Mimosa

I don’t know in what land, nor in what time, this story took place. Does it even matter? Perhaps it was far away—where the sky meets the earth. Or maybe it was close—just a stone’s throw away. Once upon a time, there lived a young man. Handsome and well-built. Every day, he would go to the river to catch fish. And every time, he would meet an old man there. The old man sat on the riverbank, murmuring softly:

“Catch, catch, catch! Catch, catch, catch! Little fish, swim away, big fish, come to me!”

The young man began to secretly watch and observe him. The bigger fish all swam toward the old man. One day, the young man couldn’t hold back and said:

“Kind grandfather! Teach me how to catch fish like you do!”

The old man raised his head and replied:

“I won’t teach you how to catch fish. I see you’re an honest lad. Go along the riverbank instead—luck awaits you there.”

Having said this, the old man shook his fishing line, and ripples spread across the water. Then he vanished.

The young man was amazed and thought, “This old man must be an immortal *shenxian*. I’ll listen to him and walk along the riverbank. Maybe luck really does await me there.” And so, the young man set off along the riverbank. He walked from noon until evening. The sun had already set, the stars lit up the sky, and the moon shone brightly. Suddenly, the young man saw a large pond appear before him, overgrown with lotuses. And the moon seemed to grow brighter. Or perhaps it wasn’t the moon, but the lotuses sparkling. The young man gazed in admiration, when suddenly he noticed—the lotus leaves stirred gently, and the flowers swayed. The young man took a step, but it seemed he stepped on a patch of green moss, slipped, and fell. When he got back on his feet and looked around, he didn’t recognize the place. The stars had descended from the sky to the earth, scattering their lights across emerald bushes. A small house stood in the grove, its door slightly ajar. Through the crack, he could see a maiden weaving silk by the light of a lamp. She wore a long skirt that shimmered like a dark green lotus leaf in the lamplight. In her hair, black as a raven’s wing, was a fresh lotus bud. The young man approached the house and asked:

“Where have I come?”

The maiden stopped weaving, raised her head, and said:

“I won’t deceive you. You’ve wandered into the Lotus Village, and I am the Lotus Maiden. If you’re tired from your journey, come inside and rest.”

The maiden was indeed beautiful, like a lotus under the moonlight. The young man was delighted and entered the house. The maiden spoke a word or two, then lowered her head and resumed weaving. She worked so quickly that it was impossible to see how she passed the shuttle under the warp. Only her silver thimble gleamed like a white trail. The maiden remained silent, and when the young man prepared to leave, she didn’t stop him, silently seeing him to the door. The young man took one step, then another, and when he looked around, everything had disappeared—only the large pond shimmered. The young man stood there, thinking, “Could it be that this lotus flower transformed into a fairy? If only I could marry such an immortal maiden.”

The young man returned home, but he couldn’t bring himself to do anything. His heart wasn’t in his work. Before nightfall, he headed back to the lotus pond. The sun seemed reluctant to hide behind the mountains, scattering golden scales across the water and bathing the lotuses in crimson. The young man waited with great difficulty for darkness to fall, and when it did, he saw the Lotus Maiden appear before him. She was even gentler than the day before. The maiden told the young man to take off his torn jacket and began to mend it—stitch by stitch, stitch by stitch. When she finished, she handed it back to him. The young man looked at her and said:

“I’m all alone in this world!”

The Lotus Maiden seemed not to hear, giving no reply, and saw him to the door.

The young man returned home well past midnight. He couldn’t find peace—if he sat down, he couldn’t stay seated; if he stood up, he felt restless again. And so, he ran back to the river. A white mist hung over the water, and his shoes grew damp from the dew. But the young man ran as fast as he could. He reached the lotus pond just as the birds began to sing in the willows. The sun rose, dispelling the mist. The water in the pond seemed even clearer to the young man, the lotus leaves even purer, and dewdrops rolled like pearls across the delicate petals. The fragrance of lotuses filled the air. The young man walked along the pond and noticed a flower rising in the center—the largest and most beautiful of all. He began to wonder, “Could this flower be the one that transforms into the Lotus Maiden?” No sooner had he thought this than the flower stirred, and the Lotus Maiden appeared on the water. She walked on the waves, her long skirt fluttering in the wind. Overjoyed, the young man forgot she was a fairy and wanted to hold her back, to keep her from disappearing beneath the water. But just as he reached out, the maiden was already on the shore. She looked both joyful and sorrowful.

