Red Candle

A Japanese children's story by Nankichi Niimi. It was first published in 1936.

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A monkey comes down from the mountain to the village to play. The Monkey finds a red candle. Red candles are rarely seen.

So the Monkey thought the red candle was a firework.

The Monkey took the red candle back to the mountain.

It caused a big commotion. Deer, boars, rabbits, turtles, weasels, raccoons, and foxes had never seen fireworks.

The Monkey had found the fireworks.

"It's lovely!"
"How magnificent!"

A red candle drew in deer, boars, rabbits, turtles, weasels, raccoons, and foxes.

Then the Monkey said.
"Stay away. You might get a sudden and intense reaction."

Everyone backed away in surprise.

Then the Monkey told them how the fireworks shot up. They made a loud noise and spread beautifully in the sky.
Everyone wanted to see something so beautiful.

"Then, let's go to the top of the mountain tonight and set off fireworks," Monkey suggested.

Everyone was overjoyed. The fireworks mesmerized everyone. They spread like stars in the night sky.

When night fell, everyone headed for the top of the mountain with a sense of excitement.

Monkey had already tied a red candle to a tree branch and waited for everyone to come.

It was time to set off the fireworks. But there was a problem.
No one wanted to light the fireworks.

Everyone loved to watch the fireworks, but no one wanted to light them.
They decided to draw lots to see who would light them.

The first one chosen was the turtle. The turtle bravely approached the fireworks.
Unfortunately, the turtle's head pulled back as it neared the fireworks. So it could not light them.

Then, the lottery was held again. This time, a weasel was chosen.

The weasel was superior to the turtle because it did not retract its head.

But the weasel was very nearsighted. So, it just wandered around the candle.

Finally, the boar stepped forward. The boar was a courageous creature.
The boar lit the fireworks.

The surprise made everyone jump into the bushes and cover their ears. They covered not only their ears but also their eyes.

But the candles just burned quietly, with no reactions.