I see the Good Brorher's come back in his original form." "\7hat "Anything are you talking about?" she said. happen while we were gone?" "Guess I've done my time here.If it gets too dark, I'll have rrouble on the road. Better get the horseand be on my way." "Sorry to make you wait." "Not at all. Go take a look. Your husband'sfine. It's going to rake more than I've got to steal him away from you." Pleased by his owir nonsense,the old man burst into laughter and plodded off toward the horse stall. The idiot was sitting in the same place, just as before. It seems that even a jellyfish will keep its shapeif kepr out of the sun. Ihellolyllland Mount K[ya I 5l

iii 1
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t8
I could hearneighing,shours, and rhe soundof the horse,s hooves stompingrhe ground as rhe man broughr rhe animal aroundfronr. tr::j wirh his tegsaparr,holding tie animal by irs halrer..rJ7ell, 3: Miss,I'll be off. Thkegoodcareof rlie monk.,, The womanhad serup a ranrernnearrhe hearch and wason her knees, trying ro ger a fire scarred. Sheglanced up andplaced her hand on her leg while holding a pair of me-ral chopsricks.;Th"nkyou for taking careof everyrhing." "Ir's rhe leastI could do. Hey!" The man jerked backon rhe animal'srope. Ir wasa dappledhorse, gray wirh blackspocs. The muscurar -. srar_ lion_w-irh a stragglymanesroodtherewich nothing on bur a halrer. I found nothing parricularlyinreresring abour rhe animal. yer . when.the man rugged on rhe rope I qullHy moved ou., .o ,l* veranda from whereI was sitring behini rhe idior and calredour "lfhere areyou taking thar horse?" "To an aucrionoverby SuwaLake.Tomorrow you,ll be raking the same road." "!Vhy do you ask?', ..Are rhe.woman suddenlyinrerrupred. you planningro jump on and ride awav?" "Not ar all," I said...Tharwould be a violarion of my vows_ro resrmy legsand ride while on pilgrimage.,, "I doubt you or anybodyelseiould-sc^y o(r tb;, animal,,, rhe old

had your share ofclose *u, "I,*d;;;d; #1.'1._,::ll:ti:you've easy und

1.,.,r,. young1"iil;.;J ffil rVell, I'd bener Yj:_o:i:J:'jT::esr conighr? ger going."
The horserefrrsed ro move. Ir seemed ro be nervouslyrwirching irs lips, poinring its muzzlein my direction, and lookinga! me. "Damned animal.Hey now!" The old rnan pulled rhe halter rope ro the left and righr, but the . horsestoodasfirm asif irs feerwere,oo..d in the ground. Exasperared by rhe crearure, the old -"., b.g"n ro bear ir. He closelycircled around the horserwo or three rimes, bur rhe animal still rehuedro moveforward.r*hen the man pur his ,ho.rld.r;;;;; 52 I humt t(ylka

its belly and threw his weight against the horse, it finally lifted one ofirs fronr feer, but rhen planted all four again. "Miss! Miss!" The man wailed for help. The woman stood up and riproed over ro a soot-blackenedpillar, where she hid herself from rhe horse'seyes. The man pulled our a dirry, crumpled sowel from his pocket and wiped rhe swearfrom his deeply wrinkled brow. \With new dererminarion on his face,he placed himself in front of the horse and, main_ raining his calm, grabbed the rope wirh both hands. He planred his feer, leanedback, and rhrew his whole weighr inro ir. And guesswhar happened nexr? The horse ler our a rremendouswhinny and raised borh its fronr hoovesinro rhe air. The old man srumbled and fell ro rhe ground on his back; and the horsecame down, sending a cloud of dusr inro rhe moonlit sky. Even the idior saw che humor of rhis scene.For once and only once, he held his head srraighr, opened his far lips, bared his big teeth, and flucrered his hand as iffanning rhe air. "!7har now?" rhe woman said,giving up. Sheslipped on her sandals and srepped inco che dirr-floored areaofrhe corrage. "Don'r ger ir wrong," rhe old man said to her. "Ir's nor you. It's the monk. This horse has had irs eye on him from rhe srarr. They probably knew each orher in a former life, and now rhe beast wanrs the Holy Man ro pray for irs soul." I was shocked ro hear rhe fellow suggesr I had any connecrions with the animal. Ir was then thar rhe woman askedme, "Sir, did you happen ro meer anyoneon your way here?"

ls
"Yes. I reached Tsuji, I did meera medicine peddlerfrom Jusr before Toyama. He starred our on rhesame rrail, a lirrle ahead of me." "I see."Shesmiled as if shehad guessed somethingrighr, rhen glancedover ar the horse.She looked as if she couldn't help bur smirk. Sheseemed to be in a berrermood,so I spokeup. "perhapshe cameby this way."
lhelloly Man ofMourt Kdya ! 53

