The Story of Koreyoshi

Book 8, Episode 3: The Real of Thread tells the story describing the ancestry of Okata Koreyoshi, a Bungo warrior who has been sent to drive the Taira away. It is said that in the Bungo province, there once lived a young woman who had a mysterious man visit every night. The woman begins to expect a child, and her mother questions her on who has been visiting. The daughter tells her mother that she sees a man come, but does not see him go. Therefore, the mother advises her daughter to attach a thread and follow the man when he leaves. Upon doing so, the daughter enters a cave under a peak named Uba-dake. She finds the man, and he claims that his form is not human. He tells the woman that her future child will be a son and one of the strongest warriors in Kyūshū. He terrorizes the woman when he shows his true form to be that of a great serpent, specifically the vehicle of the Hyūga revered god of Takachio. After fleeing, the woman soon had a baby boy. Koreyoshi claims this serpent to be a direct ancestor of his, five generations back.

Questions to Consider:

• What does the snake symbolize in this story?
• Why does Koreyoshi take pride in his claim that he is a direct ancestor of the snake?
• Why is this passage in the Tale of the Heike?
• How does bloodline play a role in Japanese society?