Kisetsu and the 4 Seasons Robe

Each night, Kisetsu - the daughter of the moon - would look down from the palace windows. Night after night she would watch the world of men pass before her. In the evening she could see the fishers bringing in their catch and leaving again with empty nets at dawn. For the most part, this strange world and the weary lives it cradled would pass in silence. Only from time to time would a sound grace Kisetsu's ears, and even then it was scarce heard above a whisper. It was the fragile voice of a prayer. So she would listen always in the vast silence for those rare, quiet words.

There was one fisherman that Kisetsu could hear every night. And every night she listened to him attentively. He would speak of the sorrows of his life. He asked for some order to come to the world for he never knew when it was the right time to catch certain fish, or when to be wary of great storms over the sea. He even spoke of his friends; the farmers. It was hard for them to know when to plant because one day would be bright and balmy and the next freezing cold. Little could grow and of that, little could be salvaged from frost. Starvation worried them constantly. Further, he prayed for a wife to aid him in his burdens.

Every night he implored, ''I desire no woman of wealth or beauty - for these are idle things- but one who would be a good wife and wise mother, one who is not afraid to toil and endure the hardships of this difficult, impoverished life.''

Kisetsu listened to all his prayers intently for she loved him - not because he was handsome or brave, but because he was faithful and sincere. She wished to answer all his prayers.

And so, she went to her father; the moon god and asked him to do something about the chaotic weather that plagued the fishers and farmers. Also she asked to become the wife of her beloved fisherman. Thinking these requests to be the desires of a young woman's foolish heart, the moon god denied her.

Bitterly, Kisetsu returned to watching the earth from her window. Again the prayers of the fisherman fell upon her ears.

''I desire no woman of wealth or beauty - for these are idle things - but one who would be a good wife and wise mother, one who is not afraid to toil and endure the hardships of this difficult, impoverished life.''

With that Kisetsu came to a decision. While her father slept the day away, she dressed in her finest clothes. First, a kimono as black as the night sky, over which she donned one that shone like the moon itself, patterned with graceful white cranes. It was truly fit for a godly bride.

Kisetsu waited as the sun sank beyond the sea. She waited patiently until its rays graced the waters in such a way that a golden stair appeared. Kisetsu ran as fast as she could down the sunset stair hoping her father would not catch a glimpse of her departure. At last she reached the sea shores of the earth.

Immediately she began to search for her beloved fisherman. Everywhere she went her presence elicited stares and she could hear people inquiring, ''Who in our little village is so wealthy to have such a bride!''

After much effort, Kisetsu's search finally ended. As she came upon her fisherman she announced that she had come to answer his prayer.

The fisherman looked her over, but bowing his head answered, ''I desire no woman of wealth or beauty - for these are idle things - but one who would be a good wife and wise mother, one who is not afraid to toil and endure the hardships of this difficult, impoverished life.''

At that, Kisetsu replied, ''I may be beautiful and of noble birth, but I will also be all that you have asked.''

Satisfied with this reply, the fisherman humbly accepted her into his home. Indeed, at their wedding, Kisetsu was so overjoyed that her moonlight robe sprang to life with green, growing things and lovely flowers. Everywhere she went, sprouts came forth from the earth, cherry trees burst into bloom and all the frigid weather began to dispel.

Day after day, Kisetsu toiled with her beloved fisherman. Although their labour was hard, they brought such joy to each other's lives that it passed like a dream. Never did Kisetsu change her wonderful blooming robe, but slowly it seemed to change itself. Every day new flowers would bloom and new plants would grow. And every day the earth would mimic her clothing. Though the other women in the village wouldn't dream of wearing something so lovely while gutting fish, Kisetsu thought nothing of it for her kimono never became soiled. Even if something spilled on it, no mark would be left behind.

Kisetsu's years of marriage were so filled with contentment that a balmy breeze seemed to follow her everywhere. The sun shone brightly, the green things grew strong and the cold air dared not approach. As Kisetsu's children grew, they took great comfort in the bamboo stalks, willow branches and running streams that covered her lively robe.

But then it happened. Kisetsu saw things begin to change, though she herself remained the same. Her children got older and soon left to pursue lives of their own. Her beloved fisherman found his labour growing harder and harder. His eyes slowly lost their sight, his ears lost their hearing, his limbs grew weary and stiff, and his hair turned from black to silver. Every time Kisetsu regarded her beloved fisherman she could see in his weathered face the fate of all mortals. And so, a great worry came over her. She dreaded the day her fisherman would die.

Day after day, the worry that plagued her slowly suffocated all the green things. The maples on her kimono changed colour and shed their leaves. And as only the heartiest of joys could supplant her sorrow, so only could the heartiest of flowers bloom in the encroaching cold.

One night as she tended her beloved fisherman, he said to her, ''I asked for no woman of wealth or beauty - for these are idle things - but for one who would be a good wife and wise mother, one who is not afraid to toil and endure the hardships of this difficult, impoverished life... You have been all these things and more. I could not have asked for a better wife.''

That very night the fisherman breathed his last. So heartbroken was Kisetsu that she ran from their home. Wandering aimlessly, she eventually found herself on the sea shore. There she sobbed and her sorrow choked all of the green things to death. Even the resilient pine trees found themselves covered with ice and snow.

That evening when the sunset stair appeared over the ocean, Kisetsu's thoughts returned to her father's house. Knowing the earth could no longer be a joyful home for her, she slowly stood and began to climb the stairs.

As she traveled high into the sky, she stopped to regard the distant earth once more. As she looked down upon it her eyes caught a glimpse of her once blooming robe, now covered in snow and death. No longer could she bear to wear it. And so, rending it, she removed it from her frame and threw it down to the earth. Wearing only her black kimono, she returned to the sky in tears, but each tear that fell upon her dark robe stained it with a spot of silver.

Returning to her father's palace, Kisetsu found no welcome. After her disobedience, the moon god no longer wished to keep her in his home. And so she wandered the sky, her silver stained robe trailing behind her. From there she would watch the earth and moon forever more, and her many thousands of tears would shine for all to see.

Now, it had happened that upon discovering the death of the fisherman, Kisetsu's youngest daughter ran in search of her mother. Eventually, she came to the seashore, but by then Kisetsu had long since disappeared. Pausing, the young woman looked up. She had never seen so many silver lights in the sky and falling from them was her mother's lovely kimono. The young woman raced to catch it as it fell, knowing her mother had returned to the sky.

Despite the tatters and tears that had appeared in the robe as it fell, Kisetsu's daughter was so captivated by the fond memories it brought to her mind that she took it home. Intending to display it, she began to spread it out in her house, but every time she smoothed a wrinkle, the kimono grew in size. It grew and grew until at last it covered all the earth.

Afterwards, the world was bitterly cold for a great length of time, but slowly, as Kisetsu's sorrows healed she began to relive the joys of her life with the fisherman. As she did, her lovely kimono - though far below on the earth - again responded to her happiness. Once more it sprang to life. Even so, as she would relive her joys, she would also relive her sorrows. The robe would live and die and live again as Kisetsu watched from the sky. Though the pain of loss never truly left her, she could find comfort in the fact that she'd answered another of her fisherman's prayers. Now the farmers always knew when to plant and when to harvest, and the fishers always knew when to catch certain fish and when to be wary of great storms over the ocean. No longer was the worry of starvation so constant in their minds.

Indeed Kisetsu still watches from the sky, reliving her life on earth, for her silver spotted kimono can still be seen when the sun sets beyond the sea.

© Christina Stoppa 2006