Urashima Taro was a fisherman. One day he
caught a large turtle in his nets. The turtle was
a symbol of old age and thus much respected. Urashima
let the animal free. To his amazment
the turtle transformed into a lovely young woman. She explained that she was the
daughter of Ryūjin, the dragon god. She casts
a spell on the fisherman
enabling him to breath underwater then invites him to
Ryūgū-jō. Urashima was amazed by the
vast underwater palace of coral and crystal but even more so by
Ryūjin himself. The
mighty dragon god’s coils were thousands of feet long and glittered with scales of every imaginable shade of green, aquamarine, turquoise, and blue. His head was c
rowned with branching antlers and his
teeth were as long as scythes. Despite his daunting appearance
the god had a kindly look in his eyes and took a
liking to Urashima. He allowed him to
marry his beautiful daughter and live in
the splendid palace. For a while
Urashima was happy but then he began to miss his land home and his parents. He was
worried that they had no one to care for them in their advancing years. His bride accepted the situation and
allowed him to return to the land so long as he promised to come back to her. The
fisherman loved his bride and promised that he would indeed return. Before he left
she gave him a small laquered box tied up with cord and told him to never open it. If he did he would never see her again.
Once again he gave his word. In her turtle form
his wife escorted Urashima back to land. Once ashore
Urashima noticed that something was wrong. The surrounding mountains looked the same but the village was larger and looked very different. All the
villagers were strangers. Looking around
he saw no one he recognized. He
hurried to his old home and found it to be
nothing but a pile of rubble. Beside himself with worry
he asked around about the people who had live in house and what had become of them. One
very old man vaugly recalled a story of an
elderly couple whose son had been a fisherman lost at sea. The story was supposed to have occurred
400 years ago! It dawned on
Urashima that
time was not measures in the kingdom of the dragon god as it was on land. For
every day he spent in Ryūgū-jō many mortal years had passed on land. Perhapse hoping
to find an answer to his awful situation he foolishly opened the box. A wisp if smoke rose up from inside it. This
was time catching up with him.
His hair grew white then fell out. His eyes dimmed, his bones grew frail. His skin wrinkled and sagged. His body dessicated as time sucked
the life out of him.
Later the
villagers discovered the dried out husk of a man clutching a laquered box. The date of
Urishima’s fishing trip was
around AD 478 and his return at around AD 825. - write bt Mr. Richard Freeman and originally posted at
Myths.And.Legends.Website
Há uma antiga lenda japonesa datada do período
Muromashi (século XV) em que um
pescador chamado Urashima Taro salvou uma tartaruga de um grupo de rapazes que a estavam maltratando. No dia seguinte, uma
tartaruga enorme se aproximou dele e lhe disse que
a pequena tartaruga que ele salvara era na verdade a filha do Imperador do Mar, que gostaria de vê-lo e agradecer-lhe. Ela permitiu que ele subisse em suas costas e,
através de magia, fez surgir brânquias em Taro para que ele pudesse respirar debaixo d'água. Assim pôde levá-lo a
uma viagem para conhecer o fundo do mar e o palácio do rei-dragão. Lá o pescador se encontrou com o
imperador e com a sua filha, a pequena tartaruga, que agora estava transformada em uma
bonita princesa. Taro ficou no palácio como hóspede de honra e muitas festas foram feitas em sua homenagem.
Assim foram se passando os dias. Embora feliz nas águas marinhas,
Urashima começou a sentir saudades de sua terra natal e de seus parentes, e
pediu para voltar. Ao partir,
recebeu da princesa uma arca de presente, com a
promessa de que só a abrisse quando ficasse bem velho e de cabelos brancos. Ao chegar em sua cidade não a reconheceu, pois
estava tudo muito mudado. Ele
não conseguiu reconhecer nenhuma das pessoas da vila, os lugares já não eram mais os mesmos. Começou a perguntar
se alguém conhecia um pescador chamado Urashima Taro. Algumas pessoas disseram que
tinham ouvido falar de alguém com esse nome, que havia desaparecido no mar muitos anos atrás.
Taro acabou descobrindo que haviam se passado trezentos anos desde o dia em que havia decidido ir ao fundo do mar.
Tomado de grande tristeza, foi para a beira do mar
na esperança de reencontrar a tartaruga, mas desesperou-se porque esta demorava e
acabou abrindo a caixa que a princesa lhe havia oferecido. De dentro dela saiu uma nuvem de fumaça branca, que o envolveu. De repente,
seu corpo tornou-se velho e enrugado, nasceu-lhe uma longa barba branca e suas costas curvaram-se com o peso de tantos anos. E do mar veio a
voz doce e triste da princesa: "Eu lhe disse para não abrir a caixa. Nela estavam todos os seus anos". A caixa continha a
"eterna juventude" de Urashima Taro e o pescador,
sem reconhecer seu valor, deixou-a ir-se para sempre. - historia originalmente postada no site
Trincas.E.Fissuras
Link: Old.Legends.From.Japan.Urashima.Taro.Tale.Paper.Toy.by.Bocci
More Paper Models of Myths, Legends and Hauntings from Japan related posts:
Hauntings From Japan Complete Paper Toy Series - by Bocci
Hauntings From Japan - Kakatsu Ghost Paper Toy - by Vayashi
Hauntings From Japan - Yakubyogami Paper Toy - by Jeron
Legends from Japan - Samurai Shinkenger With Kusanagi Sword - by Vayashi
