Momotarō ("Peach Boy") is a popular hero of
Japanese folklore.
Momotarō was born from a giant peach, which was found
floating down a river by an old, childless woman who was washing clothes there.
The woman and her husband discovered the child when they tried to open the
peach to eat it. The child explained that he had been bestowed by the gods to
be their son. The couple named him Momotarō, from momo (peach) and tarō (eldest
son in the family). When he was just five years old, he was able to cut a big
tree with just an old knife.
When he matured into adolescence, Momotarō left his parents
to fight a band of Oni (demons or ogres) who marauded over their land, by
seeking them out in the distant island where they dwelled (a place called
Onigashima or "Demon Island"). En route, Momotarō met and befriended
a talking dog, monkey and pheasant, who agreed to help him in his quest in
exchange for a portion of his rations (kibi dango or "millet
dumplings"). At the island, Momotarō and his animal friends penetrated the
demons' fort and beat the band of demons into surrendering. Momotarō and his
new friends returned home with the demons' plundered treasure and the demon
chief as a captive.
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