is a Japanese ''
otogi-zōshi
are a group of about 350 Japanese prose narratives written primarily in the Muromachi period (1392–1573). These illustrated short stories, which remain unattributed, together form one of the representative literary genres of the Japanese med ...
'' in one volume.
Date, genre and title
''Urashima Tarō'' was composed during the
Muromachi period
The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by t ...
. It is a work of the ''
otogi-zōshi
are a group of about 350 Japanese prose narratives written primarily in the Muromachi period (1392–1573). These illustrated short stories, which remain unattributed, together form one of the representative literary genres of the Japanese med ...
'' genre. Most of the surviving manuscripts of the work give its title as simply ''Urashima'', written in
hiragana
is a Japanese syllabary, part of the Japanese writing system, along with ''katakana'' as well as ''kanji''.
It is a phonetic lettering system. The word ''hiragana'' literally means "flowing" or "simple" kana ("simple" originally as contrast ...
.
Plot
Urashima Tarō
is the protagonist of a Japanese fairy tale (''otogi banashi''), who in a typical modern version is a fisherman rewarded for rescuing a turtle, and carried on its back to the Dragon Palace (Ryūgū-jō) beneath the sea. There he is entertained ...
of
Tango Province
was a province of Japan in the area of northern Kyoto Prefecture. Tango bordered on Tanba to the south, Tajima to the west, and Wakasa to the east. Its abbreviated form name was . It was also referred to as or . In terms of the Gokishichi ...
spares the life of a
turtle
Turtles are an order of reptiles known as Testudines, characterized by a special shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Cryptodira (hidden necked t ...
he has caught and releases it. The next day a beautiful woman arrives on a small boat, and requests Tarō escort her back to her country. He takes her to her home in the
Dragon Palace, and becomes her husband. Three years later, he becomes homesick and requests her leave to go visit his home. His wife protests, but allows him to return home for time, admitting that she is the turtle he saved and entrusting him with a box as a keepsake, which she warns him never to open. On Tarō's return to his home, he learns to his shock that 700 years have passed. Without thinking, he opens the box he had received from his wife, and from it emerges purple cloud and his form changes. He becomes a
crane and at
Hōrai meets again with the turtle. After this, he appears as the god .
Textual tradition
The work is generally in one ''kan'' (scroll or book). It survives in numerous manuscripts, including:
* a fragmentary picture scroll in the holdings of the
Japanese Folk Crafts Museum
The is a museum in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo, Japan, dedicated to the hand-crafted art of ordinary people ('' mingei'').Access is from Komaba-Tōdaimae Station of Keio Inokashira Line.
The museum was established in 1936 by Yanagi Sōetsu, the foun ...
, dating to the middle of the Muromachi period and including only the latter portion of the work;
* a picture scroll from the late Muromachi period, also in the holdings of the Japanese Folk Crafts Museum;
* a manuscript in the holdings of the
Dai-Tōkyū Kinen Bunko (大東急記念文庫);
* the ''Takayasu-kyūzō-bon'' (高安旧蔵本), which is of a different textual line to the above three copies;
* the ''Tokushi-kyūzō-bon'' (禿氏旧蔵本), which is close to the later printed text (see below);
* a manuscript in the holdings of the , which is of the same line as the printed text.
It was also printed as part of the .
There is also a picture scroll containing no text, the .
Notes
References
Works cited
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Urashima Tarou
Otogi-zōshi
Muromachi-period works