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MonkAuthor: Ogawa Mimei
| Original Title | 僧 |
|---|---|
| Author | 小川 未明 |
| Genre | Children's Literature |
| Author Type | Male Author |
| Summary | A mysterious monk materializes in a secluded village, his weathered robes and tranquil chants contrasting with an air of foreboding. Villagers whisper of his uncanny arrivals—always preceding death. Over decades, his ageless presence becomes entwined with tragedy: a deranged son and his desperate mother perish in a blizzard; a reclusive railroad guard drowns; others vanish under shadowed circumstances. As floods and time erode the community, only three households remain—a reclusive heiress trapped in a decaying mansion, a merchant’s wife awaiting her absent husband, and an elderly couple haunted by their son’s demise. Superstition festers. Some shun the monk, fearing his alms bowl invites doom; others succumb to guilt-ridden offerings. When he reappears after years of absence, dread resurfaces like a dormant curse. The village, now skeletal and cloaked in silence, braces for another loss. Whispers echo: *Does he harvest souls or bear witness to fate?* Yet answers dissolve like mist, leaving only the rhythmic tap of his percussion instrument—a dirge for the dying and a riddle for the living. |
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