This is a story from the Asakita Ward in Hiroshima City.
A long, long time ago in the village of Kege, there lived a man called Mohei. Mohei was a rather small man, but he was very clever. The children of the village would tease him, “Mohei, you are very small and have only half the strength of a full-grown man. If that bothers you then you should try moving a stone with that head of yours.”
And it did bother Mohei very much. Very much indeed. So much that he could hardly contain his anger. But there was nothing to be done about it.
So he decided to go and consult the old man of the mountains and ask him what he should do.
Now, this old man of the mountains knew something about everything. He had advised the villagers that in order to protect the village from flooding, they should plant cedar trees. And in order to look after the cedar trees, he went into the mountains and lived there on his own.
Mohei went to see the old man and confessed his worries to him. The old man replied with a terrifying expression, “Now, why would you want to be bigger? Do you dislike people making fun of you? If that’s the case, then go home! Go home!”
But Mohei was a very intelligent man. A normal person would have answered back, but not Mohei. He soon understood what the old man was getting at.
“Old man. I was wrong. Even a small man can use his brain and act on behalf of others. If I have brains then I should use them for the benefit of the other villagers.”
“It’s good that you want to look after others. On the first of every month, please make sure you go to pay your respects to the Itsukushima Shrine.”
“How long should I continue going for?”
“If you truly want to be of use to other people then I am sure you will receive blessings.”
So from that day onwards, on the first of every month – even through heavy wind and rain – he struggled to get up early in the morning when it was still dark and went to pay his respects to the Itsukushima Shrine.
And over time, his body grew bigger and bigger and eventually the diminutive Mohei became the largest man in the village. His arms were like logs and his hands were like massive leaves and he grew to two meters in height.
At that time in the village of Kege, the bell that had been hung in the Hachiman-san Shrine to tell the time, was not heard by the residents in the west of the Kege village, no matter how many times it was rung. It was a problem because no one could tell the time and people did not know when to finish their work and return home. Whenever the people in west Kege complained about this, it was not pleasant for the residents of east Kege to hear.
So after much discussion in the village, it was decided that the bell should be moved to the lower banks of Shiroyama. But to get there, one had to cross the river. But how could they do it? Everyone was vexed. It was then that the large Mohei came forward.
“I will carry the bell across the river,” he said.
“What? That bell? That’s impossible. No matter how big you are, you can’t do that.”
“But I have grown big thanks to my wish to help others. The residents of east Kege and west Kege must stop quarreling. It is up to me to make the village the friendly place it used to be,” he said.
So, Mohei picked up the bell on his own and strode across the river with it. Mohei had at last helped others and was happy to repay the advice of the old man of the mountains.
However, the large Mohei did make one mistake. He had never ever lost the sumo competition held at the Itsukushima Shrine. The people of the neighboring villages wondered how they could defeat him. One year, the villagers put forward a small man for the sumo competition. In other words, a small man like Mohei had been.
“Oh, he’s very small. Just like I used to be. But even so, I must win. I can’t let him off. I will do my very best,” said Mohei.
The judge said, “Let’s begin.” And Mohei said, “Watch me.” And as he tried to hold down the back of the small man with all his might, the small man quickly dodged him and made his way out under Mohei’s crotch.
“Damn! He caught me!” thought Mohei. But it was too late and his hand touched the ground. Mohei had lost the match.
“People must never put down their guard,” mused Mohei.
The same can be said of anyone.
So that’s the story of strong Mohei.
The End.
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