Kintaro, the Golden Boy

Mist still hung over the Ashigara mountains. White wisps curled around the trunks of the ancient trees, and in the forest, still dark, a boy stepped out of a small house beside a stream. He stretched and took a long, deep breath.

The old Japanese tale says it was a morning like any other in these remote mountains. Yet by the end of that day, the boy's whole life would turn in a new direction.

His name was Kintaro. His father had been a warrior officer in the capital, but he died young, before Kintaro was born. His mother went to live deep in the Ashigara mountains, and there her son was born, far from any town. Mother and son had only each other in the old forest.

Kintaro grew up unlike other children. He had no playmates his own age, but the mountains gave him friends of his own: a big bear, a gentle deer, a quick monkey and a clever hare. All four animals treated him as their leader. They listened to him and obeyed, and they even took turns running errands for him, like faithful messengers.

He also grew fast, and he was unusually strong. At only 8 years old, Kintaro could cut down trees as quickly as the skilled woodcutters of the area. His hands were as sure as a grown man's, and no child could match his strength.

That morning, Kintaro invited his four friends to an open clearing in the forest for a wrestling contest. The bear was the keenest of all. He dug and heaped up the earth into a smooth, flat wrestling ring for the group, then stood back to admire his work with great pleasure. Kintaro did not step into the ring himself. He stood as the umpire and announced a prize for the winner of each bout. The monkey and the hare went in first. They grappled for a while, and the hare won. Then they wrestled again, and this time the monkey evened the score. Next the deer took on the hare. The deer sank to one knee and gave up, so the hare won one more bout. Kintaro opened the food bag he had carried along and took out fragrant rice cakes, one by one. He handed them to the winners himself. The whole band laughed out loud. No one was sad about losing, and they could hardly wait for the next match.

When the wrestling was over, Kintaro led the group deeper into the forest. They came to a wide, rushing stream with no bridge across it. The bear, the deer, the monkey and the hare stood on the bank, staring at the water, with no idea how to cross. Kintaro looked around and saw a huge old tree growing right at the water's edge. He wrapped his arms tightly around its trunk and pulled with all his might.

The first time, the tree only swayed a little. The second time, its roots cracked and groaned but still gripped the earth. On the third pull, Kintaro put every ounce of his strength into one mighty heave. The whole tree tore out of the ground, roots and all, and crashed down across the stream. There it lay, a sturdy bridge. His four friends cheered with delight and crossed over one after another.

But someone had quietly watched it all from behind a bush. He was a woodcutter on his way to cut firewood. He stared in amazement at a boy who, all alone, had pulled down an entire ancient tree. This is no ordinary child, he told himself. Before this day is over, I must find out whose son he is. He quietly followed the boy's tracks, walking on and on as the afternoon faded. At last he came to the little house where the boy's mother was waiting.

The woodcutter stepped forward and greeted mother and son. "In truth, I am no woodcutter," he said. "My name is Sadamitsu. I am a retainer in the service of the powerful Lord Minamoto no Raiko. Today I saw this boy with my own eyes. All by himself, he pulled down a whole ancient tree to bridge a stream. Strength and spirit like that should not stay buried in the deep forest forever. Please let me take him to the capital and train him into a true samurai."

Kintaro's mother listened, her heart both glad and stirred. She looked at her son, the only child she had raised alone among the mountains all these years. Then she nodded her consent. Kintaro took his mother's hand. He promised that once he became a true samurai, with two swords at his side, he would build her a fine house. He would care for her for the rest of her life.

Before leaving the mountains, Kintaro said goodbye to the bear, the deer, the monkey and the hare. They were the friends he had grown up with for so many years. All four animals walked with him as far as the start of the trail. They stood and watched him until he disappeared behind the line of trees.

Kintaro followed Sadamitsu to the capital, and day after day he trained hard in the arts of war under Lord Minamoto no Raiko. With his heaven-sent strength and steady will, he slowly became the chief of the four finest warriors at the lord's side. Kintaro never forgot the promise he had made to his mother long ago. Now the two swords rested firmly at his side, just as he had said. He built his mother a cozy house right in the capital and brought her to live with him for the rest of her days. People loved him and called him a true hero.

And on the Ashigara mountains, the tale goes, the forest where Kintaro grew up still stands. The clearing where the bear, the deer, the monkey and the hare once wrestled is still there. So is the stretch of stream where a boy pulled down a tree to make a bridge. Both keep the shape they had long ago, and the old forest still tells the story of the strongest boy in the mountains.