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I wouldn'r know anything about thar.',Shesuddenlyseemed to distance herselfagain,and so I held my rongue.she rurned ro rhe man, who wasstandingmeekly beforethe horse,dusting himself off. "Then I guess I don't havemuch of a choice,"shesaidin a resigned toneand hurriedly untied her sash. one end of it dangledin rhe dirr. Shepulled it up and hesitated for a moment. "Ah, ah." The idior husbandler our a vaguecry.As he reached out wich rhe long, skinny arm rhac wzlsconstantlyfanning rhe air, the womanhanded him hersash. Like a child, heplaced ic on his lap, rhen rolled ir up and guardedir asifir werea preciousrreasure. shepulled rhe lapelsof her kimono rogerher and herdrhem wirh one hand jusr below her breasc. Leaving rhe house,she quietly walked over ro rhe horse. I wassrruckwirh asronishmenr asshestoodon tiptoe.Shegrace_ fully raised her handin the air, then srrokedrhe horse's *"n. *o o, threerimes. she movedaroundand stooddirecrlyin fronr of the horse's huge muzzle, seeming ro grow rallerasI watched. Shefixed hereyes on ,h. animal,puckered her lips, and raised her eyebrows asif faling inro a trance. suddenlyher familiar charmand coquertish air disappeared, and I foundmyselfwonderingif shewerea god, or maybe" d.-on. Ar rharrnomenr, ir wasasif the mouncain behindthe conage and the peak direcrly acrossrhe vailey-in fact, all rhe mountains rhar surroundedus and formed rhis world rhac was ser aparr from all others-suddenly looked our way and benc over ro snre ar rhis womanwho sroodfacing rhe horsein rhe moonlighr. Turning ever darkegrhe deepmounrains grew morelonelyand inrense. I felt myselfbeingengulfedin a warm,moisrwind asrhe woman slippedherkimonooffher left shourder. Thenshetook herright hand out of irs sleeve, broughr ir aroundro rhe fuilness of her boJom, and lifcedher rhin undergarmenr. suddenry shewasnaked,wirhour even so muchasthe mountainmist ro clotheher. The skin on rhehorse's backand belly seemed to melr wich ecsmsv and drip with sweat.Evenirs srronglegsbecame feebleand beg"n ro tremble.The animal loweredin headto the ground and, brJwing froth from irs mourh, bent im fronr legsasif paying obeisance ro he-r beaury. Ar thar momenr, rhe woman reached under rhe horse's jaw and
54 I lzumi l(yika

"No.

nimbly tossed her undergarment over the animal's eyes. She leaped like a doe rabbit and arched her back so she was looking up at the ghasrly, hazy moon. Threading the undergarment between the horse's front legs, she pulled it from its eyesas she passedbeneath the belly ofthe horse and stepped offto the side. The old man, taking his cue from her, pulled on the halter. And the rwo started walking briskly down the mountain trail and soon disappeared into the darkness. The woman put on her kimono and came over to the veranda.She rried to take her sashfrom the idioc, who refusedto give it back. He raised his hand and tried reaching for her breasts.rVhen she finally brushed offhis hand and gave him a scornfirl look, he shrank back and hung his head. All this I wirnessedin the phantasmal flickering of the dimming lanrern. In the heanh, rhe faggots were now aflame,and the woman, in order to rend to the fire, rushed back inro the cocrage.Coming to us from the far side of the moon, che faint echoesof rhe horseman's song reverberatedin the night.

20
Ir was rime for dinner. Far from mere carrotsand gourd shavings,the woman served pickled vegerables, marinared ginger, seaweed, and miso soup with dried wild mushrooms. The ingrediencswere simple but well prepared,and I was pracrically starving. As for the service,it couldn't have been berrer. With her elbows resting on rhe tray in her lap, and her chin cupped in her hands, she watched me eat, apparently gaining great sacisfaction from it. The idiot, tired of being lefc alone, started crawling limply toward us. He dragged his potbelly over to where the woman was posirion. He mumbled as he seatedand collapsedinto a cross-legged kept pointing and staring at my dinner. "No. "\fhat You can eat later. Don'c you see is it?" sheaskedhim. we have a guest tonight?" A melancholy look came over the idiot s face. He twisted his mouth and tossedhis head from side to side. Ilrellolyilan d ilountKdya I 55

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You'rehopeless. Go ahead, rhen.Ear with our guest.,, She turnedro me. "I begyour pardon." I quickly sermy chopsticks down.,.Norat all. please. I've put you throughroo much troublealready." "Hardly. You'vebeenno trouble at all." she rurnedro the idior. "You, my deaqaresupposed ro earwith me, afrer our guesrfinishes. \fhat am I going to do with you?,' Sayingrhis to pur me ar ease, she quickly serup a rray idenricalto mine. Goodwife rharshewas,sheserved rhefoodquickly,wirhourwasr_ yer rherewasalsosomerhing ing a singlemovement. refined andgen_ reelabouther. The idior lookedup with dull eyes at rhe rray serbeforehim. "I wanr rhar. Thar," he said while glancing goggle_eyed around the room. Shelookedar him gently,in the way a morhermighr look ar her child. "Youcanhaverharany time you wanr,',shesaid...Burconighr we havea guest." "No' I wanr it now."The idior shookhis enrirebody.He sniveled and lookedasifhe wasaboutro bursrinro tears. The womandidn'r know whar ro do, andI felr sorryfor her..Miss, I know nexr ro norhing abour your siruarionhere," I said. ..Bur wouldnr it be berrerjuscro give him whache wanrs? personallS I'd feelberterif you didn'r rrearme like a guesr.' "so you don't wanr ro eat whar I've fixed?"sheaskedrhe idior. "You don'rwanrrhis?" Shefinally gavein ro him, ashe looked as if he wasaboucto cry. Shewent overro her broken-down cupboard, rook somerhing from a crock, and pur ir on his rray, rhough nor withour givinj him a reproachful look. "Here you go." she prerendedto be peevedand forceda smile. I warched from rhe cornerof my eye,wonderingwhar kind of food the idiot would be chewingin his huge mouth. A brue-green snake srewedwirh vegerables in rhick soy and sugar?A monkey ferus sceam-baked in a casserole? Or somerhinglessgroresque, like pieces of dried frog mear?wich one hand the idior held his bowl. wirrr trre otherhe pickedup a pieceof overpickled radish.Ir wasn'tslicedinto pieces just chopped eirher, inro a big chunk sorhe idior couldmunch on ir asifeating a cob ofcorn. Sff I lzumt Ky0ka

"No?

The woman musr have been embarrassed. I caught her glancing was blushing. at me. She Though she hardly seemed like an over innocent-minded person,she nervously rouched a corner ofher rowel ro her mouth. I took a closer look at this young man. His body was yellow and plump, just like the pickled radish he had just devoured. By and by, satisfied with having vanquished his preS he looked the other way, without even asking for a cup of tea, and panred heavily wirh boredom. "I guessI've losr my apperire," rhe woman said. "Maybe I'll have something later." She clearedthe disheswirhout earing dinner.

2l
"You The mood was subdued for a while after rhar. musr be tired," "Shall she finally said. I make up your bed righr avray?" "Thank "Bur you," I replied. I'm nor rhe leasrbir sleepy.\Tashing in the river seemsro have revived me complerely." "Thar stream is good for any illness you mighr have. \Whenever I'm worn out and feel wirhered and dry all I have ro do is spend half a day in the water and I becomerefreshedagain. Even in rhe winrer, when the mountains rurn ro ice and all the rivers and cliffs arecovered wirh snow, the water never freezes in rhat spot where you were barhing. Monkeys with gunshor wounds, nighr herons wirh broken legs, so many animals come ro barhe in rhe warer thar rhey've made thar parh down rhe cliff. Ic s the warer rhat has healedyour wounds. "If you aren't tired, maybe we could ralk for a while. I get so lonely here. It's strange, bur being all alone in rhe mountains like this, I even forger how to ralk. SomerimesI ger so discouraged. "If you get sleepy,don'r sray up on my account. rWe don't have anything like a real guest room, but, on rhe orher hand, you won't find a single mosquito here. Down in the valley they rell a story abour a man from Kaminohora who srayedthe nighr there. They pur up a mosquito net for him, bur since he had never seenone before he asked them for a ladder so he could get into bed. "Even if you sleep lare you won'r hear any bells ringing, nor any Ihellnlyilan ofiluuntl$ya I 57

roosrerscrowing at dawn. We don't even have dogs here, so you can sleepin peace." She looked over ar rhe idiot. "That fellow was born and raised here in the mounrains. He doesn'r know much about anything. Srill, he s a good person, so rherei no need ro worry on his account. He actually knows how ro bow polirely when a srranger visits, rhough he hasn'r paid his respecrs ro you yet, has he? Thesedays he doesn'rhave much strength. He's gorcen lazy. But he's not stupid. He can undersrand everyrhing you say." Shemoved closerto the idior, looked into his face,and said cheer"Why fully, don't you bow ro the monk? you haven'r forgorren how, haveyou?" The idior managed ro pur his rwo hands togerher on rhe floor and bowed wirh a jerk, as if a wound-up spring had been releasedin his back. Srruck by che woman's love for the fellow, I bowed my head. "The pleasure's mine." Still facingdown, he seemedro losehis equilibrium. He fell overon his side, and the woman helped him back up. "There. Good for you." Looking as if she wanred ro praise him for what he had done, she turned ro me and said, "Sir, I'm pretry sure he could do anything you asked of him. Bur he has a diseaserhar neirher the docrors nor rhe river can heal. Borh of his legs are crippled, so ir doesn'r do much good to reachhim new things. As you can see,jusr one bow is about as much as he can tolerare. "Learning somerhing is hard work. Ic hurrs him, I know, so I don't ask him ro do much. And because of thar he s gradually forgotten how to use his hands or even how ro ralk. The one thing he srill can do is sing. Even now he srill knows rwo or three songs.\0fhy don'r you sing one for our guesr?" The idior opened his eyeswide and looked ar rhe woman, then ar me. He seemedshy as he shook his head.

Euen tbe sanmersare cold On Moznt Ontakein Kiso. Ixt megiaeyoa A dauble-linedhimono And tabi sochs as well. "Doesn't The woman listened intenrly and smiled. he know ir well, though." How strangeit was! The idiors voice was norhing like you might expect, having heard his srory. Even I couldn'r believe ir. Ir was the difference berween rhe moon and a rurrle, clouds and mud, heaven and earrh! The phrasing, the dynamics, the brearhing-everyrhing was perfecr. You wouldn'r rhink thar such a pure, clear voice could emerge from rhe rhroar of rhar young man. Ir sounded as rhough his former incarnarion was piping a voice from rhe orher world inro rhe idior's bloared sromach. I had been listening wirh my head bowed. I sar wirh my hands folded in my lap, unable to look up ar rhe couple. I was so moved rhat tearscame to rny eyes. The woman noticed I was crying and askedrne if somerhing was wrong. I couldn'r answer her righc away,bur finally I said, "I'm fine, thanks. I won'r ask any guestionsabour you, so you musrn'r ask about me eirher." I menrioned no details, bur I spoke from my hean. I had come to seeher as a verirable Yang Gui-fei, a volupcuousand alluring beaury who deservedto be adorned with silver and jade pins for her haig gossamer gowns as sheer as burrerfly wings, and pearl-sewn shoes.And yet she was so open and kind to her idiot husband. Thar was rhe reason I was moved to tears. She was the sort ofperson who could guessrhe unspoken feelings of another. She spoke up as if she immediately undersrood exactly "You're what I was feeling. very kind." She gazed ar me wirh a look in her eyes that I cannot begin ro describe. I bowed my head and looked away. The lantern dimmed again, and I wondered if this perhapswas the idiot's doing; for just then, the conversarion lagged and a tired silence overcame us. The mzrsrerof song, apparenrly bored, yawned hugely, as if he were about to swallow the lanrern before him.

