Tradition/Customs

monkey jizo

What is Saru Jizo? Introducing a folk tale of a Jizo statue who gained good fortune [Yamagata Prefecture]

"Saru Jizo," a folktale that was introduced to Yamagata and aired on Manga Nippon Mukashi Banashi in January 1976, is a folktale that is widely passed down in Yamaguchi, Saitama, Niigata, and other prefectures

This article provides a detailed explanation of the Yamagata folktale of "Monkey Jizo."

What is the story behind the Saru Jizo statues in Yamagata

The story of Saru Jizo that is passed down in Yamagata is as follows

An old man and woman were troubled by monkeys living in the mountains destroying their rice fields and farmland, so they thought that if the grandfather dressed up as Jizo and stood in the fields, the monkeys' violence would stop

The monkey sees the old man dressed as Jizo and carries him out to be enshrined in a shrine in the mountain, but as they cross the river, they call out, "You may get your monkey's bottom wet, but don't get Jizo's bottom wet."

The old man found the shouts amusing, but he endured them until they finally reached the temple on the mountain. The monkeys said it would be a shame to leave the old man there, so they placed him on top of two chests of 1000 ryo treasures lined up next to each other

The monkeys bowed to the old man and then went away, and the old man returned home happily, carrying the two boxes of money that had been lined up

When the lazy old man and woman next door heard the story, they imitated him, and the lazy old man dressed up as Jizo and went out into the field

In the same way, the monkeys come and carry the Lazy Old Man up the mountain, but when the Lazy Old Man hears the monkeys' calls at the river, he accidentally starts laughing

When the monkeys realized that Jizo was a human, they got angry and started scratching the lazy old man and throwing him into the river

It is an impressive story in which the monkeys' faith in Jizo is betrayed and they take out their anger on the lazy old man

About the story of Saru Jizo

When sorting folktales, the standard used to classify them is called "story type," and Saru Jizo falls into the "neighboring old man type."

The "neighbor grandfather" type refers to a story in which an old man who lives next door to an old man who has been blessed with good fortune tries to imitate him but fails, and the following story is one of the famous Japanese folk tales

  • Old Man with a Hump
  • Old Man Blooming
  • Old Goose Catcher

There are many old tales of the old man type in Japan, including the story of Saru Jizo, but overseas only a few remain in the Korean Peninsula and China

Why is that?

It is said that this is because Japanese people have a national character that values ​​neighborhood relationships and good relations with their neighbors

According to the results of a "Public Opinion Survey on Social Awareness" conducted by the Cabinet Office in January 2020, 65.4% of people answered that they "exist" in their local community, and 35.9% answered that desirable local interactions include "participating in local events and meetings, and helping each other out when in trouble," showing that Japanese people still value relationships with their neighbors today

Another lesson we can learn from Saru Jizo is that we should not imitate others or be envious of others, and it can be said that having this awareness from a young age through listening to old stories has led to the Japanese people's appreciation of the importance of interacting with their neighbors

Reference: Cabinet Office "Public Opinion Survey on Social Awareness"

summary

The story of Saru Jizo is an old tale passed down in Yamagata that is classified as the "old man next door" type, but I learned that it is an impressive story that contains a warning that we should not envy or imitate people who have found good fortune

Enjoy this lively and somewhat human story of monkeys, an elderly couple, and the elderly couple next door who are jealous of them

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