Akutagawa Ryunosuke – Frogs (Kaeru)

Found a few stories while researching Akutagawa that weren’t translated and were pretty neat. Here’s one.

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Frogs
Akutagawa Ryunosuke

Next to where I threw myself down for a nap, there was an old pond, in which there were many frogs.

Around the pond was covered in reeds and cattails. Beyond them was a line of white willow, branches rustled often by the wind. And beyond that was the silent summer sky, in which numerous thin, glass-like clouds were shining. All of them were reflected with a far-off beauty, moreso than in reality, in the water of the pond.

Inside the pond, frogs were ribbiting and croaking on and on without a single days’ rest. I listened for a bit, but all I could hear was ribbit, croak. However, they were actually having a fierce debate. It was not just in Aesop’s time that frogs could speak, you see.

A frog, on a leaf of a reed in the pond, spoke with the manner of a college professor.

“For what purpose does water exist? It is here for us frogs to swim. For what purpose do bugs exist? They exist for us frogs to eat.”

“Hurray, hurray”, the frogs in the pond shouted. The surface of the pond with the reflected sky and grass was brimming with frogs. Their voices of approval were, of course, no small thing. Right at that time, a snake, who was sleeping at the base of one of the white willows, was awakened by the annoying ribbiting and croaking. Then, it raised its head, turned its gaze towards the pond, and flitted its tongue sleepily.

“For what purpose does the earth exist? It is there to grow grass. So, for what purpose does the grass exist? It is there to give shade to us frogs. Thus, is not the entire world here for us frogs?”

“Hurray, hurray.”

The snake, hearing the shouts of approval a second time, snapped its body suddenly like a whip. And then, crawling its way through the reeds, its black eyes glistening, it spied carefully on the scene in the pond.

The frog on the reed leaf, just as before, lectured with his big mouth.

“For what purpose does the sky exist? It exists to hoist the sun. For what purpose does the sun exist? It exists to dry the backs of us frogs. Thus, is not the entire world here for us frogs? The water, the grass, the bugs, the earth, the sky and the sun, all already exist for us frogs. There is no longer room for any objection to the reality that all of creation itself exists for us frogs. As I explain this fact to you gentlefrogs, I wish to encourage you to give thanks from your heart to the god that created this universe for the sake of us. The holy lord God be praised.”

The frog turned his head upwards and one eye rolled around in its socket. He again opened his big mouth and said thus.

“Praise be to His name…”

Before his words could be finished, the snake’s head shot forth as if to hit him, and snatched up the chief frog in his mouth in an instant.

“Ribbit, oh no!”
“Croak, oh no!”
“Oh no, ribbit croak.”

As the frogs in the pond were crying out in surprise, the snake, still carrying the frog in his mouth, went off to hide in the reeds. The commotion that occured after had likely not been seen in this pond since the dawn of the world. I myself heard a young frog say this while crying:

“The water, the grass, the bugs and earth, the sky and sun, are all here for the sake of us frogs. So what of snakes? Are snakes here for us, too?”

“Indeed. Snakes exist for the sake of us frogs. If we are not eaten by snakes, then the number of frogs would undoubtedly increase. If that happens, the pond – our world will indeed shrink. So, snakes come to eat us frogs. We must think of the eaten ones as sacrifices offered for our many blessings. Yes! Snakes exist for us frogs as well. All things in this world without exception exist for us frogs. Praise be to the Lord God.”

This is the response I heard from the elderly-sounding frogs.

(September, Taisho 6)

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