22
Afrer she encouraged and cajoled him in various ways, he cocked his head to one side and, playing with his navel, began to sing.

58

lzumlKyika

IhellolyMan ol ilouil l0ya

53

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He started to fidger. "ril(/ant sleep. sleep." He moved his body clumsily. "Are you rired? Shall we go ro bed?" The woman sat up and, as if she had suddenly come ro her senses, looked around. The world out_ side the house was as brighr as noon. The moonlight poured into rhe cotrage through the open windows and doors. The hydrangezrs were a vivid blue. "Are you ready to retire?" "Yes," "Sorry I said. to inconvenienceyou." "I'll pur him to bed first. Make yourseif comfonabre.you're righr our in the open here, bur in the summer rhis bigger room will be bet_ for you. !/e'll sleep in rhe inner room, so you can ger a good rest. -te1 lVair jusr a momenr," she srarred to say and stood up. She hurriedly steppeddown onro rhe earrhenfloor. Because her movem.nr, *.r. ro vigorous, her black hair, which had beenrwisred inro a bun, fell down over rhe nape ofher neck. Nfirh one hand rouching her hair and rhe ocher on rhe door, she looked ourside and said ro herself, "I must have dropped my comb in all rhe exciremenr." she was obviously ralking abour when she had passed benearhche horses belly.

23
The monk paused as he rold his srory.The nighr wassrill, and we couldclearlydisringuish slow,quier sreps in rhe hallwaydownstairs. It sounded like sorneone going ro rhe barhroom. one of rherain shuctersopened wirh a rarrle;rhencamerhesoundof hands beingwashed. "The snows piling up," camea voice.Mosr surely, ir *.s rhe owner of the inn.
guess the merchanr from rWakasa found some orher place to spend the nighr," rhe monk said. ,.I hope hes having sweer dreams." "I

"Please, finish your srory.$7hat happened nexr?"I urgedMonk Shlchd ro continue.

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I7ell, the night grew late, he resumed. As you can understand, no marrer how tired a person gets, when you're in an isolated corrage in rhe middle of mountains like that, ir's hard to fall asleep.Besides,I was borhered by something chat kepr me from dozing off. In fact, I was wide awake. I kepr blinking my eyes,but,,rs you mighr expect, by that time I was so exhaustedthac my mind had become clouded. All I could do was wait for dawn to brighren the night sky. Ar firsr I lisrened,out of habit, for the morning temple bells. \Zill they ring now? Are they abour to ring? Surely enough time had passedsince I had retired for the night. But then I realized there wouldn't be any temples in a place as isolated as this, and suddenly I became uneasy. Then it happened.As they say,the nighr is as deep as a valley. As soonas I could no longer hear the sound of the idioc'sslovenly breathof somerhing ouside. ing, I sensedthe presence It sounded like the footstepsof an animal, one thac hadn't come from very far avray.Ar firsr I tried to comfort myself, thinking that rhis was a place where rhere was no scarcity of monkeys and roads. me. Buc she rhoughr did lirrle ro rezrssure A bir later, when ir seemedrhe animal had steppedup co the front ofthe house,I heard the bleating ofa sheep. My head was poinred in irs direccion, which meant chat rhe beast musr have been standing righc beside my pillow! A bir later I heard the sound of beating bird s wings just to my righr, under the spot where the hydrangeawas blooming. Then carnethe sound of anorheranimal crying Kii, kii on rhe rooftop. I guessed it was a flying squirrel or some such thing. Next a huge beast, as big as a hill, came so close I felt as though I were being crushed by it. It bellowed like a cow. Then came anorher two-legged creature that sounded as if it must have come running from far autay were circling with straw sandalson its feet. Now all kinds of creatures and milling around the house. Altogether, there must have been twenty or thirry of them, snorting, beating theirwings, some of them hissing. It was like a hellish scenefrom the Realm of Suffering Beasts. In the light of the moon, I could seethe silhouettes of their ghastly figures cavorting and dancing in front of the house. \flere these the evil spirits of the mouncainsand rivers?

I
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The leaves on the trees shuddered. I held my breath. From the room where the woman and the idior were sleeping came^ moan and then the sound of someone drawing a long breath. It was the woman, overcomeby a nightmare. "\fe have a guest tonight," she cried out. A few secondspassedbefore she spoke again, this time in a clear, "I sharp voice. said we have a guest." I could hear the woman tossing in bed, and a very quiet voice that "\7e have a guest." Then followed more tossing. said, The beastsourside srirred and the entire cortage began co shake back and fonh. Frighcened our of my senses,I began reciting a dharani. He wbo dares resist tbe heaaens And uainly tries to blocktrutb s route, IvIay his head besplit in sam Lihe tbe young arjahz sproat! His iln is uorse than parricidc, His rnshing doomuithout relief, telling lia His scala and measures Like Dandatta, we dapise Offendrs of belief! I chanted the sacredwords with heart and soul. And suddenly rhe whirlwind rwisring in the trees blew away to the south and everything becamesrill. From the couple'sbed came not a sound.

I encounteredno leech-filled forests.Still, though the way might continue ro be hard, bringing tribulation co my body and soul, I realized My dreams of someday donning a rhar my pilgrimage was senseless. purple surplice and living in a fine monastery meant nothing to me. And to be called a living Buddha by others and to be thronged with crowds of worshippers could only turn my stomach with the stench of humanity. You can understand why I haven't given you all the details of my srory but after the woman put the idiot to sleep,she came back out ro my room. She told me shat racherthan going back to a life of selfdenial, I oughr to scayby her side in the coctageby rhe river, there where rhe summer is cool and the winter mild. Had I given in to her for that reasonalone, you'd probably say rhat I had been bewitched by her beaury.Bur in my own defenseler me say that I truly felt sorry for her. How would it be to live in that isolated mountain cottage as the idior s bed partner, not able to communicare, feeling you were slowly forgetcing how ro ralk? Thar morning when we said goodbye in the dawning light, I was relucrant ro leaveher. She regretted never being able to seeme again, spending the rest ofher life in such a place. Shealso said that should I ever seewhite peachpetals flowing upon a stream, however small, I would know that she had thrown herself into a river and was being torn apart bit by bit. She was dejected,but her kindnessnever failed. She told me to follow rhe river, that ir would lead me to the next village. The water dancing and rumbling over a waterfall would be my sign rhat houseswere nearby. Poincing our the road, she saw me off, walking along with me unril her conage had disappearedbehind us. Though we would never walk hand in hand as man and wife, I kept thinking I could srill be her companion, there to comfort her morning and night. I would prepare the firewood and she would do the cooking. I would gather nuts and she would shell them. We would work together, I on the veranda and she inside, talking to each other, laughing together. The two of us would go to the river. She would take offher clothes and stand besideme. Her breath uPon my back, she would envelop me in the warm, delicate fragrance sf her petals. For that I would gladly lose my life! Staring ac the waterfall, I tortured myself with these choughcs. Even now when I think back on it, I break out in a cold sweat. I was Ilrellolyilan oftlountK[ya I 63

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The nexr day ar noon, I ran into the old man who had gone off to sell the horse. I was srandinI by a waterfall not far from a village, and he 'We was on his way back to the comage. came upon each other just ar that moment when I had decided to give up my life as a monk, to go back to the mountain cottag and spend the rest of my days with the woman. To tell the truth, ever since I had left her earlier that morning this single idea dominated my thoughts. No snakesspannedmy path, anc

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tocally exhausted, both physically and spirirually. I had set offat a fast pace and my legs had grown *eary. Erren if I was returning ro the civ_ ilized wo,d, I knew rhat the besi I could expecr w,rs some old crone wirh bad breath offering me a cup of rea. I could care lessabour mak_ ing it ro the village, and so I sat down on a rock and looked over the edge at the warerfall. Afterward, I learned it was calred the Husband and S7ife Falls. A large jagged rock, like the gaping mourh of a black killer shark, scuck out from che cliff, dividing in t*o che quickly flowing srream rhat rusheddown upon it. The warer thundered and fell about fifteen yards, where ir reformed, whire againsr dark green, chen flowed srraighr as an a*ow toward rhe village downsrream. The branch of the warerfall on the far side of rhe rock was abour six feer wide and fell in an undisrurbed ribbon. The one closesrro me was narrower, abour rhree feer across,caressingand enrangling rhe huge shark rock in rhe middle. As ir rumbled, rhe warer sl"rrered inco a rhousand jewels, breaking over a nurnber ofhidden rocks.

25
:i The smallersrream wasrrying ro leapoverrhe rock and cling to rhe largerflow, bur rhe jurring ,.on. ,.p"r"red chemcleanly, pr""rr.rr,ing evena singledrop from making it to rhe orher side.The warerfall, rhrown abourand rormenred, wzrs wearyand gaunc,irs sound like sobbingor someone's anguished cries.This was the sadyer genrle wife. The husband, by contrast, fell powerfully,pulverizingrhe rocks . . below and penerraring rhe earrh.it painedme ro seerhe rwo fall divided by charrock. The brokenhearred wife waslike a Separalely, beauriful-woman clinging ro someone, sobbingand trembling.As I warchedfrom rhe safetyof rhe bank, I srarred io shake"na _"/ n.rt began ro dance.!7hen I rememberedhow I had barhedwirh rhe womanin the headwarers of rhissrream, my imaginarion picruredher insidethe fallingwarer, now beingsweprtrndq now risingagain, her skin disinregraring and scamerinjlikehower perars amid a thousand unruly srreams of warer.I gasped at the sighr, and immediarely she waswholeagain-rhe same face,body,breits, arms,andlegs,rising E4 I hurntKyika

