Who Are the Prince Ishitsukuri / Prince Kuramochi / Minister of the Right Abe no Miushi / Grand Counselor Ōtomo no Miyuki (The Five Suitors)?
The five noblemen who sought to marry Princess Kaguya
The Five Noble Suitors
The five noble suitors are the five high-ranking men in The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter who ask to marry Princess Kaguya. They are Prince Ishitsukuri, Prince Kuramochi, the Minister of the Right Abe no Miushi, the Grand Counselor Ōtomo no Miyuki, and the Middle Counselor Isonokami no Marotari.
In Chapter 1, even after all the other men give up and leave, these five keep visiting the princess's house day and night. Later, she asks each of them to bring her a treasure that is almost impossible to obtain: the Buddha's stone begging bowl, a jeweled branch from the island of Hōrai, a robe made from the fur of the fire-rat, the jewel from a dragon's neck, and a swallow's cowrie shell said to ensure safe childbirth. All five of them fail.
The names Abe no Miushi, Ōtomo no Miyuki, and Isonokami no Maro closely resemble those of real people who lived shortly before the Nara period. For this reason, some believe the characters were modeled on actual historical figures.
Episodes featuring this character2
NEWEpisode 1
He Cut the Bambooand Found a Tiny Girl — Princess Kaguya
In a bamboo grove at dawn, the Bamboo Cutter finds a glowing stalk with a palm-sized girl inside, and he and his wife take her home. In just three months she grows into a beautiful young woman, and she is named Princess Kaguya. Five noble suitors refuse to give up on her. When the Bamboo Cutter begs her to marry, she replies, "I will marry whoever shows me the thing I wish to see."
19 pages
NEWEpisode 2
To Marry Her, Find What Doesn't ExistPrincess Kaguya's Five Impossible Tasks
Five noble suitors just won't stop showing up, so Princess Kaguya sets them a challenge: if they truly love her, each must bring her a treasure that doesn't exist in this world. Prince Ishitsukuri goes first, and he cheats to get his bowl. The real one is said to glow blue. Will this one glow in the princess's light?
19 pages