Summary
Once upon a time, in the capital of Kyoto, there lived a poor man and his wife. One day, the wife complained to her husband about their impoverished life.
"I'm fed up with living in poverty. We hardly have anything to eat, and always the same clothes. I've never bought anything new. I’d be better off as a beggar. I can’t stand this miserable life anymore. If you could just become a thief or a robber, I’d be so happy! I could buy a new kimono."
"Don't say such foolish things! I won't become such a terrible person. Listen, there are many poor people in this world, and some are even poorer than us," the husband chided his wife.
"Then I want to divorce you. Let’s separate. I will find a rich man to be with," she replied.
Despite that, the husband cherished his wife and could not imagine life without her. He was troubled daily by her complaints and worried she might come to dislike him.
One evening, a woman in a beautiful kimono passed by. Losing all self-control, he killed her and took her clothes and money. He hurried home and told his wife,
"You asked me to become a robber, right? I killed a woman and brought back her clothes and money. I've done something terrible."
However, instead of being surprised, his wife looked delighted at the sight of the beautiful kimono. Still, the man loved his wife, but he began to feel something was off about her.
The next day, his wife wore the kimono and went out. A horrifying event occurred. Immediately after leaving the house, she was killed by someone.
"This must be divine punishment for what I did," the man thought.
He climbed Mount Koya to become a monk. Day by day, he read sutras and prayed for the soul of the woman whose death he caused.
One night, a newly ordained monk came to visit him. They shared their life stories. The visiting monk asked,
"Could you tell me why you became a monk? I used to live in Kyoto, but after a disaster, I decided to become a monk."
"I was also in Kyoto. But I became a monk after committing an unimaginable act," the other monk replied.
"If you don't mind, could you tell me a bit more in detail? I promise I won't tell anyone," the visitor urged.
The monk spoke of his crime. The visitor showed great interest and asked question after question.
"When was it? What color was the kimono? How old was she?"
The monk spoke as he remembered. The visitor nodded several times as he listened. As the monk’s story came to an end, the visitor said,
"What a shocking revelation! The woman you killed must have been my wife. In fact, I killed a woman I met the very next day. She was wearing my wife's kimono. When I asked her where she got it, she ran away without answering, so I chased her down and stabbed her. That’s why I decided to become a monk ... If it weren’t for a series of those dreadful events, I wouldn’t have become a monk or even come into contact with the sutras. In other words, thanks to you, I was able to become a monk. Let’s pray together for our late wives."
The two joined hands and wept. The two monks secluded themselves in the mountains and underwent rigorous training.
From "Tsurezuregusa - Revised."
