Long, long ago in Japan, there lived a poor woodsman. One day, he was cutting bamboo in a grove when he came upon one stalk of bamboo glowing a bright, golden color. Finding this mysterious, he approached it for a closer look.
To
his amazement, inside the bamboo was an adorable, tiny little girl.
Since the old man and his wife had no children of their own, he decided
to bring the child home with him, where he and his wife raised her with
love and care. They decided to name her Kaguya Hime. From that time
forward, whenever the woodsman went back to work in the grove, gold
coins would come pouring out from the bamboo he cut. As a result, the
old couple became wealthy.
Amazingly, within just three months Kaguya Hime grew into a beautiful maiden. Her beauty soon became known throughout the country, and one young man after another came forth to ask her hand in marriage. Kaguya Hime refused all of her suitors, but there were five insistent young noblemen who refused to give up. In order to dissuade them, Kaguya Hime asked for a gift from each, and promised to marry the first one to bring her the gift she had requested. But these items were not things that could be found anywhere on this earth, and so the five young noblemen soon lost heart and gave up.
In the meantime the Emperor, who had heard of Kaguya Hime's beauty, also began courting the girl to become his wife and Empress. He too was refused. When the Emperor tried to force Kaguya Hime to come to the palace, she disappeared right before his eyes. The Emperor then realized that there was something unusual about Kaguya Hime, and so he too gave up.
Three years passed and Kaguya Hime became even more beautiful. Then, one spring, Kaguya Hime began to grow melancholy on moonlit nights. She would stare at the moon with tears streaming down her face. The old woodsman, worried, asked what was wrong. Gazing up at the sky, Kaguya Hime replied, "Actually, I come from the moon. I was sent to live on the earth by my King, but now I have been told that I must go home. I will miss everyone here on earth, and that is why I am sad."
The
old man was shocked, and not wanting to let his beloved daughter go,
consulted with the Emperor to devise a plan. On the night of the full
moon, the Emperor's guards hid Kaguya Hime deep inside the woodsman's
house and surrounded it. Suddenly, the night sky became bright.
Messengers from the moon dressed in brilliant clothes came down from the
sky and descended to the earth on a cloud. At this sight, the guards
become petrified and lost their courage. The messengers placed Kaguya
Hime onto a palanquin and dressed her in a feathered robe. Leaving the
heartbroken old couple behind, Kaguya Hime took off to the moon.