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and sinking, suddenlydismembered, rhen appearing again.Unable ro bearthe sight, I felr myselfplunging headlong inro the fall and taking the waterinro my embrace. Reurning ro my senses, I heard rhe eanhshaking roarof rhe husband, callingro the mounrainspiric and roaring on irs way.\Zith suchsrrengrh,why wasn't he trying to her?I would save rescue her! No marcer whar the cosr. Bur rhenI rhoughrrhar ir would be berrerro go backro rhe coccage than ro kill myselfin rhewarerfall. My base desires had broughr me ro rhis, to this poinr of indecision. As long asI could seeher face and hearher voice,what did ir marrerif sheand her idior husband shared a bed?Ar leasrit would be berrerthan enduringendless austeririesand living our my daysasa rnonk. I madeup my mind to go backio her,bur jusr asI srepped back "Hey, from the rock,someone rapped me on rheshoulder. Monk." I had beencaughrar my weakesr momenr.Feelingsmall and ashamed, I lookedup, expecring ro see a messenger from Hell. !(/hat I sawinsread wasrhe old man I hadmer ar the woman's corcage. He must havesoldrhehorse because he wasalone. He hada small string of coinshangingfrom his shoulder and wascarryinga carp. The fish hadscales of brillianr gold andlookedsofreshrhar ir seemed alive.Ir wasabourthreefeerlong anddangled from a smallsrrawcord threaded rhroughirs gills. Unablero think of a word ro say, I could only look ar rhe man while he srared into my eyes. Finally,he chuckled to himself. Ir wasn'r a normal laugh buc a gruesomesorr of snicker. "rVhat areyou doing here?"he askedme. "You should be usedro you're only this kind of hear,or did you srop for somethingelse? rwelve miles from whereyou were lasr night. If you'd beenwalking hard,you'd be in the villagegiving thanksto Jiz6 by now. "Or maybeyou'vebeenrhinking abourrharwoman.your earrhly passions are stirred, aren'r they? Don't rry to hide ir. I may be a bleary-eyed old man, but I can srill rell black from whire. Anyone normal wouldn't srill be humanaftera barhwith her.Takeyour pick. Cow?Horse? Monkey?Toad? Bar?You'relucky you'renot going to be flying or hopping aroundfor the restof your life. \7hen you came up from the river and hadn'r beenrurned inro someorher animal, I couldn't believemy eyes. Lucky you! I guess your fairh savedyou. "Remember the horseI led off lasr nighr? You said you mer a
Ihelldyilannfilount X0ya I 65

medicine peddler from Toyama on your way ro rhe comage, right? \fell, he s what I'm talking about. The woman had rhat lecher rurned into a horse long before you showed up. I took him to the auction and cashedhim in. \7irh the money I bought this carp. Oh, she loves fish! She'll eat rhis one tonight! Tell me. \fho do you think she is anyway?" "Yes. \U7ho was she?" I inrerrupred the monk.

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Monk Sh[ch6 nodded. "Lisren ro rhis," he murmured. "Ir musr have been my face.Remember rhe farmer I mer ar rhe crossroads, where I took thar rrail inro the haunred foresr? Remember how he rold me that a docror once had his house rhere where rhe warer was flowing over the road?IUfell, ir rurns our rhat the woman was his daughrer." In rhe high mounrains of Hida, where life is always rhe same and nothing srrangeever happens,somerhing exrraordinaryoccurred.To chiscounrry docror was born a daughrer who, from rhe momenr of her birrh, was as beauriful as a jewel. Her morher had far cheeks,eyesthar slanreddown, a flar nose,and breastsof rhe mosr disgusring sorr. How could she raisea daughrer who was so beauriful? People used ro gossip, comparing their siruarion ro ancienr rales where a god desiressomeone's daughter and shoorsa white-fearhered arrow inso the roof of a house,ora nobleman who is hunring in rhe countryside,seesa counrry maiden and demands her for his misrress. Her farher, the docror, was a vain, arroganr man wirh jurting cheekbones and a beard. During threshing season, farmers ofren ger chaffin their eyes;and because infeccionsand orher diseases are common, he had gained some proficiency as an eye docror. As an inrernist, though, he was an urrer failure. And when ir came ro surgery rhe besr he could do was mix a lirtle hair oil wirh water and apply ir ro rhe wound. But you know whar rhey say abour how some can believe in anything or anybody. Those of his patients whose days were not already $S I lzumlKyika

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numbered eventually recovered; and as there were no other quacks around, her father's practice flourished. \fhen his daughter came to be sixteen or seventeen, in the bloom of her youth, the people in the area came to believe that she was Yakushi, Healer of Souls,and rhat she had beenborn inro the docror's family in order ro provide help to the needy.And provide she did. Boch rnen and women came pleading for her healing rouch. It all began when she started showing interest in her farhers "So parienrs. your hands hurt? Let me see."Shepressedthe sofr palm of her hand to the fingers of a young man namedJisaku-he was rhe firc9 sng-aed his rheumatism was cured completely.Shestroked rhe belly of anocherparient who had drunk ainted water, and his sromwenr away.At first ir was the young men who benefiredfrom achache her healing powers, but then the older men srartedgoing to her, roo, and larer womeo. Even if they weren'r cured completely,the pain was always less than before. When someonehad a boil ro be lanced, they screamedand kicked as the docror cur with his rusty knife. Buc if his daughter pressed her chesc up against rheir backs and held their shoulders,rhey could bear the pain. Now, near rhe grove where the doctor had his housethere was an old loquar tree; and in rhe rree,a swarm ofbees had built a frighteningly huge hive. One day, a young man named Kumaz6, the doctori apprentice, found ir. His duries were mixing medicine, cleaning rhe house,taking careofthe garden,and rransporting the doctor by rickshaw to the homes of patienc living nearby. He was rwency-four or -five at the time, and had stolen some syrup from the docror'smedical supplies. Knowing the doctor was cightfisted and would scold him if he ever found out, Kumaz6 hid his own jar of the syrup on a shelf with his clorhes and, whenever he had a few minutes of sparerime, would sacis$r his sweet tooth by secrerlysipping from it. Kumazd found rhe bees' hive as he was working in the yard and came over to rhe veranda to ask che doctor's daughter if she wanted to "Pardon me for asking, but if you could seesomething interesting. hold my hand, I'll reach inro a bees' hive and grab some. \Therever you touch me won't get hurt even if the beessting. I could try driving 'em away with a broom, bur they'd scatterand get all over me. It'd be sudden death." She hesitated,but smiled and let him take her hand. He led her to the hive, where rhe bees were making a horrifring lhe llolyMan ol lllount KDya I 67

