The Badger and the Magic Fan

Long ago, in Japan, there lived demons with long noses. They were called tengu. The tengu had magical fans: if you slapped someone's nose with one side, the nose would grow; if you slapped it with the other side, the nose would shrink back to its original size.

One day, three little tengu were playing in the forest with such a magical fan. They kept slapping each other's noses, first with one side, then with the other.

A badger saw the magical fan and thought, "If only I had such a thing! I wouldn't waste time on silly games! I'd surely find a good use for this fan!" In Japan, even children know that badgers are masters of tricks and can transform into anything. So the badger decided to trick the tengu. He turned himself into a little girl, placed four bean-filled buns on a plate, and went to the tengu.

"Hello, cute little tengu," said the badger in the girl's voice. "I brought you some bean-filled buns. Try them, they're very, very delicious."

The little tengu loved bean-filled buns dearly. They each ate one and noticed that there was still one bun left on the plate! Who would get it? They argued and argued but couldn't decide. Then the girl said:

"I know what to do. Close your eyes. Whoever keeps their eyes closed the longest will get the last bun."

The little tengu agreed, squeezed their eyes shut, and froze in place—waiting. Meanwhile, the badger grabbed the fan and ran off. The little tengu remained standing there with their eyes closed.

"Ha-ha-ha!" laughed the badger. "I tricked those silly tengu so easily!"

The badger thought and thought about where to go with the amazing fan and where to test its magical power, and finally decided to head to the city.

When he arrived, he saw a beautiful girl near a temple, surrounded by servants. "She must be a rich man's daughter," thought the badger. He sneaked up to the girl and gently slapped her nose with the fan. Instantly, the beauty's nose grew long—very, very long. The girl was terrified, she screamed, and the servants scattered in all directions! Chaos broke out! Meanwhile, the badger sat on a little stone, smirking.

The rich man summoned doctors, but none of them knew how to cure such an ailment. They tried every remedy, but nothing worked. Then the news spread across the city: the rich man would give his daughter in marriage to whoever could heal her! And he wouldn't spare half of his wealth for the savior!

Many suitors came forward, hoping to marry the beauty and gain half the riches. But none of them could heal the poor girl.

Then the badger came to the rich man and said:

"Take me to your daughter. I'll cure her in no time!"

The rich man was overjoyed and led the badger to his daughter. The badger lightly slapped the girl's nose with the magical fan, and her nose shrank before their eyes.

The father cried with joy and ordered the servants to prepare for the wedding. Everyone was busy with preparations, but the badger spent his days lazing around—eating, drinking, and basking in the sun. "What should I do now?" he kept thinking.

He took out the magical fan, slapped his own nose—and his nose began to grow upward. He watched and watched, and then fell asleep. But his nose kept growing! It pierced one cloud, then another, then a third. The badger's nose grew all the way to the sky.

Meanwhile, up in the sky, celestial builders were constructing a bridge. They saw something like a pole stretching up from the ground.

"Here's a pole for the railing!" they exclaimed and pulled the badger's nose with all their might.

The badger woke up—he couldn't understand what was happening. He looked around and was terrified. The ground was far below, and fluffy clouds floated above his head. He screamed and screamed for help, but no one answered.

What happened to that badger is unknown. No one has seen him since.

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The Badger and the Magic Fan

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