The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn Read Online Free

the Buddhist teachings.
    “An old man opened the door when
Kokushi knocked. He wore the orange robe of a Buddhist monk, but it
was faded and worn. The monk refused to let Kokushi stay with him,
but said there was a village on the other side of the hill. There,
Kokushi could find food and lodging.
    “Kokushi found this to be true.
But in the village, no one answered his knock. All the houses
seemed to be empty. Finally, he found the people gathered in one
house, weeping and praying.
    “The head of the village had died
that day. His body lay in this house, and everyone had brought
offerings of food to see him into the next life.
    “The village had no priest, and
Kokushi offered to perform the Buddhist rites for the man’s soul.
But the dead man’s son said that no one could remain in the village
on the night after a death. ‘Strange things happen on that night,’
he said, ‘and it would be better if you came with us to the next
village.’
    “Kokushi replied that he had no
fear. He would be glad to keep watch over the old man’s body. The
others tried to persuade him to leave, but he would not.
    “At last, they departed, leaving
him alone with the body. Kokushi said the Buddhist prayers and blew
out all the lamps except one next to the body. He sat quietly
meditating, but he was curious about what strange things might
happen.
    “Hours passed, and Kokushi began
to doze. Suddenly, he realized that something else had entered the
house. A mist gathered around the dead body. Kokushi saw the face
of a horrible demon emerge from the mist. It was a horned beast,
with ferocious teeth flashing in the mist. The demon lifted the
body with its claws and began to devour it.
    “As quickly as a cat swallows a
mouse, the demon ate everything—hair, bones, even the shroud. And
this monstrous creature, after consuming the body, turned to the
food offerings and ate them also. Then it went away as silently as
it had come.
    “In the morning, the villagers
returned. They did not seem surprised to find that the body had
disappeared. The dead man’s son told Kokushi, ‘Now you know why it
is a law in our village that everyone must leave on the night after
a death. But you are unharmed, and so must be a holy
man.’
    “Kokushi asked,
‘Why do you not have the monk on the hill perform the funeral
service for your dead?’
    “The villagers did not understand
him. ‘There is no monk living near our village.’ they said. ‘For
many years now, we have had no priest, for all fled when they saw
what you have seen.’
    “Kokushi took his leave, and
walked back the way he had come. He found the little hut, and again
knocked on the door. When it opened, the monk covered his eyes and
said, ‘Ah! I am so ashamed.’
    “ ‘ You need not
be ashamed for refusing me shelter,’ Kokushi said. ‘I was very
kindly treated in the village.’
    “The monk replied, ‘I am ashamed because you saw me in my
true form. It was I who devoured the corpse and the offerings last
night before your eyes. For I am a jikininki —an eater of human
flesh.’
    “The monk explained that he once
had been a priest, the only one for miles around. ‘The people would
bring me their dead so that I might pray over them. But I greedily
ate the offerings that they had brought for the dead to enjoy. And
when I died, as punishment I was sent back to earth as a
jikininki.’ He hung his head. ‘Now all men must flee from the sight
of me, or they will die.’
    “ ‘ Yet I saw
you,’ said Kokushi, ‘and I did not die.’
    “ ‘ You must be a
holy man,’ the jikininki said. ‘I beg you, pray for me so that I
may be released from this hideous state of
existence.’
    “Kokushi began to say the proper Buddhist prayers, and when
he looked up, the monk had vanished, along with the little hut in
which he lived. Kokushi found himself alone in the grass, next to a
tombstone covered with moss. It was a go-rin-ishi , the stone that marks the grave of a
priest.”
    Michiko