The Witch of Mount Tōfukuyama

In ancient times, at the foot of Mount Tōfukuyama, there stood a small village. The locals used to say that a yamamba—a fearsome, wicked mountain witch—lived at the summit. The peasants were terribly afraid to climb the mountain. One day, a large moon rose over Mount Tōfukuyama. The villagers gathered together and set out to admire the moon. As they approached the mountain, a strong wind swept through the forest, tearing leaves from the trees. Then, a terrifying voice boomed from the summit:

"Listen to me, people!" it thundered. "It is I, the mistress of Mount Tōfukuyama! A misfortune has befallen me: I gave birth to a child yesterday, but I have nothing to feed him. I want you to bring me a large amount of rice cakes—mochi—to the mountain, or my little son will die. If you disobey, I will come down from the mountain and devour you all!"

The peasants were terrified and hurried home to discuss what to do. "We cannot disobey the yamamba," they thought. "And we feel sorry for her child, even if he is a witch's baby—after all, he is still a child."

They gathered rice from their homes and prepared a mountain of rice cakes. Then they began to decide who would take them to the yamamba.

"Let Kamayasu and Gonroku go!" said the village elder. "They are the bravest in our village."

But the brave men hesitated—they didn’t want to go to the witch, fearing she might eat them.

"How can we go to the yamamba," they asked, "if we don’t know the way?"

Then an old woman stepped forward and said:

"I know how to find the yamamba in the forest. But I am old and don’t have the strength to carry the rice cakes. Let the brave ones go with me, and I will show them the way."

And so they did. Kamayasu and Gonroku went into the forest with the old woman. They walked and walked until they reached the very summit. Just as they sat down to rest, the witch's voice rang out above them:

"I see you’re in no hurry to visit me! Did you bring the mochi?"

The brave men trembled like leaves in the wind.

"Oh, I’m scared!" cried one.

"Save us, it’s terrifying!" cried the other. They turned and fled, tumbling down the mountain. The old woman threw up her hands:

"Where are you going?! How am I supposed to carry the rice cakes alone?"

She shouted and shouted, but it was no use—the brave men were gone. The old woman sighed and entered the witch's cave.

"Hello, yamamba," she said. "I’ve brought you the rice cakes. We don’t want your little son to starve."

"Thank you," the yamamba smiled. "It’s hard for me to live alone on the mountain—there’s no one to help me. But where are the mochi?"

"They were very heavy," replied the old woman. "Do me a favor and help me bring them inside—they’re still lying on the path."

"We’ll do it in no time!" the yamamba said cheerfully. "Come on, son, go fetch the rice cakes!"

The old woman was surprised: how could a newborn baby carry such a heavy load? But then she saw a giant, as tall as a large boulder, rise from the corner of the cave. He ran out and returned in an instant, carrying the mochi.

The yamamba and her son began to feast on the rice cakes, praising them:

"Such deliciousness! This is even better than eating people and horses!"

The old woman stayed in the witch’s cave a little longer and then said:

"It’s time for me to go home, yamamba. I’ve overstayed my welcome."

The witch was sad.

"Stay a little longer," she pleaded. "I’m so lonely here. Don’t be afraid, I won’t harm you. Stay with me a little more."

Well, the old woman had no choice. She stayed with the yamamba, helping around the house and looking after the child.

Autumn passed, and winter was coming to an end. Finally, the yamamba called the old woman and said:

"It’s time to let you go home. I’ve enjoyed living with you, but you are a human, and humans should live among their own. As a token of my gratitude for your help, I want to give you a gift."

With that, she handed the old woman a bundle. The old woman opened it and saw a piece of exquisite brocade.

The yamamba waved her hand, and a gentle breeze rose on the mountain. It lifted the old woman, spun her around, and set her down right by her house in the village.

By then, the villagers had given up hope of ever seeing her again—they thought the evil yamamba had eaten her. Suddenly, they saw the old woman standing in the middle of the village, holding a bundle. Everyone was overjoyed to see her and began asking questions:

"How did you manage to escape from the witch?"

The old woman laughed and said:

"She’s not evil at all, the yamamba from Mount Tōfukuyama, and she’s not scary either!"

She unfolded the bundle and showed everyone the gift she had received from the yamamba. Then she sewed beautiful dresses for her granddaughters from the brocade. But here’s the wonder: no matter how much they cut from the fabric, it never grew smaller! They made enough clothes from the witch’s fabric for the entire village!

From then on, the people lived well—prosperously and in abundance. They became friends with the yamamba and were no longer afraid to climb Mount Tōfukuyama. In gratitude, the yamamba began to protect the villagers from misfortunes and calamities. The people of the village stopped falling ill. It’s even said that the children there never coughed.

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The Witch of Mount Tōfukuyama

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