The maiden said:

“My father doesn’t want me to associate with a mere mortal. We’ll never see each other again.”

It was as if thunder had struck the young man. He stood frozen, unable to move, and then began to weep bitterly. Seeing his grief, the maiden shook her head and said:

“If you know no fear and have, as they say, ‘no three hearts and two minds,’ let’s run away together to the edge of the sky, to a sea island.”

The young man’s tears hadn’t even dried before he smiled:

“With you, I’ll find joy anywhere—be it in the high mountains or the wild forests.”
The girl plucked a lotus bud from her hair, blew on it, and the flower blossomed: on each petal, a pearl rolled, and around the green pistil, star-like stamens shimmered like gold! The girl lifted the flower with one hand, as if opening an umbrella, took the young man's hand with the other, and they soared into the sky. White clouds caressed their backs, eagles flapped their wings beneath their feet. They flew so high and so fast that it was impossible to describe. They could only be compared to a wondrous falling star. It seemed like no time had passed, yet they had already descended to the ground, right into a mountain gorge. The young man looked down—everything was overgrown with grass, and stones were scattered across it. He looked around—towering mountains loomed over one another. The young man grew sad, but the Lotus Maiden rejoiced:

"I will weave, and you will hunt, and so we will have food and clothing."

"But where will we live?" asked the young man.

"That's not your concern. I'll trade my silk skirt for a linen one; I can break pine branches and plant mulberry trees just as well as you."

And so the girl did: she took off her long green skirt, threw it to the ground, and the skirt flew, twirled, and gently descended. The girl led the young man to where the skirt had landed. The young man looked—instead of the skirt, there was a large pond, shining like an emerald. In the middle of the pond stood a house, with a bridge leading to it. The young man and the girl crossed the bridge, entered the house—it was spacious and filled with everything: a cauldron, cups, ladles, basins, mats, blankets, various utensils, and even a loom stood against the wall.

In the morning, the young man prepared to go hunting. The Lotus Maiden ran out the gate, pulled a lotus bud from her hair, handed it to the young man, and said:

"Take this flower; it will protect you from all kinds of reptiles, from wolves and tigers, from bloodthirsty leopards. They will see it and flee. Just be careful with it, don't give it to anyone."

The young man took the flower and set off on his journey. He climbed the eastern mountains, where hares indeed had no fear of humans, but scattered, and pheasants did not fly away. He caught a great number of pheasants and hares and prepared to return. As he walked, he noticed a green mulberry forest on the mountain slope. He approached and saw that it was the Lotus Maiden breaking mulberry branches and planting them among the stones. No sooner had she planted a branch than it grew into a huge mulberry tree. She broke pine branches, not resting, planting them among the rocks. Her hands were bloodied, her face sunburnt.

The young man felt sorry for the girl and called out to her:

"Let's go home, rest a little."

But the girl just laughed:

"We will build a home here, start a household. I want this stream to become a large lake and for mulberry forests to grow on the mountains."

The young man hunted one day, then another, and on the third day, he climbed the western mountains. He saw wild horses grazing in herds, and whole flocks of wild goats running straight toward him. The young man caught a goat, jumped on a horse, and rode home. At home, green silk lay on the bed. The Lotus Maiden took a piece of silk, spread it on the grass, and the silk immediately turned into green water.

Evening fell, and the Lotus Maiden kept weaving her silk, not feeling the weariness in her hands or feet. The young man pitied her and said:

"Night is coming. Rest a little."

