Anchin and Kiyohime / Tale of Dojoji

Region: Kii Province, Near Kyoto, Japan
Time Period: 10th Century, booklet dated 1660
References in Literature: Catalogue, 1920
Sources: Dragons and Dragon Lore, “The Tale of Dojoji” by Monogatari, Pantheon/articles, XDrac, Illiana, Ghosts and the Japanese

• Virginia Skord translated a booklet dated from 1660.
• Spit flame, tail, 2 horns, fangs like black iron.
• May have its roots in rain-making rituals where bells were lowered into the water to appease or call to the river’s dragons or a serpent effigy was wrapped around the bell to bring rain.
• Serpents associated with lust and desire – which are also related to how women were viewed. Thus the two can be used interchangably.
• The bell is shown in wood votive pictures, called ema

The very short version:
A monk flees from the unwanted advances of the girl Kiyohime and hides under a huge bell in the Dojoji temple. She follows, turns into a dragon, and curls around the bell, melting it and killing bother herself and Anchin.

Part One:
Anchin was a monk traveling on pilgramage to Kumano when he stopped for the night at the home of Soji Kiyotsugu and his daughter, Kiyohime. She fell in hove and before he could leave she made him promise to return to her and share her bed. Knowing that this was impossible, Anchin made the promise and continued his journey. On his return, Anchin avoided the woman’s house and even to to Hidaka Village before she found out his treachery and came after him. He took refuge in the temple of Dojoji where the monks hid him under a bell. The woman was blocked by rising waters, turned into a serpent to cross, noticed the suspiciously lowered bell, wrapped herself around it and nearly melted the bell in her rage.
Anchin was buried by the monks.

Version 2:
Kiyo was a beautiful waitress who worked in a teahouse on the Hidaka riverbank. A visiting priest fell in love with her and she with him, but after a time he overcame his passions (some versions say he lost his passion for her) and refused further meetings. Kiyo became furious and sought revenge. She went to the temple of Kompera to learn the art of magic. After studying for some time she turned herself into a dragon and flew to the monastery where the priest lived. He saw her coming and hid himself under the temple bell. With a great belch of fire, the dragon melted the bell, thereby killing the priest.

Part Two:
After this tragedy, the monks procured another bell and, although forbidden to enter by the monks, one woman asked to dance and was led in. But she touched the bell and became so upset that she hid under it and would have destroyed it had not the priests prayed so well to the dragons to redeem the woman-serpent. Eventually, the serpent rose from under the bell and was forced back into the Hidaka River.

Part Three:
A while later, Anchin and the woman-serpent came to the monks in dreams and he asked that a chapter from the Lotus Sutra be copied and dedicated to him. The monks did and in a 2nd dream Anchin told them that it freed him to go tot he Tushita heaven and the woman was freed to the Toriten heaven.