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drone. In wenr his lefr hand. And our it came unharmed, even wirh seven or eighr bees on ir, some fanning their wings, some moving their legs, others crawling berween his fingers. \7ell, after that incident, her fame spread like a spider's web. People began saying rhar if she touched you, even a bullet would cause no pain. And ir was from about that rime thar she herself became aware of her power. lJ7hen she wenr off ro live in rhe mountains with rhe idiot, her powers grev/ even more wondrous. As she grew older, she becameable ro summon the most astounding magical powers at will. In rhe beginning, she neededro pressher body againsr you. Then ir was a rouch of her foor or a caressof rhe fingerrips. Finally, she didn'r need to make physical conracr at all. ITith a puff of her brearh, she could rurn a losr rraveler inro rhe animal of her choice. The old man drew my arrenrion ro the crearures I had seenaround the cotrage-rhe monkey, the toad, rhe bars, rabbir, and snakes.All of them were men who had bached in the river wirh her! rfirhen I heard rhar, I was overwhelmed wirh memories of the woman and rhe toad, of her being embracedby rhe monkey and arracked by the bar, and of the evil spirir of rhe foresr and mounrains thar circled rhe cottage thar nighr. And rhe idior? The old man rold me abour him, roo. At a time when the daughrer's fame had spread throughour che region, he had come to her farher as a patient. He was srill a child, accompaniedby his farher-a brusque, racirurn man-and by his long-haired older brother, who carried him down the mountain on his back. The boy had a bad abscess on his leg, and they had broughr him ro the docror's housefor trearmenr. At firsr they srayedin a room in the doccor'shouse,bur the boy's leg rurned our ro be more serious rhan originally thought. They would have to ler his blood, and, particulady becauserhe boy was so young, rhey would need ro build up his srrengrh before anything could be done. For the rime being, rhe docror prescribedthat he eat three eggs a day. And ro pur his fathers mind at ease,a plaster was put over the infecrion. \Thenever the plasrer had to be removed, wherher by his father or brocher or by someoneelse, the scab would get pulled off, and the boy

would cry out in pain. $?hen the doctor'sdaughrer did it, though, he endured silently. As a matter of practice, the doctor used the poor physical condirion ofhis patients as an excuseto put things offwhenever he knew he couldn't do anyrhing to help. After three days passed,the boy's hardworking father left his older son to look after the younger one and returned to rhe mountains. Bowing and scraping, he excused himself and backed out to the entrance o[ the doctor's house. He slipped on his scraw sandals,got down on the ground and bowed again, imploring the doctor to do what he could to savehis son s life. The boy didn't get any berter, though. On the seventh day, the older brorher also recurned ro the mountains, saying rhat rhis was of rhe year.Bad weather was harvestrimeand by far the busiestseason moving in, and if the storms continued for very long, the rice crop, their very sourceof life, would rot in the fields and their family would he was the oldest son and the strongesrworker in his srarve.Because "Don't cry now," he family, he couldn't afford to stay away any longer. said sofrly to his brotheq and left him behind. After that, the boy was alone.According to official recordshe was six yearsold, but acrually he was eleven.The army wouldn't drafr a son whose parents were already sixty. And so the boy's parens had waited five years before they registeredhis binh. Having been born and raised in the mountains, he had difficulty understanding people child, who underin the valley, but he was a bright and reasonable stood that his diet ofthree eggs a day was producing the extra blood rhat was ro be drained. He would whimper from time to time. But his brocher had told him not to cry he bore his burden well. because The doctor'sdaughter felt sorry for the boy and invited him to eat with chem, chough he preferredgoing over co a corner of the room to chew on a pitiful chunk of pickled radish. On che night before the operarion, afrer everyonehad gone to sleep,the doctor'sdaughter got up to use the bathroom and heard him weeping quietly. Out of piry, she took him to her bed. \7hen it came time for the bloodletring, she held him from behind as she usually did for her father! patienrs. The boy perspired profusely and bore rhe pain of the scalpel without moving, Sus-rvas it becausethe doctor had cut the wrong place?-they couldn't sraunch

