Kumasaka (The Robber) is a Noh play from the 15th century… about the notable Heian period bandit Kumasaka no Chohan. The play takes the form of Mugen Noh – supernatural, or dream-time Noh. The samurai hero, Minamoto no Yoshitsune – known in his early life as Ushiwaka or Young Bull – had a series of David and Goliath encounters attributed to him in his youth, one of which concerned repelling a bandit attack led by the robber Kumasaka (a figure sometimes identified as the slayer of Young Bull’s mother). A travelling monk is offered shelter by another, on condition that he prays for an anonymous soul buried by a pine-tree. The traveler is surprised to see a large pike hanging on the cottage wall; and the other uncovers his past as a robber, before vanishing, thereby revealing to the priest that “It was under the shadow of a pine-tree that he had rested”. Thereafter, the robber reappears as the ghost of Kumasaka, and tells the story of his last fight, and of his death at the hands of Ushiwaka, “The wonderful boy… be he ogre or hobgoblin”.
First Appearance The Tale of the Heike (c. 13th century) — references Kumasaka Chōhan as a bandit figure
First Publisher ○
Appearance List The Tale of the Heike (c. 13th century) — references Kumasaka Chōhan as a bandit figure, Kumasaka (Noh play, 15th century) attributed to Zenchiku Ujinobu — ghost story (mugen Noh) in which Kumasaka’s spirit appears to a traveling monk, Eboshi‑ori (Noh play, 16th century) by Miyamasu, Edo-period otogi‑zōshi & kabuki adaptations, Ukiyo-e depictions (e.g., Yoshitoshi prints)
Description Kumasaka (The Robber) is a Noh play from the 15th century… about the notable Heian period bandit Kumasaka no Chohan. The play takes the form of Mugen Noh – supernatural, or dream-time Noh. The samurai hero, Minamoto no Yoshitsune – known in his early life as Ushiwaka or Young Bull – had a series of David and Goliath encounters attributed to him in his youth, one of which concerned repelling a bandit attack led by the robber Kumasaka (a figure sometimes identified as the slayer of Young Bull’s mother). A travelling monk is offered shelter by another, on condition that he prays for an anonymous soul buried by a pine-tree. The traveler is surprised to see a large pike hanging on the cottage wall; and the other uncovers his past as a robber, before vanishing, thereby revealing to the priest that “It was under the shadow of a pine-tree that he had rested”. Thereafter, the robber reappears as the ghost of Kumasaka, and tells the story of his last fight, and of his death at the hands of Ushiwaka, “The wonderful boy… be he ogre or hobgoblin”.
