The Tale of Urashima Tarō (浦島 太郎)
A timeless Japanese fairy tale of kindness, mystery, and the passage of time. Long ago, in a quiet seaside village in Japan, there lived a humble fisherman named Urashima Tarō. Known for his gentle heart and serene spirit, Tarō spent his days casting his line into the ocean and living in harmony with nature. One day, as he walked along the shore, he came upon a group of children tormenting a small turtle. Moved by compassion, he rescued the creature and released it back into the sea.
The next morning, as Tarō returned to the water, the very same turtle appeared before him—only this time, it spoke. The turtle revealed that it was no ordinary creature, but a messenger from the Dragon Palace beneath the sea, the enchanted realm of the Sea God, Ryūjin. As a token of gratitude, the turtle invited Tarō to visit this wondrous kingdom. Climbing onto the turtle’s back, Tarō was carried beneath the waves to the legendary Ryūgū-jō, a palace of shimmering coral and glowing pearls. There, he met Princess Otohime, the daughter of the Sea God, whose beauty radiated like moonlight on the ocean. She welcomed him with joy, and for what felt like mere days, Tarō lived in a dream of eternal celebration—feasting, dancing, and basking in a paradise untouched by time.
But eventually, a quiet longing stirred in Tarō’s heart. Though the palace was magnificent and the princess kind, he missed his village, his family, and the world above the waves. Otohime was saddened but understood. Before he left, she gave him a mysterious, lacquered box called a tamatebako, and warned him: “You may take this with you, but never open it. No matter what happens.”
Tarō promised, then rode the turtle back to shore. But when he arrived, everything had changed. His home was gone, the village unrecognizable, and no one knew his name. Bewildered, he learned that hundreds of years had passed since the day he vanished beneath the sea.
Overwhelmed with sorrow, Tarō opened the tamatebako, hoping for answers. In an instant, a white mist surrounded him, and he aged rapidly into an old man. The box had contained his lost time, preserved all those years. And with it released, his youth faded away. Some say he vanished into the sea, becoming one with the waves. Others believe he turned into a crane, flying off into the eternal sky. His story endures as a haunting reminder of the mysteries of time, the cost of desire, and the beauty—and fragility—of kindness.
Painted with Mon_030 at the Urban Canvas Parkhaus Wedding, Berlin. For Liebe Zur Kunst. Liebe Zur Kunst, Instagram:
