Anju and Zushio

 

Iwaki Masauji, the Governor of 56 counties in Mutsu and Dewa Provinces, was exiled to Tsukushi Province due to false accusations. Masauji's wife and their two children, Anju and Zushio, were left behind in Dewa Province and fell on hard times. They decided to travel to Tsukushi Province to reunite with Masauji. When they arrived at Naoetsu in Echigo Province, however, they were captured by Yamaoka Tayu, a human trafficker. Masauji’s wife was sold to Sado Jiro on Sado Island, while his daughter and son were sold to Sansho Tayu, the head of Yuraminato in Tango Province and a salt manufacturer. Under Sansho Tayu, Anju and Zushio were ruthlessly exploited and abused. Zushio was forced to gather three loads of firewood a day, and Anju was forced to draw three loads of seawater a day. Zushio wept over his sickle as he cut wood, and Anju wept over her bucket as she drew the brine.

One day, Anju and Zushio attempted to escape secretly together, but they were caught. As punishment, Anju was branded on the forehead with a red-hot iron chopstick. However, thanks to their guardian deity, Ksitigarbha, the burn left no scar.

Later, the sister persuaded her brother to escape alone, promising they would meet again. Though Zushio hesitated to leave his older sister, he eventually fled. After he left, Anju threw herself into a nearby swamp and took her own life. Her body was respectfully buried by the villagers. This tragic event occurred on January 16, 1082, when Anju was 16 years old and Zushio was 13.

Meanwhile, Zushio escaped to Kokubun-ji Temple in Tango Province, where he was rescued by a priest and sent to Gongen-do Hall in Shichijo Suzaku, Kyoto. At last, he succeeded in directly petitioning the Imperial Court to report the details of his family's downfall. As a result, Masauji’s crimes were pardoned, and Zushio was restored to his father's territories. Furthermore, the slanderer's lands were confiscated and given to Zushio.

Riding the wave of the Iwaki family's restoration, Zushio requested and was granted lands in Tango, Echigo, and Sado Provinces. Using these territories as his bases, Zushio first returned to Tango Province, where he rewarded the Kokubun-ji priest who had once sheltered him, and executed Sansho Tayu and his son, Saburo. In Echigo, he put Yamaoka Tayu to death. Finally, Zushio traveled across Sado Island in search of his long-lost mother. One day, he heard an old woman singing, "I love Anju, hoyareho. I love Zushio, hoyareho." Realizing this was his mother, Zushio ran up to her and threw his arms around her.