因幡の白うさぎ
Long, long ago there lived a hare in an island, who one day wanted to go to the
opposite cape, but she couldn't swim.
She thought out an idea and carried it
out. She said to a shark,
"Mr.Shark, which family do you think are bigger,
your family and my family?"
"Of course, ours are bigger." he answered.
"So
I'll count you. Please gather all of your family together and make them line on
the sea from this island to the opposite cape. I'll run on them and count the
number. We'll make out which family are bigger?"
A few days later all sharks
lined on the sea and the hare, pretending to count the number, hopped on the
back of theirs. When she jumped down on the cape, she said to them,
"How
foolish you are to be deceived by me! I only wanted to came here. Thank you very
much."
On knowing they were deceived, they caught and skinned her.
When she was crying, not knowing what to do, the shark
said to her,
"If you enter the sea, you'll be cured."
When she did
as she was told, she had a terrible pain.
"How foolish you are to be deceived
by me! I only deceived you." said the shark.
When she was crying, not knowing
what to do, a young man passed by her,
"If you wash yourself in the river and
powder the pollen of cattails' on you, you'll be cured."
When she did as she
was told, she got well until she was a white hare again.
原文 稲羽の素兎(古事記)
因幡の白うさぎ(英訳)