3 Kumagai Naozane

　　At the age of 53, Naozane retired from samurai life and became a Buddhist priest. He wanted to console people who had been killed. He had felt very sorry about Atsumori for a long time. He studied Buddhism very hard. He came back to his dear old hometown, Kumagaya when he was 66 years old. There is an interesting story known as “Sakasa Uma”. When he left Kyoto for Kumagaya, he rode his horse backward. He thought, “I shouldn’t turn my back to Kyoto because I studied Buddhism there.”

　　The Strongest Samurai ended his 67 years of life as a Buddhist priest in Kumagaya at the beginning of the 13^th century. Now Naozane’s story still lives in Kabuki and Ukiyoe. You can also see the statue of Naozane in front of Kumagaya station. (24５語) .

Minamoto Yoshitsune 源義経　　Taira Atsumori 平敦盛　　defeat 打ち負かす

The Battle in Ichino-tani 一ノ谷の合戦 engage in single combat 一騎打ちで戦う

fellow samurai 家来　 could not help ～ing ～せずにはいられなかった Heike Monogatari 平家物語

Buddhism 仏教 become a Buddhist priest 出家する console 慰める

had been killed それまでに殺された had felt ずっと感じていた

Sakasa Uma 逆さ馬 backwards 後ろ向きに

turn one’s back to～～に背を向ける

アメリカからの留学生マイク(Mike)は武藤先生の家にホームステイしています。ある日マイクは部屋で何かを見つけ、武藤先生にたずねています。
Mike:	Ms. Muto. What are these cards?
Ms. Muto:	Oh, they’re a game called Karuta.
	Each card has a picture of special place or thing from Kumagaya.
Mike:	That sounds interesting.
Ms. Muto:	My children practice reading with them. Take a card and try to read it.
Mike:	OK. “Su wo tsukuru musashitomio wa sakana desu.”
Ms. Muto:	Now look for the picture with the character “su” on it.
Mike:	OK… Here it is!
Ms. Muto:	Do you understand the meaning?
Mike:	I think so. The fish in the picture make their own nests.
Ms. Muto:	That’s right! They’re a natural treasure.
Mike:	Oh, really?
	You can learn a lot about Kumagaya from these cards, can’t you?
Ms. Muto:	Yes, you can. We also have cards about Kumagai Naozane.
Mike:	Who’s that?
Ms. Muto:	He is called the strongest samurai in Japan. He was born in Kumagaya.
	You can see his statue in front of Kumagaya station.
Mike:	Oh yes! I’ve seen that statue! Those cards sound really interesting too.
	Can I borrow the cards about Kamagai Naozane first?
Ms. Muto:	Sure.
Mike:	Thank you. I really want to learn about Samurai.
Ms. Muto:	Well, there are many kinds of Karuta cards so you can learn about many things.
Mike:	Great! Ms. Muto, I just had an idea!
Ms. Muto:	What is it?
Mike:	When I leave Japan, I want to give a goodbye present to your children.
	So, I’d like to make them some Karuta cards about my hometown in the USA .
Ms. Muto:	That’s a great idea, Mike! They will be very excited.
Mike:	I will draw the pictures. Can you help me write the Japanese?
Ms. Muto:	Of course, I can.
Mike:	Thank you. Well, I should start making the cards now. I have a lot of work to do!

	In 1184, he went to Kyoto with Minamoto Yoshitsune. There was a famous battle called “The Battle in Ichino-tani”. Naozane had a fight with a young samurai, Taira Atsumori. These two samurai engaged in single combat.