But the girl just laughed:

"We will build a home here, start a household. I want this stream to become a large lake and for mulberry forests to grow on the mountains."

Days passed, then months. It was unclear how much time had gone by. Probably a lot, because the young man noticed that the Lotus Maiden was no longer as beautiful as before. Her black hair no longer shone as brightly, her rosy face no longer glowed. The young man asked her:

"Have you aged early from work and worries?"

The Lotus Maiden said nothing, only shook her head.

One day, the young man went hunting. He descended one mountain, climbed another, exited one gorge, and entered another. He reached a valley on the other side of the mountain. He looked up, looked around—there were no flowers, no grass, only a black cave. The young man thought and thought, looked and looked, then climbed the mountain. He took the lotus his wife had once given him and boldly entered the cave. He walked, and the cave grew darker, gloomier, and it seemed to smell of blood. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a tiger leaped out, its eyes like two lanterns, its mouth wide open, ready to pounce on the young man. The young man recoiled in fear, showed the precious flower to the tiger, and a red beam shot out from the flower, thin and long, like lightning. The tiger turned and ran away.
The young man continued on his way, walking and walking, when suddenly a pack of wolves appeared before him. Their long tails dragged along the ground, their ears stood upright. The wolves surrounded the young man. He recoiled in fear and showed them the enchanted flower. A lightning-like beam burst forth from the flower. The wolves lowered their heads, turned around, and fled. The young man continued on his way, walking and walking, when suddenly he noticed that it had grown brighter ahead. He walked a little further and found himself before tall gates. He pushed the gates open and saw bright lanterns burning behind them, candles blazing with fire. A *kan* stood there, and on the *kan* sat a beauty. Her face was white, her lips scarlet, her voice gentle, her appearance welcoming. The beauty spoke to the young man, instantly jumped off the *kan*, and rushed to meet him. At that moment, the young man remembered the Lotus Maiden. How could she compare to this beauty? He entered the courtyard, sat on the *kan*, closer to the beauty. The beauty chirped, laughed with a ringing voice, filled a golden goblet with wine, and offered snacks on silver plates. The young man tasted the snacks from the silver plates, drank wine from the golden goblet, and the beauty fluttered around him. And so, the young man took her as his wife. In pleasure and amusement, he didn’t notice how three days and three nights passed. He completely forgot about the kindness of the Lotus Maiden. He was happy, but he didn’t think about how heavy the Lotus Fairy’s heart was at that moment. And then the fourth day came.

"I want to visit my family," said the beauty, "but I’m afraid of venomous snakes, fierce tigers, and bloodthirsty leopards."

The young man didn’t hesitate. Why should he? As the saying goes, three times seven is twenty-one. He gave the beauty the enchanted flower. Alas! As soon as the beauty left the house, the gates slammed shut behind her with a crash, and everything turned pitch dark. The young man reached out his hand—it met a stone. He reached out the other—again, a stone. And beneath his feet, there was stone as well. Outside the door, tigers roared and wolves howled. Suddenly, the stone beneath his feet shifted, and the stones above his head were about to collapse. The young man began to shout—no one answered. He called for help—no one responded. Fear gripped him. He sat by the stone, grieving.

Meanwhile, the Lotus Maiden was sitting at home, diligently weaving silk. Then she raised her head and looked—it was already noon, but her husband was still not there. Her heart ached. She cast a divination with her fingers and immediately understood everything: an hour passes on earth, but in the cave, day turns to night. This meant that for three whole days, the young man had been indulging with a shapeshifting woman. The maiden was furious and hurt, unsure of what to do: to save him or not. She sighed softly, shed two tears, and decided, "Even if he’s not good, even if he’s bad, I’ll still save his life." With the speed of the wind, she moved from mountain to mountain, from gorge to gorge. Finally, she arrived at the northern slope of the very mountain where the young man was imprisoned. The Lotus Maiden wanted to enter the cave, but she saw that the entrance was blocked by huge stones. Without hesitation, she climbed to the very top of the mountain, took off a silver thimble from her finger, and threw it. The thimble struck the stones, and they quietly parted: no spark, no crash; no narrow crack, no wide gap. Instead, the silver thimble drilled a well, perfectly round and incredibly deep—so deep that the bottom couldn’t be seen. It pierced straight through the enormous mountain.

