Raw monkey liver - Saru no Ikigimo

A folktale. One of the animal folktales that has as its theme the conflict between animals. It is also called "The Jellyfish Has No Bones." Princess Otohime of the Dragon Palace falls seriously ill. It is said that she will be cured if she is fed the raw liver of a monkey. The turtle receives orders from the king of the Dragon Palace and tricks the monkey to bring him there, but the jellyfish, who is the gatekeeper, tells the monkey that they are to take the raw liver. The monkey says that the liver is still hanging on the tree and that he will go and get it, and runs away. As punishment for saying something unnecessary, the jellyfish has its bones removed.

It appears in many documents, such as the Akahon "Saru no Ikigimo" (Monkey's Living Spirit), from the mid-Edo period, and has been familiar in picture books and reading material since the Meiji period. It is also known by the Ainu people of Hokkaido. It appears in ancient Indian Sanskrit literature, and stories such as "Jataka" and "Panchatantra" are included in Chinese translations of Buddhist scriptures, and are known in Japan as well. A similar story that is thought to be an adaptation from a Buddhist scripture is included in the "Konjaku Monogatarishu" (Tales of Times Now Past), written at the end of the Heian period, as a story from Tenjiku (India). It is also found in the "Shasekishu" (Collection of Shaseki), from the Kamakura period, and it is likely that what was introduced to Japan as a Buddhist tale became a folk tale and spread there. In one example, the reason for wanting raw monkey liver is said to be that the wife is pregnant and has a craving for abnormal foods, which causes "morning sickness."

Besides India, it is also found in East Asia, including among the Shan people of Burma (Myanmar), Tibetans in China, Vietnam, and Korea. It seems that these stories were also introduced under the influence of Indian culture. In Indonesia, it is known through "The Story of Kalila and Damina," a translation of "Panchatantra." It has also been introduced to West Asia through Syriac and Arabic translations of "The Story of Kalila and Dimna," a translation of "Panchatantra," and is also found in Jewish folklore. It is found in Europe in Hungary and Latvia, and is known among the Spanish inhabitants of Puerto Rico in the West Indies, but the number of such stories is small. It is likely to have been introduced from West Asia. Similar stories from Zanzibar in Africa are unlikely to be separate from the flow of Sanskrit literature.

[Yo Kojima]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

昔話。動物どうしの葛藤(かっとう)を主題にした動物昔話の一つ。「海月(くらげ)骨なし」ともいう。竜宮の乙姫(おとひめ)が重病にかかる。猿の生肝を食べさせると治るという。亀(かめ)が竜宮の王の命令を受け、猿をだまして連れてくるが、門番の海月が、生肝を取るのだと猿に教える。猿は、肝は木にかけたまま置いてあるから取ってくるといって逃げ帰ってしまう。海月はよけいなことをいった罰に、骨を抜かれる。

　江戸中期の赤本の『猿のいきぎも』など文献にも多くみえ、明治以後も絵本や読み物で親しまれている。北海道のアイヌにも知られている。古くは古代インドのサンスクリット文学にみえ、『ジャータカ』や『パンチャタントラ』の話は、漢訳経典にも入っており、日本にも知られている。平安末期の『今昔物語集』には、天竺(てんじく)（インド）の話として、経典からの翻案と思われる類話が収められている。鎌倉時代の『沙石集(しゃせきしゅう)』にもあり、日本では、仏教説話として伝来したものが、昔話になって広まったのであろう。猿の生肝を欲しがる理由を、妻が懐妊して異常なものを食べたがる「つわり好み」としている例もある。

　インドのほか、ビルマ（ミャンマー）のシャン人、中国のチベット人、ベトナム、朝鮮など東アジアにも分布している。これらも、インド文化の影響のもとに伝えられたらしい。インドネシアでは『パンチャタントラ』の翻訳『カリラとダミナの物語』で知られている。西アジアへも、『パンチャタントラ』の翻訳『カリーラとディムナの物語』のシリア語訳やアラビア語訳で伝わっており、ユダヤ人の伝承にもある。ヨーロッパではハンガリーやラトビアにもあり、西インド諸島のプエルト・リコのスペイン系住民の間にも知られているが、数は少ない。西アジアからの伝播(でんぱ)であろう。アフリカのザンジバルの類話も、サンスクリット文学の流れとは別個のものとは考えにくい。

［小島瓔］

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例