The Emperor ordered Jofuku to set out for the land of Horaizan, to find the hermits, and to bring him back a phial of the magic elixir. One old courtier, Jofuku by name, said that far away across the seas there was a country called Horaizan, and that certain hermits lived there who possessed the secret of the “Elixir of Life.” Whoever drank of this wonderful draught lived forever. The Emperor at last called a meeting of his courtiers and asked them all if they could not find for him the “Elixir of Life” of which he had so often read and heard. Ah-if only he could find the “Elixir of Life,” he would be happy. When Shin-no-Shiko went to bed at night, when he rose in the morning, as he went through his day, the thought of death was always with him. He had everything in the world he could wish for, but in spite of all his happiness and the luxury and the splendor of his Court, the wisdom of his councilors and the glory of his reign, he was miserable because he knew that one day he must die and leave it all. He built all the large palaces, and also the famous great wall of China. He was one of the most able and powerful rulers in Chinese history. Sentaro had often heard the tale of the Chinese King named Shin-no-Shiko. This was the latest story of a very long life record. He knew there were many stories in ancient history of emperors who had lived a thousand years, and there was a Princess of Yamato, who, it was said, lived to the age of five hundred. He wondered whether it were possible, by living simply and frugally henceforth, to prolong his life as long as he wished. The ordinary span of a man’s life is very short.” “I should like to live,” he said to himself, “till I am five or six hundred years old at least, free from all sickness. The idea of falling ill or dying made him very wretched. One day, without any reason whatsoever, the thought of death and sickness came to him. He had inherited a small fortune from his father and lived on this, spending his time carelessly, without any serious thoughts of work, till he was about thirty-two years of age.
His surname meant “Millionaire,” but although he was not so rich as all that, he was still very far removed from being poor. Long, long ago there lived a man called Sentaro. You should visit Browse Happy and update your internet browser today! The embedded audio player requires a modern internet browser.
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