Kuniyoshi: Dragon (Tatsu); Benkei and Bell (Sold)

The fierce and larger-than-life Musashi-bô Benkei hurls the bell of Miidera Temple from the top of Mount Hiei. It was said that in the 10th century he dragged the bell to the top of the mountain and got mad when he tried to strike the bell and he heard it ring “eeno eeno”, which means “I want to go back” in the Kansai dialect. Benkei then threw the bell down to the bottom of the valley. The bell still survives, and the scars and cracks on it are said to be the result of this incident.