Akinosuke was a farmer in feudal Japan. One day while eating with friends he fell asleep under an ancient cedar tree. When he awoke all his friends had gone, but a royal procession was coming towards him. He was informed that it belonged to the king of Tokoga (a dream world) and the King had summoned Akinosuke to the royal court. At the palace Akinosuke was taken to the king and to his amazement the King announced that the royal Princess would immediately become Akinosuke's bride.
Soon after they were sent as Governors to a small beautiful island. They lived an enchanted idyllic life for seven years, each year Akinosuke's wife bore him a beautiful new child. But suddenly Akinosuke's wonderful wife died. He was heartbroken and grief stricken. He held a solemn, yet beautiful funeral for her and built a mausoleum in her honour.
Soon after he was re-called to the royal court, leaving his children in safe hands he boarded a small boat and departed from the island. From the sea all of a sudden to Akinosuke's shock and horror the island disappeared. Just as suddenly he found himself back under the cedar tree with his friends. His friends explained that he had only been napping for a few minutes, but something strange had happened. As he had fallen asleep a yellow butterfly had seemed to fly from his mouth. The butterfly had been captured by an ant and taken under the cedar tree. On Akinosuke's wakening, the yellow butterfly re-appeared.
His friends speculated that the butterfly was Akinosuke's soul, so they decided to investigate the old cedar tree. At it's base they found a big colony of ants and just a little off a smaller colony. Akinosuke noticed a small stone in the middle of the smaller colony. To his eyes this stone resembled the dreams mausoleum, he could not help but lift the stone. Under the stone was a tiny clay coffin with the body of a female ant lying peacefully in it.
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