The Stone of the Five Colours and the Empress Jokwa is one of Japanese many folktales.

Synopsis

Empress Jokwa suceeds her brother Emperor Fuki, and stories about her said she once fixed the broken sky and the pillars which hold up the sky after one of her brothers subjects rebelled.

He was called Kotai and when Jokwa ascended the throne he wanted it for himself. First he used the Water Devil and flooded the land and in retalitation the Empress declared war on him.

She amassed a huge army led by her two generals Hako and Eiko and went to where the rebel lived.

Kotai launches himself at the two generals and there is a fierce battle between them, Kotai eventually fleeing trying to shoot them with an arrow. The first failed and he had no time to draw another and so he summoned a flood which washed them and all the Empress’ armies away.

The two generals found themselves saved by a man with white hair who stood atop an island in the flood waters. Kotai also reaches the island and attacks the man with white hair in anger for helping the generals. This man does not turn away from the fight until the last minute when he transforms into a crane and flies away.

That night the generals tell the Emprress they need help and so call on Shikuyu, the Fire King to help; who dwelt in the South Pole.

He agrees to help and also reveals it was him who saved them both from the flood. Shikuyu, knowing the secret of Kotai’s power tells the army to burn a certain shrub and to put its ashes into a bag.

He summons a flood again but the ashes serve to turn the waters into mud saving the army from the waters.

Kotai then fights against the generals and later Shukuyu until his is injured in the shoulder and so flees again. He tries to summon the Water Devil to help but Shukuyu knew the counter spell. And so Kotai, in great pain, and losing the fight,  bashes his head against rocks on mount Shu dying instantly.

Such was the force of his head against the rock the mountain erupted causing one corner of the sky to fall until it touched the earth.

Empress Jokwa ventures to where heaven and earth touched and seeing both damaged ordered stones of blue, yellow, red, white an black to be brought which she then boiled into a paste which she could use to mend the sky.

Riding a cloud she fly to the part of the sky whihc is broken and applied the paste. Then proceeding to a broken pillar she fixes it with the legs of a large tortoise.

Though the Empress found after this the are remained dark and the sun and moon did not come out. Asking for advise she was told that the sun and moon did not yet know the sky had been fixed and so some wise men said they would go let them know.

She gave the wise men chariots which could fly through the sky and after an audience with he sun and moon they returned to the sky and day and night began once more.¹

Footnotes

1. Ozaki, Y.T. (2015) “Japanese Fairy Tales” USA: Cavalier Classics.

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Here follows a list of Japanese Folktales (昔話) currently on our website. There will be more over time, so please bear with us for the time being.

Festivals

• Ōtoshi no Kyaku. The New Years Eve Visitor. A collection of tales around mysterious New Years visitors who will give great gifts.

Grateful Creature Motif

• The Bewitched Tea-Kettle (分福茶釜 or 文福茶釜) A grateful Tanuki performs for the man who saved him, making him very wealthy.
• My Lord Bag of Rice (俵藤太) The story or Fujiwara Hidesato and the killing of the Giant Centipede Seta at the behest of The Dragon King.
• The Tongue Cut Sparrow (舌切り雀) The story of an old man and his cruel wife who cuts the tongue out of a Sparrow as she grows jealous of how her husband feels about the bird.
• Urashima Taro the Fisher Lad (浦島 太郎) The story of Urashima Tarō who saves a turtle and marries the Daughter of the The Dragon King.

Hero/Heroine Motif

• The Clever Boar and Monkey. An old monkey who was going to be killed saves his life by saving a kidnapped baby.
• Momotarō. Folktale about a man with the same name, as well as a Dog, Monkey and Pheasant and their journey to the island of Onigashima to stop the Oni.
• Princess Glory. A lonely old couple find a baby in a Bamboo Grove and raise her. She later is revealed as The Immortal Lady of Mount Fuji.

Longlife

• Longevity. Story of an old man who wished to live forever.

Mourning

• The Mirror of Matsuyama. A girl missing her mum, thinks she can find her by looking in a mirror.

Punishment Motif

• Kachi-Kachi Yama (かちかち山) Also known as The Farmer and the Badger. The story of a Rabbit seeking revenge on a Badger for killing an old woman.
• The Monkey and the Crab. The son of a crab who was killed by his apparent friend the Monkey gets revenge on his fathers murderer.

Sacrifice Motif

• Shippeitaro – Story of the Dog Shippeitaro and the Warrior who save a maiden from being sacrificed.

Unfinished Business Motif

• Banchō Sarayashiki – Okiku is killed after breaking one of ten heirloom plates, and thrown down a well. Her ghost returns each night trying to count and find the tenth plate she broke.

Yōkai Motif

• Hagoromo (羽衣) Story of a celestial nymph who is forced to marry a fisherman.
• How an Old Man Lost is Wen – Story of a man who dances for some Oni and tricks them into taking the wen growing on his face.
• Rashōmon no oni. Story of an Oni  who is fought by Watanabe no Tsuna.
• The Melon Princess (瓜子姫) Story of a childless couple, who find a melon floating down river. Upon cutting it open a baby girl is found inside.
• The Nightingale’s Coin. A man is gifted with a ‘never ending’ coin after looking after a woman house for one year, without open a ‘forbidden door.’ Later, another man comes hoping for the same reward, but opens this forbidden door.
• The Oni of Adachigahara. A monk seeks shelter in an old womans home only to find out she is an Oni.
• Shōjōji no Tanuki Bayashi. The story of a group of Tanuki and their wild drum parties.

Tales of China

• The Elixir of Life. Story of a Chinese Emperor who believes the Elixir of Life is on Mount Fuji.
• The Shinansha. The story of Emperor Kotei killing the rebel Shiyu after inventing The Shinansha (Artefact).
• The Stone of the Five Colours and the Empress Jokwa. Empress Jokwa saves her country.

	Check out the Japan Archives, our Japanese History Podcast. Instagram (Japan): @japan_archives
	Check out our Gaming Channel on Youtube. Instagram (Minecraft): @mycenria
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The post Folktales appeared first on . A History . . of Japan . 日本歴史.