Once upon a time, there was a candy shop at Koujiya machi in Nagasaki. With night coming on, the owner was closing his shop. Knock, knock, knock. Someone said, "Excuse me.... Good evening ...." He heard a woman's voice. He wondered, "Who should come at this time?" The owner stood up and opened the door carefully. There was a weird woman standing at the door. She looked ghostly pale. "What' the matter?" |  | |||||||
he said bluntly. He didn't want to be bothered and felt a little bit scared."Can I have a candy for 1 mon?" She spoke in a weak voice with a Kyoto accent. "Well.." The owner put the candy into a paper bag and handed it to the woman, when he happened to touch her hands, which were as cold as ice. Cold shivers ran up and down his spine. "How creepy! Who is she?" He shut the door and rushed to his bed. The next day she came to the shop to buy a candy, and the same thing was repeated over the following days. The owner felt creepy and told the youth in his neighborhood about this mysterious woman. The seventh night, they waited for her. They decided to tail her secretly to find out who she was. As the night came, she appeared but she looked so sad. "I'm sorry to say that .... I've spent all the money I had. Would you please give me a candy, sir?" she said in a faint voice. The owner felt pity for her and gave her some candies. The woman was so glad and thanked him a lot. She disappeared in the darkness toward the direction of Teramachi. | ||||||||
As they had planed, they followed the woman secretly. She passed the quiet street of Teramachi and turned the corner to Irabayashi. "Where on earth is she going?" they wondered. She entered the gate of Kougenji(temple) and went up the stone steps. She turned to the left and went to the backyard of the temple, and disappeared into the new grave. All the men felt cold shiver and guilty to have found this and ran to their homes. |  | ||||
| They couldn't sleep all the night. Next morning, they visited the priest of the Kougenji(temple). Hearing the story, the priest prayed and said, "I heard many mysterious things exist in this world, but I didn't expect them in this Kougenji." After a while he called a gravedigger and said, " Follow me with a hoe."The owner of the candy shop guided them and all the men followed him. | |||||
 | The grave didn't seem to be violated. A new mount of soil and ash of incense stick and burned candle for the dead were left there. After the sutra by the priest, and everyone reciting the sutra, the gravediggers began to dig the grave. What a mystery! A new born baby was there. He was cheerful on his mother's breast. They were all surprised but they took up the baby and wrapped it with a jacket. | ||||
The priest examined the owner of the grave. He was Fujiwara Kiyonaga, a famous
carpenter of shrines or temples. The priest sent a man to Kiyonaga and told him what
happened at Kougenji (temple). Kiyonaga, who turned out to be a baby's father, decided to
take in him. Everyone was glad to hear that and said, "Everything went well, the woman
would be glad. We can sleep from now."
carpenter of shrines or temples. The priest sent a man to Kiyonaga and told him what
happened at Kougenji (temple). Kiyonaga, who turned out to be a baby's father, decided to
take in him. Everyone was glad to hear that and said, "Everything went well, the woman
would be glad. We can sleep from now."
Well, there was a story of Kiyonaga and his baby.
When Kiyonaga was learning to become a sculptor, he fell in love with a woman in the same
inn. But he had an order from his parents in Nagasaki to come back home. He promised
the woman to come back to her and left Kyoto.
inn. But he had an order from his parents in Nagasaki to come back home. He promised
the woman to come back to her and left Kyoto.
As he came home, a beautiful fiancee was waiting for him. Kiyonaga was too timid to tell his
parents about the woman in Kyoto, so he got married to this beautiful fiancee.
parents about the woman in Kyoto, so he got married to this beautiful fiancee.
In Kyoto, the woman couldn't wait for Kiyonaga and decided to visit him in Nagasaki. After
the long and hard journey, she managed to come to Nagasaki to find that her lover had
married another woman. She was terribly shocked.
the long and hard journey, she managed to come to Nagasaki to find that her lover had
married another woman. She was terribly shocked.
What a shame! What a sorrow! She got sick in bed from the tiredness of the trip. In the
end, she died from a broken heart, when she was pregnant.
end, she died from a broken heart, when she was pregnant.
Kiyonaga didn't know that she was pregnant at all. He heard of her death and buried her in
the backyard of Kougenji (temple). Surprisingly, the baby was born in the grave and alive.
The mother's soul could not go to the heaven with her baby left. She spent her six mon,
which was put in the coffin, to buy some candy every night for her baby instead of milk. We
couldn't help being moved by the affection of the mother.
the backyard of Kougenji (temple). Surprisingly, the baby was born in the grave and alive.
The mother's soul could not go to the heaven with her baby left. She spent her six mon,
which was put in the coffin, to buy some candy every night for her baby instead of milk. We
couldn't help being moved by the affection of the mother.
Several days later, when the owner of the candy shop was about to sleep, he heard the sound. Knock, knock knock... That mother ghost appeared at the candy shop. "Excuse me...." The owner was terribly surprised to hear her voice. His heart almost stopped beating. He opened the door carefully and found that woman was standing there with a happy and gentle look. |  | ||||
"Thanks to you, my baby was taken in by his father. What can I do for you? Please tell me what your problem is." "Well..... We have difficulty in getting water. Could you help us?" "Oh, I see. So tomorrow, early in the morning, please dig the place where my comb was. You will find that the clear water will well up. So good bye, thanks a lot." She bowed to say thanks and vanished. The owner crumbled under himself with fear and wonder. | |||||
 | Though he couldn't get to sleep that night, the next day he got up early in the morning and walked around to find her comb. Yes, he found it. The comb was found by the ditch of the slope which leads from Koujiya machi to Teramachi. He picked up the comb and put it into his pocket. Then he began to dig there. He dug and dug, and soon heard the sound of water. Clear water began to well up. He knelt and drank the water with his hands. | ||||
Clear water flowed through his fingers. He jumped with joy. "Wow, water sprung out!"The neighborhood gathered around him wondering what was happening. The shop owner told the story with excitement. People in the town thanked the woman for giving them water. | |||||
After a while, they built a nice well. The well always supplied the people with enough water even in a drought. It enriched the people's lives. They called this well "the well of the ghost in Koujiya machi". Today this well has been buried and we can see the trace of it by the 6th street of Koujiya machi. And the story about the mother ghost lives on. |  | ||||
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