Beronaga Fukushima

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Beronaga べろ長 "the long tongue" Fukushima bero naga, bero-naga This figure has developed from a local "monster" legend. A long long long time ago there lived a monster in Aizu Wakamatsu on the slopes of Mount Bandai, which had a very long red tongue. He liked to play tricks on the local people. With his long tongue he could lick up the water from ponds and rivers and produce dryness and drought in summer, to inconvenience the farmers. On other days he would suck up the water and then spit it all out to produce flooding. Along came Kobo Daishi Kukai, the famous Buddhist priest. So the distressed people asked him to do something about this monster. Kukai asked the monster: "You are so proud of your long tongue. Let me see how long it is! Let us compare it with mine. Which one is longer?" Beronaga got angry and put his long tongue out, as long as he could. Kukai took out a straw rope and bound the tongue firmly with it. So the monster could not play his evil tricks on the people any more. And all was well after this. Medetashi, medetashi. This folk toy reminds us of the monster. It is made from wood and straw in many workshops of the region. Red is a color to ward off evil. Nowadays plastic versions and clay bells are also sold. . Japanese Reference . ................................................................................. source :　tyz.blog ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: beronaga ya - Tohoku dreams of a new future . Lord Hoshina Masayuki 保科 正之 . June 17, 1611 – February 4, 1673

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. Kobo Daishi, Kukai 弘法大師　空海 .
Founder of Shingon Esoteric Buddhism


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