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the flow of blood. As they warched, the boy losr his color and his condirion becamecrirical. The docror himself grew pale and agimted. By the grace of rhe gods, rhe hemorrhaging stopped afrer rhree days; and the boys life was saved.Srill, he lost rhe use of his legs and from that poinr on was a cripple. All rhe boy could do was drag himself around and look parherically at his lifeless limbs. Ir was an unbearablesight, like seeing a grasshoppercarrying irs rorn-off legs in its mouth. !7hen he cried, the docror, irriraced by rhe thoughr rhat his repuration mighr suffer, glared angrily at him, making rhe boy seek refuge in his daughrer's arms. The docror had wronged his parients many rimes before. But this rime he admirted his mistake and, rhough feeling ir was inappropriare for a woman his daughrer's age ro be lerring rhe boy bury his face in her bosom, he jusr folded his arms and sighed deeply. Beforelong, che boy'sfarher came ro ger him. He didn'r complain to the docror bur accepred whar had happened ro his son as fare. Because rhe boy refusedro leave the young woman's side, rhe docror, finding an oppoftuniry to make amends,sent his daughter ro accom_ pany them home. As ir rurns our, rhe boy's home is rhe very mounrain corrage rhac I've been relling you abour. Ar the tirne, ic was one of abour rwenry housesrhar formed a small village. The docror'sdaughter intended co sray only one or rwo days, bur lingered because ofher affecrion for rhe child. On the fifrh day of her sray,the rain came pouring down in an unrelenring rorrenc,as if warerfalls had been unleashedon rhe mounrains. Everyonewore srraw raincoarseven inside rheir homes. Thev couldn'r open their fronr doors, ler alone parch the holes in rheir tharched roofs. only by calling our ro each other from.inside were they able ro know thar the last rracesof humaniry had nor been wiped off the face of the earrh. Eight days passedas if they were eight hundred. On rhe ninth, in the middle of the nighr, a grsar wind began ro blow; and when the srorm reachedits peak, the mouncainsand village rurned into a seaof mud. Srrangelyenough, the only ones who survived rhe flood were rhe doctor's daughrer, the young boy, and the old man who had been sent from rhe village to accompany them. The doctori household was also annihilated by rhe same deluge. People say thar the birrh of a beautiful woman in such an our-of-theway place is a harbinger of a new era. Yer rhe young woman had no home to which to return. Alone in rhe world, she has been living in the mountains wirh rhe boy ever since. You saw for yourself, he said, how nothing has changed. From the dme of the flood thirteen years ago, she'scared for him wirh urrer devorion. Once the rale had been rold, the old man sneeredagain. "So now that you know her srory you probably feel sorry for her. You wanr to gather firewood and haul warer for rhe woman, don'r you? I'm afraid your lustfirl narure's been awakened,Brother. Of course, you don't like to call it lusr. You'd rarher call ir mercy or symparhy. I know you're thinking of hurrying back ro the mounrains. Bur you'd berrer think rwice. Since becoming rhar idiot s wife, she'sforgorren abour how the world behavesand does only as she pleases. She cakesany man she wanrs. And when she rires of him. she rurns him inro an anirnal, jusr like char. No one escapes. "And the river rhar carved our rhesemounrains?Since the flood, iri become a strange and mysrerious srream rhat boch seducesmen and restoresher beaury.Even a wirch pays a price for casting spells. Her hair gers tangled. Her skin becomespale. She rurns haggard and thin. But then she bathes in rhe river and is resroredro rhe way she 'Come,' was.Thar's how her yourhful beaurygers replenished. Shesays and the fish swim ro her. She looks ar a rree,and ics fruir falls inro her palm. If she holds her sleeves up, ir srarrsro rain. If she raisesher eyebrows, the wind blows. "She was born wirh a lusrful narure, and she Iikes young men besr of all. I wouldn'r be surprised if she said somerhing sweerro you. But even ifher words were sincere,as soon as she gem tired ofyou, a rail will sprout, your ears will wiggle, your legs will grow longer, and suddenly you'll be changed into somechingelse. "I wish you could seewhar rhe witch is going to look like afrer shes had her fill of rhis fish-sircing there with her legs crossed, drinking wine. "So curb your wayward rhoughts, Good Monk, and ger away as quickly as you can. You've been lucky enough as it is. She must have felt something specialfor you, orherwiseyou wouldn't be here.You've been through a miracle and you're srill young, so ger on wirh your duties like you really mean it." The old man slappedme on the back Ihc llolyMan nflllnunt lffiya I 71

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again. Dangling the carp from his hand, he started up the mountain road. I watched him grow smaller in the distance unril he disappeared , . behind the massof a largemounrain. From the rop of rhat mounrain, a cloud rapidly blossomed inro the droughr_cleared sky. Over rhe quiet rush ofrhe waterfall, I could hear the'rolling echoes of.t"pprng thunder. Sranding there like a cast_offshell,I returned ro my senses. Filled wirh graritude for the old man, I took up my walking staff, adjusted my sedgehat, and ran down the trail. ny tn. rime I reachedrhe village, ir was already raining on rhe mo,rnrain. Ir was an impressive storm. Thanks to rhe rain, checarp rhe old man was carrying probably reachedrhe woman,s corrage alive. This, rhen, was che monk's story. He didn,r borher ro add a moral ro rhe tale. \We went our separareways rhe next morning, and I was filled wirh sadness as I warched him begin his ascenr inro rhe snow_ covered mouncains. The snow was falling lighrly. a, h. gr"Juufiy made his way up rhe mounrain road, rhe holy man of Mounr K6va seemedro be riding on rhe clouds. "I|fho,

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me?" The srill of che spring day no doubr, had made it possible for . rhe reply ro come so quickly, like an echo ro rhe wanderer,s..Excuse me, sir." How else could ir be? The old man, wearing a loosely fit_ ting headband on his wrinkled forehead, had a sleepy, "lrnosc drunken expressionas he carrnly worked rhe sofr grouii warmed by the sun. The damp and sweary plum blosso-r1."rby, a flame relff to flurrer away inro rhe crimson sunser, swayed brilliancly wirh the charrer of small birds. Their voices sounded like conversarion, bur the old man, even in his rapturous rrance, musc have rhar rhe sound of a human voice could only be calling I^:":l IOr ntm. Had he known the farmer would answer prompcly, so rhe passerby mighr have rhought rwice abour saying anyrhing. Afier ad he was just our for a walk and could havedecided the matrer by dropping his srick on rhe road: if ir fell norrh, toward Kamakura, he-*o.rld teli th. old.man; and if ir toppled south he would conrinue his walk wichour saying a word. Chancesare the old man wouldn,t hear him anywav.

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