Meanwhile, the young man sat in the cave, unable to escape, surrounded by darkness. He clenched his fingers—he couldn’t see his fist. He unclenched them—he couldn’t see his palm. Fear gripped him, and despair gnawed at him. "How can I get out of here?" he thought. And just as he thought that, light filled the cave. Before he could blink, the Lotus Maiden was there. She took his hand and led him away. Before he could straighten his back, he found himself at the top of the mountain.

The maiden bent down, picked up the silver thimble, and put it back on her finger. In that same moment, the well disappeared, as if it had never existed.

The young man felt ashamed and anxious. The fairy wasn’t angry with him, but tears streamed from her eyes as she said to him:

"I never thought, I never imagined, that you would hurt me like this! I didn’t hide from you that I have two treasures: this thimble—a key that opens mountains—and the lotus. When I hold the lotus in my hands, I can fly across the blue sky; when I tuck it in my hair, I remain forever young."

As soon as the Lotus Maiden said this, a fierce whirlwind swept over the cave. The shapeshifting woman had summoned it. The maiden grabbed the young man’s hand, and they ran away from that place. Now the enchanted flower was in the hands of the evil sorceress, and the Lotus Maiden no longer had the strength to defeat her. So, the Lotus Maiden decided to lure the sorceress into her gorge. As the saying goes, "a slow boat can overtake a fast horse." The maiden raced—she floated along the rapids, while the young man barely felt the ground beneath him. Meanwhile, the sorceress began to catch up. She didn’t dare get too close, fearing the Lotus Maiden, but she called out to the young man:

"Come back!"

"Don’t look back," the Lotus Maiden warned, "or you’ll perish!"

But the sorceress wouldn’t stop:

"Remember, young man, how good it was for us in the cave! How we indulged for three days! Remember my beauty!"

The young man listened and listened, his head spinning. He couldn’t bear it and turned around. The sorceress waved her handkerchief, and the young man’s legs carried him toward her. The sorceress summoned a snake, mounted it with the young man, and they flew back to the cave with the wind.

The Lotus Maiden sighed:

"Didn’t I want to save you? Didn’t I try? But it was all in vain!"

A short time later, the Lotus Maiden approached the sorceress’s cave. She saw clothes scattered and bones lying near the cave. She picked up the young man’s clothes, gathered his bones, and buried them near her hut.

The Lotus Maiden was very hardworking. During the day, she fed silkworms and planted mulberry trees. At night, she wove silk by lamplight. A year passed, then another, then a third. From the pine branches she had stuck into the mountains, tall pine trees grew; from the mulberry branches, dark green mulberry trees rose—the mountains around her turned green. The green silk she wove turned into a sparkling crystal lake. In the dark green grove, colorful butterflies fluttered, and on the soft green lake, lotuses bloomed. One day, the Lotus Maiden noticed a blade of grass growing on the grave near her hut. She touched it, and the blade of grass, as if ashamed, curled its leaves and drooped.

A few days later, the old man whom the young man had once met came to the lake to fish. The Lotus Maiden told him everything that had happened to her without holding back. The old man went somewhere and soon brought the maiden the enchanted lotus, which he had taken from the sorceress. The maiden tucked the lotus into her black hair, and her hair shone again, her face glowing with its former beauty. The old man collected the seeds of that green grass and went to distant mountains. The following spring, green blades of grass grew everywhere: in the mountain groves, on the coastal hills by the sea, and even in the small gardens near houses. People called these blades of grass "shy grass," or mimosa. To this day, if you touch the mimosa, it curls its leaves and droops. To this day, there are people in the world like that young man. They see something new and immediately forget the old. And they feel no shame!

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Mimosa

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