Fairy Treat--Water Fairies --Ningyo

Ningyo

Ningyo is a Japanese water fairy who cries pearls instead of tears. Some say that Ningyo has the head of a human and the body of a fish. Others believe it is clad in sheer silk robes that move about it, like waves. Ningyos dwell in gorgeous palaces beneath the sea, and are very seductive. 

Urashima Taro was a young fisherman with a kindly nature. One day, while returning home, he came upon some youths tormenting a turtle. When he could not make them stop, he offered to buy the creature from them. The youths grabbed his money and ran, so the fisherman placed the poor turtle in the shallows and watched as it recovered and swam away. Out in his boat next day, Urashima heard someone calling his name. Looking down, he saw the turtle he had rescued, and was amazed when it invited him to visit the King's Palace beneath the waves. Urishima climbed on its back and the turtle grew much larger, taking him down to a magnificent palace. Brilliant fish ushered him into the presence of a lovely Sea Princess, who told Urashima that she was, in fact, the turtle he had rescued. The fisherman was utterly smitten, and he and the maiden lived in bliss for three days. Urashima then became worried about his parents and insisted on visiting them. His lady gave him a small box as a talisman, with instructions not to open it. Urashima promised to obey. On returning to his village, he was dimayed, for everything was different, and folk told of a young fisherman who disapeared 300 years ago. With nothing left of his home, Urashima could only return to the underwater palace, but first he rested on the shore in bewilderment. Seeking some answers, he pulled out the talisman box and opened it. A violet mist rose from it and enveloped him, whereupon he crumbled to dust. 

This tale warns us--as so many do-- that time passes differently in Fairyland, and that if we forget our world, we may not get back to it. It warns of too great an immersion in fairy matters, but also, in a sense, of too little. It was Urashima's lack of faith and questing human mind that killed him. Our error is to try to have our cake and eat it, too!