Golden eggplant - Kinnonasu

A folktale. A humorous tale with the theme of a subordinate being able to outwit a superior with wisdom. A lord sends his wife back to her parents' home after she farts in front of others. The pregnant wife gives birth to a boy. When the child is about 10 years old, his mother asks him why he has no father. The child ponders and goes to town, selling the seeds of golden eggplants. The lord, hearing this, summons him and asks if it is true. When the child replies that a woman who does not fart must sow the seeds, the lord laughs and says that there is no woman in the world who does not fart. The child then reveals his true identity. The lord calls the mother and child back, and the child becomes the lord's successor. It is not just a simple humorous tale, but is colored with human drama with the theme of a nobleman's wanderings, making it an interesting structure. It is also found in Korea and is said to be one of the relatively well-known folktales. In Okinawa Prefecture, it is told in connection with the history of the Ryukyu Dynasty. It is an old family on Kudaka Island in Chinen Village (now Nanjō City), and takes the form of a legend of the Hokama family, who inherited the position of Nehito (neenchu), the village chief, and the first Nehito's daughter, Omitaru, became the wife of the king of the Ryukyu Kingdom. The father of the king was King Tamagusuku, and the son, Omikane Matsugane, is said to have later become King Seii, and the birth hall where Lady Omitaru gave birth is still considered a sacred place. This story was written in the Shuri royal court's "Kyuyo" outer volume "Iro Setsuden" (around 1745), but it is also widely known to the general public. There is also an example of this story in the legend of Hachimandate in Shizukuishi Town, Iwate Prefecture, and it seems that this old tale was passed down in a form that made it easy to become history in Japan.

[Yo Kojima]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

昔話。目下の者が目上の人を知恵でやりこめることを主題にした笑話の一つ。人前で屁(へ)をした奥方を殿様が実家へ帰す。身ごもっていた奥方は男の子を生む。10歳ほどになったとき、子供は父親がいないわけを母から聞く。思案した子供は、町へ行き、金の実のなる茄子の種は要らないかと売り歩く。それを聞いた殿様が召し、本当かと問いただす。子供が屁をしない女が種をまかなければならないと答えると、殿様は屁をしない女が世の中にいようかと笑う。そこで子供は自分の素性を明かす。殿様は母子を呼び戻し、子供は殿様の世継ぎになる。ただの単純な笑話ではなく、貴人の流離を主題とする人間模様で彩られており、興味深い構成になっている。朝鮮にもあり、比較的よく知られている昔話の一つらしい。沖縄県では琉球(りゅうきゅう)王朝の歴史と結び付けて語られている。知念村（現南城市）久高(くだか)島の旧家で、村の長の役職、根人(ねひと)（ニーンチュ）を世襲する外間(ほかま)家の伝説の形式をとり、初代の根人の娘の思樽(おみたる)が琉球国王の夫人になったという。父王は玉城(たまぐすく)王、子供の思金松兼(おみかねまつがね)は後の西威(せいい)王であると伝え、いまも思樽夫人がお産をした産殿を聖所としている。この物語は古く首里(しゅり)王府の『球陽』外巻『遺老説伝(いろうせつでん)』（1745ころ）にも記されているが、一般にも広く知られている。岩手県でも雫石(しずくいし)町の八幡館(はちまんだて)の伝説になっている例があり、この昔話は、日本では歴史になりやすい形で伝えられていたようである。

［小島瓔］

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