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『因幡の白兎』（Inaba no shirousagi）
訳者：ジェイムズ夫人（Translator : Mrs. T.H. James）
絵師：小林永濯（Illustrator : Eitaku Kobayashi）
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■ あらすじ
８０人の兄弟神が因幡の八上比売（やかみひめ）のもとへ求婚に出掛けた。彼らはその途中で赤裸の兎に会い、兎に海水に浸かり風に吹かれていると治ると教えた。兎は淤岐島<おきのしま>から海を越えるため、鰐を騙し並べさせてその上を渡り、それが露見して鰐に皮を剥がされていた。兄弟たちの荷物を持ち、遅れて通りかかった８１番目の兄弟が、彼の兄たちに言われた通りにして傷を悪化させ苦しむ兎に、淡水で身を洗って蒲黄<がまのはな>の上を転がると良いと教えた。その通りにした兎は傷が治り、八上比売と国を得るのは彼だろうと告げ、その通りになった。
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注釈
『古事記』に書かれた神話で、大国主命の国造り前の話である「因幡の素兎<そうさぎ>」が民間で「白兎」に変化した話。ジェイムズ夫人に「８０人の神」と訳された「八十神<やそのかみ>」は本来「大勢の神」の意で、また「鰐」と訳された「和邇<わに>」とはサメの異名であるが、
「鰐」と解している日本人も多く、小林永濯<えいたく>による挿絵も鰐の絵となっている。フランス語版、スペイン語版もこれに倣っている。
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■ Outline of this story
Eighty kindred gods ("kami") left for proposal of marriage to the Princess of Yakami in Inaba. On the way, they encountered a poor hare, with all his fur plucked out. They told the hare that his condition could be cured if he bathed in the sea water and let the wind blow on his body. To cross over the sea from the Island of Oki, the hare tricked some sea crocodiles into forming a single line to step on. But when he was about to finish to run over their backs, the dirty trick was exposed, and one crocodile plucked his fur out. The eighty-first brother, who was carrying the baggage of the others and so came along later, discovered the hare, who was in misery because his condition had worsened even though he had done as the others had suggested. Then he advised the hare to wash himself in some fresh water and roll among the pollen of the sedges. The hare did as he said and was completely healed. He told the eighty-first brother that he would be the one to marry the Princess and rule the country, and this prediction came true.
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Note
The tale derives from Kojiki, the Record of Ancient Matters. This follows the tale about nation-building by the god Okuni-nushi. The Inaba-no-"sousagi"(hare with of no fur) in this myth was turned into a "shirousagi" (lit. white hare) in the popular version. The Japanese term for what was translated as "eighty gods" by Mrs. T.H. James actually means "many gods." Similarly, "wani," which she translated as "crocodile," is another term for "shark," but many Japanese people also take the creatures here to be crocodiles. The illustration by Eitaku Kobayashi, too, is of crocodiles. The French and the Spanish translations follow suit. |
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